Conference News

MC USA director booked for Conference town hall meetings

February 27, 2014 by Emily Ralph Servant

Ervin Stutzman, Mennonite Church USA Executive Director, will be the featured guest for two town-hall meetings in April. These meetings will be a time for members of Franconia Conference congregations to engage with Stutzman around recent developments in Mennonite Church USA and to ask questions about the denomination’s future.

These meetings are open to anyone from Franconia Conference communities and are scheduled for Thursday, April 10, 7-9 pm at Swamp Mennonite Church (2125 Rosedale Road, Quakertown, PA) and Friday, April 11, 9:30-11:30 am at Salford Mennonite Church (480 Groff’s Mill Road, Harleysville, PA).

This will also be an opportunity to hear and converse directly with Stutzman regarding the Executive Board’s response to Eastern Mennonite University’s listening process around the review of hiring policies toward individuals in same-sex relationships, and to Mountain States Mennonite Conference’s licensing of a pastor who is in a covenanted same-sex relationship.

Franconia Conference members who live over 60 miles from either of these locations can join the conversation live by streaming either meeting online and submitting questions and comments through email and social media. Those who plan to participate from a distance must RSVP by April 9 by emailing eralphservant@mosaicmennonites.org.

Comments and questions for clarity should be submitted to congregational pastors and forwarded to Franconia Conferences offices by Friday, April 4.

MCC U.S. Summer Service Program going strong

February 18, 2014 by Emily Ralph Servant

Summer Service worker Mya Ray demonstrates to Joanne Dietzel, conference coordinator for Lancaster (Pa.) Mennonite Conference of Mennonite Church USA, a way of weaving as done by Burmese women. Ray, who immigrated to the U.S. from Thailand after fleeing Myanmar, the southeast Asian nation also known as Burma, served with her home congregation, Habecker Mennonite Church in Lancaster, in 2011 and 2012. (MCC photo/Kim Dyer) — Summer Service worker Mya Ray demonstrates to Joanne Dietzel, conference coordinator for Lancaster (Pa.) Mennonite Conference, a way of weaving as done by Burmese women. Ray, who immigrated to the U.S. from Thailand after fleeing Myanmar, the southeast Asian nation also known as Burma, served with her home congregation, Habecker Mennonite Church in Lancaster, in 2011 and 2012. (MCC photo/Kim Dyer)

by Ed Nyce, Mennonite Central Committee

AKRON, Pa. – For years Keshia Kay Littlebear of Billings, Mont., was certain where her path would take her when she was older and the summers rolled around. She was going to be an MCC U.S. Summer Service worker.

From 2002 to 2005 she was just that – spending 10 weeks of her summers serving at White River Cheyenne Mennonite Church in Busby, Mont. She worked with recreational activities and as youth ministry coordinator.

Eventually she supervised the church’s Summer Service program while honing leadership skills that, she said, she uses to this day as a board member of Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) Central States and other service in her church and denomination.

The Summer Service program is a short-term MCC U.S. initiative that supports young people of color in their development of leadership skills through working with their local churches or communities. The program partners with churches that are members of MCC U.S.’ supporting denominations and related organizations. Since the program’s 1982 inception, 1,387 people have participated. (Franconia Conference’s Philadelphia Praise Center has been a participating congregation on more than one occasion.)

A 2013 review of the Summer Service program led by MCC U.S. Anti-oppression Coordinator Ewuare Osayande elicited feedback from participant churches, former and current Summer Service workers, and MCC staff and board members.

Danilo Sanchez, seen here leading worship at Franconia’s 2008 Conference Assembly, will begin work as the MCC Summer Service national coordinator in late February.

Survey participants consistently affirmed the program for providing service and leadership development opportunities for youth of color. As a result, the U.S. board increased funding for the program and expanded the position of national coordinator to half time. Danilo Sanchez, Whitehall congregation, will start in that position in late February.

Sarah Thompson was a Summer Service worker for nearly three months in 2004 at Prairie Street Mennonite Church, Elkhart, Ind., where she is a member. She worked with children’s programs and as a community organizer.

“I had just taken a community organizing course at Spelman College,” said Thompson. “Meanwhile, MCC Summer Service was about developing leadership in home communities. So it was a perfect fit.

