Opinion

I am looking ahead to my last summer as associate program director of Mennonite Church Manitoba’s Camps with Meaning (CwM) program; my last summer spent travelling to and from Assiniboia and Koinonia; my last summer training and supporting an amazing group of young adults; and my last summer watching staff, volunteers and campers make connections and have ridiculous fun.

It was Easter Sunday, and after the sun came up over the horizon during our congregational sunrise service, we all tramped inside to share an amazing potluck breakfast spread. My husband Keith landed at a men’s table, and I watched with interest as they became very animated in their discussion.

According to a recent Wall Street Journal-Norc poll, the smallest percentage of Americans (12 percent) said they were “very happy” since 1972. These “very happy” people share a number of common traits. They are more likely to value community, personal relationships and marriage, above things like careers and money.

The religion of peace

The week the F-35 fighter jet was on the cover (Jan. 30), I had pulled an antique book of sermons off the shelf that my wife had from her grandmother. Published in 1896, it is titled The Message of Peace by R.W. Church. It was written within memory of the U.S. Civil War but prior to the First World War.

In 2023, the Mennonite Heritage Archives celebrates 90 years of service to the Mennonite community.  It can trace its roots to the Conference of Mennonites in Canada’s annual sessions held June 26-28, 1933, in Gnadenthal (near Plum Coulee, Man.), when Bernhard Schellenberg (1879-1966) was appointed archivist.

A dandelion tattoo festoons my left forearm, a puffball ready to launch its wispy seeds. Asked to speak at one of our congregations one Sunday, I intended to start the children’s feature by showing the tattoo.

“Can you do that?” a friend asked. “Can you show a tattoo in church?”

That exchange is object lesson No. 1, and I will let you decide what to take from it.

Adjusting to ‘no longer being dominant’

The regional churches have identified several key ministry areas which receive nationwide coordination and support from Mennonite Church Canada: International Witness, Indigenous Relations and Climate Action. Most regional churches have volunteer working groups in each of these areas.

In Canada, conversations about reconciliation with Indigenous peoples are often at the forefront of community and public life. These discussions extend to our worship practices as we consider how our corporate expressions of praise and community can emulate Jesus by being more just.

If you are a student learning early Anabaptist spirituality, Leonhard Schiemer’s treatise, Three Kinds of Grace Found in the Scriptures cannot be missed. In his short writing, he displays the profundity of the Anabaptist way of salvation which brings a transformative and comprehensive effect on new converts.

Last month I was sleeping in my hotel in Vietnam when loud karaoke music started playing outside. The music was so loud that I thought my window was open, so I turned the lights on to check, but no, the window was closed. I put my earplugs in, put my pillow over my head and fell back to sleep.