Conference News

The Gathering: Multi-congregational, Intercultural Worship Service

July 22, 2015 by Conference Office

by Colin Ingram

Six Franconia Conference congregations banded together to organize an intercultural worship service called “The Gathering”. Several hundred people from different ethnic backgrounds, speaking different languages, gathered for this worship service at Souderton Mennonite Church on Sunday, July 19. In attendance were other Franconia Conference Church members, the members of Indonesian Light Church, along with the host families and around 30 participants from the Global Education Conference, a week-long Mennonite World Conference global educators’ meeting that was held the week before at Christopher Dock Mennonite High School.

People gathered to worship, hear Scripture, listen to a sermon, and fellowship over food.

The service included Indonesian, Spanish, and English languages with the call to worship and sermon both being translated. The scripture reading was done in Hindi, French, and English. The event was a chance to “learn other cultures,” according to Carlos Aguirre, from Centro de Alabanza. He was impressed by the other Christians in attendance.

“I will take away the joy that I have in my heart, to know that there’s other people helping the body of Christ to grow,” Aguirre said.

The Gathering was organized by Bally Mennonite Church, Centro de Alabanza de Filadelfia, Nations Worship Center, Philadelphia Praise Center, Salford Mennonite Church, and Souderton Mennonite Church. It was sponsored by the Franconia Mennonite Conference.

The sermon was given by Dr. Paulus Wadjaja, professor and program director at Universitas Kristen Duta Wacana in Indonesia and member of the Mennonite World Conference Commission.

“I think we all left the service sensing God’s presence, realizing how God speaks in multiple ways through multiple people and recognizing that even if we’re not hearing our own language we can still lift our hands and be able to worship together knowing we’re worshipping the same God,” pastor Jim Laverty, Souderton Mennonite Church, said.

Worship songs, including English hymns led by Rob Yoder, Salford Mennonite, and Spanish contemporary songs lead by the Centro de Alabanza worship team, were among the worship sets. Nations Worship Center closed out the service by leading the congregation in “How Great Thou Art.” The first verse was sung in Indonesian. The tune was familiar enough for English-speakers to sing along in English, or they could join in by reading the Indonesian words from two large screens. The team then led the second verse in English.

Herald Bazuki, Nations Worship, said, “It was very good [to gather in a multicultural environment] because we came from a very small Indonesian community, so mostly we speak our own language and now we can hear other languages as well. But everybody speaks the same ‘Christ’.”

Juanita Nyce, Salford, said, “I have an 11-year-old son and I think that sometimes the church doesn’t look like the world actually is, and I want him to stay in the church. Today I think this is a vision of what’s possible.”

Following the worship service, all were invited to partake in a fellowship meal that included some Indonesian and Hispanic foods. People fellowshipped with one another while enjoying music played by members of Philadelphia Praise Center, Centro de Alabanza, and Indonesian Light.

A multi-congregational event like this is a possibility for next year and following years, according to Laverty, who helped plan The Gathering.

Franconia Mennonite Conference is looking forward to continuing to support churches in multi-congregational worship services throughout the year.

Barbie Fischer, Franconia Mennonite Conference, said, “This time together has made me even more excited for our conference assembly worship service this fall.”

The conference assembly worship service is a time for Franconia Mennonite and Eastern District Conference members to join together in worshiping the Lord. This year’s conference assembly worship is scheduled for 7:00 pm, Friday, November 13^th at Penn View Christian School.

Garden Chapel Camp Blessed By Rising Teacher/Summer Service Worker

July 22, 2015 by Conference Office

By Colin Ingram

Courtney Drew thought all she was doing was helping to set-up and decorate the room of her Grandmother’s elementary school class a few days before school started. She was in middle school at the time and was not expecting the onslaught of thank-you notes she received from the students. From that time on, Courtney desired to be a teacher.

As an elementary and special education major at Delaware State University, Courtney has learned a lot about teaching. Through the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) summer service program, she is now applying what she has learned in the classroom to her work as the assistant director for Garden Chapel’s summer camp in Dover, New Jersey. Her program supervisor is Garden Chapel member Amy Zorilla.

“I start my student teaching soon, so I really feel like this is preparing me to become a teacher because I have different age groups and there’s always a conflict—someone who’s not paying attention or maybe doesn’t concentrate as easily,” Courtney said. “It’s up to me to find a way to keep everyone engaged and make them want to be involved.”

