PeaceLab: Rev. Leonard Dow Part 1
The Rev. Leonard Dow, a current stewardship development specialist with Everence and longtime pastor at Oxford Circle Mennonite Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, sits down to talk with Jason and Hannah about community development, pastoring, race and Mennonite identity.
Growing the church in the rural neighborhood
If you are inclined to use words like “depressed,” “declining,” or “disappearing” to describe the state of rural churches today, you will find hope in reading this booklet. Brad Roth, himself a pastor in small-town Moundridge, Kansas, believes it is time to take a new look at the rural church reality. “In a lot of […]
God’s word finds fertile soil in Burkina Faso
In 1982, Anne Garber (Kompaoré) and Gail Wiebe (Toevs) arrived in the village of Kotoura, Burkina Faso, believing that their work would only entail translation and linguistics. They had carefully laid out plans about how to present the good news of Jesus gradually and in culturally appropriate ways. According to their plan, they thought it […]
La palabra de Dios encuentra tierra fértil en Burkina Faso
En 1982, Anne Garber (Kompaoré) y Gail Wiebe (Toevs) llegaron al poblado de Kotoura, Burkina Faso, creyendo que su trabajo solo consistiría en traducción y lingüística. Habían planificado meticulosamente cómo presentar las Buenas Nuevas de Jesús de una manera gradual y culturalmente apropiada. De acuerdo a sus planes, ellas pensaron que pasarían unos 20 años […]
Peacemaking transforms conflict in South Africa
"All nations will stream toward the mountain of God’s house, saying, ‘Come, let’s learn the way God works, so we can live in God’s ways.’ God will make things right between many peoples. They’ll turn their swords into shovels, their spears into hoes. No more will nation fight nation." —Isaiah 2:3-4, adapted from The […]
Mission and suffering
The contributors to this issue of Anabaptist Witness have strained to see God amid experiences of suffering in mission, and in doing so they point to the hope of resurrection life. Articles, poems, and artwork address missionary suffering, mission that responds to suffering, and mission that causes suffering. Specific topics treated include Ausbund hymns, Sufi […]
Episode 18: Future Church Summit debrief with Darrin Snyder Belousek
Darrin Snyder Belousek chats with PeaceLab, reflecting on the Future Church Summit, held during the Mennonite convention in Orlando, July, 2017.
Episode 17: Peace and Evangelism with Meghan Good
Can a peace church attract new people without watering down what makes it distinct? What can churches do to be more friendly to people looking for a new church? What’s your elevator speech? We answer these questions and more with Meghan Good, Teaching Pastor at Trinity Mennonite Church in Phoenix, Arizona.
Episode 14: Immigration justice with Tammy Alexander and Saulo Padilla
Tammy Alexander, senior legislative associate for the Mennonite Central Committee Washington D.C. office, and Saulo Padilla, immigration education coordinator for Mennonite Central Committee U.S., join Hannah and Jason to talk about immigration legislation, the current situation in the United States and ways churches and individuals are getting involved in education and advocacy.
Episode 13: women of color discuss leadership and developing a peace church
Jenny Perez Castro, coordinator of the Women in Leadership Project for Mennonite Church USA, hosts this edition of the PeaceLab. She talks with Calenthia Dowdy, Regina Shands Stoltzfus and Sue Park Hur about the recent definition of a peace church developed by leaders of color in Mennonite Church USA and about what its like to […]
The “M” word
Be prepared, in this booklet, to take a journey. Your guide is Paula Killough, senior executive at Mennonite Mission Network, as she describes her changing understandings of God’s reconciling work in the world. “In 2006,” she writes, “the ‘M’ word—mission—was not a part of my vocabulary.” Mission, in her view at that time, was “the […]
When one part suffers
Why is racial justice vital to mission? Because God desires to restore community. “Diversity is a biblical imperative, not a political issue, or a human resource issue,” Leroy Barber said, as he described John’s vision in Revelation 7. “John looks out and sees every tribe, tongue and nation. For him to see that, there needed […]