Hope in Boricha
Our Manitoba correspondent journeyed to Ethiopia last fall as part of a learning tour sponsored by Canadian Foodgrains Bank (CFGB). She reports her findings of the CFGB’s work with Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), Meserete Kristos Church (MKC), and other relief and development agencies in the story, “Reclaiming Ethiopia.” Following are profiles of two of the people…
Obituary, Marianne Thiessen
Marianne (Dyck) Thiessen, a charter member of Pineridge Christian Fellowship, Calgary, died on Nov. 8, 2014. Professionally a nurse, yet she was much more than that: a flower that never faded, a softener of hearts, an exemplary mother and wife, a gentle spirit who eased tensions and warmed relationships. Her journey began in Drake, Sask.,…
Pensions and recklessness
In “Do Not Store up Treasures in Pensions” (Jan. 5, 2015 issue) I wrote about Mennonite Church (MC) Canada's “core option” pension plan and the complications of Socially Responsible Investment. See the article here. “Pensions: Follow the Money,” the online supplement to that piece, lists the companies and entities that constitute the MC Canada “core option.”…
For discussion: A biblical and better way
1. How has our society’s attitude toward same-sex relationships changed in the past 20 or 30 years? Who or what has contributed to this shift? How much has the church changed its attitude on this issue? 2. For several years, Mennonite Church Canada has been involved in the Being a Faithful Church (BFC) process and…
Looking back on a most incredible journey
A few years ago, when I prayed for a greater sense of social responsibility and deeper bonds with fellow Christians, I had no idea God would answer my prayer as creatively as he did. That fall, I was invited to attend the MC B.C. Women’s Ministry retreat weekend at Camp Squeah in Hope by a…
Changes for the church
If there was one book in 2014 that had me despairing and cursing, but fired up to hope, it was Naomi Klein’s This Changes Everything (Knopf Canada). Klein is a journalist-activist who writes game-changers that dismantle the powerful myths of corporate culture. In her most recent book, she makes the case that capitalism is destroying…
Take on a demon
Whom are you battling? Can you picture them or it? Everyone is at war, some on numerous fronts. “Be kind,” wrote Philo of Alexandria. “Everyone you meet is fighting a great battle.” This is an important point. To remember that every irritating person is human like I am, confronted daily by battles, would certainly make…
‘Walk alongside’
Twitter informed me this morning that Bethany College in Hepburn, Sask., is closing in 2015 after 87 years of teaching. Ron Toews, director of the Canadian Conference of MB Churches’ leadership development arm, says, “The closure of Bethany doesn’t change the reality that we need to continue walking alongside young women and men as they…
Readers write: January 19, 2015 issue
Mennonites share their faith through their lives
