Mosaic Mennonites

Missional - Intercultural - Formational

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Rev. Joshua So, A Faithful Servant Remembered

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Rev. Dr. Joshua So’s life and ministry left a lasting impact on many who walked alongside him in faith. As a pastor, mentor, and friend, he nurtured both individuals and the broader church community with humility, wisdom, and unwavering devotion to God. 

Wendy Kwong, a Mosaic Conference representative and member of Souderton Mennonite Church, worked closely with Rev. So and San Francisco Chinese Mennonite Church (SFCMC) after they joined the conference in 2019. “Rev. So was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather—and a faithful servant of the Lord,” she shared. “I remember how, during the pandemic, he stepped out of his comfort zone at age 74 to learn how to lead online worship and Bible study, with help from his daughter. His devotion moved me deeply.” She added that she continues to attend the weekly Chinese Bible study that Rev. So began, describing it as a spiritual blessing she never expected to experience. 

“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His faithful servants.” (Psalm 116:15 NIV) 

Rev. So’s Memorial Service. Photo by Hendy Matahelemual.

David Pang, deacon’s chair at SFCMC, first met Rev. So in 1993 and was shaped by his support and mentorship over three decades. “He was shepherd who dedicated his life to advancing God’s Kingdom, teaching through both word and deed,” Pang said. “His passion for the gospel was evident as he led the congregation to nursing homes and senior centers to evangelize. In 2016, I joined SFCMC at his sincere invitation, and through his trust and support, I grew in creativity, confidence, and spiritual maturity while serving the Lord.”  

Pang recalled that Rev. So preached one final time at SFCMC just weeks before his passing. “Though we grieve, we rejoice knowing he now rests in the Lord’s embrace. His legacy lives on, and the fruit of his labor will endure.” 

Lucy Xiao, a former deacon at SFCMC, remembered Rev. So’s compassion and the personal support he offered during her time of grief after immigrating to San Francisco. “He truly lived out ‘weep with those who weep,’” she said. “He was a bridge—especially during the pandemic—connecting people across churches and regions through online Bible study. His heart for the elderly, the isolated, and the spiritually hungry was evident in everything he did.” 

Hendy Matahelemual, Wendy Kwong, John Goshow, Kam Wong, Jeff Wright, Stephen Kriss, Joshua So, Anita So. Photo courtesy of Hendy Matahelemual.

“I am grateful for the ministry and friendship of Rev. Dr. Joshua So. His commitment to the church was unwavering,” reflected Mosaic Conference Executive Minister Stephen Kriss. 

“His life was committed to serving, leading, learning, and caring for people. I am grateful for his and Anita’s hospitality that helped me to learn to love San Francisco and embrace the possibilities and struggles for ministry there in the way of Christ’s peace.”    

Rev. So cared deeply about the lives, families, and spiritual needs of his congregation. He was always willing to help, no matter the hour, and when beyond his ability, he sought support through his network to ensure others received the care they needed. Many believers have said they chose SFCMC because it feels like home. Rev. So was a pastor we deeply respect. 

Below is Rev. So’s obituary:  

Rev. Joshua So, a faithful servant of God, has entered the glorious rest of the Lord

The founding pastor of San Francisco Chinese Mennonite Church, Rev. Dr. Joshua So was called home to be with the Lord on the afternoon of October 1, 2025, having sojourned on this earth for 79 years. 

Rev. So was born in 1946 in the rural village in the outskirts of Guangzhou, China. He was the oldest of four siblings and the first in his family to follow Christ. As a young man, he moved to Hong Kong with his grandfather and a younger cousin, hoping to immigrate to Canada. Life in Hong Kong was tough for him, yet by God’s grace, he came to faith in Jesus and remained steadfast in attending Sunday worship. Even when he returned home to an empty table, his devotion never wavered. But God had other plans-plans that led him to a lifelong calling in ministry. 