“Prairie Street created my Summer Service position because of a pressing need in the community to organize to resist city hall’s decision to destroy a local school building rather than renovate it,” said Thompson. Since the decision was made without the input of local residents, Thompson’s job empowered her to canvass the neighborhood and discover what the community wanted. At the end of the summer the community reported the findings to city hall, which “initially halted the wrecking ball,” she said.

The work catalyzed the next few years of community organizing that made it possible for the building to be saved; it is now on the state historical register. In addition, the project brought together members of the community from diverse backgrounds to work collaboratively, she said. Today the building serves as housing and an active community center.

As a college student, working with her home church and community in the summer helped her to stay grounded even during the school year, she said. That connection continues today for Thompson, who has stayed involved with MCC in numerous ways since Summer Service and was recently appointed executive director of Christian Peacemaker Teams. She lives in Chicago.

Last year, Hannah Nursalim, of Los Angeles, served with her church, Maranatha Christian Fellowship, in Northridge, Calif., and with Christian Legal Aid of Los Angeles (CLA-LA), based in Inglewood. At church, she performed support tasks related to worship and a fundraising event. Nursalim studies at University of Washington in Seattle.

Seeing CLA-LA colleagues assist people needing legal advice on immigration, crime-related matters and more “definitely made me want to pursue a career in helping people,” she said.

Lani Prunés was a Summer Service worker for three summers at Oxford Circle Christian Community Development Association (OCCCDA) in Philadelphia, a ministry of Oxford Circle Mennonite Church, her home congregation. Prunés is a senior at Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, Va.

Prunés was co-director in 2009 and 2010 and sole director in 2011 of OCCCDA’s Summer Art and Enrichment Program, a day camp for children. She supervised campers and counselors, assisted in hiring and facilitated conflict resolution among campers. In addition, she contacted parents when necessary, helped set curriculum and schedules and created pamphlets.

“I think being in Summer Service showed me ways to use the gifts God gave me – even before I realized I had them,” she said. Prunés added that she can see how God used her to do good, but also used others to provide spiritual guidance to her that set her along her current paths.

“Summer Service was … crucial to the summer camp’s development,” she said. “The camp really needed leaders who could put the time into all the work that it takes, and being a service worker meant being able to commit fully and entirely to projects and more importantly, to the campers.”

Churches too benefit from Summer Service, said Kim Dyer of MCC East Coast, former national coordinator of the program. “Through the grant support of MCC, churches are able to further their dreams for ministry and outreach by utilizing the skills and gifts of a young adult from their congregation.”

Prunés recommended the Summer Service program, with one helpful hint. “Absolutely,” said Prunés when asked, “but only to those who are willing to be vulnerable and commit themselves to the people they encounter and the mission they hope to fulfill.”

Nursalim agreed. “In the summer months, it’s easy to be home, hanging out with friends, but Summer Service allows you to do something meaningful with your time.”

Pittsburgh congregation closes as economy improves

February 12, 2014 by Emily Ralph Servant

by Emily Ralph, associate director of communication

Greensburg Worship Center has closed its doors as of December 2013. Greensburg, which joined the conference in 2010, was a predominantly Indonesian congregation located in the suburbs of Pittsburgh.

“Greensburg closed for similar reasons that it opened—the economic migration of Indonesian immigrants due to employment opportunities elsewhere,” explained Steve Kriss, Greensburg’s LEADership Minister. “The congregation grew at the height of the economic downturn, when there were more employment opportunities in Pittsburgh than in other areas. As the economy recovered, individuals moved back to larger Indonesian communities on the east coast.”

Many of the people who were part of Greensburg congregation moved to Philadelphia and are actively participating in Nations Worship Center, a sister congregation.

It may be difficult for some in a conference community that includes established, centuries-old congregations to grasp the kind of fluidity that leads a congregation to close after only four years, but for congregations working mostly with individuals who have recently immigrated, the forces of the economy are felt more intensely. “It’s possible these kinds of stories will become less unusual,” said Kriss. “We celebrate the conference Indonesian community’s responsiveness to the increased presence of Indonesian immigrants in Pittsburgh and in facilitating transitions back to Philadelphia.”

Although Pittsburgh is beyond the geographic boundaries usually associated with Franconia Conference, the conference has a history of flexibility when it comes to church planting, equipping and supporting church plants by Franconia Conference members who have migrated elsewhere—even as far away as Mexico or Hawaii. “Franconia Conference has a tradition of extending its ministry to where its people have gone,” said Kriss. “It’s part of our missional, entrepreneurial, and pastoral DNA as a community.”

