Mosaic Mennonites

Missional - Intercultural - Formational

Eileen Kinch

Stewarding a Spiritual Legacy 

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by Eileen Kinch

Last year, a Friend in my Quaker meeting died. Later I learned that he had named me in his will to take care of his religious books and writings.  

Boxes and boxes of old books came to our house, as well as to my parents’. As I sorted through the collection, I discovered a few surprises: a copy of Scottish Quaker Robert Barclay’s Apology from 1678, a two-volume set from 1753 of A Collection of the Sufferings of the People Called Quakers by Joseph Besse, and an almost complete book set of the writings by Quaker founder George Fox. 

What does it mean to steward a spiritual legacy? I have spent a lot of time thinking about this. Terry Wallace gave these books to me. But before Terry gave me these books, Lewis and Sarah Potts Benson gave these books to Terry. Lewis and Sarah worked very hard to teach Quakers in the 1970s and 1980s about their religious heritage. Lewis, Sarah, and Terry traveled to Friends meetings in the United Kingdom and in the US with the same message: that Quakers have a very special understanding of Christ being alive here and now, and that we can know and obey him. 

Some of the books have notes scribbled on the edges of pages or even on the end pages.  Lewis kept meticulous notes of how Friends used words in their journals or other writings from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. He even assembled a word index. Terry wrote books that interpret some of these older writings. My experience of Christ has been shaped and nurtured because of the faithfulness of others, including Sarah, Lewis, and Terry. 

A few Friends recommended that I send older volumes to the archives at Haverford and Swarthmore Colleges. Since Barclay’s Apology is now available online, an archival facility would know best how to take care of a book from 1678. This is helpful advice. 

I’m still deciding what I want to do. One thing very clear to me is that the legacy I have been given is not simply the books themselves; what the books contain, teach, or even document is even more important than where I decide to store them.  I need to talk and write about my spiritual heritage and why Quaker history and witness are so important. The books are not dead relics. I want them to make a difference for the Kingdom of God, and I want to be a living witness to Christ’s power today. 

I am a Quaker who lives and works among Mennonites. Mennonites also have a spiritual legacy that should be nurtured and stewarded. I hope Mennonites are sharing stories of living witness with each other and preserving them at places like the Mennonite Heritage Center. Stories do not simply belong to individuals — they belong to all of us. God’s faithfulness and the faithfulness of our brothers and sisters shape our own. 

Eileen Kinch

Eileen Kinch is a writer and editor for the Mosaic communication team. She holds a Master of Divinity degree, with an emphasis in the Ministry of Writing, from Earlham School of Religion. She and her husband, Joel Nofziger, who serves as director of the Mennonite Heritage Center in Harleysville, live near Tylersport, PA. They attend Methacton Mennonite Church. Eileen is also a member of Keystone Fellowship Friends Meeting in Lancaster County.

Quaker Thoughts on Simplicity 

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Photo by Jeffrey Czum

Mennonites and Friends (Quakers) are different groups with different cultural and theological histories. Yet these groups have some shared concerns: a peace testimony, a refusal to swear oaths, a history of persecution and flight, and an understanding of plainness and simplicity. As a member of the Religious Society of Friends, I offer a few reflections on simplicity from a traditional Quaker perspective. 

Simplicity begins on the inside. As followers of Christ, we have been commanded to seek first the Kingdom of God. Simplicity is setting aside anything that gets in the way of seeking the Kingdom. The Book of Discipline of my yearly meeting (a yearly meeting is equivalent to a Mennonite conference or convention) states: “The call … is to abandon those things that clutter [our lives] and to press toward the goal unhampered. This is true simplicity.” Simplicity can mean having fewer possessions, but also means surrender to God.  

Simplicity is not the same as frugality. My Lutheran grandparents lived through the Great Depression. As a result, they crimped the toothpaste tube to get out every last bit of paste—and I recall that my grandmother even once cut off the end so that she could scrape the inside of the tube with her brush. My grandfather told stories of eating pretzel soup for breakfast during the 1920s and 1930s. This was, well, crushed pretzels soaked in water. Circumstances forced my grandparents to be frugal. But their continued sense of carefulness with resources does not strike me as a form of simplicity, but rather a survival technique born of economic trauma.  

