MB Herald July/August 2016

Culture Pearls

God, sex, me & you

How to talk to kids about LGBTQ

Volume 55, No. 4 Publications mail registration number: 09648; Agreement number: 40009297 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Circ. Dept., MB Herald, 1310 Taylor Avenue, Winnipeg, Man. R3M 3Z6

“Hands of Jesus” pick up the hammer

JULY/AUGUST 2016 W W W. M B H E R A L D. C O M

Pewter angels and painted saints

S

omeone at church gave me a little pewter baby angel with eyes closed, hands folded, bare feet sticking out the bottom of its robe.

“Oh, no,” I protested, “I am surrounded by living angels all the time.”

“That’s ok,” he insisted. “Here’s one more.”

This person loves me, so I took the angel and put it in my pocket. Imagine. An angel in my pocket. What would Ezekiel, with his vision of creatures flashing lighting, have thought? I rubbed it between my fingers, pondering angels.

The little angel unsettles me because it sends me back to an experience from when I lived among Mixtec friends in Mexico. One day, a woman came to my door with a saint, a doll made up in bright paint and decked out in rich clothes.

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“Do you want to rub your hands on the saint?” she asked, “for luck?”

“Oh, no,” I protested, “I ask God and he watches over me. I have no need to handle saints.”

If she knew I had cancer, would she be back at my door now, offering me a saint to rub?

These people were just trying to be helpful. I am grateful. But I also wonder at our human need to find something to touch when we need luck. Things go wrong and, Mixtec or Mennonite, we grab onto some…thing – a saint, an angel, even a habit of private devotions – to ward off the evils of the day.

It just doesn’t work that way. As a Christian, I am not shielded from the stuff that goes wrong, even if I eat right, run two miles a day and have my devos

every morning. I am even a missionary, for goodness sake; does this not spare me?

Am I not owed something?

No. We bear the filth of our world in our poor breasts. We share the sufferings of Christ. We take up our cross, and this is mine.

Oh you heavenly creatures, with your wheels within wheels (Ezekiel 1) and your millions of eyes (Revelation 4), do your thing, and I’ll do mine. We’ll serve a living God together. And wonder at painted saints and pewter angels.

—Anne Thiessen and her husband Robert are MB Mission workers among indigenous groups in southern Mexico that are largely unreached by the gospel. Anne teaches children, women’s groups, church groups, missionaries – anyone who wants to join her in learning about God’s grace.

[ CONTENTS

JULY/AUGUST 2016 In this issue

8 12 14 4 16 35 11 18 19

FEATURES God, sex, me and you Called to take up the cross – Willy Reimer

How to talk to kids about LGBTQ 7 tips for mentors and parents – Thaleia Sawatzky

Doing theology as a spiritual practice Re-engaging ordination

– Andrew Dyck for the BFL

COLUMNS Editorial

We need to talk – Karla Braun

ICOMB — Wiebe’s witness

DEPARTMENTS 5

Letters

6

Homepage

20 News 26 Church staff ads 28 Transitions, births, weddings, anniversaries 30 Finish lines [Obituaries] 33 Crosscurrents

Culture pearls: A few gems from a visit to India – David Wiebe

Intersection of faith and life Denominational vexillology

– Jeff Peters and Bruce Guenther

CONFERENCE NEWS C2C network Why multiply?

– Bill Hogg

Executive director Compelled

– Willy Reimer

Executive board

Report on MB Mission and the C2C Network – Michael Dick

CONNECT WITH US ONLINE DIGITAL EDITION issuu.com FACEBOOK www.facebook.com/MBHerald TWITTER twitter.com/MB_Herald WEBSITE mbherald.com JOBS jobs.mbherald.com PDF SUBSCRIPTION Email karla.braun@mbchurches.ca to subscribe via email COVER: Illustration by Colton Floris

Mennonite Brethren Herald

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[ EDITORIAL

W

We need to talk

e need to talk, James Toews urges in his letter on page 5. I think he’s on to something. More specifically, we need to listen – to those with whom we don’t agree.

The MB church has always been diverse in theological perspectives, but it’s starting to seem downright polarized. Throughout our history, we have generally recognized a spectrum of perspectives on what it means to be an evangelical Anabaptist; now, instead of sharing a big tent, we seem to have pitched our own shelters. I’m not sure we’re spending enough time understanding and appreciating those who gather at the other campfires.

In this issue, the Board of Faith and Life looks at sexuality, asking what is God’s intent for his holy and set-apart people in the midst of an “anythinggoes” society. Jesus followers put aside our own desires, replacing them with obedience to God’s call, Willy Reimer writes. Despite our differences, he says, there’s no place for “us” and “them” language (page 10).

Why, then, do we speak that way about our own brothers and sisters in the conference?

We want to extend love to those who experience sexuality differently from our “norms” – but we don’t even get along with MBs in the next church. Can we be helpful companions on a journey toward wholeness when we aren’t reconciled to our brothers and sisters?

Could we admit that even though Jesus is right, sometimes – even as faithful followers – we are not?

In a time of uncertainty, it’s easier to avoid the questions and focus on that which we know. To let fear shutter our perspective. To identify and shun “enemies” rather than find ways to become allies. But Jesus hasn’t called us to an easy path.

In the Bible, there are warnings to be careful of false teachers, but there are also times when the New Testament writers say it doesn’t matter what flag people are flying as long as Jesus is glorified.

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“Don’t stop him!” Jesus tells John when he’s concerned someone else is performing miracles in Jesus’ name.

“Anyone who is not against you is for you” (Luke 9:50, NLT).

Our Confession of Faith says, “Christians cooperate with others in society to defend the weak, care for the poor, and promote justice, righteousness and truth.”

The jewel of the gospel is that we are reconciled with God through Christ’s atoning work; the beauty of the gospel carries that reconciliation into all spheres of creation. We can work with those who also want to see shalom on earth, whether they use the term or not. We might find reflections of the image of God in surprising places.

Not forgetting that Jesus calls us to deny ourselves and pick up our cross, might we also remember that “LORD, if you kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive? But you offer forgiveness, that we might learn to fear you” (Psalm 130:3–4).

As we raise difficult issues and try to talk about things like sexual sin, we’re quick to admit that we’re all broken. In fact, we fail to reflect Jesus’ holiness in many ways besides the sexual prohibitions we spend so much energy on. Our image contains selfish individualism, consumerism, environment devastation, capitalist exploitation, power abuses of more subtle varieties, and the list goes on.

However, the good news isn’t that we’re fallen, but that we’re made in God’s image in all our diversity. He has a (sometimes painful) path for us to develop into a better reflection of him, reducing the distortions of sin that we each must struggle with.

Instead of drawing the circle tighter, let’s open the doors wider. As we walk our own paths of learning to fear God, let’s come alongside those we disagree with. What we thought were their distortions might just have something to teach us about our own.

—Karla Braun

[Reader response July/August 2016

Amputation on the body?

I have a concern that stems from many MB events I have attended. Specifically, at the last Alberta provincial conference, a leader gave statistics about the number of Christians in Canada that excluded the majority of the body of Christ. It’s like we are standing up there and saying to our lower torso, “You’re not part of my body.” It’s not biblical to do this.

us. We need to explain this not just to the people we already agree with, but to those who don’t understand us at all.

And we need to listen. Not for errors, but to what the people we disagree with are actually trying to say.

Why bother? Why not let the emerging fault lines run their course? Schisms happen – MBs ourselves were born out of one.

I also heard a leader from the stage say that evangelical churches are the only churches where the gospel is proclaimed and Scripture is read. This is not a true statement. Every church in Canada reads the Bible in their services. The Lord’s Supper is served in every single church in Canada. Who are we to say that Jesus is not present at those tables?

Talking and listening to each other will be hard work. Will it be worth it? I don’t know, but I can’t imagine that not trying would be right.

When people make statements like these from the platform at MB conferences, what kind of witness is this to newcomers to the church, to people who are not Christian? They come into the church and see the church gnawing on its hands, or trying to saw off its legs. Rather than being a good news message that draws people to Jesus, it turns people away from the church.

I followed with great interest the study conference that the MB conference had on God, Sex and the Church. I was excited to see that you were having this conversation; however, I quickly realized that this was not a dialogue but a monologue. It was in actuality a study of how to maintain your current theological position albeit more graciously. While this perhaps is a kind of harm reduction, it is not a study in the truest sense of the word.

The evangelical church is just one part of the body of Christ. I hope I can hear that said from the platform at Gathering 2016 in Toronto.

Carol Penner Edmonton Divide or talk

We are a complicated bunch of people living in a complicated time. It can be hard work hanging out together. Frankly, sometimes being part of this family feels like it isn’t worth the effort.

Scripture reminds us that there are seasons to talk and seasons to be silent. Seasons to tear down and seasons to mend. And to paraphrase a modern poet, there are seasons to hold ’em and fold ’em; seasons to walk away and seasons to run.

I don’t know what season it is, but I think we need to talk. Not just at each other but to each other.

We need to carefully explain what is bothering

James Toews Nanaimo, B.C. MB church is not safe

I grew up in the MB church. You nurtured my faith and called me to ministry. However, when I worked as a youth pastor, the MB church was not a safe environment for youth to come out. Even though I was a safe person, youth saw me through the lens of the MB church’s condemnation of homosexuality.

This pains me: some of these youth, now adults, have come out to me and I get angry knowing that I could have walked that journey with them, were it not for views on homosexuality they assumed were my own. I also could not explore my own thinking very openly in the MB church. This was hard.

Dear MB church, your conversation around the gay Christians in your midst is disheartening.

Tom Friesen Kitchener, Ont.

Letters continued on page 24

Letters to the editor Mennonite Brethren Herald welcomes your letters of 150–200 words on issues relevant to the Mennonite Brethren church, especially in response to material published in the Herald. Please include name, address and phone number, and keep your letters courteous and about one subject only. We will edit letters for length and clarity. We will not publish letters sent anonymously, although we may withhold names from publication at the request of the letter writer and at our discretion. Publication is subject to space limitations. Letters also appear online. Because the Letters column is a free forum for discussion, it should be understood that letters represent the position of the letter writer, not necessarily the position of the Herald or the Mennonite Brethren church. Send letters to: Letters, MB Herald, 1310 Taylor Avenue, Winnipeg, Man. R3M 3Z6, or by email to mbherald@mbchurches.ca.

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Volume 55, Number 4 • Copy run: 14,500 THE MENNONITE BRETHREN HERALD IS A PUBLICATION OF

Mennonite Brethren Herald | July/August 2016

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MENNONITE BRETHREN HERALD

MBs at work Last issue, we told stories of a few MB churches who are welcoming refugees. Here's a picture of what our work looks like across Canada.

Fun in the sun

Did you know there are 11 MB camps in Canada? They’re found from Vancouver Island to the Laurentians in Quebec.

Pray for personal and spiritual growth in the hundreds of youth who will be discipled as they serve this summer. Pray for safety, fun and acceptance for the thousands of children and youth who will attend camps – and hear about Jesus, possibly for the first time.

GATHERING

2016

Find the annual general meeting documents at www.mennonitebrethren.ca/

2016-agm-documents

For event information, visit

gathering2016.mennonitebrethren.ca Follow the event hashtag: #ccmbcevents CAMP PHOTOS COURTESY OF CAMP EVERGREEN

[ On the web Incorporation into the body of Christ

With millions of people in southern Africa and Ethiopia facing extreme drought this year, Canadian Foodgrains Bank is inviting Canadians to help by making a donation to its African Drought Appeal.

[coming events

MDS monitoring Alberta fires

Conference Events 2016

Mennonite Disaster Service musters its resources to help rebuild after Fort McMurray fires when the time is right.

2016

July 6–9: Gathering 2016, Toronto.

Sept 23–25: King Road Church 50th anniversary, Abbotsford, B.C. Oct 2–4: SKMB pastor and spouse retreat

There’s always more online at mbherald.com.

Oct 7–10: McIvor Avenue Church 50th anniversary, Winnipeg.

Oct 4–6: C2C Network Assessment Centre, Calgary.

MAID goes international

Dec. 6–8: C2C Network Assessment Centre, Toronto.

2017 Feb. 8–9: Multiply conference, Vancouver.

On the eve of its first anniversary, the Mennonite Archival Image Database (MAID) welcomed the Mennonite Library & Archives (ML&A) at Fresno (Cal.) Pacific University as its newest archival partner. ML&A is the eighth MAID partner and the first outside Canada, which enhances MAID’s vision of being a source for “the discovery of photographs of Mennonite life from around the world.” MAID’s eight partners have now collectively uploaded more than 82,000 photographic descriptions into its online database (archives.mhsc.ca); nearly 19,000 of these have scanned images attached. The ML&A collections consist of tens of thousands of photographs, including a massive collection from Mennonite Brethren mission around the globe. “These photographs have been available in the archives for many years, but only to those researchers able to visit the archives,” says library director Kevin Enns-Rempel. “MAID will make these photographs visible to the world.”

—Mennonite Historical Society of Canada release

Partner events 2016

July 1–Aug 12: MB Mission ACTION Winnipeg.

July 8–18: MB Mission SOAR Montréal.

July 8–17: MB Mission SOAR Vancouver.

Sept. 7: Classes begin, Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg.

Sept. 7: Classes begin, Steinbach (Man.) Bible College.

Sept. 7: Classes begin, Columbia Bible College, Abbotsford, B.C.

Memory from MAID

Sept. 11: MB Mission TREK program begins, B.C.

A green convention

Sept. 17–18: MCC event: Toronto Mennonite Festival, Black Creek Pioneer Village.

