Mosaic Mennonites

Missional - Intercultural - Formational

Conference News

Perkiomenville congregation moves to new Christian Life Center

by

Perkiomenville, PA (August 2007) – The Perkiomenville Mennonite Church celebrated the grand opening of their new church and Christian Life Center on Sunday, August 5, 2007. The new facility is located on Route 29 in Perkiomenville, PA.

pr1.jpgNearly 200 people packed the old church located on Deep Creek Road for a time of praise and thanksgiving. Pastor Charles Ness rehearsed the history of the church, which was founded in 1935, noting how the ministry of the church expanded with each generation until the need for a larger facility became paramount.

The congregation then processed up Deep Creek Road and Route 29 from the old location to the new building. Pastor Ness and Associate Pastor Dennis Detweiler carried a banner proclaiming the theme for the new church: “Advancing God’s Vision.” Other members of the church carried symbols of the ministry and life of the church, including the cedar cross, a pewter pitcher and basin, a music stand, the podium, etc. The congregation then had an opening ceremony and a time of worship in the new facility.

The Christian Life Center has been designed to serve as more than a place for worship on Sunday morning. The goal is for the building to become a vital place in the heart of the Upper Perkiomen Area. The Cedar Grove preschool and daycare center will open in late 2007 or early 2008, and there are long-range plans for youth recreational facilities and events, counseling services, and ministries to those in financial need.

Pastor Ness states the vision of the church clearly, “As the church, our goal is to be part of the community – impacting people at their point of need, helping them heal from the wounds life has inflicted, and giving them a place to grow in the love of God.”
pr2.jpg
Media Contact: Charles NessPerkmc@verizon.net
The Perkiomenville Mennonite Church
Tel: 215-234-4011

Eriksen Morales named Franconia Conference Minister of Transitional Ministries

by

Sheldon Good
scgood@mosaicmennonites.org

Congregations often go through transitions and shifts in leadership and churches reimagine their visions. Franconia Mennonite Conference has recognized this ebb-and-flow, inviting Jenifer Eriksen Morales has to join the conference ministry as the Minister of Transitional Ministries, a forward-leaning position for a conference that has recently revised its mission.

Eriksen Morales will help church leaders develop practices that enable congregations to cope in the midst of shifts and contextual changes. As the Minister of Transitional Ministries, Eriksen Morales will be responsible for serving on the conference ministry team as a resource and support person for congregations in transition. She will also develop practices that enable congregations to cope in the midst of change and serve as a interim minister as needed with these congregations.

Noel Santiago, Executive Conference Minister, is encouraged by her passion and thankful that she has answered the call to ministry. “Jenifer is both a fulfillment and a beginning; she is a fulfillment in the sense of the vision Conference Minister Donella Clemens moved us toward by calling us to bring on staff another female Conference Minister,” Santiago said. “She is a beginning in the sense of her now being available, along with all the other staff, as a tremendous gift.”

Eriksen Morales is already inspired by the stories she has heard of Jesus’ presence in area congregations. “I look forward to ministering with and in the congregations of Franconia Conference because I sense a dedication to both following God’s call and the continual process of learning and growth along with the vision, passion, grace, and courage required to do so,” said the conference’s newest staff member. “I am attracted to Franconia’s rich history, ever-increasing diversity, commitment to cultivating young leaders and the mission to ‘equip leaders to empower others to embrace God’s mission.’”

A Phillipsburg, NJ, native who grew up worshiping at the Alpha (NJ) Mennonite congregation, Eriksen Morales is at home in Franconia Conference. In an upcoming article to be published the conference´s Intersections, she wrote: “Because I was blessed to be raised in a home dedicated to the Christian faith and a Mennonite church, my journey in life and faith are interrelated.”

Through years of serving a Lehigh Valley interfaith organization through a process of transition, which culminated in program growth, Eriksen Morales is equipped with experience and an understanding of ministerial leadership.

