News

Along with the new Mennonite Hymnal Voices Together, members of the Mennonite Church have been working on another exciting project. Together in Worship is website with free worship resources for church leaders. While this is a binational project, the Conrad Grebel University College community was highly involved in the creation of this website.

Music plays an important role in the Conrad Grebel University College community, allowing audiences and musicians to share and experience stories told through song and the hearts of passionate artists. After a successful Noon Hour Concert Series@Home in the fall, Grebel’s concerts will continue in the same format this winter 2021 term. Grebel is very thankful to Staebler Insurance for sponsoring this series.

On Wednesdays at Conrad Grebel University College, before the student body sits down together for Community Supper, a group of students, faculty, and staff choose to gather in the Chapel for a worship service. Because of the pandemic, these services have changed quite a lot. Like everything else, they had to move online.

Faculty and students in the Master of Theological Studies (MTS) program at Conrad Grebel University College have found that conversations between those with different approaches to Christianity are a valuable learning experience. Class discussions about the Bible, Christian theology, ministry, and church history are all enriched due to diverse approaches to Christianity from both students and professors.

Community and hospitality are important values at Grebel, especially in the residence. During the work day, these value are fostered by the Student Services team, but during non-business hours, the Don team and Campus Hosts take over. The Campus Hosts  support residents at Grebel by providing a safe space to talk, administering basic first aid, locking up the building, and letting students into their rooms when they lock themselves out.

Every Sunday night for an hour, students from the Conrad Grebel community come together for a hymn sing to create and learn music together. Because of the pandemic, students gather outside with masks, but they bring the same excitement and love of music. With the upcoming release of the new Mennonite Hymnal, Voices Together, there is little doubt that Grebel students will engage with the new music as they have with the old.

Good mental health is achieved through many habits like a healthy diet, exercise, connecting with others, expressing emotions in constructive ways, and the list goes on. Many of these habits can involve creating or listening to music. Of the many benefits music has on mental health, the most noticeable is the release of stress and emotions. 

It has been almost a year and half since Conrad Grebel University College broke ground on the “Fill the Table” construction project. This ambitious fundraising campaign raised $4.2 million to expand and renovate the College’s kitchen and dining space to accommodate Grebel’s entire community.