Simplicity will look different for different people. Some Friends choose against television in their homes, and some plant gardens as a spiritual practice. Still others feel called to plain or simple dress. Not everyone feels called to do this. My yearly meeting acknowledges in the section of the Discipline that “Simplicity does not mean all conform to uniform standards.” Margaret Fell Fox, an early Friend and the wife of George Fox, mentioned in 1700 that requiring everyone to be “in one dress and one color” was a “silly poor Gospel.” This means that some Friends come to worship in long dresses and suspenders.  Others come to worship wearing jeans.  This is okay. 

Simplicity can also unite us. Friends’ practice of waiting in silence began during a time of religious and political turmoil. They felt the only way to find God in the turmoil was to strip away the structured worship services. As a result of waiting, listening, and speaking only when God prompted, Friends encountered a special unity in worship. Even today, I will sometimes be praying silently, and someone stands and speaks the very thing I am praying about. 

Following God’s call to simplicity can be a form of witness. John Woolman, an American Friend and storekeeper, felt that slavery was impeding his ability to seek first the Kingdom of God. He began to speak and act against slavery before Friends in the Philadelphia area prohibited the practice. He began wearing undyed clothing because dye was made by the labor of enslaved persons. For Woolman, stripping away distracting things meant looking different from the rest of his religious community. 

Photo by Karolina Grabowska

In keeping with the Quakerly character of this writing, I offer some questions for examination and spiritual growth for us all to consider: 

  • Is something blocking my search for the Kingdom of God? 
  • How has following a call to simplicity enriched my walk with God and my community? 

A longer version of this article originally appeared in Anabaptist World. This abbreviated version is used by permission. 

Eglise Solidarité et Harmonie Helps Immigrants

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“Hope is a Success Story”

by Eileen Kinch

Eglise Solidarité et Harmonie (Solidarity and Harmony Church), a Mosaic congregation in Philadelphia, PA, has a special missional outreach: the congregation holds clinics to help Haitian immigrants complete immigration-related paperwork. These sessions provide assistance in how to apply for a permit to work in the US.  

Providing legal aid clinics was initially an outgrowth of Pastor Benjamin Toussaint’s work with Parents as Teachers (PAT), an organization that provides in-home visits to help parents understand early childhood development. In this setting, Pastor Benjamin noticed some families experienced a lot of stress when it came to filling out their immigration paperwork. He decided to do something to help. 

Pastor Benjamin spoke with ChiChi Oguekwe of Mennonite Central Committee, who recommended some attorneys who were willing to work pro bono or for low fees.  These attorneys help families to apply for work permits and green cards, as well as to begin the process of filing for political asylum. 

Eventually this legal aid ministry became an outreach of the Eglise Solidarité et Harmonie. Now families request appointments, and legal clinics take place on Monday evenings at the church building. Attorneys and people from the church assist with paperwork throughout the evening. Pastor Benjamin coordinates the program, and the church disperses the funds to attorneys and interpreters. 

Eventually Pastor Benjamin saw that, in addition to legal aid, recent immigrants needed assistance with furniture and clothing, so he brought families to the Care and Share Thrift Shoppes in Souderton, PA, a Conference Related Ministry. The Care and Share Thrift Shoppes have extensive experience with refugee resettlement, and staff give several hours of individualized attention to each family. 

Pastor Benjamin Toussaint (front row, third from the left, next to young man in the green shirt) and families from Haiti finish shopping for clothes and supplies at the Care and Share Thrift Shoppes. Donations to Care and Share have a local and global impact. Photo courtesy of Sarah Bergin and Care & Share.

“Care and Share embraces us and receives us,” said Pastor Benjamin. “They show the love of Christ, and people can see it.” After staff spent three or four hours helping one family furnish an apartment, Pastor Benjamin asked if he could pray a prayer of blessing with the staff, including Sarah Bergin, Executive Director of Care and Share, in gratitude for their ministry.  