Eriksen Morales developed her leadership skills while working as the Coordinator of Language and Literacy Programs at ProJeCt for People, Easton, PA. “I found the process of visioning, developing, and implementing mission-driven practices, and continual evaluation, which led to targeted professional and program development, to be challenging and exciting work,” she said. ProJeCt for People is a grassroots, interfaith organization whose mission is a holistic approach to helping adults and families along the path to self-sufficiency by providing emergency services as well as educational opportunities through adult basic education, ESL, GED, family literacy, parenting, and pre-school learning opportunities.


Eriksen Morales graduated from Eastern Mennonite University with a major in History and Social Science and minors in Mission and Teaching English as a Second Language. She most recently completed her Masters of Divinity at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS) in May 2007. Erisken Morales was able to balance her roles of wife and mother while being a full-time student, as she received AMBS’s Church Leadership Award, an annual scholarship given to two students who enroll in a Master’s program. Eriksen Morales is married to Victor Morales and mother of two young boys, Nicolas and Jonathan, who are being raised bilingually.

Photos provided by Jenifer Eriksen Morales

Young Adult Ministry Interns Wrestle with Visions for the Church

by

mipconf1.jpgby Lora Steiner

Harrisonburg, Va. – “I love the church, and I hate the church.” This sentiment was expressed in a variety of ways by Mennonite college students at a gathering held at Eastern Mennonite University the end of March.

Students who have already participated in the Ministry Inquiry Program (MIP) or will do so this summer, as well as denominational and conference leaders, attended the meeting. MIP is a collaboration between Mennonite Church USA and Mennonite-affiliated colleges that allows students to spend 11 weeks serving in a congregation and exploring their call to pastoral ministry.

During the conference, the 40 participants, many who are from or will be serving in Franconia Conference congregations this summer, were invited to listen to and share visions of the church.

Many simply asked: What does it mean to be in the world but not of it? How do we live faithfully as members of the kingdom of God while also living in a society that often doesn’t share the same values?

“Is church what happens Sunday morning,” asked one participant, “Or is church what we do together?”

Steve Kriss, director of communication and leadership cultivation for Franconia Mennonite Conference, highlighted some challenges the Mennonite Church is facing as it becomes more diverse, including language and cultural barriers.

“I am convinced,” said Kriss, “that it is going to be a struggle for those of us who are Euro-American to figure out how to live in a future that doesn’t look like us anymore. We are going to deal with privilege and responsibility and with issues of cultural understanding.”

During a session led by Mike and Risha Metzler, who attend The Table, an emerging Mennonite congregation in Harrisonburg, participants were asked to share words or phrases describing their ideal vision of the church. “Authentic,” said one. “Welcoming,” added another. In a few moments the list had been extended to include adaptable, Christ-centered, radical, life-giving and honest.

Risha Metzler said she thinks The Table is just “one way of doing church.

“We’re not saying, ‘This is the way church should be,’ but it’s exciting and energizing to me to begin to address the issue that church isn’t working for a lot of people. So what do we do with that as believers? How do we make this work for more people?”

During sharing times, many expressed a desire for a safe space to ask questions and express their doubts and frustrations. Others expressed the need for the church to collectively deal with conflict.

mipconf2.jpg“We all have disagreements on all kinds of issues, but we pretend that doesn’t happen on Sunday morning or say we can’t talk about these in church,” said one person.

Throughout the conference, students struggled with how to foster community, intimacy and accountability in their churches and engage the broader culture at the same time.

“The church is pulled in two directions,” said Goshen College student Paul Boers. “One is the desire to grow deeply and intimately in relationship with each other. And the other is to welcome anyone and everyone. For good relationships to be fostered, they take time. And they take intentionality.”

“If we want the church to change,” said Boers, “we have to change ourselves.”

“One of the biggest things we can do is let our congregations know that we care,” said one student. “We need to tell them that we want to be the church now and that we want to be the future. And that we want to work with them to create something meaningful.”

Aldo Siahaan, a leader of Philadelphia (PA) Praise Center, summarized a general feeling of the conference: “Miracles come from movement. We need to keep moving towards God’s grace and toward his vision.”

Students and church leaders alike agreed that movement toward God’s vision for the church will result in the miracle of transformation in congregations.

Lora Steiner is a Harrisonburg resident.