Men and women wash dishes at the 1963 annual convention of the Canadian Conference of MB Churches in Herbert, Sask., while delegates take a meal break.

Oct. 21–22: Mennonites, Land and the Environment: A Global History conference, University of Winnipeg.

Oct. 27–30: MEDA Business as Calling convention, San Antonio, Tex.

Photo (NP025-07-25) from the Centre for Mennonite Brethren Studies is available to the public in collaboration with MAID: the Mennonite Archival Image Database. Research more images from Mennonite churches and organizations at archives.mhsc.ca.

Nov. 18: Disciple Making International global mission banquet, King Road Church, Abbotsford, B.C. View more events from churches and agencies at mbherald.com/calendar.

archives.mhsc.ca/canadian-conference-of-mennonite-brethren-churches-3 Mennonite Brethren Herald

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God, Sex, Me & You

[ FEATURE

I

like preaching about sex and money because I know people are listening.

These days, I get the same reaction to both topics: How dare the church tell me what to do?!

As Christ followers, we’re called to live for Christ and to die to self – even with our bodies. This applies not only to the “spiritual” parts of our lives, but the everyday.

In Article 10 on discipleship, the Mennonite Brethren Confession of Faith says: We believe that Jesus calls people who have experienced the joy of new birth to follow him as disciples. By calling his followers to take up the cross, Christ invites them to reject the godless values of the world and offer themselves to God in a life of service. The Holy Spirit, who lives in every Christian, empowers believers to overcome the acts and attitudes of the sinful nature. Filled with love and gratitude, disciples delight to obey God.

God’s design In the beginning, God created humans as male and female for procreation, teamwork, responsibility and accountability, to experience intimacy with one another by knowing and being known.

“So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Then God blessed them” (Genesis 1:27–28a NLT) .

As Adam discovers Eve in Genesis 2:23–25, we see the structure of relationship given in marriage: the two are united in one in intimacy without shame. It paints a picture of joy, acceptance without fear and purpose.

Unfortunately, society and church have struggled to paint a healthy picture of sex, often going to the extremes of regarding it either as a god or just plain gross. Neither is appropriate or biblical. Sex is a gift from God. God did not create man and woman, then – to his surprise – discover they were sexually intimate with each other when he wasn’t looking.

But our struggle is not so much with discerning a biblical view of marriage.

Our current issue is defining ourselves by a sexual or gender orientation of our own choosing, rather than crucifying ourselves so that we can discover our identity in Christ.

Cultivating the lordship of Christ The church’s challenge, says Jon Tyson, pastor of Trinity Grace Church in New York, “is to cultivate the lordship of Christ over people who have been carefully crafted and conditioned to worship themselves.” The pervasive cultural view of self and sex has become the lens through which many Christ followers read Scripture and process their sexuality.

Throughout history, followers of Christ have fallen into beliefs and practices their cultures considered acceptable. Under the guise of being Christians, people committed the atrocities of the Crusades, the inquisitions, wars between Protestants and Catholics, the African slave trade and the list goes on.

It’s easy to see these failures in Christians of the past, but it is important to realize that we face temptations ourselves. When we grow up in a culture that tells us to worship ourselves, it is natural to view God as a means to fulfill our desires. We are conditioned to think that God is here to serve us, to fulfill our needs – and if he doesn’t, he is not a loving, caring God.

Identifying our cultural blind spots By looking at what Paul said to the Corinthians about their cultural blind spot, we can learn how to deal more adequately with our own. In Corinth, people used sex for worship; in our culture, people worship sex.

In 1 Corinthians 6, Paul challenged the pagan practice of visiting religious prostitutes, which some in the church, like society around them, were convinced was beneficial to their spiritual life.

In our society, we’re convinced sex is good for everyone and everything. It is used to sell every product under the sun. We cannot imagine celibacy or abstinence as lifestyle option. Cohabitation before marriage is the norm, even though divorce rates do not support the “test drive” hypothesis. Increasingly, we even believe any intimate relationship must become sexual.

So Paul’s words are as relevant for today as for the Corinthian church. “You say, ‘I am allowed to do anything’ – but not everything is good for you. And even though ‘I am allowed to do anything,’ I must not become a slave to anything.

You say, ‘Food was made for the stomach, and the stomach for food.’…

But you can’t say that our bodies were made for sexual immorality. They were made for the Lord, and the Lord cares about our bodies” (1 Corinthians 6:12–13 NLT).

Paul was responding to the Corinthian version of “if it feels good, do it.” Though Christ followers celebrate our freedom in Christ, it is inappropriate to use our freedom to justify whatever we want to participate in. Paul was reminding the Corinthians that they cannot let themselves become a slave to anything. If we can’t say “no” to something, we are not actually free.

Sexual appetites are good and wholesome in the context of marriage, but the Corinthians become slaves to their desires. They lose perspective and give themselves to sexual immorality. Their sexual desires master them.

Furthermore, the Corinthians use the slogan about the stomach to mean that sexual pleasure is meant to be enjoyed just as food is meant to be eaten. Using this line of reasoning, they defend sexual immorality: God created people as sexual creatures; therefore, sex is good. There is a measure of truth here. The enjoyment of sexuality is as natural as eating, but this truth does not legitimize every form of sexual pleasure.

Mennonite Brethren Herald

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[ FEATURE CONTINUED Our bodies for God Paul reminds the Corinthians that our bodies were made for God and God cares what we do with our bodies. God is the ultimate authority, the master over all nature, and his Word must regulate how humans live. We are not the centre of our universe, God is. We live our lives in submission to him, not merely in a behavioural agreement for the purpose of receiving a cosmic blessing.

Christ followers are so intimately joined to Christ on every level of our being that even our physical bodies are united to him. “Don’t you realize that your bodies are actually parts of Christ?.... The person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him” (1 Corinthians 6:15–17).

The Corinthians dismissed the importance of sexual immorality on the basis that the body was disposable (6:13).

Paul argued that our bodies are valuable because they are already part of Christ.

Their significance is not just eternal, but immediate and temporal.

In fact, because, as Jesus followers, our bodies are joined to Christ, we involve Christ himself in our relationships. This is why our sexual behaviour has such importance. “No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body.

Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honour God with your body” (1 Corinthians 6:18–20 NLT).

The Holy Spirit takes up residence in believers, making our bodies a holy

place for the dwelling of God’s special presence. When a Christ follower engages in sexual immorality, that immorality runs contrary to the new nature and new identity of the body.

Purchase of redemption Paul also reminded the Corinthians that they did not have rights to their own bodies. They were not free to use their bodies any way they wished. He insisted that Christ bought them at a price – his own blood. Christ bought us, body and soul, through the price of his own death. Because we belong to him, we do not have the right to rebel against him by using our bodies in ways the Lord has prohibited.

Further, because this purchase results in redemption and salvation, it ought to inspire grateful obedience, not rebellion.

In this reminder, Paul chastised the Corinthians and pleaded with them to obey Christ eagerly and thankfully.

Rather than merely resist sin, we must see ourselves as living stones being built into a temple indwelt by the Spirit of God. We were purchased by Christ’s atoning work on the cross. Because Christ died for us, we respond to him with obedience. We search for ways to bring glory to God by using our bodies in the ways that God has set out, and by refraining from using our bodies in ways God has prohibited.

A high calling You have your issues and I have mine, says Wesley Hill, a professor at Trinity School for Ministry, and all of these issues need to be submitted to Christ.

Hill has been attracted to men as far back as he can remember. For him, the

Discuss

How does focusing on what it means to follow Jesus – rather than on what is natural – change our conversations about sinful behaviour?

What is the difference between agreement and acceptance and how can that guide us to love hurting people without abdicating our belief in a higher calling?

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July/August 2016 | www.mbherald.com

question is not How do I fulfill my sexual desires? but How do align myself with Christ and his purposes?

As brothers and sisters together – regardless of sexual orientation – we all must find our identity in Christ and submit our sexuality to the cross.

Let’s put aside the “I was born this way” argument in determining ethics. To be a Christian is to believe that Jesus – not our past, our biology or our desires – is our Lord. Biology is not destiny; we can all choose how we live. Not every desire I have should be indulged, whether I was born with it or not.

We can only call ourselves and those around us to a biblical sexuality if we are willing to be a biblical community. If we are calling people to celibacy, we need to be family for each other: single, married, divorced, widowed, same-sex attracted, transgender.

There is no “us” and “them.” There is only “us.” We all need the healing of an authentic community to live as Jesus calls us to live.

We cannot be a biblically oriented people without biblical community. Jesus says that those who do the will of the Father are his family. Pray, repent, confess, forgive, renew.

—Willy Reimer is executive director of the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches.

This article is adapted from a sermon he preached at Bakerview MB Church, Abbotsford, B.C., in January 2016.

Toolbox

Washed and Waiting: Reflections on Christian Faithfulness and Homosexuality by Wesley Hill Same-Sex Marriage: A “Third Way” Approach, The Meeting House, by Bruxy Cavey (http://bit.ly/1Umm8gH) Many MB churches have been examining God’s design for human sexuality from their pulpits. Go to mennonitebrethren.ca for a podcast containing sermons on sexuality from our churches across Canada.

[ C2C NETWORK

Why multiply?

F

ours years ago, Anthony Delaney and his leadership team had a bold building plan in place. However, they had a prayerful wrestle and decided a different path was in order – a journey of multiplication. Four years later, Delaney’s church has four campuses across Greater Manchester. This congregation has grown numerically in the process, but, more significantly, has seen increased numbers of people come to Jesus.

Multiplication isn’t a buzzword to be overlooked: it is at the heart of the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches: “We exist to multiply Christ-centred churches to see Canada transformed by the good news of Jesus Christ.”

Multiplication is biblical “When the church is truly alive, spontaneous multiplication takes place and spontaneous expansion of the church involves not merely the multiplication of Christians but the multiplication of churches.” This is as true today as when British missionary Roland Allen wrote it in 1927.

The early church in the Book of Acts experienced spontaneous multiplication. It shook cities and disrupted the sociopolitical and spiritual landscape (Acts 17:6).

Yet the infant Jesus movement nearly splintered over racial and cultural differences. Discontentment, complaints and accusations arose over a food distribution project in the midst of exponential growth. Once the disciples resolved the issue, “the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem” (Acts 6:7, ESV).

The gospel continued to advance: “Walking in the fear of the Lord and in the

this could soak the parched land with “rivers of living water” (John 7:38). If church plants launched pregnant and reproduced other church plants, this Multiplication of disciples and of would create the possibility of rabbit-like churches is a biblical concept that must be gospel propagation. pursued with passion and perseverance.

What can you do? comfort of the Holy Spirit, [the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria] multiplied” (Acts 9:31, ESV).

Multiplication is the key to Kingdom advancement

Jeff Christopherson, strategist for the North American Mission Board, makes the startling claim: “A straightforward reading of the New Testament can lead to no other conclusion than the normal state of a Kingdom-spirited congregation is to seek to provide opportunities for every person to come face-to-face with the good news of Christ.”

Bob Roberts Jr., founder of Glocal. net, uses biology to illustrate this point.

Elephants have a 22-month gestation period, rhinos 16 months; however, rabbits reproduce in 31 days! “The future of the faith…is not tied to planting more churches, but in the raising up of mother congregations of every tribe, tongue, denomination and network that are reproducing like rabbits,” he says.

If we want to see Canada saturated with the gospel in our day, we need to see all churches giving birth to many new churches. Roberts said a planter can plant a single church but a mother church could plant 10 or more.

There are some 11,000 established evangelical congregations from coast to coast. What if every church became a mother to a new campus or a new congregation? What if each one of our 248 MB churches across the country multiplied? This would be an eternal game changer!

Pray for a heart for the harvest. Ask Jesus to deploy more workers into the harvest and ask him to give you his eyes for the need.

Jesus travelled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields” (Matthew 9:35–38 NLT).

Prayerfully explore with your congregation what multiplication might look like in your context. Engage resources like the Multiply conference.

If we are going to see Canada transformed by the good news of Jesus Christ, we must intentionally pursue multiplying Christcentred churches from sea to sea.

—Bill Hogg is national missiologist with the Mennonite Brethren church planting arm, the C2C Network.

Multiply conference Westside Church, Vancouver Feb. 8–9, 2017

Multiply to saturate Canada with the gospel Canada is a mission field – a parched country that desperately needs to be saturated with the gospel. If established churches multiplied by planting daughter churches, campuses or satellite ministries,

stirring worship, inspiring plenaries, opportunity to connect

3 tracks:

1) discipleship and evangelism 2) church planting/campus planting 3) renewal and revitalization

Mennonite Brethren Herald

| July/August 2016

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[ FEATURE

How to talk to kids about LGBTQ The “birds and the bees” talk is a thing of the past – or it should be. Now, more than ever, children need honest conversations about sexuality to be part of everyday family life. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer: it’s not a matter of “if ” but “when” children will encounter an unfamiliar term or alternate perspective on sexuality.

How can we as parents, mentors and church leaders talk about these issues with each other and with our children in ways that honour the God we love and serve?

Before starting the conversation, be informed about the issues.

• Don’t stick your head in the sand. Our culture’s values on gender, sex and marriage don’t line up with the way we understand the Bible – and that’s not likely to change. We need to understand our culture and affirm God’s design.

• Understand and use the current terminology, read articles, watch the news, talk with your spouse and good friends in preparation for discussions with children.

Regularly affirm the truths we learn from the Bible: • God’s Word is our authority for life (2 Timothy 3:16–17).