Delegates discuss collaboration in time of anxiety

February 8, 2014 by Emily Ralph Servant

by Emily Ralph, associate director of communication

Franconia Conference delegates gathered February 8 at Franconia Mennonite Church, Telford, Pa., to brainstorm ways of building relationships and collaboration in ministry and mission as part of a two-year direction toward growth and discernment as a community.

After a time of worship and reflection, delegates prayed for their congregations, the conference and denomination, and institutions of the church that are in difficult processes of discernment recognizing the tensions across the denomination related to human sexuality. Conversation then turned to identifying areas for mutual support and engagement; sharing ways that the conference community can strengthen relationships to open possibilities for healthy conversation and collaboration.

“We again recognize that God has gifted our conference with great diversity,” said Marta Castillo, assistant moderator. “Our Anabaptist commitments to reconciliation and community invite us to stay united in the midst of diversity…. So we again today commit ourselves to live openly and with integrity as brothers and sisters.”

Conference executive Ertell Whigham shared the intention of LEADership Ministers to reintroduce the principle of leadership clusters, where pastors from diverse congregations regularly meet together for support and networking. To make this more feasible for pastors, the School for Leadership Formation will scale back the number of other events pastors are encouraged to attend.

Some delegates enthusiastically supported the reimplementation of clusters and encouraged conference staff to explore ways to also engage between all congregation members rather than only credentialed leaders. Some dreamed of ways for members of diverse congregations to partner beyond ministry—to have fun together, worship, and play. Others questioned how we discern which issues to prioritize in mission together.

“Are we taking seriously the issues that we ought to be taking seriously?” asked Josh Meyer, associate pastor of Franconia congregation. “We were reminded of Matthew 23 where Jesus says, ‘… you neglect the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy, faithfulness.’ How can we as churches, as a conference, be more committed to justice, mercy, faithfulness?”

Meyer’s table group wondered if the conference could focus together on matters of justice instead of division, working, for instance, on an issue that many are passionate about: combatting human trafficking. Since one goal of the morning’s gathering was to build relationships around a common area of mission and call, Whigham asked delegates whose congregations are interested in working together against human trafficking to raise their hands so that they could network on the spot. Delegates from a dozen congregations responded.

“Sitting down and talking to one another is a good thing,” reflected conference moderator John Goshow. “I think we’re enjoying one another’s company this morning [which] demonstrates why we need to do more of that than we’ve done in the past.” He encouraged delegates to continue to pray for the denomination in days ahead. “This call for prayer does not need to end today. Our church needs the continued prayers of all of us.”

Listen to the podcast:

[podcast]http://www.mosaicmennonites.org/media-uploads/mp3/Feb 8 Delegate Mtg.mp3[/podcast]

See the Facebook photo album

Souderton's Chestnut St Playground to be done by summer

January 21, 2014 by Emily Ralph Servant

Souderton playground — Pastor Gerry Clemmer of Souderton Mennonite Church, right, talks about a walkway that will wind through the revamped playground planned for Chestnut Street and Wile Avenue in Souderton. At left is Jen Ruggiero, who works with Clemmer on the playground plans as part the Chesnut Street Playground Community CARES project she set up with neighbor Tara Cupitt.

by Bob Keeler, The Reporter Online (reposted by permission)

Can you tell they’re excited?

“We have a builder!!! We have a builder!!! Yahooooo,” Chestnut Street Playground Community Cares Facebooked Jan. 7. “Groundbreaking info coming ASAP!!!”

The night before, Souderton Borough Council had approved the winning bid of $267,200.05 from Puhl’s Landscape Co., West Conshohocken, to do the planned renovations at the longtime playground at Wile Avenue and Chestnut Street.

The work will replace and upgrade aging playground equipment, as well as add features for special needs children and interactive pieces to stimulate children’s senses and learning. Community fundraising is helping pay for the project.

In September, the borough rejected all the bids received for the project after the bids came in at much more than had been expected.

Changes were then made to the plans, including dropping, at least for the time being, the installation of public restrooms at the playground. New bids were then sought.

“We attracted far more bidders the second time,” Borough Manager Mike Coll said.

The prices were also better.

“The borough engineer’s estimate was $301,000, so it’s well below the engineer’s estimates,” Coll said of the winning bid.

The cost of the work will be covered by a $195,000 Community Development Block Grant and $80,000 that came from community fundraising, he said.