According to Courtney, the overall goal of the camp is to reinforce the Christian faith of the children.

As the assistant director, along with director Vison McCrae, she is responsible for the smooth running of the camp. Some of her responsibilities include filling out paperwork, handling and making registration forms and permission slips, operating parent and camper orientations, and camp counseling.

The six-week Garden Chapel Summer Camp runs from June 29 to August 7. About 25 campers ages 5 to 12 gather from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday. The camp operates as two three-week sessions. The kids are from the church and surrounding community.

“I learned from Courtney how to discipline the kids better than I could have on my own and show them to do what they are supposed to,” counselor Ashely Smith said.

When she’s not calming kids or settling their disputes as a counselor, she is helping run the camp activities. The kids learn drama lessons at theatre, make crafts in art lessons, watch movies, play basketball, and jump on a moon bounce during free time. Each day campers have a devotion time before attending two separate Bible studies for older and younger kids. Overseeing the activities has helped prepare her as a teacher to lead children.

“Her authority with the kids makes me think of her as a leader,” counselor Michael McCall said. “She knows what to do and what to say.”

Courtney discovered the MCC service program when she was looking for grants to use for Garden Chapel’s camp. In past summers, Courtney was a camp counselor for Peer Place camp programs.

Clearances Necessary to Protect our Children: Child Protection Resource

July 16, 2015 by Conference Office

As congregations continue to implement the new Pennsylvania child protection laws, Franconia Mennonite Conference is working to develop resources for the congregations to be available on FranconiaConference.org. While policy changes and trainings are required, under the new law, the most immediate item needed is clearances on employees and volunteers who have “direct contact” with children.

Understanding who needs clearances and getting all of the documents in order can be overwhelming. To aid in this process here are the need to know items.

Who needs clearances?

All employees age 14 and older and volunteers over the age of 18 who have “direct contact” with a child or children. A child is defined by the law as anyone under the age of 18. Direct contact can be defined as those acting in lieu of or on behalf of a parent or guardian, someone providing care, guidance, supervision and or has routine interaction.

For Franconia Mennonite Conference congregations, individuals needing clearances include:

All credentialed leaders
Sunday School Teachers and assistants
Nursery volunteers
Any childcare worker during special events or service times
Youth sponsors/ leaders
Chaperones for events

What clearances need to be obtained?

All individuals requiring clearances will need to complete the:

If the individual is paid for their position OR has lived outside of Pennsylvania in the past 10 years, then they are required to complete the:

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Criminal Background Check which is processed through Cogent.

It is expected that if an individual has lived in Pennsylvania for the last 10 years and/or is applying for a volunteer (unpaid) position that they would:

sign a “swear and affirm” document as they are not required to complete the FBI background check.

A sample of a “swear and affirm” document can be found here. Also, Souderton Mennonite Church currently uses a “Volunteer Covenant” that can be viewed here.

Jesus welcomes a child with open arms to sit with him and says in Matthew 18:5, “whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me.” Through this we see that the act of providing nurturing spaces for children is an especially holy act. For this welcome to be truly extended to children in the context of our congregations, our churches must be places of refuge and safety. Completing the clearance process for congregational and conference volunteers and staff is not just a compliance with the laws of Pennsylvania: it is a way to live out our calling in Christ to bless, welcome, and nurture children.

For additional information on clearances required under the Pennsylvania Child Protection laws, visit Keep Kids Safe PA: Clearances. Stay tuned to Intersectings and FranconiaConference.org for more resources and information to come.

New Hope Fellowship Utilizes Service Worker

July 16, 2015 by Conference Office

Deborah Nganga is looking to spice up her Spanish and step up her leadership through serving at New Hope Fellowship as a summer service worker through Mennonite Central Committee (MCC).

Eighteen-year-old Deborah has attended New Hope in Alexandria, VA for about seven years and is looking to learn leadership skills while serving at her church in the 10-week MCC Summer Service Program from June 8th to August 17th. She is working under the direction of New Hope’s pastor Kirk Hanger and his wife Marilyn. New Hope meets for Sunday worship at Bethany Lutheran Church.

As an MCC service worker, Deborah is helping New Hope in whatever way needed. Some of her staple work is helping the church secretary with office work. Another assignment is interviewing church members and writing articles on them. She also assisted with New Hope’s Vacation Bible Schools (VBS). In addition, Deborah will also be going on a service trip to Mexico for two weeks, as a part of her summer work.

