Mosaic Mennonites

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Conference Update Regarding Pastoral Misconduct Allegation & Process

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The Mosaic Conference Board has called on the Mosaic Ministerial Committee to review conference policy regarding the holding of ministerial credentials for Conference Related Ministries (CRM) leaders.  

In September of 2021, Mosaic Conference committed to developing an internal review process in response to allegations of misconduct at Dock Mennonite Academy (Lansdale, PA). Soon after, an official complaint was filed with Mosaic Conference, accusing Dock Academy’s Superintendent, Conrad Swartzentruber, of failing to protect the children in the school’s care. Swartzentruber has been ordained by Mosaic since 2020 and is a member of Plains Mennonite Church (Hatfield, PA). 

In accordance with Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) policies regarding allegations of misconduct against credentialed leaders, Mosaic Conference responded by placing a hold on internal investigations.  Mosaic Conference then moved forward to contract with external investigators to ascertain whether or not the allegation was founded. According to denominational policies, public communication was paused until the external investigation was completed. 

In early April 2022, the external team presented a confidential report to the Mosaic Ministerial Committee that recommended Swartzentruber be charged.  On April 7, the Ministerial Committee met to discern whether to follow through with this recommendation. The committee considered the evidence that the investigation team had gathered but, in a contested decision, declined to charge Swartzentruber.  

The minutes of the Ministerial Committee then went to the Conference Board on May 16 for affirmation. The Board acknowledged a lack of clarity for the charge and requested additional information from the investigation team.  This additional information was reviewed at the July 18 Board meeting, concluding the external investigation process.   

In considering the conference process, the Board identified some deeper issues within conference polity and structure that need to be addressed. One of the challenges revealed in the external investigation was the potential incompatibility between leadership of a non-profit organization, with its accompanying legal responsibilities, and the commitment that credentialed leaders make with the Giving and Receiving Counsel process, the primary accountability structure for the Conference’s credentialed leaders. In response, the Board has called on the Ministerial Committee to review the Conference policy on holding credentials for CRM leaders. 

Additionally, the report emphasized a weakness in the Conference’s leadership minister structure, which primarily provides accountability to the lead pastor of congregations, leaving potential gaps in support and accountability for credentialed leaders in other roles. This structure was developed by the Leadership Minister Team and will be reviewed and revised in conversation with the Ministerial Committee. 

Finally, the report identified the need for a clearer communication plan around misconduct investigations. The process, developed within the wider denomination, mandates a shutdown of communication during an external investigation, yet this lack of communication can create mistrust among members of the affected community, particularly survivors of abuse. The report suggested that often the institution is protected using the “guise of confidentiality.” Conference staff have committed to working with Mennonite Church USA to develop a new policy that honors confidentiality while also empowering survivors and providing transparency to the process. 

Both Mosaic’s Ministerial Committee and Board agreed that there were significant flaws in the process. “These kind of processes challenge our system and community because of the infrequency of complaints” reflected Mosaic’s Executive Minister, Steve Kriss. “Policies are created for hypothetical scenarios and then, when a complaint is filed, it often doesn’t play out that way in reality,” he said.  “This process was imperfect, and we are challenged now to continue to work at issues of restoration and hope for the many who have been involved and affected.”   

The events of the last few months have highlighted the need for Mosaic Conference to continue to adjust and change to more fully “embody the reconciling love of Jesus in our broken and beautiful world.” The Board hopes that these learnings strengthen commitments to healthy relationships, mutual accountability, and the cultivation of safe spaces for the vulnerable among us.  

Mosaic Conference takes allegations of abuse or misconduct seriously (resources for Safe Churches). If you have information about an instance of child abuse in your ministry context, please report it by calling the child abuse hotline for your state:  

CA: list of phone numbers by county
FL: 1-800-962-2873
MD: list of phone numbers by county
NJ: 1-877-652-2873
NY: 1-800-342-3720
PA: 1-800-932-0313
VT: 1-800-649-5285

Mosaic Conference to Review Relationships with Mennonite Church USA

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On July 18, the Mosaic Conference Board moved to form a task force to lead a listening process and review of the Conference’s relationships with Mennonite Church USA (MC USA).  The task force will be made up of Board members, staff, and nominated members from across the Conference’s diverse constituency. The task force’s goal is to listen to each Mosaic community and ministry and to provide direction for further discernment at the upcoming Annual Assembly on November 4-5.  We welcome your nominations to the task force. (Nomination deadline is Tuesday, August 2.) 

Task Force Nominations are due Tuesday, August 2. 