“We’d like to start the project as soon as possible, with completion by June,” Coll said.

When the initial bids were sought, it was for a specific type of equipment and supplier, which probably hiked prices, officials said when those bids were rejected.

To make the new bids more competitive, bidders were given a few more options of suppliers and equipment that would be acceptable, but that apparently won’t change the end result.

“I believe under Puhl’s proposal, they are actually providing a lot of the equipment we had originally specified,” Coll said.

In another matter at the Jan. 6 council meeting, police Chief James Leary said several people and organizations, including the Souderton-Telford Rotary Club, Souderton police and borough, Generations of Indian Valley and Souderton Mennonite Church, contributed to a holiday giving campaign for local families in need.

Seven families received “an entire Christmas,” he said, with others who needed some assistance but whose needs were less also assisted.

“I don’t know how many families benefitted, but it certainly was a lot,” Leary said.

The Rotary set up a successful Toys for Tots type collection, Godshall and Hatfield Meats each contributed hams and Generations volunteers shopped for gift items, then declined part or all reimbursement for the purchases, he said.

“We ended up with so many lists and we actually had the resources to fill the lists,” Leary said.

The contributions also included home heating oil for two families, he said.

Norristown congregation celebrates new life

January 17, 2014 by Emily Ralph Servant

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by Emily Ralph, associate director of communication

On the day that their meetinghouse and office building, New Life Plaza, was scheduled to be sold at sheriff’s sale, members and friends of Nueva Vida Norristown (Pa.) New Life gathered for a celebration. Instead of an impending foreclosure, the congregation experienced God’s miraculous intervention and, on the evening of December 18^th, they met to worship, pray, testify, and burn the sheriff sale signs.

Nueva Vida Norristown New Life (NVNNL) is a multilingual and multiethnic congregation in Franconia Conference that provides over a quarter-million-dollars’ worth of social services for its community including a child care center, youth center, internet café, photo ID application services, and a discipleship housing ministry. The congregation formed in 1990 with the merger of three Mennonite congregations: one Latino, one African American, and one Anglo and African American. Their vision for racial reconciliation and justice has led to ongoing witness in their community and within the regional and national Mennonite church.

NVNNL bought New Life Plaza in 2007 as part of their “Enlarging Our Place in God’s World” campaign. The office building, located next door to their church facilities, provided space for new and growing ministries as well as offices that could be leased to generate income for the congregation’s vision of ministry and outreach. Soon after, however, the United States entered a recession and New Life Plaza slowly lost tenants until it was nearly empty.

Interest rates on the Plaza’s mortgage remained high and the mortgage payments became impossible to pay. By summer of 2013, the bank had decided to foreclose.

NVNNL, whose vision is to be a “house of prayer for all people,” continued to bring their need to God. As they fervently prayed, “God moved people to get involved in ways and for reasons they didn’t understand,” said Jim Williams, chair of the stewardship ministry team. “A group slowly came together who said, ‘We can’t allow this foreclosure to happen.’”

Congregational leaders and business people from Franconia Conference began meeting in the summer of 2013 to discern what the next steps might be. All agreed that the ministry and witness of NVNNL was too important in the life of the conference to lose.

“People appreciate the mission that NVNNL has in their community, the way they serve the folks in their neighborhood,” said John Goshow, Franconia Conference moderator and one of the leaders who initiated the gathering. “There’s also a historical connection here—folks had been hearing about Norristown for a long time and affirmed the vital role that the congregation has played in Franconia Conference over the years.”

One leader in the group was Paul Lederach, a former bishop from Franconia Conference who, born and raised in the Norristown mission church, continued to advocate on the community’s behalf until his death on January 6, 2014. He was 88.

The conference partners began negotiating with the bank and gathering pledges; by that fall, they had collected nearly $350,000 from congregations and individuals in gifts and loans. In December, they bought out the mortgage on New Life Plaza, settling on December 30th. NVNNL will have three years interest-free on part of the mortgage and five years interest-free on the rest, with the understanding that the mortgage must be paid off by the end of that time. Two loans with the bank also remain, with more manageable payments.

Nueva Vida Norristown New Life — NVNNL gathered to worship in the parking lot of the New Life Plaza to celebrate the congregation’s 20th anniversary in 2010. Photo by Tim Moyer.

