"We seek and desire with yearning ardent hearts, yea at the cost of our life and blood, that the holy Gospel of Jesus Christ and His apostles, which alone is the true doctrine and will remain and will remain until Jesus Christ will reappear in the clouds, may be taught and preached throughout all the … Continue reading Decaying faith
Church of God in Christ Mennonite
It’s been quite a journey
August 1, 1970, St. Barnabas Anglican Church, Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. Robert Goodnough and Christine Vance stood side by side, answered questions posed by Rev. Kenneth Vickers and were pronounced husband and wife. Today we go by Bob and Chris and marvel at the journey. We have lived in five provinces of Canada, and attended many … Continue reading It’s been quite a journey
There is no valid baptism without the new birth
First posted five years ago The beginning of the Church of God in Christ, Mennonite in Western Canada owes much to the spiritual vision of one man. Peter Toews was the Elder of the largest part of the Kleine Gemeinde (Little Church) which had separated from the main body of the Mennonite church on the … Continue reading There is no valid baptism without the new birth
Forty-five years a Holdeman
My wife and I were married August 1, 1970 and immediately began to look for a church home. Neither of us were attached to any denomination at the time we were married. Our search took us to many different churches in a number of towns, cities and provinces. We met a lot of fine people, but … Continue reading Forty-five years a Holdeman
The reason for my absence
Two weeks ago, during a flight from Toronto to Regina, I felt like a flu or a hay fever attack was coming on. Long experience has taught me that using a decongestant and an antihistamine at that point is often all it takes to stave off a full-blown episode. But my pills were in the … Continue reading The reason for my absence
History of the Christian Hymnal
This is a slightly abbreviated version of a talk I gave in our congregation yesterday evening. The Christian Hymnal that we find in our pews was first printed in 1959 and to date 392,000 copies have been printed. About half of these are sold to congregations and individuals of other denominations. If hymnals in congregational … Continue reading History of the Christian Hymnal
My writing life
Image by David Krüger from Pixabay Yesterday’s post (Cornered by God) is at the intersection of the two books that I have been working on (actually there are three, the third is in French and I’ll get to it at the end of this post). Or perhaps it’s a fork in the road. I have been stalled in … Continue reading My writing life
Why would anybody want to belong to this church?
I’m talking about the church to which I belong, the Church of God in Christ, Mennonite and I’m quite sure a lot of people are asking that question, at least to themselves. Most of them probably think it’s got something to do with our ethnic heritage and traditions. But neither I nor my wife fit … Continue reading Why would anybody want to belong to this church?
How Mennonite became an ethnic label rather than a religious one – Part five
The Kleine Gemeinde Klaas Reimer was elected minister of the Flemish Mennonite church in the Danzig area in 1801. He began to study the Bible, the Martyrs Mirror, and other books and came to the conclusion that there was no future for the Mennonites in the Danzig area. In 1804 he and 30 members of … Continue reading How Mennonite became an ethnic label rather than a religious one – Part five
How Mennonite became an ethnic label rather than a religious one – Part four
My mother left the Mennonite church of her parents when it sunk in that the German language was more important than the faith. My father’s parents had been Wesleyan Methodist, but that church got swept away with the Social Gospel and ened up as part of the United Church of Canada. When I was 11 … Continue reading How Mennonite became an ethnic label rather than a religious one – Part four
Flatlander Faith 