Mosaic Mennonites

Missional - Intercultural - Formational

Articles

Gifted Differently, by God’s Design

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by Stacey Mansfield

Do you ever feel like there is a common theme running through your life for a season? Let me explain my question a little better: Do you ever notice that over a course of days or weeks a specific phrase or concept shows up in a variety of seemingly unrelated places?  

My most recent experience of this started in a conversation with a friend who shared how many people within a specific group had conveyed to her independently that they felt like outsiders. Later that night, as I read the next few pages of a book I have been slowly reading, it described someone feeling like an oddity within their community despite a shared culture. When similar stories were highlighted in a podcast I was listening to the next day, I recognized that I needed to take some time with God to listen and understand more. 

The passage that I was drawn to was Romans 12. 

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Romans 12:2a, NIV 

The feeling of being an outsider, like an outlier in a plot graph of data points, is uncomfortable. Whether we feel separated from others because of the way we speak, how we look, our affinities, the choices we have made, or even the losses we have experienced, it hurts.  

Most of us can still feel the painful sting of being an outsider at some point in our lives. Others of us face this situation regularly. Are we ready to seek out Christ’s healing and take the difficult path of restoration? How are we allowing Christ to transform and renew our minds?  

We frequently shape our lives towards comfort; I wonder what uncomfortable spaces we need to humbly walk into? Are we able to notice and connect with those who feel like they are on the outside looking in? This seems particularly poignant with Mosaic’s missional, intercultural, and formation priorities shaping not just ministry but everyday life. 

“For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.” Romans 12:4-8, NIV 

These verses remind me that we are different, and gifted differently, by God’s design. In each facet of our lives, we do not need to be surprised that there are significant differences among us.  

“Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” Romans 12:13, NIV 

May we engage one another as Christ calls us to. May we not just notice those who feel as though they are outsiders, but thoughtfully set out to edify, collaborate with, and enjoy those around us. 

I encourage you to continue reading Romans 12 and notice the many other verses that relate to feeling like an outsider. For a light-hearted approach that can lead to deeper  conversations on this topic, check out Pixar’s short film, For the Birds, with a friend, your family, or small group. 

Stacey Mansfield

Stacey Mansfield is the Administrative & Hospitality Collaborator for the Conference.

Cries for better stewardship of creation

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by Sandy Drescher-Lehman

Pastor Sandy Drescher-Lehman (Methacton [Norristown, PA]) shares a blessing crying out for better stewardship of God’s creation and beginning the Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) Learn, Pray, Join: Climate Justice: Seeking Shalom series. Originally published by MC USA and reprinted with permission.  

Wild blessings  

Wild blessings to all who feel burdened, by the love of Christ, to invite people into direct relationship with some of the most vulnerable victims of our destructive cultures: the land, waters and creatures with whom we share our homes. May we serve alongside them, to help us all flourish. 

Wild blessings to all who are aware and repentant for the injustice of claiming the sacred space of the [name(s) of those who lived on this land before the Europeans arrived] people as our own. May we honor their spirits, who continue to live with us. And may you, Great Spirit, who created us all, keep us mindful of those who have thrived and died on these lands and waterways for many generations before us.  

Wild blessings of laughter and tears, love and heartache, filling our prayers, which continually blow through the trees and grasses, rocks and creatures. May we work to sustain the waters that flow through these lands and feed all the life they nourish. And may we be renewed with rest, grateful for our place in the story of creation.  

Wild blessings of mindful living, as winter turns to spring, cold days turn to warmer ones, noticing what is thawing and rising with blessings in our hearts and in our souls. Renew our faith that our gratitude adds peace to the world. Amen (or Aho). 

Sandy and her husband, John Drescher-Lehman, a therapist, host a Wild Church gathering each third Sunday afternoon of the month at their home and retreat center in Southeast Pennsylvania. 

In Jesus’ Sandals: Bread and Milk

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Part 1

by Javier Márquez

From April 15 to 17, Mosaic staff members Marco Güete and Noel Santiago and I visited Comunidad Anabautista de Medellín (Anabaptist Community of Medellín), where leaders Carlos Sánchez and Nidia Montoya welcomed us and guided us on a tour to learn about their ministry. 