In 1966, he began seminary training at Alliance Bible Seminary in Cheung Chau, Hong Kong and Chung Chi College, Chinese University of Hong Kong. After graduation, while he was serving at a local church, a generous donor sponsored him with $1,000 USD, enabling him to come to America as a foreign exchange student to continue his theological and social work studies. He studied at Azusa Pacific University, Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, and San Francisco Theological Seminary. 

In 1980, Rev. So faithfully founded San Francisco Chinese Mennonite Church. Over the decades, he pastored many churches across the Bay Area and actively partnered with Chinese Christian organizations. His willingness to help others with no reservations led him to touch the lives of many people. Rev. So was always available to help—day or night. He didn’t believe in “business hours” when it came to serving others. His phone was always nearby, ready to answer the call of someone in need. Even after retiring from full-time ministry in 2023, he continued to serve as a hospice chaplain, lead Bible studies, and preach on Sundays. Hours before the Lord called him home, he had messaged many brothers and sisters saying he was ready for God to continue to use him. 

Rev. So was a loving husband and father, loyal friend, and a fervent and faithful servant to the Lord. Though his passing was sudden to us, we trust that nothing is ever a surprise to God. In His perfect timing, our gracious Heavenly Father saw that Rev. So had finished his work on earth and called him Home. Rev. So now stands joyfully before the throne of God, praising, “To God be the glory.” We give thanks to God from the depths of our hearts, for he has received the crown of life in the presence of the Lord. As Scripture reads, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” (Matthew 25:34, ESV) 

May the Lord Himself bring comfort to his wife, Mrs. Anita So; daughter Sharon; son-in-law Josiah; and granddaughter Emi. May we continue to remember them in our prayers. 

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.   

Introducing the Mosaic Priorities Guide: Living Our Intercultural, Formational, and Missional Priorities

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Hard copies of the Priorities Guide were distributed during the Friday night equipping session at the 2025 Conference Assembly.

At Mosaic Conference, our three core priorities—Intercultural, Formational, and Missional Transformation—guide how we grow as communities of faith. The Mosaic Priorities Guide: A Bible Study to Reflect on Our Shared Identity was created to help congregations, leaders, Conference-Related Ministries (CRMs), and Partners in Ministry (PIMs) move beyond simply naming these priorities to truly living them out in their unique contexts. 

The guide includes seven interactive lessons with a biblical story, discussion questions, and activities and spiritual practices in which those gathered can engage. Facilitators have access to outlines, resources, and handouts to make leading easier. The appendix provides sermon starters and additional activities.  

DOWNLOAD THE GUIDE IN ENGLISH, SPANISH, AND INDONESIAN at mosaicmennonites.org/leadersresources/ 

Why the Guide Exists 

Resources for reflection, growth, and shared discernment 

The guide was created to make space for listening to God, to one another, and to the diverse communities in which we serve. It is not an instructional manual, but offers invitations to slow down, notice God’s presence, and reflect together on how the Spirit is at work. Designed to be flexible, the guide allows formation and mission to emerge naturally from relationships, dialogue, and shared discernment. It can be used in a small group, Bible study, or as a sermon series.  

Intercultural Priority 

Loving with the eyes and heart of Jesus 

The Intercultural Priority helps communities grow in seeing and valuing people as God sees them. The guide encourages participants to love with the eyes and heart of Jesus, noticing the gifts, experiences, and perspectives of others with compassion and humility. By practicing empathy and attentive love, congregations, leaders, CRMs, and ministry partners create spaces where God’s Spirit shapes us together, fostering understanding, connection, and mutual care. 

One of the Spiritual Practice for the Intercultural Lesson: How to Create an Intercultural Community.

Formational Priority 

Knowing Christ and Growing in Christ 

One of the Spiritual Practice for the Formational Lesson: The Vineyard Coloring and Journaling Sheet

The Formational Priority focuses on how God is shaping us as followers of Jesus. The guide invites participants to know Christ and grow in Christ, using Scripture, reflections, spiritual practices, and conversation questions. This priority emphasizes personal and communal transformation, helping participants embody Jesus’ love and wisdom in everyday life, while encouraging mutual growth through shared experience. 

