Library, Centre Mennonite de Paris (Mennonite Center in Paris)

The main reading and conference room:

Neal presenting a public talk at a conference on slavery:

Janie teaching one of her English classes:

The periodical room:

The atrium leading into the Library:

Yves and Janice discussing cataloguing options:

Neal and Janice pondering how to classify new acquisitions:

Although there are perhaps no more than about 2,500 Mennonites in France in some 32 congregations, they, along with other European Mennonites and the Mennonite Board of Missions (United States and Canada), established a Student Centre in St Maurice just outside Paris in the 1976. The program evolved and in the late 1980's the Centre mennonite de Paris was born. This Centre houses an excellent library in three rooms on the main floor. There is a periodical room with comfortable reading chairs for visiting scholars, and a main reading room which houses most of the books. This room also has a large central table which enables people to spread out while working and accommodates discussion groups. The library office has substantial book shelves and a desktop computer which gives access to the library's online catalogue (about 2,800 books are listed). Wireless access is available to visitors interested in working on subjects such as Christian faith, the community of faith, peace and nonviolence, reconciliation, the church and peace, the radical reformation, inter-denominational dialogues, Anabaptist Studies, Mennonites in France, racism, etc. (for another list of subjects, see: Patchwork.)

Neal and Janie Blough work together as the directors of the Mennonite Centre in Paris. Neal received his doctorate from the University of Strasbourg, where he specialized on Pilgram Marpeck, an early Anabaptist thinker and writer who died in 1556. Neal lectures on church history at the Faculté Libre de Théologie Evangélique, Vaux sur Seine and is sought as a speaker at public events and occasionally also by the French media when it is interested in learning about evangelicals' thinking on societal and political concerns. In addition to her assignments at the Centre, Janie Blough (once described as "the soul" of the Centre) is undertaking doctoral studies at the Robert Webber Institute for Worship Studies in Florida. She has also served the local community by offering English classes which can engage adults in topics of interest to the Centre.

Neal has been overseeing the library for the past twenty years. Under his guidance, the Mennonite Centre and its library have been instrumental in issuing or in assisting publications on Anabaptist history and theology of interest to Mennonite evangelical readers. Yves Garet, a retired theology teacher and chaplain, is now helping to catalogue the holdings, and Janice Kreider (retired Canadian librarian) also assisted for one month this past spring. She started cataloguing the library's holdings during the 1988-89 academic year. Plans are afoot to integrate the Centre's catalogue with those of seven other institutions with collections of interest to Protestant theologians and scholars in France. The French national library has recently expressed interest in incorporating these catalogues into the Catalogue collectif de France which would make the Centre's Library known to many more scholars interested in aspects of Mennonite thinking and writing.

Anyone interested in using the Mennonite Centre's library in Paris should visit its website and make an appointment.

Salon international des Initiatives de Paix, Paris

The Third International Exhibition on Peace Initiatives (3^e Salon international des Initiatives de Paix) was held this past weekend (May 30-June 1, 2008) in Paris at the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie. The exhibition was spread over three floors, offering talks, workshops and about 180 booths with books, posters and opportunities to converse with people representing the many organizations. The themes were as varied as society itself. Some groups are devoting serious time and energy to encouraging us to be at peace with the environment, others are promoting such things as peace and reconciliation with family members, helping students deal with bullying at school, or discovering how peace can be promoted through excellent art or superb cartooning. There were also organizations concerned with justice, peace and nonviolence at the national and international levels, asking us to think seriously about disarmament, the abolition of war and fighting, and about finding ways to get governments to decrease expenditures on military hardware and weapons. Several groups focused on the increasingly severe refugee crisis resulting from war, political turmoil, changes in the environment, and natural disasters. Still other groups are thinking about economic injustices which lead to conflict rather than promote peaceful living.

One of my special interests is how the church (and religion generally) can contribute to the promotion of peace, both within local society and internationally. It was encouraging to see considerable attention being given to these initiatives, whether through individual denominations (e.g., Catholics, Quakers or the Centre Mennonite de Paris), through groups co-sponsored by various churches/denominations interested in ecumenical discussions, or by groups of individuals from within churches (the Franciscan Family or the European group interested in ‘Church and Peace’). Other displays called attention to conflicts in specific geographic areas, such as Israel/Palestine or Rwanda.

There is considerable interest in the promotion of peace through the public schools in Paris (or at least quite a few teachers took the time and energy to bring their classes), so it was wonderful seeing hundreds of orderly high school and junior high school students wandering through the exhibitions, taking part in impromptu theatre in the aisles, watching a puppet show on the history of the atom bomb, or sitting in small groups while their teachers led them through their reflections about what they had just learned about peace initiatives. If only this sort of education could be introduced with the same intensity in North America.

Slavery Workshop held by Christians in Paris

Yesterday I attended part of a colloquium on Slavery ("Christianisme, Esclavage, Liberté, Mémoire") kindly hosted by the American Church in Paris, near Invalides, where Napoleon is buried. This was not unlike academic colloquia at universities, small but populated with people who are keenly interested in the topic and knowledgeable in the field. This was organized by Agape, and in particular by Dr. Jean-Claude Girondin (sociologist and scholar who is also part-time pastor of the Mennonite Church at Villeneuve-le-Compte). The colloquium has become an annual activity held on the international day focusing on slavery, but sadly, the celebrations must be accompanied by constant reminders that slavery still exists in various forms throughout the world.

My friend, Dr. Neal Blough (Director of the Mennonite Centre in Paris and a lecturer on church history at the Protestant seminary, Faculté Libre de Théologie Evangélique, Vaux sur Seine) spoke on the crucial role of the Quakers in raising the consciences of key people in the United States in the 1700s and 1800s. That small group of Christians had an influence far beyond its numbers in the eastern United States, and the beliefs of their members were profoundly affected by two ideas: (1) one should live at peace with everybody, no matter what the cost, and (2) one should 'do to others what you would like them to do to you'.

A trio of musicians presented powerful renditions of various songs in Creole about the the sufferings of slaves and their yearnings for freedom from relentless oppression. As a musician, I particularly appreciated their contributions.

Agape prepared beautiful banners which were displayed on two sides of the large room. Each banner featured either an idea or a person who effectively called attention to the injustices of slavery, and included quotations from writings which proved to be crucial in the debate which lasted for centuries. These attractive banners were informative and kept drawing people's attention throughout the day.