We have prepared a short report complete with photos so that the Conference and its churches can learn about this wonderful ministry. 

It is called “In Jesus’ Sandals” because our time there was full of tours and visits, allowing us to get to know the immense Colombian city and visit the living rooms of the families that are part of the church—a total of 40 homes. 

Although we did not have time to visit all of them, we managed to meet and talk with many families and have a very special time. 

Ascending by cable car to Las Margaritas, Commune 13, Medellín.
Carlos Sánchez (Anabaptist Community of Medellín), Marco Güete (Mosaic Leadership Minister) and Noel Santiago (Mosaic Leadership Minister) in front of a mural in Las Margaritas.
View of Commune 13 from Las Margaritas. 

First, we took a cable car over the neighborhoods of Medellín’s Commune 13, until we arrived at the Margaritas station in the Robledo sector. There, Carlos asked us to wait while he went to get bread and milk that we would distribute on each of the visits. The agenda noted 14 visits, and the path between the neighborhoods was long and tedious, going up and down stairs, crossing small streams that ran through the mountain, walking through blocks and hills until reaching each of the houses. 

Pastor Carlos carrying bread and milk accompanied by Luz Marina.
Pastor Carlos carrying bread and milk accompanied by Luz Marina.

For each visit, Carlos not only buys bread and milk, but also prepares a biblical reflection that he shares with the families. When he arrives in each sector of the city, he meets with members from the church who live in the area and are community leaders. They help him arrange the visits. 

Whenever we arrived at a house, the residents welcomed us with love and joy. They prepared for the visit by making coffee or fruit juice, and brought out their best chairs, placing them in their small rooms so that we could sit. When there weren’t enough chairs, they improvised seats by placing buckets upside down, so that we could all be seated. 

Each house was very humble, and on each wall were traces of people’s lives: portraits, gifts, souvenirs, paintings and posters, all with meaning. The houses also had display cases with products for sale, sometimes homemade ice cream or clothes for resale. These are families that struggle each day to earn a living. 

At the time of prayer, there are common requests: for someone’s health, a job, for God’s care, and above all, for protection from the gangs and criminal groups. 

Our first visit to the house of one of the members of the Anabapist Community of Medellín.
Our first visit to the house of one of the members of the Anabapist Community of Medellín.
In the house of the local midwife.
In the house of the local midwife.

Carlos’ Biblical reflections are usually deep and full of testimonies. For these visits, Carlos prepared the text of Matthew 5:9: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” 

In each family’s house Carlos has a story, something to remember, and a word of encouragement to share. He knows all the people he visits very well and has known them for a long time, but the community continues to grow because many families invite someone new to participate in the visits. When we leave, Carlos shares the bread and milk with them. 

In this way we went from house to house through the different sectors of the city: from north to south, east to west. Carlos explained to us the context of Medellín, the situation of the city and the specific situations of the families. They are almost always families surrounded by crime, war, hunger, lack of job opportunities, and discrimination. 

A second article will follow, to share more of this incredible experience. 

Javier Márquez

Javier Márquez is an Anabaptist Colombian pacifist and poet and a writer for the MCUSA publication MenoTicias.

All I Have is Running Paint 

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by Emily Ralph Servant

We spent months planning our painting party at the school. We found cute hawk print stencils, matched the burgundy and gold of the school colors, and waited for a stretch of warm weather to coincide with school vacation. 

We cleaned off years of class numbers that overlapped on the pavement where the elementary school kids lined up. We were not only going to repaint the numbers, but we were going one step further; we planned to paint lines of hawk prints (the school mascot) to show the kids where to line up. For months, we had watched the teachers yelling at the kids at the end of long school days, trying to keep them in straight lines in the tight space. If we could bring some peace to dismissal time, we felt like we were doing God’s work. 

The day finally arrived, with temperatures rising into the fifties over New Year’s weekend. It had rained over Christmas break but we had a dry forecast. A bunch of people had offered to help, but when the day came, only two neighbors showed up. Together with my first-grade daughter, the four of us measured, taped, stenciled, and painted. We talked about life, about faith, and about our community.  

