At LMC

Mark your calendar for Loaves & Fishes, Saturday, November 5, 4:30-6:30pm in Fellowship Hall. We’ll be building Kub Kars in preparation for the LMC (Kids) Christmas Banquet and generally having fun together! For those not interested in building cars, we’ll have some simple crafts and table games. Please bring a potluck dish to share.

Come and rejoice with us! On Sunday, November 6, 2022, we will have a Soup and Dessert Potluck to welcome and celebrate our Adult Sunday School guest speaker, Dr. Gerald Gerbrandt. Dr. Gerbrandt is President Emeritus of Canadian Mennonite University and the author of our three-Sunday series, “Joyful Wrestling: the Art of Reading Scripture.” He will be with us in-person on November 6, and will come to us by Zoom on the 13 and 20.

We are beginning our Advent and Christmas preparations in Sunday School! We will be filming videos and practicing music in November, getting ready to participate in the Advent Worship services. We look forward to seeing your kids in Sunday School, and we hope you’re looking forward to seeing their hard work during the service!

In the community

CCMBC

CCMBC has appointed a new National Faith and Life Director. Ken Esau, Columbia Bible College prof, has been filling in the post for the past year on an interim basis and following a search process the Board was very pleased to call Ken to an ongoing appointment beginning November 1st. Ken brings not only exceptional Biblical and theological knowledge, but also a winsome presence to teaching and leading. We love his strong collaborative leadership!

A decision was made to reshape and reschedule our National Assembly. We failed to reach quorum at our June 2022 National Assembly. Out of the feedback and suggestions and our desire to make a move which will hopefully permit us to provide both in-person opportunity and online access, the Board agreed to the following as an experiment for the next while:

• Hold a two-hour online AGM to process the Audit and approve an Auditor, and appoint Directors June 8, 2023. This meets our required obligations on the financial level.
• Host a hybrid (In-Person and Online) Equip Conference and National Assembly in November 2023. Our hope is that the value of providing both Equipping and Key National Decision work will justify the costs of travel to such an event, and that its timing in November will avoid the very busy spring convention schedule.

Mennonite Central Committee

Breakfast! On November 18 at 9am, pastors, church admins, and lay leaders are invited to the Calgary office to have breakfast with Rick Cober Bauman, Executive Director of MCC Canada. RSVP by calling or texting Donita at 780-901-1021.

Thank you for an exciting summer of Go!100 activities! What another incredible year! Together $111,150 was raised for Relief, Development, and Peace in the name of Christ. Individuals, families, and churches took up the challenge this year as bakers, cyclists, hikers, runners and fencers. Others quilted, took photos, read books, and wrote stories to further MCC’s work in education, food relief, water security and peace building.

Join us for a celebration of 50 years of MCC Thrift! This special virtual event on November 22 at 6pm will celebrate the history, creativity and generosity of the MCC Thrift network and our many dedicated volunteers. Link: mcccanada.ca/get-involved/events/celebration-50-years-mcc-thrift.

Making decisions day by day/Checking in with partner in Ukraine. A new episode of Relief, Development and Podcast with updates on Ukraine is available at mcccanada.ca/relief-development-podcast.

Fellowship with us. Nov. 18, 7pm. Foothills Mennonite Church. Everyone is invited to an evening of stories and fellowship with Rick Cober Bauman and Ryan Siemens, the Executive Directors of MCC Canada and Alberta. RSVP by calling the Calgary office at 403-275-6935.

Edmonton Ecumenical Peace Network

Beyond the Frontlines: Rethinking Remembrance Day. Peace is a value in many religious traditions, and yet, it can often be weaponized against those fighting for survival, dignity, and equality. Whether close to home or thousands of miles away, how do we define peace in times of war? How do our spiritual traditions guide our active involvement in advocating for justice, equity, and peace? How can we use our collective voices to centre the experiences of those most impacted by war? Join us at 6:30 pm on November 11 in Churchill Square for our interfaith candlelight walk, followed by reflections and refreshments at McDougall United Church.

Mennonite Disaster Service

Volunteers needed in Atlantic Canada. MDS Canada is appealing for volunteers to assist with clean-up efforts in Cape Breton from Hurricane Fiona. Accommodations and meals will be provided; travel reimbursements are available. Volunteers are needed until mid-December. Contact Clara Flores at cflores@mds.org or call 866-261-1274.

Early response. Hurricane Ian brought significant damage to the residents of Florida. Contact Kelsey Friesen (kfriesen@mds.org or 866-261-1274) if you’re interested in serving as a Leadership Volunteer for 4+ weeks, or Deanna Frey (dfrey@mds.org or 800-241-8111) if you’re interested in serving as a Weekly Volunteer for 1-3 weeks.

Weekly Volunteer opportunities in Eastern KY; Jennings, LA; McAllen, TX; and Paradise, CA through the end of 2022. Contact Deanna Frey (dfrey@mds.org or 800-241-8111) with any questions or to schedule a week of service!

Leadership Volunteer opportunities in Eastern KY; Crisfield, MD; Jennings, LA; McAllen, TX; and Paradise, CA; and openings for RV Volunteers at the RV Project in Welsh, LA through the end of 2022. Contact Kelsey Friesen (kfriesen@mds.org or 866-261-1274) to learn more or to serve at these projects for 4 weeks or more!

