Traveling to the Arizona deserts where others have trod
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) — From the comfort of two vans, participants in Mennonite Mission Network’s alumni service-learning tour traveled through Arizona to gain greater understanding of the perilous journeys that migrants and indigenous people take through the same terrain. From Nov. 9-17, 16 people — mostly alumni of Mission Network’s SOOP and Mennonite […]
Solidarity and hope are the goals of Nanjing, China
NANJING, China (Mennonite Mission Network) — By 9 a.m., the August sun hanging over Nanjing, China, had long baked away any morning chill. As part of the group of almost 30 participants from the Northeast Asia Regional Peacebuilding Institute (NARPI), a Mennonite Mission Network partner based in South Korea, we were invited to participate in […]
Advent hope and Easter faith: a film review of Emanuel
Advent hope and Easter faith: a film review of Emanuel By Joe Sawatzky This Advent season many churches will sing, “O Come, O Come Immanuel, and ransom captive Israel.” In doing so, we plead that “God with us” — Emmanuel — may “appear a second time” to complete in history the freedom from evil, sin […]
Proclaimers gift Toba Qom with entire New Testament recording
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) — When the full Bible in the Toba Qom indigenous language became available in 2014, pastors treasured their new Bibles and the opportunity to read the Scriptures in their heart language during their church services. Yet the culture is predominantly oral, and pastors like Eliseo López longed for the day when […]
Spring break helps family pass baton of faith values
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) — Rather than spending time over spring break visiting family or hanging out at home, 14-year-old Alina Bergstresser and her 11-year-old sister, Marta, of Goshen, Indiana, became makers of date-nut bread and students of racial justice at Koinonia Farm in Americus, Georgia. The sisters, with their parents, Annette and Deron, […]
Toba Qom hear hope in their language
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) – Even cold, rainy days cannot stop 73-year-old Vicente Pérez from putting on his boots and tromping to the radio station/recording studio at Centro Educativo Saỹaten (Qom Knowledge Educational Center) in Castelli, Argentina. It’s where the indigenous Toba Qom man brings the warmth of Scripture to listeners in the Chaco […]
Celebrating 100 years of being the church together in Argentina
A celebration of mission and discipleship occurred Sept. 27-29 in Argentina as the Iglesia Evangélica Menonita Argentina (IEMA) celebrated its centennial anniversary of the first baptisms of the church. Mennonite Board of Missions (MBM), a predecessor agency of Mennonite Mission Network, sent two families to Argentina in 1917: Mae and Tobias (T. K.) Hershey and […]
Praying with brothers and sisters in Latin America
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) - The news from Latin America these past weeks has been very difficult. Ecuador is relatively calm again as the government is in a slow process of dialogue with indigenous and other groups. In Chile, protests and violent repression followed news of an increase in bus fares. Churches canceled services due […]
Mennonite Mission Network seeking executive director
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) – Upon the recent retirement announcement of Stanley W. Green as longtime leader of Mennonite Mission Network, the mission agency of Mennonite Church USA is currently seeking applicants for its executive director position. To continue Mission Network’s long legacy of fostering organizational faithful witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ, […]
Ephemeral details and lasting relationships: What I learned from writing obits
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) – In my two years at Mennonite Mission Network, I’ve written seven obituaries for mission workers who served with the organization, or one of its predecessor agencies. Stating that writing obituaries is not my favorite part of this job is neither controversial nor surprising. Yet, putting together obituaries is a […]
Youth Venture trip to Peru stretches teenagers’ trust
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) – Each time the luggage belt circled, 16-year-old Kate Krabill felt further from her home in Elkhart, Indiana. She had just landed at the airport in Lima, Peru, as a participant in Mennonite Mission Network’s Youth Venture program. As the belt circled again and again, the other participants plucked up […]
Former medical mission worker helped start a nursing school in Nazareth, Israel
NEWTON, Kansas (Mennonite Mission Network) – Nancy L. Martin, of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, spent most of her career as a medical missionary in Nazareth, Israel, serving through Mennonite Board of Missions, a predecessor agency of Mennonite Mission Network. She died Sept. 16 at her home. She was 78. Nancy and Robert, her husband of 56 years, […]