Missional Priority 

Living like Jesus: Sent to Connect and Share 

The Missional Priority explores what it means to live as people who are sent into the world in everyday life. Mission is not only about going somewhere far away, but about noticing God’s movement in our neighborhoods, workplaces, and daily relationships. The guide encourages communities to act with openness and compassion, living like Jesus through connecting with others and sharing God’s love, fostering mutual transformation as God’s work unfolds among us. 

One of the Spiritual Practice for the Missional Lesson: The Missional Lanes

Using the Guides 

Flexible tools for congregations, leaders, CRMs, and ministry partners 

The guides can be used in congregations, ministry teams, small groups, or intergenerational gatherings. They work best when participants share experiences, listen deeply, and notice the transformation happening in the process. 

The Mosaic Priority Guides are available on the Mosaic website. We invite communities to engage with them in ways that fit their language, culture, and rhythm of life. As we journey together, may we continue to be formed as communities for God’s mission, carried by the Spirit, and sent with the good news of Jesus, right where we are. 

DOWNLOAD THE GUIDE IN ENGLISH, SPANISH, AND INDONESIAN at mosaicmennonites.org/leadersresources/ 

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.   

Ministerial Committee Update – September 2025

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The Ministerial Committee makes decisions on ministry credentials and policies that promote the support, health, and training of credentialed leaders and safe church practices for congregations. They meet quarterly to act on recommendations from the credentialing committee, review and revise current policies around credentialed leaders, and provide leadership in cases of misconduct.

Report from the September 3, 2025, Ministerial Committee Meeting  

Committee Actions   

Credentialing

License Toward Ordination (LTO) – grants the person all the privileges and responsibilities accorded to an ordained person, except to ordain someone else. This license is issued for a three-year period with the purpose of testing the inner and outer call to ministry, further discerning of ministerial gifts, abilities and aptitude and may or may not lead to ordination.  

  • Zacharie René, Pastor of Outreach, Lakeview Mennonite (North East, PA) 

Ordination – grants the person the full range of ministerial privileges and responsibilities. This is a long-term, leadership ministry credential appropriate for all pastors, area conference ministry staff, chaplains, missionaries, evangelists, and those determined by the church to have a continuing ministerial-leadership role in, and on behalf of, the church. 

  • Angelia Susanto, Nations Worship Center (Philadelphia, PA)  

Transfer of Retired Credentials – held by those who have retired from active ministry.

  • Robert Petersheim (transfer retired from ACC)  

Reactivation 

  • Jenny Fujita (license towards ordination process) 

License Extension – This LTO is issued for a three-year period with the purpose of testing the inner and outer call to ministry, further discerning of ministerial gifts, abilities and aptitude and may or may not lead to ordination. It is extended for three more years as needed. 

  • Héctor Quiñones – Garden Chapel (Victory Gardens, PA)  

License Extension for Specific Ministry – is time, location, or ministry specific and is extended every three years as needed. 

  • Joe Paparone – Bethany Mennonite (Bridgewater Corners, VT) 
  • Yakub Limanto – Bethany Elevation (Elmhurst, NY)  

Retired – held by those who have retired from active ministry. 

  • Roy Williams, North Tampa (College Hill) 

Active without Charge – held by those not presently holding a ministry assignment 

  • Mike Ford, resigned from Zion Mennonite 

Credentialing Status Renewal Update 

  • 100% complete! The board thanks Marta Castillo and Stacey Mansfield for their work. 

Upcoming Conversations 

  • Healthy Boundaries Training for pastors
  • Review of Credentialing Procedure Update 

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.   

Considering One Another

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by Noel Santiago

In these days of transition and reflection across our Mosaic community, Hebrews 10:24 gently invites us to “consider how we might stir one another toward love and good works.” This call reminds us that even amid uncertainty, we are invited to notice, support, and encourage one another. 