• Each person is created in God’s image, fearfully and wonderfully made, regardless of life choices or circumstances (Genesis 1:27; Psalm 139:14).

• Each person is sinful, and if we continue in unrepentant sin, we will not receive eternal life (Romans 3:23, 6:23).

• Jesus Christ is the solution to the problem of sin. We are called to confess our sins, repent and live in submission to God’s Word, empowered by the Holy Spirit (Romans 10:9; 1 John 1:5–10).

• God’s design for sex is only between one man and one woman inside the covenant

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of marriage (Genesis 2:24). And even within marriage, we are to pursue holy sexuality (1 Peter 1:14–16).

• All sexual activity outside God’s design is sin. For example, adultery, living together before marriage, pornography, same-sex sexual behaviour (Leviticus 18–20; Romans 1; 1 Corinthians 6:12–20).

Nevertheless, we are not robots. Teach children that we can each choose to follow God’s design (obey God) – even when it is difficult – or we can choose not to follow God’s design (sin).

Read the Bible regularly with children.

• The stories offer many opportunities to bring up challenging words and topics. As you read, ask, “Do you know what [this word/phrase] means?” (E.g., Abraham “knew” Sarah. Other words like harem, rape, prostitute, circumcision, etc., are pathways to conversations on difficult subjects around sexuality and gender.)

Teach children how to treat all people with respect and love.

• It is not okay to reject, abandon or treat anyone with disgust. We are to be kind, polite and respectful even if we disagree with someone’s lifestyle and choices.

• Find ways to build relationships with family members and friends whose views conflict with your own. (E.g., pray for them, send “Happy Birthday” texts or cards, deliver care packages, invite to picnics, etc.)

Find ways to expose children (gently) to these issues while they are in your care.

• If you wait for children to ask questions, they may not ever speak up.

Here are some ideas to help initiate conversations: get involved with neighbours who are different from your family, read articles out loud at home, talk about what you see on TV, etc.

• Have discussions with another trusted adult where children can “overhear” you.

• If a child is exposed to perspectives on sexuality that are new to them, capitalize on the teaching opportunity.

• Expect unexpected questions from children at unexpected times. You can respond with, “That’s a good question.

Let me think about it, and we will talk later as we drive to soccer.”

• Try not to discuss any difficult or emotional topics right before bed.

Bedtime should be a peaceful time of day.

Regularly, using the appropriate level of detail for the child’s development, discuss the language and concepts of sexuality and gender.

• Ask the child, “What are some words you are hearing (at school or baseball or...)?” Some children are more comfortable writing these words down rather than saying them out loud.

• Explain swear words and your family rules around these words.

• Explain all the different words for private body parts (both proper and crude words).

—Thaleia Sawatzky has an MA in counselling psychology from Trinity Western University, Langley, B.C., and serves as pastor of care at Northview • Teach the child that God created Community Church, Abbotsford, B.C. people to be male or female, but there is She has been married to Mark for 23 a vast spectrum of how “maleness” and years, and they have two teenagers who “femaleness” can be lived out. (E.g., boys are in high school. Thaleia presented can be emotional and enjoy art and drama. this material at Girls can enjoy extreme sports and prefer the Transform activity to talking about feelings.)

Conference: Raising Remind your children that how we feel does Up Gospel-Loving Kids in a Gospelnot determine our identity: God’s adoption Hating Culture, of us as his children does. As Christians, we organized by recognize that our feelings may change, but MinistryLift.

God’s Word endures forever.

• Listen to the child and ask clarifying questions. Pray with them for God’s help in this struggle.

• Explain the terminology behind LGBTQ: o Lesbian = a woman who identifies as

romantically or sexually attracted to another woman. It is not helpful to say “a woman who likes women.” o Transgender = a person who believes

that their mind does not match up with their physical anatomy. E.g., a person is biologically female, but in this person’s mind, they feel like a man. This person’s response may or may not involve surgery or hormone treatment.

• Discuss how to disagree with behaviours, yet have compassion for people. Sexual identity often causes significant anxiety, distress, confusion, depression, despair and hatred of self. Talk about some examples in your own relationships.

What if a child/teenager experiences same-sex attraction? Or is confused about their gender?

• Stay calm and reassure the child that you – and God – love them no matter what.

• Seek help from a trusted Christian pastor, counsellor, family member or friend, while protecting the child’s privacy.

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[ FEATURE

Doing theology as a spiritual practice:

ordination as a biblical and valuable practice, but rarely mentioned it.

Re-engaging ordination 2 R

ecently, I’ve been hearing Mennonite Brethren use the word “theology” more than they used to. With few Canadian Christians reading the Bible, perhaps some use theological categories and propositions as a shortcut to thinking about God’s ways. However, Christians also do theology by taking the longer road of joining God’s people – past and present – to pray and think through the Bible’s nitty-gritty stories, teachings and poetry in order to live faithfully.

I’ve also been hearing Mennonite Brethren differentiate between pastors and academics. This differentiation suggests a criticism, as if the work of theologians is a hindrance to the “real” work of practitioners who share the gospel and build the church. This criticism is a problem, especially when I observe MB pastors seeking to communicate biblical truth with clarity (i.e., theologically), and professors from Canada’s four MB schools serving congregations with enthusiasm (i.e., practically).

All Christ’s followers do theology whenever they interact with Scripture and their Christian heritage to discern how they will live thoughtfully and faithfully in their particular contexts. To use Gerald

O’Collins’s play on words, we are being theological when we watch our language in the presence of God. Therefore, what if all MB churches and ministries learned to do theology as a multi-dimensional spiritual practice?

The Board of Faith and Life’s proposal for re-engaging ordination provides a model to consider. This recent example within the family of MB churches is not perfect, but it illustrates one group’s approach to doing theology well.

Our approach (I joined the BFL more than three years ago) was embedded in experience, careful thinking, the church, Scripture, the Holy Spirit and God’s mission.

A community call to ministry Two years ago, the BFL noticed more and more MB pastors discussing and requesting ordination. Pastors were asking, “What does ordination mean?

Will MBs recognize my ordination from another denomination? Do I need to be ordained to receive the government’s clergy residence deduction? Who initiates ordination?”

Leaders longed for a clearer affirmation of their ministry calling through ordination.

In some congregations, ordination had been downplayed as a hindrance to pastor-parishioner relationships.

Elsewhere, ordination signified the rank and authority of senior pastors.

1

In response, the BFL first paid attention to our understandings of ordination. We asked each other, “What has been the significance of your own experience of being ordained – or not being ordained?” (Half to two thirds of BFL members had been ordained when the process began.) Some longstanding pastors felt that they had missed out on an important affirmation by not being ordained. Others had experienced

Then, with the help of the Centre for MB Studies, the BFL examined the theological heritage of the MB church. The history of ordination among MB churches in Canada was revealing. MB churches once ordained both men and women to various leadership ministries. Churches also misused and misunderstood ordination: some ordained ministers became authoritarian; congregations elevated and distanced their ordained ministers as if those leaders were super-spiritual.

Not surprisingly, several MB Bible teachers began to teach that ordination is not explicitly taught in the Scriptures and is often detrimental to the life and witness of the church.

3

Spurred on by experience, history and teaching, the BFL revisited the New Testament passages about “the laying on of hands” for church leaders. We acknowledged that although the New Testament does not name ordination as a Christian ritual, the early church prayerfully laid hands on its leaders in order to recognize their suitability for church leadership, to appoint them to particular leadership roles on behalf of the Holy Spirit and to provide servant leaders with appropriate authority and the Spirit’s gifting (Acts 6:6, 13:3, 14:23; 1 Timothy 4:14, 5:22).

4

After more than a year of study, the BFL expressed our own theological perspective on ordination.

The booklet we produced encourages Canadian MB churches to re-engage the practice of ordaining pastors and other key church leaders. Such ordination must, however, reflect biblical values – including focusing on spiritual gifts instead of status, on the congregation’s discernment rather than individual selfpromotion, and on accountability and mutuality.

We believe that if MB churches practise ordination in this way, they can regularly use this practice to publicly recognize and call men and women PHOTOS COURTESY OF MAID

for long-lasting ministry in church leadership roles. If practised through the Holy Spirit’s guidance, ordination can aid MB congregations in discerning and commissioning their leaders.

5

During Gathering 2016, the BFL will distribute copies of this proposal and invite discussion and responses. The proposal, along with three study questions, can be downloaded at mennonitebrethren.ca. We will also ask the pastoral credentialing bodies of each provincial MB conference to study the proposal and to respond to the BFL. Both pastors and congregations need to understand ordination because both play a part in honouring God and serving his mission with this practice.

When I consider how the BFL has developed this proposal, I see five ways in which we practised theology robustly.

Our theological process grew out of real experiences and questions in today’s changing contexts. In the life of the Spirit, Jesus’ followers seek to make Godhonouring decisions about practical and even mundane matters.

The BFL valued the experiences and theological teachings of God’s people in the past. It is arrogant to assume that God’s wisdom can be recognized only by today’s believers; the Spirit speaks through the whole people of God. The Board prayed that God would lead our deliberations. We sought to heed the Spirit who speaks in many ways. Listening to

one another – including during Gathering – is one important part of communal hermeneutics and discernment.

The Word of God in Scripture assumed central importance in naming and shaping a faithful practice of ordination.

The BFL named specific actions that MB churches can implement for the good of Christ’s church and God’s mission.

Although the BFL’s theological work included these activities, we could do more —not merely as the BFL, but as the church. We could consult the theological insights of other Christian traditions. We could consider a wider range of relevant theological themes.

We could spend more time listening for the Spirit’s voice.

it is equipped” – do its part to promote the entire body’s growth in building itself up in love. Then the wisdom of God in its rich variety will be made known through the church on earth as in heaven, for this is the mission of God (Ephesians 4:16, 3:10 NLT).

—Andrew Dyck is professor of ministry studies with Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary at Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg, and represents the seminary on the BFL.

As a faithful participant in God’s mission, the church must continually address burning issues theologically. I long to see MB congregations, leadership bodies and conferences practise theology in a multi-faceted way similar to the BFL’s process.

I believe this will help the MB church – a small part of the body of Christ, “joined and knit together by every ligament with which

Toolbox The BFL’s ordination proposal can downloaded at mennonitebrethren.ca.

Teachings about ordination by two MB Bible teachers: “Ordination” (1994) by Tim Geddert (http://bit.ly/1Ueb9Wx) “Rethinking the Meaning of Ordination: Toward a Biblical Theology of Leadership Affirmation” (2004)

by John E. Toews (http://bit.ly/1WUXTMY) Laura Kalmar considers the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada’s research about Canadians reading the Bible in “The ups and downs of Bible reading,” March 2015 mbherald.com/the-ups-and-downs-of-bible-reading/ See also www.evangelicalfellowship.ca/BibleEngagementStudy and www.bibleengagementstudy.ca

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ICOMB:

International Community of Mennonite Brethren

Culture Pearls A few gems from a visit to India

“Y

ou’ll be speaking at our flag raising ceremony on Republic Day,” said I.P. Asheervadam, principal of MB Centenary Bible College, Shamshabad, India.

I’m game for something new. Speaking at a national holiday event celebrating the Constitution of India would definitely qualify for “new” – maybe even “once in a lifetime.”

Anthem Everyone sang the national anthem, holding a salute from the beginning to the final note. Everyone of course, except the foreigners: me and two German men teaching a pastor training course on campus. In my short speech, I honoured their country and patriotism – and pointed to the “Kingdom that is not of this world.”

Our international community is located in 19 countries, so I have the privilege of encountering quite a variety of cultural expressions. India is certainly rich with such.

Dances

four (different) verses of “Happy Birthday” and a troupe of girls danced to the most beautiful, graceful music.

Dancing is permitted now, according to what one church leader told me. The MB Conference of India, at 125 years of age, is old enough to get past the North American cultural prohibitions and accept certain Indiaculture expressions now. Good for them!

At a pastor training day, I was treated to a kolattam dance. This features the use of sticks and rhythmic steps – it looks dangerous and intricate and fun.

Culture: embrace or resist I’ve had conversations about culture all over the Mennonite Brethren world. Some groups still tend to resist cultural expressions and have a hard time figuring out what is appropriate for Christians to embrace and what is not. Others seem to embrace cultural expressions more. In some cases, they had to “undo” what they learned from culture-phobic missionaries.

Hannah Joseph, women’s ministry coordinator, had organized a little party with 1,000 of my new friends! They sang

I don’t mean to be hard on the missionaries. Our conviction to separate from the world and our notions of the “correct” way of doing things were set deeply, and not easily changed. The power of these notions was evident when I visited the first Mennonite Brethren church in India, built in 1892 by MB missionaries from Russia. It’s now a Baptist church, located on a busy street corner in Nalgonda. When I walked

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF DAVID WIEBE

On the first day of my trip, I greeted a women’s conference on behalf of the international community. About 1,000 women gathered. To my surprise, I was called back onstage and presented with a cake decorated with “Happy Birthday David Wiebe.”

July/August 2016 | www.mbherald.com

Wiebe’s Witness

[ WIEBE’S WITNESS

Drawing from his travels to visit MB churches around the world, ICOMB executive director David Wiebe offers insights on faith.

in, I was transported to Lindal (Man.) MB Mission church of my boyhood – exactly the same shape of building, with gothic pointed windows, and the same slatted wooden pews. We had common understanding of what a church ought to look like – seen in Russia, Canada, India and beyond.

Morning prayer One Sunday morning, I awoke to incredibly loud music pouring out of huge loudspeakers on the steeple of the college campus MB church. It was 5:00 a.m. At first, I was disturbed, but then they played the sweet, sweet music from the dancing girls at my birthday party!

