Mosaic Mennonites

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Conference News

Franconia Conference gathers Centered in Christ, Empowering Others: A historic Pennsylvania meetinghouse is filled with new music and languages

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Steve Kriss, Director of Communication and Leadership Cultivation

Friday Evening WorshipAnna Musselman, minister of church programs at Salford Mennonite Church, told her congregation that the walls of their historic meetinghouse would hear new songs and sounds during the Franconia Conference Fall Assembly held at the church on November 10-11 near Harleysville, PA. Musselman was right. Praises rang out for 24-hours with words spoken in Indonesian, Spanish, and Vietnamese (the worshipping languages of the conference’s congregations) while leaders gathered to celebrate, discern and learn.

Kicked off with energetic worship led by a multiethnic, multilingual worship team composed of members of Nueva Vida Norristown (PA) New Life, a multicultural, bilingual conference congregation, and Philadelphia Praise Center, a congregation composed mostly of recent immigrants from Indonesia, the assembly focused on the theme of “Centered in Christ, Empowering Others.” Conference delegates and guests gathered from as far away as Chile to celebrate connections that cross lines of ethnicity, language, and denominational differences. The 24-hour worship featured groups from congregations with a variety of affiliations.

The assembly included the affirmation of Philadelphia Praise Center as the conference’s newest member congregation. In the litany read by conference leaders they said together, “In the spirit of God’s biblical mandate to protect the vulnerable and in the spirit upon which Dutch forebears 300 years ago sent pastors to shepherd fledgling congregations in the New World, we acted on behalf of Franconia Mennonite Conference, risking protocols and precedents to use our 300-year old residency in this land to . . . provide leadership for a fledgling congregation in Philadelphia.” The conference’s board acted in June to accept PPC as a member in order to secure pastoral leaders for the rapidly growing congregation.

While worship and discernment are traditional features of the conference’s gathering, this year “equipping” seminars included opportunities to hear from denominational leaders, James Schrag (Mennonite Church USA) and Stanley Green (Mennonite Mission Network); conference leaders Gay Brunt Miller and James M. Lapp; biblical scholar, Laura Brenneman from Bluffton University and young adult leaders David P. Landis of Harleysville, PA and Felicia Moore from Bristol, PA. Seminars were packed with attendees spilling into the halls of the recently renovated meetinghouse.

While the walls of the Salford meetinghouse heard new songs and sounds, the conference ended its work for the day with a decades-old affirmation of simple and nonresistant faith this time read in Indonesian, Spanish and Vietnamese as well as English.

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Franconia Conference announces interim conference ministry assignments

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In the midst of staffing changes, Noel Santiago, executive minister announced the following realignments for conference ministry responsibilities, effective immediately.

Walter Sawatzky has been named as an associate conference minister on a contractual basis serving with Line Lexington, Plains, Rockhill, Souderton, Vietnamese Gospel congregations.

Steve Kriss, Director of Communication and Leadership Cultivation, will serve as primary liaison with Lakeview, Mennonite Bible and New Life (Athens, PA) congregations as well as an emerging faith community in the Poconos that has its roots in the former Spruce Lake Fellowship. Kriss will continue to serve as primary contact with Philadelphia Praise Center.

Noel Santiago will now serve as conference minister with Partner in Ministry congregation, New Hope Fellowship in Alexandria, Virginia. He will continue to serve the congregations of the Berks-Montgomery area, the Lehigh Valley as well as Nueva Vida Norristown New Life and Perkasie congregations.

These appointments emphasize the conference’s commitment to congregations and relationships. These shifts, though to some degree temporary, represent commitments to serve with congregations in ways that uphold Anabaptist and missional convictions while new conference ministry models are explored.

Conference Assembly and 24 Hour Worship: Centered in Christ, Empowering Others

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Franconia Conference is set to gather for worship, discernment and equipping at Salford Mennonite Church in Harleysville, PA on November 10-11. This year’s conference will explore the theme, “Centered in Christ, Empowering Others.” The gathering will be translated for the first time into all of the conference’s worshipping languages: Indonesian, Spanish and Vietnamese.

Along with Conference Assembly this year, there will be 24-hours of worship lead by groups from across the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 24-hours of worship commences at 6pm on Friday, November 10th led by a multicultural and multilingual team from Nueva Vida Norristown (PA) New Life and Philadelphia Praise Center congregations. Opening assembly worship at 7pm will celebrate new and past ministries within the congregations and ministries of the Conference that spread from Philadelphia to Vermont.

