What people want to know about Mennonites
The Third Way website was re-launched last April, and by late 2015 daily visitors were averaging 750 or more. Many are seeking information about Mennonites, their beliefs and practices.
Web First
Mennonites active in Ukraine
Various Mennonite groups and agencies have been working in Ukraine since the late 1980s, and representatives of eight organizations met in Winnipeg on Jan. 25, 2016, for an annual review of their activities. Most of the work has been done in the area of Zaporizhzhya—the area of the former Mennonite Chortitza Colony—and in the area of the former Molotschna Colony.
Project Ploughshares begins a new furrow
Cesar Jaramillo, executive director at Project Ploughshares since last July, knows first-hand the need for new ways of dealing with conflict and violence.
Video: Christ at the coffee shop
Pastor Kassa Lemma stands outside his “office,” a Toronto coffee shop. (Photo by D. Michael Hostetler)
Willard Metzger (second from right) had conversations sharing the gospel with Ethiopian pastors (left to right): Tadessa Mekuria, Ashenafi Lemma, and Kassa Lemma. (Photo by D. Michael Hostetler)
In the spring of 2015, Pastor Kassa Lemma of Rehoboth Evangelical Church in Toronto invited Mennonite Church Canada Executive Director Willard Metzger to speak at an Ethiopian evangelistic conference. Metzger admits that his first response was hesitant.
Worship plans connect churches across continent
Twice a year many Mennonite congregations across Canada and the U.S. share a common worship experience. That’s because they use the same worship resources during the seasons of Advent/Christmas and Lent/Easter.
Looking back with MCC
Kim Thiessen’s rendition of “Give Yourself to Love” was a perfect thematic opening to the Mennonite Historical Society of Alberta’s (MHSA) 2015 fall conference. The gathering highlighted the history of the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) in Canada.
Learning a language not governed by grammar
It’s a busy morning at Choices and Connections (CAC). They’re preparing brunch and the kitchen smells wonderful: sausages and eggs, pancakes and waffles, syrup and strawberries. Linda and Caroline are helping Nicole cut up the fruit for toppings as Jeevanjot watches. Sue sets the table with special napkins and cutlery.
Colombian churches call for prayer
“We know that in many places throughout the world there is war, violence and hunger.” With this acknowledgement, Mennonite partners working for peace and justice in Colombia call on Anabaptist-related brothers and sisters around the world to pray for La Esperanza community in Colombia—and “that God’s salvation and peace become a reality throughout the world.”
Training, persistence lead to new income
In the Rwandan barber shop where Obed Nkundagenzi works with three friends, he is surrounded by pictures of success—mansions with lavish green lawns, beautiful models and full-size posters of sports teams and their heroes.
Gospel Herald and The Mennonite available for online searches
Readers can now search online, for free, in the denominational magazines of Mennonite Church Canada’s and Mennonite Church USA’s two predecessor organizations, the Mennonite Church (MC) and the General Conference Mennonite Church (GCMC).
European Anabaptist leaders release statement on refugees
Leaders of Mennonite conferences in Europe and international guests met in Buhl, France, for their annual gathering of planning and fellowship October 23-25, 2015. The assembled leaders drafted a statement to express their concern about the refugee crisis in Europe.
Professor reflects on Mennonite hymns and their influence
Dr. Kenneth J. Nafziger, long-time and noted professor of music at Eastern Mennonite University—plus a key figure in putting together a hymnal and two song supplements—spoke at a recent breakfast meeting of the Eastern Mennonite University Anabaptist Center for Religion and Society. His topic: How our hymns influence and reflect our changing theology.
Personnel sought for Mennonite song collection
Looking for a way to use your musical and worship talents in the new year? Want to be part of shaping what Mennonites sing?
MennoMedia, in close partnership with Mennonite Church Canada and Mennonite Church USA, began accepting applications for various committee and staff positions for a new Mennonite song collection on January 1, 2016.
Top 10 online stories in 2015
Stories about Mennonite identity, sexuality, politics, and music attracted visitors to the Canadian Mennonite website last year. Here are the top stories, based on the number of page views.
St. Jacobs Mennonite celebrates 100 years in the village
In 1915, in the midst of the First World War, the Swiss Mennonite congregation that had been meeting at the Conestoga Meetinghouse moved to the village of St. Jacobs. Founded in 1834, the congregation had been meeting in a simple structure at 2035 Three Bridges Road, where St. Jacobs Mennonite Church still maintains a cemetery.
Loving life, befriending death
“The ability to keep people alive longer has created new ethical questions around deciding to die. This has, in ways, driven the conversation around euthanasia and assisted suicide.”
Paul Chamberlain spoke these words in his opening address at the Canadian Mennonite Health Assembly, which met in Waterloo in October 2015.
Anabaptist schools, Scripture and spiritual awakening
In late September 2015, many of us were enthralled by a rare celestial display: a super moon in total eclipse, also known as a blood moon because of its reddish glow—clearly a reference to the apocalyptic vision from Revelation 6.
MDS project directors deeply rooted in service
When Peter Thiessen was a teenager, one of his neighbors, a farmer, was injured so badly he couldn’t do the harvest. “It was Halloween night,” recalled Peter, “and my father got all the guys in the community together, and we worked for that farmer all through the night.”
Welcoming refugees in Germany
“Above all, we want the refugees to receive what they need in the name of Jesus, for his glory and fame. They need him more than they need clean bedsheets, but we want to give them both!” say Eastern Mennonite Missions (EMM) workers in Halle, Germany.
Updated edition of The Naked Anabaptist released
Five years ago, Stuart Murray’s book The Naked Anabaptist made waves with its look at the central beliefs of Anabaptism and their relevance for Christians today. Now Herald Press has released a new edition of the book, drawing in stories and perspectives from North America and the global church.
WCC calls for climate justice and care of creation at COP21
“We believe that you will serve the world by showing the best of human creativity and capacity,” said Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit, the general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), in his December 8 address to the High Level Segment of the COP21 international climate conference in Paris. The conference, sponsored by the United Nations, is being held in Paris, France, from Nov.
A labyrinth of Advent blessing
At Waterloo North Mennonite Church, the 2014 Advent season began on Nov. 24 with a special labyrinth of blessing for the congregation’s children and youth.
‘Africa is for babies’
“Africa is for babies.” That’s what Andrew and Karen Suderman, our Mennonite Church Canada colleagues in South Africa, assured us before we first left for Botswana in 2013.
Churches of all stripes call for freedom of religion
Representatives of every stream of global Christianity met in Tirana, Albania, Nov. 1 to 5, 2015, for a consultation on Discrimination, Persecution, Martyrdom: Following Christ Together, convened by the Global Christian Forum.
Hearing God in indigenous voices
“If you want to love someone, you need to know their story; if you want to know someone, you need to learn their story,” Steve Heinrichs, Mennonite Church Canada’s director of indigenous relations, told participants at this year’s Peace it Together conference at Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) earlier this month, as he and his daughter Abby shared about settler colonialism and the importanc
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