Nominate Someone

At the July meeting, the Board reviewed numerous letters from Mosaic congregations, pastors, and leaders, urging action in considering the ongoing relationships with MC USA.  For many, the resolutions and decision-making processes at the MC USA Special Delegate Session in May demonstrated a disconnect with the denomination and Mosaic Conference’s formation document and mission.  

Meanwhile, the Board also underscored the significance of prayer in the coming weeks together. Following the Conference’s listening sessions in June, a listening prayer initiative, led by staff, began. The call to prayer is an invitation to hear what the Spirit is saying in the midst of this time of discernment together. Prayer groups have already formed across the Conference, but more are welcome (click here to register). For more information contact Marta Castillo, Associate Executive Minister.  

The Board is committed to a thorough, thoughtful, and timely process of listening and discerning. At this time, the Board expects that the task force will take time to first listen to all Mosaic communities, then follow up with more conversations at Assembly scattered sessions in the early fall. With over 8,000 members in nearly 100 member communities and ministries, spread from coast to coast and working in multiple languages, listening to the Spirit as well as each other will require careful and thoughtful attention. 

“While we recognize the urgency for some of us in reconsidering the relationships with Mennonite Church USA, the reign of God continues to unfold among us” says Stephen Kriss, Executive Minister.  “New pastors continue to be called, new churches continue to form, needs and possibilities are expressed and met. We must continue the good work that God has begun through us as Mosaic in the midst of this process.”   

The Board hopes to have the task force named by mid-August. Because Conference delegates must be notified of any balloting processes a month before the November Assembly, a tight timeline may be required for the task force’s work. The task force will need to be prepared to work diligently and collaboratively.  Watch Mosaic News for updates in the coming weeks.

Speak, Lord, We Are Listening

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By Marta Castillo, Associate Executive Minister 

Photo by Marta Castillo.

As we move through our process of preparation, conversation, and discernment for Fall Assembly (Nov. 4-5), the Mosaic Prayer Team invites you to listen to the Holy Spirit through prayer and fasting as individuals, congregations, and small groups. By entering a posture of listening prayer, as in I Samuel 3, we allow God to speak. We then can share what we have heard through the Spirit, as the early church declared, “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us,” (Acts 15:28a, NIV) 

The theme for Mosaic’s fall Assembly is Chesed (חֶסֶד) God’s loving kindness, based on Psalm 116 and 117. As the psalmist wrote, we too believe that God’s unhesitating, constant love (chesed) will not be shaken.  

Together, Mosaic Conference remembers God’s goodness, and we commit to extending God’s unhesitating, constant love to a broken and beautiful world.  We are inviting you to listening prayer and join us as we ask to hear from God, Jesus, and Holy Spirit for wisdom.  

How to be involved:

  1. An individual, congregation, or small group commits to a week or a certain day each week (which may include regularly scheduled prayer times) to pray and fast as God leads you during July and August. 
  2. Register your commitment to joining us here, so we can support each other. 
  3. We will be hosting two Zoom events and invite you to participate in either or both. Zoom links will be sent to you when you register your commitment.  Events will be held:
    • Wednesday, July 20, 7pm ET/4pm PT
    • Wednesday, August 10, 7pm ET/4pm PT
  4. At the end of August, report back to the Mosaic Prayer team (via Marta Castillo) about your experience and what you heard through your Listening Prayers. These reports will be shared with the Mosaic Board.  

If listening prayer is new for your group, here is a suggested format: 

  • Read Scripture together. (One suggestion would be Psalm 116 or 117) 
  • Listen in silence for God’s Spirit to speak. (5-10 minutes) 
  • Write down or make note of what you hear as individuals. 
  • Share in the group. 
  • Repeat by reading another Scripture or focus on a prayer point (see below). 
  • Listen in silence for God’s Spirit to speak. (5-10 minutes) 
  • Write down or make note of what you hear. 
  • Share in the group. 
  • Repeat as time allows. 
  • Discuss what would you like to share back to the larger community. (Listen for larger themes, the voice of the community, and consensus, but also listen for the minority voice.)

As you pray, you may also want to ask these questions or prayer points, and listen for a response through prayer:  

  • How do we keep Jesus in the center? 
  • How does God want to form our churches to be places of radical hospitality, inviting and engaging all people regardless of race, ethnicity, age, gender, lifestyle, or socio-economic status? 
  • How does God desire to bring transformation to all of us?  
  • How is God calling us to repent?  
  • How does God want us to live, work, and dialogue with those who hold differing views?
  • How is God calling us to be communities of faith that are full of grace and full of truth?
  • How can we pray for our leaders? (Mosaic Board meetings are July 18 and September 19; Executive Board Committee meeting is August 3.)

