Family to help sustain home for people living in exile
When Joseph and Rachel Givens contacted Mennonite Mission Network about the possibility of becoming mission workers, they came with a keen understanding of what they were not. They were not church planters. They were not pastors. They both knew, however, that they shared a strong calling to reach out to and walk alongside people living […]
Story 4: Missiology shaped by servanthood
In one of the most important collection of essays on mission and Anabaptism, the late Wilbert Shenk noted: "Amid the extremisms of the day and the erosions of the past, and the uncertainties of the future, the messianic community is privileged to bear witness … The fundamental missionary stance is that of the servant. […]
Hope brings comfort: Being the gospel through crisis
As the coronavirus continues to infect our world, it’s important not to forget that before COVID-19, crises were already raging around the world. These ongoing crises are destroying the well-being of people and thrusting them into harm’s way. Not only are these crises still happening, but they have been exacerbated by the pandemic. People […]
Awakening to God’s love
Julian of Norwich, a 14th-century anchorite mystic, is well known for her book Revelations of Divine Love. It’s the oldest surviving book in the English language known to have been written by a woman. Still readily available in print and e-book forms, Julian reminds us that in brokenness and strain, "all shall be well, and […]
November conversation with David and Sophie Lapp Jost
Sharon Norton, co-director for Africa and Europe ministries for Mennonite Mission Network, interviews David and Sophie Lapp Jost. They give us first-hand stories of the plight of migrants on the Greek island of Lesbos and highlight the life-giving work of two organizations that focus on solidarity with the migrants. May your heart and mind be […]
A conversation with Juliet Kilpin
Sharon Norton, co-director for Africa and Europe ministries for Mennonite Mission Network, interviews Juliet Kilpin about the effects of COVID-19 on refugees in the United Kingdom. Juliet is a co-founder of Peaceful Borders, an organization that supports refugees coming to the United Kingdom.
Migration, empathy and welcome
In his Pulitzer Prize-winning epic, Grapes of Wrath (1939), John Steinbeck recounts the harshness of the Great Depression and gives us a glimpse into the struggles of migrant farmworkers. In it, he tells the heart-rending stories of people who loaded up their vehicles with all they could fit and moved from a devastated and ravaged […]
Walking in peace through perplexing times
The real deal By Laurie Oswald Robinson In 2008, I left six and a half years of communication work with Mennonite Church USA and Mennonite Women USA for a life of freelancing. This past May, I returned to the offices on Main Street in Newton, Kansas, to serve as editor for Mennonite Mission Network. […]
Mission and Migration
To talk about migration is to talk about identity, both individual identity and the collective identities of communities of faith. Forced migration characterized and shaped the early Anabaptist movement—a movement created, in part, to ensure religious freedom and the ability to practice faith as separate communities. This pattern of movement, originally meant to support a […]
Walking in peace through perplexing times
Though they grew up in different eras, many young people in the past seven and a half decades have shared a similar dream: In a world of militarism, materialism and me-ism, they desired to seek a road less traveled. Instead of marching to the beat of the times, they wanted to follow Jesus into a […]
Show hospitality to strangers
1 Let mutual love continue. 2 Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. Photo by Jon Carlson. Graphic design by Cynthia Friesen Coyle.
God’s table
Practicing Lectio-Divina By Dani Klotz OK. I’m just going to say it. Here I go … I am not a huge fan of Lectio-Divina. Now, don’t judge me just yet. Let me explain. For those of us who might need a refresher on what Lectio-Divina is, it is a Benedictine practice of scriptural reading, meditation, […]