View photos from this event

Why object explores why we serve

by

Janine Bergey, Rockhill Mennonite

img_3445.jpgOn Sunday, March 25, a group of 75-100 assorted youth, parents and young adults forsook their afternoon naps to gather at Franconia Mennonite Church for Why Object?, an event that included worship, discussion and pizza and was jointly sponsored by youth leaders from both the Franconia and Eastern District Conferences and the Peace and Justice Committee. Titus Peachey of Mennonite Central Committee presented an interactive approach to the topics of military enlistment, conscientious objection and voluntary service. If anyone assumed attending meant spending three entire hours seated and chewing gum to stay awake, I assure you this was not the case. I was out of my seat as much as I was in it as an activity used our positions in the room to show where we stood on certain topics: spending a year or more in voluntary service; chocolate; cell phones; Jesus in the military; patriotism in the United States. How do I feel about chocolate? I know that answer with clarity and great confidence—but my stance on military service as Christ-like service is less sure-footed.

As I listened I heard people speaking of peace and of justice. How do they balance? Why do we object to the violence that has desensitized us? And too, why do we serve? I sometimes feel the uncertainty of where to place my growing feet while walking the path of Jesus. The group that gathered Sunday afternoon spent some time contrasting two oaths: That of a U.S. service person and that of a follower of Jesus. It boiled down to seeing that the first pledged to follow the President and honor the country, where the latter pledged to follow Christ and honor his broader, international kingdom.

During the afternoon we acted out the story of the cimg_3515.jpgonflict between the Israelite nation and their neighbors the people of Aram in 2 Kings 6:8-23. Even from my lofty role as “King” in our spontaneous skit, I wrestled with the choice that lay in my hands as the conflict was not so much between people groups, but more so the clash between emotions over what God would ask of me and what the people would see as just. What choice was the best to make? Mercy didn’t quite make sense even with the wise counsel from our resident prophet Elisha. Yet in this account from Scripture mercy became the move that was made. The captured army was not only released unharmed they were also fed! The surprising result: Peace!

To serve: When? Where? How? I asked these questions with greater intensity the further I got past high school graduation. It took a three year season of actively waiting, working at whatever my hands found to do or was asked of me, until an opportunity arrived in spontaneous form. After spending my 6th summer on staff at Spruce Lake Wilderness Camp, I was catching up on the phone with a long-time friend who shared with me her recent commitment to spend a year in Guatemala teaching English. At that time I was open to walking through any door that opened since I had no specifics lined up for that fall or beyond. In that moment on the phone with my friend I felt a pause that felt like desperation. It seemed that peers all around me were finding direction for their lives and I wanted the same. I had prayed for it. Almost in jest I asked her if there was the need for more teachers in Guatemala. The next few months were anything but spontaneous as that inquiry became a God-directed decision that put me in Mazatenango, Guatemala for 17 months.

I taught English to children and their little faces upturned to mine as their tongues jumbled the sounds of a new language. I lived with and was taught by a community of all ages. I walked the streets of a place that was beautiful because I had been there long enough to call it mine. I learned about the global body of ‘mi Jesucristo,’ and that the way to worship and experience the love of Christ is a multi-lingual, active process. Sights on the streets of “my“ little Mazatenango became integrated in my daily life. Drunks sleeping on the sidewalks; watch your step. Horses grazing randomly; drive around that one please. Maids to do the laundry; no honestly I do this myself at home. No Adopt-a-Highway or front lawns. The place and people worked their way into my heart. Now I see differently. I think differently. I serve differently. The story is longer and ever so full of details, but here I bring out this thought. The choice to serve in this place for this time was a God-given desire, because I desire God. I seek for his heart to be my heart, wherever I am.

p1010034.jpgI chose to serve and that choice changed my life. Not to say that life would not have changed had I chosen a different path with different people. I ask, along with many of you: To serve or not to serve? When are we merely serving ourselves and when does our focus turn outwards? What causes the change of heart? What is required of us all as we profess Christ with our lives? I have often experienced the powerful pull of servant hood as it brings people into that buzzword of Christian faith today—community. I know it is often used and broadly defined, but I’m a fan. Service crosses boundaries–any time, any age. Doesn’t it need to? What other way can one willingly become part of a greater movement; a larger body of people?

