CommonWord’s top hits of 2020
The year of the coronavirus pandemic saw everyone spending more time at home, and many paying increased attention to their bookshelves. We asked CommonWord, the bookstore and resource centre of Mennonite Church Canada and Canadian Mennonite University, what people read in 2020. In-store and curbside pickup sales and loans across Canada have declined, says Arlyn…
‘Be It Resolved’ released
A new anthology published by Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Canada and Mennonite Church Canada hit the press this fall. Be it Resolved: Anabaptists & Partner Coalitions Advocate for Indigenous Justice, 1966-2020 is a collection of more than 90 documents detailing commitments Anabaptists have made to Indigenous justice and decolonization since the 1960s. “I was aware of…
Making believe together, participating in dialogue
Ancient cave drawings illustrate that artistic expression is endemic to humanity. And throughout history, artists have pushed boundaries and come into conflict with their communities. Mennonites exemplify this tension as much as or more than most communities, due to their emphasis on rules and ethics and a more literal interpretation of the biblical text. Mennonite…
Century-old photos shed new light on Mennonites
Hundred-year-old images on fragile glass negatives, discovered in a dusty barn in the heritage village of Neubergthal, Man., open a window to Mennonite life in Manitoba in the early 20th century. These photographs, along with other archive collections, make up the new book, Mennonite Village Photography: Views from Manitoba 1890-1940. The volume is a collaborative effort of…
Who goes canoeing with their mother-in-law?
Kyle Penner’s December wasn’t filled with just Christmas preparations, but with a multitude of book launches. The associate pastor of Grace Mennonite Church in Steinbach, Man., released his first book, a compilation of tales of his outdoor adventures entitled Who Goes Canoeing With Their Mother-in-Law? The Misguided Tales of an Avid Paddler. Last summer,…
Help for reading the Old Testament
Many conversations about the Old Testament are determined by questions of modernity. What are the facts? What really happened? The facts are then loaded as ammunition in the culture wars of “liberal” and “conservative.” Other questions bring faith to the shoals of doubt on matters of a potentially violent and misogynistic God. Melissa Florer-Bixler’s Fire…
A global conversation through books
“Although each congregation has its own history and social and cultural background, it is common to experience the same sorts of conflicts, troubles and situations,” says Ellul Yongha Bae, a Mennonite church leader and publisher in South Korea. “[Mennonite World Conference] communications is very helpful to show that, as Mennonite churches, we have raised similar questions…
Building resource connections
CommonWord is just over four years old. In that short time we have doubled our sales (reaching more than 10,000 retail customers last year), more than doubled the number of website users, and have continued to circulate half of our loan materials outside Manitoba—and increasingly to people outside our immediate Mennonite Church Canada and Canadian…
‘It Takes Raindrops to Fill a Lake’
More than 50 years ago, Walter Paetkau founded Abbotsford Community Services (ACS), an umbrella organization bringing various local service organizations under one roof. From humble beginnings in a two-room office, today ACS is now the largest community services organization in the province, with 90 programs fostering community well-being and social justice that encompass employment services,…
Remembering Rachel Held Evans
When Rachel Held Evans died on May 4 at the age of 37, it shocked the thousands of people who follow her work. Through her four books, blog, social media presence, speaking events and podcast appearances, Evans “challenged conservative Christianity and gave voice to a generation of wandering evangelicals wrestling with their faith,” as the…
