No Stuff Christmas

Christmas is about giving.

Actually, no, it’s about buying.  No, it’s about spending time with family.

It’s really about celebrating the birth of Jesus, Emmanuel – God with us.  (I can’t really say no to that… but that doesn’t cover it either).

The fact is the Christmas season has become a real mishmash of religion, culture, traditions, family, time off, angry-shopping, over-eating, gatherings, singing.  And the experience of Christmas is quite different from one person to the next.

But for many people it is associated with buying stuff. 

But not for me this year.  To celebrate the fact that Canada’s household consumer debt is the highest it has ever been, I am going to implement my first ever Buy Nothing Christmas.

Don’t worry.  I am not a downer Scrooge.  People will still get gifts.  But this year I am not buying stuff.  Here are some ideas I came up with this morning.  

Both my Reesor and McDowell families have a food-based gift exchange.  I don’t know what you call the game that we play but it involves stealing gifts from each other for about 2 hours until it miraculously ends with a selfless aunt choosing the unknown last gift from the middle (my friend Heather just told me the game is called “white elephant”...is that true?).  Instead of buying a box of chocolates, I am going to give the gift of a homemade dinner at my place.  I have been on a curry kick lately (I think the recipe is on page 171 of the More-with-Less cookbook) so it will likely be that.

For my mom, dad, brother, and Somphou (the IVEPer who lives with my folks), I am going to pay for a family night out to celebrate that we still love each other (and to thank Somphou for putting up with us…).  Dinner, a movie, a concert?  Whatever it is, it is going to be about people, not stuff.

Ok, so maybe it doesn't fit the official Buy Nothing Christmas criteria.  But you get the point.  This Christmas I am focusing on people, not things.  Let's call it a "No Stuff Christmas" (sorry, I haven't had the time to make a really cool No Stuff Christmas website yet).

Whatever you do, my suggestion is this - be creative.  And always remember to give to people who can’t give anything back.  "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me."  Always remember that what you have is not yours - it is Gods.  We are stewards of what we have been given.  So give off the top, not with what is left over.

If you need some ideas on how to share what you have, consider some of these options:

1. Donate through MCC’s Christmas Giving Catalogue, or
2. Mobile Give $10 to MCC with your cell.  $10 allows MCC to buy school books and a uniform for young students around the world: 
1. Send a text to "45678" with "MCC" in the comments section where they would normally type their text message
2. You will immediately get a return text message confirming that you are about to make a donation to MCC
3. Reply with "Yes"
4. text someone else and tell them to do the same.

Merry Christmas!

Placelessness

Placelessness.  He wrote it on his arm sometime during the night when I was asleep beside him. Jet fuel and metal carried us across the lines on the map carving into the land below. We let our words speak their truth and for a few hours put ourselves aside. He was a stranger lost beside me, and although it was foreign to him, he was trying to grasp my faith. I don't know where it's taken him. 


I was that little girl, the one always cast as the angel or Mary. I’d play the part but secretly I longed to climb up onto a camel and ride away with the wisemen. Wonderlust. Now that I’ve grown its taken me to the far corners of the world. Occasionally into places of power and influences, like the castles of the kings, but more often- and in moments far more sought after -into the homes of the poor and into communities torn by violence. 

I now understand how hard it is to travel: When you go, you don’t always come back. You and the places you leave change and sometimes you can’t reconnect. Placelessness. Be in this world but not of it. I’ve come to embrace the disconnect. I can’t be the same as who I was before… and neither could the wisemen. For me, nothing captures the truth of the Christmas story like  T.S. Eliot’s Journey of the Magi.  

By Kathryn Deckert

More with Less

Imagine if we lived the way our grandparents' did...if we just bought the basics and made things from scratch? More health... less preservatives. More product... less packaging. More self-sustaining... less dependent consumption. More ... with Less.

Recently, my mum and I made a double batch of homemade Corn Chips for the first time (see pg 310 of the "More-with-Less" cookbook).  They are made of good, whole foods, much more cost effective than buying said snacks, easy to make, and a rewarding activity on a snowy afternoon.  More with less.

