Notes from afar
In early July, I was in Indonesia—virtually. Like approximately 800 other Anabaptists around the world, I registered as an online participant of Indonesia 2022, the 17th assembly of Mennonite World Conference (MWC). You’ll find coverage of that significant event on pages 4 to 7 and 13 to 23 of this issue, including reporting on the…
World assembly small but full of joy
With its national motto of “unity in diversity,” Indonesia proved a fitting host for the 17th assembly of Mennonite World Conference (MWC)—downsized by COVID-19 restrictions but full of joy, beauty and fellowship. In an outdoor venue at a Mennonite seminary on a mountaintop in the city of Salatiga, on the island of Java, Anabaptists from…
Readers write: July 25, 2022 issue
A ‘sad day’ for Indigenous-Settler Relations Re: “Indigenous relations work revamped, reduced,” May 30, page 14. The governing body of Mennonite Church Canada has abruptly let Steve Heinrichs go after more than 10 years of service in the Indigenous-Settler Relations position, but they are stingy with information about why they did so. The article also…
An undefended spirit
Bought tires for my pickup and determined to install them myself. I no longer have the specific equipment, so tire work involves scrabbling on a concrete floor with hammer and pry bars. The first wheel went well. In short order, the old tire was stripped off, the new one levered on and inflated. The only…
Cycling the Black history of Ontario
When I moved from Alberta last year, my explorations of Ontario began by bike. My cycling companions showed me things I had not heard of. Once, we biked past the towering statue of some military guy on the heights above the town of Queenston. Just a day earlier, we had cycled around another part of the…
A trickle of trust
The camping trip had a rough start. While packing to go we got a phone call with a heart-stopping estimate for our car repairs, the first of two vehicles needing work. We were definitely feeling the financial crunch. My wife received her last paycheque before the summer break, we had other bills due, and we…
‘It’s going to impact how I exist as a Christian’
Andrew Klassen Brown wasn’t connecting with the worship at the Global Youth Summit until a quieter service on the final day moved him to tears. A group of participants from Europe were leading worship at the Summit, held from July 1 to 4 in Salatiga, Indonesia. They included Taizé singing in the service and a…
Indonesian doctors use medical expertise to follow Jesus
Two Indonesian doctors are using their medical degrees to follow Jesus Christ’s instruction to make disciples. In an afternoon workshop at the Mennonite World Conference (MWC) assembly in Salatiga, Indonesia, Elice Nurani and Fennisia Wibisono talked about the health ministry they operate an hour away at JKI Higher Than Ever in Semarang. The church, which is…
‘What we’re doing with MWC is incredibly radical’
Incredibly radical, remarkably beautiful and significantly complicated—that’s how Doug Klassen summarized his experience at the Mennonite World Conference (MWC) assembly earlier this month. Klassen, Mennonite Church Canada’s executive minister, was in Salatiga, Indonesia, to represent the nationwide church at MWC General Council meetings from July 1 to 4, and the assembly from July 5 to…
