East Zorra Mennonite Church
Volume 66 Sunday January 15, 2023 No. 3
Worship Service – Sunday January 15, 2023 at 10 a.m.
Join Sunday Morning Worship Gathering
Prelude: Katie Wagler Accompanist: Katie Wagler
Song Leader: Lindsay Zehr Worship Leader: Pastor Mike
Message: Stephen Roy Audio/Visual: Drystan Bender/Larry Kropf
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Our guest speaker will be Stephen Roy, Church and Community Relations Associate with Mennonite Central Committee (MCC). Stephen has been part of the MCC Ontario team since 2021. He focuses on building and nurturing relationships between MCC and supporting churches.
Stephen will share the morning message and also continue to share with us in the Sunday School Hour.
Today
Please note that there will be no coffeetime today.
Sunday School classes
Nursery to Grade 5 classes are being held downstairs.
Junior Youth class meets upstairs in Room #9
Youth class meets upstairs in the MYF room (Room #11)
Adult Class Following the service and a time of fellowship, adults are invited back to the sanctuary for a presentation from Stephen Roy and the ongoing work of Mennonite Central Committee around the world and how we as a church can continue to participate.
12:30 – 2:00 pm – Care Team, along with our pastors are hosting a Young Adult Luncheon for all young adults born in 1998 – 2004. Those young adults who have not had a chance to RSVP for this luncheon can still do so. Please email, by late Saturday afternoon. (ray@ezmennonite.ca)
This Coming Week
Tuesday January 17th
1:30 – 3:30 p.m. Prayer Shawl meets at Jean’s house.
New knitters always welcome.
Wednesday January 18th
7 p.m. Mission Committee Meeting
Thursday January 19th
9:30 a.m. E Z Play Group
7 p.m. Church Ministry Council Meeting
Junior Youth – Escape Room in Stratford
7 p.m. MYF
Next Sunday – January 22, 2023
The Story of God, the Story of Us: Reading the Bible Together
We will begin a new Worship and Sunday School series
Prelude: Glorify Accompanist: Chantelle McNeish
Song Leader: Melanie Wiegand Worship Leaders: Hannah & Dylan Yantzi
Message: Pastor Ray Audio/Visual: Todd Bender/Brian Wagler
Coffee Time Hosts: Shirley & Phil Ruby
Coffee Time – We will continue to have coffee every other Sunday. We would welcome a few more volunteers that would make it possible to serve coffee every week. We would ask that everyone provide their own coffee mug to help simplify the preparation and clean up time. We will provide mugs for those who forget theirs or who come as guests on a Sunday morning. Please contact Lisa if you would be willing to volunteer to be a coffee time host. A coffee host prepares the coffee and cleans up after coffee time. Thanks so much.
Extending God’s Love
We extend God’s love as we share with each other both our joys and our struggles.
EZMC Announcements
The EZMC 2022 Annual Meeting will held on February 26, 2023.
- The meeting will be held in person and available virtually on Zoom.
- Please submit your Annual Reports to Lisa by Friday January 27th by email at office@ezmennonite.ca Some of our church programs were paused but many areas of ministry continued. Please report as it makes sense for your specific area. If you have questions, reach out to your Lay Minister for guidance. Thanks so much!
- The annual report will be sent by email but if you would prefer a paper copy, let Lisa know by Thursday February 9th. Please note that paper copies of the report will be delivered to those who receive a printed copy of our Sunday bulletin each Friday.
Junior Christian Education Team (JCET) needs teachers January-June! Please Sign-up sheet in the basement, or use the link below, or call anyone on the team (Jess Yantzi, Holly Barron, Erin Yantzi or Sue Martin) for dates that work for you! Thanks for helping in faith formation to our children!
Sunday School sign-up Jan-June 2023
Used Stamps – Thankfully four members have offered to trim the accumulated used stamps so they may be forwarded to the Canadian Bible Society! Should you continue to receive snail mail, please clip leaving 1/4″ around the entire stamp and place the trimmed stamps into the box marked “Stamps” in the coat/mail room.
Beyond Our Church Community
Wednesday January 18th 1-2 p.m. (online) SALT of the earth: The webinar
Have you ever considered living and working in a different culture with an MCC partner for a year? Join us for a virtual conversation with past SALTers who will share their experiences and answer any questions you may have. Come discover some examples of SALT assignments and where in the world you could go with SALT. Go to mcco.ca/events to learn more and register today.
Saturday January 21st at 7 p.m. Palestine/Israel and International Law with Professor Michael Lynk at Stirling Avenue Mennonite Church (57 Stirling Avenue North, Kitchener, ON). Mennonite Church Eastern Canada Palestine/Israel Network and Canadian Voices for Palestinian Rights invite you to hear Professor Michael Lynk:
- What International Laws apply to this situation?
- What is apartheid?
- What is Canada’s role in resolving the issues between Palestine and Israel?
The constituency-based MCEC Palestine Israel Network Working Group serves the MCEC constituency by promoting awareness and education on specific issues and topics. The information and links are those of the Working Group and do not necessarily represent MCEC as a whole.