The immigrant family and Care & Share staff held hands, prayed, and sang a song. “It was a nice way for us to connect at the end,” remarked Bergin. “We’re in this together.” 

Pastor Benjamin estimates that about 40 people have received help through the church’s legal aid program in the past year.  Many of these people now worship at Eglise Solidarité et Harmonie, and the building is full and overflowing with 100 attenders.  The congregation needs a larger space, and Pastor Benjamin is actively seeking one that will meet the congregation’s needs. 

Along with finding a larger meeting space, Pastor Benjamin has many other hopes and dreams. He would like to start a program in which immigrant families would volunteer at Care and Share, and he also plans to organize an entry-level English class in the fall.  

Working with the immigrant population has its challenges and stresses. Thirty people are currently waiting for legal help, and more people will be emigrating. But Pastor Benjamin points out successes, too. More people are now working and supporting themselves.  

Most important, though, is that Haitian immigrants have hope.  “Hope is a success story,” Pastor Benjamin said. Christ is present and helping in so many ways. 

Eileen Kinch

Eileen Kinch is a writer and editor for the Mosaic communication team. She holds a Master of Divinity degree, with an emphasis in the Ministry of Writing, from Earlham School of Religion. She and her husband, Joel Nofziger, who serves as director of the Mennonite Heritage Center in Harleysville, live near Tylersport, PA. They attend Methacton Mennonite Church. Eileen is also a member of Keystone Fellowship Friends Meeting in Lancaster County.

Lenape Asks PA Mennonites for Land to Bury Their Ancestors 

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by Eileen Kinch

The Mennonite Heritage Center, a Conference Related Ministry (CRM) in Harleysville, PA, welcomed the Lenape (Delaware) tribe of Bartlesville, OK, on April 12. After a potluck supper with local Mennonites, Chief Brad KillsCrow, tribal elder John Thomas, and tribal historic preservation officer Susan Bachor presented their request: land to bury their ancestors. 

Since 1990, the Native American Graves and Protection and Repatriation Act has required that museums and universities return Indigenous human remains and funerary items after consulting with descendants and tribal organizations. As Indigenous groups receive the bones of their ancestors, however, some tribes face the next question: where to bury them. 

Mennonites arrived in southeastern Pennsylvania in 1683 and many now live on the Lenape ancestral homeland, which encompasses greater Philadelphia, New Jersey, and parts of New York. 

“We have no presence in our homeland,” KillsCrow said. “How do we put our ancestors back in the ground?” 

The Lenape have already worked with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to bury about 200 ancestors at Pennsbury Manor, William Penn’s country estate in Morrisville, in 2022. But thousands still need burial space. 

Addressing the crowd of 120 gathered in the Mennonite Heritage Center barn, KillsCrow said, “Our ancestors helped you. Your ancestors helped us. I humbly ask if there is anything you can do.” He suggested a few acres, preferably an open meadow in a remote location. The Lenape would like to bury their ancestors with traditional ceremonies. 

The Lenape had considered burying their ancestors in Oklahoma, KillsCrow said, but tribal elders pointed out these ancestors never lived in Oklahoma. The Lenape settled there in the 1860s after gradual displacement from Pennsylvania by European expansion and then forced removal by the US government. The Lenape want to honor their ancestors, whose bones have been kept in museums and other institutions, by bringing them home. 

The event took place after a year of conversation between John Thomas, a Lenape tribal elder, and John L. Ruth, a noted historian of Mennonites in eastern Pennsylvania. The two men first met in 2022 at the Perkiomen Valley School District’s dedication of the Lenape Arboretum. The southeastern Pennsylvania school district partners with Ursinus College on the Welcome Home Project, which honors the history and culture of the Lenape people. 

