Wayne Northey (M2W2 and father of Mark) spoke on "A Halting Spiritual Quest..." He sees himself as living in three distinct Christian worlds, the largest one encompassing all Christians, the minority within it including the evangelical world which does not follow pacifism and finally the very small minority of Christians who espouse pacifism and reconciliation. At Regent College, he was profoundly influenced by John Howard Yoder's Politics of Jesus, which persuaded Wayne to change his life and thinking, seeing Jesus as wanting us to change the wrongs of society (as Jesus tried to do), particularly with regard to social, economic and justice issues. With the rediscovery of Justinian Law by 12th-c. Europe, philosophies of state justice emerged in which the law often looks at 'offenders' offending against the state rather than individuals. Consequently, the state is satisfied by prison terms, but the individuals' are not addressed. By contrast, Wayne stated that "restorative justice wants to teach people that harming other people (not the more abstract state) is wrong". In his thinking, he draws authority and inspiration from both the Old and New Testaments, as well as from Karl Barth and others. He believes that the cross, not the sword, "shows us the grain of the universe". While we cannot hope to change the world at large, nor even the firm beliefs of other evangelicals, we can work on our little 'demonstration plots' which show others how these ideas can be lived out. If those little 'demonstration plots' are successful, people will start asking us useful questions. He sadly noted, however, that we have a very long way to go, for most evangelical Christians unknowingly view one of their favourite quotations of Jesus as follows: For God so loved the world (except for our enemies) that he gave his only begotten son (except for our enemies), that whosoever believes on him (except . . .) will not perish (except . . .) but have everlasting life (except for our enemies). [JEK]

Passage: Isa 42:1-17; Mt 25:31-40; Rom 5:1-11
Communion: No
Ecumenical or Event: Post-service discussion with Stephanie Jones of MCC’s refugee sponsorship program
Potluck Lunch: No
Congregational Meeting: No

Speaker: Wayne Northey
Worship Leader: Janice Kreider
Song Leader: Ann Marie Neudorf
Pianist: Cynthia Friesen
Usher:
Zoom Coordinator:
Children's Feature Leader: Angela Ekkert

Bring Flowers:
Coffee Helper:
Sound Helper:

Child Care Volunteer: Carrie Wiebe