“The new partnership in ministry between some Franconia Conference people and churches and NVNNL is what we have envisioned for several years,” said Adamino Ortiz, NVNNL council chair. “It is a great opportunity for everyone involved to know each other better, to share talents, ideas, and resources [that will] develop the vision and mission of the church for years to come. It is an opportunity to continue the vision and legacy of Brother Paul Lederach and others who ministered in Norristown before us.”

Moving into 2014, the future looks brighter, with the possibility of new tenants and a slowly improving economy in Norristown. “The ministry that started here in 1918 will continue,” Williams said, “and everything we have done to gain a more stable financial situation will benefit future generations.” In the immediate future, the congregation will begin raising funds to pay off the loans, work on renovations in the Plaza, meetinghouse, and youth center, and continue to expand and grow deeper in their intercultural ministry.

“We have renewed energy to continue the hopes and plans that we had,” said Yvonne Platts, a member of the steering team for Enlarging Our Place in God’s World. “We have a bigger story to tell–who we are, who God has called us to be, living into the vision of having a larger presence in God’s world.”

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Congregación en Norristown Celebra Nueva Vida

por Emily Ralph, Franconia Mennonite Conference; traducido por Julio Castillo, NVNNL

El día en que estaba prevista para ser vendidos en la venta del alguacil su centro de reuniones y edificio de oficinas de Plaza Nueva Vida, miembros y amigos de Nueva Vida Norristown ( PA) se reunieron en una celebración. En lugar de una ejecución hipotecaria inminente, la congregación experimentó la intervención milagrosa de Dios y, en la tarde del 18 de diciembre, se reunieron para adorar, orar, testificar, y quemar las muestras de la venta del sheriff.

Nueva Vida Nueva Vida Norristown ( NVNNL ) es una congregación multilingüe y multiétnica, en la conferencia de Franconia que proporciona un poco más de un cuarto de millon de dolares en servicios sociales para la comunidad, incluyendo un centro de cuidado infantil, centro juvenil, internet café, las fotos de los servicios de aplicaciones de identificación, y un ministerio de vivienda de discipulado. La congregación se formó en 1990 con la fusión de tres congregaciones menonitas: una latina, una afroamericana, y una anglo. Su visión de la reconciliación racial y la justicia ha llevado a testimonio continuo en su comunidad y en la Iglesia Menonita regional y nacional.

NVNNL compró Vida Nueva Plaza en 2007 como parte de la campaña “Ampliando Nuestro lugar en el mundo de Dios.” El edificio de oficinas, situado al lado de sus instalaciones de la iglesia, con la condición de espacio para los ministerios nuevos y en crecimiento, así como oficinas que podrían ser alquilados para generar ingresos para la visión de la congregación del ministerio y la divulgación. Poco después, sin embargo, los Estados Unidos entró en recesión y Nueva Vida Plaza perdió lentamente inquilinos hasta que estaba casi vacío.

Las tasas de interés sobre la hipoteca de la Plaza se mantuvieron altos y los pagos de la hipoteca se hicieron imposibles de pagar. Para el verano del 2013, el banco había decidido ejecutar la hipoteca.

NVNNL, cuya visión es ser una “casa de oración para todas las personas”, continuó trayendo su necesidad a Dios. Mientras oraban fervientemente, “Dios movió a la gente a involucrarse en formas y por razones que no se entendían”, dijo Jim Williams, presidente del Equipo del ministerio de Administración. “Un grupo se acercó lentamente a nosotros que dijo, ‘No podemos permitir que esto suceda’’’.

Líderes congregacionales y empresarios de la Conferencia de Franconia comenzaron a reunirse en el verano del 2013 para discernir cuáles podrían ser los próximos pasos. Todos estuvieron de acuerdo que el ministerio y el testimonio de NVNNL era demasiado importante en la vida de la conferencia para dejar perderse.

“La gente aprecia la misión que NVNNL tiene en su comunidad, la manera en que sirven a la gente en su barrio”, dijo John Goshow, moderador de la Conferencia de Franconia y uno de los líderes que iniciaron la reunión. “También hay una conexión histórica aquí—la gente oía constantemente acerca de Norristown durante mucho tiempo y afirmó el papel vital que la congregación ha desempeñado en la Conferencia de Franconia en estos años”. Uno de los líderes en el grupo era Paul Lederach, un ex obispo de la Conferencia de Franconia que, nacido y criado en la iglesia de la misión Norristown, continuó abogando en nombre de la comunidad hasta su muerte el 6 de enero de 2014. Tenía 88 años.

