Recently, I gave a presentation on the tension between answering God’s call and the demands of the world. I explained how hard it is, because most North American consumers seem to care more about buying at the lowest possible price than about whether or not people live in kingdom of God conditions.
I love the piano in our living room. The small Wurlitzer fits nicely into the proportions of the room and often provides a good platform for seasonal decorations and whatever celebration cards may come our way. Sadly, I hate to admit that our piano is not played all that often.
Hildebrand (left), and Schlegel (right)
Two Mennonite businessmen have been named to the Order of Canada by Governor General David Johnston, out of a total of 91 recipients recognized. Ron Schlegel of Waterloo, Ont., was named an officer for his work and philanthropy in the area of aging. Elmer Hildebrand of Winnipeg was recognized for his leadership in communication as a member of the Order.
At the end of the grade 10 Christian Studies class at Westgate Mennonite Collegiate, students are asked to do a project in which they reflect upon a foreign religious practice.
Volunteers, (from left) Sasha Homenko, Anna Marie Giesbrecht, Laeun Kin and Birte Wiebe get to know each other as they work in the kitchen at Sam’s Place.
Packages of beans, tomatoes, carrots, apples and pesto fill the freezers at Sam’s Place, a used book store, café and performing arts venue in the Winnipeg neighbourhood of Elmwood.
With the celebration of the missionary efforts that led to the creation of the Mennonite Community in Congo a century ago (Sept. 3, page 4), now is perhaps a good time to review Elmer John Thiessen’s latest book, The Ethics of Evangelism.
The fifth and final volume in the Global Mennonite History Series, the history of North American Mennonites, was released in late September. Seeking Places of Peace by Royden Loewen and Steven M. Nolt, completes the Mennonite World Conference history series, which has been overseen by historians John A. Lapp and C. Arnold Snyder.
The Jesus Factor in Justice and Peacemaking. C. Norman Kraus. Cascadia Publishing House, 2011, 125 pages.
Dave and Mary Lou Driedger walking the Great Wall in China
Dave and Mary Lou Driedger skating down the Red River in Winnipeg
We returned to Canada July 18, 2011, after spending six years teaching at the International Christian School in Hong Kong. My husband Dave and I moved into a condo in downtown Winnipeg and prepared for a very different life than the one we had been leading.
Patty Dorsey signs a beam, a sign of community at Conrad Grebel University College.
Kitchener resident Patty Dorsey was at a crossroads in life. After raising five children and working with mentally challenged individuals for twenty years, Dorsey needed a change in direction. At the encouragement of her husband, she returned to school as a student in Social Development Studies and Peace and Conflict Studies (PACS). Dorsey felt like life was perfect.
Muslim women spent a week at CMU this summer, learning about Christianity.
On a warm summer evening in Winnipeg there is lots of laughter, picture-taking, and food—it’s very much a typical “girls’ night out.” But this party is unique as more than half the women are Shia Muslims from Iran and they’re celebrating the end of an intense week of the study of Christianity. They’re also celebrating the friendships they’ve formed.
‘The Last Supper,’ by Leonardo da Vinci (1451-1519); tempera and mixed media on plaster; 4.6m x 8.8m. Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan, Italy. What did Jesus really serve his disciples at the first communion service?
Like most North Americans, I grew up in a household where no meal was complete without a serving of meat, although I didn’t really know where the meat that I ate came from.
Jane Snyder enjoys a cup of coffee at the Seven Shores Urban Market and Café in Uptown Waterloo.
Jane Snyder chose the local Seven Shores Urban Market and Café in Uptown Waterloo to meet. Within walking distance of her home, and featuring local produce and fair trade coffee, it met many of the principles to which she, her husband, parents and work hold.
Erb Street Mennonite Church, Waterloo, Ont., had new solar panels installed last month.
Solar electric panels at Hillcrest Mennonite Church, New Hamburg, Ont. (2011).
There’s nothing new under the sun, the writer of Ecclesiastes tells us, but in Waterloo Region, Ont., there are lots of new things under the sun: solar projects, that is!
Fred Ritchie reads a peace book to great-grandson, Simon Clark. (Photo courtesy of Jake Buhler)
Charlie Clark, who grew up in the United Church tradition, listened carefully to the stories of his beloved Grandpa Ritchie on his fruit orchard in Naramata, B.C. The stories came from a gentle man who had seen war up close and who believed there was a better way to solving problems.
Atonement, Justice and Peace: The Message of the Cross and the Mission of the Church. Darrin W. Snyder Belousek. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2012, 668 pages.
In order to write this book, Barb Draper did a lot of digging among her roots. She performed an excellent job of searching out the reasons for some of the traditions and practices of the Mennonites of St. Jacobs and Elmira, Ont.
The way Mennonites talk about peace has changed in the past 100 years. While our grandparents talked about “nonresistance,” today we are apt to relate peace to “justice.” Stutzman, executive-director of Mennonite Church U.S.A., takes a careful look at what was written, especially in church periodicals, to trace how and why these changes happened.
In this wonderfully crafted booklet, the last before his untimely death, A. James Reimer gives his readers a gift with his succinct summary of a topic that has preoccupied much of Christian theology. The genius of Christians and War lies in a careful and eminently fair portrayal of how warfare has been understood in church history.
In the eyes of the watching world the Christian church is often seen for its mistakes, and as the church looks upon itself it must acknowledge this sinful past. While the church is not defined solely by these wrongs, the body of Christ must take responsibility for sinful actions committed in the name of Christ.
Just type “Third Way Café” into your search engine—you don’t even need the accent on the “e”—and you will soon be sipping today’s brew of Mennonite stories, reading blogs, viewing videos, and buying books, CDs and DVDs. There’s even a link to donate for the “brews” you’ve imbibed.
'Living Into Focus' by Arthur Boers.
I wish e-mail took up less of my life. I wish I could remember the last time I savoured a sunset. I wish I prayed more.
“I do not understand my own actions,” wrote the Apostle Paul, “for I do not do what I want.” Arthur Boers explores this conundrum in his new book, Living Into Focus: Choosing What Matters in an Age of Distraction.
We Mennonites are not going to run out of stories anytime soon!
How could we, after the resplendent feast of Mennonite creative writing enjoyed by 170 of us in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley over Palm Sunday weekend at the “Mennonite/s Writing VI: Solos and harmonies” event hosted by Eastern Mennonite University.
The Wiens family of Abbotsford enjoyed a unique family vacation at Camp Squeah last summer and plan to attend again this year.
A week of Family Camp at Camp Squeah turned out to be a summer highlight for the Wiens family of Abbotsford, B.C. Maria Wiens, her husband Gerhard and children Jacob and Elizabeth spent a week of their summer playing together, trying new activities, enjoying both family time and couple time, and being nurtured body and soul.
Ontario Mennonite Music Camp is gearing up for its 29th year of music making. We’ve got a lot to offer! As always, we promise lots of music: piano, voice, winds, brass, choir, strings, and new this year, guitar. We’ll have you staying in the dormitory at Conrad Grebel University College. We’ll let you sample some of the best dorm food you’ll ever eat.
