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Prof. Sue Sorensen shares her summer booklist

As one might expect from an English professor, Sue Sorensen is someone who spends a lot of time with books. The following is a run-down of what’s on her summer reading list right now:

Right now I’m reading: Bobcat, and Other Stories by Rebecca Lee, a brand new award-winning book of fiction by a writer who grew up in Regina, where I lived for many years. Her short stories are wonderfully original and surprising, and perfect examples of the well-structured tale.Sue at grad 09

I Just finished: Marilynne Robinson’s novel Gilead, a beautiful and gentle book about a 1950s pastor in Iowa. Nearly every page shimmers with compassion and deep insight. (It’s part of my research on pastors, for a study of literary pastors I’m writing called The Collar, but it’s also just lovely to read.) Here’s my favourite humourous line from Gilead about being a pastor: “So often people tell me about some wickedness they’ve been up to, or they’ve suffered from, and I think, Oh, that again!”

Just for fun I’m reading: The 1960s mysteries of Florida writer John D. MacDonald. They are much smarter than your average thriller, and MacDonald always had a mad on about something – corporate greed, or the destruction of the environment. His detective, Travis McGee, is a great character. The Travis McGee novels all have a colour in the title; right now I’m reading Pale Gray for Guilt.

With my son: I’m reading the Percy Jackson and the Olympians novels with my son Theo, who is 10, getting ready for the new movie Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters coming out on August 7. They are clever and funny books with lots of great material for kids about Greek myth.

Not so much: Earlier this summer on holiday I read a biography of the lead singer of the Foo Fighters, Dave Grohl, called This is A Call by Paul Brannigan. I like Grohl a lot, but the book was only so-so.

I’m re-reading: The novels of Graham Greene. I just finished Our Man in Havana (about Cuba before the revolution) and am starting The Comedians (set in Haiti in the 1960s). I read these years ago, but this summer my husband and I are both working our way through them again and then watching the movies based on them. Greene was a great writer – his books are both clever and entertaining, and he was so unassuming about his cleverness.

Professor Sorensen’s interests extend from 19th and 20th century British literature—her core area of specialization—to film adaptations of literature and the examination of popular song lyrics as poetry. Her doctoral dissertation was “Verbal and Visual Language and the Question of Faith in the Fiction of A. S. Byatt.” A member of the Henry James Society and the George Eliot Fellowship, she also has research interests in Guy Vanderhaeghe and children’s literature.

Prior to coming to CMU, Professor Sorensen taught English at University of Western Ontario and University of Winnipeg. She also worked in the field of publishing. Stay tuned for when her book on representations of the clergy in fiction and film will be published.

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Events News Releases

Groundbreaking Ceremony Held for CMU’s New Library, Learning Commons, and Bridge

WINNIPEG, July 8, 2013 – Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) President Cheryl Pauls, with MP Rod Bruinooge and City of Winnipeg Councillor Paula Havixbeck, broke ground today on the university’s new $13.9-million expansion project. They were joined by well over 100 friends and supporters from the university and the broader community.

Joining President Pauls were local businessmen Elmer Hildebrand, the capital project’s Campaign Chair, and Art DeFehr who is Vice-Chair of CMU’s Board of Governors.

“What is being done today really sets the pace for the future,” said MP Bruinooge, who chairs the Federal Government’s Post-Secondary Education Caucus. “I’ve seen many different schools across Canada and I know that the people here care at such a deep level—it brings such life to our community.”

CMU President Pauls stated, “The range of activities being planned for this Library and Learning Commons will make it the hub of the campus—linking the learning of the classroom with cutting edge research techniques that cross people and books and e-resources with invigorating forms of collaborative engagement.”

Havixbeck affirmed this vision, stating this project “goes beyond bricks and mortar as education is the life blood of our community. I am excited about this project.”

Planned for the heart of the CMU’s Shaftesbury campus in South Winnipeg, the Library and Learning Commons will generate vital resources and services, study and collaborative spaces, and welcome the constituency and wider community into the life of the university. Meanwhile, the new pedestrian bridge will connect CMU’s Shaftesbury Campus, which is currently separated by Grant Avenue.

