New Search
If you are not happy with the results below please do another search
Blog Post
This blog is the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Mennonite Church USA Executive Board or the other resolution writers. Readers are encouraged to consult other resources, engage the writers of the resolution and discern within their own context. Mennonite Church USA would like to extend an invitation to members with differing viewpoints to submit blog posts, rooted in Scripture, on this and other matters for potential publication in the Menno Snapshots blog. Joanna Harader serves as pastor of Peace Mennonite Church in Lawrence, Kansas. She is also a member of the Inclusive...
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Kevin Gasser is the pastor of Staunton Mennonite Church in Staunton, Virginia. He is currently studying comparative theological ethics at Georgetown University, where he researches nonviolent movements within various religious traditions. Kevin lives with his wife, Sonya, and their two children, Paxton and Hadley. ______________________________________________ I often find myself transformed through my interactions with people who see the world differently. More times than not, those transformations are for the better, bringing me to a clearer understanding of not only the beliefs of others, but also my own convictions. I usually...
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Rob Muthiah is a professor of practical theology at Azusa Pacific Seminary and a member of Pasadena (California) Mennonite Church. He was the team lead for producing Lamenting Racism, a 6-part video/discussion curriculum for church groups, available through MennoMedia. ______________________________________________ I get so angry about the depths of evil that racism perpetrates. I get so angry about the pain and damage and destruction racism causes. A lot of that has to do with my dad. Not because he is an angry person but because of the color of his skin....
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Glen Guyton serves as the executive director for Mennonite Church USA. He has more than a quarter century of experience serving in the denomination at various levels. Guyton has a wonderful ability to share difficult and complex information with diverse groups. Organizations, professional associations and educators praise Guyton for his quick-witted humor and relatability. He has authored two books, IDEAL ME: Discovering Your Call in a Cluttered World and Reawakened: How Your Congregation Can Spark Lasting Change. Guyton holds a Bachelor of Science in Management from the United States Air...
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Thomas Dunn lives in Akron, Ohio, and pastors Crown Hill Mennonite Church. He has degrees from Bluffton University and Case Western Reserve University. He enjoys all of the cycling disciplines but regularly spends time road, gravel and mountain biking. Thomas is a member of the Mennonite Church USA Executive Board. This is his first term. ______________________________________________ Attempting to describe the process of spiritual transformation quickly brings me to the limits of my ability to communicate. Transformation is such an amorphous process that I do not even fully understand how, and...
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Joanne Gallardo shared this reflection at the Constituency Leaders Council meeting on Oct. 15-16, 2021. Joanne Gallardo serves Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference as Conference Minister. She had been in the Mennonite Church for over 22 years. Originally from Northwest Ohio, Joanne lives in Goshen, Indiana, with her best friend, Becca, and her dog, Jasper. ______________________________________________ My story of transformation is one that begins not too terribly long ago. I was involved in Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference back when I was a student at Goshen (Indiana) College. I don’t remember exactly what brought...
read more →
Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) has launched “Learn, Pray, Join: Cost of Poverty,” an initiative to raise awareness about the impact of the pandemic on poverty in the United States and how Jesus calls his followers to respond. During September and October, MC USA will seek to engage people in the initiative by offering resources, prayers and ways to care for one another and to address systemic issues that lead to poverty. “The pandemic is apocalyptic,” said Sue Park-Hur, denominational minister of Transformative Peacemaking. “It is revealing the structural issues that cause poverty and their disproportionate impact on the...
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Scott Hartman has worked for Mennonite Church USA for nearly 18 years and is currently serving as the director of event planning. He is an active member of Silverwood Mennonite Church in Goshen, Indiana. As a sports junkie, he will try just about any sport once. ______________________________________________ If you look up the definition of “transform,” the word “change” is everywhere. When something transforms, there is something happening. There is movement from one thing to another. The first thing I think about when I think about the word “transform” is water....
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Jason Kauffman is director of archives and records management for Mennonite Church USA (MC USA), responsible for preserving and providing access to the historical records of the denomination. He is active in the broader Mennonite history community and serves on the management board for the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online and as vice president for Michiana Anabaptist Historians. Kauffman attends Assembly Mennonite Church in Goshen, Indiana. ______________________________________________ Five years ago, I learned that a combination of my genes, diet, and inactivity was putting me at a higher risk for heart...
read more →
Page
#BeTransformed is Mennonite Church USA’s call for individuals and congregations to fully live into our Renewed Commitments to follow Jesus, witness to God’s peace and experience transformation. So, if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NRSV) --- I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. The wild animals will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches; for I give water in the...
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Duncan Smith has been Director of The Corinthian Plan (TCP) since 2014. Previous to TCP, he served as a conference minister and several pastorates, including transitional interim positions. Duncan’s pastoral experience spans both urban and rural settings. Many years ago he spent two summers working in Yellowstone National Park. ______________________________________________ I first remember encountering the Beatitudes and Sermon on the Mount as a teenager. The words in Matthew 5-7 were central to my understanding of how to live in this world as a disciple of Christ, and they still are today....
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Camille Dager has served as the multimedia news and information editor for Mennonite Church USA since October 2019. She attends Deep Run Mennonite Church West, Perkasie, Pennsylvania. ______________________________________________ Examples of transformation were easy to see in my area of Eastern Pennsylvania this spring and summer, as Brood X cicadas emerged in late May in a remarkable display. These creatures have an amazing ability to adapt. For 17 years, they are tucked away underground, sucking the juice of tree roots. Then, miraculously, they emerge from the ground, within days of each other, into a world that’s brand new to them. Once above ground, they instinctively crawl to the nearest tree or plant and immediately burst out of their...
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Sue Park-Hur is the denominational minister for Transformative Peacemaking for Mennonite Church USA, overseeing the peace and justice related issues. She also supervises Women in Leadership. Park-Hur co-directs ReconciliAsian, a peace center in Los Angeles specializing in conflict transformation and restorative justice for immigrant churches. A former co-lead pastor and co-church planter, her passion is to see the church living out the shalom of the gospel. Park-Hur is trained in Intercultural Development Inventory and is a Strategies for Trauma Awareness and Resilience (STAR) practitioner. She has a graduate degree in...
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Wil LaVeist is chief communications officer for Mennonite Church USA and senior executive for advancement for Mennonite Mission Network. He is a veteran journalist, author and professor of journalism at the University of Maryland Global Campus. ______________________________________________ Beginning in January, a brilliant, red cardinal has been visiting outside our condo window. He first made himself known by landing on the sideview mirror of my silver car, parked in front of my 10-story building. He pecked and pecked and fluttered about as if he wanted to hop into the passenger seat...
read more →
Blog Post
This post is part of Mennonite Church USA’s #BeTransformed series. Iris de León-Hartshorn serves as associate executive director of Operations and director of Human Resources for Mennonite Church USA (MC USA). She represents the staff on MC USA’s Leadership Discernment Committee and works to promote anti-racism and intercultural competency by providing leadership for various people of color organizations, such as MC USA’s Racial Ethnic Council, and by convening leadership gatherings, including Hope for the Future. ______________________________________________ When I think about the word “transformation,” I immediately think about the word “becoming” — like a caterpillar in the process of becoming a...
read more →
Next Page »