The More-with-Less cookbook, commissioned by MCC and originally published in1976, is comprised of delicious and nutritious recipes and has morsels of sustainable food wisdom scattered throughout. It has sold over 850,000 copies.  The compiler of the cookbook, Doris Janzen Longacre, also authored a book entitled "Living More with Less" which has been found on many a bookshelf from our parents and grandparents generations.  Check out the recent 30th anniversary edition.  

Imagine if we lived more with less...

A Documentary About Love

Love is an accessible concept - it needs no introduction.  However, that doesn’t mean that all people experience or understand it in the same way. Our individual stories and emotions colour our conceptions, for better or worse.

But what does love mean to you?

I've been working alongside Director Paul Plett and Audio Technician Dave McDowell of Ode Productions asking this very question. Our inquiry has taken the form of a film entitled "A Documentary About Love," which asks four main questions:

1) Can you define love in one sentence?
2) What experiences have led you to this definition?
3) Has your own definition ever changed?
4) In your opinion has the concept of "love" ever changed throughout history?

Serving and Learning Together

Are you interested in living in another country?  Maybe learning another language?  Volunteering, eating new foods, meeting new people, having your mind and world blown wide open?  Do you want an education that you will never get in the classroom? A chance to grow spiritually that you won't get in a regular Sunday morning service? Interested?

I was too...  So in 2002 I moved to Haiti as part of the SALT program.

Current MCC Ontario staffperson, Ken Ogasawara, as a
SALTer in Uganda 2001-02.

SALT is a one-year program for 18 to 27 year-olds that will take you almost anywhere in the world.  Depending on where you go, you might be blazing a new trail by yourself or working and living near fellow SALTers.  What kind of assignments do you get? How about environmental program coordinator in Tanzania? Or science and math teacher in India? Or radio/recording technician in Burundi? The list goes on.  

I worked with a human rights organization in Port-au-Prince; learned Haititan Creole, lived with a family, traveled the country, and learned a whole lot about myself.  It was a hard year but a good year. And I recommend the program to young adults who want to grow.

Give what you have

Sinners are always wanting what they don't have; 

the God-loyal are always giving what they do have.

               Proverbs 21:26 (The Message)

Stuff

Think of all the things you have spent money on in the last year.  Now place each of those things in one of two categories: "needs" and "wants".

My guess is that many of us end up with the "wants" category quite full.

Most of human existence has been focused on survival - filling our most basic "needs" in order to stay alive.  But many of us and our babyboomer parents haven't had to think about survival at all.  We have more than we need and our focus instead is on getting as many of our (often material) "wants" fulfilled.  What a drastic difference as compared to the rest of human history!

One of the by-products of this shift from a need-focused to a want-focused culture is a lot of stuff.  This video offers an interesting reflection and analysis of stuff.

News from Mennonite World Conference

Misrak Meserete Kristos Church in Addis Ababa.

Mennonite World Conference (MWC) is "a community of Anabaptist-related churches rooted in the 16th-century Radical Reformation in Europe.... Today, more than 1,600,000 believers belong to this faith family; more than 60 percent are African, Asian, or Latin American."

MWC links together this Anabaptist community of faith for fellowship, worship, service, and witness.  One way MWC connects the church is organizing an assembly that brings this global fellowship together for about 1 week every 6 years.

I can remember travelling to Manitoba with my family when I was 8 years old to gather with other Anabaptists when Canada last hosted the event, Winnipeg 1990.  I have fond memories of that week.  Though I couldn’t speak a word of Spanish nor he more than 3 words in English, I spent the week with a Puerto Rican kid named Luis.  Our friendship brought our parents together, which led to my family living in Aibonito, Puerto Rico less than two years later (my mom taught English at a school called Betania Mennonita for a semester).

That experience – or perhaps that friendship – planted in me a seed of curiosity in connecting with people that are “different” than me; a seed which can only be fed by learning with people who can show me different ways of living, and different ways of living out the gospel.  This journey (which I recognize I have just begun) has really enriched my understanding of what it means to part of the body of Christ, with all our diversity in worldview, ideas, challenges, gifts, and abilities.

"The last 100 years of nonviolence"

http://ontario.mcc.org/peace

A little with righteousness...