To date, roughly $10-million has been raised. This funding comprises donations from private donors and foundations, as well as the Winnipeg Foundation, the Richardson Foundation, and the C.P. Loewen Family Foundation. The target for the project’s completion is September 2014.

(l-r) Art DeFehr, Vice Chair CMU Board of Governors; Elton DeSilva, MB Church Manitoba Executive Director; Cheryl Pauls CMU President; Elmer Hildebrand, CMU Capital Campaign Chair; Willard Metzger, Executive Director MC Canada; Paula Havixbeck, City of Winnipeg Councillor; MP Rod Bruinooge
(l-r) Art DeFehr, Vice Chair CMU Board of Governors; Elton DeSilva, MB Church Manitoba Executive Director; Cheryl Pauls CMU President; Elmer Hildebrand, CMU Capital Campaign Chair; Willard Metzger, Executive Director MC Canada; Paula Havixbeck, City of Winnipeg Councillor;
MP Rod Bruinooge

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Blogs Faculty - David Balzer

Recent book reviews published – Taking pop culture seriously

The MB Herald asked me to review two books recently.  Both authors are compelled to help us think Christianly about culture – particularly culture that is made possible by electricity.  Turner investigates the broader expressions of leisure activity such as film, fashion, comedy, and photography, while Schuurman focuses specifically on computer technology. They both reject a kind of Luddite cultural separatism, and then elaborate what it means to consume, create, and critique culture as a biblically-rooted experience.

Read the full article here

Books-Shaping-Digital                       Books-popcultured

 

 

 

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Events News Releases

CMU Celebrates Expansion with Groundbreaking Event

WINNIPEG, July 3, 2013 – Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) President Cheryl Pauls will gather with Federal, Provincial, and Civic representatives on July 8, 2013 for a groundbreaking celebration to mark the start of construction of the University’s new library and learning commons and pedestrian bridge.

CONNECT

Funding for the new complex, the impact of which will be experienced by students, faculty and the broader constituency and community for decades to come, has been generated by the CONNECT fundraising campaign. Under the leadership of Campaign Chair Elmer Hildebrand, CEO of Golden West Broadcasting, roughly $10-million of the $13.9-million goal has been raised. This funding comprises donations from private donors and foundations, as well as the Winnipeg Foundation, the Richardson Foundation, and the C.P. Loewen Family Foundation. The target for the project’s completion is September 2014.

The new library and learning commons will provide a space where students and faculty can give their full attention to learning as they study, collaborate, and research together. The facility will also include both a café and a ‘conversation corner’ in which events such as book launches, readings, stand-up receptions, and opportunities for engaging conversation of significant issues to CMU and the broader community will be hosted.

The adjacent bridge will provide students and faculty with a safe, accessible route across a major thoroughfare, while creating a greater sense of community by joining the north and south campus areas separated by Grant Avenue.

Media and members of the community are invited to attend the groundbreaking event, which will take place near the site of the new Library & Learning Commons and Bridge (Shaftesbury at Grant Avenue). In the event of inclement weather, the ceremony will take place indoors in the Great Hall, accessed via the main entrance at 500 Shaftesbury Boulevard.

CMU Groundbreaking Celebration:
July 8, 2013, 10:30 AM
500 Shaftesbury Boulevard, Winnipeg, MB

 

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Rony Doerksen reflects on Latin America study tour

Rony Doerksen came to CMU to complete his BA degree from Paraguay. His previous work experience includes time at the Paraguayan development organization ASCIM, and he is studying for a BA in International Development Studies at CMU.

After final exams in April, Rony travelled to Latin America to take part in a travel study course  offered as a cross listed option between the Redekop School of Business at CMU and the International Development program.

The major focus of the study tour was learning how microfinance provides loans and credit for the economically poor.

The 6 students on the trip learned firsthand how real life experience differs from the classroom but also how it enhances the learning.