“Overall, I think it’s an opportunity for her to be involved in her local church and to experience a variety of ministry opportunities,” Pastor Kirk said. “She’s helping us, but I think in the process she’s growing, stepping out of her comfort zone.”

For VBS, Deborah helped teach and supervise the kids. Her main responsibility was leading arts and crafts. Furthermore, she created a puppet show series to teach lessons about the Bible.

New Hope also ran a shorter VBS at one member’s apartment complex for the kids of the community. Deborah found it somewhat challenging, because most of the kids spoke Spanish. Deborah said although uncertain at first, she was glad to see the kids participate in singing.

“It was actually very good, the kids were actually very interested and asked a lot of questions,” Deborah said.

Just as she is teaching, she has also been learning some Spanish for the two-week Mexico trip. Part of her service program is equipping her by expanding her reach to people by learning Spanish. She has been required to complete online Spanish programs. The first week of her Mexico trip involves medical service. Her second week she will work at an orphanage.

In past summers Deborah worked at an animal clinic. In her free time, she likes to read, watch movies and go swimming. Deborah plans to study accounting at the University of Mary Washington as she starts her freshman year in August.

On the Way: The Journey Continues

July 9, 2015 by Conference Office

by Barbie Fischer, bfischer@mosaicmennonites.org

It was only a few short days ago that 57 members of Franconia Mennonite Conference returned from MC USA convention in Kansas City. This was a convention unlike all others, pain was clearly written across many faces. As Mennonite World Review reported in their article MC USA convention: Sharing pain, seeing Jesus on July 7^th, “It might have been the pain of exclusion due to sexual orientation. Or of feeling the church has agreed to tolerate sin. It might have been the pain of sexual abuse. Or of concern for the future of a church sharply divided on how to relate to sexual minorities.”

There was also pain regarding the lack of resolutions put forward prior to convention to stand with our brothers and sisters of color, especially in the wake of church burnings, and the shooting at the Emmanuel AME Church in Charleston, SC. The pain was also present as delegates recognized the loss of life that would continue in Palestine and Israel as the resolution regarding standing with Palestinian Christians was tabled for two years. That pain led to the drafting and approval of a resolution on Saturday to stand with MCUSA partners for peace in Israel and Palestine. With all of this pain, the question remains, where do we go from here?

The theme of this year’s convention was “On the Way.” Throughout the week speakers in worship services and delegate sessions spoke on the Emmaus road story in Luke 24. The story begins with the finding of the empty tomb, where the crucified Christ was laid. This news is reported to the apostles before two leave for a trip to the town of Emmaus. Along this journey they encounter Jesus, although they do not know it is him at first. As they talk of all that has happened they miss that Christ is in their midst. They recognize Jesus only when they begin to break bread. As the men return to Jerusalem and Jesus appears before the disciples they still doubt. Christ bears the wounds of the cross, revealing the pain he endured. The pain that led to this moment and now has made it possible for his ascension into heaven, which is where this chapter ends.

This is not the end of the story, rather the beginning of a new chapter. Pain is not always a bad thing. Christ’s pain led to the salvation of God’s children. What happens with the pain endured? Christ’s pain led him to God’s side as he ascended into heaven.

As Franconia Mennonite Conference moves forward and continues into this new chapter, may the conversations not be so all consuming that the sight of Christ among us is lost. May the pain felt by sisters and brothers be acknowledged as Christ acknowledged his and may this pain draw us closer to God as Christ’s did him.

Philadelphia Praise Prepares Future Leader through Summer Service

July 9, 2015 by Conference Office

by Colin Ingram

Philadelphia Praise Center (PPC) is preparing the young Alexandra Cindy Angela for leadership through the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Summer Service Program. Alexandra Cindy Angela, who goes by Cindy, has been attending PPC for the last year and a half. She is currently studying communication and entrepreneurship at Temple University and is ministering through the summer service program for 10 weeks, from June 14 to August 21. Orientation for the program was in Goshen, IN during her first week.

According to the MCC website, the Summer Service Program aims to have young people of color serve through working at their church and in their community. Service workers are often involved in running a peace camp, an urban garden, or being a health educator.

“My responsibility is to assist the church to be a part of the community,” Cindy said.

Cindy’s responsibilities include church involvement in the community, working with PPC’s peace camp, video editing and graphic design. Part of her role includes translating and taking people to the hospital or to a lawyer. One event she helped with was a block party called “Passport Day.” Pastor of PPC, Aldo Siahaan is her director. In addition, she reports to a church elder and a deacon.

