In advance of Canada’s first-ever National Day for Truth and Reconciliation tomorrow (Sept. 30), Mennonite Church Canada is reminding the nationwide church about Mennonite... Read More
News & Stories
Previously known as Orange Shirt Day, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on Sept. 30 is an opportunity to remember the impacts of Canada’s 140 Indian Residential Schools. (Photo by Aaron Epp)
September 29, 2021 | Web First |
Benjamin Unruh (front row, third from left) stands with refugee representatives in Moelln, Germany, circa 1930. Unruh, a displaced Mennonite from the Soviet Union living in Germany and a committed Nazi, negotiated with the Nazi government on behalf of MCC regarding a debt the relief organization owed. (Mennonite Heritage Archives photo)
Mennonite Central Committee has released the findings of its research on the organization’s historical entanglements with German National Socialism (or Nazism) and its legacy... Read More
September 29, 2021 | Web First | Laura Kalmar
‘Tongue-Tied: Learning the Lost Art of Talking about Faith’ is the Common Read title for fall 2021. (Photo by Aaron Epp)
In September 2020, Mennonite Church Canada, Mennonite Church U.S.A. and Herald Press began encouraging Mennonites to engage in a “common read,” a shared reading experience focused... Read More
September 28, 2021 | News |
Bales of hay at Flynn Farms in Clinton, Ont., are being loaded onto a truck owned by Hutton Transport of Paisley, Ont. MDS hopes to send 50 truckloads of hay to Saskatchewan. (Mennonite Disaster Service Canada photo)
Nine years ago, farmers in Saskatchewan sent hay to drought-stricken livestock producers in Ontario through Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) Canada. Now farmers in Ontario are... Read More
September 22, 2021 | News |
Churches across Canada are sharing online services. Here Moses Falco leads worship at Sterling Mennonite in Winnipeg. (Screenshot from MC Canada website)
“It is important to let go of perfectionism and the desire to get things right. We will make mistakes. People forget to go on mute, there is background noise, videos don’t work... Read More
September 22, 2021 | News | Christen Kong
Menno Home in Abbotsford has experienced challenges this past year, both with staffing shortages and COVID outbreaks. (Photo by Menno Place)
Menno Home, one of the residential care homes on Menno Place senior care campus in Abbotsford, experienced a COVID-19 outbreak the first week of September. It was announced by... Read More
September 22, 2021 | News | Amy Rinner Waddell
Anne Herridge (director of children’s ministry) and Gerry Binnema (lead pastor) enjoy some lighthearted moments as they help launch the church year at Crossroads Community Church in Chilliwack, B.C. (Photo courtesy of Crossroads Community Church)
Mennonite Church congregations in B.C., most of whom are just resuming in-person worship, are celebrating the beginning of the church year in various ways. Youth and young adults... Read More
September 22, 2021 | News | Amy Rinner Waddell
The Hoffnungsfelder Mennonite Church building in Mayfair, Sask. is no longer open for regular services, but a small group of members and former members still want to see it maintained. (Photos courtesy of Laura Toews)
The Hoffnungsfelder Mennonite Church, near the village of Mayfair, Sask., needed new siding and windows, but there was no money left in the operating fund. So the Toews family... Read More
September 22, 2021 | News | Donna Schulz
Ray Dirks travelled to Yogyakarta, Indonesia in 2001 to hear stories from Mennonite families and meet artists for his book, In God’s Image: A Global Anabaptist Family. (Photo courtesy of Ray Dirks)
The founder and curator of the Mennonite Heritage Centre (MHC) Gallery, Ray Dirks, retired after 23 years of leadership. His career at the gallery, which ended on July 31, has... Read More
September 22, 2021 | People | Nicolien Klassen-Wiebe
The book reflects the effort to have a conversation between conflict transformation and contemplative spirituality.
At the Sept. 9 launch for Betty Pries’ new book, called The Space Between Us: Conversations About Transforming Conflict , Jennifer Ball called it a “handbook for being human,” and... Read More
September 22, 2021 | People | Janet Bauman
Wall hanging from used (and laundered) paper facemasks, by Lois Siemens. (Photo by Lois Siemens)
Whether they’re covering faces, hanging from rear-view mirrors, lining pockets or lying in gutters, facemasks are ubiquitous. But for Lois Siemens they are also a blank canvas... Read More
September 22, 2021 | People | Donna Schulz
Gerard (Abouyou) Roberts from the Indigenous worship band Okama dances in the video for “Rainmaker.”
Stratford, Ont.-based rock band Upside of Maybe released its latest music video at the beginning of January, but it took on new resonance in May upon the confirmation of more than... Read More
September 22, 2021 | Web First | Aaron Epp
Meserete Kristos Church worship in Ethiopia.
