A message from Mennonite Church Canada’s executive ministers:

We are responding to inquiries from constituents regarding religious exemption from COVID-19 vaccines. For a religious exemption to be granted, rationale for exemption must be clearly indicated within our sacred texts or confessional statements.   

We wish to clarify that there is nothing in the Bible, in our historic confessions of faith, in our theology or in our ecclesiology that justifies granting a religious exemption from vaccinations against COVID-19.

We have heard concerns from some members of our constituency regarding the vaccines. However, we do not believe these concerns justify an exemption from COVID-19 vaccinations on religious grounds from within a Mennonite faith tradition.

From the earliest biblical writings, in the words of Jesus Christ and in ecclesial writings since Jesus’ ascension, the command to love God and love our neighbour is paramount. Vaccinations allow us to live out this command. Not only do they reduce the severity of symptoms for those who become infected with COVID-19, but they reduce the risk of spreading the virus to those around us. We also note that individuals should make personal health care decisions based on advice given by their doctors.

We pray for unity among us in the Spirit of Christ, who calls us into this life of love, especially for our most vulnerable neighbours.

Doug Klassen, Mennonite Church Canada
Garry Janzen, Mennonite Church British Columbia
Tim Wiebe-Neufeld, Mennonite Church Alberta
Ryan Siemens, Mennonite Church Saskatchewan
Michael Pahl, Mennonite Church Manitoba
Leah Reesor-Keller, Mennonite Church Eastern Canada

I see a new world comin’

It was a very good day.  Rain didn’t stop the 100 or so people from attending the 4^th gathering of Mennonites, Lutherans and descendants of the Young Chippewayan Band on Stoney Knoll near Laird, SK on August 24^th.
We all gathered in a large circle in the huge tent that was set up for the occasion.  While we visited and renewed acquaintances, another small group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous leaders participated in a pipe ceremony in a traditional teepee.  This traditional ceremony is a way of asking the Creator for a blessing on the day.

MC Sask response to discovery of unmarked graves at Marieval Indian Residential School

The congregations of Mennonite Church Saskatchewan sit in a season of grief in the wake of the discovery of a further 751 unmarked graves near a former Indian residential school close by the Cowessess First Nation. We lament in solidarity with the sorrow of Indigenous neighbours and communities throughout southeast Saskatchewan and southwest Manitoba whose children were abducted to the Marieval Indian Residential School. We offer our grief to all those who are impacted by the news of these deaths, and we pray for all those who bear the wounds of the residential school system, as well as for those who have been retraumatized by this discover

As congregations of Mennonite Church Saskatchewan, we renew our efforts to understand the impact Indian Residential Schools continue to have on our Indigenous neighbours and seek to implement the TRC's Calls to Action (esp. calls 48-49, 58-61, and 73-75), pursuing a just (re)conciliation where tending wounds fosters the healing and hope of beloved community.

 Mennonite Central Committee Saskatchewan has developed a list of suggested initial actions you and your congregation might consider in their “Lament & Call to Churches: Response to unmarked graves in Saskatchewan,” published on June 24, 2021. These include,

• If we in our churches do not know and acknowledge the devastating truth of Indian Residential Schools yet, we must do so now.
• If we in our churches do not know and acknowledge the truth of systemic discrimination in Canada’s legal system past and present, we must do so now.
• If we in our churches do not know about and acknowledge the overwhelming challenges, past and present, facing Indigenous families, women, and children, we must do so now.
• If we in our churches do not know about and acknowledge the reality of this nation’s colonial past, including the Doctrine of Discovery and the colonial settlement of the prairies, we must do so now.

May the Creator's tender mercy and promise of justice be with all who grieve.

In the name of the Crucified One,

Ryan Siemens

Executive Minister, Mennonite Church Saskatchewan