Between ‘Pure’ and Mennonite Heritage Week
On the last week of May, season 2 of the crime show, Pure, started airing on the Super Channel. The show’s promotional material shows women in conservative Mennonite dress wielding rifles and filling packets with cocaine. Men in overalls, plaid shirts and straw hats intimidate a victim. The show purports to be “based on true…
The gifts of grey hair
“O God, from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds. So even to old age and grey hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I proclaim your might to all the generations to come” (Psalm 71:17-18). I have grey hair; this is where life has placed me. I am…
Readers write: June 10, 2019 issue
Carbon answers Re: “Carbon questions” letter, April 29, page 8. Carbon is created in stars and distributed through the universe as dust, which, in turn, forms the next generation of stars and their planets. Carbon is one of the most abundant elements in the universe and the 15th most abundant element in the Earth’s…
Church relations on so many different levels
You are what you eat, or can it be said you are who you work with? There’s also the phrase, “two peas in a pod,” but this time there’s three of us. On the surface, it could be said that Kevin Barkowsky, Garry Janzen and I are nothing alike, but, as Mennonite Church British Columbia…
Namaka cutting wheat
A farmer cuts wheat on a farm in Namaka, Alta., in the 1920s. Food and its production continues to be a central driving force in society, affecting our health, quality of life and where we live. Forces such as mechanization, urbanization, and globalization have impacted the food matrix and our connection to the food we grow…
No ‘happy clappy Christians’ for Blake
My friend Blake Rooks died in early May. He was large, unkempt, unhealthy, opinionated and occasionally rude. He was an atheist. His kidneys didn’t work. He loved people. He carried a measure of English charm. All of these were qualities, along with others, that made him important in my life. One of Blake’s stories included…
Layers of faithfulness
A mentor once told me that, in her view, a female preacher should wear “straight lines” behind the pulpit. That is, a suit. Straight lines command greater authority, which means people are more likely to give your words credit. As someone who has never worn a suit in her life, this didn’t sit well with me…
A tender touch of gospel paradox
Jean Vanier, who died on May 7 at age 90, was a spiritual leader who shared the gospel in a way few, if any, had before. Born into near-aristocracy—his dad became Governor General of Canada—Vanier withdrew from a promising military career at age 23, shaken by the Holocaust and the bombing of Japan. A…
Muslims learn about Mennonites
On April 30, several Muslim families from Waterloo Region toured The Mennonite Story in St. Jacobs, in order to understand more about Mennonites. Leon Kehl of Floradale Mennonite Church extended the invitation as part of his effort to foster respect and mutual understanding between Mennonites and Muslims, something he has been working at over many…