“The future of the church is the young generation, and we are trying to prepare her to be a future leader of the church,” Pastor Aldo said.

As one of her main service responsibilities, Cindy is the program director for peace camp. She manages the overall vision, planning and activities. She also determined this summer’s theme for the camp — “Painting Tomorrow” — and each week’s theme focus: family, friends, the present, and the future. Cindy is also in charge of the roster, communication with parents, distributing lunches, and organizing teachers and volunteers. Some things she has incorporated into the camp are career talks from various professionals, including a medical doctor, an accountant and a farmer, and visiting urban gardens.

Cindy stated, “This work is much more rewarding [than waitressing]. I think it makes me grow more as a person, and as a Christian.”

The peace camp is an outreach to the community that has been running at PPC for five years. Kids from the neighborhood ages seven to 14, divided into a younger and older group for activities and lessons, attend the four-week program at PPC from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm.

“The kids really love [Cindy], our camp director; for example, she knew how to track with them to get them to do what they needed to do,” camp volunteer Hanggia Nadeak said.

Cindy hopes to work in a job in the field of communication when she finishes school at Temple and is open to the possibility of using her studies for the church in the future. In her free time, her passions include writing and music.

Delegates Make Difficult Decisions: KC MCUSA Convention Update

July 2, 2015 by Conference Office

by Barbie Fischer

Riding in an airplane or a bus, the transportation to Kansas City was likely the easiest part of the journey for the 57 Franconia Conference delegates at this year’s Mennonite Church USA gathering in Kansas City that began on Tuesday, June 30^th. While there are still two days remaining, delegates have already worked on discerning difficult topics from denominational membership guidelines to drone warfare.

Opening worship … an invitation to no longer be the quiet in the land

To open convention Tuesday evening, Michelle Armster, director of Mennonite Central Committee Central States, preached in a joint worship service with youth and adults. She spoke of the stories of Mary and Martha and of brave women whose lives ended in horrifying death in ‘Martyrs Mirror’, and how they should remind us that we must help give a voice to those that society — or even the church — are trying to silence. Armster said, “We must speak up! We can no longer be the quiet in the land where a young man can walk into a church and murder at a Bible study,” referencing the events earlier this month in Charleston, South Carolina. She went on to say, “The Jesus movement is not for the comfortable, or the satisfied, or the insiders. May we, like Mary and Martha, be bold for Christ once again.”

On being a peace church in a time of violence

As the delegates gathered on Wednesday morning for the opening session, Elizabeth Soto Albrecht, moderator of Mennonite Church USA, reminded delegates that as racial tensions rise following violent events in Ferguson, Missouri; Charleston, South Carolina, and others, we need to come together to create peace.

In her opening remarks and throughout the week, she reminded delegates that “with the fruits of the spirit in mind, especially self-control, we can discuss items appropriately. Let’s witness to others that we are a peace church.”

Resolutions on drone warfare and Israel/Palestine: one passes, one is tabled

The first day of delegate sessions, Wednesday, the delegates considered resolutions on faithfulness amid endless war, and on Israel/Palestine. In addition, a third was brought forward asking for the delegates to acknowledge and extend forgiveness in response to the Executive Board’s statement of confession in an April pastoral letter to delegates. While the resolution on forgiveness was passed with extensive support, the others were not smooth processes.

Faithfulness amid endless war was approved with an amendment, yet delegates expressed feeling rushed through the process. In the afternoon, the resolution on Israel/Palestine came before the delegates and several concerns were expressed. One delegate raised the point that many in his congregation are employed by Caterpillar, one of the companies listed as being deeply entrenched in the conflict and one that could be boycotted upon passing this resolution. He expressed concern for his congregation members’ jobs and the church’s ability to support them if they quit. Others expressed that as a peace church there is a call to build bridges — not “take sides.” Still others brought up the need for relationship building with the Jewish and/or Israelis, as well as Palestinians.

Two initial polls were taken to determine levels of support for the resolution; after much division, a motion was brought forward to table the resolution until the next assembly in 2017. Delegates voted by ballot on whether to table the resolution, and the motion to table passed by 55 percent — 418 in favor, 336 opposed, 28 abstaining.

