Many weddings include diamond engagement rings, expensive wedding gowns, the bride being given away, extraordinarily expensive flowers and cakes, and spending way beyond one’s means in order to celebrate a lifelong commitment.
This was not the case, though, for Susie and Kris Guenther Loewen and Brandi and Nathan Thorpe on their respective wedding days.
This past weekend I attended the MCM Leadership Seminar with other pastor’s in our province. Willard Metzger was our speaker and in his opening session he recapped some Anabaptist history (it was like a refresher in Anabaptist Beginnings with Karl Koop from my first year at CMU). While Willard is obviously very knowledgeable and passionate about the history of early Anabaptists, and made a lot of interesting observations, I would like to focus on one thing he talked about that really struck me.
After more than six months of reporting on events and issues pertaining to young adults, Canadian Mennonite made a pledge to connect with young voices from all over Canada in order to better represent the country’s Mennonites.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s been giving a lot of thought to questions about sexuality since the Mennonite Church Canada Assembly last summer, where it was decided that the discussion on issues of sexual orientation would continue. Though many aren’t happy with the decision, I think it’s positive, because it means homosexuality is being taken seriously as a relatively unexplored area of ethics for Mennonites, and an area in which we need to reflect further from a specifically theological perspective.
“Clinical depression is not just unhappiness, it’s a mood disorder, but more than half of us still believe it is a weakness not a sickness.”
- Michael Landsberg in Darkness and Hope: Depression, Sports and Me
The above quote is taken from a special documentary that aired on TSN Wednesday, February 8th. I was very pleased that TSN and its partner CTV would engage in such a meaningful and well deserved topic. If you are interested the documentary remains on tsn.ca for viewing.
In the house that I am living in we have been trying to find times where we can worship together. When this group of people came together we were looking to be more than roommates, we were looking to live as a community with one another. Part of the basis of this was a mutual understanding that the faith we individually held is expressed through community. I do not want to give the idea that we all have the same faith, exact in understanding. Nor do I want to say that this was the only reason choosing for living together.
When a church member suffered a medical emergency in Winnipeg, Man. where his heart stopped for a full 45 minutes, many members of Level Ground Mennonite Church in Abbotsford, B.C., relied on Facebook for updates regarding the young man’s condition.
Six indigenous youth from across Canada travelled to Geneva, Switzerland this month telling the United Nations that Canada needs to end inequalities experienced by aboriginal children. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child will review Canada’s compliance with the convention later this year—these youth hope to influence the process and outcome of the evaluation.
'There’s a certain openness that’s necessary for a relationship to develop,' Susie Guenther Loewen writes.
For this month, it being Valentine’s Day and all, I’d like to focus on sexuality – and no, this isn’t just a cheap gimmick to try to increase my readership!
The truth is, the church has historically spoken mainly negatively about sexuality, focusing on sexual sins, while society teaches us to misuse sexuality and each other by seeing sex as casual and/or a commodity.
Often, young adults are seen as apathetic about politics. But a group of Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) students met with a Member of Parliament and a New Democratic Party (NDP) leadership candidate on January 11 to explain their hopes for the future of Canada.
Over the last few years, I have encountered a strange conversation amongst my co-workers. It comes up occasionally, each time with a different group of people and a multitude of opinions. The enthusiasm for this topic has long fascinated me, as it seems far too ordinary a thing to elicit such emotion from people.
The hot button topic: the best place to buy Farmer’s sausage.
It happened often enough in grade school. My classmates would talk about where their families lived before they came to Canada. They would say things like, “I’m half Norwegian and half Irish,” then ask, “What are you?” I would say, “I’m…Mennonite.
For the last two weeks, Terrell and I have been glued to the TV watching the Australian Open. We love tennis, and especially like to watch newbie Milos Raonic setting records as the highest ranked Canadian ever. We also love to cheer on our fave player, Roger Federer.
I am often jealous of people who believe they know exactly what the Bible says about a certain topic. They see the Bible’s words as rigid truth and that is the end of discussion. They know what they believe and how to respond to people who question their beliefs.
However, as jealous as I might be at times, I know that is not my path, nor will it ever be.
I recently listened to someone claim that they knew what the Bible said and meant in regards to homosexuality. Their certainty caused me to cringe. Can we know exactly what the Bible says and means?
*Note: This is adapted from a sermon I preached at Hope Mennonite Church on January 22, 2012. It is based on the hymn text Strong Son of God, immortal Love, which can be found here: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/s/t/strongso.htm
This is the second of two parts.
*Note: This is adapted from a sermon I preached at Hope Mennonite Church on January 22, 2012. It is based on the hymn text Strong Son of God, immortal Love, which can be found here: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/s/t/strongso.htm
This is the first of two parts.
If there is one thing beyond schmaunfat and church splitting Mennonites are known for it is our singing.
When we lift our voices in harmony, four parts ringing clearly out, there is a beauty to it I hear no where else.
When Kelsey Enns started at the North End Family Centre, Winnipeg, he stood out from everyone else using the drop-in centre.
I was recently asked by a friend in his 20s if I could offer some financial advice before he got married. Without knowing the specifics of his situation, I offered some financial pointers.
Like many people his age, Joel Wiens would like to buy a smartphone. He could probably afford to buy one now, but that would mean taking from the money he and his wife Jacquelyn typically earmark for their church donation.
Attending an ecumenical theological school has taught me a lot about how different Christian denominations view the Bible, since Christians, along with Muslims and Jews, are known as “people of the Book.” There are those who see the Bible as a hopelessly outdated ancient text, written by patriarchal and prejudiced elites in order to brainwash everyone else. There are those who see it as a literally true record of historical events, an utterly infallible sacred book. There are those for whom church tradition and doctrines are more important than the biblical stories on which they are based.
Abram Thiessen is like his fellow students at Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) in many ways. But unlike his classmates, he has a heart condition called ventricular tachycardia and nearly died on December 4.
From what I know about pastoral ministry, I think I can honestly say that it’s one of the most challenging jobs out there. In our denomination, where the emphasis is on congregations calling leaders instead of a hierarchy appointing them, pastors must often feel that they have several hundred bosses, and there are bound to be conflicting opinions about what should be done in any given situation.
With raucous shouts of “Occupy Advent,” the youths of Langley Mennonite Fellowship interrupted the worship service on the first Sunday of the Christmas season.
Assisted by many of the church’s children, the “occupiers” entered banging drums, beating on pots and pans, and carrying protest signs with slogans saying, “The beginning is near!” and, “What would Jesus want for Christmas?”
For Scott Feick, fitness is not just a matter of physical health; it is a matter of mental and spiritual health as well.
When Rebekah Enns, 16, started a gay-straight alliance at Westgate Mennonite Collegiate, Winnipeg, in order to support those who, like her, are coming out of the closet, the Grade 11 student never expected to be recognized with a human rights award.