Janine “Bean” Bergey is involved in the community of faith at Rockhill Mennonite church and will serve as the girls head counselor at Spruce Lake Wilderness Camp this summer.

Mennonite Central Committee’s resources on Conscientious Objection: http://mcc.org/us/co/

  • Counter Recruitment
  • War Taxes
  • Christian Peacemaker Registration Form

Mennonite Mission Network Collaborates with Franconia Conference in first Youth Venture Experience in Israel

by

naz1s.jpgFranconia Mennonite Conference (FMC) and Mennonite Mission Network (MMN) plan to collaborate in first Youth Venture experience to Nazareth Village, Israel.

Since 1985, more than 700 persons have participated in Youth Venture, a program that provides opportunities for youth and young adults to join together for service and learning experiences, seeking to capture the imagination and passion of youth and young adults to invest their lives in bring healing and hope to the world. Youth Venture offers the offers the opportunity to join with other young Anabaptists for one to four weeks of service in July or August in various North American and international mission projects.

In July and August of 2007, Franconia Mennonite Conference will partner with Mennonite Mission Network to offer a collaborative experience for youth and young adults at the Nazareth Village in Israel. This is the first time for such a collaboration, and both parties hope that by working together, a more effective and networked program can be developed for participants. David Landis, Associate for Communication and Leadership Cultivation for Franconia Mennonite Conference, will serve as team leader.

Five years ago Mennonite Mission Network began a vision of collaborating with Mennonite Church USA conferences and other affinity groups, seeking out ways to live into what networking really means. Del Hershberger, MMN Director of Christian Service, states “We believe that networking with other folks who have a passion for ministry creates new, exciting possibilities that we never could have thought of or done by ourselves. I see this as a first step in FMC and MMN each bringing our ideas, passions and resources together to enhance the faith formation and leadership development of young adults.”

Participants in the Youth Venture trip to Nazareth Village will discover the land where Jesus walked while serving at a recreated village of first century Nazareth, working on maintenance projects, at a hospital or a children’s camp. Living with local Arab Christian families will provide opportunities to understand God’s continuing work in the Middle East. Many assumptions about the way the world functions are challenged as participants discover and exercise their gifts. The experience aims to explore real ways for participants to see God’s love and concern for the connected world far beyond anything they’ve imagined.naz3s.jpg

Stephen Kriss, FMC Director of Communication and Leadership cultivation says, “I’d hope this represents a new way to embody the network paradigm that both Franconia Conference and MMN are living into in these days of rapid change and global connectivity. In working together, we’ll share our resources to create opportunities to engage the world and to find new possibilities to incarnate the Good News that speaks to a new generation, our congregations and the world.

For more information on Youth Venture, go to http://www.mennonitemission.net/Work/Service/YV/. The Nazareth Village experience will be held from July 23 to August 10, 2007, flying in and out of Philadelphia.

Bluffton University Men's Baseball Team Involved in Accident in Atlanta

by

The Bluffton University men’s baseball team was involved in a bus accident in Atlanta, Ga., early March 2. The bus was on its way to Florida for the team’s spring break game with Eastern Mennonite University. “This is a sad tragedy for the students, families, friends and Bluffton University campus community. We are asking for prayers of support during this time,” said Bluffton University President James M. Harder.

 

Read the story at:
bluffton.edu | cnn.com | mennoweekly.org | emu.edu

Seminar on Pastors and Congregations Addressing Pornography Together

by

March 29 – 30, 2007
Sessions held at Souderton Mennonite Church

Register for the event by March 23, 2007 through email, phone, or at http://www.mosaicmennonites.org/index.php?P=120

bmh694.jpgEDC and FMC ministry teams have invited Brenda Martin Hurst, a professor of practical theology at Eastern Mennonite Seminary, to lead us in addressing the issue of pornography. Brenda led a workshop at the Mennonite Church USA Assembly in 2005 and wrote an article for The Mennonite addressing pornogrpahy. Since then she has spoken with other groups of leaders on this theme and has agreed to be with us March 29 and 30, 2007, for teaching and to raise personal and pastoral awareness.