Groups who have already committed to participate: 

  • Mosaic’s weekly Prayer Group – Wednesdays, 12-1 pm ET (weekly Zoom link) – anyone is welcome to join! 
  • Upper Milford Mennonite Church (Zionsville, PA) 
  • Methacton Mennonite Church (Norristown, PA) 
  • Blooming Glen (PA) Mennonite Church 
  • Centro de Alabanza (South Philadelphia, PA) 

Marta Castillo

Marta Castillo is the Associate Executive Minister for Mosaic Conference. Marta lives in Norristown, PA, with her husband, Julio, and has three sons, Christian, Andres and Daniel and one granddaughter, Isabel.

What One Question Can Lead To

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by Lisa Stenger

At the 2018 Fall Assembly, Scott Roth, Mosaic Conference Leadership Minister, asked, “What would it look like to become part of a Rooted Networking Church?” Roth encouraged us to think of the opportunities and possibilities if we connected and shared resources with other churches within our Conference.

You don’t have to ask me twice. The branches of networking began to take form in my head before I returned home from that Assembly. There is value in communing as believers in Christ, encouraging one another, and praying together for our volunteer work and workplace.

Roth’s words stuck in my head while I processed, “The key to connecting starts with conversations and creating relationships.” I thought about each place I served: church member, Conference delegate, church librarian, Elder, women’s ministry, youth sponsor, and Office Administrator. I asked myself, “How could I connect with people in these areas to “Be” and “Seek” support, so that we can grow and prosper in God’s purpose together?”

Soon after, I scheduled a time with an Elder from another Conference church for some coffee. Our relationship continues today, four years later, even though we both are no longer serving in the ministry of Elder. We continue to support one another in new areas that God has orchestrated in our lives.

I also was inspired to connect with other Office Administrators and Secretaries from some Mosaic churches located near me. Since February 2019, the Office Administrators and Secretaries from five Mosaic churches (Blooming Glen, Deep Run East, Deep Run West, Line Lexington, and Souderton) have been gathering twice a year. We eat and pray together. We also share about our professional life, share resources, and encourage and support one another. We each take turns hosting and during the pandemic we met through Zoom. It is a delightful building of relationships and valuable resource to encounter. We continue to share and inquire throughout the year even when we are not meeting.

Office Administrators and Secretaries from 5 Mosaic Churches recently gathered. Back row (L-R) Phil Detweiler (Souderton), Gretchen Cook (Blooming Glen), Robyn Hamm (Souderton); Front row (L-R) Lisa Stenger (Deep Run East), Michelle Ahn-Doettger (Blooming Glen), Heidi Murphy (Deep Run West). Not pictured, Carla Ferrier (Line Lexington). Photo provided by Lisa Stenger.

A local community need came to the Deep Run East staff and we were discerning how to respond. It prompted me with a new opportunity to reach out beyond the Conference. I wrote to a number of churches in a group email, introduced myself as the Office Administrator, and shared concern for this community need. I was able to ask for them to share their experiences and suggestions.

From my original email, this resource network has grown to include 56 contacts such as non-profits, law enforcement, and many community churches of different denominations. We share rental forms, internal office resources, names and how we assist, and so much more. Recently several different denominational churches came together to help a family in need due to this networking group. This is what I find to be a global job for Jesus, “To equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.” (Ephesians 4:12, NIV)

There are many other wonderful relationships that have blossomed through one person’s words of encouragement. Let’s disciple through our own experiences that inspire questions and conversations to connect the greater church for God’s purpose. Become a Rooted Networking member of God’s church.

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 Nomination 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.

An Urban Minister Reflects on Farming and Prayer

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Most of my life I have lived at the western edge of the Sonoran Desert. Inland southern California has neither enough good topsoil or enough water to have sustainable harvests without assistance. We import food or someone else’s water to build up our topsoil.  Living in Pennsylvania this year has helped me to think about the different ecosystems of my life.   

As a more regular inhabitant of PA, I have come to recognize that God’s good creation (above sea level) and all of God’s very good humanity are dependent on two things: six inches of healthy topsoil and the presence of rain.  Without those two ingredients, nothing God has made for the land survives.   

In the church, we need a healthy ecosystem too. It is built on the spiritual topsoil of historic longevity, the complex relationships of closely-knit families, and many people of different cultures. Spiritual topsoil also requires distribution into wild areas, cultivated spaces, and lived-in realities.  But we also need rain.  The atmosphere needs to be stirred and water vapor needs to be condensed into drops that fall on our organized topsoil, creating watersheds of life and hope together.  In short, we need a vision shaped by two ingredients that engage in a constant and complex relationship of restoring life together. 

