Next Pastors & Leaders’ Breakfast – Thursday, March 8, 8-10 a.m. features presentation by, and conversation with, Joanna Shenk, editor of Widening the Circle: Anabaptist Experiments in Discipleship. She will share excerpts from her book and observations from her travels around the country. She’s interested to explore questions such as: Why are these emerging movements attracted to the Anabaptist tradition? How do established Mennonite churches cultivate mutual relationships with non-traditional expressions of Anabaptism? What do established churches and organizations have to give and gain through these relationships? Shenk serves as Associate for Interchurch Relations and Communication of Mennonite Church USA. $6 donation requested.
Sister Care Seminar – March 23-24: Please encourage women in your congregation to attend this important seminar which will equip women to be helpful to someone who experiences a great loss or trauma, how to walk with them, and how we can encourage one another from day to day. The event is sponsored by Eastern District and Franconia Mennonite Conferences and will be held at Souderton Mennonite Church (Friday from 7-9 p.m., Saturday from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.). Presenters are Carolyn Holderread Heggen and Rhoda Keener. Heggen has worked all over the world as a trauma therapist, including helping those who survived the tsunami in Indonesia and those who have been through the horrors of war. She has much experience and many stories to share. Keener has a great heart and vision for women as ministers to each other, and her experiences as a mental health counselor and co-director of Mennonite Women USA rounds out the program well. Registration prior to February 20 is $40—a bargain for the quality of training this will provide—and also covers lunch and a workbook. Scholarships are available if the fee is a hardship. (For additional details, click here.)
Training for all Credentialed Leaders of Franconia Conference: Saturday, April 21, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., will be a required resourcing event for all leaders credentialed by Franconia Conference. For the past number of years, we have talked about three strategic priorities for Franconia Conference—being missional, formational, and intercultural. This day will focus on increasing our understanding of what it means to be intercultural and our capacity to respond to differences in our congregations—whether that means bridging racial/ethnic boundaries or transcending any cultural differences that can be found in all congregations… generational, economic, gender, etc. This day will equip you to better name and navigate the various dynamics. There will also be important information shared about Formation Expectations and Requirements for Credentialed Leaders approved by the Conference Board Ministerial Committee. Please add this important event to your calendar.
The opinions expressed in articles posted on Mosaic’s website are those of the author and may not reflect the official policy of Mosaic Conference. Mosaic is a large conference, crossing ethnicities, geographies, generations, theologies, and politics. Each person can only speak for themselves; no one can represent “the conference.” May God give us the grace to hear what the Spirit is speaking to us through people with whom we disagree and the humility and courage to love one another even when those disagreements can’t be bridged.