Monday January 23rd 9:30 a.m. NHMRS Feature Quilt Reveal at 50 Kent Ave, Kitchener or Online. Each year, a talented individual or team creates the feature quilt for the New Hamburg Mennonite Relief Sale. Feature quilts have depicted historical churches, the play of colour and light across fabric and a journey through Africa, among other innovative designs. On January 23, the curtain will be removed and the 2023 feature quilt will be revealed. Go to mcco.ca/events for more info.
Wednesday January 25th 7 p.m. Grebel Gallery – Your Wall Can (Not) Divide Us. (Opening). This interactive exhibition at Conrad Grebel University College includes photos of street art pieces from a range of conflict-affected societies and an opportunity to leave your own ‘mark’ on the gallery walls. Come explore topics of resistance, political communication, commemoration, and identity expression. More information at: uwaterloo.ca/centre-peace-advancement/grebel-gallery
Thursday January 26th 7:00-9:30 p.m. Online – Training Active Bystanders
If you witness a violent situation, will you know how to respond? Training Active Bystanders shows you how. Join us on Thursday, January 26 for our next workshop. Participants learn to analyze harm-doing and respond in everyday ways. For more info and to register, go to mcco.ca/events.
Thursday February 2nd 7:30 p.m. Sawatsky Lecture | The Power of Misfitting: Disrupting Sinner, Saint, and Super Crip Controlling Images | | Dr. Darla Schumm will identify prevalent controlling images that religious communities ascribe to people with disabilities, and will offer ‘misfitting’ as a deliciously disruptive concept against the existing controlling imagery, while reorienting thinking about disability in both general and religious contexts. This lecture will be held in-person and livestreamed. Register to attend at: grebel.ca/sawatsky
Saturday February 4th 7:30 p.m. Menno Singers and artistic director Brandon Leis present a new composition by local composer Justin LaPierre, ‘Messe de Sainte Anne ’, a weaving together of Québécois hymns and folk music, at St Matthews Lutheran Church (54 Benton St, Kitchener).
$25 Adults. $5 Children/Students. www.mennosingers.com
Walking Together Book Study – MCEC Truth & Reconciliation Working Group
Join the MCEC Truth and Reconciliation Working Group in this 4-part book study, Walking Togther: Intercultural Stories of Love and Acceptance. We will begin our study with Edith and Neill von Gunten, the authors, on Wednesday, February 15.
We will meet every other Wednesday evening from 7 – 9 Eastern time.
(Wed Feb 15, Wed Mar 1, 15, & 29). Walking Together invites the church to grapple with questions of racism and Christian supremacy in order to see that all peoples and cultures bear Creator’s beauty and gifts, and that our reconciliation—even our salvation—depends upon embracing that truth.
More Information and to Register
The constituency-based MCEC Truth & Reconciliation Working Group serves the MCEC constituency by promoting awareness and education on specific issues and topics. The information and links are those of the Working Group and do not necessarily represent MCEC as a whole.
Wanted – sewing machines!
Would you like to contribute to a local Indigenous organization in a meaningful way? MCC partner Crow Shield Lodge is looking for sewing machines to create traditional ribbon skirts in a workshop setting. Contact Rebecca Seiling at rebeccaseiling@mcco.ca or 226-750-9118 if you have a machine to donate or lend.
Call for German Mennonite Poetry – Do you or your relatives have self-composed German Mennonite poetry that you’re interested in sharing with the community? Brubacher House Artists-in-Residence are collecting previously untranslated German language poems for a bilingual collection of German Mennonite poetry from the Waterloo Region. Email submissions to brubacherpoetryproject@gmail.com. More information at uwaterloo.ca/brubacher-house
SEVEN PRINCIPLES WORKSHOP FOR COUPLES
At Interfaith Counselling Centre, we are excited to be offering an 8 week Gottman “The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work”. This is a group for Pre-Marital; Common Law; and Married Couples. The Seven Principles Workshop for Couples is based on the internationally acclaimed research of Dr. John Gottman as presented in his New York Times bestselling book – The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work. This educational workshop is designed to help couples improve their friendship and conflict management skills. This workshop will be offered via Zoom.
Please see the poster on the bulletin board for more information.
MCC’s Applied Peacebuilding Skills Certificate Program, Online, January to May 2023. Learning the skills of peace is a lifelong adventure. Wherever you are in the process of learning the skills of peacemaking, the latest MCC program will help you to further develop and apply these skills within your home, work and community. Register for MCC’s nine-session program, which takes place every other Wednesday evening from mid-January to May 2023. Learn more at mcco.ca/events.
Hidden Acres Mennonite Camp is hiring! We have an opening in early February for a part time (about 15-20 hours a week) member of our housekeeping staff. The successful applicant will be responsible to ensure our facilities are kept clean and in good condition for our guests. They should have an interest or experience in a variety of housekeeping skills, be able to adapt their schedule to meet the requirements of Hidden Acres’ program and be willing to support the mission of the camp. Please visit www.hiddenacres.ca for more information. To apply, please send a resume to info@hiddenacres.ca. Deadline January 24, 2023.