So how do I pray these days for the congregation I am currently serving and the churches I continue to be privileged to serve as a Leadership Minister?   

  1. First, I am learning in new ways to pray with an end in mind. That is, I pray for a good harvest (Matthew 9:37). I pray that our churches would conspire together to labor that all may come to know Jesus Christ as our ever-present Savior, teacher, friend, and Lord.   
  1. For that harvest to happen, I also pray for good soil (Matthew 13:8). In our “good soil” I pray that the interplay of our traditions, experiences, and the ever-present, ever-compassionate Holy Spirit will make the Word of God a living thing in our lives that bears good and abundant fruit.   
  1. Third, I pray for rain (Hebrews 6:7).  I pray that the atmospheric conditions of turbulence in my congregation and in Mosaic Conference are stirred up by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God in such a way that the water vapor condenses, and fresh water falls into our common life. We who were once parched find ourselves quenched. 

It is my observation that I have spent too much time, energy, and treasure on worrying about things that are not the main thing.  I choose to pray for a return to collaborating on a great harvest, made possible by healthy, fertile topsoil, and refreshed from the turbulent atmosphere giving us the water we need for life together. 

 I realize that the church I currently serve and the Conference I have been serving have all the ingredients needed to fulfill God’s first great commission: to be stewards of all He has made.  As we hold a vision for a great harvest, tend to the precious and thin layer of topsoil, and welcome the turbulent rain that makes us whole and alive, we fulfill our great purpose as the people of God.  

As we hold a vision for a great harvest, tend to the precious and thin layer of topsoil, and welcome the turbulent rain that makes us whole and alive, we fulfill our great purpose as the people of God.

In this season of reimagining the church in the post-pandemic realities of our time, may we seek a great harvest, not shriveled relationships. May we tend to the precious resources God has given us together, and not walk away from one another.  May we welcome the turbulent rains – soft showers and strong storms – that keep our souls thriving. 

How Does Mosaic Select a New Assistant Moderator?

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The Mosaic Conference Board has elected Roy Williams, Pastor of College Hill Mennonite Church in Tampa, FL, as the Assistant Moderator-Elect for Mosaic Conference. The election of Williams is a new process, as this is the first time since the origin of Mosaic Conference in 2020 that we will be naming a new Assistant Moderator. Here are a few details, based on the by-laws of the Conference, on how this appointment is made.  

Appointment: 

The Assistant Moderator is elected by the Mosaic Conference Board by a majority affirmation. At the November Conference Assembly, the Delegate Assembly will be given the opportunity to affirm this appointment through a ballot process with a 50% vote of affirmation required.  

Criteria for determining who is appointed: 

All Conference Board members must be 18 years of age or older and a member of a Mosaic congregation. To be considered for the Assistant Moderator role, the person needs to have served on the Conference Board at least one term. 

While other criteria have not been specified in the Conference by-laws, qualities similar to delegates are considered: commitment to following Jesus, spiritual discernment and mature judgment, active involvement in their congregation or in the Conference, experience serving on committee or boards, and attention to geographic and cultural representation of our Conference members. 

Length of Service: 

A term for Conference Board and Committee members is three (3) years. The Assistant Moderator serves for one term in this role and ascends to the role of Moderator with approval of the Conference Board. The Moderator serves for one term. 

Responsibilities of Assistant Moderator: 

The Assistant Moderator serves as vice chair of Conference Board and Chair of the Nominating Committee. In addition, the Assistant Moderator will chair Board and Executive Committee meetings in the absence of the Moderator or fulfill other duties as assigned by the Conference Board or Moderator. 

Transition: 

Technically, our by-laws state that the new leaders will commence serving in their role at the first meeting after affirmation by the Delegate body. This means the transition from Assistant Moderator to Moderator takes place January 1. If approved by the Delegate Assembly, Williams will become Assistant Moderator and Angela Moyer Walter will become Moderator on January 1, 2023 . Ken Burkholder will conclude his term as Moderator on December 31, 2022. 

If the Assistant Moderator role is vacated between terms, chooses not to ascend to the Moderator role, or if the ascension of the Assistant Moderator is not approved by a majority vote, the remaining Board members may make an appointment by majority vote.

When Nothing Has Changed, But Everything Seems Different

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Since the Mennonite Church USA Special Delegate Assembly in Kansas City in late May, Mosaic Conference has hosted Listening Sessions for Mosaic Assembly delegates to share with and listen to one another. Nearly 100 delegates participated in the listening sessions that occurred in person and online. (There is one final listening session yet this week with Indonesian speaking leaders and pastors from across our Conference.)  The decisions made at the MC USA Assembly have created some uncertainty in our Conference as we consider our relatedness to one another, our experiences, our understanding of the biblical texts and of our Christian faith. 