Here are some of Rony’s reflections from the trip:

In conversation with staff of MiCredito (one of the organizations in Latin America the group visited) I learned that the political situation of a country can have a big influence on how successful microfinance is. The people of MiCredito were saying that the group lending model did not function very well and was not well accepted in Nicaragua because of bad political experience in the past.

 

Rony Doerksen

It was interesting to see the cultural differences between  Western Culture and the Latin American people. As a Canadian from Paraguay it was interesting to recognize some general differences in cultural, social and spiritual aspects but also specifically the differences between the two Latin countries we visited.

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The study tour has been very enriching to me. It was a good time to reflect about the consumption lifestyle we have and also about the importance of holistic/integral development.

The study tour has confirmed me once more that the rest of my life will consist in working in development work with people who are in need. I have seen the big potential for integral development projects in Latin America, but I have also seen that a good development project should have a holistic view for helping the poor.

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Articles Student Projects

Voices of the Voiceless: Man with spina bifida just wants ‘a little respect’

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Twenty-seven-year-old Michael Mifflin was born with spina bifida, a condition that has left him paralyzed below the waist.

Disrespect is nothing new for Michael Mifflin, who was born with spina bifida.

In high school in Winnipeg, he was shoved into lockers and had his canes stolen and hidden by other students.

As an adult, he navigates public transit with canes and a wheelchair, an effort sometimes greeted with impatient eye-rolling and complaints from comfortably-seated transit users.

Mifflin’s birth defect left several spinal vertebrae deformed, consequently exposing and damaging parts of the spinal cord. This resulted in limited brain signals to muscles and body organs below the damaged area.

Mifflin is paralyzed below the waist, a condition that does not improve with age.

 “With age, it gets you,” he says. “It’s catching up to me. Most doctors are surprised to hear that I’m 27 and I’m still around. Doctors said that I shouldn’t have made the age of 2 because of my disability.”

Frequent bullying in high school prompted Mifflin to drop out before graduation. He is currently taking the remaining classes required to obtain the high school diploma that he was denied by a misinformed student body.

Mifflin says even those who intend to help are ignorant to what physically disabled people truly need. He says those who wish to assist him when his wheelchair is stuck, or when he is trying to fit his wheelchair into the locks on a bus, do not understand that people with disabilities require a degree of independence.

 “Many people just assume that I need the help when I don’t,” Mifflin explains. “All I want is a little respect. If you see I’m having trouble, it’s OK to help, but ask first.”

Cory Funk, former respite worker and Summer Program Director for Camps With Meaning, affirms Mifflin’s desire for independence. In an interview, Funk describes working with a man with cerebral palsy.

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Mifflin’s girlfriend, Emily Wiebe, says the most important aspect of accommodating people with disabilities is accepting them.

 “Respecting [the person’s] autonomy is huge,” Funk says.

“A lot of people with disabilities, their goal is to be as independent as possible. When interacting with someone with a physical disability, whether in a working environment or on the streets, it’s important to understand that they’re pursuing that independence.”

The pursuit of independence is evident with Mifflin, who asks little of others (besides respect), and is highly active in the local power wheelchair hockey scene.

His team, The Red Bulls, is currently 18-0 in the Manitoba Power Wheelchair Hockey Association. Mifflin plays power forward and has been a significant part of the team’s success over the last eight seasons.

He has also taken part in wheelchair basketball and sledge hockey.

These modified sports provide a sense of independence for participants, and illustrate that physically disabled people are capable of doing things for themselves.

Mifflin claims that attitude changes are the main force in achieving respect for disabled people.

“Attitudes are truly the biggest disability of all. People need to change attitudes towards people like myself if disabled people stand a chance to be properly integrated into society.”

Though there is legislation and other structures in place to help the physically disabled in Winnipeg, Mifflin’s girlfriend, Emily Wiebe, says the most important aspect of accommodation is the acceptance of others.

“You can modify a building to be accessible all you want, but if you have a negative attitude toward the disabled, then it isn’t really all that helpful,” Wiebe says.

“The biggest barrier is not an inaccessible building—it is an inaccessible attitude.”

