Losing and gaining
September has been a whirlwind of change. It always is. One day we’re enjoying the lazy days of summer, when our mornings are spent park-hopping, lunches are always picnics, and supper is usually topped off with bicycle rides and ice cream cones. Bedtime is flexible, shoes are optional, and everyone goes to bed with dirt…
Easter reflections
We asked 10 people for their most meaningful Easter memory, or an image that best captures the essence of Easter, or what Easter makes them wonder. Holy Week turtle soup When I lived in the Colombian community of Mampujan, I was part of planning a commemorative event to mark 12 years of displacement. Armed groups…
Thrifting teens more world-aware
Just before 6 p.m. at the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Thrift and Gift in Elmira, an hour of chaos ensues. Outside, teens line up, ready for the moment the doors open for the very popular Teen Shopping Night, a recent Elmira tradition that embraces the growing world-awareness of young people in the area. Inside the…
Impacting the universe with the sounds we make
With her powerful, resonant voice, Ysaÿe Barnwell, composer, vocalist, speaker and former member of the African-American female a cappella ensemble Sweet Honey in the Rock, began to sing “Amazing Grace,” stretching out the length of each phrase. Members of the audience started to hum along. Soon she invited everyone to sing in full voice. The…
Love in the time of COVID-19
Thursday, as I sat down to a board meeting for the Micah Mission, a restorative justice organization in Saskatoon, I got the news that the Juno Awards show was being cancelled in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19. For months I’d been hearing the Junos hyped on CBC Radio 2 and seeing advertisements…
Open to us a door
When Hymnal: A Worship Book came out in 1992, “What is This Place” was chosen to be the lead hymn in the collection. The first line describes the church building as “Only a house, the earth its floor, walls and a roof . . . , windows for light, an open door.” But when the…
Canadian Mennonite earns six CCP awards
Canadian Mennonite walked away with six awards here at the annual banquet May 2 of the Canadian Church Press, getting a first-place award for a “theological reflection” series by Bruce Hiebert, two second-place awards for Young Voices and for layout and design of a feature, and three third-place awards for an editorial, a photo essay,…
Mukawa calls for reconciliation with God, others
Nzuzi Mukawa, a Congolese Mennonite Brethren pastor and educator and the MB Mission team leader for Sub Sahara Africa, challenged his audience Thursday evening to leave Mennonite World Conference Assembly as men and women who are reconciled with God and with others. Mukawa’s text was I Samuel 25:1-35, the story of David, Nabal and Abigail.…
Called to be a part of the church
Whenever she tells her faith story, Carrie Lehn always mentions her paternal grandmother, who, she says, is a key example of gentleness and love. She always has other people on her radar, Lehn says, writing them letters or cards, bringing them dessert or giving them thoughtful gifts. “She thinks about those little things that other…
Discipleship as citizenship
In the first 300 years of the Christian church, before church and state became fused, preachers and leaders regularly used the language of “citizenship” to describe the Christian community and its way of life. Where did this come from, and why was this linguistic practice forgotten? The most explicit example of this imagery comes from…