Business sessions on Saturday morning will explore new directions for the conference’s vision and financial plan; a look at the emerging plan for Christ-centered Mennonite education in Bucks and Montgomery counties of Pennsylvania and discernment of leadership processes.

The assembly will conclude with equipping sessions and lunch. Equipping sessions will be lead by local and churchwide leaders including:

  • James Schrag, Mennonite Church USA
  • Gay Brunt Miller, Franconia Conference
  • Dr. Stanley Green, Mennonite Mission Network
  • Dr. James Lapp, Franconia Conference
  • Dr. Laura Brenneman, Bluffton University
  • Sheldon Good, Goshen College/Salford congregation
  • Felicia Moore, Indiana University of Pennsylvania/New Beginnings congregation

Conference Assembly Schedule

Friday

6:00 24-Hour Worship begins

Pentecost (Nueva Vida Norristown/New Life) and Philadelphia Praise Center

7:00 Conference Assembly Worship

Pentecost (Nueva Vida Norristown/New Life) and Philadelphia Praise Center
Led by Ertell Whigham with stories from Philadelphia Urban Ministry Partnership, “Empowering Others”

  • Praying with and for those newly credentialed
    • Brent Camillieri, Mark Derstine, Angela Moyer, Joy Sawatzky, Angel Tamayo (licensed)
    • Michael Bishop, Bill Kull, Don McDonough (ordained)
  • Recognizing the ministries of ministers who have gone before us
    • Alvin Detweiler, Leroy Godshall, Nelson Reinford, Harold Weaver
  • Celebrating the membership of Philadelphia Praise Center
  • Honoring the ending of ministry
    • Spruce Lake Fellowship (Canadensis, PA)
    • Shalom Mennonite Church (Pennsburg, PA)
  • Blessing the Vision and Financial Plan Team
    • Greg Bowman, Ken Burkholder, Chris Chapman, Blaine Detweiler, Leonard Dow, Joe Hackman, Brent Kolb, Steve Kriss, Karen Moyer, Charlotte Graber Rosenberger, Ertell Whigham

Translation available in Franconia congregation worshipping languages: Indonesian, Spanish, Vietnamese

Terjemahan akan tersedia pada hari Jumat/ 10 November dari jam 7pm-9pm dan Sabtu 11 November jam 9-12pm, menyadari bahwa Tuhan mengundang banyak jiwa dari berbagai bangsa,suku dan bahasa dalam kekuasaanNYA.

Por lo tanto para todos aquellas personas que hablan español, habrá traducción el dí­a viernes, 10 de noviembre desde las 7 hasta las 9 de la tarde. También el sábado, 11 de noviembre desde las 9 hasta las 12 del medio dí­a. Sabemos que Dios esta invitando a todas las naciones, tribus y lenguas a unirse al reino de Dios.

Vay, se co thong ngon dich qua tieng Viet tai hoi dong toi Thu Sau, ngay 10 thang 11 tu 7g den 9 g, va sang Thu Bay, ngay 11 thang 11, tu 9g den 12 g trua, vi biet Chua dang moi that ca cac quoc gia, chung toc, dan toc va ngon ngu vao su tri vi cua Duc Chua Troi.

9:00pm Worship continues overnight

Saturday

9:00 Conferring and Discerning

  • Vision and Financial Plan considerations for our shared future
  • GPS 2012 update on Christ-Centered Mennonite education
  • Consideration of new bylaws for service and leadership
  • Updating a plan to recreate nominating processes
  • Conferring and considering new leaders
  • Affirming our nonviolent faith

12:00 Lunch provided by Salford Mennonite Church

Workshop 1 and 2
Worship continues

1:00 Lunch provided by Salford Mennonite Church

Workshop 3 and 4
Worship continues

2:00 All workshops (1-4)

3:00 Conference Assembly ends, 24-Hour worship continues
6:00 24-Hour worship ends

Conference Minister to present at Military Counter-Recruitment Conference

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Ertell Whigham, Franconia Conference Minister and associate pastor at Norristown (PA) New Life congregation, will present at a conference in San Antonio, Texas, on Military Counter-recruitment, November 3-5. The conference sponsored by Mennonite Central Committee sets to counter military recruitment efforts through gospel nonviolence.

