Marta Castillo

by Marta Castillo

Across Mosaic, groups continue to gather regularly for community, relationship building, and leadership development. As part of Mosaic’s strategic plan, these gatherings help strengthen shared identity while creating space for mutual transformation and support.

Existing groups already meeting include (this list is incomplete):

• Lansdale-area youth leaders gathering monthly, led by Brooke Martin
• Florida-area pastors gathering quarterly in English-Spanish hybrid meetings (in person and on Zoom) for prayer, fellowship, and equipping, coordinated by Marta Castillo
• Chaplains gathering quarterly, coordinated by Tim Weaver
• Spiritual directors gathering quarterly, coordinated by Marilyn Bender

Mosaic hopes to encourage even more groups to form around shared identities, interests, and callings. Future possibilities could include prayer groups, scripture study groups, men’s groups, women’s groups, and more.

What Mosaic groups are you already part of? What new groups could begin this year?

by Marta Castillo

As I return from a trip to visit Mosaic-aligned churches in Colombia who spent time together learning from the Mosaic Priorities Guides and experiencing the diversity within their own group, I am amazed at who we are—and who we are becoming together. For Mosaic Conference, those questions are never simple. We are a gathering of congregations shaped by different histories, cultures, convictions, and practices, yet held together by a shared commitment to follow Jesus at the center of our life together.

Diversity is not new to Mosaic, but it is something we must continually name, tend, and learn how to hold. When we come together as a conference—whether in worship, equipping spaces, or shared decision-making—we are reminded that unity does not mean sameness. It means choosing to remain in relationship even when our assumptions, comfort zones, and convictions differ.

“Just as a tile mosaic is comprised of many pieces that are different shapes, colors, and textures, so Mosaic Conference includes people from a variety of races, ethnicities, cultures, identities, language-groups, educational and economic backgrounds, geographies, political perspectives, faith journeys, and life experiences. We acknowledge the presence of these differences and the discomfort we often feel when we look around and see unfamiliar faces, perceptions, and experiences looking back at us.”

A Mosaic Identity: Clarifying our Center

These differences are not merely theoretical. They show up in everyday congregational life—in the choices we make, the practices we hold dear, and the convictions we carry. Often, they surface in small, ordinary moments that reveal just how wide the mosaic truly is.

For example, even something as familiar as community engagement can look very different from one congregation to another. What one church understands as a missional opportunity, another may approach with caution or concern.

Differences emerge around dancing. Some of us in Mosaic are comfortable dancing at weddings, for exercise, or as an expression of worship. Others of us believe dancing is inappropriate because it could lead to sexual sins.

Then there’s drinking alcohol. Some believe that all alcohol consumption is wrong, while others enjoy a beer or a glass of wine with dinner or at social gatherings.

Baptism also presents differences. Should it be through sprinkling, pouring, or immersion? Do candidates need a preparation class, and if so, what should it include?

And communion. Is the table for members only? For all who follow Jesus as Lord? For anyone seeking Christ? Should children receive grapes and crackers? Should communion be solemn with confession or joyful in anticipation of Christ’s return?

Membership raises questions, too. Can only members lead worship or anyone who is committed and involved? Do we keep a meticulous membership list? Can regular attenders consider themselves members? What about those who seldom attend but claim belonging?

Worship styles vary widely. Do we worship in more than one language? What instruments do we use? Do we value jubilation or meditation in song? Are musicians live or recorded? Is worship charismatic, with tongues and altar calls, or quiet and contemplative? Some of our congregations regularly anoint for healing. Others never include an altar call because it may feel like pressure.

We also differ in how we talk about creation care, peace, and justice. How do we address Israel and Gaza? Do we preach about the last days and Christ’s return? Is politics openly discussed or intentionally avoided?

Evangelism also takes different forms. Some give out tracts or hold outdoor services. Others focus on small groups, deep friendships, and long-term presence. Some distribute food or care for the unsheltered as an expression of witness. In the Colombian indigenous community, Mosaic leaders are prohibited from openly sharing the gospel in a community that has no words in their language for love.

Pastoral roles vary, too. Are pastors fully supported or bi-vocational? Does authority lie with the pastor, elders, or church council? Do pastors drive nice cars or junkers? How strongly do we embrace the priesthood of all believers?

We differ, too, in our views on gender and giftedness. Do we affirm the gifts of all genders or primarily men? How do we express love and welcome? Through inclusivity and affirmation, through clear and kind limits, or through calling people to holy living?

Our approaches to children also vary. Do we have strict child protection policies or a more relaxed system? Are children embraced in worship or do they leave for children’s church? Are we attentive to sensory needs and food allergies, or is that a non-issue?

There are many more differences across Mosaic congregations. Many of us might not choose to attend a church that practices differently than our own. And yet, the question before us is not whether we are comfortable with all these differences, but whether we are willing to remain connected through them.

What holds us together is not uniformity, but a shared center, Jesus. When we gather across languages, cultures, and convictions, we are practicing the difficult and holy work of staying at the table with one another. As we move into a new year, may we continue to trust that Christ is present at the center of our mosaic, shaping us not into identical pieces, but into a faithful and beautiful whole.

“We believe that discerning God’s presence in our differences will lead to mutual transformation, forming us together into the image of Jesus. This vibrant Mosaic is God-breathed, a witness to the reconciling love of Jesus in our broken and beautiful world.” 

