UNDERCURRENTS

Peacebuilding can feel out of reach, even for people who care deeply about it. In this episode, host Ken Ogasawara shares about four African diaspora communities in Ontario (Eritrean, Ethiopian, South Sudanese and Congolese) that are doing practical peacebuilding through the Working Together for Peace project with MCC Ontario. Their work follows a three-step process: say yes, get equipped, and multiply. Whether you are a newcomer to Canada or not, the stories here offer inspiration and practical learning.

Resources:

Peace Conference: Saturday, November 7, MCC Ontario.

Learn more about the Working Together for Peace project at mcc.org/undercurrents.

🎙️ Undercurrents is sponsored in part by Kindred Credit Union. Learn more at kindredcu.com.

🔔 Subscribe to Undercurrents and leave a review wherever you listen. It helps more people find the show.

Credits: Produced with help from Christen Kong. Artwork by Jesse Bergen. Theme music by Brian MacMillan. Executive produced by Sandra Reimer. Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts!

Canada is re-arming at a pace not seen since World War II — and most of us have no idea what that actually means. In this episode, Ken talks with Kelsey Gallagher, senior researcher at Project Ploughshares, to cut through the political spin and understand what Canada's historic increase in military spending really looks like on the ground: where the money comes from, where the weapons go, and who ends up paying the price.

Then, MCC Canada's Director of Advocacy Anna Vogt makes the case that this moment is actually a powerful invitation — for Mennonites, Anabaptists, and anyone who cares about peace — to offer a different vision of security. One built on relationships, not rifles.

In this episode:

• Why Canada's defense budget is set before anyone knows how to spend it — and why that's a problem
• How Canadian weapons components end up in the hands of human rights violators — even when exports are "stopped"
• The F-35, Gaza, and the loophole the Liberal government called "by design"
• MCC's peacebuilding work in Cambodia as a concrete alternative to military security
• How to contact your MP and make your voice heard

Resources:

Tell our leaders to invest in bread not bombs.

To get a stack of "Bread not bombs" postcards for yourself, your neighbours, or your church, email [email protected]

Download the phone script to call your MP here.

Download transcription here. 

Credits:

🎙️ Undercurrents is sponsored in part by Kindred Credit Union. Learn more at kindredcu.com.

Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts!

Welcome to Season 7 of Undercurrents!

Well, once again, if you only look at headlines, the world is a raging dumpster fire. We’ve got trade wars, we’ve got genocide, we’ve got catostrophic flooding and wildfires, billionaires and unhoused people, the list goes on.

 At times like this, a prayer made famous by Alcoholics Anonymous comes to mind:

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;

courage to change the things I can;

and wisdom to know the difference.

This season, we are going to lean into that second part: the "courage to change the things I can" - to reclaim our power as people of God’s peace.

We’ll dive deeper into the theme of peace - what are the ways that we can take action to build peace in the many facets of our own lives - in our lifestyles, our money, our neighbourhood, and even our federal government.

The first episode of Season 7 drops on October 1 with a new episode coming out every other week this fall, so please subscribe so you don’t miss an episode. You can find Undercurrents on Apple podcasts, Youtube, spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks for listening - have a great rest of your day!

Changing your mind is hard. Changing your relationships is awkward. And changing systems can take generations. In this Season 6 finale of Undercurrents, we revisit the most powerful moments from the season — some heard for the first time — to ask: what does it actually look like when perspectives shift, relationships transform, and systems begin to crack open?

This episode is a reminder that slow, faithful, relational work is not wasted work. Seeds planted today feed the people who come after us.

Season 7 arrives in the fall.

Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts!

Transcription here.

Discussion guide here.

Sponsored by Kindred Credit Union.

🔔 Subscribe to Undercurrents and leave a review wherever you listen — it helps more people find the show.

Produced with help from Christen Kong. Artwork by Jesse Bergen. Theme music by Brian MacMillan. Executive produced by Sandra Reimer.

What does it look like to open a door that changes everything?

In this episode of Undercurrents, we trace the remarkable story of how Canada became a world leader in refugee welcome — and why that legacy matters more now than ever.

Host Ken Ogasawara sits down with Mike Molloy, retired Foreign Service officer and one of the architects of the world's first private refugee sponsorship program, to hear how a small clause buried in a 1976 immigration act became a lifeline for hundreds of thousands of people fleeing the Indo-China wars. And how MCC became a foundational partner in making it all work.

We also hear from Kaylee Perez, MCC's Global Migration and Resettlement Strategic Initiatives Lead, who brings both professional expertise and deeply personal roots to this work. Her insight: the antidote to fear is proximity.

Together, their stories remind us that welcoming the stranger isn't a radical idea, it's foundational to our faith expression.

In this episode:

• Why Bill Janzen's "drop the rope" approach to government negotiation built something extraordinary
• What Hearts of Freedom — 170+ interviews with former refugees — reveals about gratitude, belonging, and Canadian identity
• Why 66% of Canadians still support refugee welcome, even if you'd never know it from the comments section
• How the We're Better Together campaign is equipping everyday people to shift the conversation in their own communities

The data is clear. Refugees strengthen Canada's workforce, arrive ready to contribute, see their incomes grow, and become citizens at remarkable rates. But as Kaylee reminds us — this was never just about economics. It's about who we want to be.