Los socios de la conferencia comenzaron a negociar con los compromisos bancarios y las promesas; durante el otoño, se habían recaudado casi $ 350,000 de las congregaciones e individuos en los regalos y préstamos. En diciembre, compraron la hipoteca sobre New Life Plaza, estableciéndose el 30 de diciembre. NVNNL tendrá tres años, sin intereses por parte de la hipoteca a cinco años sin intereses sobre el resto, en el entendimiento de que la hipoteca debe ser pagada por el final de ese tiempo. Dos préstamos con el banco también se mantienen, con pagos más manejables.

“La nueva asociación en el ministerio entre algunas personas e iglesias de la Conferencia de Franconia y NVNNL es lo que hemos imaginado durante varios años”, dijo Adamino Ortiz, presidente del concilio de NVNNL. “Es una gran oportunidad para todos los involucrados a conocernos mejor, de compartir talentos, ideas y recursos [que será] el desarrollo de la visión y misión de la iglesia en los años venideros. Es una oportunidad para continuar con la visión y el legado del Hermano Paul Lederach y otros que servían en Norristown ante nosotros”.

Entrando en el 2014, el futuro parece más brillante, con la posibilidad de nuevos inquilinos y una economía que mejora lentamente en Norristown.

“El ministerio que comenzó aquí en 1918 continuará”, dijo Williams, “y todo lo que hemos hecho para tener una situación financiera más estable beneficiará a las generaciones futuras”. En el futuro inmediato, la congregación iniciará la recaudación de fondos para pagar los préstamos, trabajar en las renovaciones en la Plaza, centro de reuniones y un centro de la juventud, y continuará expandiéndose y profundizándose en su ministerio intercultural.

“Hemos renovado la energía para continuar con las esperanzas y los planes que teníamos”, dijo Yvonne Platts, un miembro del equipo directivo de Ampliando Nuestro lugar en el mundo de Dios. “Tenemos una gran historia que contar—lo que somos, y que Dios nos ha llamado a ser, viviendo en la visión de tener una mayor presencia en el mundo de Dios”.

Delegates to continue discernment around vision

January 9, 2014 by Emily Ralph Servant

delegates praying 2013 — Franconia Conference delegates spent time conferring and praying together at Conference Assembly 2013. Photo by Bam Tribuwono.

by Emily Ralph, associate director of communication

Harleysville, PA — Franconia Conference delegates are invited to gather on Saturday, February 8, 2014 for a time of continued conversation and discernment around the vision and future direction of the conference and to recommit to healthy relational engagement with one another in the midst of difference. The gathering, which is open to all delegates, will include a time of corporate worship, review of table feedback from November’s Conference Assembly, and discerning next steps as a conference that has and will continue to grow increasingly diverse.

“There were so many thoughtful comments and insights mentioned at Conference Assembly that deserve our attention, discernment, and renewed commitment,” said assistant moderator Marta Castillo (Nueva Vida Norristown New Life). “The purpose of the February 8 meeting is to continue the animated, enthusiastic, and participatory conversation about our shared convictions and vision for moving forward together in 2014 and beyond.”

At Conference Assembly, held on November 2, 2013 at Penn View Christian School in Souderton, Pa., delegates were invited to give feedback on a statement written by the board, which addressed the growing diversity of the conference and encouraged discernment on the congregational level, while maintaining conference unity, saying, “We believe our witness is strengthened when energy is put into celebrating our shared convictions.”

In addition to table discussions around the statement, the delegate body also shared stories of where God is at work in congregations, communities, and the conference. In a bonus workshop session, over a hundred delegates gathered to further discern God’s calling for 2014 and beyond.

See summaries of table feedback, God@Work stories, and 2014 visioning conversations.

Part of the February 8 meeting will be spent responding to a summary of delegate table feedback from Conference Assembly 2013. Photo by Bam Tribuwono.

“It is our hope that the February 8th gathering will result in bringing additional clarity to how we value one another and, given our diversity, how we work together towards a community and ministry that honors God as His John 17 people,” said Ertell Whigham, executive minister. “We look forward to gathering with a spirit of cooperation as we commit to working together while honoring God in our diversity.”

