People & events

The next 55+ retreat for Canadian MBs will be held October 2005 in Montreal. Sharon Johnson, Adult Ministry Director, who is heading the planning committee, says participants at the last retreat suggested moving the event around the country. Montreal is a world-class but surprisingly affordable city, and MBs in Quebec are excited about meeting brothers and sisters from other provinces.

—Adult Ministries

Port Rowan (Ont.) MB Church felt God’s blessings upon them in their major outreach effort of the year: the presentation of the drama “Heaven’s Gates and Hell’s Flames” last April. The drama was under the leadership of Carl and Cathy Bath of Reality Outreach Ministries, with the cast of 50 and the crew from the congregation. Many attended and responded to the message.

—church report

Concerned Mennonites drew attention to the deadly side of the Abbotsford (B.C.) International Airshow Aug. 14 by lining approach routes with white crosses in memory of victims of aerial bombardment worldwide. They also distributed information pamphlets about the airshow’s military aspect and colouring books to prompt family conversations about the ultimate purpose of airplanes.

—MCC BC

Penny Power, a kid-friendly Mennonite Central Committee fundraiser, succeeded its 2003 total in the first seven-and-a-half months of 2004. By mid-August, contributions of spare change, paper money and matching grants had reached a record $426,253 Cdn.

—MCC

Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe said lawmakers will be asked to pass the “Non-governmental Organizations and Churches Bill.” He claims that Western-funded charities, and church and human rights groups, are meddling in domestic politics and acting on the side of his opponents and foreign powers. Average life expectancy in Zimbabwe is 33.1 years; 25 percent of the population is HIV-positive.

—World Pulse

In the wake of Hurricane Ivan’s devastation Mennonite Central Committee has designated $26,000 Cdn. for emergency aid to Jamaica and other Caribbean locations. An assessment team will plan for further long-term response. MCC has 9 staff members in Jamaica.

—MCC NEWS

A petition signed by more than 315,000 citizens across Russia protesting the Moscow ban on Jehovah’s Witnesses was submitted to President Putin Aug. 25. According to a statement from the religious group, the majority of the signatories were not Jehovah’s Witnesses, but are “disturbed by the chilling precedent of a court outlawing a peaceful religious group.”

—Compass Direct

Vietnamese authorities are apparently surprised by the widespread negative publicity generated by their treatment of the Vietnamese Mennonites. They seem to have been unaware that the Mennonites in their country are part of a global church body, many of whose members have spoken out on behalf of “the Mennonite Six” – the six church leaders and evangelists presently imprisoned for their activities.

—Mennonite World Conference

A 40-foot container of hospital supplies (being unloaded, left) was recently sent to Ukraine by MCC British Columbia. The shipment of health kits, bandages, comforters, stretchers, wheelchairs and beds came from hospitals in Vancouver, Abbotsford and Langley and will be distributed by the Christian Medical Association, an MCC partner in Ukraine, to medical centres, as well as homes for the elderly and children.

—MCC News

Prison Fellowship (PF) is helping with reconciliation in Rwanda after the genocide there 10 years ago. PF’s Umuvumu Tree Project brings suspected offenders who were imprisoned face to face with genocide survivors. Victims are encouraged to forgive despite painful memories. Some 40,000 ex-prisoners have gone through the program. Many have joined a program to demonstrate their repentance by building houses for the victims.

—PF International

One of the oldest MB churches in North American, the Carson (Minn.) MB Church, celebrated its 129th anniversary this year with some 200 former members attending. A large number of pastors, missionaries and other Christian workers hail from Carson and neighbouring Mountain Lake churches. Membership has declined to about 50; the congregation will decide its future this year but wanted to celebrate first.

—The Christian Leader

Unlike fellow celebrity Christopher Reeves, quadriplegic Joni Eareckson Tada opposes embryonic stem cell research. Eareckson Tada told CNN’s Larry King that “taking human life, no matter how small,” increases the vulnerability that people like herself or “the elderly, the frail, the unborn” have when society begins to dismantle safeguards around human life.

—Sunday Magazine

The Peru Mennonite Brethren Conference celebrated its 20th anniversary August 29 with about 500 attending. John and Agnes Penner of Abbotsford, the first long-term MB Mission and Service International missionaries in Peru, began a Bible study in their home in Sullana, northern Peru in 1984. Today the Peru MB Conference has 12 established or emerging congregations.

—Global Bridge

Good neighbours: according to a new Statistics Canada study, more than half of the seniors providing care to someone with a long-term health problem are assisting a friend or neighbour, double the number caring for a spouse. Middle-aged caregivers tend to be most involved with parents, but nearly a quarter are helping those not related to them. More than 2 million are providing informal care; 90 percent said it strengthened relationships with those they are helping.

—Globe and Mail

World Vision made its millionth loan to a poor client in a developing country in August. Borrowers, who take out loans ranging from $100 to $2000, are street vendors, artisans, small farmers and others who want to start or expand a business. The re-payment rate is 97 percent. The World Bank estimates 600 million poor people could create jobs and increase their income if they had access to credit.

—World Vision

“It’s imperative that Christians . . . are aware of what their brothers and sisters in Palestine are experiencing,” says Daryl Byler, director of the MCC Washington Office, in reference to a 430-mile long separation barrier under construction by Israelis. The website includes resources to help people learn about the issue. There is also the opportunity to participate in a campaign urging President Bush and the U.S. Congress to call on Israeli and Palestinian leaders to build bridges for peace, not walls that divide.

Lendrum MB Church, Edmonton, women’s Bible study group recently completed a 2-year study of the Gospel of Luke. Led by pastor Kae Neufeld, the group was challenged to evaluate social and religious structures in a safe, non-threatening environment. The group challenged Kae with questions and concerns. They learned to know each other better through sharing stories and experiences.

Greendale MB Church and Greendale First Mennonite Church, Chilliwack, B.C., cooperated on a cleanup of Greendale Cemetery. 40 volunteers were involved. The day ended with a hamburger barbeque.

Over 100 of some 360 members of the Franz and Eva (Tilitzky) Ewert family celebrated their ancestors’ arrival in Canada from Rosenthal, Ukraine in 1904 at a reunion Aug. 13–15 in Camp Hope, B.C. The weekend included singing, sharing of pictures and stories, and devotionals by Vern Heidebrecht and Sig Polle. Reflections focused on the family’s pilgrimage, their practical godliness and their passion for sharing Christ in word and deed.