Jacquie Loewen building her backyard oven. (Photo by Michelle Burkowski)
One might be able to live on bread alone, at least according to Jacquie Loewen.
The resident of Winnipeg’s West End neighbourhood has spent the past year building a stone oven, learning to bake bread in it, and sharing this bread with her neighbours—all from the comfort of her own backyard.
The students of Rockway Mennonite Collegiate coordinated to open and close their umbrellas to create a beating heart pattern.
What better way to bring a community together than 350 red umbrellas?
Starting at the beginning of COVID-19, Rockway Mennonite Collegiate in Kitchener, Ont ., has been working on creating a music video for “Someone to You” by the Banners. The result was uploaded to the school’s YouTube channel last month.
Matthew Boutda conducts the choir at Leaside United Church’s hymn festival in June 2019. (Photo by Murray Fenner)
Matthew Boutda playing the organ. (Photo by Matthew Boutda)
Matthew Boutda
For some musicians during COVID-19, the landscape of music making, performance and choir conducting transformed into environments for community resilience. As a recent graduate from Emmanuel College at the University of Toronto, with a master of sacred music degree, Matthew Boutda reveals the ways musicians are conductors of human connectedness.
The main course of a meal made by ‘The Gourmet Girls.’ (Photo by Daunine Rachert)
Some of ‘The Gourmet Girls’ meet in the Jeanette Thiessen’s backyard to celebrate Daunine Rachert’s birthday on Oct. 10, 2020. Pictured from left to right: guest Marjorie Kornelsen, Charlene Delcourt, Elaine Hovey and Daunine Rachert. (Photo by Jeanette Thiessen)
‘The Gourmet Girls’ enjoy prosciutto-wrapped asparagus. Pictured clockwise from top left: Daunine Rachert, guest Joanne De Jong, Marlene Nelson, Elaine Hovey, Charlene Delcourt, Jeanette Thiessen. (Photo by Joanne De Jong)
A screenshot of ‘The Gourmet Girls,’ from left to right, top row: Daunine Rachert and Marlene Nelson; middle row: Jeanette Thiessen and Elaine Hovey; and bottom row: Charlene Delcourt. (Photo courtesy of Jeanette Thiessen)
Pear Tarte Tatin prepared by Elaine Hovey for ‘The Gourmet Girls.’ (Photo by Daunine Rachert)
Imagine if you could eat at a five-star restaurant every Saturday night, even during COVID-19. That’s what has been happening in one neighbourhood in Calgary since May 2020.
(Photo by YWAM Orlando on Flickr)
(Photo by Godsgirl_madi from Pixabay)
When you consider Jesus’ three-year ministry, which specific events come to mind? Which of his actions inspire you the most?
When I was in seminary, one assignment was to pick one of the gospels and to identify every encounter Jesus had in that gospel. We were asked:
Only God could have directed a random couple from B.C. to set up a food truck between two sloughs in the middle of rural Alberta, just a couple of kilometres away from the church. (Photo by Coreen Froese)
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.
Erika Pappas of Edmonton Mennonite Church is amazed at what can be done with a few dollars at the Dollar Store. (Photo by Erika Pappas)
Brenda Tiessen-Wiens and Trevor Wiens display their very first Advent wreath so they can participate in community worship. (Photo by Brenda Tiessen-Wiens)
Kate and Bob Janzen create an Advent wreath from barn boards and barbed wire. (Photo by Kate Janzen)
Hanna Martens displays her living wreath made from moss, pinecones and succulents from the forest. (Photo by Hanna Martens)
Carole Neufeldt creates an Advent wreath using items from around the house. (Photo by Carole Neufeldt)
An Advent wreath at Trinity Mennonite Church in DeWinton, Alta. (Photo by Laura Wiebe)
An Advent wreath created by Rose Goertzen for the altar at Bergthal Mennonite Church in Didsbury, Alta. (Photo by Anna-Lisa Salo)
Karen Mierau and LaVerna Elliot have been best friends for more than 10 years and they live a 10-minute walk apart. Having created a pandemic bubble, they collaborated on their Advent wreath.
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 activities altogether.
Wenger Shenk, plenary speaker for MC Canada’s virtual ‘Table talk’ study conference, on Oct. 25, addresses the question ‘Why church?’ in one of two talks she gave. (Screenshots by Janet Bauman)
Kim Penner hosted and helped plan the inaugural MC Canada virtual ‘Table talk’ study conference on Oct. 25. (Screenshots by Janet Bauman)
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.
We can and should seek self-care in these uncertain times. (Photo by Miguel Perales/Unsplash)
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.