Resolutions on forbearance and membership guidelines both affirmed

Thursday proved no less difficult as the delegates worked to discern regarding the forbearance and membership guidelines resolutions. Joe Hackman, Salford congregation, had been up front helping with worship and spoke of watching the over 800 delegates enter the room saying, “I had an overwhelming feeling of the beautiful body of people entering the space. The air felt thick with the Spirit, with joy, thick with pain, thick with tension, anxiety, humility, and thick with a desire to be faithful.”

The delegate session began with opening remarks, prayer, some singing, and a disruption by a few persons, intended to make a statement for the LGBTQ community. This disruption was quickly over taken by singing, although there were a few boos amidst the otherwise shocked delegate body. Elizabeth Soto Albrecht then read part of a statement from Pink Menno stating they were “de-pink[ing] the delegate session as a sign of their opposition to the resolutions at hand. Pink Menno supporters wore trash bags over their pink t-shirts. Soto Albrecht stated it is important that their voices be acknowledged.

A time of singing and prayer re-centered delegates. The authors of the forbearance resolution — Charlotte Lehman, pastor of Reba Place Church in Evanston, Illinois, and Megan Ramer, pastor of Chicago Community Mennonite Church — then framed the forbearance resolution prior to the delegates’ time of discernment.

Lehman said, “We know we have differences of conviction, but we don’t want a political debate. We long to have the kind of healthy conflict that you can only have with people you love.” The authors acknowledged they have differences between their two congregations. Lehman went on to say, “conflict is not the enemy. The enemy is the enemy. We want to glorify God in both the outcome of our dialogue and the way we conduct our dialogue.” The resolution went on to be approved by a 71% vote in favor: 581 yes and 228 no.

The day continued with discussion and discernment on Mennonite Church USA Membership Guidelines. This proved to be a resolution in need of clarification. Ervin Stutzman, executive director of MCUSA, referred to the Frequently Asked Question document, prepared for and released to delegates on June 18^th. After prompted by question, he noted, “If both of these resolutions pass, the Executive Board will see it as a mandate to hold together the traditional stance of our church with an approach that grants freedom to congregations and area conferences to work things out in their own context, with mutual accountability with the CLC … If the resolution on Membership Guidelines does not pass, the Executive Board will take it as a mandate to free congregations and area conferences to work out their own practices without specific accountability to the commitments stated in Part III of the Guidelines. In any case, the Executive Board will take into account the degree of support or non-support for each resolution in the voting process, as well as the specific feedback from table groups.” Following much discussion, the delegates voted to approve the resolution with 58% affirmation: 473 yes, 310 no and 28 abstentions.

Eastern District and Franconia conference delegates gather to acknowledge “not winning” together

However, the day was not over for Franconia Conference delegates or those attending convention on behalf of Eastern District. Conference and congregation delegates from both conferences joined for a time of reflection on the week and dialogue regarding what this means for us moving forward.

With over 60 in attendance for the conversation, Charlie Ness of Perkiomenville congregation, Lorie Hershey, pastor West Philadelphia Mennonite Fellowship, and Warren Tyson, conference minister for Eastern District Conference, shared their reflections on the week and hopes for moving forward.

Ness shared that these resolutions and the one on the Churchwide Statement on Sexual Abuse yet to be considered touch a nerve for him, as he has a deep personal story connecting him to the resolutions. He mentioned that many have spoken in the delegate session about living in tension and that “living together in tension, feels to some of us like living in contradiction. This will be a challenge for us in how we function with the diversity among us.”

Hershey said, “today was a hard day. It was hard work” and like nothing she has experienced in previous years as a delegate. Hershey elaborated that she would have appreciated an acknowledgement of the pain and the silencing even within the group. “As leaders we need to continue to name these things, because there is a big gulf between how we understand things and differing realities.”

Warren Tyson said the imagery he once heard of the Spirit being like a “wild goose” came to mind. He said “the goose comes in and flaps around, makes lots of waves and noise and commotion, and disrupts life.” He wondered if there was a sense that God was wanting to stir us up and maybe even have us feel pain.

Joe Hackman mentioned language used by Michael King (also of Salford congregation) of pastors being “pain holders.” He said, “I felt that was taking place in some real and tangible ways today.”

In the delegate gathering, there was a sense that there were no winners in the difficult day. “So we are all in it, not winning together.”

Yet, there was profound hope in the room amongst Eastern District and Franconia conferences’ delegates. All three of those who shared spoke of the deep and authentic conversations that happened at the delegate tables. They spoke of the differing views and how, through that, they were able to see one another as people. By doing so, some were even shifting in their understanding and perspective.