"Better a little with righteousness 

than much gain with injustice."

Proverbs 16:8

Work for MCC Ontario

Would you like to work for MCC Ontario?

Then consider applying to fill a one year mat leave as Administrative Assistant to the Executive Director.  (Click here for the job description).

If you have any questions, please be in touch with the wonderful Cath Woolner at cathw@mennonitecc.on.ca.

If you would like to apply, please send cover letter and resume to Cath by December 3, 2010. (Start date is February, 2011).

If you want to have a more informal conversation about what it is like working for MCC Ontario (or if you want some dirt on the ED to help you prepare for the interview) feel free to be in touch with me (Allan) at allanrm@mennonitecc.on.ca.

MCC, Advocacy, and Beaver Tails

Want to learn about MCC?  Want to learn more about MCC's work in advocating for changes to our government policy?

Want to skate on the canal in Ottawa and eat beaver tails in minus 20 degree weather with students from across Canada?

Then sign up today for the MCC Ottawa office student seminar "Advocacy and MCC: Loving our neighbour through witness to government."

For more info, visit the Ottawa office website.

I plan to go along.  If you want to carpool from KW or Toronto, please email me after you register.

Enlace Video!

service | learning | fun :: faith | leadership | global awareness

Enlace 2011 applications are now available here!  Tell your friends.

But first, check out this video.

The Enlace program is about providing 16-19 year olds with the opportunity to grow in faith as global Christians by living in community and working alongside Guatemalan partners.

Enlace's Goals

• encourage faith formation
• engage in cross-cultural learning
• foster global awareness and an ethic of service
• develop transformative relationships & leadership skills

http://ontario.mcc.org/enlace

Enlace alumniiiii!   Where you at?  Let us know what you think of the program.  Share some stories and comments for those who are interested in going this coming summer.

Compassion :: This Generation Video

Here is a video of Compassion :: This Generation, a "Meeting MCC" youth event hosted by the Sommerfeld, EMC, and EMMC churches in Aylmer on November 12th.  If you missed this event but want to learn more about MCC and ways to get involved please be in touch.

produced by Simon Martin and Ken Ogasawara 

Great Resource on Creation Care for Young Adults

Green Revolution: Coming Together to Care for Creation, by Ben Lowe. IVP Books, 2009.

Lowe writes from the perspective of a young adult evangelical who was active in Renewal, a grassroots organization of students caring for creation.

He directly and convincingly addresses the common objections evangelicals have for caring for the environment, like whether the earth will be burned up anyway or that we should care about saving humans only and not worry about the rest of creation. Most helpful is Lowe's description of the creation care movement among young people as he describes many projects and initiatives at campuses and churches.

I would highly recommend this book for youth and young adults wanting to be inspired to make a difference in their communities.

Here's a description from the back cover:

"Activist Ben Lowe calls us to come together and care for the earth in a way that previous generations have not. Telling real-life stories from colleges, churches and communities across the nation, Lowe shows that little things make a big difference when we all work together. We now have an opportunity to show the world what it looks like when Christians care for the planet God gave us, so that future generations can live sustainably. This is our moment. This is our issue. Come join the green revolution."

"My Life is my Message"

Camp Micah (http://www.campmicah.ca/), an inter-denominational peace and justice leadership camp run the last week of August for high school students, was a new experience for us.

As Mennonites we kind of thought we had the market cornered on peace and justice work, and it was exciting and refreshing to work alongside Catholics and United Church friends to instill alternative leadership skills in youth with a focus on peace and justice. Camp Micah uses all the normal camp activities (canoeing, low-ropes, games, and campfires) to create awareness about the importance of peace and justice in our everyday lives, and to challenge us to think about how we live our lives and, ultimately, what type of message we share with others by how we live.

My life is my message...  It was a catchy phrase to put on the t-shirts for Camp Micah.

Light a candle...

