New realities for Mennonite schools
The 10 members of the Canadian Association of Mennonite Schools (CAMS)—located in every province between Ontario and British Columbia—can all trace their lineage to a Mennonite conference or group. We have seven schools directly connected to Mennonite Church Canada through their supporting churches, two schools that connect to the Mennonite Brethren Conference and one school…
A well-rounded education
‘Westgate . . . is a school grounded in the Anabaptist tradition. It is the mission of the school to provide a well-rounded education, which will inspire and empower students to live as people of God.’ When we unpack this mission statement, it is worth noting that it holds two areas to be important: the…
Book launch aids newcomers centre
On Nov. 10, Greenwoods Bookshoppe hosted a book launch for Canadian literary legend Rudy Wiebe’s newest book, Collected Stories/1955-2010, at Edmonton’s Oldtimer’s Cabin, a log building maintained by the Northern Alberta Pioneers and Descendants Association. It was Wiebe’s idea to use the event to fundraise for the Edmonton Mennonite Centre for Newcomers, a cause he…
From program partners to friends
It is not normally an unusual sight, good friends finishing each other’s sentences and laughing, except that Maggie Martens and Gillian Mayers have something special, perhaps even rare. They have a true friendship that transcends age barriers. The relationship began in 2002 as part of a mentorship program at Edmonton’s First Mennonite Church. In Grade…
Gift bags go to women in need
Christmas was a little merrier for women of Peardonville House treatment centre, thanks to some generous members of Level Ground Mennonite Church, Abbotsford. The week before Christmas five women from Level Ground packed 30 gift bags for residents of Peardonville House, a home for women recovering from chemical dependence. Each bag contained toiletries, socks, a…
The Prince of Peace is Jesus Christ
Grace Mennonite Church is engaged in an ongoing and earnest conversation about the Anabaptist peace position. Arnold Hildebrand, a church member and facilitator of a recent book study on the issue, says, “We need to make sure our position is clear. We have a shadow presence here in Brandon and I’d like to even almost…
The changing look of ‘peace’
As a Mennonite, peace is a part of my everyday vocabulary. I know it is a good thing—Jesus is the Prince of Peace after all—and I know that peace is found in right relationships, justice and grace. But what does peace look like, exactly? I grew up in a home where we understood that peace…
Treasure in clay jars
This fall, a controversial exhibition in Winnipeg, Man., grabbed my attention. After weeks of plodding mindlessly past graphic advertisements with bold letters announcing “Bodies: The exhibition,” I belatedly clued in to the fact that the bodies in the exhibition were in fact very real, formerly live bodies. The cadavers in the show had been sliced…
Things I know
I was chatting with friends about the good old days. We recalled becoming independent adults and making our own decisions. We laughed as we reminisced about the wise decisions as well as the mistakes we’d made, consequences we’d survived and advice from parents that was usually right and sometimes ignored. That experience, combined with reaching…
