June 30thA Familiar Place to Worship
Our Swahili Family in Ottawa
“Goshen Mennonite Church is a place to meet where people can come and find solutions to their problems,” says Pastor François Machichi. “We worship in Swahili. It is a place for newcomers to Canada who have arrived from Africa.”
People from Africa arrive in Canada each day; some do not speak French or English. There are six countries in Africa where the language Swahili is spoken: Rwanda, Burundi, Congo, Tanzania, Uganda, and Kenya. Many people of these countries are dispersed in refugee camps throughout Africa. “When people from these countries arrive in Canada and walk into our church, they immediately hear and experience worship in a way that is familiar,” explains François, “This is a comfort to them. They are new to Canada but at least this part of their culture is familiar. It is important for us to keep our culture in the way that we worship and pray.”
"The Canadian government will help to integrate us into the country and we look forward to MCEC to help integrate us into the church in our spiritual life and training."
Goshen Mennonite Church in Ottawa is a group of approximately 30 — 45 adults and children. Prayer, teaching, and praise and worship are, of course, normal aspects of their life together. “I was Mennonite in Africa,” says François. “But the people who are coming into the church are not necessarily Mennonite, so we teach and impart to them what that means.”
Goshen Mennonite Church became an MCEC congregation with provisional membership in April 2020. “We are Goshen and we are Mennonite,” says François. “We want to be part of the MCEC family and work together. We want to understand and act in this family as a part of it, and not as foreigners. The Canadian government will help to integrate us into the country and we look forward to MCEC to help integrate us into the church in our spiritual life and training.”