Winter projects (January through March) in Paradise, CA; McAllen, TX; Jennings, LA; Dawson Springs, KY; Eastern KY; and Crisfield, MD! Contact Deanna for Weekly Volunteer Options and Josh for Leadership and RV.

Canadian Mennonite University

Christmas with CMU. Saturday, November 26 at 7:00 PM (CST) at Bethel Mennonite Church (465 Stafford St., Winnipeg). This year’s Christmas program will be in-person and livestreamed featuring favourites performed by a variety of CMU’s music ensembles. Space is limited; free tickets are required, available at cmu.ca/christmas.

We Need to Talk. After nine months of war, are there still nonviolent options for Ukraine? Join Karen Ridd and Wendy Kroeker for a discussion of this question during CMU’s interactive Zoom call-in show, We Need to Talk, November 16, 9:30 PM (CST).  Visit cmu.ca/weneedtotalk. 

CMU Festival Chorus. J.S. Bach’s magnificent Christmas Oratorio, Weihnachtsoratorium BWV 248, is an awe-inspiring masterpiece for choir, soloists, and orchestra. Enjoy the choir’s stunning musical rendering of the nativity story in all its rejoicing, gladness, and celebration on December 9, 2022 (in Winnipeg, MB) and December 10, 2022 (in Gretna, MB). Details and tickets available at cmu.ca/festivalchorus.  

Village Goods

Starting Monday, October 31, the Village Goods store on Whyte Avenue will be open 7 days a week. Check out the store for fair trade Christmas decorations, nativity scenes, and gifts, such as children’s toys and books, mittens and socks, calendars, and jewelry. If you are interested in volunteering, contact us at info@villagegoods.ca.

The King’s University

Time to stretch your own music muscles? It’s not too late to register for our Alumni and Community Chorus. We have a record-breaking 75 choristers this year and the group is looking to tackle some fun and exciting new pieces. No auditions required—just a love and passion for music and song. Register here.

Living within our planetary boundaries for our common good. For the rest of the year, each of our Everything Series lectures will be hosted on campus. Next up, on November 8th at 7:00 pm, is Dr. Peter Mahaffy’s lecture on living within our planetary boundaries. Coffee, tea, and snacks will be provided. Wine and beer are available for purchase.

Richard Eaton Singers

The Music of Vaughan Williams. Concert Saturday, November 12, 2022, at 7:30 pm at the Winspear Centre. Richard Eaton Singers have in past years had the opportunity to present numerous concerts with the Edmonton Symphony either on or around Remembrance Day, as musical commemorations of one of the most significant national holidays in our calendar. This concert will present several of Ralph Vaughan Williams’ works, including his major cantata on the theme of war and peace, Dona nobis pacem. This co-production will reveal the composer’s lifelong commitment to writing impactful music for voice and orchestra including four representative works that span a period of nearly 50 years of compositional activity.

Reflecting on the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, we begin with the short celebratory hymn arrangement Vaughan Williams was invited to contribute to her coronation in 1953, The Old Hundredth Psalm Tune: All People That on Earth do Dwell.The first half of the concert closes with his Five Mystical Songs for baritone soloist, chorus and orchestra.

The second half of the concert will centre on the fact that Vaughan Williams’s long life (1872-1958) spanned both World Wars. Although at the age of 42 he was well past the age of conscription for active duty in WWI, he did contribute as an ambulance attendant for British campaigns both in Greece and France, and the experience of witnessing the brutality of the War’s casualties affected him deeply.  Undoubtedly the memories of these war experiences were very much on his mind when in 1935, with the ominous signs of conflict emerging from continental Europe, he composed the cantata Dona nobis pacem – grant us peace. A major source of text for Vaughan Williams was war poet Walt Whitman. The rigours of war are aptly represented in Beat! Beat! Drums!, Dirge for Two Veterans, and Reconciliation. The cantata closes with a triumphant and ultimately peaceful, reassuring “Dona nobis pacem”, hauntingly sung unaccompanied by soloist and chorus.

Celebrate, commemorate, and reminisce with us in Remembrance of those that have given their lives to protect ours. Buy tickets here.

Festival of Nine Lessons & Carols for Advent & Christmas

You are invited to the annual Festival of Nine Lessons & Carols, with performances by the U of A Mixed Chorus and the Faculty of Education Handbell Ringers. The program will be at the Winspear Centre on November 28 at 7:30 pm, and tickets can be purchased for $25 ay the Winspear Box Office. The Festival is a benefit concert for U of A Student Support.

Camp Evergreen

Camp Evergreen 3-on-3 Pond Hockey Tournament: Taking place on January 14th, 2023, our 3-on-3 Hockey Tournament is a fun time for all levels of Hockey Player. Funds raised from the tournament are used to support the ministry of Camp Evergreen. Spectators are welcome to come watch and participate in our silent auction. Don’t forget to bring out the kids, we’ve got stuff planned for them to! Lunch and Supper are provided. To register a team contact staff@camp-evergreen.com.

Camp Evergreen Winterfest Family Camp: Family Day Long Weekend has never looked more fun! This Family Camp is a whole lot of special with a giant dose of fun. You can expect a weekend full of skating, pond hockey, sledding, Jug ‘n’ Jog in the snow, Crokicurl, Redneck Curling, and all of the activities you have come to love. If you love Camp Evergreen in the summer – you are going to love how magical it is in the winter.