Acting ‘a little strange’
“When you learn to follow Jesus, you will act a little strange.” This memorable line comes from a song by Mennonite singer/songwriter Bryan Moyer Suderman. Besides being an earworm, this simple song encourages children, youth and adults to consider what their lives will look like as they’re learning to walk in the way of Jesus.…
We gratefully acknowledge . . .
In recent years, whether attending church meetings or public or community gatherings, Canadians may have heard opening words similar to these: “We gratefully acknowledge that we are meeting today on the traditional, ancestral territory of [local Indigenous group].” Especially since the national Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) report and Calls to Action published in 2015,…
Readers write: June 27, 2022 issue
Keep on keeping on After many years of supporting the withholding of military taxes and volunteering with Conscience Canada Peace Tax Trust Fund (CC), I have at last retired from the board. We have not yet achieved our goal: that it be legal in Canada for conscientious objectors (COs) to war to have their military…
Receiving a life-giving word
When God’s story connects with our story, the Holy Spirit is at work, bringing life. As author Anne Lamott says, “I do not at all understand the mystery of grace—only that it meets us where we are but doesn’t leave us where it found us.” In Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well…
Ladies at MWC
A large audience gathered for one of two “Women’s Section” meetings at the Mennonite World Conference held in Kitchener, Ont., in 1962. The women met to consider the conference theme, “The Lordship of Christ,” from the perspective of personal faith and the home. They also heard presentations on women’s service in women’s organizations, on congregational…
These are our people
We welcomed two babies and their families with words of blessing and commitment into our local congregation today. The wide-eyed babies took in all the people watching them and waving at them, with our pastors saying “Look, these are your people!” We welcomed three adults as new members into our local congregation today, by transfer…
A tune finds words
When we opened the portal for submissions to Voices Together, the new Mennonite hymnal, the committee received over 2,000 submissions from songwriters, text writers, and composers from around the world, many of whom were Mennonite. A few years into our process of screening the submissions portal and many other published sources, the committee noticed a…
My opinion on opinions
I recently heard a comedian say, “Everyone has an opinion on everything these days.” He continued, “When I was young, it wasn’t that way. People had maybe six opinions. Sometimes you’d meet a guy with, like, eight opinions, and you’d think, ‘Man that guy’s opinionated.’ But on average people had about six opinions. And most…
Large bequest ‘threatened to swamp us’
Shantz Mennonite Church held a dedication service on Sunday, June 5. It was intended to be for our new facilities, but in truth, it was primarily a rededication of ourselves. Like other followers of Christ, we have been aware that God is calling the church to a new beginning—one that reestablishes its centeredness in a…