"Don't curse the darkness,

                                      light a candle”

~Chinese Proverb

A Peace Sunday Sermon: Part 4 of 4. Conclusion

Some final things to remember

Peace happens in relationship

Jesus, sometimes called Truth said:

Folks are lucky, blessed, fortunate, on the right track

by living out compassion

“dethrone [yourselves] from the centre of our world and put another there”[1]

This is the kindom of God

A Peace Sunday Sermon: Part 3 of 4. Remembering we live by a different story

We’re not alone, you know

Everyone wishes for Peace

Even beauty queens, with their tiara’s and sparkling dresses wish for …

[sigh] world peace

– someday

Everyone wishes for Peace

Even the Lennon’s who imagine no countries

[sung] and no religions too (Oh, oh – o-o-oh)

Everyone wishes for Peace

Even the folks who earnestly engage in war,

They believe that their show of mighty force will bring conflict to a speedy end:

“We’ll just go in,

strike with precision

and then we’re out.

Balance will be restored.

We’re helping people — oh, and democracy.”

But, as the general said on the radio: conflict is never that predictable

A Peace Sunday Sermon: Part 2 of 4. Remembering who we are

Sisters, brothers, friends, we’ve called this Peace Sunday

It’s the proverbial string we tie around our finger every year so we won’t forget

On Peace Sunday we remember who we are,

who we propose to be

We are children of God’s Peace

"We who were formerly no people at all, and who knew of no peace, are now called to be...a church...of peace.  True Christians do not know vengeance.  They are the children of peace.  Their hearts overflow with peace.  Their mouths speak peace, and they walk in the way of peace.” (to quote Menno Simons)

A Peace Sunday Sermon: Part 1 of 4. Remembering the victims of violence

Scripture: Matthew 5, Micah 6: 8

I remember, Je me souviens

I remember,

but mostly I’d rather forget

Mostly

I’d rather sit in my corner and cry, wail, lament

I remember the things we do and don’t do to each other:

war, injustice,

poverty, torture,

broken relationships, bullying, meanness, gossip, betrayal, …

I remember,

but sometimes I’d rather forget

Internship in Ottawa

A month ago I included some info about MCCs advocacy work in a post called Loving our Neighbour through Witness to Government.

Since I know this type of work interests many of you, I wanted to let you know of an opportunity to get involved...(see the info about internship possibilities below, copied from the MCC Ottawa office website)

*****************************

Mennonite Central Committee's Ottawa Office offers three unpaid internship terms each year. The dates for each are flexible and depend on the selected intern’s availability. Both full-time and half-time internships are available.

• Winter/Spring Term (January-April): applications will be reviewed starting November 15
• Summer Term (May-August): applications will be reviewed starting March 1
• Fall Term (September-December): applications will be reviewed starting July 1

The Advocacy Intern is part of a team that provides expertise and assistance for MCC Canada’s advocacy efforts.  For further information and to apply for this position, please contact Marsha Jones with a cover letter and resume.

Compassion :: This Generation

Attention youth and youth leaders...

For those of you in Kitchener-Waterloo...

What are you doing this Thursday?  And the next?  If you have some flexibility with your schedule I would encourage you to read on.  Below are two interesting events that you should to check out:

The first is an invitation from my friend Steve who works with Mennonite Coalition for Refugee Support to a Rally for Refugees on Nov. 4th.  The second, an invitation from my colleague Matthew to an Interfaith Peace Vigil on Nov. 11th.

Geez Magazine

An incredibly honest, gritty, no BS approach to our anabaptist pacifist faith.  HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!
Of particular note is Amishmash, a blog written by the editor Aiden Enns.

"The Gospel According to Google"

..."That raises the broader question of whether the Internet builds or erodes community. The answer is surely both." 


"We can use the Internet to promote peace and justice, but we might be indirectly putting money into the pockets of some of the worst warmongers in the world when we buy our peace-promoting techno-gadgets. That doesn’t necessarily mean we should make a collective trip to the dump, but it does mean that we need to look at both sides of the tech equation."


See more in this interesting article by Will Braun:  The Gospel According to Google.  I have struggled with how much and when to embrace/reject technology, so I appreciate the questions raised in this article.