As Ruth and Thomas talked, they discovered they had common roots in southeastern Pennsylvania. Ruth’s Mennonite family has lived in the area since the early 1700s. Thomas’ ancestors lived on the same land for thousands of years before that. Eventually, Ruth said, “My people have been living on your land for 300 years. We didn’t run you off or kill you. We prospered here. We have freedom. What can we do to help you?” 

Thomas responded, “We need a place to bury our ancestors.” 

Ruth began to lay groundwork with Mosaic Mennonites. In November, Ruth introduced Thomas and his wife, Faye, to about 80 people gathered at the Salford (Harleysville, PA) Mennonite meetinghouse. Ruth also gave a talk at the Mennonite Heritage Center about his own journey with Lenape history. 

At the April 12 meeting, Bachor, the tribal historic preservation officer, said it is not appropriate for ancestors to be buried in Mennonite church graveyards. She also requested Mennonites not offer land with a known history. “We also have to look out for everybody’s historic preservation,” she said. Archaeological research is more expensive for lands with known histories. 

The evening ended with John Ruth leading the group in singing “Blessed Be the Tie That Binds.” At a follow-up discussion on April 25 at the Mennonite Heritage Center, attendees reflected on the conversation with the Lenape and discussed possible ways to continue Lenape-Mennonite dialogue and to respond to the land request. 

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in Anabaptist World on April 20, 2023 and is reprinted here with permission. To view the original article, click here.  

Eileen Kinch

Eileen Kinch is a writer and editor for the Mosaic communication team. She holds a Master of Divinity degree, with an emphasis in the Ministry of Writing, from Earlham School of Religion. She and her husband, Joel Nofziger, who serves as director of the Mennonite Heritage Center in Harleysville, live near Tylersport, PA. They attend Methacton Mennonite Church. Eileen is also a member of Keystone Fellowship Friends Meeting in Lancaster County.

How Mosaic Conference Became 10% Asian

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by Eileen Kinch

Mosaic Conference formed in 2020 with the reconciliation of the former Franconia and Eastern District Conferences. Mosaic has 65 member congregations, and nine of these are predominantly Asian.  How did these congregations come to be part of Mosaic? The answer is complex, but it reflects the relational nature of Mosaic and the movement of the Holy Spirit. 

Vietnamese Gospel Mennonite Church (Allentown, PA)

Vietnamese Gospel Mennonite Church (Allentown, PA) is the oldest Asian majority congregation in Mosaic. This congregation started in 1983 as the Vietnamese Christian Fellowship and initially met for worship at Penn View Christian School (now Dock Academy). Hao Tran became the first pastor in 1985. Luke S. Martin, Ca Nguyen, Phi Tran, and Thanh Cong Phan served in leadership roles from 1988 and through the 1990s. The congregation officially joined Franconia Conference in 1996.  Pastor Bao Tran is the minister at Vietnamese Gospel Mennonite Church which meets in the former Allentown (PA) Mennonite Church building. 

Philadelphia (PA) Praise Center (PPC), an Indonesian majority congregation, started in 2005, but it had no denominational affiliation. A member of the congregation, who was a Mennonite in Indonesia, asked Aldo Siahaan, founding pastor of PPC, if he could invite his Indonesian Mennonite pastor to come and visit PPC. The Mennonite pastor visited for several weeks. Through Mennonite connections in Indonesia and in the US, Siahaan eventually found himself in the Franconia Mennonite Conference office. A staff member invited him to Conference Assembly. After a year of discernment, PPC joined Franconia Conference in 2006. This congregation is one of the five largest in Mosaic Conference in terms of attendance. 

Other Indonesian congregations joined Franconia Conference, often because of their connection to the Philadelphia Praise Center as an Indonesian immigrant church. Nations Worship Center (South Philadelphia, PA), pastored by Beny Krisbianto, joined Franconia Conference in 2007. A former Lutheran congregation, Indonesian Light Church, also in South Philadelphia, joined in 2014. Bethany Elevation Community Church (New York City) was seeking safety and spiritual shelter as an immigrant congregation. Yakub Limanto, Bethany’s pastor, met with Beny Krisbianto, and the congregation joined Franconia in 2017. These congregations range in size. 

