I am often asked, “Where does AMBS stand [on this or that issue]?” My response, with some elaboration, is, “We stand on the Word of God.” The question is reaching for a declaration about conviction....
[read more]John Longhurst asks us to “ponder the idea that Jesus is speaking today through people who are open to hearing Jesus speak through the Holy Spirit in rich, transparent relationships with other people who are...
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I grew up believing my Mennonite religious tradition originated as a part of the Anabaptist movement. I would’ve been incredulous if someone had told me then that our theological underpinnings originated...
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Here in Canada, as in the United States, one of the biggest issues dividing the church is homosexuality. Churches are leaving Mennonite Church Canada over it. In British Columbia, I was told that as many as a...
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I’ve been coaching third-/fourth-grade soccer along with another dad this fall. (No, I don’t know what I’m doing — though thankfully, my friend does!) We drill the kids. We scrimmage with the kids. We...
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At the Poor People’s Campaign rally in Topeka, Kan., Rev. William Barber told us about a map of the United States. A map that shows what states have the highest rates of poverty, poorest health care access,...
[read more]The leadership of Conservative Mennonite Conference recently demonstrated boldness and humility in upholding their interpretation of Scripture while rejecting extrabiblical traditions that limit women’s...
[read more]My family and I recently left the Mennonite church, not to get away from the name but to find a more biblically based theology. I thought we would always be Mennonite. We had no interest in getting away from...
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I wonder if Rob Bell went to Hesston College. Actually, I know he didn’t, but his new book, What Is the Bible? How an Ancient Library of Poems, Letters and Stories Can Transform the Way You Think and Feel...
[read more]I often encounter Christians who once were fundamentalists but now distance themselves from that kind of faith, which they found to be spiritually oppressive. Often, this distancing has to do with the...
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J. Denny Weaver’s latest book is popular theology written in response to a question asked by a child: Why did God kill his own son? The target audience for God Without Violence is those troubled by a...
[read more]I read with interest Harold N. Miller’s thoughtful opinion piece, “Scripture Overrules Experience” (March 27). I support his statement that an argument from experience alone on the LGBT issue “is not...
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After writing my series on hearing God’s voice, I got some pushback from readers who thought that I was undermining the importance of Scripture. In the series, I describe God’s voice as something that...
[read more]Many in our church are sure we should fully include those in same-sex marriages, blessing their covenants and credentialing their pastoral gifts. I would like to join them. Life is simpler when we move with...
[read more]In letters to the editor, I notice that no matter which side of an issue one takes, there seems to be an agreement that the final arbiter is the Bible. We think that if we would simply read the Bible...
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Renewal 2027 is a 10-year series of events launched by Mennonite World Conference to mark the 500th anniversary of the beginnings of the Anabaptist movement. “Transformed by the Word: Reading Scripture in...
[read more]Discussion of the conflict between Genesis 1 and science centers on evolution (“Museum Enshrines One Creationist View,” Book Review, Jan. 16), but the far greater conflict between a literal reading of...
[read more]Apple Inc.’s sleek new corporate headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., is one of the world’s most ambitious construction projects. When completed, the 2.8 million-square-foot circular structure will house up...
[read more]John Longhurst’s discussion (“Genesis 1 or 3?,” North of the 49th, Feb. 13) regarding the different perspectives of Genesis 1 and 3 raises the interesting question of why the compilers of the Hebrew...
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AUGSBURG, Germany — A Mennonite World Conference event looking forward to the 500th anniversary of Anabaptism looked back on the movement’s foundation in the primacy of Scripture. Regional Anabaptists and...
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Are we on the verge of a spiritual renewal in North America — a renewal that might save our planet? That’s the question that comes to me after reading about the pipeline protest at the Standing Rock Sioux...
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The lectionary texts for Jan. 29 again reminded me of the amazing diversity we find in the authoritative writings that make up the Bible. The Psalm 15 lesson, for a start, shows us that we earn God’s...
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Susan L. Trollinger and William Vance Trollinger Jr. describe the Creation Museum as an arsenal for the Christian Right’s culture wars. It’s an apt analogy, but perhaps a better comparison would be a...
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What does God want? If you go to a conservative Christian church, you know the answer to this question is: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and...
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Results of a Mennonite World Conference survey of 24 member conferences show the church is growing and the gospel is spreading, primarily in the Global South. Many observers already knew MWC’s growth is...
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