Whigham served in the US Marines in Vietnam and became a military recruiter, before as he suggests God spoke to his heart asking “How can you share the Love of Jesus with someone and want to take their life?” At that point Ertell knew it was not only about the alternatives offered by the Mennonites he had encountered, it was about the way of the gospel.

  • Additional conference information from Mennonite Central Committee

  • NEW: Mennonite Mission Network News: Recruitment Reaction: Churches Counter Military

Perkiomenville Mennonite Church breaks ground for new church and community building

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Residents along Route 29 in Perkiomenville saw a strange sight early Sunday afternoon: two large hay wagons being pulled by a tractor, filled with men, women, and children all in their Sunday best. It was the entire congregation of the Perkiomenville Mennonite Church, currently located on Deep Creek Road, going to the ground breaking ceremony at their new property on Route 29.

Perkiomenville Mennonite Church (PMC) was founded in 1935 as a Sunday School for the community children. Now, over 70 years later, it continues to be a vital force in the community with two Sunday services, Sunday School for all ages, Vacation Bible School, and a variety of programs that touch not only the lives of the surrounding community, but reach as far as Mexico and Chile where the congregation helps support two sister churches abroad.

In response to the growth of the church and the desire of the congregation to increase their involvement with the community, PMC purchased 20 acres of land on Route 29 several years ago, with a vision of raising a new building. That vision is now becoming a reality. The new building will not only house the church itself, but will offer a day care facility for local preschool children. The congregation hopes in the future to add counseling services, sports activities, and charity programs to benefit all the families in the community.

The ground breaking ceremony was filled with song and laughter, and everyone present had the opportunity to turn over shovelfuls of the thick, dark soil. With one voice, the congregation affirmed that the new building would be “used for worship, education, youth activities, recreation, and as a resource center for the community.”

Pastor Charles Ness summarized the purpose for the new building during the ceremony: “We break ground for this building in order that it may become a center of faith and renewal, a place of healing and hope.” And all those present responded, “As we break ground this day, we step boldly into the future, and we do so to the glory of God.”

The congregation anticipates opening the doors of the new building to the community by fall 2007.

FMC’s Claude Good receives Distinguished Service Award

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HARRISONBURG, Va. – The Alumni Association of Eastern Mennonite University honored two of its graduates Sunday, Oct. 15, for their work in reflecting the school’s vision, mission and values.

Claude Good of 275 Dock Drive, Lansdale, a member of the graduating class of 1954, received the “distinguished service award,” during the Sunday morning worship service of homecoming and family weekend.

The annual “distinguished service” award seeks to recognize graduates who have demonstrated in notable ways the Christian service and peacemaking emphases of the university.

Good and his wife, Alice Longenecker Good, also a member of the class of 1954, lived among the Triqui Indians in Mexico for 25 years while translating the New Testament into their language.

With intestinal worms a major medical problem among the children they served, Good looked for ways to treat malnutrition caused by roundworms that can devour 25-30 percent of the food eaten by a child each day.

His investigations resulted in the “Worm Project”, a medical treatment that, for about two cents a pill, can eradicate most parasitic worms in a child for up to six months.

“We hope to have at least 12 million pills distributed by the end of 2006 in about 70 countries,” Good noted, adding a wish that his receiving the “distinguished service award” will “help publicize something that the world truly needs.”

As part of his work with the Worm Project, Good frequently addresses groups who might contribute financially; these audiences sometimes include school-age groups. His soft and easy manner, as well as his general appearances, has resulted in his being dubbed “Mr. Rodgers.”

Good continues to work with international students from the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University, connecting them with families and churches in the Philadelphia area. He also has an international scripture ministry in the Souderton (PA) Mennonite Church where he and his wife are members.

Catherine R. Mumaw, also a 1954 EMU graduate and veteran educator from Corvallis, Ore. received EMU’s 2006 “alumna of the year” award during homecoming weekend.

Dr. Mumaw, a home economics graduate of EMU, returned to teach courses in that discipline at her alma mater, 1957-74. She earned a master’s degree in 1958 and a PhD in 1967 from Penn State University.

She was professor and chair of the home economics department at Goshen (IN) College, 1974-86, and served as associate professor in the Human Development and Family Studies department at Oregon State University, 1987-95.

Through OSU, she helped Bunda College of Agriculture in Malawi update their home economics and human nutrition programs and took part in a faculty exchange program with Avinashilingam Deemed University in India.

The award is presented annually to a graduate who has been recognized for significant achievements in their profession, community or church.