We recognize that recent decisions regarding community life and ministry directions have stirred a wide range of feelings, including grief, anger, and confusion for some, and peace or renewed direction for others. Wherever we find ourselves, God’s Spirit meets us in honesty and love.  

Scripture reminds us that our first calling is to stay rooted in Jesus and to be present with one another in care. Simple acts such as listening deeply, offering a word of encouragement, or sharing a meal can embody this presence. 

In this context of varied emotions, because of Jesus, we have a “new and living way” into God’s presence, a way marked by grace rather than fear and by mercy rather than striving. In times of uncertainty, we are invited again to draw near, resting, listening, and being renewed in God’s presence. Participating in shared prayer, small group reflection, or quiet moments of attentiveness to one another are ways we can practice this nearness. 

From this closeness flows our capacity to love. To “consider one another” means slowing down enough to truly see and know each other, listening to the joys and burdens that shape our shared life. This attentiveness nurtures us as a faith family, helping us serve, witness, and grow together in empathy, patience, and mutual encouragement. 

As we continue forward, may we choose to be a people who encourage, challenge, and bless each other in love. While the world often amplifies division, we have the gift of practicing reconciliation, patience, and hope together through conversations, acts of service, and gentle presence in each other’s lives. 

May the God of endurance and encouragement grant us the grace to live in such harmony that, with one voice, we glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 15:5–6). 

Noel Santiago

Noel Santiago is the Leadership Minister for Missional Transformation for Mosaic Conference.

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To contact Noel Santiago, please email nsantiago@mosaicmennonites.org.

Breathing Deep as We Move Forward Together as Mosaic

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by Stephen Kriss

A few weeks ago, my blood pressure reading was high at the beginning of my doctor’s visit. The provider said, “We’re going to take it again after you settle into the office.” Toward the end of the appointment, she told me to take a few deep breaths and repeated the reading. It was down significantly. 

The next thing for us as Mosaic is to take a deep breath. The past months have been intense for many of us. While there’s a sense of urgency around us, I hope our leaders, board, staff, and delegates can lean into a peaceable Thanksgiving, Advent, and Christmas season. Our church and sociopolitical landscape have been overwhelming for many of us, and I hope we can rest in the Advent themes of watching and waiting, hope and joy.

The board’s recommendation on affiliation was a both/and statement. It recommended discontinuing our membership with Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) and moving toward healthy, mutual partnerships. Orienting toward health and mutuality requires that we begin to process our collective anxiety and grief. 

For Mosaic’s congregations that wish to maintain formal membership in Mennonite Church USA, we’ve begun initial conversations with Allegheny and New York Conferences about ways to do that. Dual affiliation will require extra energy—holding onto Mosaic while connecting with another conference—but it is possible.   

Just as we offered lovingkindness several years ago to congregations that wished to detach from MC USA, we will offer the same gesture of navigating to those who desire to remain connected. If the MC USA structure allowed congregations to directly affiliate with MC USA, we would be open to that arrangement too. At this point, it does not. 

Mosaic will need to continue to invest in building relationships across differences. Our conference is full of all sorts of diversity. Our centering document provides a foundation for commonality amid our unique Anabaptist expressions. It is the way forward that also hearkens back to some of the earliest shared Anabaptist practices (like some of those that Stuart Murray Williams highlights in The New Anabaptists).  

Our ongoing work includes living out our commitment to being an intercultural community, creating space for every form of diversity to be brought into the kin-dom of God toward transformation and flourishing.  

Practically speaking, we will begin conversations in the new year around membership with Mennonite World Conference. This process will likely include some mediation with Mennonite Church USA (if they agree), and discernment to find our place at the global Anabaptist table. This will require patience and intentionality—we cannot barge our way in. In the meantime, we’ll work to strengthen relationships with other conferences and Anabaptist expressions to broaden our connections.  

For credentialed leaders, your credentials are already held by Mosaic. The Corinthian Plan remains in place for those enrolled. While MC USA-appointed board and committee terms will end this month, our board and committee work with Mennonite Central Committee, Everence, Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Goshen College and Eastern Mennonite University remain unchanged. We are working our way toward how we will partner with MennoMedia and Mennonite Mission Network.   