Ready to act?

• Learn about refugee sponsorship at mcc.org
• Join the We're Better Together campaign at the Canadian Council for Refugees: https://mcc.org/better-together
• Explore the Hearts of Freedom project: heartsoffreedom.org
• Use the discussion guide on our website to bring this conversation to your church or community group
• Send us a note at [email protected] — we'd love to hear from you

Transcription is here.

Discussion guide here.

Undercurrents is sponsored in part by Kindred Credit Union.

Credits:

Production support from Christen Kong

Logo artwork by Jesse Bergen

Theme song by Brian MacMillan

Executive produced by Sandra Reimer.

Two public service announcements, some truly disturbing social media comments and a reminder that "We are Better Together!"

Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts!

What does it mean to follow Jesus in a world built on systems of oppression? Ken sits down with the prophetic Sarah Augustine - author, scholar, activist and co-founder of the Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery. We talk about Jesus’ mic-drop moment, we talk about divesting from systems of death, we talk about a one-hundred-year organizing strategy and lots more. This one is challenging - especially for those of us who are comfortable and privileged. It’s never easy hearing from a prophet. 

Transcription here.
Discussion guide here.

A Reparative Justice Resource from the Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery

Hearts Exchanged - foundational learning series over 8 months with monthly online discussions. This starts in the Fall every year but you can sign up first)

Connect to the Canadian chapter of the Coalition by emailing [email protected] 

🎙️ Undercurrents is proudly sponsored by Kindred Credit Union — cooperative banking that connects values and faith with finances. Visit kindredcu.com to open an account today.
Undercurrents is hosted by Ken Ogasawara, with production support from Christen Kong. Theme music by Brian MacMillan. Cover art by Jesse Bergen. Executive produced by Sandra Reimer.

Watch the video here:

It's relief sale season in Ontario! As the New Hamburg Mennonite Relief Sale celebrates its 60th anniversary — and an extraordinary $15 million raised over six decades — we're re-releasing one of our favourite episodes with a fresh coat of paint.

Episode 16 "Bidder Sweet" tells the story of one of the most electrifying moments in quilt auction history, featuring legendary quilter Renske Helmuth, auctioneer Gary Jantzi, and a bidding war that had a thousand people on their feet. We've gone back and added video footage and photos throughout, so if you've only ever listened, this one is worth watching on YouTube or Spotify.

And if you're in Ontario, mark your calendars — the New Hamburg Mennonite Relief Sale is the last Friday and Saturday of May, and this year's milestone celebration promises to be something special. Don't miss the Voices Together Community Hymn Sing on Friday night — no audition required.

Click here for a list of all the relief sales across Canada and the US!

🎙️ Undercurrents is proudly sponsored by Kindred Credit Union — cooperative banking that connects values and faith with finances. Visit kindred.cu.com to open an account today.

In this episode of Undercurrents, Ken Ogasawara connects stories from Guatemala to a high school in Ontario to explore how climate action can be a form of peacebuilding.

Meeting MCC partners in Guatemala, Ken witnesses how climate change is disrupting crops, livelihoods, and families—forcing difficult choices like migration. Yet communities respond with resilience and practical action, especially through youth learning new ways to care for the land.

Back home, those same seeds take root at Rockway Mennonite Collegiate, where students turn inspiration into action—planting gardens, creating habitat, and reimagining their relationship with the land.

Instead of feeling overwhelmed, this episode invites you to “zoom in.” What’s one small, local step you can take toward climate action for peace?

👉 Take action with MCC: https://mcc.org/what-we-do/initiatives/climate-change/climate-action-peace/take-action-peace

Want to learn Spanish? Study theology in Latin America? We highly recommend our friends at SEMILLA who hosted us beautifully for our stay. https://semillagt.org/

Undercurrents is hosted by Ken Ogasawara, with production support from Christen Kong. Theme music by Brian MacMillan. Cover art by Jesse Bergen. Executive produced by Sandra Reimer.

This episode is sponsored by ⁠Kindred Credit Union⁠.

If you have questions or thoughts about the episode, you can reach us at ⁠[email protected]⁠.

What makes MCC thrift shops the best?

In this episode, Ken Ogasawara goes behind the scenes of MCC Thrift to follow the life of a donation—from the moment it’s received to the moment it finds a new home (or gets repurposed in surprising ways). Along the way, we hear from Mark Patfield, General Manager of the MCC New Hamburg Thrift Centre, who offers a window into the care, structure, and decision-making that shape what ends up on the shelves.

The episode also introduces us to some of the people who make these spaces what they are. Volunteers like Isabella, and longtime contributors Edna and Margaret, describe a culture that’s hard to replicate elsewhere—one marked by joy, purpose, and a shared sense that even small tasks matter.

At the same time, Ken reflects on the tension many of us feel living in a culture that constantly pushes us to buy more. The familiar phrase “reduce, reuse, recycle, renew” takes on new meaning here—not as a slogan, but as a set of choices that can shape how we live, spend, and relate to one another.

Undercurrents is hosted by Ken Ogasawara, with production support from Christen Kong. Theme music by Brian MacMillan. Cover art by Jesse Bergen. Executive produced by Sandra Reimer.

This episode is sponsored by Kindred Credit Union.

If you have questions or thoughts about the episode, you can reach us at [email protected].