MWC Info June 2020 | | Task force tackles creation care challengeAs we follow Jesus, Mennonites value simplicity and responsible stewardship of the resources God gave us. At the Assembly in Pennsylvania in 2015, these convictions drove Mennonite World Conference organizers to give each participant a reusable water bottle and a convention bag made of upcycled...
| | New MWC website is mobile friendly and multilingualA fresh look will greet web visitors to mwc-cmm.org after 14 May 2020. The website has been redesigned with greater functionality. Mobile viewers will find responsive design that displays well on a smaller screen. MWC teaching documents, worship resources, General Council -approved statements and...
| | A bridge for connecting peopleGYS provides one with the opportunity to really open our eyes to the fact that behind all those countries that appear on the map there are brothers and sisters in faith living in diverse social, economic and political contexts. These contexts are the backdrop for specific challenges in each region to which God is responding in unique ways.
| | MWC Global Church Sharing Fund responds to pandemic needsInstead of being a great leveler, the COVID-19 pandemic is exposing pre-existing systemic inequalities that benefit some and disadvantage others. How can the Anabaptist family respond? Mennonite World Conference has invited Anabaptist mission and service agencies to coordinate their financial...
| | 12 considerations before you reopen your church doorsWhen stay-at-home guidelines are eased and church doors and sanctuaries reopen, worship and church ministries will, undoubtedly, look different than before the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak. And so it should – so that we continue to keep ourselves and our faith communities safe and healthy.
| | Physically distanced but in prayer together"There is lockdown and physical distancing, but even so, we can meet in prayer. From different countries, we can come together and pray together in this way. As we are united in prayer, we trust God will hear our prayers and intervene." Hanna Soren, member of the Deacons Commission, offered this prayer at the close of Mennonite World Conference's first online prayer meeting.
| | Mennonite community at centre of COVID-19 response in KudusAs the world deals with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Mennonite community in Kudus, Central Java, Indonesia, joins hands and works with the local government to mitigate the risk and manage the spread of COVID-19 cases in Kudus, a city of more than 800,000 residents. Mardi Rahayu Hospital was built in...
| | Jesus Christ: Our Only HopeRight now, the planet is in a panic about a strange disease: COVID-19. The World Health Organization (WHO) has concluded from its evaluation of COVID-19 that it should be classified as a pandemic. This illness is infecting and killing people regardless of ethnic, linguistic or socio-economic background...
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| | At the burning bush, Moses learned that God is attentive to circumstances of the oppressed: "I have observed the misery of my people.... I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters…. I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them." (Exodus 3:7-8a, NRSV) God of the Exodus is paying attention to world events today. In response to yet another police killing of an unarmed black man in the USA, protests have broken out in North American cities and elsewhere in the world. Looting and vandalism have occurred. Police in the USA have fired rubber bullets and tear gas even upon journalists reporting about the protests. We lament systemic racism that leads to killings and daily indignities for people of colour. We grieve the violent actions by both protesters and law enforcement. We confess the lack of equity and justice that at times from characterizes our own responses. We acknowledge the long, intercontinental roots of racism that include complicity in the slave trade. We reaffirm the following Mennonite World Conference Shared Convictions : "As a world-wide community of faith and life we transcend boundaries of nationality, race, class, gender and language... The Spirit of Jesus empowers us to trust God in all areas of life so we become peacemakers who renounce violence, love our enemies [and] seek justice..." Creator God, reach into our hearts and our troubled world to bring repentance and right relationships! Pray for pastors who continue to serve their congregations where members have lost their jobs and are no long able to give financially. Praise God for provision from unexpected places despite hardship. Praise God for the businesses that have been able to switch production lines to make personal protective equipment and hand sanitizer. Praise God for volunteers who have helped to sew masks and prepare food packages those people without an income. Pray for families who are mourning lost loved ones. Pray for church leaders who need to find creative ways to provide meaningful rituals for mourners in a time of social distancing. We are mindful of the many persons – doctors, nurses, family members, friends – who are caring for those who are suffering from COVID-19. We give thanks for their self-giving, and pray for their safety and on-going energy. May the Risen One be there at the bed side, in the hospital, along with them. |
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