The February 8 gathering will take the place of Spring Training, an annual continuing education event usually required for all credentialed leaders. “We believe that participation in this and possibly additional meetings this year is crucial to finding a healthy shared future together,” said Gay Brunt Miller, School for Leadership Formation director. “So attendance at these meetings will fulfill the 2014 continuing education guidelines for credentialed leaders.” There will also be fewer resourcing events for pastors and Conference Related Ministry leaders planned in 2014, Brunt Miller added, “to give space in leaders’ schedules to participate in what seems most important this year.”

The gathering will be held on February 8 from 9 to noon at Franconia Mennonite Church; delegates are requested to RSVP by January 31st on the conference website or by calling the conference office at 267-932-6050. For more information, delegates can talk to their congregation’s LEADership minister. Snow date is February 15.

Paul Lederach: A Spiritual Oak on our Horizon

January 8, 2014 by Emily Ralph Servant

by John Ruth, Salford congregation

The passing of Paul Mensch Lederach (1925-2014) on Monday morning, January 6, brings to an earthly close one of the most admirable, valuable and lengthy life-stories in the three-century history of the Franconia Mennonite Conference. Not only Paul’s wife Mary (Slagell) and their children and grandchildren, but the Dock retirement community, the conference, and the Mennonite Church USA are now saying farewell to a far-reaching presence and influence.

Born as the oldest living child of a young mission-worker couple in Norristown, Paul grew up in an epicenter of Mennonite life, whose themes captivated his soul. Ordained a minister by the casting of lots when only halfway through his years at Goshen College, the tall, handsome nineteen-year-old could electrify a traditional Mennonite audience. The respect the aging bishops had for this newcomer was such that only five years later, when he was 24, and a graduate of a Baptist seminary, they could endorse him in the office of bishop. I myself, at the age of 20, was ordained by the laying on of his hands at Norristown in August of 1950.

Paul’s completion of a doctoral degree in Christian Education had led immediately to a call to work in that field at the Mennonite Publishing House in Scottdale, PA. This was another epicenter, this time of the wider church. But his second ordination called him back home, where the bishops asked him to help the Blooming Glen congregation through its recovery from the loss of members to the recently born “Calvary Mennonite” (later independent “Calvary”) church. One of his tasks in this role, he found, was to persuade members to remove wedding rings. Many years later he would observe that he had never seen a decade without major debate in the church on one issue or another.

But the wider Mennonite Church renewed its call for Paul’s exceptional training and gifts, with the result that shortly before marrying Oklahoma-born schoolteacher Mary, he returned to Scottdale. There too he would serve as a bishop in the Allegheny Conference, while supervising the Christian Education work of our entire denomination. For a quarter century, with four children growing up in Scottdale, Paul’s name was increasingly synonymous with curricular themes and projects in not only our own churches, but those of related denominations.

Some twenty-plus titles from Paul’s pen are still available on Amazon.com. One with which every member of our Conference should be familiar is his little classic of 1980, A Third Way. Written at the close of his Scottdale career, it placed in simple language the key insights and convictions of the Mennonite faith tradition and shows how deeply Paul, no follower of fads, was rooted in scripture. The breadth of this biblical orientation became overwhelmingly evident in his commentary on the book of Daniel, now spread to over 500 libraries nationwide and beyond.

Though not narrow in mentality, Paul represented insight into the reasons for being the kind of Christians implicit in our tradition. When a respected sister in our conference began to wear a cross necklace, describing it as a spiritual ornament, he asked, “Would you wear an electric chair?” When in 1995 at a historic and somewhat tense meeting in Wichita, Kansas, the Mennonite Church and General Conference jointly accepted our groundbreaking “Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective,” Paul soberly counseled, just before the vote was taken, against a demonstrative, triumphant response that would insult those who in good conscience voted negatively.

In his return to the Franconia Conference area Paul not only served as an appreciated elder statesman, but poured his talents into a sequence of pastoral interims and major historical writings. A quarter-century later he was still growing spiritually, confessing that his mind was changing under the influence of the Gospel he loved. And, on the day before his sudden final illness, he was back at Norristown, encouraging a plan to support the congregation into which he had been born 88 years before. His legacy will continue initiating and steadying our life as a Christian fellowship.

Paul Lederach passed away on Monday, January 6. Relatives and friends may call after 1:30 p.m., Saturday, January 11, 2014 at Blooming Glen Mennonite Church, 713 Blooming Glen Road, Blooming Glen, PA 18911. A Memorial Service will follow at 3:00 p.m. Interment will be in the church columbarium.

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