I relaxed and enjoyed this early morning blessing.

I heard the German fellow in the next room get up to hunt down the perpetrator of this “abuse” (his term).

He objected to the early hour and the volume, not to mention that it lasted well over an hour.

All to say, the “pearls of wisdom” we offer need to be “cultured.” I think our international family can really help us get practiced at this.

—David Wiebe is a fan of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and podcasts on church history (57 hours and counting).

After two decades of working for the Canadian Conference of MB Churches, he has served the International Community of Mennonite Brethren as executive director since 2011.

did you know?

India MB Conference is our largest Mennonite Brethren family at approximately 200,000 members.

The Mennonite Brethren first sent missionaries there from Russia (Ukraine) in the 1880s, only two decades after the church’s birth. The MB Conferences of India and Canada are almost identical in age.

The Conference is divided into about 45 “fields.” These include an established church, several smaller MB churches, and 10–12 villages designated for outreach and church planting. This approach fosters steady church growth.

Through MB Mission, we can support extension workers, help purchase motorcycles and help churches put on roofs.

Yet, this is the church’s answer to the early morning call to the mosque! “If they can do it – so can we.”

Since culture plays out so differently, would we not benefit from being cultural students? I feel that too often we attempt to share the Bible and the gospel without trying enough to understand either our own culture, or the one we’re witnessing to, or the one in which the Scriptures were written.

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[

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Compelled T

his month, MBs from across Canada are meeting together in Toronto for what I like to think of as our biennial mission conference. We will hear reports, process recommendations, assess budgets, worship and be inspired by God’s Word – all activities that reflect the life Jesus has called us to and the mission he gave us.

It seems appropriate, “prophetic” even, that we are meeting in one of the most multicultural cities in the world this year.

Global missionaries at home We have heard repeatedly that the world is a “global village,” that mission is no longer from the “west to the rest,” rather “from everywhere to everywhere.” People are moving around the world as never before, either by choice or (in the case of refugees) by force. We can now be “global missionaries” minutes from our home.

Regardless of the place of the call, one thing has not changed: we need to answer the call. Our hearts still need to be sensitive to the mission Jesus has called us to, to the promptings of the Spirit to engage with the people he leads us to. The opportunities for global mission have never been greater, the proximity of people in need never closer.

Preaching the good news The theme of Gathering 2016 is “Compelled,” based on 1 Corinthians 9:16 (NLT): “Yet preaching the Good News is not something I can boast about. I am compelled by God to do it. How terrible for me if I didn’t preach the Good News!”

God called Paul to preach, so Paul had to fulfill that obligation or fall under divine judgment. In other words, it would have been sin for Paul not to preach. Not because of a legalistic rule he needed to follow, but because of the clarity and passion of the Spirit’s leading.

Accepting the role of executive director of CCMBC was a time of being 18

July/August 2016 | www.mbherald.com

compelled for Gwen and me. We acted in obedience to the leading of the Spirit.

We knew it would have been sin to refuse God’s leading.

in new ways wherever we live. I’m praying that God will call some people to renew their missionary commitment to follow Jesus wherever he leads them to minster in his name.

“My greatest desire for Gathering 2016 is that the Holy Spirit would fall on us in such a way that we are truly driven to our knees.”

I’m praying that we will hear new stories like that of Kristen and Garry Corrigan, who were prompted by the Spirit at Gathering 2008 – and within six months had moved from Vancouver to Montreal. They continue to serve there today, where Kristen is president of ETEQ.

The compulsion of the Spirit is not something one conjures up or responds to out of obligation, need or circumstance. It is not a response to emotional experiences, although it may feel emotional.

The compulsion of God is rooted in our experience of the grace of God, fed by ongoing relationship with God through daily time in his Word, prayer and community, instigated by the leading of the Spirit of God. On Thursday July 7, 2016, Gathering delegates will hit the road for a first-hand experience of the sights, sounds and smells of urban Toronto ministry. My prayer is that the Spirit will deposit his perspective on our own backyards into our minds and hearts as we experience Toronto.

Moved by the Spirit I’m praying that God will not only inform us, but will call people from among us to step out in faith and mission

We have to do business, but my heart for this summer is so much bigger than that. I keep praying that we would be overwhelmed by the presence of God and the mission he’s given us.

My greatest desire for Gathering 2016 is that the Holy Spirit would fall on us in such a way that we are truly driven to our knees. Not out of some sense of corporate vision, but because we are so overwhelmed by the reality of God, the truth of the gospel and the power of the cross. I pray that – corporately – we will respond to God, saying, “Whatever you want, however you are calling us, wherever you are leading us, we will obey, we will follow.”

I pray that we would be compelled by the Spirit working inside of us. Leaving Toronto, may we have a sense of what the Spirit is calling us to personally, as local congregations and as a national body of churches together.

For his glory, for the benefit of those who do not know Jesus and for the ongoing transformation of the bride.

—Willy Reimer is executive director of the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches. He lives in Calgary.

[

Report on MB Mission and the C2C Network

M

ission has historically been at the heart of the Mennonite Brethren churches of Canada. This “Big Idea” conversation is driven by the desire to expand the missionary focus of Canadian MB churches to maximize our collective missionary impact locally, provincially, nationally and globally.

Canadian MB churches are blessed to have two mission agencies in MB Mission and the C2C Network. The CCMBC Executive Board believes we have an opportunity and a need to strengthen mission at the centre of church and conference ministry. Our ability to reach more people would be significantly enhanced if these two ministries were working as one.

Changing environment

• Well-developed systems for assessing, training and developing planters

• 115-year history of global mission • Partnerships with other denominations in the global mission field

• Nimble and entrepreneurial • High trust with significant donors

• Strong governance structure

• Strong interdenominational support across Canada

• Strong donor development process

• Providing inspiration and equipping for established churches

• Strong financial systems and personnel • Well-developed presence in local churches

• Improved “success” rate over previous planting efforts

• Nimble structure with the freedom to respond to new mission opportunities.

• Growing prayer base

• Well-developed prayer culture for strategic decision making in uncertain times.

• Growing interdenominational financial support base

• Track record of working with young people in Canada for renewal and mission

• Best practices for urban planting • Strong interdenominational platform to develop a national prayer movement

• Cross-cultural church planting competency

Opportunity/value proposition The ministry opportunities at hand have caused the EB to ask several questions.

Currently C2C is working with 22 denominations and continues to receive requests. International church groups are also requesting C2C’s help to train their planters and church planting leaders.

What is the most effective way to reach more people?

MBM emphasizes that mission is “from everywhere to everywhere” because the world has become a global village.

Is this the time to make a structural change?

The growing cultural diversity in Canada has increased the demand for CCMBC to support churches reaching new Canadians.

The unique challenges of working with these groups is often best understood from a global mission perspective.

In these tighter financial times, CCMBC has exhausted its reserves in ramping up C2C, church giving is relatively flat (slight increase in 2015) and provinces are struggling to grow their financial contributions; however, personal and church contributions to mission agencies are increasing.

CCMBC has struggled to provide optimum oversight for C2C with the current accountability and slow decisionmaking process. It has been difficult for both parties to feel that their needs, interests and responsibilities are being well served given the ministry needs and opportunities at hand.

EXECUTIVE BOARD

Are there ways to organize ourselves that will create a multiplication effect in our churches and ministries?

Is there a synergy that comes with combining the strengths of both ministries?

The goal of this process is to bring the best of C2C and MBM together to create a mission agency that serves our Mennonite Brethren mission mandate with greater efficiency, productivity, transformative results and practical impact.

Action steps The pace of change and growth of C2C has been a challenge for the Executive Board and staff to manage. C2C’s denominational partnerships have never been officially approved by the board, so the board took the necessary step of approving and blessing C2C as an interdenominational church planting network.

The EB also agreed to appoint an interim Leadership Team for C2C. This team shall provide leadership support in developing and promoting vision and in setting goals for the C2C Network. The main focus of the team is to support and advise C2C

leadership in strategic planning, ensuring good organizational structure and financial processes are in place and adhered to.

The team is to ensure the creation of an appropriate strategic and annual plan, and to monitor the outcomes, measuring results and performance.

Recommendations for Gathering 2016 The vision to create a new mission agency by bringing together MBM and C2C is at its core a desire to enhance mission effectiveness in the lives of individuals and through our churches locally, nationally and globally. As a means of moving toward the fulfillment of that vision, the CCMBC EB is bringing two recommendations to Gathering: 1) Development of a task force to create a structure to oversee all church planting – local, national and global – integrating the strengths of each organization.

2) Authorizing C2C, in collaboration with MB Mission, to assist the USMB conference, and to function interdenominationally in the U.S. as requested, without any negative impact on Canadian church planting ministries and budget.

—“Big Idea” team: Michael Dick, Randy Friesen, Gord Fleming, Len Penner, Willy Reimer, on behalf of the Executive Board of the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches.

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[ NEWS

Young “hands of Jesus” pick up the hammer

W

hen young people work with their hands to serve someone else, they develop empathy, says Alicia Hurst, volunteer placement coordinator for Mennonite Disaster Service in Lititz, P.A. “It’s teaching them what it means to help their neighbour.”

Through MDS’s Summer Youth Project, “youth learn construction skills and interact with people from different backgrounds from all over the U.S. and Canada,” says Hurst, who, a decade ago, was an SYP participant herself. Each summer, MDS staff plan three projects deemed safe, educational and fun for young people 15 and older.

integrate the work with the biblical rationale “to be the hands and feet of Jesus,” says Hurst.

Camp Likely, an MB camp on Quesnel Lake in B.C., is this summer’s Canadian youth project. Each week, about 15 youth and 5 leaders will work to complete four new cabins to replace the boys’ bunk house over a month.

“Camps run on a shoestring budget,” says Evelyn Peters-Rojas, MDS volunteer and project coordinator in Winnipeg. “They are constantly looking for volunteers to help with building or repairing infrastructure.”

When Hurst signs up long-term MDS volunteers, they often tell her their first MDS experience was at 15, serving with their youth group or alongside their grandparents. “We’re working hard to give people that chance to start their story early.”

“I hope volunteers experience the value of camp ministry and the importance of evangelism,” says Camp Likely director Kate Reid. “They will hear staff testimonies and Bible stories in our chapel times and hopefully connect with campers.”

Ten weeks before their week of service, MDS sends groups devotionals that

When a church’s youth group signs up for a Summer Youth Project, a need in

another part of the country becomes personal, says Peters-Rojas. It starts an intergenerational conversation, with older church members encouraging youth to sign up – and asking them to share when they return.

South Langley (B.C.) MB Church’s youth will serve at Camp Likely this summer because Peter and Dorothy Regehr – with 14 MDS projects under their tool belts – invited their church’s youth group to join them on assignment.

“Our hope,” says South Langley’s youth director Kristophe Baerg, “is that working with MDS will inspire students to understand the importance and value of volunteer service and, maybe someday, motivate them to pursue further involvement.”

The first SYP in Canada was in response to forest fires in Barriere, B.C., in 2004. The following year, there were no Canadian disasters, so MDS invited youth teams to fix up a Vancouver apartment block to create more lowincome housing.

Every summer since, MDS has offered at least one youth project in Canada – often non-disaster related, with the benefit of allowing MDS and churches to prepare further in advance: both logistical and spiritually.

Summer Youth Project teams with Mennonite Disaster Service spiff up Redberry Bible Camp in 2015.

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“Working at flood after flood, it can be easy for MDS workers to get discouraged,” says Hurst. “Youth bring an energy that’s invigorating and refreshing.”

—Angeline Schellenberg PHOTOS COURTESY OF MDS

Passing the baton LANGLEY, B.C. The MBBS board of directors appointed Mark Wessner as president, effective Aug. 8, 2016.

Wessner has been a pastor at Westwood MB Church in Prince George for 10 years, the last six as lead pastor.

He has served on the BCMB conference committee responsible for licensing, credentialing and ordaining pastors, and on the CCMBC Executive Board.

Concurrent to his church ministry, Wessner served as adjunct professor at MBBS and as professor in the American Public University and University of Northern BC. Much of his teaching has been online. He also worked for 12 years for the B.C. government overseeing land development.

“We believe Mark is well positioned to take the baton of leadership and run the next lap with the MBBS team, educating and equipping men and women to serve Jesus,” says MBBS board chair Ron Penner.

“We give thanks to God for answering the prayers of his people,” says Willy Reimer, CCMBC executive director.

“We know Mark grieves leaving Westwood, yet his love for the local church and her mission is in part why we celebrate his appointment.”

Mark and Jennifer have 2 teenaged daughters.

Meet some of the speakers who will be at Gathering 2016…

Phil Collins is the senior pastor at Willow Park Church, Kelowna, B.C. He is a well-known national evangelist and church leader from United Kingdom. Phil loves preaching, prayer and meeting people. A long distance runner, he says his greatest achievement was a 42-mile mountain marathon. Phil is married to Michelle and they have four great kids.

Laurence East is a Jesus-follower and community leader with a passionate heart. Laurence is the planter and lead pastor of Metro Community Church, Kelowna, B.C., which describes themselves as a group of people from all walks of life learning to live together. At the heart of Metro Community are those most vulnerable in society, the homeless, excluded and addicted. Metro is a place where the stranger is the treasured guest. Laurence and his wife Sarah have three amazing children.

