‘Why don’t we have a food-truck night?’
Let me tell you a story. A couple of years ago, our church council did some brainstorming around how to begin reaching out to our neighbours. Because our church is located in a rural community, the possibilities are limited and come with significant hurdles. During the discussion, one person piped up, “Why don’t we have…
COVID creativity: Cards, buns and wreaths
Like most of the country, Alberta is experiencing, its second wave of novel coronavirus. As of early December, as many as 1,800 Albertans were contracting COVID-19 every day. With the Christmas season approaching, every church had to look at past traditions and ask whether to try to alter them in some way or to cancel…
Feast of metaphors served at ‘Table talk’ conference
A feast of metaphors was on the menu for Mennonite Church Canada’s inaugural study conference on the character and mission of the church and the role of worship. “Table talk: Does the church still have legs?” was originally planned as an in-person gathering, but the Oct. 25 event was moved online because of pandemic gathering restrictions.…
Take care
Recently the worldwide number of souls lost to the COVID-19 virus surpassed 1 million. Visualizing that large number of lives cut short touches one’s own soul. We, the living, mourn and seek to understand. As members of the world community and participants in our own neighbourhoods and congregations, you and I are witnessing the many…
Communion and community during COVID-19
For many congregants, the invitation to receive communion at Edmonton’s First Mennonite Church on Sunday, Sept. 27 would mark the first time they had physically set foot in the building for six months. For Maggie Martens it was “an invitation I wasn’t going to pass up.” Martens lives alone and finds that Zoom communion via…
In defence of funerals
Does this sound familiar? “At George’s request, cremation has taken place. There will be no funeral home visitation or service. As expressions of sympathy, donations to the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre would be appreciated.” “At Jenny’s request, there will be no funeral home visitation. A family service will take place.” You will find these kind…
Deepening our walk with each other
During this past year, Mennonite Church Saskatchewan has focused on the theme of “Deepening our walk with Christ,” in the hope of increasing our openness to encounters with God’s presence in our lives. This theme grew out of an awareness that, if we desire to live well in this day of great turmoil and uncertainty,…
‘What’s he doing out there?’
I have friends who live in Fond du Lac, a small, isolated community in northern Saskatchewan on the shore of Lake Athabasca, near the border with the Northwest Territories. A years-ago visit found me there in late November. One day, I found myself in a home with a half-dozen men visiting over mugs of coffee. Actually,…
Living the ‘prairie experience’
Aug. 15 marked the end of my three-month sabbatical and my return to the office at Mennonite Church Manitoba. Time took on a special meaning during this leave as I took the opportunity to live into the prairie experience afforded to me by our little farm: raising chickens, gardening, repairing dilapidated buildings and building new…
Grebel sings to bridge gaps and build community
At the beginning of the 2018-2019 school year, students, staff and faculty at Conrad Grebel University College took a deep breath and sang together, first in unison, and then in several different parts to build a new melody. The piece called “We All Sing” was written by Karen Sunabacka, a Grebel prof, and commissioned for…