A few hours later, we stepped back to admire our work. And, boy, did it look good. 

My church, Refuge, is shaped around empowering people who want to live like Jesus and with Jesus in our neighborhoods. With the encouragement of Mosaic’s missional lead, Noel Santiago, Refuge has been using the church planting grant we received from the conference to support our members in loving our neighborhoods. Refuge paid for the paint and supplies we needed to spruce up the school and I was excited about this connection between my church expression and my community. 

The next day, I got an email from the school/community liaison. She sent me some photos.  Despite the forecast, it had rained overnight. Before the paint dried. And all our beautiful paint had run down the sidewalk. 

I was frustrated. I was embarrassed. Instead of improving the situation, we had made it worse. And with the cold stretch, it would be months before the weather, the school’s schedule, and my free time would line up again. 

Soon afterward, our virtual Refuge gathering was studying the story of Jesus choosing his apostles in Luke 6. The CEB version we read describes how Jesus took his disciples up the mountain, named some of them as apostles, and then brought them back down the mountain, where they stood in front of a large crowd of Jesus’ followers (vs. 12-17). I thought about how I would have felt as one of those newly-named apostles, standing in front of hundreds of people as one who had been chosen to join Jesus in his public ministry. 

Jesus—the one who taught so powerfully, healed all the sick, set people free from oppressive spirits, creatively navigated conflict, stood strong in the face of opposition—had chosen me to join him in his work of making the world right again. 

And all I have is running paint. 

I felt so inadequate. How could I ever live up to this call? 

But as we practiced listening prayer in response to this passage, I realized that the big crowd wasn’t looking at me; they were looking at Jesus. Jesus was the attraction. As long as I was pointing people to Jesus, I was enough. Jesus is already present, healing my neighborhood, and I get to be a part of it. 

Running paint and all. 

Emily Ralph Servant

Emily Ralph Servant is the Leadership Minister for Strategic Priorities for Mosaic Mennonite Conference. Emily has served in pastoral roles at Swamp and Indonesian Light congregations and graduated from Eastern Mennonite Seminary.

Seeing Each Other As Children of God

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by Sue Conrad Howes, Director of Pastoral Services, St. Luke’s Penn Foundation 

Originally published on the St. Luke’s Penn Foundation blog. Reprinted with permission  

When I first began working as a chaplain in mental health, I was anxious. I said to my supervisor, “I’m not really sure this is the place for me to do my chaplaincy as I have never done chaplaincy in this arena before.” My supervisor gently replied, “Do you think you’ll be able to interact with each client as though s/he is a child of God?” I said, “Yes.”  Then he said, “That is all you’ll need to do.” 

I am reminded of those wise words so often in my work. In fact, I try to remind myself of my goal each day, thinking, “God, help me see each person I meet today as your beloved child.” When I remember the guidance that I was given, I can do my work better and not get caught up in the stigmas, diagnoses, or addictions that the people with whom I work face each day. It allows me to see the client, not as a diagnosis or an addict, but rather as a child of God. Suddenly, I know how to interact with this person – I love them, as I should all children of God. 

I share this story as a sort of confession. Even as a chaplain for a mental health facility, I too have struggled, and sometimes still do, with knowing how best to serve, support, and encourage persons with mental health issues and addictions. Also, when I started in mental health, I felt like I needed to do a lot of reading and research on mental health diagnoses, such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, etc.  Again, my wise advisor told me, sure, you can learn about them, but it’s probably best when you first meet a client/patient that you not even know what his/her diagnosis is. “Just treat them as a beloved child of God.” Although learning about different diagnoses has been helpful in better understanding the clients, I have learned that their diagnoses do not define them or how I enter into a relationship with them. Our relationship is already cemented by my belief that we are both children of God, worthy of love and acceptance. 