Gathering Ad

Victor Neufeld serves as the lead pastor at North Kildonan MB Church in Winnipeg. NKMB’s mission is to Meet God, Love God, Serve God. This church is a people on a journey toward God through the starting point Jesus Christ. Being on a journey implies movement and movement necessitates change. The body of believers at NKMB are dreaming of great things to come as they are faithful and obedient to the call of God in their lives. Victor and his wife Elaine live in Winnipeg.

Chris Stevens is a passionate follower of the person and ways of Jesus. He is currently lead pastor and teacher at Waterloo (Ontario) MB Church. Here his teaching ministry takes the form of sharing from his life experience in the business world, federal government, counselling experience, theological training, and deep love for Christ.

Chris has a BA in commerce and psychology, a Bachelor of Religious Education in theology and some masters-level courses in finance.

Chris and his wife Adrienne are the proud parents of two daughters.

Janet Thiessen is currently an associate pastor of leadership, teaching and team-building at North Langley Community Church in Langley, B.C. A grad of ACTS Seminary in 2004, Janet is passionate about the mission of Jesus through the local church. She and her husband Rob are parents to four adult children and four grandchildren.

Janet can often be found in her garden, reading a book, or skiing with her family.

—MBBS release

Mennonite Brethren Herald

| July/August 2016

21

[ NEWS

Amalgamation deepens faith roots

I

n his first year in Waldheim, Sask., MB pastor Greg Wiens recalls seeing youth from church walking with a teen who’d just moved to town. As they passed a man from Menno Homes, a ministry to people with disabilities, the newcomer yelled, “What a loser!” The other students said, “We want you to know they are our friends. We don’t do that here.”

“In Waldheim, Menno Homes is part of the community,” says Wiens.

The 53-year-old Mennonite Central Committee-initiated ministry will deepen its faith emphasis and broaden its reach by amalgamating with Christian Horizons, July 1, 2016.

“We are becoming a national organization with a provincial reach,” says Jordan Varey, executive director of Menno Homes, which currently supports 70 individuals with disabilities in Waldheim, Saskatoon, Warman and Martensville, Sask.

“Like Menno Homes, Christian Horizons is led by people passionate about supporting individuals impacted by disability. Together, we are able to pool our passion and resources for even greater results,” says Varey.

Menno Homes participants find friendship and meaningful work in community.

The new organization will be called Christian Horizons. Menno Homes’s current services will continue – 11 homes and numerous day programs, including woodworking, recycling and golf course maintenance – with a new capacity for growth.

Founded in 1965, Christian Horizons supports 2,000 people with developmental disabilities and their families through residential, employment and supported vacation programs. With 200 residences in Ontario, Christian Horizons expanded their work into Saskatchewan in 2015.

“Menno Homes brings our long history in the province, a strong relationship with MCC and Mennonite denominations and our expertise in the provincespecific aspects of our sector,” says Varey. “From Christian Horizons, we are gaining structures to help us to thrive: HR support, training, technology and programming support.”

“The amalgamation will help sustain and strengthen the Christian faith within Menno Homes,” says Peter Guenther, Menno Homes board chair.

In June, all Menno Homes staff received training about how Christian Horizons’s faith impacts every aspect of the work.

Through the merger, Menno Homes also gains a worldwide connection: Christian Horizons Global supports people affected by intellectual or physical disabilities, HIV/AIDS, abandonment or extreme poverty in 60 communities across Uganda, South Sudan, Kenya, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Haiti.

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July/August 2016 | www.mbherald.com

Empowering the church “We will continue to support people to be active in their local faith communities and in their personal devotional lives,” says Varey. Drawing from Christian Horizons’s camp experience, Menno Homes is hosting the first Christian Horizons family retreat at Camp Elim in August.

To empower local church partners, Varey hopes to bring Christian Horizons’s faith and disability conferences to Saskatchewan.

He is excited about working with the local church “as they develop inclusive spaces of belonging for the people we support.”

At Waldheim MB, a Sunday school class builds up 15–20 individuals from Menno Homes. To gain work experience, Menno Homes participants clean the church every Monday.

When a new Menno Homes residence goes up, Wiens hears only positive comments from neighbours. Participants from Menno Homes are at every sporting event – cheering for both teams.

“I have a cousin with a developmental disability, and I wish he could live in a town like this with an organization that cares like Menno Homes,” says Wiens. “It’s an extension of the gospel.”

“The opportunities for people impacted by disability across the nation have been increasing with the government and the disability support sector’s emphasis on inclusive employment and full citizenship,” says Varey.

“With God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26), says Varey. “I can’t wait to see what role we will play in those developments.”

—Angeline Schellenberg PHOTOS COURTESY BEN RAINE

Unless a seed…

New discipleship program takes root in Hepburn

T

he April 2015 closure of 88-year-old Bethany College, Hepburn, Sask., was like the death of a dear friend, but a group of alumni and friends believed its discipleship-training strengths could be reborn for the next generations. June 1, 2016, the Bethany board and vision group working committee announced that a discipleship program will begin on the Hepburn campus in fall 2017.

The mission of the as-yet-unnamed eightmonth program is to form young adults into “whole and holy disciples.”

In the new program, three-week modules will explore each topic through discovery (teaching/knowledge transfer), development (personal application) and service. Staff mentors will share the rhythms of life with students, who will be living in residence.

The new program is rooted in Bethany College’s legacy, from its location on campus to its continued collaboration with long-term service education partners.

The Saskatchewan MB conference’s 2015 theme verse provided inspiration: “Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many Student Jordan Laturnus adds a yearbook to a suitcase of seeds” (John 12:24). memories at the final graduation from Bethany College, 2015.

After more than a year’s worth of prayer, discernment and consultation, the Bethany vision group’s presentation to the Bethany College board Mar. 19, 2016, received unanimous approval for the residential discipleship program.

A transition from the current governance structure (oversight board and working group) to an operational board is planned for Sept. 1, 2016.

continued on page 25

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mbseminary.ca | July/August 2016

23

[ LETTERS CONTINUED I grew up in a Mennonite Brethren church in southern Manitoba. We enjoyed going to church with our friends, loving the hymns that we learned to sing in four-part harmony. We heard the true message of salvation often. In my teenage years, I accepted Christ as my Saviour and was baptized and joined the church.

I wonder what it’s like to see the sun rise over Uluru Photo: eleeleven

All members are ready for mission

But I did have a problem. The word “brethren” was something that I, as a woman, could not relate to, and it has bothered me for the past 60 years. Some probably think “Mennonite Brethren” is some kind of men’s club.

The Bible tells us that God created men and women equally in his image. Nowhere does it say that men are smarter or more capable than women. That idea likely came from the nonChristian Greeks much later in history.

Will the Mennonite Brethren church acknowledge the women in our churches who are very capable of ministering – and drop the name Brethren?

Despite the name, I am delighted that women are treated with respect, and serve our Lord in all capacities in the church I attend.

The C2C Network is very busy with winning “all of Canada” for Christ, which is wonderful!

But it is important to utilize all the members (women and men) in our churches in Canada to bring their neighbours to Christ right where they live. May God help us all to that end.

Irene Enns Edmonton

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CELEBRATING FAITHFULNESS INSPIRING GENEROSITY

Time to cross boundaries

Re “Research addresses ‘silent exodus’” (Crosscurrents, January/February 2016). Where or what is a Canadian church these days?

By silo-ing “ethnic” communities like the Chinese, we insult them when we assume they want to go to a ghetto church, as if they aren’t “real” Canadians. (Are the “white” churches filled with the “real” Canadians?) Meanwhile, out in the secular world, there is much more successful integration, more respect for diversity. Incidentally, there are many ethnic ghettos of white people, but we call these “community” churches. Canada needs to depart from this “ethnic” model of church growth – it’s lazy, short sighted and un-biblical.

The early church crossed ethnic boundaries and was brave and courageous, modelling love and excellence.

Brian Online comment

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July/August 2016 | www.mbherald.com

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The provincial MB conference’s Developmental Leadership Team (DLT) has endorsed the new program as one of several strategies for discipleship and training to build the local church.

“An exciting thing, aside from the new program starting, is that we’ve had conversations with other organizations to turn [the former college site] into a true community campus with multiple organizations, providing a real integration of programs,” says board chair Trevor Rempel. Expanded rental arrangements, from one-time events to ongoing organizational partnerships, will also contribute to sustainable finances.

Prairie Spirit School Division, which has used the college’s recreational facilities for years, is exploring more usage of the school’s amenities for its programs. Other organizations see potential to house community services from child care to senior’s programs.

“This level of collaboration and integration with the extended community is an exciting example of the extension of our local churches into our communities and an important action to model to our students,” says Rempel.

The board and vision group ask for prayer during the transition phase, and for strong leaders to join the team.

—Karla Braun

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| July/August 2016

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[ CHURCH STAFF Director of Ministry

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See What’s Playing on GMMiTV GMMiTV hosts videos from a variety of contributors, such as MB Mission, the Canadian Conference and L2L. It also hosts videos from national and provincial events.

The Saskatchewan Conference of MB Churches (SKMB) invites resumes for the position of Director of Ministry. The Director of Ministry is responsible for superintending provincial pastoral and congregational health, directing and coordinating the work of all provincial staff and teams, partnering with the Executive Board in shaping and implementing SKMB vision and mission, and partnering with the Canadian Conference of MB Churches (CCMBC) leadership in shaping and implementing CCMBC’s vision and mission in Saskatchewan. This is a full-time position, based out of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, with a tentative start date of fall 2016.

For a position posting and full ministry description, list of essential and asset qualifications, or to send a resume, please contact SKMB Director of Ministry Search Team at skmbsearchcommittee@gmail.com.

Senior pastor

Rosenort EMC, a church in southern Manitoba with an attendance of 150, seeks a senior pastor. The candidate should be a servant leader, modelling faithfulness and love for the Lord and the community, caring for those with needs, while guiding, correcting and unifying the church with sound biblical teaching. The candidate should be a team player, working alongside lay ministers, deacons and a youth pastor. The candidate should be familiar with the EMC Statement of Faith. College or seminary training and pastoral experience are definite assets.

Check the church’s website for a full job description. (www.rosenortemc.com) Send resumes to Larry Eidse: leidse@hotmail.com or call 204-746-8422.

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Pastor

First United Mennonite Church (FUMC), located in Vancouver, is looking for a parttime pastor (.5 FTE) to engage and serve their culturally diverse urban neighbourhood. We hold to the Anabaptist theology, are members of Mennonite Church BC and Mennonite Church Canada, and are looking for a pastor to join our team as we continue to develop our relationships with Christ, each other and the community. Ideal candidates would have the following: capacity to relate to various age groups and cultures, experience working in a church setting in the areas of preaching and worship, pastoral care, nurturing gifts within the laity, ability to work in a team environment, commitment to Anabaptist theology and practice, post-secondary religious education, a completed Ministerial Leadership Information Form (with MC BC). We are looking for a pastor who is outgoing and can relate to a variety of people. A person who has a missional outlook and a servant’s heart, who is good with children and might even be musical. We are willing to look outside the box in the way that we do church, as long as it includes following Jesus and his teachings. Interested candidates are encouraged to contact the Search Committee at john@ dixonmc.com.

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Lead pastor

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Transitions The MCC Saskatchewan board of directors announced Eileen Klassen Hamm’s appointment as executive director in April. She has served MCC Saskatchewan in peace and justice programming since 1992, as program director and as interim executive director since December 2015. “Eileen has demonstrated a strong commitment to the vision and mission of MCC,” says board chair Dan Siebert. “She has a gift of relating well to young adults as a teacher and mentor, inspiring and engaging them in the development and delivery of programs.” MCC Saskatchewan’s theme during 2016 is Peacebuilding.

The B.C. Conference of MB Churches appointed Denis Federau as director of resource ministries, beginning Apr. 1, 2016. Denis will serve the church in terms of resource needs, governance guidance and providing practical resources for the administrative realities of ministry. He previously served as pastor at Nechako Community Church (Vanderhoof, B.C.) after completing a BA in biblical studies from Columbia Bible College.

Square One World Media will welcome Shoaib Ebadi as executive director, beginning in September, assuming fullresponsibility Oct. 31, 2016. Born in Afghanistan, Shoaib received a master’s degree in law, and worked for UNHCR in Uzbekistan. As a refugee in Pakistan, he became a follower of Jesus in 1999.

After immigrating to Canada in 2000, he worked as an accountant at Concordia Hospital (2002–2009), established

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CHAI Immigrant Centre Inc. in 2006 where he continues to serve as executive director, and joined Pamir Production, an Operation Mobilization Canada media ministry for Afghanistan in 2009. He has a graduate certificate in Christian ministry from Canadian Mennonite University and is working toward an MTh. He speaks English, Russian and Persian/Dari. Shoaib and his wife have 3 children. Claude Pratte, executive director 2008–2016 retires Oct. 31, 2016, after serving Square One World Media (formerly Family Life Network) for 10 years.

House for All Nations Toronto changed its name to New Living Church and began English services in 2016.

Begun in 2009 as a Toronto campus of the Vancouver-based multisite congregation HFAN, it was originally an Indonesian-speaking church. In 2012, the church became independent from the Vancouver body and began an affiliation with The Jesus Network in Toronto. Through prayer, the church discerned a vision to broaden their outreach beyond Indonesian speakers.

Jacob Nuh is the pastor of the congregation with an average worship gathering of 50 people.

Vauxhall (Alta.) MB Church formally welcomed Harold Reimer as lead pastor Apr. 17, 2016.

He received his BRE from Prairie Bible Institute and has begun his master of divinity. Previously, Harold served as interim pastor at Vauxhall Bethel Evangelical Free Church and lead pastor at Elm Creek (Man.) MB Church. He has also been self-employed and worked in farming. Harold and Bernice have 5 married children and enjoy their 7 grandchildren.