Aldo Siahaan, pastor of Philadelphia Praise Center, being interviewed at the press conference.
Jemaat Indonesian Christian Anugerah (Sierra Madre, CA)

Several congregations in California have also found a home with Mosaic. Jemaat Indonesian Christian Anugerah (Sierra Madre, CA), Indonesian Worship Church (San Gabriel, CA), and Immanuel International Church (Colton, CA) all joined in 2017. San Francisco Chinese Mennonite Church joined in 2018. These congregations were looking for an affiliation after Pacific Southwest Mennonite Conference reorganized. They saw what some of their other Indonesian/Asian brothers and sisters were doing and decided to join Franconia. 

For some Swiss-German Mennonites in Pennsylvania, being Mennonite may mean having a family heritage that goes back 300 years. For some of the Asian congregations in Mosaic Conference, being Mennonite means having a larger church family of support. For example, during the pandemic, many immigrants in Philadelphia were out of work. Through the Shalom Fund, Mosaic Conference supported food and grocery distribution among the Indonesian congregations for several months. “We have been so blessed by this relationship,” said Pastor Aldo Siahaan. Mosaic has stood by this relationship many times, he said, even supporting immigrant churches during times when immigration policies were uncertain. 

Mennonites often refer to this kind of help as “mutual aid.” This practice goes back centuries. Mennonites in the Netherlands helped their persecuted Swiss brothers and sisters to pay for their journey to North America in the 1700s.  

Meanwhile, Mosaic’s Asian congregations contribute greatly to the broader Conference as well. Two of the top donor congregations to Mosaic Conference’s budget are Indonesian congregations. Representatives from our Asian congregations actively contribute to Mosaic’s board, committees, and staff. Mosaic Conference is blessed to be able to continue the practice of helping one another, regardless of their background, in the 21st century. 

We are better because of our diversity, a true mosaic of a Christian community.  

Eileen Kinch

Eileen Kinch is a writer and editor for the Mosaic communication team. She holds a Master of Divinity degree, with an emphasis in the Ministry of Writing, from Earlham School of Religion. She and her husband, Joel Nofziger, who serves as director of the Mennonite Heritage Center in Harleysville, live near Tylersport, PA. They attend Methacton Mennonite Church. Eileen is also a member of Keystone Fellowship Friends Meeting in Lancaster County.

Mosaic Staff Explores Cultural Communication on Retreat

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by Eileen Kinch

On April 16-18, Mosaic staff gathered at Mennonite Central Committee’s Welcoming Place in Akron, PA. The focus of the staff retreat was training to understand differences in cross-cultural communication, power dynamics, and conflict. As Mosaic Conference becomes more intercultural, staff need to be equipped to work through and across cultures. 

Culture and Cultural Identity 

Staff spent time considering their cultural identities. Danilo Sanchez, Leadership Minister for Intercultural Transformation, introduced a few tools and frameworks for understanding the way cultures work. One was that of an iceberg: there are highly visible aspects of culture, such as food and language, but there are also parts that are below the surface, such as how a culture conceives of time or family roles. 

When we become aware of how our own culture works, we can find entry points to understand another culture. In some cultures, people accept the decisions of their leaders, and in other cultures, people feel empowered to make changes.  If we know this, we can better understand why someone from a different cultural group may not respond the same way we do. 

Worldviews 

Emily Ralph Servant, Leadership Minister for Formation, invited staff to think about common sense and what that means. Common sense assumes a particular understanding of the world around us; often something is just the “right way” to act or react. And yet, common sense is a product of cultural conditioning. 

Staff also learned that some cultures have an honor worldview. If someone acts out of harmony with the group values, then the entire community experiences dishonor.  Other cultures have a justice worldview. This culture tends to focus on the individual. To be fair and just, these cultures produce written rules. If someone violates a rule, then the person needs to make restitution before being accepted back into society.  