The delegates acknowledge that deep authentic conversation is not always easy when you have to work and live with one another. It was acknowledged that with the passing of the forbearance and membership guidelines resolution, we are being called to this uncomfortable place of engaging with one another in authentic conversation. One delegate shared, “It’s going to be hard and it will take a lot of time. We cannot go home on Sunday and say it is done. It will never be done. We need to do what we can do in our congregations and conferences.”

While difficult decisions were made by our delegates, the difficult work is not yet done. Through the passing of these resolutions, we have committed to engage in this uncomfortable place, sit with our brothers and sisters and discuss our differences, being vulnerable with one another as we explore the depth of our conviction. While this task may seem daunting, the commitment to our denomination, conference and congregations was clear, as these over-60 individuals from Franconia and Eastern District conferences came together after two intense and draining days, to stand together and say “we made the decisions — now how do we move forward together?”

May God grant us wisdom as we continue on this journey together. May we strive to allow the fruits of the Spirit to guide us. May we see one another as God sees us.

Update Posted July 6, 2015:

Final delegate session sees two more resolutions affirmed and installation of new moderator

On Saturday, July 4th the delegates met for a final session where they passed two more resolutions. The resolutions included a statement proposed by the Mennonite Palestine-Israel Network (MennoPIN). The statement declared support for both Palestinian and Israeli partners in peacemaking and was written after the tabling of the Israel/ Palestine resolution. The other resolution discerned on Saturday, a resolution of expression and lament, called on MC USA and “all its parts [to] continue to build awareness and direct resources and energy to continued anti-racism education among our constituencies and to stand in solidarity with the African-American community as destroyed properties are rebuilt and ministry occurs to broken bodies and souls.” Both passed with overwhelming support.

Following the final resolution discernment, the delegates received a report from Mennonite Central Committee, the Listening Committee, and the Anti-Racism Team. Many affirmations and concerns were heard by the Listening Committee and they noted that many of the concerns were around procedure. The Anti-Racism Team noted that this convention was the most diverse convention to date. However, the delegate sessions did not reflect this diversity with only 10% of the delegates being people of color.

Ewuare Osayande of the Anti-Racism Team noted, “until the delegate session — where voting power lies — looks a bit more like the seminar and learning sessions, no real change will occur in the broader church.”

Elizabeth Soto Albrecht prays with Patricia Shelly, newly installed moderator. (Photo courtesy of: MCUSA)

To end the day, Ervin Stutzman, executive director of MCUSA thanked Elizabeth Soto Albrecht for her service as moderator over the past two years. Patricia Shelly and David Boshart were then installed as moderator and moderator-elect for the next two years.

Finland Congregation Celebrates Ordination of Kris Wint

July 2, 2015 by Conference Office

by Colin Ingram

According to Marvin Reinford, it was only the second ordination worship in recent history at the Finland congregation and the first in its new meetinghouse facilities on Ziegler Road. After three years of licensed ministry, Finland’s lead pastor Kris Wint was ordained on June 28. Wint has moved into the lead pastor role following John Ehst, who is now serving as the congregation’s associate pastor until a new pastor might be called.

“We just give thanks to God for His grace and His leading in the way we here at Finland sense God building his church,” Ehst said.

In the ordination sermon, Derek Cooper of Biblical Theological Seminary affirmed Wint’s gifting as a prophet amongst the spiritual gifts of Ephesians 4:11. After highlighting the ministry of Kris to his family and congregation, Cooper said, “I specifically believe that one of the primary callings that God has on Kris, is that he is a prophet.” Wint has a love for the truth because of his given spiritual gift of prophecy and must continue to speak God’s Word to people content with the “status quo” even as a “lone voice in the wilderness” according to Cooper.

Finland’s LEADership Minister Noel Santiago led the ordination. “On behalf of these your brothers and sisters here at Finland, on behalf of Franconia Conference, we ordain you as a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and commit this congregation to your spiritual care,” Santiago said.

Stephen Kriss, Director of Leadership Cultivation and Congregational Resourcing, presented gifts of a fraktur and oil lamp from the Conference.

At the end of the ordination service, Pastor Sandy Drescher-Lehman of Souderton Mennonite Church, presented her father John Drescher’s last Bible to Wint in a stirring and teary moment. Drescher was a significant influence on Wint, Ehst, and the people of Finland. Drescher died last summer. Wint is married to Drescher’s granddaughter Ginger and they have four children.

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