Michael Wiebe is a student at Canadian Mennonite University and the brother of Emily Wiebe, the girlfriend of Michael Mifflin. Michael Wiebe wrote this article as part of his work in the course Journalism—Principles and Practices. “Voices of the Voiceless” is a class project that aims to chronicle the humanity of often-ignored people on the margins of our community.

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Voices of the Voiceless: Confessions of a gay Mennonite

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By Laura Tait

(Writer’s note: Identifying details in this article have been changed because the subject is not publicly open about his sexual orientation.)

In addition to being smart, funny, politically conservative, and an entrepreneur, Jude is also same-sex oriented, a secret he has kept from his parents and most of his community.

Now living in Winnipeg, this 25-year-old Mennonite man from Winkler, Man., has a shy and humble nature, evident in his composure as he sits in a coffee shop for an interview.

Family has always been important for Jude, who works with his parents in the family business. However, there is a tension he holds with his family that he believes can never be reconciled.

“My parents are the only people I’ve ever wanted to please, but they’re also people that can never totally accept me for who I am,” Jude says.

Jude finds himself stuck between not relating completely to his community in Winkler, and not relating with modern “gay culture.” This dichotomy has put a strain on Jude as he tries to navigate these dual lives—being “out” in his personal life, and “in” in his family and professional life.

Much of the motivation for hiding his sexual orientation comes from the stigma against same-sex orientation he sensed while growing up in Winkler.

He has no intention of ever telling his school or church friends from Winkler about his sexual orientation because he believes he would not be received kindly.

“In Mennonite families, shaming is a big business,” Jude says. “Some places have drive-by shootings, Winkler has drive-by shamings. Saying nothing about it means less shaming than acknowledging what people might suspect.”

Jude feels it’s the prospect of being shamed that colours much of his family’s prejudice against same-sex oriented people. The thought of their own son being one of these people would cause them anxiety: what would people at church think? For Jude, trying to tell his family something they don’t want to know isn’t worth the tears, hurt, and denial.

“Your parents say they’ll love you no matter what, but the thought of them knowing something like this makes me wonder, do they really?” Jude says.

Another aspect framing his family’s prejudice against same-sex oriented people is stereotypical, flamboyant “gay culture,” which Jude has no interested in being associated with.

Jude laments how LGBT Pride parades, that used to be respectable political protests, have turned into flashy displays of scantily clad folks dancing atop floats.

For Jude, maintaining a bit of humour is important. From when his mother asks him about any women in his life, to dealing with people associated with the kind of “gay culture” he wants to avoid, his mantra remains: “If you don’t laugh, you cry.”

While many same-sex oriented people often feel isolated from the church and their faith, this does not describe Jude’s experience. He finds comfort in a church congregation in Winnipeg that he feels is more accepting of his orientation.

He believes stigma against same-sex oriented persons is a product of a history informed by human beings, and not one of God.

Laura Tait is a student at Canadian Mennonite University. She wrote this article as part of her work in the course Journalism—Principles and Practices. “Voices of the Voiceless” is a class project that aims to chronicle the humanity of often-ignored people on the margins of our community.

 

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Voices of the Voiceless: Homeless teen encounters judgment and ridicule

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Christian activist and author Shane Claiborne advocates with the poor so that their voices are heard. 

 

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By Carter Brooks

At first glance, Shane Claiborne and Arika Fraser have little in common.

Claiborne, 37, is from Tennessee, is a popular author, and is in demand as a speaker in Christian circles.

Fraser, 15, lives in inner-city Winnipeg and sleeps under parked cars on nights when there is no better option.

What they have in common is poverty.

Claiborne’s experience with service to the poor is famously recounted in his book The Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical. He spent 10 weeks living in the slums of Calcutta with Mother Teresa. He made his own clothing and carried no possessions with him during that time.

He has since become a Christian activist, a leading figure in the New Monasticism movement, and a founding member of The Simple Way in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

In a telephone interview, Claiborne said he re-learned the concept of true love from Mother Teresa, how she based all of her decisions on love, and love alone.

