A common perception is that Christians lack compassion, humility and kindness. Fair or unfair, the impression has stuck that we in the church often resemble the biblical Pharisees. One commentator refers to...
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“Excuse me, Ma’am.” “Yes?” I said, a little surprised by the short-haired, long-bearded man with tattoos covering his forearms. I had just buckled my littlest child into his car seat and was...
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While Central District Conference has broadened its geographical reach, its long-distance relationship with Allegheny Mennonite Conference will not result in a merger for now. Allegheny Conference Minister...
[read more]A group of pastors and leaders in Virginia Mennonite Conference is inviting other pastors and leaders in Mennonite Church USA to sign a statement meant to bridge the gap between traditional and progressive...
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A political action committee working in Lancaster, Pa., believes more can be done to mobilize Amish people to vote for Republican candidates this fall, though the traditionally nonvoting group continues to be...
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When we believe we are right about something, how do we behave? How do we treat those with whom we disagree? I’m not talking about issues of sin, but what of disputable matters — issues that are not very...
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Rahab is mentioned three times in the New Testament. However, we know her best from her story which is found in the Old Testament book of Joshua. If you aren’t familiar with the story of the prostitute from...
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The good news is human beings are a lot less violent today than at any other time in human history. The bad news is religion has been — and continues to be — a major contributor to violence. Those are a...
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Every Mennonite in the small town of Goessel, Kan., knows the date 1874. It is emblazoned on the “Turkey Red Wheat Palace,” erected on the centennial of Mennonites’ migration to the Great Plains from...
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A meditation on Luke 5:1-11. Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God… We grope for what is spiritual-but-not-religious....
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Mennonite groups are beginning the process of responding to Hurricane Florence’s devastation along the Atlantic coastline. The Category 4 hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 130 mph, but weakened and...
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“At that time the Canaanites were in the land.” With that casual aside, the biblical account of Abraham and Sarah arriving in Canaan states that the territory already was populated. “To your offspring I...
[read more]I can’t agree with Hillary Watson, who says it’s OK Sunday school is dying (Gathering the Stones, Sept. 10). We have a responsibility to clear our schedules of all that doesn’t contribute to growing...
[read more]A pastor who doesn’t fit in one place might flourish somewhere else. In two important cases recently, good pastors had to move on (without leaving their congregations). The reasons, and the changes that...
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Seldom a week goes by that I don’t hear about relationships being frayed because of political differences. “How can you claim to be a Christian and vote for Trump/Clinton?” Political affiliation and...
[read more]Thank you for “Our Hymns Shape Our Faith” (Blog, Sept. 10), which asks us to choose hymns wisely because they shape our faith more than sermons do. How do we choose our hymns? By the tune? The text? The...
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Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 U.S. presidential election surprised almost everyone. How did it happen? Evangelical Christians had a lot to do with it. In Believe Me: The Evangelical Road to Donald...
[read more]A new direction and a different interpretation are mother’s milk to the historian. At times this is helpful. At other times, not so much. Anabaptism, defined from its inception by its enemies, more recently...
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A classmate once told me the biblical story she found most irredeemable was that of Noah and his ark. When Joshua slaughters cities in God’s name, you can always blame Joshua. But who do you blame when God...
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I love the paradoxes of God: “God is love,” the Bible states, but it also says, “God is holy.” God is portrayed as both the vulnerable lamb and the wrathful lion. He is king and servant, Alpha and...
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It was big news in Canada when the Supreme Court denied an appeal by Trinity Western University to have a decision against its law school overturned because of the university’s stance against...
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For Mennonite pastors, conversations about boundaries can be difficult. Recent cases of boundary violations have rocked theological and institutional understandings of ourselves. In Pennsylvania, the public...
[read more]According to the Amish Heritage Foundation, the 1972 Supreme Court decision Wisconsin v. Yoder, which allowed the Amish to end schooling after eighth grade, brought enforced ignorance and a feeling of...
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What is your all-time favorite hymn or spiritual/religious piece of music? If you go to church and participate in regular worship services, you also likely enjoy the songs and hymns most churches count as a...
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DALLAS and HOUSTON — When her extended family lost their business in Guatemala because of gang extortion, Bony traveled across Mexico to the Rio Grande River with her 3-year-old daughter, Mily. To evade...
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