A Mosaic Identity: Clarifying our Center

by Marta Castillo

Have you ever had a phrase or word leap out at you—from Scripture, a sermon, a conversation, or a song—and the Holy Spirit keeps you stuck on it, pondering its meaning? 

One such moment came for me when I heard the phrase “faithful dissent.” I remember exactly where I was: in a hard, brave, and sacred space as the Giving and Receiving Counsel listening committee heard Beth Yoder share her 30+ year journey of how God had worked in her life leading her to what she described as an act of “faithful dissent” from the conference’s understanding that pastors should not officiate same-sex weddings. 

As part of my role in Mosaic Mennonite Conference, I participate in Giving and Receiving Counsel, a process of discernment for credentialed leaders alleged to be acting at variance with the Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective.  

The power of this process lies in the discernment and conversations—between the Leadership Member and credentialed leader and with the Review Committee (made of selected members from our credentialing and ministerial committees). The recommendation on how to proceed with the leader’s credentials should come from a careful time of listening, conferring, and prayer. 

We went through the whole process with Beth. We listened to her story of growth as a pastor and a parent. We heard about the young man in her congregation who asked her to officiate his wedding to his partner, and how Beth did not make that decision lightly. She entered into careful discernment with trusted friends, colleagues, and family. She counted the cost: the risk of losing her credentials, the opinions others would form, the pain and alienation she would feel in the presence of the conference community. Still, her faith called her to dissent.  

Faithful dissent is the act of remaining loyal and steadfast even when your convictions are at variance from those that are commonly, officially, or historically held. 

It is not new. An example of faithful dissent is found in Acts 10, Peter receives a vision from God and chooses to visit Cornelius, a Gentile, despite Jewish law. When Peter sees how the Holy Spirit falls on the whole household, he proclaims that God does not have favorites. When he is criticized for his actions in Jerusalem, he tells his story. When the believers hear it, they have no further objections and praise God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.” (Acts 11:18) 

I am not asking you to agree or disagree with my sister Beth’s act of what she’s named as “faithful dissent.” I know that may be your first instinct upon reading this article.

I am asking you to look at a Jesus who faithfully dissented by healing people on the Sabbath, eating with sinners, teaching and talking with women, scolding the religious leaders, and laying down his life rather than claiming earthly power.   

Writing this article has made me ask myself, where do I need to faithfully dissent? Where do I need to choose faithfulness to God over faithfulness to church or religious institutions? As polarization deepens in the church and world, faithful dissent will become a necessary act of obedience to live like Jesus.  

So, I leave you with this: 

Where do we need to choose a different path than one that was previously, commonly, or officially held, even if it may cost us something?

How can our communities help us discern what is faithful versus what may be rebellion or reaction? May God’s Spirit teach us, help us, and guide us! 

Mosaic Mennonite Conference’s Associate Executive Minister Marta (Beidler) Castillo has received a $15,000 Reflective Leadership Grant from Leadership Education at Duke Divinity School. The grant will support a time of reflecting on how to grow relational capacity and adapt leadership accountability amid conference-wide growth of geographical locations, intercultural diversity, and congregational transitions. 

In 2024, 50 Christian leaders from a variety of faith-based organizations across the U.S. were selected for these grants, which support an opportunity for structured reflection for leaders of Christian organizations that are advancing their mission amid today’s rapidly changing context. The leadership education initiative is based in Durham, NC and funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc.   

“The Reflective Leadership Grant at Leadership Education at Duke Divinity recognizes and supports the faithful, innovative work of lay and ordained Christian leaders who find themselves at a pivotal moment in their ministry,” says Mycal Brickhouse, a director of program and grants at Leadership Education.  

“Using Harvard professor Ron Heifetz’s language, we want to help leaders experience “balcony time,” which allows them to move from the dance floor to the balcony to gain a broader picture of the work, organization, community and trends. We want to encourage grantees to continue to develop their leadership capacities in ways specific to their context and we look forward to learning alongside them and their communities.”

As the daughter of Franconia Conference-rooted mission workers, Castillo has been shaped by four of the linguistic cultures in the Conference, growing up in both Vietnam and Indonesia. Marta has attended Nueva Vida Norristown (PA) New Life for over 30 years and served on the pastoral team from 2007-2017. Marta served five years on the Franconia Conference Board, two of those as Assistant Moderator, and has been employed by the Conference since 2016, beginning as a Leadership Minister. She graduated from Eastern Mennonite University with a major in Elementary Education and has a Certificate of Christian Ministry from Eastern Mennonite Seminary and a Master of Arts from Kairos University.  

In December, Castillo and her husband Julio will move from their home in Norristown, PA to Miami, FL to provide care for Julio’s mother. She will continue to work with Mosaic as a Leadership Minister and as Associate Executive Minister, expanding Mosaic Conference’s staff presence in Florida. 

In January through March, Castillo will have two days per week of “balcony time” for active reflection, coaching, personal retreat, and opportunities to listen for God’s calling within her role at Mosaic Conference and for God’s Spirit leading the Conference in this current stage of development and growth.  

Through the Reflective Leadership program, she will have opportunities to connect in person and virtually with other grant recipients and share reflections and ideas.