Faith, Life and Witness in the Northwest, 1903–2003: Centennial History of the Northwest Mennonite Conference

Jaroslaw Zurowsky is a translator and editor in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

The Mennonite community is a diverse one stretching from coast to coast.
T.D. Regehr has written an account of one branch of the community, the
Northwest Mennonite Conference, formerly known as the Alberta Mennonite
Conference, which later evolved into the Alberta–Saskatchewan
Mennonite Conference.

One the better histories of the Canadian Mennonite experience,
Regehr’s book provides an overview of the evolution of the Northwest
Mennonite Conference, from its humble pioneer beginnings until the
centennial year of 2003. He describes the struggles, successes,
failures, and challenges faced by conference members, presenting the
historical “warts” in a non-judgmental manner. More important, he
chronicles the development of the Northwest Mennonite Conference from
its inception as a rural agricultural community through the 20th
century, along with the conference’s reaction to World War II, postwar
urbanization, radio, auto insurance, and other phenomena that are now
taken for granted.

Because Faith, Life and Witness in the Northwest is an overview,
historians and subject specialists searching for items such as
membership statistics will be disappointed. There are, however,
extensive endnotes and an index. This interesting, informative, and
important book is recommended for students of Canadian Mennonite history
and Western Canadian history.