"There was this Mennonite congregation in the town where I grew up, made up of people who came to Canada in the 1920's. Their people had lived in Russia for generations and had built up prosperous farms. All was going well for them, until 1917. The Revolution took everything they had worked so hard to … Continue reading Entitlement
Canada
But God can save us yet
The winter and spring of 1834 had passed away. The latter was uncommonly cold and backward; so much so that we had a very heavy fall of snow upon the 14th and 15th of May A late, cold spring in Canada is generally succeeded by a burning, hot summer; and the summer of '34 was … Continue reading But God can save us yet
Is there an antidote for extremism?
First a little background for those who may not be up on the news from Canada. There have been two incidents this week of what one newspaper writer calls “microterrrorism.” On Monday in St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Québec an automobile driver struck two uniformed soldiers, killing one and injuring the other. Wednesday in Ottawa, a man shot a … Continue reading Is there an antidote for extremism?
Are you in the grip of, or under the influence of, a virus?
War is hell. The First World War, from 1914 to 1918, resulted in the death of 10 million soldiers and 7 million civilians. At least 20 million more were wounded. As horrible as that sounds, the Spanish flu epidemic of 1918 to 1919 caused at least 50 million deaths, some say 100 million. Beginning in … Continue reading Are you in the grip of, or under the influence of, a virus?
Unreached peoples
Unreached peoples! How can it be that there are still people groups in our modern world who have never heard about the Saviour, who do not have even a portion of the Bible in their language? Mission and Bible translation and distribution agencies tell us with considerable urgency that many such groups still remain on … Continue reading Unreached peoples
What does the Bible mean to you?
In the 2011 census, 67% of Canadians identified themselves as Christians. A statistic that is somewhat older and probably outdated says that 25% of Canadians attend church once a week. The latest survey gives a glimpse of the rot at the base of our Christianity: 5% of Canadians read the Bible daily, 11% once a … Continue reading What does the Bible mean to you?
Where is Ottawa?
Judith Adler teaches a course on families and the cultural traditions of families the world over at Memorial University of Newfoundland. A few years ago she began to suspect that her students had no idea where some of the places she was talking about actually were. So she gave them a quiz. The quiz consisted … Continue reading Where is Ottawa?
Family Day musings
Today is Family Day in my part of Canada. It is a holiday that was begun in one province several years ago and is slowly spreading across the country. Our dining room table was covered with jigsaw puzzle pieces this morning, from a 1,000 piece puzzle my wife started yesterday when we had company, an … Continue reading Family Day musings
It’s what’s left that counts
This was the motto of Cliff Chadderton, who died a week ago at the age of 94. In October of 1944 Cliff was the commander of a company of the Royal Winnipeg Rifles as the Canadian army began the push to liberate Belgium and Holland from the Nazis. He was injured for the second time … Continue reading It’s what’s left that counts
Why parents need to be involved in their child’s education
Governor Jeb Bush of Florida was in Toronto at the end of October to speak on the educational reforms that have moved Florida schools from the bottom tier of educational achievement to near the top. He spoke to the Economic Club of Canada at the Royal York Hotel, the talk was well-publicized and co-sponsored by … Continue reading Why parents need to be involved in their child’s education
Flatlander Faith 