Testing the ties that bind
More than a month into physical distancing in Canada, and the church seems to be flourishing. Does it seem that way to you? Having been forced to disrupt our usual worship traditions, many congregations have energetically jumped into trying new ways of being the church together. Mennonite Church Canada has been at the forefront to…
Encounters with the church in Cuba
Sixteen Anabaptist Christians from Canada and the United States came to Cuba from Jan. 12 to 16 to learn about the church there. I was one of them. Jack and Irene Suderman of First Mennonite Church in Kitchener, Ont., organized our travel experience through TourMagination. Longtime students of Cuban history, economics, culture and politics, the…
Readers write: April 27, 2020 issue
Let Wet’suwet’en exercise their right to self-determination Re: “Who do you support when a community is divided?” Feb. 17, page 20. I appreciate Canadian Mennonite opening up the dialogue on the Wet’suwet’en and Coastal Gas issue from a variety of perspectives. This settler dialogue is long overdue, as Indigenous revitalization of identity, culture and the…
‘Peace be with you’
There is a post-resurrection story that I find helpful this Easter as I contemplate the changing world around me. It is found in the Gospel of John, where we read that Jesus encounters his closest friends in their hiding place where they are holed up and fearing for their lives. We are told they are…
CO foresters
Conscientious objectors (COs) played an important role on the Canadian volunteer scene during the Second World War. Among the assignments was work in the forests around Banff, Alta., clearing trees. Surprisingly, much of the parks system in Canada was established by these people, some of whom were less than willing to be there or do…
Work-play-rest
As our life has quite abruptly and drastically shifted, along with everyone’s around the globe, I have been reflecting on our daily rhythm and working at reorganizing our schedule into a work-play-rest rhythm. We used to really enjoy a lazy Saturday with no plans or structure. The kids would play, my husband and I would…
Salt for the earth
These weeks of physical distancing, including Easter, have forced us to think more about what it means to be the church. We appreciate the phrase “the church has left the building!” We identify with Jesus’s disciples on Easter, huddled behind locked doors, filled with fear and despair. I have begun thinking about the church in…
The power of paradox
Christianity is rooted in paradox. A paradox is when two or more incompatible truths are held together to reveal a deeper hidden truth. An example of a paradox in Christianity is that the Kingdom of God is both already here and still coming in the future. Other examples include: God is three and one. The…
Mennonites explore virtual worship
“We’ve been thrown out of the boat and now we’re learning to walk on water!” This lighthearted metaphor comes from Cathrin van Sintern-Dick, as she considers changes in congregational life resulting from the novel coronavirus outbreak. Sintern-Dick serves on the regional ministry team of Mennonite Church Eastern Canada, and recently she helped lead an online…
