Mosaic Mennonites

Missional - Intercultural - Formational

Doves Nest

National Child Abuse Prevention & Sexual Assault Awareness Month

by

According to the 2006 Church Member Profile, more than 1 in 5 women in MC USA congregations have experienced sexual abuse or violation; here in 2018, we can only speculate on what that number may be. Franconia Conference continues to be committed to helping end abuse and neglect of all people within our congregations and communities.  April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and National Sexual Assault Awareness Month  and we again remind and encourage you and your congregation to take steps to prevent all forms of abuse.

Integrating conversations about healthy relationships and healing abuse is crictical in our congregations. In March 2017, Salford Mennonite Church addressed the issue of child abuse in a special service.  If your congregation would consider doing a similar spotlight on this issue, a list of resources utilized for Salford’s service can be found on our Church Safety page.  Many other resources  for churches, leaders and individuals in the area of church safety, abuse prevention and care for survivors can be found on the Dove’s Nest resource page.

Under Pennsylvania law, all churches must have a written Child Protection Policy, and Franconia Conference encourages ALL of our congregations — no matter what state — to have a policy that is reviewed annually, to ensure it is being implemented.  Additionally, congregations must ensure that staff and volunteers that work with children and youth under the age of 18 have the proper clearances, have completed a Mandated Reporter Training, and that background checks are on file at the church. In Pennsylvania these clearances must be renewed every five years at least.   Franconia Conference has scheduled three Mandated Reporter Training sessions for 2018, in May, June and September, which you can now register for by clicking here (link closed).  These trainings are free and open to anyone who wises to attend. This training is required for credentialed leaders’ credential renewal. 

Dove’s Nest, a nonprofit organization that grew out of concerned individuals in Mennonite Church USA, has been working to keep children and youth safe for almost 10 years.  This year they have launched a study to assess the impact of their work over the past decade with churches related to Mennonite Church USA and beyond.  Church leaders should have received an invitation to participate in a survey, which will help them determine the needs of churches in the area of child protection, and how to best serve churches and remain in touch with the growing and changing needs related to safety in faith communities.   

Read more:

 

Love in Action at Mennonite Church USA Convention 2017

by

This year thousands of Mennonites from across the United States gathered in Orlando, Florida for the biennial Mennonite Church USA (MCUSA) Convention. The purpose of convention is to empower the church to achieve its vision, purpose and mission. Over the four days, members of congregations from across the country attend daily worship, workshops/seminars, participate in servant projects and delegates from MCUSA Congregations and Conferences attend business sessions. This year there was also the Future Church Summit, “a generative, open space for denomination-wide conversation — to dream together, reset priorities and engage one another in answering the question: How will we follow Jesus as Anabaptists in the 21st century?”

The week began on Tuesday evening, July 4; several offered greetings, including Mennonite Church Canada’s Executive Minister, Will Metrzger. Recognizing July 4 as the United States’ Independence Day he stated, “while some are celebrating with bombs bursting in air, we are celebrating the explosion of God’s grace.”

The theme for this year’s convention was Love is a Verb. Worship speakers focused on this theme, and workshops spoke of how we can live out the love of God, covering topics of church safety, patriarchy, racism, Israel Palestine,  “Keeping the Church Weird” and hearing God’s call, among others.

Sometimes love as a verb means recognizing and acknowledging when we have not loved. Ted & Company, in their new show Discovery: A Comic Lament, shared the Doctrine of Discovery and how even we as Mennonites have played a role in justifying the taking of land from the indigenous people here in the United States. It was a sobering reminder as we began the week.

Maria Hosler Byler and Joe Hackman, Salford congregation, celebrate their nomination.

Wednesday brought the Dove’s Nest awards celebration, recognizing churches “that did something courageous to keep children safe.” Salford Mennonite Church was one of the three nominee finalists. They were nominated for their service that happened at the end of March, which focused on the journey of abuse and healing as reflected by the Ezekiel 37 passage about the valley of dry bones. This service included voices of lament, hope and direct statements from survivors of childhood sexual abuse. More resources and information on how this service was put together can be found at http://mosaicmennonites.org/church-safety/. Wednesday also brought a time of connecting for those from across Franconia Conference, as we gathered together for food, fellowship, and music by The Walking Roots.

Thursday contained two big events: voting on the Seeking Peace in Israel Palestine Resolution and the kick off of the Future Church Summit.  Two years ago at the Kansas City Convention, a resolution regarding Israel Palestine was tabled. Since then a three-person writing team and a ten-person reference team worked to draft a new resolution, the Seeking Peace in Israel Palestine Resolution. Prior to the vote on the resolution, delegates heard from the writing team, discussed in their table groups, and then heard comments, concerns and questions. There were overwhelming comments of support for the resolution which ultimately passed with 97% in favor.

The Future Church Summit was a new addition this year to Convention. It was a time of dreaming and visioning, and discerning how God is leading us to follow Jesus. Delegates were joined by others from throughout MCUSA including high school students who had been chosen to be part of the Summit. The first day was spent getting to know one another by answering questions such as “When did you feel most connected to the Mennonite Church? What nourishes your spirit by being Anabaptist?” There was also a time of grounding participants in the history of Anabaptism and Mennonites, drawing learnings from our past.

Convention continues Friday and Saturday morning.

Child Abuse Prevention Month

by

april logoAs the month of April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, the conference hopes that you and your congregations will join other religious leaders and government officials around the country to encourage all to take steps to prevent child abuse. Franconia Conference continues to be committed to helping to end abuse and neglect of all people within our congregations and communities. This month with the focus on children Dove’s Nest, a nonprofit organization working to provide information to faith communities for the protection of children and youth, has developed a tool kit for congregations to use.

This kit includes bulletin inserts with information on prevention, prayers and responsive readings, and includes information on how individual members and congregations can protect children and youth and work to end abuse and neglect in their communities. In addition there is a children’s story for use in Sunday School or worship, promotional information about educational tools, and a list of internet resources.