May is Mental Health Awareness month. I wish we didn’t have to have a special month to promote it, but the stigmas of mental illness are still prevalent today. When I find myself guarded about interacting with a client due to his/her illness, I ask myself, “Would I be treating them this way if they had a diagnosis of diabetes or cancer?” We accept those illnesses and freely want to support those persons, but we still are challenged in accepting mental illnesses. 

I challenge you this month and in the year ahead, as you interact with persons in your congregation, your family, and your community with mental illness, to remember first and foremost that they, like you, are a beloved child of God. Be kind, gentle, and loving to them and yourself. 

Sue Conrad Howes

Sue Conrad Howes is a chaplain at St.Luke’s Penn Foundation and is an ordained pastor in MC USA. She and her husband live in Quakertown, PA and are members at West Swamp Mennonite Church.

Mosaic Mennonite Conference Receives $21,000 Grant for Vital Worship Initiative

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Participants of the Anabaptist Worship Network 2023 songwriting retreat, which included four people from Mosaic Conference. Photo by Darryl Neustaedter Barg.

Mosaic Mennonite Conference (Lansdale, PA) has received a $21,000 grant from the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship to discern the theological distinctiveness and ethnocultural diversity of the church’s music. The project will provide tools to effectively evaluate CCLI Top 100 contemporary worship music from an Anabaptist theological perspective and provide suggestions to broaden the Top 100 list to better represent the diversity of the church.  

The project, entitled “Anabaptist CCLI Top 100 and Beyond,” is organized in partnership with the Anabaptist Worship Network and is part of a cluster of similar projects which have been called together by the Centre for Congregational Song. The project will be led by Rev. Dr. Emily Ralph Servant (Leadership Minister for Strategic Priorities for Mosaic Conference); Rev. Dr. Sarah Kathleen Johnson (Assistant Professor of Liturgical and Pastoral Theology at Saint Paul University); and Anneli Loepp Thiessen (PhD Candidate in Interdisciplinary Music Research at the University of Ottawa).  

“We aspire to create a theological framework for evaluating some of the most widely sung worship songs from an Anabaptist perspective. We aim to work together across Anabaptist traditions, with representatives from the Mennonite Brethren, Mennonite Church Canada, Mennonite Church USA, Church of the Brethren, and Evangelical-Anabaptists, on the team,” shared Sarah Kathleen Johnson, who is representing the project on the Together in Worship leadership team.

From right: Emily Ralph Servant (Mosaic Leadership Minister), Stephen Zacheus (Jemaat Kristen Indonesia Anugerah; Sierra Madre, CA), and George Makinto (LA Faith Chapel) travel to the Anabaptist Worship Network 2023 songwriting retreat. Photo by George Makinto. 

“We are attuned to the reality that definitions of Anabaptist theology will be distinct depending on the community, and that differences abound across distinctions of racial/ethnic identity, rural vs. urban location, average age of congregation, and more. Our intention is to identify shared pillars of Anabaptism and explore how song lyrics may align with or disrupt these values,” added Anneli Loepp Thiessen, Co-Director, Canada, of the Anabaptist Worship Network. 

The team will go through the CCLI Top 100 and identify whether songs resonate in an Anabaptist context, reflected with a color coding. The bulk of this work will be completed at an in-person gathering in the fall of 2024.  

“Recognizing that the CCLI Top 100 represents songs limited in origin to predominantly white Evangelical communities in the U.S. – and further is dominated by men – we aspire to create a list of contemporary worship songs that better represent the breadth of the church,” Loepp Thiessen further explains.  “This list will intentionally highlight songs in languages beyond English, gender diverse songwriters, songs by people of color, and songs that represent immigrant and refugee communities, and songs with expansive language for God.” 

“We are privileged to extend our intercultural worship capacity through the grant from Calvin,” shares Steve Kriss, Executive Minister for Mosaic Conference. “This builds on continued partnership and gifted contributors to enrich the spiritual life of Anabaptist communities within and beyond Mosaic Conference. We are grateful for Calvin’s leadership, trust and generosity.” 

This program is made possible through a Vital Worship Grant from the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, Grand Rapids, Michigan, with funds provided by the Lilly Endowment.  