Sabrina Wiens, director of youth ministries at Scott Street MB Church (St. Catharines, Ont.), since 2008 shifted to the role of

director of family & community services, and Philip Klassen, a youth ministry volunteer at Scott Street for the past 4 years, took over as director of youth ministries, Apr. 15, 2016. Phil has a BA in illustration and has also worked at Camp Crossroads and Bethany Mennonite Church (Niagara-on-theLake, Ont.).

Wally Nickel began as senior associate pastor at Jericho Ridge Community Church (Langley, B.C.) in April 2016. He previously served 16 years in a variety of ministry settings including Coast Hills Church (Surrey, B.C.), Living Hope Christian Fellowship (Surrey), Murrayville (Langley), and Sherbrook Mennonite (Vancouver). Wally has an MA from ACTS Seminaries and an MA from MBBS Fresno, where he met his wife Sylvia. They are the parents of 2 adopted children, Joel and Savana.

Dalmeny (Sask.)

Community Church welcomed Tony Martens as lead pastor Apr. 18.

Tony previously served Riverbend Fellowship (Borden, Sask.) for 15 years.

Tony and Michelle have 2 children.

Steve Savage said farewell to Port Rowan (Ont.) MB Church Apr. 10, 2016.

He served the congregation as lead pastor since March 2012.

Carol Penner, pastor at Lendrum MB Church (Edmonton) since 2014, completed her ministry with the church.

She was appointed assistant professor of practical theology at Conrad Grebel University College (Waterloo, Ont.).

Northgate church in Dawson Creek, B.C., started in 1962 by Jacob “Jay” Neufeld, withdrew from the Mennonite Brethren conference and was accepted into the membership of Mennonite Church B.C. as Northgate Anabaptist Fellowship Feb. 27, 2016.

[ TRANSITIONS Births

Church closures

Agar – to Mark & Amy (Wall) of Saskatoon, a daughter, Sarah Violet, Jan. 23, 2016.

Living Hope Church – Saskatoon In 1998, the people at West Portal Church, Saskatoon, were stirred to plant a church.

Much “ground work” took place in the Silverwood Heights neighbourhood, and on Apr. 1, 2000, Dwayne Harms was hired as the church planter. At Living Hope’s chartering service Mar. 11, 2001, 51 people became members. The congregation rented the building which they were able to purchase in 2006.

Dwayne Harms, Joel Diamond, Dan Harder pastored the congregation over its 15-year history.

Living Hope concluded services June 12, 2016. Part-time transitional pastor Jake Schroeder led the dwindling congregation to healthy closure.

At Living Hope’s invitation, and after prayer and congregational discernment, Forest Grove Community Church plans to begin a third campus on this location in fall. Members from Living Hope will not automatically become members of the new congregation.

Calder – to Derek & Bobby Jo (Daum) of Lloydminister, Sask., a daughter, Kyra Alish, Dec. 19, 2015.

Dyck – to Chris & Samantha Dyck of St.

Pierre, Man., twin sons, Enoch David & Elisha William, Jan. 31, 2016.

Hoskyn – to Lance & Kirsten (Wuthrich) of Fort St. John, B.C., a son, Jonathan Jeremiah, Apr. 28, 2016.

A baptism at Coaldale MB Church during the 1940s. After the influx of refugees from Germany and Russia post-World War II, the church held more than 100 baptisms over three years. PHOTO: MAID collection – CMBS NP149-01-1687

in various vocations and areas all over the world.”

Led by Klaas Enns, 29 new immigrants from Russia organized in the hayloft of a barn southeast of town, May 23, 1926. By Jan. 27, 1929, the growing group dedicated their new, 32 x 52-foot sanctuary, built entirely by volunteer labour.

The Fire, a Mennonite Brethren congregation in New Hazelton, B.C., closed in 2016. Affiliated with BCMB in 1962, a congregation had existed since 1949 from the evangelistic work of John F. Kornelson and George Stobbe and their families. In 2010, the congregation led by Lawrence Peterson changed its name from Community Gospel Chapel to The Fire.

The 1950s were full of change: the church launched the “Gospel Bells” radio program in 1952, membership peaked at 616 in 1955, David J. Pankratz began as the first full-time paid pastor in 1967, bilingual services began with English alongside German in 1958. The decade ended with launching the “Brot des Leben” radio program.

“Throughout all those years, God was so faithful in guiding, supplying, forgiving and loving,” long-time member Elvira Dueck wrote on the occasion of the anniversary. “He supplied leadership and ministers who taught the true Word of God and challenged people to serve

Kepinski – to Raphael & Angela (Dueck) of Vancouver, a daughter, Ava Joanna, Jan. 23, 2016.

Sask., a daughter, McKinley Amaya, Mar. 14, 2016.

Koslowsky – to Stuart & Haylie of Winnipeg, a daughter, Lucy Dawn, Mar. 3, 2016.

Kroeker – to Daniel & Hillary of Killarney, Man., a son, Samuel Peter, Apr. 16, 2016.

Rathgeber – to Kyle & Vanessa of Dalmeny, Schultz – to John & Kim (Siemens) of Charlie Lake, B.C., a daughter, Kambree Ann, Mar. 17, 2016.

Sperling – to Jarret & Melissa of Dalmeny,

The congregation supported a church plant in neighbouring Lethbridge in 1963.

In 1971, the congregation moved to its present location in the town of Coaldale.

Today, the congregation has small group ministries for men, women, and youth, weekly clubs for boys and girls and a summer outreach soccer camp in partnership with Athletes in Action. Lead pastor is Gary Burke.

—with files from Elvira Dueck, the celebration service bulletin, GAMEO

Sask., a son, Lincoln Theo, Dec. 17, 2015.

Sask., a daughter, Brielle Rae, Feb. 29, 2016.

The Fire – New Hazelton, B.C.

“Great is Thy Faithfulness” was the theme of the Apr. 24, 2016, morning service on the 90th anniversary of the first Mennonite Brethren church in Alberta, Coaldale MB.

John, B.C., a daughter, Mya Jade, Feb. 25, 2016.

Janzen – to Marlen & Carrie of Dalmeny,

Klassen – to Woodrow & Alana of Watrous,

The church added annexes as the congregation outgrew the space. In 1939, the church completed a 600-seat sanctuary – just in time to host the national MB convention.

Church anniversary – 90th

Isaac – to Walt & Shelby (Hansen) of Fort St.

Sask., a daughter, McKinley Elizabeth, Mar. 15, 2016.

Tjepkema – to Aaron & Pam (Haab) of Fort St. John, B.C., a daughter, Holland Pamela, Feb. 11, 2016.

Wendland – to Denis & Trudy (Braun) of Fort St. John, B.C., a son, Griffin Pearce, Apr. 14, 2016.

Wiens – to Dustin & Kendra of Dalmeny,

Sask., a son, Damien Nathaniel, Mar. 26, 2016.

Willms – to Kevin & Sarah of Kitchener, Ont., a son, Jacob Mark, Apr. 1, 2016.

Woodmass – to Matt & Lena (Harder) of Steinbach, Man., a daughter, Julie Elizabeth, Apr. 24, 2016.

Weddings

Daryl Berg of Fort St. John, B.C., and Teri Turner of Carstairs, Alta., Apr. 2, 2016.

Braylan Eklund of Taylor, B.C., & Tyra Klassen, of Charlie Lake, B.C., Feb. 20, 2016.

Anniversaries

Corny & Irene Braun of Lake Country, B.C., celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary June 11, 2016, with an open house at their grandchildren’s farm in Bow Island, Alta.

Mennonite Brethren Herald

| July/August 2016

29

FINISH LINES I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. —2 Timothy 4:7

Helen Louise Harms Jan. 24, 1931–Sept. 23, 2015

BIRTHPLACE Waldheim, Sask.

PARENTS Henry & Mary (Dyck) Braun MARRIAGE George Harms, May 30, 1952 [d. May 18, 1997] BAPTISM First Mennonite, Greendale, B.C., 1950 CHURCH Sardis, Chilliwack, B.C. FAMILY children Heather [d. July 9, 2007] (Bob) Sorbello,

Carolyn (Dave) Vogt, Sharon (Earl) Strohschein; 8 grandchildren; 2 great-grandchildren

Helen was excited about her new school and new challenges when her family moved to Vancouver. Many experiences taught her the power of relying on God’s strength and timing. Helen’s faith continued to grow after she had her own family. She worked fulltime at the Chilliwack (B.C.) Public Library and volunteered at church. Just as her own grandmother had impressed on Helen the importance of prayer, Helen’s grandchildren appreciated the depth and persistence of her prayers. She loved to read books that increased her faith. She was a talented seamstress and flower arranger. She selflessly gave her time to family and friends. Even as cancer and pain spread through her body, she continued to focus on God’s goodness and love.

Rudy Voth Sept. 11, 1935–Nov. 29, 2015

BIRTHPLACE Steinbach, Man. PARENTS Gerhard & Katerina Voth MARRIAGE Kay Fast, October 1958 CHURCH Central Heights, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Kay; children Rick (Mariann), Shelley (Paul)

camp in 1968 and ’69. Rudy played bass for the Ambassadors for 12 years, starting in 1974. In 2014, he was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer that had spread to his liver. A year later, it spread to his lungs.

Alice Marie Edna Rochelle Stein-Gratton Mar. 23, 1925–Dec. 10, 2015

CONTINUED

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Jack Alexander Bass

BIRTHPLACE Biggar, Sask.

PARENTS Romeo & Odile Ferland MARRIAGE Conrad Stein, Dec. 8, 1945 [d. Nov. 10, 1997]; Leo

July 16, 1946–Dec. 24, 2015

Gratton, Sept. 3, 2000

CHURCH Compass Emmanuel, Rapid View, Sask.;

Northwest, Meadow Lake, Sask.

FAMILY Leo; children Harry [d. 1961], Betty Lou (Les)

Hildebrand, Elaine (Leland) Riesen, Lorraine (Clinton) Zacharias, Leona (Lou) Normand, Charles (Elenor), Leon (Jennifer), Lee (Sandra), Alice (Ken) Harms, Allan (Joanne), Connie (Russell) Berg; Leo’s children Roseanne (Phil Scarrow) Carl, Aime [d.], Lorraine [d.]; 41 grandchildren; 72 great-grandchildren; 1 great-greatgrandchild; 2 siblings

Alice accepted Jesus as Saviour. She was raised in a Christian home and attended a Roman Catholic church. She studied at Whiteshore school, by correspondence and then at St. Gabriel’s Convent, where she worked in the kitchen for room, board and tuition. At 15, a job at St. Margaret’s Hospital, Biggar, Sask., 13 hours/day, 7 days/week motivated her return to school. Alice attended normal school in Saskatoon, then taught at Rapid View, Sask., with 13 students. There she met Conrad Stein.

They had 11 children, including 3 sets of twins!

They lost a son at 7 to ruptured appendicitis. Alice taught in Rapid View, Champion, Daisy Meadow, Westview and Jubilee. After retiring in 1987, she helped Conrad at the Civic Centre for 3 years.

Alice cared for Conrad through 2 years of dialysis.

After a long friendship with Leo, things changed to romance. 1 Corinthians 13 gave Alice courage.

Zacharias, Jennifer; 4 grandchildren; 6 greatgrandchildren including Quinn [d.]; 2 sisters

When Rudy was 12, his family moved to Ontario, where Rudy was bullied in school for being Russian. He accepted Jesus at a Janz Team Crusade at 17. In high school, Rudy formed his first quartet. He left school in Grade 11 to help farm. Rudy graduated with electrical training in 1957, establishing Voth Electric in B.C. in 1973.

Rudy and Kay’s courtship took place at church events where he sang with the Messengers quartet. Rudy served the Messengers 1956–1970 (full-time for 3 years). The group toured Europe in 1958 and served a New York Bible

In 1925, John’s family immigrated to Canada, travelling with 12 Mennonite families by train from Quebec City to Colonsay, Sask. John worked on the farm – a difficult existence in the 30s, but his family persisted. At 15, John accepted Jesus as Saviour. At 20, he attended Tabor Bible School, Dalmeny, Sask., for 3 years: the highlight of his youth. John moved to B.C. in 1940 to find work.

He became a CO in a forest camp on Vancouver Island. John and Helen raised chickens and raspberries in Abbotsford until their retirement in 1976. Caring for his farm, family and community fulfilled John. John and Helen served as deacons in South Abbotsford for 25 years, opening their home to many guests. In retirement, John visited relatives, volunteered to build or fix things and supported numerous causes. He was humble, gentle and wise.

John Henry Loewen Apr. 13, 1917–Dec. 23, 2015

BIRTHPLACE Neu Samara, Russia

PARENTS Henry & Helena (Klassen) Loewen

MARRIAGE Helen Reimer, Mar. 25, 1944 [d. 2000] BAPTISM Watrous (Sask.) MB, 1935

CHURCH South Abbotsford (B.C.) MB

FAMILY children Howard (Irene), Paul (Annemarie), Elsie

(Vic) Schmidt, Dan (Lynn), Dave (Val); 14 grandchildren; 15 great-grandchildren; 5 siblings CONTINUED

BIRTHPLACE Winnipeg PARENTS Joseph & Lorraine Bass MARRIAGE Wili Neufeld, Jan. 7, 1983 CHURCH Greendale MB, Chilliwack, B.C. FAMILY Wili; children Jennifer Nicole (Mark), Stephanie

(Cory J.); his mother; 1 sister

Jack grew up in Winnipeg’s North End. He earned a BA and law degree. He made a commitment to Jesus and experienced God’s grace in his adult life. In 1982, to learn more about God’s Word, he joined a Bible study group, where he met Wili. Jack was an avid businessman and consultant, but family was his first priority. He was a caring husband and father.