Amid these changes, we will honor the Spirit’s work in us by celebrating what is good amid what is hard. I’m grateful for the new congregations that joined us this fall. We rejoice in the new leaders that have been called and sent to our Mosaic communities. We celebrate the gathered time at Souderton (PA) Mennonite, where our diversity becomes real life for a day in all its complexity and wonder. 

Paul reminds us in the first letter to the church at Corinth that the Spirit brings life—and that the Spirit is also breath. To my siblings in Mosaic: for now, let us breathe deeply, embrace the Spirit around us, within us, and within those different from us. Let us move toward God’s dream for us all, though we are broken and beautiful.  

Stephen Kriss

Stephen Kriss is the Executive Minister of Mosaic Conference.

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts with Stephen Kriss, contact him at skriss@mosaicmennonites.org.

A Spirit-Filled 2025 Assembly – Be My Witnesses

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“I am grateful for a God who gathers us in together. I am grateful for a conference who is willing to wrestle together, who is willing to speak, invite, challenge, and be honest,” shared Leadership Minister for Intercultural Transformation Danilo Sanchez in his opening remarks at Mosaic Mennonite Conference’s Annual Assembly on November 1, 2025.  

Leadership Minister of Intercultural Transformation Danilo Sanchez opens the worship in prayer.

“I don’t know how the Spirit will show up today, but we are grateful for your presence here and the God that we serve,” he continued.  

The morning began with vibrant worship led by a team representing seven nations and at least nine languages. The team sang in each other’s languages, embodying the rich diversity of the conference. Worship leader Makinto wrote a new song for the gathering, “We Are Your Witnesses.” 

The Assembly’s theme, Be My Witnesses (Acts 1:6-8,), was introduced through Scripture read in six of the conference’s languages—Cantonese, Russian, Indonesian, Kirundi, English, and Spanish. 

(The worship livestream is available here; more photos are available here). 

The worship team led songs of praise in many of Mosaic’s worshipping languages.
All who gathered praised the Lord.

In her sermon, Rev. Dr. Meghan Larissa Good cast a vision for renewed Anabaptist witness, rooted in Jesus as the center of everything. Reflecting on the temptation for Anabaptists to “be proud of our humility,” she reminded participants that it is Jesus’ kingdom that matters, not our particular brand. 

“If there is one thing that will be the death of our witness in the next 50 years, it will be trying to save our own lives,” Good challenged. “A church equipped for witness is one that is postured and prepared to give its life away for something better.” 

“God excludes nobody. God wastes nobody. If you want to be part of the mission of Jesus, the answer is ‘yes,’” she encouraged. 

Executive Minister Stephen Kriss prays for Assembly preacher Rev. Dr. Meghan Larissa Good.

The time of worship included a welcome and prayer for three new member congregations: Iglesia Menonita del Cordero (Brownsville, TX); Iglesia Menonita Fuente de Agua Viva (Los Fresnos, TX); and Redemption Church of Bristol (PA). 

Iglesia Menonita del Cordero (Brownsville, TX) was one of three congregations welcomed as Mosaic members during worship.

Participants also honored five credentialed leaders who had died in the past year and recognized two congregations (Salem Mennonite [Quakertown, PA] and Vincent Mennonite [Spring City, PA]) and a Conference-Related Ministry (Spruce Lake Retreat [Canadensis, PA]), that had left Mosaic.  

Sixteen Mosaic leaders—newly credentialed, newly ordained, transferring credentials, and credential reaffirmed—were anointed and then offered anointing for all who wished to receive it. 

Newly credentialed and ordained leaders receive anointing and then anoint those who came forward.

During the morning session, 165 delegates committed to guidelines for respectful communication, and shared communion, and engaged in conversation around the board’s recommendation around denominational affiliation.

(Read more about the delegate sessions and the vote on affiliation with MC USA.) 