The seminar will be divided into two parts. Both sessions will be held in the Fellowship Hall at Souderton Mennonite Church. We invite, [EDC encourages], and [FMC expects] credentialed leaders to attend both events. There will be .5 of Continuing Education credit available through these seminars.

Schedule:

March 29, 2007 ~ 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Lay leaders are particularly invited to attend. This session will provide an overview of the topic and raise consciousness on the challenges pornography presents within congregational life.

  • Worship led by Julie Prey-Harbaugh, FMC associate and James Lapp, FMC Senior Ministry Consultant
  • Presentation by Brenda Martin Hurst
  • A personal story of struggle with pornography
  • Response from pastors: Scott Benner, Zion Mennonite – Sandy Drescher-Lehman, Souderton Mennonite

March 30, 2007 ~ 9:00 a.m. – Noon
This session is designed for pastors, youth ministers, and chaplains.

  • Worship led by Julie Prey-Harbaugh and James Lapp
  • Presentation by Brenda Martin Hurst
    • Gender specific group interaction led by Brenda and Carl Yusavitz, Penn Foundation
    • Response and reflection on the next steps in growth and accountability led by: Warren Tyson, EDC Conference Minister and Ertell Whigham, FMC Director of Congregational Resourcing and Equipping

Register online | View the brochure PDF

Franconia Mennonite Church celebrates 15 year partnership with Iglesia Maranatha

by

04.jpgArnold & Marlene Derstine, Franconia Mennonite Church

It’s hard to believe that 15 years have passed since our congregation first began to relate to our sister church in Puebla, Mexico. Little did we know that what began as an initiative of Franconia Mennonite Conference and the Conference of Mennonite Churches in Mexico would eventually become a thriving relationship between our two congregations.

Last week a group of 6 persons from our congregation (Pastor John Ehst, Bill Gotwals, Alex and McAllister Tellado, David Landis, Arnold and Marlene Derstine) attended the anniversary weekend of our sister church. This annual celebration of God’s faithfulness in the life of the church seemed an appropriate setting to also recognize and celebrate 15 years of walking beside each other as congregations. It was a time to both reminisce about the past as well as dream about the future.

Initial conversations with the Maranatha congregation began in 1992. In the spring of 1993, the first of many exchange visits took place. A team of four persons from Franconia went to work along side our Mexican brothers and sisters who had recently purchased a new property for the church. Over the years many from our congregation have been encouraged and blessed as the chorus, young adults, youth teams and mixed groups have had the privilege of visiting with Maranatha and participating in the life and ministry of their congregation. Throughout the years we have also been blessed to receive groups from Maranatha through which many significant relationships have been established.

02.jpgOur weekend together was a significant reminder of the many meaningful relationships that have developed and grown over the last 15 years. It was also a reminder that our relationship together actually began long before the sister relationship emerged.

Perhaps the most meaningful part of the Sunday morning celebration was giving thanks for and recognizing the dedication and service of faithful leaders both past and present. It was a blessing to have David and Shirley Yoder there with us. David and Shirley are the original church planters of Maranatha. The congregation was moved as David expressed the overwhelming joy he and Shirley experienced in coming back to the church for the first time in 35 years and witnessing God’s faithfulness in bringing forth fruit from the seeds that were sown.

Maranatha is indeed a congregation that has come a long way since the early 1960’s when David and Shirley used the living room of their home as a chapel for Sunday morning services and weekly bible studies. On this Sunday the auditorium was full of people and praise as we celebrated God’s faithfulness together through inspiring worship, prayer and hearing God’s word.

It was encouraging to reflect on how God has brought us together – two congregations with distinct cultures but the same vision and desire to be salt and light here on earth. Throughout the weekend we took time to think, dream and pray about our future together as partners in the Gospel. We look forward to how God will continue to use this relationship to further His kingdom.

posted from Franconia Sampler, A weekly newsletter of the Franconia Mennonite Church
03.jpg