Proverbs 31:8 instructs us: “Speak out on behalf of the voiceless, and for the rights of all who are vulnerable.” Those living in the poorest areas of Calcutta can easily be classified as voiceless, but Claiborne challenges us to know someone at a deeper level before we write them off.

“We think it is our job to stand up in their place, rather than standing with them and helping them project their own voice,” he says.

“They are struggling, they have wants and desires too, but more importantly, they have needs. Shelter, clothing, food, and water—that is what it comes down to.”

According to Statistics Canada, about one in 10 Canadians live in poverty. Statistics show that 882,000 Canadians used food banks monthly in 2012. Thirty-eight percent of those helped were children.

Fraser can occasionally be found at Agape Table, a soup kitchen in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She believes it is important for the voices of inner-city youth to be heard.

She and her older brother, Jordin, have lived in the hardscrabble neighbourhood of Winnipeg’s North End for the past three years. Through intensely hot summers and chilling winters, Fraser and her brother overnighted in bus shelters, dumpsters, under trees, and occasionally, under parked cars.

“It doesn’t bother us, really,” Fraser says. “I’ve learned how to tune out the noise and shivering.”

“My momma died when I was born, and [my] brother is all I have left,” she added. “We live on the streets, but no one seems to care.”

Fraser says she and her brother encounter judgment and ridicule every day.

She has deep scars running across her forearms.

“Yes I used to cut. [It was the] only way I [could] deal with things sometimes.”

When informed of Shane Claiborne and his work, Fraser says she appreciates having someone out there advocating with the poor.

“I’m really happy that someone is actually doing what we do and getting to speak out for us. This makes me happy. I want out, and want to talk, but [people] don’t like to listen.”

When she isn’t begging for money or searching for leftover food in the streets, Fraser can be found once a week visiting her mother’s tombstone.

“I do it to stay connected. I’m a person too, I have feelings. I miss momma.”

Claiborne believes we are called to do what God did through Jesus, by standing with people like Fraser.

As Mother Teresa often said, “Calcuttas are everywhere, we just need to have eyes to see.”

Shane Claiborne will speak at Canadian Mennonite University’s (CMU) annual Peace It Together conference October 18-20, 2013. For details, visit www.cmu.ca/pit.

Carter Brooks is a student at CMU. He wrote this article as part of his work in the course Journalism—Principles and Practices. “Voices of the Voiceless” is a class project that aims to chronicle the humanity of often-ignored people on the margins of our community.

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Voices of the Voiceless: Learning to live with FASD

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By Krystofer Penner

Maia was 4 years old when she was diagnosed with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). She remembers being confused and upset.

“My mom did what to me? What happened?”

In many ways, the anger the Winnipegger feels toward her mother hasn’t dissipated after more than 30 years.

Up to 80 per cent of children with FASD will not be raised by their biological parents, according to statistics from the Province of Manitoba. They end up in the child welfare system.

Maia was adopted when she was 1 year old, and her adoptive parents decided not to send her back to the adoption organization when she was diagnosed.

FASD is a physical disability that alters the brain of a fetus when a mother drinks alcohol while pregnant. It results in mental, cognitive, and behavioral disabilities.

Maia, for example, has difficulties with multiplication tables and counting money. A handful of change can stump her, and she even has trouble with bills.

“I can only understand multiples of 10,” she explains. “So if I have a five, 10 and 20 dollar bill, I won’t know what to do with the five.”

Like many people with FASD, sensory perception is important to Maia. She has a self-proclaimed obsession with down pillows and blankets, because she loves the way they feel. She often plays with things, such as jingling a pocket full of change, which people may see as rude.

“I need things to fiddle with, otherwise I’d go crazy.”

Academics were difficult for Maia, and she was bullied in school. Boys on her street would chase her, throw things at her, laugh, and call her names. One teenage boy used to pull down her pants and spank her every day.

Another, who also had FASD, raped her. She stopped going outside because she was afraid, and didn’t even know how to explain these things to her parents.

“It was really awful,” she says.

Forming and keeping healthy relationships is also difficult for Maia, a trait common to many people with FASD, according to the Government of Manitoba’s Healthy Child Manitoba website.