A clear request emerged from the Listening Sessions for clarification of Mosaic Conference’s position regarding the narrowly passed A Resolution for Repentance and Transformation at the Kansas City Special Delegate Assembly. (Delegates voted 267-212 in favor of the resolution.)  

We are now living into the reality of feelings about and responses to the vote. I am committed personally to living into this openly, non-anxiously, and with as much clarity as I can offer as Executive Minister.

In reality, nothing has changed for Mosaic Conference.  Denominational resolutions are non-binding for area conferences. A denominational resolution sets the trajectory for MC USA policy about how denominational staff time is spent and how denominational resources may be distributed; however, it does not override any conference policy, posture, or position. All of our Conference formation documents continue to stand and guide us, including our Church Together Statements of Going to the Margins, Faith and Life, and Grace and Truth.   Our formation document that binds our reconciled Conference together is rooted in Harold S. Bender’s The Anabaptist Vision and Palmer Becker’s Anabaptist Essentials (here is a helpful summary of Becker’s work) continues to stand.  We continue to abide by the Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective. We also recognize our global connections through Mennonite World Conference’s Shared Convictions. Our specific Conference vision and mission statement remain the same.

So while nothing in our Conference has changed, for some of us, our relationship with Mennonite Church USA has been called into question.  For some, A Resolution for Repentance and Transformation represents a significant departure from the 2,000-year history and practice of Christian tradition. There are calls within our Conference for immediate distancing from the denomination.  Some congregations and leaders feel the relationship is untenable. Others desire more time to listen, reflect, and discern. 

I believe in the work of the Spirit that drew Mosaic Conference together. The possibility of our shared witness is far greater than we have yet lived into. We have strong local histories and global connections. We are a network of committed leaders, ministries, and congregations. I believe in us, and I am committed to our navigating this turbulence together. 

We need to be patient and allow time for all of us within Mosaic Conference to be able to understand and discern. Our missional, formational, and intercultural commitments as a Conference mean that our discernment work together must include space to hear diversity of perspective and experience and take account of our cultural and linguistic differences.  We also have strong relationships with the global church, which is also asking about our future posture as Mosaic Conference in relation to Mennonite Church USA. 

Although nothing has changed, it can feel like everything has changed.  We are in a time of uncertainty. But we are also participating in a movement of communities that are in God’s care, part of God’s long story of redemption and reconciliation.  While the way ahead is not clear to me, God’s faithfulness is clear. God is with us, individually and communally.  Our denomination, Conference, communities, ministries, history, present, and future all belong to God. 

I invite each of us, as communities and individuals, to rest in what we know and in the things that have not changed that remain clear for us as a Conference community. Let us then lean into trusting each other and the work of the Spirit as we discern our path forward, holding onto the things that we know endure: faith, hope and love (I Corinthians 13:13). 

Clergy Housing Allowance & Inflation: Can You Change it Mid-year?

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With rising inflation, all of us have experienced prices rising on most everything over the past few months, including housing expenses (rent, mortgage rates, utilities, furniture, etc.) Credentialed leaders are afforded a clergy housing allowance through the federal government which allows them to exclude housing expenses from their gross income.  These allowances are set annually by your congregation or governing board.  With the current financial climate, you may be asking, can I change my Housing Allowance to reflect the current increases in my housing costs?   

The answer is yes, with the following rules: 

  1. Changes may be made to a Clergy Housing Allowance for the remainder of 2022.  You cannot change the Housing Allowance for any period already past, but you can change it for the rest of the year. 
  2. The same authority (e.g. Church board) that set the Housing Allowance at the beginning of the year needs to be the same authority that changes it. 
  3. The change needs to be duly recorded in the minutes of that authority’s meeting when the change was approved. 

Some churches establish a maximum amount that their credentialed leaders may utilize as a Housing Allowance for a given year.  If the credentialed person decides to increase the amount of their housing allowance for the remainder of the year (and it is less than the approved maximum amount), the person may change it without further approval. 

For more information regarding a Clergy Housing Allowance, please see this article, “Did you Know?” on the Mosaic website. For further questions, we encourage you to contact an accountant familiar with the IRS’s Clergy Housing Allowance.  

Increase in IRS Mileage Rate

Due to recent gas prices, the IRS recently announced an increase to the business mileage rate, beginning July 1, 2022.  As of July 1, the mileage rate for business travel will be 62.5 cents per mile, up 4 cents from the rate effective at the start of the year.  For more details, please see the IRS website.