Thoughtful and prayerful changeovers in ministry
Sometimes it is just best for the previous person to get out of here and let the new person start with a clean slate. Some say that pastors and denominational leaders should just give a month or two notice and then leave, and sometimes this may be what is best. When I said that…
Building connections in Japan
Finding ways to help Japanese and Canadian churches connect with each other is one goal of a pastoral couple serving in Japan after years of ministry in British Columbia. When Gerald Neufeld, pastor of Mennonite Japanese Christian Fellowship in Surrey, B.C., and his wife Rie felt a call to return to Japan, their family moved…
‘You and me and our neighbours, together’
Garry Janzen and his wife Diane, who live in a condominium in Ladner, B.C., have found a new way to relate to those around them during the current pandemic: the Nextdoor.ca app. Janzen, executive minister of Mennonite Church British Columbia, heard about the app from Adam Back, pastor of Peace Church on 52nd in Vancouver,…
Places to visit while at Gathering 2019
Headed to Abbotsford, B.C. for Mennonite Church Canada’s Gathering 2019, happening June 28 to July 1? Here are some things to do and see while you’re in the city. Metzger Collection, Columbia Bible College This collection of museum-quality artifacts includes 1,200 replicas of significant archeological artifacts and works of art, such as the Rosetta Stone and…
Living in the best of times
The church in North America is shrinking. We see signs of it everywhere. God is pruning back his church. We have a choice to frantically hold on to all that is dying or to pay attention to what Jesus is doing and join in with his new growth initiatives. It is difficult to remember that…
A picture of gradual decline
Often our society relies too much on numbers. In gravitating to quantification we tend to short-circuit the truth, which is nuanced and multilayered. But when it comes to our denomination, I would like to see more numbers. Specifically, how has overall giving to area/regional churches and Mennonite Church Canada changed over time? The charts here…
B.C. gathering engages difficult issues
Hearing and respecting one another in the face of potential conflict was emphasized when Mennonite Church British Columbia met at Eden Mennonite Church on Feb. 24 for the regional church’s annual gathering. Those in charge of the meeting sought God’s wisdom and the delegate body’s cooperation. “I pray that we will speak to each other…
Cluster meetings outline changes for B.C. congregations
Informing Mennonite Church B.C. congregations how they will fit into the new structure while MC Canada reorganizes was the focus of two cluster meetings in November. Meetings in Richmond on Nov. 21 and in Abbotsford on Nov. 23, 2017, drew about 20 people each, with participants from Black Creek and Kelowna joining in online for…
Focus groups hear of restructuring plans
How the new structure of Mennonite Church Canada will affect congregations in B.C. was the topic for focus groups in Richmond and Abbotsford late last month. Donors who have been supporting both MC Canada and MC B.C. were invited to attend the meetings with Willard Metzger, the nationwide church’s executive minister, along with the regional…
Can we talk?
Tension gripped my gut as I drove to a Mennonite church in Altona, Man., with an indigenous friend. We were doing a joint Sunday morning presentation about hydropower impacts. I wondered if an indigenous person had ever been in that church. I debated making excuses for whatever suspicion, or worse, my people might direct toward…