Power 

Another aspect of cross-cultural communication is power. Noel Santiago, Minister of Missional Transformation, pointed out that power can take different forms (for example, visible or invisible). Power can be acted out in different spaces, and power can happen at different levels. If we encounter a conflict, we can do a power analysis and identify who is trying to be heard and what those voices are asking for. 

Staff considered power in Mosaic. Someone observed that communication is the most powerful tool Mosaic has. Staff wondered out loud about different types of communication in Mosaic and how they might best be used.  Email is not always the best communication tool to reach all people. Sometimes physical presence, personal involvement, or personal relationships are the best ways to communicate and therefore carry the most power. 

God’s Power 

Staff also considered God’s power in Scriptural passages. In Acts 1:1-13, the apostles received power from Jesus before he ascended into heaven. One thing that staff noticed is that Jesus promised power from the Holy Spirit to be witnesses (1:8). The apostles were to receive power to tell people about Jesus, not power to restore its political kingdom.  Bearing witness becomes the primary identity for the apostles.  

Staff wondered: What does bearing witness mean for the apostles? What does it mean for Mosaic staff? It may not mean a singular focus on conference unity, but rather on witnessing to God’s power at work in Mosaic relationships. 

Staff took time to build and strengthen relationships through fun and informal times during the retreat. Some went mini golfing while others hiked a rail trail, and one group explored culture in Lancaster County by visiting local stores. Staff ate together, prayed together, and laughed together. The staff hopes that our stronger relationships will enhance Conference-wide relationships as well. 

Eileen Kinch

Eileen Kinch is a writer and editor for the Mosaic communication team. She holds a Master of Divinity degree, with an emphasis in the Ministry of Writing, from Earlham School of Religion. She and her husband, Joel Nofziger, who serves as director of the Mennonite Heritage Center in Harleysville, live near Tylersport, PA. They attend Methacton Mennonite Church. Eileen is also a member of Keystone Fellowship Friends Meeting in Lancaster County.

Journeying with God

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By Eileen R. Kinch

In early October, my husband and I moved to Telford, PA from Ephrata, Lancaster County, PA.  We had an embarrassment of help – more than we needed – to load and unload the moving truck. Most of the furniture is now where we want it, and we have unpacked many boxes. We are now figuring out how to find the things we need in our new community, such as groceries, car repair, and healthcare. Adjusting to a new place is hard work, and it takes emotional and physical energy. 

Moving is also disorienting. I have lived most of my life in Lancaster County. I grew up in the southern end of Lancaster County, twelve miles from the Maryland border. I know the routes and the roads. In our new area, I don’t know where I am going most of the time. I am only starting to recognize where I am, and the other day, I considered it a victory when I found a post office.  

In Genesis 12, God tells Abraham, “Go forth from your native land and from your father’s house to the land that I will show you” (12:1, JPS). I wonder how that felt for Abraham. Did he think, I am just fine where I am, thank you very much. I have everything I need. Why do I need to go somewhere else? Did he feel sad to leave his family and his home area? Did Abraham have a difficult time on his journey? Did he find it exhausting? 

Moving and journeying also characterized the Israelite experience, especially after the escape from the Egyptians across the Red Sea. The Israelites moved from place to place and carried the tabernacle with them. When they reached the Promised Land, had planted crops, and were offering the first fruits of harvest, God commanded that the Israelites recite their history, beginning with these words: “My father was a wandering Aramean, and he went down into Egypt with a few people and lived there and became a great nation, powerful and numerous” (Deuteronomy 26:5, NIV). Even after they settled, the Israelites were supposed to remember their ancestor Jacob’s experience of wandering. 

Did he think, I am just fine where I am, thank you very much. I have everything I need. Why do I need to go somewhere else?

The book of Hebrews mentions wandering as part of the journey of faith, naming Abraham, Moses, and many others: “All of them died in faith, not having obtained the things promised, but having seen and hailed them from afar, and they acknowledged themselves to be foreigners and sojourners on the earth” (Hebrews 11:13, translation by David Bentley Hart). 