Mennonite Church Canada invites congregations across its nationwide community of faith to celebrate International Witness Sunday on Oct. 24, 2021. The focus of this year’s... Read More
September 20, 2021 | Web First |
Farmers in Binga, Zimbabwe, show off a strong cowpea crop from this past harvest season. They will be able to include additional protein in their diets thanks to the cowpeas, or sell the crop for additional income. (Kulima Mbobumi Training Centre photo)
A combination of favourable weather conditions and good farming practices means many farmers have had a fantastic growing season at many of the Canadian Foodgrains Bank project... Read More
September 20, 2021 | Web First | Amanda Thorsteinsson
Canadian Mennonite University celebrated the Class of 2021 last month during an outdoor event at the university. (Photos courtesy of CMU)
After a year of mingling on Zoom and many online classes, the Canadian Mennonite University community gathered in person on Aug. 21 to celebrate the Class of 2021. At an outdoor... Read More
September 20, 2021 | Web First | Canadian Mennonite University
‘We Declare: What We Have Seen and Heard’ is the title and theme for Mennonite Church Canada’s Gathering 2022 in Edmonton.
“We Declare: What We Have Seen and Heard” will be an opportunity for members of the nationwide church to re-examine what it means to tell the good news and to share and hear... Read More
September 16, 2021 | Web First |
Donavan Arcand, kneeling centre, teaches participants how to play Indigenous hand games. (Photo by Donna Schulz)
One by one, they slipped inside the large tent, out of the drizzle. They came from far and near to hear stories, share a meal, play games and enjoy each other’s company. On Aug... Read More
September 8, 2021 | News | Donna Schulz
Kenai Warkentin participates in a ladder-ball-toss game at this year’s Springridge Mennonite Church picnic. (Photo by Tany Warkentin)
The all-day annual Springridge Mennonite Church picnic was held this year at Fishburn Park on Aug. 15. Beginning with worship in the morning, the day included a potluck lunch;... Read More
September 8, 2021 | News | Joanne De Jong
Circle of Friends participants connect at their 2019 fall gathering. (Photo courtesy of MCC Ontario)
Circle of Friends is described as a “humble program” with “humble goals.” Margaret Smart, the program’s coordinator, believes it is “an amazing example of the power of small... Read More
September 8, 2021 | News | Janet Bauman
Living Hope Christian Fellowship of Surrey, B.C., hosted a Vacation Bible School program in August, with half the children attending coming from the community. (Living Hope Christian Fellowship photo)
In a summer when many public activities, including church services, were curtailed, Living Hope Christian Fellowship of Surrey, B.C., hosted a Vacation Bible School (VBS) program... Read More
September 8, 2021 | News | Amy Rinner Waddell
‘As a settler, I know very little,’ says Kim Thiessen of Winnipeg. ‘But I am trying. . . . I have a burning desire to set things right and do what I can.’ (Photo by John Longhurst)
Like many Canadians, Winnipegger Kim Thiessen was devastated when she learned about the 215 unmarked graves of children at the Kamloops, B.C., residential school earlier this year... Read More
September 8, 2021 | People | John Longhurst
An image from Kindred Credit Union’s Community Inspiration Framework illustrates one of the 10 themes—financial empowerment—that guides how Kindred makes its purpose statement tangible. (Image by Maya Morton Ninomiya)
Recent research shows a “high percentage of people . . . find personal financing incredibly intimidating,” says Frank Chisholm, director of brand and marketing for Kindred Credit... Read More
September 8, 2021 | Focus on Money | Janet Bauman
Tallying up deposits and withdrawals, monitoring budgets and submitting forms, the ‘numbers people’—treasurers and bookkeepers—toil in basement corners and home offices, month in and month out. (Photo by Susan Klassen)
Every church has a plethora of creative ministries, but a couple roles will show up everywhere. Tallying up deposits and withdrawals, monitoring budgets and submitting forms, the... Read More
September 8, 2021 | Focus on Money | Charleen Jongejan Harder
Natasha Wiebe
“I don’t want to support banks,” says Natasha Wiebe, statistician at the University of Alberta and a member of Edmonton First Mennonite Church. “For me, banks are primarily about... Read More
September 8, 2021 | Focus on Money | Joanne De Jong
(Flickr photo by Mike Cohen)
Financial giving from Mennonite Church Canada congregations and individuals was stable in 2020 despite pandemic economic uncertainty. By year-end, the regional church bodies and... Read More
September 8, 2021 | Focus on Money | Tobi Thiessen