Alice Dueck May 24, 1925–Dec. 29, 2015

BIRTHPLACE Lichtfelde, Molotschna, Ukraine PARENTS David & Anna Boschmann MARRIAGE Jake Dueck, June 30, 1945 [d. 2000] BAPTISM Leamington (Ont.) MB, age 14 CHURCH Niagara, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. (later

Cornerstone)

FAMILY children Alice (Jake) Harder, Kathleen, Dave

(Laurena), Dennis (Jo-Anna); 12 grandchildren; 10 greatgrandchildren

Alice’s family immigrated to Canada in 1926.

They stayed with relatives in Ontario, then moved to Saskatchewan and shared a “bunch house” in Manitoba before returning to Ontario.

At 10, during family devotions, Alice accepted Jesus as Saviour. Her early commitment through baptism marked a lifelong relationship. At 16, during a snowball fight at an evening Bible school in Virgil, Ont., Alice met Jake. They CONTINUED

[ FINISH LINES served Niagara Christian Fellowship Chapel for 35 years. In addition to raising 4 children, they cared for foster children. Alice was a nurturer and listening ear to her siblings’ and friends’ children long after her own nest was empty.

Alice’s desire for her family to walk with the Lord was on her heart and lips to her last day.

in her heart for every grandchild. Through her journey with arthritis, cancer and dementia, she personally thanked those who helped her – especially as her health declined.

Ernst Reimer Mary Hubert Dec. 29, 1927–Jan. 6, 2016

BIRTHPLACE Coaldale, Alta.

PARENTS Peter & Susannah (Dueck) Siebert MARRIAGE David Hubert, Apr. 11, 1948 [d. 2003] BAPTISM Coaldale MB, Aug. 11, 1946 FAMILY children John (Dorothy), Linda (Melvin) Funk,

Frank (Elfrieda), Alvin (Janet), Leona (Ed [d.]) Bartel; 20 grandchildren including Amy [d.]; 26 great-grandchildren; 5 siblings

Mary attended school until Grade 8, then Bible school. She was a lifelong member of Coaldale MB Church. A strong alto, Mary enjoyed singing groups. She worked in a ladies mission group. She met David in the choir. They enjoyed farming near Coaldale, passing on this love to 4 of their 5 children. After retiring to town in 1979, Mary and David took a keen interest in the farm. David lost his mobility to a stroke in 1995, and Mary visited him daily in the Coaldale Health Centre.

Mary tended a large garden, canning and freezing enough to last the year. She travelled to important events in her children’s and grandchildren’s lives.

Mary left a heritage of prayer and concern for the spiritual wellbeing of her family.

Aug. 18, 1934–Jan. 16, 2016

BIRTHPLACE Schoenau, Ukraine PARENTS Isaak & Katharina (Richert) Reimer MARRIAGE Helen Thiessen, Sept. 19, 1954 [d. May 27, 2000];

Elvira Wiens, June 29, 2002

CHURCH King Road, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Elvira; his sons Ernst (Karin), Frank (Alice),

Arnold (Petra); 9 grandchildren; 2 great-grandchildren; Elvira’s children Sandy (Steve) Jennings, Brenda Tiefenbach [d.] (Stacey), Victor (Lori), Connie (Steve) Shafer; 6 grandchildren

Ernst immigrated to Paraguay, where he met Helen. They moved to Argentina. In 1965, they immigrated to Canada, settling in Vancouver. They spent memorable weekends at Hatzic Lake, B.C., with his family and vacations in Germany, Mexico, Hawaii and South America. Ernst loved hunting moose. After they moved to Langley, Helen predeceased him. Ernst met Elvira in March and they married in June. They moved to Ladner, B.C., then Abbotsford, B.C., and travelled to Europe, Paraguay and California.

Elvira’s grandchildren loved their Opa. After a diagnosis of kidney failure, Ernst had dialysis daily for 5 years.

MARRIAGE George Gerhard Dyck, Sept. 3, 1945 [d. 2000] BAPTISM Kitchener (Ont.) MB, Aug. 21, 1938 FAMILY children John (Judy) Duyck, Louise (Leslie [d.

2009]) Harback, David (Nancy) Dyck, 2 children [stillborn]; 7 grandchildren; 1 great-grandchild

Johanna’s father died before seeing her, and Bolsheviks confiscated her mother’s family’s estate. In 1925, Johanna, her mom and grandma joined family in Kitchener, Ont. Praying with her mom, at 9, Johanna accepted Jesus as Saviour, which set the course for her life. Johanna taught children into her 90s: first in elementary schools, then in Child Evangelism Fellowship Good News Clubs and church ministries. Over 70 years, her devotion to introducing children to Christ took her as far as James Bay and P.E.I. for summer Bible clubs. At Kitchener MB Church, Johanna welcomed Central American refugees: she taught EAL and a church class for adult immigrants.

Her heart for people drew many to her home and kitchen. Johanna mailed her family roasted zwiebach and dried apples. She took great interest in their endeavours and prayed for them daily. Her trust in God’s grace sustained her through joy and sorrow. She treasured his Word and the beauty of his creation.

Florence Agnes Dyck Jan. 8, 1926–Jan. 23, 2016

BIRTHPLACE Altona, Man. PARENTS Peter & Susanna Buhr MARRIAGE John Dyck, Aug. 27, 1955 CHURCH Highland MB, Calgary FAMILY John; children Donna Ruparell (Tinu), Peter

(Susan); 3 grandchildren

Mary Giesbrecht July 16, 1930–Jan. 12, 2016

BIRTHPLACE Bristol, Man. PARENTS Gerhard & Agatha Enns MARRIAGE William (Bill) M. Giesbrecht, Aug. 17, 1952 BAPTISM Steinbach (Man.) MB FAMILY Bill; children Valerie (Bob) Frey, Garry (Lynn),

Malvine (Allen Schalla), Orville (Pamela), Lorie (Tony) Lenchyshyn; 7 grandchildren; 1 great-grandchild; 7 siblings

Mary loved to talk about growing up on the farm in the 1930s. She worked at a law office in Steinbach. Bill’s career provided many international travel opportunities. Mary was an excellent seamstress, adventurous cook and creative gardener. She was dedicated to community service through 4H, Treble Teens, The Association for Community Living, Canadian Diabetes Association, Cancer Care and the Bethesda Ladies Auxiliary. Mary was the first woman to run for Steinbach city council. She applied her work ethic to 22 years at Statistics Canada. Mary had a special place CONTINUED

Fred Peters Feb. 17, 1921–Jan. 20, 2016

BIRTHPLACE Rosenort, Ukraine PARENTS Bernhard & Agatha (Braun) Peters MARRIAGE Antonia (Toni) Reimer, Aug. 5, 1945 CHURCH Forest Grove, Saskatoon FAMILY Toni; children Ruth (John) Lysak, Lyn (Larry)

De Fehr, Ernie (Colleen), Edie (Steve) Nelson, Wally; 6 grandchildren; 7 great-grandchildren

Fred’s family immigrated to Canada in 1923.

He grew up in Chinook/Didsbury, Alta. Fred accepted Jesus as Saviour at 17. He worked with MCC for many years.

Johanna Mary Dyck Apr. 5, 1920–Jan. 22, 2016

BIRTHPLACE Halbstadt, South Russia PARENTS Johann & Eliesabeth (Fehderau) Dyck

After attending Mennonite Collegiate Institute, Gretna, Man., Florence entered the nursing program at St. Boniface Hospital, Winnipeg.

Her colleagues became lifelong friends. During training, she contracted tuberculosis, enduring a year in the sanatorium and loss of lung function.

Florence never let this limit her: she had a full, active life of hiking, mountain climbing, skiing, skating and daily morning walks – even in her last 6 months when she had to carry her own oxygen. After Florence put John through medical school, they became the surgical team in charge of Gungu General Hospital, DR Congo, 1961–63. They served Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre, Moshi, Tanzania, and the Institute of Tropical Medicine, Mama Yemo Hospital, Kinshasha, DR Congo. Florence loved to tell about their camping safaris. They moved to Minnesota in 1974; Spokane, Wash., in 1980; Calgary in 1982; and Cranbrook, B.C., in 1987. Florence enjoyed crocheting, knitting, hiking, singing in choirs and acting: she played a witch in Macbeth. After moving to Cochrane, Alta., in 2003, Florence and John were medical volunteers to Madagascar, Kenya and Nepal.

Florence lived enthusiastically and showed her faith through kindness.

CONTINUED

Mennonite Brethren Herald

| July/August 2016

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[ FINISH LINES Nicolai Reimer

Hilda Penner

Peter John Neufeldt

Mar. 12, 1926–Jan. 30, 2016

Oct. 3, 1939–Feb. 20, 2016

July 25, 1936–Feb. 27, 2016

BIRTHPLACE Karassan, Crimea, Ukraine PARENTS Jacob & Anna (Penner) Reimer MARRIAGE Annie Petker, July 2, 1950 [d. Dec. 5, 2001] BAPTISM July 30, 1944 CHURCH Coaldale (Alta.) MB FAMILY children Margaret (Donn) Sherman, Bertha [d.]

(Tim (Gertrude)) Geddert, Doris (John) Maxwell, Harold (Bernice), Wes (Sherril), Ruth (Glenn) Clark, Art (Paige), Henry [d. in infancy]; 22 grandchildren; great-grandchildren; 3 siblings

Nick’s family immigrated when he was 4, settling in Coaldale. Nick accepted Christ as Saviour at 11. He left school after Grade 8 because he was needed on the farm – especially after his father’s death. However, Nick remained a reader and student for life.

He attended 3 years at Coaldale Bible School, where he met Annie. He delivered milk and sold cars until his dream of being a dairy farmer became reality. He taught Sunday school for 30 years, helped with vacation Bible school and, in the early 1970s, was elected as lay minister. Nick and Annie retired to Coaldale in 1991 but built their home large enough so all 7 children could come home for Christmas. Nick’s woodworking projects grace his children’s homes and the church and have benefited MCC.

Joyce Elizabeth Schmidt 1929–Feb. 1, 2016 BIRTHPLACE Borden, Sask.

PARENTS Abraham & Sarah Martens

MARRIAGE Peter Wesley Schmidt, 1957 BAPTISM Borden, Sask.

CHURCH Fort Garry MB, Winnipeg

FAMILY Wes; children Colleen (Frank) Froese, Don

(Cheryl) Schmidt; 2 granddaughters

Joyce accepted Christ at a revival meeting in Saskatoon. She attended teacher’s college in Saskatoon and taught in a one-room schoolhouse, then in small towns and, later, in Saskatoon. After marrying Wes, she directed her energies into being a wife and mother. Her family years were in Winnipeg, with summers at her favourite place, Shoal Lake. Wes and Joyce moved to South Surrey, B.C., in 1998 to enjoy warmer winters and be closer to family.

Joyce loved the outdoors. She skied, canoed and gardened with an enthusiasm she passed on to others. With her natural artistic talent, Joyce made many beautiful paintings. She was an active church member whose faith in Christ strengthened and sustained her, especially through her illness.

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BIRTHPLACE Saskatoon PARENTS John & Helena Willms MARRIAGE Peter Penner, 1982 CHURCH Clearbrook MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Peter; stepchildren Rudolf, Karl (Cindy), Lili (Ray)

Krause; 4 grandchildren; 5 siblings

Hilda trained as a practical nurse in Abbotsford, B.C. She worked in a dentist’s office and at Vancouver General Hospital. Hilda completed her Royal Conservatory teacher’s certification and taught piano lessons. She was active in church as a Sunday school teacher, Pioneer Girls volunteer and pianist. Hilda and Peter enjoyed travelling, taking daily walks and attending church events. On mission trips to Mississippi, Paraguay, Venezuela and Guatemala, she provided disaster relief, taught English and shared her faith. Hilda and Peter provided foster care to many children. She took delight in tea parties with grandchildren, picnics with family, shopping for blouses and visits with friends. Always cheerful in the face of obstacles, Hilda will be remembered for her kind spirit, love for music and unwavering faith.

Jacob (Jay) Neufeld July 18, 1932–Feb. 24, 2016

BIRTHPLACE Chortitza, Ukraine PARENTS Jakob & Mathilde (Harder) Neufeld; stepfathers

Reinhold Lick, Isaac Toews MARRIAGE Katie Willms, Aug. 24, 1957 CHURCH Elmwood MB, Winnipeg; East Aldergrove (B.C.) MB (now Ross Road); Clearbrook MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY Katie; children Daniel, Valery Joy Reimer, Heidi Willems, James (Katia), Pamela [d.] (Paul) Kutcher; 12 grandchildren; 5 great-grandchildren; 1 sister

Jay’s family guarded their New Testament from Russian authorities. His parents introduced him to Jesus. When Jay was 3, his father was charged with counter-revolution and sent to Siberia, where he died after 3 years’ hard labour. During those difficult years, Jay cried out to God. He later received assurance of salvation. The family fled to Poland in 1943, to Germany in 1945 with Russian tanks close behind them. They immigrated to Canada on the Acquitania, settling in Kelowna, B.C. Jay studied 4 years at Winkler (Man.) Bible Institute and completed a master of ministry at Providence Theological Seminary. At MB Bible College, Winnipeg, he met Katie. Jay pastored 11 churches in Aldergrove, Dawson Creek and Abbotsford, B.C.; Ontario; U.S.A.; and Winnipeg.

