Tag: Mennonites
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Local author Sofia Samatar finds shiny objects in a historical journey — and within herself
Sofia Samatar wrote fantasy fiction. But in her newest book “The White Mosque,” she channels her “magpie” disposition to explore Mennonite culture, a historical journey and her own identity.
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Mennonite Groundhog Day
The groundhogs are everywhere. They are stuffed toys sitting amongst dishes of sauerkraut and jars of pickled eggs laid out on tables. A portrait painting of one is propped reverently on the piano in the corner, beside a makeshift shrine where an opened can of birch beer sits in offering. There’s a crockpot of barbecued groundhog, according to the handwritten sign.
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‘I don’t care if you use my name:’ Survivors of abuse find strength in local group
The conversation begins on the condition of anonymity, the topic a deeply personal and painful one for this man – his abuse as a teenager at the hands of a Catholic priest. He’s come to Harrisonburg to meet with a group of fellow survivors of sexual abuse.
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Music from a local pre-Civil War hymnal is still ringing out
On New Year’s Day, about 370 people gathered to sing at Weavers Mennonite Church just west of Harrisonburg, and several hundred more listened in by phone. While most participants arrived by car, some Old Order Mennonites came by horse and buggy, helping keep alive the area’s long tradition of a capella singing from a hymn book called the Harmonia Sacra.
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