Lunch followed, offering time for fellowship and connection with leaders from Mosaic’s Conference-Related Ministries (CRMs) and other partner agencies. 

In the afternoon, Makinto and Mukarabe Makinto, Associate Pastors of LA (CA) Faith Chapel and Co-Directors of CRM Amahoro International, led the group in an embodied peacebuilding and drumming ritual guided by Acts 1:6-8. 

Participants were invited to reflect in table groups on Mosaic Conference’s new Centering Document (see: A Mosaic Identity: Clarifying our Center) and offer verbal and written feedback.   

Beny Krisbianto, pastor of Nations Worship Center (Philadelphia, PA) noted that his table group emphasized that keeping Jesus at the center of Conference life will bear much fruit, and that listening to one another amid many differences will lead to a “rich theology.” 

At the close of the discussion on the Centering Document, Emily Ralph Servant, Leadership Minister for Strategic Priorities, shared, “All of your table feedback is shared with the board. This is a living document. As they continue to receive your feedback, they’ll continue working on expressing who we are.”  

The conference recognized board members who are completing their terms at the end of the year: Kiron Mateti (Plains Mennonite [Hatfield, PA]), Angela Moyer Walter (Ripple Church [Allentown, PA]), Herman Sagastume (Healthy Niños Honduras), and Rodger Schmell (Deep Run West [Perkasie, PA]). 

Beyond Saturday’s main gathering, the weekend included “Witness Together,” on Friday night: an evening of worship, intercultural relationship building, and equipping on Mosaic’s three core priorities of formational, missional, and intercultural transformation. On Sunday, numerous Pennsylvania congregations received visits by Mosaic leaders and guest preachers from Mosaic pastors and partner agencies.   

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.   

Delegates Affirm Mosaic Board’s Recommendation to Leave MC USA with 74% Support

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Over 300 people gathered for Mosaic Mennonite Conference’s annual Assembly on November 1, 2025, at Souderton (PA) Mennonite’s meetinghouse. Centered on the theme “Be My Witnesses” (Acts 1:6-8), the day opened with worship and opportunities to deepen relationships (a report on more of the Assembly, including worship, is available here).   

Those gathered shared in communion during the morning delegate session.

During the morning delegate session, attendees shared communion, recognized board and committee members, and affirmed incoming board members and committee chairs: 

  • Roy Williams, Conference Moderator (3-year term, beginning Jan. 2026) (College Hill Mennonite, Tampa, FL) 
  • Janet Panning, Assistant Moderator (3-year term, beginning Jan. 2026) (Plains Mennonite, Hatfield, PA) 
  • Jim Musselman, Board Secretary (3rd term, beginning Jan. 2026) (Zion Mennonite, Souderton, PA) 
  • Haroldo Nunes, at-large member (1st term) (Resplandece Mennonite, Florida, Colombia and hybrid)  
  • Jenny Fujita, at-large member (1st term) (Blooming Glen [PA] Mennonite) 
  • Lucy Hananto Parsono, at-large member (2nd term) (International Worship Center, San Gabriel, CA) 
  • Michael Howes, Ministerial Committee Chair (1st term) (West Swamp Mennonite, Quakertown, PA)  
  • Lindy Backues, Conference-Related Ministry Committee Chair (1st term) (Philadelphia [PA] Praise Center) 
  • Emmanuel Mwaipopo, Intercultural Committee Chair (1st term) (Nueva Vida Norristown [PA] New Life) 
Delegates gathered at tables.
Mukarabe and Makinto (LA Faith Chapel) led those gathered in a drumming and peacemaking ritual focused on Acts 1:6-8.

Board Recommendation on Affiliation 

The Mosaic Executive Committee shared with delegates the rationale for the recommendation “to discontinue Mosaic Mennonite Conference’s membership with Mennonite Church USA and cultivate healthy mutual partnerships with Mennonite Church USA, Mennonite World Conference, and other Anabaptist communities.”