You can read more about Claude in EMU’s Crossroads article, available here.

More than 100 attend symposium resulting in new vision boldly opening doors to Christ-centered Mennonite education

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Over 100 people joined together to consider the future possibilities for Quakertown and Penn View Christian schools and Christopher Dock Mennonite High School on September 16 at Penn View’s Godshall Road campus in Souderton, PA. Out of this day of listening and hearing the steering team for the school’s GPS 2012 strategic plan initiative has adopted a vision statement, “Boldly opening doors to Christ-centered Mennonite education.” The vision emerges from the conversations and input of the symposium participants.

According to Sarah Bergin of Perkasie Mennonite Church, “It’s so great to be a part of a community that cares about our students, not just academically but spiritually. It was wonderful to be together as a group.” Parents, students, alumni, teachers, staff, pastors, conference leaders and community leaders were part of the day-long discernment that led up to the new collaborate vision for the schools. Noel Santiago, Franconia Conference Executive Minister, remarked “There was a lot of energy here with good focus and clarity. We still have the tough part of making it a reality.”

The ongoing work of GPS (Globally Positioned Students) 2012 will focus around four goals derived from the September 15 meeting. These goals include:
• Mission driven, action-oriented collaboration among schools, families, congregations and conferences
• Accessibility to Christ-centered Mennonite education in the tri-school area
• Exemplary Christ-centered teaching and learning within an Anabaptist/Mennonite worldview
• Cultivating a community recognizable by their impact as Christ-centered pilgrim servants building God’s kingdom locally and globally

Perkasie Congrgation Reaches out to Neighborhood with Friday Film Night

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by Mary Lou Cummings

Their days are crowded between their children and their jobs, but when Karen Zehr and Sarah Bergin get together, ideas begin to pop. Both members of Perkasie congregation, they share a passion for connecting to the people who live in the neighborhood around the church at Fourth and Chestnut Streets, in downtown Perkasie.

Karen, who lives in a nearby townhouse, knew that young families often look for wholesome, inexpensive weekend entertainment. Could a small congregation sponsor some activity as a gift to the dense, residential neighborhood? Could this be a non-threatening way to get acquainted?

The two women made lots of phone calls to iron out the details, and then proposed a Free Friday Film Night on the final Friday night of June, July, and August. The Church Council hopped on board, and volunteers helped make the event a success.

They choose family movies, two with current national distribution, and all with child-appeal: Hoodwinked was an animated feature that spiraled off from the Little Red Riding Hood story. Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron was another animated drama that took place on the early Western plains, and the classic version of The Wizard of Oz offered its songs about courage and heart.

A borrowed projector shone the movie through the dark of a summer sky and onto the 30-foot white tarp pinned to the brick wall of a nearby building. Free popcorn popped in the commercial popper as church members and their neighbors opened canvas chairs and got comfortable. Children wandered in with glowstick necklaces, as if going to a parade.

The downside? Weather. Thunder and lightning and rain scattered the movie-goers half-way through the first night. Lowering dark skies kept everyone nervous on the day of the second. Still, the audiences seemed to enjoy the soft night air, the stars, and the atmosphere.

The upside? New friends. A number of neighbors warmly offered to help clean up. One girl has become Sarah’s best friend, and lurks outside on Sunday mornings watching for her. People now know several of us by name, and vice versa, and others, both young and retirement-age tell us they will be watching for next summer’s event. Some kind of long-time barrier has come tumbling down in a small mysterious way; maybe it is an attitude of mistrust of the unknown on both sides.

Sarah and Karen warn others who might be drawn to the idea to purchase licenses to show the movies, even though some accompanying limitations might be irritating. They even got an okay from Perkasie’s Borough. They also prepared a short Power Point presentation about Perkasie Mennonite Church, Mennonites, and an invitation to its activities which ran before the movie. They registered those who attended by offering a drawing for free drinks and snacks. The snacks were sold at very low prices to keep the event family-friendly and the popcorn was free.

The two women operated on a $500 budget, some of which went for wide publicity; they have applied to MMA for a matching grant.

“We learned a lot,” Sarah laughs, “because this was the first time for everything. But the movies proved to be a great ‘equalize.’ People felt comfortable attending because they were national PG movies. In our publicity we also publicized MCC school kits, and invited people to bring supplies along. Some did donate money and supplies for the kits, and that was a good educational component. The crowds were not big, but they seemed to have a great time!