2024 Mosaic Women’s Event: Unity

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By Lisa Stenger, Deep Run East (Perkasie, PA)  

Cheering and laughter erupted as Pastor Leticia Cortes (Centro de Alabanza, Philadelphia, PA) sprints into the room, wearing a big smile. Cortes opened this year’s Mosaic women’s event with a powerful message from Ephesians 1: All praise of God’s glorious forgiveness, grace, and love for us through our Lord Jesus Christ, who blesses us with hope and peace, guaranteeing our inheritance because we have been chosen.  

Participants sing together in worship. Photo by Marta Castillo. 

Over 53 women of different ages and geographical areas (including Colombia, California, and Florida) and 18 Mosaic congregations, gathered on Saturday, April 27, for an unforgettable time of fellowship, spiritual growth, and worship. Ripple (Allentown, PA) hosted the event, which was also offered by Zoom and hosted by members of the Mosaic Sistering Committee, Sandra Güete (Sarasota, FL) and Michelle Curtis (Ambler, PA). Marina Stevan (Indonesian Light, Philadelphia, PA) led worship, which was celebrated in English, Spanish, and Indonesian. Translators were also key to building unity in communicating. 

Guest speaker Sue Park-Hur, Director of Racial/Ethnic Engagement for Mennonite Church USA, shared how, as women, when we struggle, we often try to hold our lives together by ourselves. We opened in prayer with Matthew 11:28-30 MSG, expressing how we are not alone, and God intends for us to live as one body.  

In John 17:20-23, Jesus had an intimate powerful conversation in prayer, demonstrating oneness with God. The disciples were sent in complete unity, and Jesus sends us to experience this same oneness and deep love together. The entire gospel of John invites us to practice this oneness. 

How do we do this? 

#1 Hospitality: Receiving a person with a heart of hospitality. Showing love for friends and strangers by washing their feet and providing them with food and shelter. What does this look like in your culture? 

#2 Invitation: Help others see Christ in our lives. Jesus invites us to risk rejection to invite strangers to experience oneness. The journey of discipleship and self-giving love is to serve, and you will also be served.  

Unity is found in radical hospitality rooted in Christ’s love. Jesus offers us sacrificial love, forgiveness, and restoration. The women gathered enjoyed small group table discussions in response to the message, to dig deeper and share ways they practiced love to others. 

Fellowship during lunch. Photo by Marta Castillo.

Charlene Smalls, Ripple pastor and member of the Faith and Life Commission, planned and served a delicious homemade meal made by volunteers. Each table was set with a stunning bouquet centerpiece of multi-colored flowers wrapped around pens. The sisters of Centro de Alabanza crafted these for us to take notes during session time. We enjoyed some brief time with the children before they returned to the childcare volunteers to continue their fun.  

In the afternoon session, women were invited to partner to express this oneness in love by drawing a cross onto each other’s hands and saying to their sister in Christ, “The Christ who lives in me, lives in you.” We held hands and worshiped with praise in song and prayer.  

Jenny Bishop-Kempf (Deep Run East), led a craft of glass bead magnets that magnified the words from John 17. These beautiful pieces will be a blessed reminder of Jesus’ love that lives in us and that we share with others.  

Curtis concluded the event with remarks focusing on our Lord’s sacrificial love, partaking in communion, and reminding us that the Christ living in us unites us.  

In the afternoon, women made a magnet craft using words from John 17. Photo by Marta Castillo. 

Lisa Stenger

For eleven years, Lisa Stenger has been the Office Administrator for Deep Run East Mennonite Church (Perkasie, PA). In addition to her primary job, she serves on the Mosaic Nominating Committee. She is a member of neighboring Deep Run West Mennonite Church. She and her husband, Howard, live in Bedminster, PA. They have two adult sons, a daughter-in-law, and a granddaughter.

The Art of the Mosaic Conference Office

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by Mosaic Conference Staff

Those who visit the Mosaic Conference Office, located on the campus of Dock Mennonite Academy in Lansdale, are greeted with a warm welcome, a hot beverage and a snack, and the beauty of unique art.  