“The board does not make this recommendation lightly,” said Conference Moderator Angela Moyer Walter. “For some of us the relationship has been healthy, and we are experiencing significant loss and disorientation, and for others of us it has been painful, and we were ready to discontinue membership last year. Our task as your leaders is to make a recommendation on what is best for the whole of Mosaic.”  

Moyer Walter noted that efforts to explore new partnership structures with MC USA revealed significant tensions. “Our current membership excludes too many and cuts us off from relationships that are emerging and flourishing,” she said. “When we addressed these issues with MC USA, we were met with dismissiveness, minimization, and rigidity rather than creative collaboration.”  

“MC USA counseled reconciliation, and that requires all parties involved to be willing to be honest, listen to understand, and make the necessary changes for healing to take place. MC USA has remained rigid in their responses to us, telling us what to do rather than finding solutions together, and writing letters rather than speaking to us face to face.”  

Assistant Moderator Roy Williams added, “This has been a sad year because MC USA is no longer what I helped put together in the late 90s. From the start, it needed tending and updates because there were so many concessions that were made for it to get off the ground. But they never happened. Now they are in desperate need to update their structures, but rather than working with us to find solutions, they chose to stick with those structures….We cannot allow their rigidity and unwillingness to navigate the changing demographics in the church and world to negatively influence the health and life we find in Mosaic.”  

Delegates engaged in table conversation around the board’s recommendation around affiliation, and table leaders were invited to report back what was shared within their groups.  

Sonya Stauffer Kurtz (Zion Mennonite) reports back from her table group.
Delegates who gathered in southern California. Photo courtesy of Hendy Matahelemual.
Danilo Sanchez reports back for the virtual table group who participated via Zoom.

“It is decision time,” shared Jeannine Adams of Garden Chapel (Victory Gardens, NJ), “Going forward, we need to listen, whatever happens, and the leadership at all levels needs to listen and be supportive.”  

In the afternoon, delegates were asked to vote on the board’s recommendation, using a green-yellow-red system. Of the 165 delegates from congregations and Conference-Related Ministries (CRMs), 64% of delegates voted “green” (affirm the recommendation); 10% voted “yellow” (yield to the recommendation); 23% voted “red” (do not affirm); and 3% abstained (according to Mosaic Conference bylaws, abstentions are counted as “no” votes).  

With 74% overall support, the vote passed—exceeding the two-thirds majority required for bylaw changes. 

Before announcing results, Leadership Minister for Missional Transformation Noel Santiago invited reflection, “Our story together is larger than any one decision. Whatever we may feel—joy, grief, anger, uncertainty—God welcomes that and holds us in mercy and grace. When the results are announced, we invite everyone to hold this time gently, letting our response be quiet and prayerful, so we can stay attentive to God and to one another.”  

Conference Moderator Angela Moyer Walter and Board Secretary Jim Musselman announce the results of the two delegate votes.

Moving Foward

Following the vote, Williams, who begins his term as Moderator in January 2026, affirmed his commitment: “I am trained to serve where I am called, and I will do that with Mosaic.”  

Executive Minister Stephen Kriss thanked delegates for their discernment and acknowledged the gravity of the moment. “We have done serious and historic and painful work today,” he said. “I am committed to us living into our vision and mission, and to creating space where you all can flourish as communities and individuals.”  

Kriss emphasized that congregations who wish to maintain a connection to MC USA should inform their leadership minister. “We will work alongside congregations who wish to maintain that connection, and I am committed to helping those congregations who wish to maintain dual memberships to have that option even though it does not currently exist in our bylaws.”  

He highlighted the spirit in which Mosaic hopes to move forward: “We will continue to be people of Christ’s peace. We will continue to have to work at difficult things. This gives us space and challenge to continue to navigate who God is calling us to be.” 

Calling the outcome a “both/and vote,” Kriss noted that the decision was not only to end membership but also to build new, healthy partnerships. “The work for us now is to stay at the table and extend those relationships further.” 

Mosaic Mennonite Conference’s formal discontinuation of membership with MC USA took effect on November 3, 2025. 