Youth Development Committee

Usually when we promote an opportunity to get involved though this blog, we offer info on opportunities with MCC and the broader church.  But as Christians we are often (or perhaps always?) called beyond the confines of our churches (here I mean buildings, though typically when I use the word church I mean people) and church programs to engage people in the communities where we live.  I think that is where the church (people) is at its best...listening to and engaging the community beyond the church (building this time) walls.

All that to introduce an opportunity.  The provincial government is seeking youth and young adults 18-25 years old to participate in a Youth Development Committe.  It looks interesting.  I encourage you to check it out.  It would be good to have some of you who are rooted in the church bring your perspectives to this process.

The "C" Word

Last week Canadians celebrated National Co-op Week and International Credit Union Day (Oct 21). MSCU is also hosting our Fall Member Events over the next few weeks (come on out!) and all of these community activities have led me to think more about my struggle with “ME” versus “WE.”

The Anabaptist community has generally been pretty good at talking about the “WE.”  In our churches and organizations, there’s lots of talk about the “C” word – community. I’ve always felt blessed to be part of a strongly identified Mennonite community. It seems like I can show up to any Mennonite church or event and have some connection with at least half a dozen people.

With Mennonites I don’t know, I have often played the Mennonite Game, which includes listing each other’s parents, relatives, church, friends etc. until a common link is found. I’ve played the Mennonite Game in some pretty remote places: a village in Swaziland; at a concert hall in Germany; and on the Bruce Trail. This has instilled in me the feeling that I’m part of a broad community that is committed to building a world full of God’s love and peace.

It has also reinforced that by doing things together, pooling our resources, and building a common vision, we can achieve more than trying to do things as individuals.

Even with this knowledge, I sometimes find it difficult to engage with community in my daily life. It can be easier to spend time and money on “ME”. As long as I check my Facebook and show up to church, I’m still connected to the community. And in most cases, this seems to be a socially acceptable practice.

I’m happy that I’m invested (both figuratively and literally) in a faith community, yet I have this feeling that I could invest even more in community; that there could be less “ME” and more “WE”.

What do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts and suggestions!

Myth Perceptions

http://www.mythperceptions.ca/english_home.html

Check out this interesting resource....

"Myth Perceptions is an initiative of the Indigenous Work Program of Mennonite Central Committee Canada.

The goal of Mythperceptions is to dismantle stereotypes, myths and misconceptions that people from the dominant culture tend to believe about Indigenous peoples living within the borders of what is now North America.  Mythperceptions attempts to change views in a way that is engaging, yet gives opportunities to dig deeply into some of the issues facing Indigenous peoples."

A day in Totonicapán

I have been spending some time in Guatemala and El Salvador carrying out an evaluation of the Enlace program by visiting and speaking with communities that we partner with.

Here are some pics from my day in Totonicapán this past week.  Enjoy!

How much time do you spend on facebook?

"A new study of Canadian university students suggests facebook is a magnet for narcissists and people with low self-esteem."

Read more of this interesting Globe and Mail article, Facebook a big hit with narcissists: study.

I don't really use it...  

New MCC shirt

Buy 'em here.  Or you can order through me, allanrm@mennonitecc.on.ca

What would you do with one extra minute?

Call a friend? Take a nap? Down a greasy cheeseburger?

How about spend a minute in a test tube with David Suzuki?!

Check this video out.

It's one thing to suggest we ride our bikes more often, it's another to challenge the very bedrock of our society - growth. Can our insatiable appetites for more really be stopped? Can our population numbers ever stabilize? Does creation even give us a choice? Talk about approaching some taboo subjects. Rock on Suzuki. Rock on.

Mutual Aid with Ben Janzen

Faith and money are very much connected, whether we like it or not. Often we try to avoid making the connections, because thinking about faith and money can lead to some pretty difficult decisions - ones that force us to think about how and how much we spend, give, and save (give and save?)...


And many of the habits that we develop (ones that you and I are developing right now) stick with us for most of our lives. Unless, of course, we are willing to consider some pretty tough questions, and also consider the possibility that we may have to change the way we spend, give, and save. And maybe even where we bank...

About 47 years ago, a group of Waterloo Mennonites got together to explore a response to what they were seeing and feeling in their churches around faith and economics. At the heart of their discussion was the concept of mutual aid, “bearing each other’s burdens”. That led to a discussion about how a faith-based credit union could be an ideal way for church members to support each other, their churches and to conduct financial business in keeping with their faith.