Pastor Craig Neufeld and deacon Debbie Baergen are ready to serve communion in a “covid friendly” way at Edmonton’s First Mennonite Church, Sept. 27, 2020. (Photo by Donita Wiebe-Neufeld)
Tim Wiebe-Neufeld, executive minister of Mennonite Church Alberta, receives communion from deacon Debbie Baergen at Edmonton First Mennonite. (Photo by Donita Wiebe-Neufeld)
Tim Wiebe-Neufeld, executive minister of Mennonite Church Alberta, adds a leaf, signifying a commitment to a spiritual practice, to the E3 tree visual at Edmonton First Mennonite Church. Beginning in 2020, MCA congregations are committing themselves to a 3 year action plan for renewal, Encountering, Embracing, and Embodying Christ. For more information go to: https://mcab.ca/e3-mca. (Photo by Donita Wiebe-Neufeld)
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.
'People want to come out and show their compassion.' (Image by carolynabooth/Pixabay)
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.”
'Throughout the biblical story there is a direct correlation between our love of God and our call to love each other,' Ryan Siemens writes. (Photo courtesy of Pixabay)
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, we need to come back to the One who calms the storm and brings us peace.
Ed Olfert
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.
Ken Warkentin
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 ones, caring for grandchildren and golfing.
Grebel students, faculty and staff will spend the 2018-2019 school year intentionally singing together as a way of building bridges and exploring issues of diversity, justice, hospitality, faith and peace. (Photo by Jennifer Konkle)
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 the College’s 2018-19 integration initiative.
Troy Watson
A peculiar thing happened to me last Sunday while I was on holidays. I felt a strong desire to attend a church service. Curious, to say the least. You see, by the time summer arrives, I’m usually churched out. As a pastor, church is not only my work life but a significant part of my personal and social life, too.
Betty Ann Martin and Kate Van, the foods skills coordinator at the Local Community Food Centre in Stratford, Ont., prepare fresh local asparagus. (Photo courtesy of Betty Ann Martin)
Cooking for one or two people can be a challenge, but Betty Ann Martin found that taking Food Fit courses at the Local Community Food Centre in Stratford, Ont., expanded her food repertoire. She learned that roasted vegetables are delicious and that sweet potatoes are very versatile—and they don’t need added sugar.
A tasty breakfast recipe. (Photo by Barb Draper)
Breakfast should be interesting, not boring! Betty Ann Martin expanded her food repertoire and gained new ideas for breakfast menus through her involvement with the Local Community Food Centre in Stratford, Ont. See more of her story here.
In these recent years of walking with our Indigenous neighbours, I have been both blessed and intrigued by the words of encouragement often expressed at the end of a talk: “All my relations.”
Terri Lynn and Thomas Friesen are the founders of the Vine and Table intentional community. (Photo courtesy of Terri Lynn Friesen)
Located in Saskatoon’s Riversdale neighbourhood, the Vine and Table can accommodate 10 residents. (Photo courtesy of Terri Lynn Friesen)
Eating delicious, healthy food is central to life at the Vine and Table. (Photo courtesy of Terri Lynn Friesen)
‘It’s kind of a step in faith,’ Terri Lynn Friesen says of starting the Vine and Table. (Photo courtesy of Terri Lynn Friesen)
When Thomas and Terri Lynn Friesen met, Terri Lynn was a guest at the Burrow, an intentional community Thomas was living in with eight other young adults.
This coming September, a few weeks before the couple’s second wedding anniversary, they will embark on a new adventure together: opening their Saskatoon home to form an intentional community called the Vine and Table.
‘As I encountered contradictions to my teenage understanding of faith, yoga offered a contemplative approach to spirituality,’ Sarah Steiner writes. (Photo by Aaron Epp)
Yoga has become more than simply an athletic pursuit for Sarah Steiner. (Photo by Michelle Kauntz)
For many years the church provided me with a place where I felt like I belonged.
It takes commitment to use up 18 large squash. Pictured with the squash is April Klassen. (Photo courtesy of Erin Froese)
Sharing soup builds community. (Photo courtesy of Erin Froese)
Last fall when Erin Froese and her household received the gift of many large squash they had trouble using it all up. They made a couple large pots of Butternut bisque and invited their neighbours to join them for a winter soup night.
Members of Wildwood Mennonite Church in Saskatoon go for a hike together along the South Saskatchewan River during one of the congregation’s Unplugged weekends. (Photo courtesy of Wildwood Mennonite Church)
Members of Wildwood Mennonite Church prepare to make pizzas for supper during one of their congregation’s Unplugged weekends. (Photo courtesy of Wildwood Mennonite Church)
Open space to enjoy a conversation or sit and work on a puzzle is an important feature of Wildwood Mennonite Church’s Unplugged weekends. (Photo courtesy of Wildwood Mennonite Church)
Children and adults enjoy a game of Skip-Bo together during a Wildwood Unplugged weekend. (Photo courtesy of Wildwood Mennonite Church)
In this age of hectic schedules, electronic device dependency and human isolation, how can a church provide meaning, purpose and belonging? Saskatoon’s Wildwood Mennonite Church may have found an answer to this perplexing question.
I was humbled and challenged when I spent the day with some of my Old Order Mennonite relations recently.
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the wider Mennonite church these past few weeks, as there have been discussions about the future of Mennonite Church Canada at the gatherings of each of the regional churches.
