With Elaine Enns. The Bechtel Lectures, March 27, Conrad Grebel University College. Published in The Conrad Grebel Review (27:2), pp 28-44. 13 pp.
This lecture means to honor the peace and justice work of women, and we would like to begin by naming just two. One is the woman who was cleaning our room at St. Paul’s dorm today. From El Salvador, she has lived and worked in Ontario for 17 years. We asked her how she deals with the cold weather, and she replied that it wasn’t nearly as bad as all the years she worked in the refrigerated environment of a local chicken processing factory. Her husband still works in the beef slaughterhouse, she said, her pain well masked; she’s glad to have “graduated” to cleaning rooms. To all the women who work invisibly in the low wage sector, may we come to know your stories.
The second woman is also close at hand, in the audience: Hedy Sawadsky. The first ethnic Mennonite Ched ever met, thirty years ago, she has been a dear friend and a pioneer peacemaker.
Hedy has ventured well beyond the safe confines of her clan to build bridges of collaboration and common witness with activists across the ecumenical spectrum. She remains active today with
Christian Peacemaker Teams, and we honor her as our beloved elder, colleague, mentor, and a true peace warrior.
Full Article: Women Clothed with the Sun: Sophia Facing the Beast SKU: 09-7-Pb
Ched Myers 