People with FASD can be compulsive and friends may feel they are being smothered. Maia says people often think she is stalking them, when in reality she simply does not recognize boundaries.

This often results in friends telling her she can only call on certain days or at certain times. Maia finds this offensive, but understands that people need space.

“It’s just difficult because I don’t have a lot of friends,” she says.

Maia copes with life through art. She writes stories about an alien crew of misfits that travels through the galaxy.

She also enjoys playing the bagpipes.

“I really like the drones and the feeling of the bag under my arm,” she says.

Still, she has difficulty reading music and mustering the required coordination to play the bagpipes, and is considering quitting.

“You try and try to get to the next level, but you can’t.”

A favourite activity is her work with the Manitoba Visions and Voices program, which lets Maia speak in schools about her disability. She doesn’t want other children to suffer the challenges of FASD because their mother didn’t know, or care.

“It’s like a life sentence for nothing,” Maia says. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

Krystofer Penner is a student at Canadian Mennonite University. He wrote this article as part of his work in the course Journalism—Principles and Practices. “Voices of the Voiceless” is a class project that aims to chronicle the humanity of often-ignored people on the margins of our community.

 

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Voices of the Voiceless: Church helps single mom escape abuse

 

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By Rebecca Kuhn

 

Every morning in Jessica Burridge’s house begins with dancing. Accompanied by her children, Dakota, 6, Danika, 4, and Dawson, 3, with music recorded by Justin Bieber, the family begins each day with joy.

However, life hasn’t always been joyful for the 21-year-old single mother.

She grew up in a home where her father was a “booze hound” who abused her mother in front of their six children. Her parents eventually split, leaving Burridge’s mother alone to raise six children.

At 14 years old, Burridge began using drugs. She became addicted to cocaine, and stopped caring about school and taking care of herself.

At 15, she became pregnant.

At 16, she joined the Teen Moms Group at Douglas Mennonite Church in Winnipeg. This group provided mentors to support her, but even so, things got more difficult.

“I was in a bad relationship [and] I still did drugs every now and then,” she says.

Burridge remained in this relationship for four years, even though her boyfriend abused her. Sherri Miller, director of the Teen Mom program, steered her toward 1 Corinthians 13:4-7and told her that when she considered returning to her abusive partner, she should first read the verses about love being patient and kind.

“Those verses are what kept me strong enough to stay away.”

But it was difficult on her own. At one point, Burridge told her mother she couldn’t do it anymore, but no help was forthcoming.

“She would always say, ‘I raised six of you by myself, you only have half of what I had,” Burridge recalls.“I felt like I was useless. I mean, I’m nothing in society, right? I was just scum, and I knew I had to do something better with myself.”

Burridge was accepted into a young mothers’ program to complete high school and perhaps go to post-secondary studies, but when mysterious bumps appeared on her youngest son’s head, her plans changed quickly.

At a hospital emergency room, doctors told her Dawson’s skull was fractured and authorities would take her children on suspicion of abuse.

The next day, two detectives took her to a police station for interrogation. At the station, she got a phone call from her sister, saying Burridge’s children were being removed from her care.

For three months, Burridge lived in her house alone, without her children. She says she considered suicide.

“It was the worst time of my life.It was either I die and I don’t have my kids anyways, or I fight to get them home, and prove to everybody that I am innocent.”

From the first allegations of child abuse, Burridge asked for a lie detector test to prove her innocence, even though her lawyer advised against it. She took the test and passed.

She also completed court-ordered programs and, finally, a judge allowed the return of her children.

In September, Burridge will begin studying an electrical program at a Winnipeg technical school. Her goal: “Become a somebody, and not a nobody.”

Burridge is grateful for support from her mentors at Douglas Mennonite Church, saying it’s like they have adopted her and her children. She refers to one of her mentors as “the Mom I never had.”

Rebecca Kuhn is a student at Canadian Mennonite University. She wrote this article as part of her work in the course Journalism—Principles and Practices. “Voices of the Voiceless” is a class project that aims to chronicle the humanity of often-ignored people on the margins of our community.