“Why a credit union and not a bank?” you might ask.

Here’s a video (thanks to some credit union friends in Alberta) that shows some of the reasons why:

a Thanksgiving Prayer

We are grateful.
You have given us this day
And have given us this way
to say Thank You.
We thank you for giving us
what we need to be grateful.
We offer back to You
All that we have,
All that we are.

 We ask You

 to take our small thank you

 into Your great act of Thanksgiving;

 You, Lord of the loaves and fishes,

 You who are from God

 with God and for God,

 You in whom it is all

 

Yes and Amen.

 

(Mary Jo Leddy, Radical Gratitude)

"...democracy is not a spectator sport"

MCC's Ottawa Office tracks legislative developments in the Parliament of Canada that directly relate to our priorities, approaches, and values. It does this by documenting government or private member bills that have the potential to impact MCC's domestic or international program partners.

Follow the MCC Ottawa Office Legislation Log.

["Because democracy is not a spectator sport" ~ US presidential election slogan, Democrats (2004)]

Want to learn more about the whole federal parliamentary process?  Click here.

Walking with People in Poverty

Jesus announced his mission: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor…." 

And what is good news for the poor? 

Affordable housing, quality relationships, wages that sustain a dignified life, meaningful community, adequate social assistance, a valued voice in society … and much more. 

In Toronto, Kitchener and Timmins, MCC Ontario responds to poverty by walking alongside marginalized people with compassion and caring.

Thrift dance party

If you are interested in getting involved with MCC consider volunteering at a thrift store.  They have dance parties like this most of the time.  (Watch the video...it is a good way to get your Monday started off right)

Thrift raises millions of dollars for MCC work every year.  By supporting thrift you are helping your neighbour.

For a list of Ontario thrift locations check out http://ontario.mcc.org/thrift.

The Danger of a Single Story

Here are some thoughts taken from a blog post by Matt Madigan.  He is volunteering with MCC's SALT program in South Africa for the year.  Check out his blog.

********************************

The Danger of a Single Story
By Matt Madigan

The week-long orientation [for SALT, IVEP, and YAMEN] in Akron, Pennsylvania back in August proved to be exceedingly valuable and very much prepared me for the year ahead. Not only was it informative of the ins and outs of adjusting to a new culture it was also a great week just to chill out, meet some new people and have a lot of fun! One particularly useful session that struck me was on the danger of a single story.

At home we have this incredibly distorted image of what Africa is like. How can you blame us when the only stories we receive of Africa on the six o’clock news are those of suffering, hunger and violence? Of course there are many places in Africa that are desperate and unsafe but our folly comes when we apply those images to the entire continent. We paint all the nations of Africa with the same brush and fail to see their differences.

I need help

...in more ways than one!

But I will keep it to one request for today.  Do you have connections in Kitchener-Waterloo?  Then read on...

Pheakdey and Daniel.  IVEPers in Ontario '09-'10.

MCC Ontario will be welcoming an International Volunteer Exchange Program (IVEP) participant to KW in October.  He was going to be placed in Hamilton, but for a variety of reasons that is not working out.  Instead, we are setting up a work placement based out of the 50 Kent avenue offices in Kitchener.  He will be working with MCC and some of our partners in KW.

I need to find him a home.  And quickly.

Do you have any ideas of people in KW that might be interested in hosting him for 4-10 months?  In your church community? With family?  Friends?  Colleagues?  Feel free to do some shoulder tapping.  And please be in touch asap if you come up with any ideas.

Listening: the best way to build peace

When dialogue is mentioned, most people associate it with talking.  Not so for the participants of The East-West Dialogue for Peacemaking, an event held this past June in Amman, Jordan.  Thirty participants from Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Israel, Palestine, Egypt, the United States, and Canada came away associating effective dialogue with good listening. The art of good listening, they learned, is key to effective dialogue and peacemaking.

During the 4-day conference, participants, both Muslims and Christians, spent intensive time together informally and in sessions developing relationships and learning from the rich and diverse experiences of each other. 

