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Mennonite/s Writing VII: Movement, Transformation, Place
December 6, 2013Call for Proposals
March 12-15, 2015
Fresno Pacific University
Co-sponsors: Fresno Pacific University and Hesston College
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New essay collection by Jeff Gundy
December 6, 2013Jeff Gundy's book of essays, Songs from an Empty Cage: Poetry, Mystery, Anabaptism, and Peace, was recently released by Cascadia Press.
Almost ten years in the making, this book's topics include everything from martyrdom and heresay to poetry and "theopoetics." Author Jean Janzen says, "With his lively prose and inquiring spirit, Gundy woos us into his poetic exploration of theology, a fertile journey through the complications of belief, desire, and mystery, which leads to an open table of love, generosity, beauty, and hope. This book feeds the soul."
For more information, read Shirley Showalter's great review of the book.
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Forthcoming poetry by Jeff Gundy
December 6, 2013Poet Jeff Gundy has been busy lately. In addition to releasing a new book of essays, he has been writing his seventh book of poems, Somewhere Near Defiance, coming soon from Anhinga Press.
Reviewer Kim Stafford, author of 100 Tricks Every Boy Can Do: How My Brother Disappeared, says, "Just as a river finds inevitable kinship between remote hills and a distant sea, this book employs the prehensile reach of poetry to link local wisdom and distant war, to bind sacred callings and daily life. Defiance against what's wrong is devotion to what's right, and for Jeff Gundy … -
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Death Poems collection released
November 3, 2013Disinformation Books has just published an anthology called Death Poems: Classic, Contemporary, Witty, Serious, Tear-Jerking, Wise, Profound, Angry, Funny, Spiritual, Atheistic, Uncertain, Personal, Political, Mythic, Earthy, and Only Occasionally Morbid.
The collection, edited by Russ Kick, gathers the best poems about death and dying from across history.
The book features 320 poems from writers like William Blake, Emily Dickinson, Pablo Neruda, Robert Frost, Shakespeare, Yeats, Billy Collins, Lucille Clifton, and William Stafford. It includes three poems reprinted from Todd Davis's book Some Heaven. -
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John Ruth's memoir: Branch
November 3, 2013A forthcoming memoir called Branch: A Memoir with Pictures celebrates the rich history of the Anabaptist-Mennonite storyteller, John L. Ruth. This coffee-table-sized book features short, detailed essays and full page photographs that serve as a window into the Ruth's life and also the broader Mennonite community.
John Ruth, born on a farm in Pennsylvania, is an ordained minister with a PhD from Harvard University. He has researched and written about the Anabaptist-Mennonite experience for over 60 years.
Branch will launch in the U.S. on November 21 at 7:30 p.m. at the Mennonite Heritage Center in Harleysville, Pennsylvania. The Cananda release …
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Peace Essay Contest
November 3, 2013Bethany Theological Seminary just announced an essay contest for high school, college, seminary, and graduate school students.
Participants will write an essay discussing how personal and public peacemaking efforts address universal concerns.
The contest, sponsored by the Jennie Calhoun Baker Endowment, includes prizes up to $2000. The deadline for entries is January 27, 2014.
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Mennonite Arts Weekend 2014
October 6, 2013Mennonite Arts Weekend 2014 is scheduled to take place from February 7 to 9 at Pleasant Ridge Presbytarian Church in Cincinnati, Ohio. Registration is now open.
This gathering includes worship sessions, workshops, presentations, and performances that celebrate Mennonite artists. Attendance is encouraged for artists and art enthusiasts of all ages.
Come hear poet Jean Janzen, mystery novelist Judy Clemens, playwright and actor Ted Swartz, and many other Mennonite artists reflect on this year's theme, "Touching Mystery."
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A Book Conservator Goes to Hollywood
August 25, 2013Jeff Peachey, who wrote about his work in rare book conservation for the CMW's Word Work issue (Vol. 2, No. 2), recently found himself as the star of a Hollywood commercial.
He played the role of a bookbinder—or, as Peachey quipped, "an actor playing a bookbinder."
Peachey was whisked to Hollywood and became a first-time actor in front of a a full-fledged film set. He received royal treatment from hair, makeup, and wardrobe to food and water brought to him the minute he sat down.
Take a look at Peachey's blog entry to read more about performing his craft in …
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Play by Merle Good to premiere Off-Broadway
August 6, 2013The Preacher and the Shrink, a new play written by Mennonite author, publisher, and playwright Merle Good, will premiere this fall at Beckett Theatre in downtown New York. The play is scheduled to open on Saturday, November 2nd, and run until Sunday, January 5th.
“It’s a dream come true,” Good said. “And I’m especially pleased that The Preacher and the Shrink is not only the best play I’ve ever written, but it’s also, I believe, the most thoughtful.”
The two-hour drama tells the story of a popular pastor and his estranged daughter, exploring the complexities of their relationship.
During …
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International chefs dine in Amish barn
August 6, 2013What happens when the world's most exclusive chefs gather for a meal in an Amish barn in Lancaster County? LancasterOnline tells us the answer in this article:
Yes, they partake of cocktails and a gala dinner at the tony Union Club on Park Avenue in New York, and lunch at the United Nations and the White House during their visit.
But on a recent fresh summer day, the chefs of the heads of state from all over the globe gather for chicken croquettes, succotash, whoopie pies and other local dishes at an Amish barn in East Lampeter Township.
It …