Artist Phill Hunsberger (Vincent [Spring City, PA]), Ivan Derstine, and Mosaic Director of Finance Conrad Martin hang the Psalm 23 Tile Art. “The Lord’s Shepherd”

There are nearly 30 pieces of art in the offices, which have come from as far away as Indonesia, Kenya, Colombia, and Mexico, and were also created by artists from within Mosaic Conference congregations.   

Between 2020 and 2022, Emily Ralph Servant, now Leadership Minister for Strategic Priorities, led a team of staff who gathered artwork for the Mosaic Conference Office.

“As we designed our new office space, we wanted to be intentional about every choice we made to foster a sense of community, collaboration, and creativity,” Ralph Servant reflects. “We have so many gifted artists in our conference in a variety of mediums. At the same time, we discovered that members of our conference didn’t always know about the artists among us. It made sense to share the diversity of Mosaic art on our office walls—this is who we are!” 

The office features original paintings by Mosaic women: a Madonna image by Maria Gant who is originally from Brazil (Ambler [PA]); an abstract work by Donna Backues (Philadelphia Praise Center); a pastoral scene by Lois Kulp (Boyertown [PA]); a waterfall at Conference-Related Ministry Spruce Lake, painted by Berdine Leinbach (Souderton [PA]). 

Madonna by Maria Gant

Other walls are graced by pen and ink drawings, including a mandala by long-time Franconia staff member Gay Brunt Miller (Spring Mount [PA]) and two Frakturs, which ground Mosaic in its Pennsylvania Dutch roots as Franconia Conference and Eastern District. Fraktur is the traditional, ornate ink and watercolor folk art that typically offers a blessing or a scripture text. 

The office also features the intersection of art and woodworking: the tables in the break room and lobby were designed and built by Franconia board member Merlin Hartman to incorporate the Mosaic logo; potter Phill Hunsberger (Vincent [Spring City, PA]) shaped an 8-foot long graphic portrayal of the 23rd Psalm, displayed on aged hardwood; three works of art created by the winners of a youth art contest facilitated by Garden Chapel (Dover, NJ) during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic have been etched into wood panels. 

Across the alcove from the 23rd Psalm hangs a piece woven by participants in the programs of Mosaic Conference-Related Ministry Ripple Inc; nearby walls display a cross-stitch donated by Methacton (Norristown, PA), and a tapestry gifted to the conference from Nations Worship Center when they were received as a member congregation. 

“Hands of Friendship” quilt

In the conference room hangs the “Hands of Friendship” quilt that was created from 25 fabrics representing the cultures of 20 different countries from which Mosaic leaders come. The fabrics were gathered, pieced, and quilted by persons from across the Conference, under the leadership of Anna Ralph (Perkiomenville [PA]) and Lynne Rush (West Swamp [Quakertown, PA]). 

Much of the art was gifted to the Conference from individual artists or congregations. Some of it—like an original painting by Rodrigo Pedroza (a member of Mosaic’s sister conference of churches in Mexico) was commissioned in response to the question, “what does it mean to be part of a diverse Mennonite church in Mexico?” Some of it represents our broader connections to global Anabaptist communities, such as the mosaic of the Last Supper gifted to Mosaic Conference by César García, General Secretary of Mennonite World Conference.  

Brooke Martin, Youth and Community Formation Pastor, and Cindy Angela, Director of Communication identified where the artwork would go and helped to identify and label all of it. Angela also printed a collage of photos hung on the wall in the break area, of a variety of congregations and Conference-Related Ministries. 

“As people made in God’s image, we are inspired by God’s Spirit to create beauty from our experiences of joy, pain, longing, and hope,” reflects Ralph Servant. “We are grateful for the art that has emerged as members of Mosaic embody the reconciling love of Jesus in our broken and beautiful world.” 

Come and enjoy a cup of coffee, a snack, and a wander through the Mosaic Conference office to enjoy these beautiful works of art! The office is located in the Longacre Center at Dock Mennonite Academy, 1000 Forty Foot Rd in Lansdale. The office is open Tuesday– Thursday, 9am – 2pm eastern; please call ahead to confirm (267-932-6050).