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Dan Dyck
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This issue of Equipping diverts from our usual pattern! Some of the
folks you usually hear from in this forum are either on vacation, at Mennonite
World Conference in Zimbabwe, or attending other meetings elsewhere. Thus
for this issue, you have me, Dan Dyck, covering a few bases and hoping
to at least touch on a few significant pieces of information we want you
to have:
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Al Rempel informs me that giving up to the end of July is at 35.9%
of our $5.2 million budget passed at St. Catharines 2003. This is
just 0.9% less than projected for this time frame, and close to where
we were at this time last year. We continue to pray for and be thankful
for the congregations, individual, and corporate givers who faithfully
support the church’s efforts of Christian witness and formation.
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Many people have been asking for interpretations on the narrow vote
(131 for; 130 against) on Resolution 6, which asked the Mennonite
Church Canada General Board to send a letter to government reinforcing
the church’s position on marriage. A helpful interpretive
piece on Resolution 6 by Dan Nighswander is included.
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Staff are cleaning up and tying up loose ends from our assembly in
St. Catharines. To learn more about proceedings, read the daily reports
from the assembly (this year named BrockTalk) or see a photo gallery
visit http://www.mennonitechurch.ca/events/stcath/. There have also
been reports in the Canadian Mennonite.
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Included in this issue of Equipping, among other things, is the
slate
of elected church officers and appointments [36 KB PDF file - Help with PDF files].
Your prayers for folks in leadership are appreciated.
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There is also a piece you may wish to use for reporting on assembly
in your congregation, if you have not already done so. It’s
set up as a 2-sided bulletin insert, and has the Resolutions on one
side and an article entitled “Strong Congregations” on
the other. In addition, there are Assembly Sunday worship materials
at http://www.mennonitechurch.ca/events/stcath/
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Sven Eriksson, MC Canada’s denominational minister reports
that more people than ever are making use of the Company of 1000,
a fund that offers forgivable loans to people interested in pursuing
training for ministry. That’s a good thing. But to sustain the
number of requests for assistance, the fund needs to grow. If you
or someone you know wants to pursue ministry as a vocation, or support
the fund with a gift, get in touch with Sven.
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The MC Canada web site (www.mennonitechurch.ca) averages about 500
visitors and 7,000 hits per day. This on-line presence is not only
rich in resources and news, but has also generated almost $12,000
in on-line giving in the last year. One individual alone has made
five significant on-line donations in recent months. Your prayers
of support for this ministry to the wider world are appreciated.
I hope these little snippets of news and information are helpful to you.
Some have been shortened and appear in Prayer,
News, and Notes which include announcements for your bulletin. Your
encouragement to use these in your church bulletin is appreciated!
In Christ,
Dan Dyck, director of communications
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