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.   

A Letter to Mosaic Conference Delegates

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To our Mosaic Mennonite Conference delegates and constituents: 

I recommend voting a respectful RED (No) vote at the Mosaic Mennonite Conference Assembly. 

The Mosaic Mennonite Conference Board and the Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) Board have been in very difficult circumstances since the November 2024 Mosaic delegate vote. That vote, which passed with 40% affirmation (and 31% yielding, for a total of 71%), directed the Mosaic Board to establish a partnership with MC USA, while Mosaic is still a member conference. Throughout this past year, MC USA continued to relate to Mosaic as a member conference, and communication was difficult for both entities.  

The Mosaic Board has partially followed through on the directive given by the action of the November 2024 delegates by bringing the proposal to withdraw from MCUSA to this November 2025 assembly. They have not been able to follow through on the directive to establish a robust partnership with MC USA. However, it can be recognized that they tried to do so, and their November 2025 proposal still hopes to establish a partnership. 

Several significant things have occurred since the November 2024 delegate vote which the delegates of the November 2025 assembly can carefully consider: 

  1. MC USA Executive Board has offered to engage in mediation with the Mosaic Board. That offer remains open.
  2. Leaders at the MC USA Assembly in July 2025 informed us as members of MC USA that we will be engaging in a restructuring process, which is something that the Mosaic board and staff have stated that MC USA needs to do. 

A respectful RED (No) vote: 

  1. Is appreciative of the difficult work of the Mosaic Board in the past year.
  2. Is appreciative of the difficult weight placed on the Mosaic Board to decide what action to bring to the delegate assembly this November 2025.
  3. Frees the Mosaic Board to engage in mediation or not engage in mediation with MC USA. It does not require a timeline for this possible engagement. The Mosaic Board can focus on the work of being Mosaic, which is what they stated in May that they want to do. They can do so without needing to make major transitions to absorb the work that MC USA has been doing for us.
  4. Frees us as people who are part of congregations who are part of Mosaic and part of MC USA to participate in both the conference and the denomination. We will continue to be able to: 
    • Relate as a sibling conference with the other 14 conferences of MCUSA. Mosaic members are approximately 1/6th of the membership of MCUSA. We can bless and receive blessings by being part of this wider church together with all the other MC USA members.
    • Send representational delegates to the Mennonite Convention, and whether we are delegates or not, we can enjoy the opportunities for spiritual growth and relationship building through workshops, Bible studies, worship services, and service opportunities for children, youth, and adults.
    • Send leaders to be a part of the Constituency Leadership Council for the purpose of fellowship and support, and to give counsel to the MCUSA executive board, staff, and broader church.
    • Receive resources and collaborate in the making of resources in Mennonite education, Christian life and faith, singing, Hispanic ministries, church planting, women in leadership, undoing racism, and climate justice.
    • Receive the benefits of pastoral search and pastoral transition leadership that MC USA provides.
    • Apply for scholarships for BIPOC students attending Mennonite schools. 
    • Jointly witness for peace with our siblings across the Mennonite Church in the U.S.
    • Support and participate in the restructuring process for MC USA. This is really important – we can be a part of this process.  

A respectful RED (No) vote recognizes that there is an opportunity for reconciliation to take place and invites God’s creative work within the people who have been part of Mosaic and part of MC USA who have experienced brokenness. 

A respectful RED (No) vote is freeing, bringing us to a new place which is not stuck in the same jam that we have been in during the past year. 

I write this with humility, knowing that I do not fully understand all the factors involved for everyone in this situation. This is simply my best analysis of the circumstances that we are in during this time.  

Maribeth Benner

Maribeth Benner is a Mennonite pastor, teacher, educational leader, and mother of two young adult daughters. Maribeth lives in Telford, Pennsylvania with her husband Darin.

Mosaic values two-way communication and encourages our constituents to respond with feedback, questions, or encouragement. To share your thoughts or send a message to the author(s), contact us at communication@mosaicmennonites.org.