Sometimes God calls us to do something that requires a change of location. Often this means leaving the comfort of home. Sometimes the purpose of moving is clear to us, but other times, it is not. As we pack, unpack, and try to make our way in a new place, we may wonder if the moving and disorientation are worth the immediate (or ongoing) trouble. Yet the writer of Hebrews points out that the big picture is important, even if we don’t recognize what it is. Faith, after all, is “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of unseen realities” (Hebrews 11:1). 

I am grateful for the experiences of wanderers in the Bible. I am sure Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (and Sarah, Rebecca, and Leah and Rachel) asked some of the same questions I do and experienced similar feelings. Even if I feel a bit lost right now, I can still find a home in this faith story.

Eileen Kinch

Eileen Kinch is part of the Mosaic communication team and works with editing and writing. She holds a Master of Divinity degree, with an emphasis in the Ministry of Writing, from Earlham School of Religion.

Shalom Fund Ends with Extreme Generosity

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By Eileen R. Kinch 

Full Map Graphic

In June 2022, the Mosaic Shalom Fund was closed. The Fund was a mutual aid effort that began early in the pandemic with an initial goal of $50,000 to meet the immediate needs of vulnerable communities in Mosaic Conference. During its two-year life, the Fund collected $217,945.  

Jaye Lindo, the first person to donate to the Shalom Fund, said, “I knew that the only way we would get through this COVID-19 pandemic is for us to do it together.” Some donations to the Fund were larger; others were small, but the Shalom Fund had a big impact. 

The Shalom Fund was created after Leadership Ministers listened carefully to the needs of Mosaic congregations. Over the course of two years, over 130 individuals, churches, and businesses contributed to the Shalom Fund; some did so multiple times. Congregations and ministries that received help from the Shalom Fund had to be members, Partners in Ministry, or Conference Related Ministries of Mosaic Conference. They requested funds through a simple application process. 

COVID-19 affected everyone in Mosaic Conference, but students faced special challenges since schools closed to in-person instruction. Not all students have an internet connection in their homes, and others had working parents who were unable to stay at home to help them. Crossroads Community Center in Philadelphia (PA) created special learning pods for 35 students to do their schooling online. A grant from the Shalom Fund helped to feed the students and to pay the staff. 

Ripple Church in Allentown (PA) saw immediate and increased needs for food in the community.  Soup kitchens had shut down in the spring of 2020, so Pastor Charlene Smalls provided meals from the parking lot of the local bus station. “The Shalom Fund was there,” said Smalls, “and we found out what is meant by all things work together for the good of those that love the Lord.” The Shalom Fund provided food, bottled water, masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer.  The Fund also paid for a canopy so that Ripple Church could more safely worship outside. 

Mark Wenger, Pastor of Franconia (PA) Mennonite Church, explained that donating to the Fund was an opportunity for him and his wife to “bless others in our Conference family of congregations and pastors.”  Mosaic pastors and leaders worked very hard during the pandemic. Many were involved in food distribution efforts, especially among immigrant congregations in South Philadelphia.  

The Shalom Fund also had a global reach. Herman Sagastume of Healthy Niños pointed out that the pandemic made life harder for rural communities in Honduras. Children were “attending … school on an empty stomach because the only food they ate was early in the afternoon in order to last the whole day,” he said. “It broke our hearts.” The Shalom Fund provided food for these children and their families. Shalom Fund donations traveled even farther to Peace Proclamation Ministries in India, and eventually to Mennonite World Conference in Indonesia. 

The Shalom Fund is a testimony to the love and unity of the body of Christ. Paul writes, “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it” (1 Corinthians 12:26, NIV).  Mosaic Conference lived into this reality in both giving and receiving during the pandemic. May we deepen in Christ’s oneness now and in the future. 

Watch this short video to get a visual representation of Shalom Fund’s impact:

Eileen Kinch

Eileen Kinch is part of the Mosaic communication team and works with editing and writing. She holds a Master of Divinity degree, with an emphasis in the Ministry of Writing, from Earlham School of Religion.