Focus On
Practise, practise, practise
Menno businessmen named to the Order of Canada
Two Mennonite businessmen have been named to the Order of Canada by Governor General David Johnston, out of a total of 91 recipients recognized. Ron Schlegel of Waterloo, Ont., was named an officer for his work and philanthropy in the area of aging. Elmer Hildebrand of Winnipeg was recognized for his leadership in communication as a member of the Order.
Wearing the Hijab
Healthy living begins with wholesome food at Sam’s Place
Packages of beans, tomatoes, carrots, apples and pesto fill the freezers at Sam’s Place, a used book store, café and performing arts venue in the Winnipeg neighbourhood of Elmwood.
Why and how we should evangelize
North American volume now available
The fifth and final volume in the Global Mennonite History Series, the history of North American Mennonites, was released in late September. Seeking Places of Peace by Royden Loewen and Steven M. Nolt, completes the Mennonite World Conference history series, which has been overseen by historians John A. Lapp and C. Arnold Snyder.
2012 Fall list of Books & Resources
Destination Winnipeg
We returned to Canada July 18, 2011, after spending six years teaching at the International Christian School in Hong Kong. My husband Dave and I moved into a condo in downtown Winnipeg and prepared for a very different life than the one we had been leading.
New Master of Peace and Conflict Studies degree will equip visionary leaders
Kitchener resident Patty Dorsey was at a crossroads in life. After raising five children and working with mentally challenged individuals for twenty years, Dorsey needed a change in direction. At the encouragement of her husband, she returned to school as a student in Social Development Studies and Peace and Conflict Studies (PACS). Dorsey felt like life was perfect.
Muslim and Mennonite women enjoy study and friendship
On a warm summer evening in Winnipeg there is lots of laughter, picture-taking, and food—it’s very much a typical “girls’ night out.” But this party is unique as more than half the women are Shia Muslims from Iran and they’re celebrating the end of an intense week of the study of Christianity. They’re also celebrating the friendships they’ve formed.
What would Jesus eat?
Like most North Americans, I grew up in a household where no meal was complete without a serving of meat, although I didn’t really know where the meat that I ate came from.
A green heritage
Jane Snyder chose the local Seven Shores Urban Market and Café in Uptown Waterloo to meet. Within walking distance of her home, and featuring local produce and fair trade coffee, it met many of the principles to which she, her husband, parents and work hold.
Something new under the sun
There’s nothing new under the sun, the writer of Ecclesiastes tells us, but in Waterloo Region, Ont., there are lots of new things under the sun: solar projects, that is!
Never Again
Charlie Clark, who grew up in the United Church tradition, listened carefully to the stories of his beloved Grandpa Ritchie on his fruit orchard in Naramata, B.C. The stories came from a gentle man who had seen war up close and who believed there was a better way to solving problems.
Spring 2012 List of Books & Resources
Uncovering our first roots
Exploring complexities of peace
The way Mennonites talk about peace has changed in the past 100 years. While our grandparents talked about “nonresistance,” today we are apt to relate peace to “justice.” Stutzman, executive-director of Mennonite Church U.S.A., takes a careful look at what was written, especially in church periodicals, to trace how and why these changes happened.
Policing: A form of nonviolence?
In this wonderfully crafted booklet, the last before his untimely death, A. James Reimer gives his readers a gift with his succinct summary of a topic that has preoccupied much of Christian theology. The genius of Christians and War lies in a careful and eminently fair portrayal of how warfare has been understood in church history.
Acknowledging a sinful past
In the eyes of the watching world the Christian church is often seen for its mistakes, and as the church looks upon itself it must acknowledge this sinful past. While the church is not defined solely by these wrongs, the body of Christ must take responsibility for sinful actions committed in the name of Christ.
Why write a book about a website?
Too busy for life’s priorities
I wish e-mail took up less of my life. I wish I could remember the last time I savoured a sunset. I wish I prayed more.
“I do not understand my own actions,” wrote the Apostle Paul, “for I do not do what I want.” Arthur Boers explores this conundrum in his new book, Living Into Focus: Choosing What Matters in an Age of Distraction.
‘Self in Mennonite garb’
We Mennonites are not going to run out of stories anytime soon!
How could we, after the resplendent feast of Mennonite creative writing enjoyed by 170 of us in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley over Palm Sunday weekend at the “Mennonite/s Writing VI: Solos and harmonies” event hosted by Eastern Mennonite University.
Family camp becomes family’s summer highlight
A week of Family Camp at Camp Squeah turned out to be a summer highlight for the Wiens family of Abbotsford, B.C. Maria Wiens, her husband Gerhard and children Jacob and Elizabeth spent a week of their summer playing together, trying new activities, enjoying both family time and couple time, and being nurtured body and soul.
Camp offers unique music experience
Ontario Mennonite Music Camp is gearing up for its 29th year of music making. We’ve got a lot to offer! As always, we promise lots of music: piano, voice, winds, brass, choir, strings, and new this year, guitar. We’ll have you staying in the dormitory at Conrad Grebel University College. We’ll let you sample some of the best dorm food you’ll ever eat.
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