Español Mennonite Church USA’s Churchwide Immigration Statement has been revised after receiving feedback from delegates at Phoenix 2013, the Constituency Leaders Council in October, and congregations in November/December. We invite each congregation to engage in at least one of the five activities below between 2014 and 2016. Each action is illustrated by an example of ministry already happening in Mennonite Church USA. Which actions make sense in your context? My hope is that as a community of faith, you will delve into the statement and discern how God is calling you to respond. —Iris de León-Hartshorn, director of transformative peacemaking... read more →
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Janeen Bertsche Johnson is Campus Pastor and Alumni Director at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. In 1974, my family loaded up the station wagon and drove from central Illinois to St. Catharines, Ontario for the triennial sessions of the General Conference Mennonite Church. On the way through Ontario, we passed a camper that had pulled over to the side of the road. Mom noticed that the camper had a Kansas license plate, and remarked that it must be Mennonites also heading for St. Catharines. So, we turned around and headed back to the stranded camper. Not only was it Mennonites,... read more →
We, the members of the Mennonite Church USA Discernment Group convened to continue the work of healing and reconciliation in the wake of theologian John Howard Yoder’s abuse of women, are frequently asked questions about our work. In 10 questions below, we’ve captured the gist of the questions we frequently hear asked and offer responses with insight into the biblical, theological and pastoral grounding for our work. Each of the answers we provide could be expanded significantly, and no doubt there are many ways in which some readers will find them lacking. We offer them in the hope that... read more →
John Howard Yoder Digest: Collected Articles About Sexual Abuse and Discernment For those who are following the discussions related to John Howard Yoder’s sexual abuse of women and its theological and ecclesiological implications, here is a collection of articles that outline the conversation and developments. This is not necessarily comprehensive, so feel free to suggest other articles to add to this digest. In early June of 2013, responding to a book review written in The Mennonite, Barbra Graber created a Facebook note about John Howard Yoder’s abuses and what the church must do to work towards accountability and healing.... read more →
On Friday August 8, 2014, a survey was e-mailed to credentialed leaders (active, active without charge and retired) within Mennonite Church USA. Below you can read Executive Director Ervin Stutzman's letter of introduction to the survey, as well as a list of the survey questions. Please note that this is not the live survey, and you cannot submit responses through this page. The results of this survey will help to guide the work of the Mennonite Church USA Executive Board as they prepare for the Delegate Assembly in Kansas City, Mo. from June 30-July 5, 2015. Also, please note that we are... read more →
Since the beginning of the Anabaptist reformation, Mennonites have sought to be a biblical people in ways that both borrowed from the Protestant reformation and differed from it. These youth bible studies and youth group activities follow in this same line of understanding, and are written by Anabaptist leaders, students, professors and pastors. Two Sided by Rod Miller Genesis chapter 1; Genesis chapter 2; in our image; likeness; Rod Miller; helper; Adam; Eve; creation What Happens When We Try to Be Like God by Isaac Landis Genesis chapter 3; tree of life; knowledge of good and evil; serpent; snake;... read more →
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We place our hope in the reign of God and in its fulfillment in the day when Christ our ascended Lord will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. He will gather his church, already living under the reign of God according to the pattern of God’s future. We believe in God’s final victory, in the end of this present age of struggle between good and evil, in the resurrection of the dead, and in the appearance of a new heaven and a new earth. There the people of God will reign with Christ in justice,... read more →
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We believe that the baptism of believers with water is a sign of their cleansing from sin. Baptism is also a pledge before the church of their covenant with God to walk in the way of Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. Believers are baptized into Christ and his body by the Spirit, water, and blood. Baptism is a testimony to God’s gift of the Holy Spirit and the continuing work of the Spirit in the lives of believers. Through the Spirit we repent and turn toward God in faith. The baptism of the Holy Spirit... read more →
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We believe in the Holy Spirit, the eternal Spirit of God, who dwelled in Jesus Christ, who empowers the church, who is the source of our life in Christ, and who is poured out on those who believe as the guarantee of our redemption and of the redemption of creation. Through the Spirit of God, the world was created, prophets and writers of Scripture were inspired, the people were enabled to follow God’s law, Mary conceived, and Jesus was anointed at his baptism.1 By the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus proclaimed the good news of the reign of God,... read more →
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Hal Shrader is the Lead Pastor of Trinity Mennonite Church. Having served in ministry in California and Chile, he now lives in Phoenix, Arizona with his wife Christine, daughter Madison, and pit bull terrier Lucy. Over the last weeks, pundits from certain sectors of the media have accused President Barak Obama of making excuses for Islamist militants such as ISIS and for equating the horrors committed in the name of Christ during past eras with those carried out by terrorists today. The criticism stems, for the most part, from comments the President made at the National Prayer Breakfast, held... read more →
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Ervin Stutzman is executive director of Mennonite Church USA As a convener of the Discernment Group, I read, along with many of you, “The failure to bind and loose” (January 2015 The Mennonite) and the much longer “’Defanging the Beast,’: Mennonite responses to John Howard Yoder’s Sexual Abuse” (January 2015, Mennonite Quarterly Review ). Historian Rachel Waltner Goossen has done the church a profound service. She chronicled the history of John Howard Yoder’s “sexual experiment,” and the church’s failure to effectively intervene to halt his violation of dozens of women in many places around the world. The article is like... read more →
The revised 2014 Churchwide Immigration Statement for Mennonite Church USA recommends five actions to congregations for 2014–2016. Each of the actions below is illustrated by an example of ministry already happening in Mennonite Church USA. Educational 1. Learn skills to help facilitate intercultural competency and/or undoing racism processes in congregations through the Communities of Hope process Invite a Communities of Hope facilitator to work with your congregation. 2. Plan Bible studies, sermons, and worship services on themes of hospitality to immigrants. Learn about the footwashing vigil hosted by Chapel Hill (N.C.) Mennonite Fellowship during Holy Week. “For the past... read more →
[Español] ELKHART, Ind. (Mennonite Church USA)—Although it’s still more than five months away, Mennonite Church USA’s 2015 biennial convention is taking shape. Registration opens Jan. 15 for the June 30–July 5 event in Kansas City, Mo. Hotel registration opens March 3. Convention planners are lining up special presenters and exhibitors in addition to a full slate of worship speakers. Recent decisions made in consultation with the Mennonite Church USA Executive Board have included accepting the Brethren Mennonite Council for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Interests’ (BMC) application for exhibit space at KC2015, as well as allowing convention planners to work... read more →
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Seth McCoy is a native of Southern California and currently resides in Saint Paul’s Midway neighborhood. He co-owns a neighborhood cafe, can create latte art, and really can taste a difference between good and bad coffee. He’s been married to his best friend Jennifer for 20 years and has 3 kids: Judah (19), Glory (15), and Sials (12). He spent most of his ministry career leading and teaching at mega churches and discovered Anabaptism through a weekend at the Simple Way with Shane Claiborne, the writing of Stanley Hauerwas and John Howard Yoder, and the gifted and gracious people of... read more →
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Ervin Stutzman is executive director of Mennonite Church USA “A community of communities engaged in God’s mission”--that’s the byline for Park View Mennonite Church in Harrisonburg, Va. Not long after this byline was introduced, Pastor Phil Kniss used a series of sermons to explain its meaning for the congregation. In his view, the congregation is best seen as a community comprising many subgroups that are organized in varied ways for diverse purposes. Yet, in a fuller sense, all members embrace the mission of the whole congregation, uniting around God’s mission in the world. Park View Mennonite Church is a microcosm... read more →