He retired at 70 but, at 76, served part-time in Clearbrook MB’s German ministry. Jay enjoyed singing in the German and male choirs.

BIRTHPLACE Coaldale, Alta.

PARENTS Johann & Cornelia (Born) Neufeldt MARRIAGE Ella Ratzlaff, May 17, 1959 [d. 2005]; Edna

(Kroeker) Braun, Oct. 29, 2006

BAPTISM Coaldale MB, around 1961 FAMILY Edna; his sons Colin (Lynette), Gerald (Kathy),

J. Glen (Rachel); stepson Brian (Amber) Braun; 9 grandchildren; 1 great-grandson; 3 siblings

Peter missed a lot of school due to rheumatic fever. After completing Grade 8, he worked in his father’s blacksmith shop and his brothers’ manufacturing and plumbing shop. He earned his journeyman plumbing and gas-fitting certificates and started Pete’s Plumbing & Heating, which enabled him to purchase rental properties. Peter rededicated his life to Christ as a young man and served Coaldale MB’s boys’ club and committees. Wanting them to learn a trade, Peter mentored his sons as plumbers and sent them to trade school. After Ella’s death, Edna brought stability to Peter’s life. They enjoyed travelling together. During his illness, she was a comfort. Peter repeatedly said, “I am ready to go.”

Yvonne Dolores Miller July 21, 1930–Mar. 11, 2016

BIRTHPLACE Strathclair, Man PARENTS Wesley & Irene Cochrane MARRIAGE Levi Mills Miller, Aug. 28, 1947 [Sept. 7, 1970] CHURCH Clearbrook MB, Abbotsford, B.C. FAMILY children Wilmar (Carol), Yvonne (Jack) Brown,

Clayton (Cathy), Delbert; 7 grandchildren; 7 greatgrandchildren; 1 sister

Yvonne enjoyed 4-H, skating, playing ball and riding her Welsh pony Cupid. She worked 1 summer at the tuberculosis clinic in Ninette, Man. She met Levi at a dance. They moved to Beardmore, Ont., and Isabella, Man. In Port Alberni, B.C., she volunteered at Boy Scout banquets and VBS. While her children were in school, Yvonne took correspondence Bible courses, completed her Grade 12 in night school and continued her nursing studies. She loved history. When Levi was dying of lung cancer, Yvonne completed her nursing degree. She nursed at Peace Arch Hospital, White Rock, B.C. Yvonne retired in 1990 to Logan Lake, B.C., where she helped in the school soup kitchen and quilted for the women’s shelter. After moving to Abbotsford in 2005, she baked for AWANA and knit toques for the mission. Yvonne loved curling, travelling, writing, and watching the Blue Jays and her greatgrandsons’ hockey games. Her church became her family wherever she lived.

[ CROSSCURRENTS

Documentary captures CO experience The Last Objectors Writer/Director: Andrew Wall Producer: Trevor Suffield Executive Producers: Kyle Bornais, Cam Bennett ancestors were war heroes doesn’t cause him any cognitive dissonance in featuring COs. Many vets and COs “are genuine individuals making decisions based on their faith,” he says, “and we need to recognize both sides.”

“T

he [Mennonite Heritage Centre] archives wanted to capture the spirit of conscientious objectors on camera: their emotions, faces, words,” says Andrew Wall of Refuge 31 Films, “and I wanted to do a documentary. So we pitched a two-part project”: a recording of the full interviews and the edited 44-minute film The Last Objectors.

After a year and a half of paperwork and questions, Wall and Conrad Stoesz, archivist at MHC and the Centre for MB Studies, received a letter stating that Heritage Canada, through the World Wars Commemoration Fund, approved their request for $36,000.

Since October 2015, Wall has interviewed more than 15 COs from Ontario to B.C. During WWII, these men did everything from working in mental hospitals to building roads. A few are Hutterite and United Church members; most are Mennonites.

“It’s wonderful to meet these people who made a decision so long ago that’s so relevant today,” says Wall.

Part of our history “WWII vet stories have been told and meticulously documented; COs, not so much,” says Wall. The fact that his

CBC Manitoba liked Wall and Stoesz’s idea, but before “the mother ship in Toronto” could approve the broadcast, they needed to see a demo: Wall created one overnight.

MTS Stories From Home is the primary broadcaster. A dozen organizations have already asked to screen The Last Objectors, beginning in mid-June in southern Ontario.

Unlike other documentaries that ask, “Was alternative service a moral choice?” The Last Objectors starts from the perspective that “it’s a human Before it’s too late right to make that decision,” says Wall, “and here are the stories of people who did.” “Part of the story is that COs are disappearing,” says Wall.

“Since 1793, conscientious objection Some critics thought it was too late, but has been part of Canadian tradition Wall and Stoesz proved them wrong: and identity,” says Stoesz. “People from many COs were capable of remembering, 33 ethnic backgrounds and 24 faith and happy to share, their stories. communities performed alternative service in WWII.” Many COs Wall interviewed were in Some interviewers were highly personal: about how CO service affected them and their families. Other segments contained deep theological reflection.

Positive reactions

their 90s. He was careful to respect their energy level; in some cases, he had to fit all his questions into 10–15 minutes.

One gentleman talked for an hour and 20 minutes. “I was so afraid we’d exhaust him,” says Wall. “[When the interview ended,] “he said he would jump on the exercise bike!”

During the 2015 federal election, Stoesz received an angry letter stating that Mennonites should not be allowed to hold “The sad part,” says Wall, “is that two office, vote or even enter Canada because interviewees, David Schroeder and Ted of their views on non-resistance.

Friesen, have already passed away since we filmed them.”

But the reaction to the documentary has been “overwhelmingly positive,” says “I want viewers to feel like they’ve met Wall, whose work sometimes puts him a CO and understand the journey they in contact with military personnel. They took: from the first letters in 1942, to have told him, “It’s an important story to 1946 when the final COs went home,” tell.” Bruce Tascona of the WWI Museum says Wall. in Pilot Mound, Man., points out that COs working in Canadian hospitals took “These are voices we need to remember.” good care of many returning veterans, and that positive memory stuck.

—Angeline Schellenberg Mennonite Brethren Herald | July/August 2016

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[ CROSSCURRENTS

Modern spiritual journeys in historical book

Daughters in the House of Jacob: A Memoir of Migration “How did we get here?” The newest publication of the MB Historical Commission, Daughters in the House of Jacob, explores both literal and metaphorical answers to this question.

Daughters is authored by the first winners of the Mennonite Brethren Historical Commission’s Katie Funk Wiebe research grant, Christine Kampen and Dorothy Peters.

NEW RELEASE Two Canadian Mennonite women—a Bible professor and a pastor—tell a surprising story of migration that traces their vocational calling across generations and gender.

New Release Price

$20.00

The grant’s purpose is to “promote research, creative productions and publication on the history and contributions of Mennonite Brethren women around the world.”

Cousins Kampen and Peters do history, theology and memoir in this project that traces their own journeys within a family history of serving the church, from grandfather pastor Jacob Doerksen through the generations to the authors themselves: Kampen, a pastor, and Peters, a professor of biblical studies.

Informed by honest wrestling with their own lives and choices, and hours of interviews with “the elders” – parents, aunts and uncles – and archival research, the book is both personal and historical.

And, as a story of women in ministry leadership in the Mennonite Brethren church, a fitting project to bear the name Katie Funk Wiebe.

“Kampen and Peters’s research will encourage us to listen to and record the living history of men and women ‘elders’ in our families and the MB church. It honours the path Katie Funk Wiebe has taken in reminding us of the gifts both men and women can bring to the church,” says Don Isaac, Commission chair.

The winners of the 2016 grant were announced in June.

—Karla Braun 34

July/August 2016 | www.mbherald.com

(plus shipping & taxes) Regularly priced at $22.95

1-800-545-7322 www.kindredproductions.com Overplayed: A Parent’s Guide to Sanity in the World of Youth Sports

David King and Margot Starbuck Herald Press Like many things in life, playing sport is one way a person can honour God and live for him. But, when sports become the centre of a family’s life, sports have become god.

Intimacy with the Creator suffers, and life purpose and identity in him is lost. How can parents be intentional in guiding their children’s athletic activities? Overplayed by King and Starbuck provides several lists and tips. For example, ask, “What am I learning about myself, others, and God as I play sports?” And, the best comment to share with your child after a game is “I like watching you play.”

—Merri Ellen Giesbrecht, Ross Road Community Church, Abbotsford, B.C.

[More book reviews online Radical Apprentices: Risky and Rewarding Discipleship Rediscovered through the Book of Acts by Ron Mahler, reviewed by Stefan Klassen Doing Good Better: How to be an Effective Board member of a Nonprofit Organization by Edgar Stoesz, reviewed by Wally Kroeker Wrongs to Rights: How the Church can Engage the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples edited by Steve Heinrichs, reviewed

by Don Klaassen An Insider’s Guide to Praying for the World by Brian C. Stiller, reviewed by Wendy Clarke mbherald.com/category/ arts-culture/books/

[ INTERSECTION

Denominational vexillology

C

anada’s red and white flag with its stylized 11-point maple leaf is simple yet elegant. Like most flags, it derives meaning and power from its colours and symbols that represent historical and cultural events. The study of flags, called vexillology, looks both at a flag’s appearance and usage. A flag makes a statement about identity.

People also raise flags metaphorically, promoting a certain brand or values “above” others. Several years ago, a consultant advised the Mennonite Brethren in Canada to “lower the flag of the Mennonite Brethren denomination” and raise “the flag of Jesus Christ alone.”

Something about this advice resonated with many, while creating consternation for others.

It’s fair to say that denominational vexillology is no longer in vogue: these identities are often associated with divisiveness, arrogance and elitism. Sadly, that has often been true. Instead, it’s now cool in a post-denominational era to talk about how we advance the Kingdom and are gospel-only – and who among us doesn’t want to be associated with the gospel of Jesus and the Kingdom of God? But is it possible that this Jesus flag metaphor and disregard for denominational identity have obscured some important insights?

Kingdom come?

First, consider the phrase “Kingdom of God,” which is often used as a general description of either a collaborative ecumenism or theological agreement within the worldwide Christian church.

“Kingdom activity” or “Kingdom ideas” are unimpeded by denominational or cultural barriers. The word “kingdom” serves as a verbal shorthand for the unity and common purpose that ought to characterize disciples of Jesus.

But, in Scripture, “Kingdom” is not a synonym for ecumenism or generic Christianity – it is something closer to

God’s victorious reign. Although we like talking about building or expanding the Kingdom, Jesus taught his disciples to pray that it would come to earth the way it already is in heaven.

Jesus said enter it, receive it, pray for it to come (Matthew 5:20; Mark 10:15; Matthew 6:10), all the while recognizing that it does not come to us only (Matthew 23:13). We don’t need to leave our culture or denomination behind to get in on the Kingdom. God does the work of reconciliation and transformation within local settings, within denominational particularities.

Good news in my language Second, God loves diversity; he enjoys detail, and works in and through the details that characterize human life. The good news came through a first-century Jewish family, not a heavenly megaphone.

As a male Jew who worshipped God in the Jerusalem temple and the synagogues of Palestine, Jesus was the furthest thing from generic. He read the Hebrew Scriptures, preached in Aramaic, spoke in Greek.

God’s good news is always expressed in a specific language, understood and lived out within a given culture.

God’s good news does not diminish our personal stories or Mennonite Brethren theology; it pervades them to ensure that allegiance to Jesus becomes the central concern. The apostle John’s vision of the end of time includes people from every nation, tribe, people and language gathering to declare God’s glory (Revelation 7:9). The celebration of diversity continues into eternity.

If you could see with my eyes?

Third, carelessly saying that we must fly a Jesus flag only – without recognizing the reality of cultural and theological differences – can, ironically, be understood as another dogmatic and arrogant assertion that the way we see Jesus is the way everyone should see Jesus.

If the metaphor is used to ignore the story, convictions and values that shape our denominational family, we limit our

understanding of the particular times and places in which people have experienced the transforming power of the Holy Spirit through the good news of Jesus Christ.

Let’s be honest, even when allegiance to Jesus is the common central concern (as it ought to be), living with cultural and denominational (or theological) diversity is always hard work. Such differences do not give us licence to condemn other Christians as false or as apostate. Rather, they call for humility, patience, careful listening, flexibility and love.

Differences force us to recognize our biases, the limitations of our own understanding, and should serve as an incentive to continue seeking illumination from the Holy Spirit as a community. If the point of “lowering the MB flag” is not to let denominational particularities get in the way of our witness to fellow Canadians, then let’s name those issues that are problematic so that the ambiguity of the metaphor doesn’t accidently send the wrong message.

We cannot embody our faith outside of a cultural setting or communicate it without expressing a theological bias. Simply put, our Jesus flag will say as much about our story as it will about Jesus.

Postmodern interest in the way meaning emerges out of cultural settings creates an opportunity for denominations such as the Mennonite Brethren. We can tell our story of God’s redemptive work among us, without any elitism about our history and ways, and invite people to become a part of a community that is participating in God’s ongoing redemptive work. And their Jesus flag will look good next to ours.

—This article was co-authored by Jeff Peters, director of advancement for MBBS Canada, and Bruce Guenther, president of MBBS Canada and professor of church history and Mennonite studies.

Jeff prefers raising soccer football scarves instead of flags and Bruce likes Massey Ferguson hats much better than John Deere hats.

Mennonite Brethren Herald | July/August 2016

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