“When we build friendship we are one step closer to peace,” says Mouhammad Aref El Hassan, from Lebanon who was also at the conference in 2009. “…There are a lot of people out there that want to understand and to be understood.”

One of those people was Sara Anderson who attends Kitchener Mennonite Brethren Church and who recently completed her first year in the Global Studies program at Wilfred Laurier University focusing on Peace and Conflict in the Middle East and Muslim Studies.  She was interested in this Dialogue as a way of putting into action some of the lessons she learned in the classroom, and as a way to learn more about what it means to be a Christian in the world.  “I wanted to gain a deeper understanding of the culture and customs in the Middle East and how I, as a Christian, am to live in a multi-faith world.”

Sara Anderson (far right) speaking with three participants from the Middle East

Thank you (a Haiti Earthquake update)

There are countless ways to be loving and compassionate.  I encourage you to be creative...

If you are thinking of showing love and compassion through MCC, you are welcome.  We work in more than 60 countries (including right here at home) and we want you to get involved.  Share of yourself: your time and your money.  For what you have (your gifts, energy, and your resources) has been given to you by God and it is to be shared with others.

Now for an update:

Thanks to all of you who have contributed to MCCs response to the Haiti Earthquake.  Your generosity enables MCC to respond to immediate and long-term needs of Haitians.  At work in Haiti for more than 50 years, MCC will continue to walk with its Haitian partners, together addressing basic human needs of the people and underlying issues of injustice that hamper the country's recovery.  For an update, click here.  For a more detailed PDF version click here.

Loving our neighbor through witness to government

Many of you are energized by following Jesus call to love our neighbors.  There are many ways that you can do this and I would encourage you to think creatively with others about how this might look in your community.

One way to love our neighbours, both near and far, is through political advocacy.

When we claim that Jesus is Lord we are claiming that (as the early church and as many Anabaptist communities have done for 500 years) our political leaders and structures are not Lord. This doesn’t mean that we call for anarchy and disregard order.  But it means we must be willing to speak out (even to our government representatives) when our convictions as Christians come face to face with injustice.

Good thing we don’t have to go it alone…there are people that can guide us along the way.  To get you started, check out these helpful sites:

Advocating for a Poverty Free Ontario

MCC Advocacy Webpage

Yella: a middle eastern learning tour for young adults

Ever wonder what the heck is going on in the Middle East? We know Jesus grew up, and lived his life and ministry somewhere in what we now call Israel (and parts of Palestine). We hear about a lot of conflict ('over there').

The Old City of Jerusalem, May 2010

But how does the developing story of today's Middle East connect to the Roman ruled context of Jesus? Is there anything we can learn about Jesus and the bible by walking where he walked?

MCC Ontario has partnered with Mennonite Church Eastern Canada to develop opportunities for people like you to learn about God, the world, and yourself...to explore questions of Christian faith and life by:

- Interacting with Christians, Jews and Muslims

- Encountering complex peace and conflict issues

- Considering the context for Jesus' life and ministry

The program is called Yella and we have organized two groups thus far: the first in 2008, and most recently in May 2010.

You might have heard of the program through some articles in the Canadian Mennonite by Micheal Turman, Katie Erb, and Katie Penner.

Profile: Kim Walker

Kim Walker shares her thoughts on MCC’s Enlace and Serving and Learning Together (SALT) programs, and her passion for connecting spirituality with working for peace and justice.

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arm:  You participated in the Enlace program in 2006.  What are some highlights from that experience?

Kim Walker:  Enlace was a great experience! Friendships made, mayan pyramids climbed, and soccer games with hordes of kids are just few of many great memories that come to mind.  Climbing Mt Pacaya was definitely a neat experience - we went so close to the top of the volcano that the bottom of my shoe started to melt!

For me though, the best part of the Enlace trip was how things that I saw and learned inspired me to focus less on myself and more on working for peace and justice. 

Need some work?

Looking for a meaningful job?  With an organization you can feel good being apart of?  Something that connects with your values and your faith?

You have come to the right place...

MCC Ontario is hiring a Communications Assistant.  Check the job description here.

Applications are due September 24th.