Prayers of gratitude and intercession

  • Commemoration of 500 years includes worship, speeches, discussions and art  

    In the shadow of the Grossmünster cathedral, the main Catholic church in Zurich, a group of young people gathered in a house to commit an act of subversion: adult baptism.  

    Their study of the Bible had led them to different understandings than the state church. As they understood it, baptism was a symbol of their conscious decision to submit to the lordship of Jesus Christ and follow his example in life ‚àí a commitment only an adult could make. That decision challenged the millennial-old practice in the Catholic Church of baptizing infants. 

    This radical act on 21 January 1525 marked the symbolic beginning of what would become known as the Anabaptist (“re-baptizer”) movement. Today, the movement has grown to include some 2.13 million believers in more than 80 countries around the world.  

    On 29 May 2025, Mennonite World Conference invites guests from around the world to gather in Zurich to commemorate this beginning. “The courage to love” (the theme for the event) will mark this history and celebrate what the movement has become today. Local government officials and church leaders of related traditions will also be invited.  

    “On this day, Anabaptists will become visible in the streets of Zurich,” says Liesa Unger, MWC Chief International Events Officer.  

    A walking tour within the city will feature stations that commemorate historical events and reflect on the contemporary church. Workshops, musical concerts, theatrical performances, panel discussions and more will be scattered throughout the downtown.  

    The day will culminate in an ecumenical worship service that recognizes the many steps toward reconciliation that have occurred in recent decades and an act of public witness. The final worship service will be livestreamed.  

    Rashard Allen

    Deborah Prabu

    Rashard Allen (USA) of the international ensemble in Indonesia is coordinating ensembles to participate in the event; one from each of the five regions. Deborah Prabu (Indonesia), worship leader from Assembly 17, is coordinating an international ensemble to lead congregational singing during the worship service. 

    “We want to have a strong historical component that makes it clear why we are gathering in Zurich. But an even stronger emphasis will focus on the future,” says historian and Renewal 2025 coordinator John D. Roth. “The Anabaptist movement continues to be dynamic, diverse, and creative in sharing the gospel in many different cultural settings.” 

    General Council delegates will be encouraged to craft local events to teach about the historical roots of Anabaptism and collect stories on the expressions of Anabaptist faith in their own contexts. 

    Check the MWC website for new information being released about the quincentennial commemoration.  

     The courage to love

  • Canada

    When I think about hope, I am very thankful to have quite a long list to choose from where I see it. Here I will focus on how I see hope in my church through the community outreach and the youth – and how they intertwine. 

    Love and dedication 

    I have the privilege of being a youth leader at my home congregation for the past four years. What has given me hope through this opportunity is watching how the youth group (12-18 year olds) has grown significantly and the love they have for others and Jesus.  

    When I started youth leading, there were smaller numbers at my church. We were going through a time of changing youth pastors, and it was a good group, but small. Today – where on a full night we have a little over 30 youth (big for our church) – I cannot help but see hope for the future of the church.  

    When diving deep into conversations about faith, life and anything with these youth kids (especially my High School Girls small group), my hope soars. I see the thought and the intent they have. Seeing these youth’s love and dedication to their faith gives me so much hope as I have many friends who have left church or do not take it as seriously anymore.  

    This hope extends even further when I see how these youth are involved: they serve and wash dishes at church banquets; they deliver Christmas cookies and cards to a neighbouring seniors’ living facility; they shovel snow at the church; and they participate in clean-up days. The one that stands out the most to me is seeing members of my youth group participate at our conference summer camp, Camp Squeah. There, these teenagers are leaders to younger children. They both exemplify and teach about the love of Christ to children.

    This is where I see hope so clearly.

    Then I switch lenses and look to the community outreach which my church has been participating in over the past few years especially since COVID-19.  

    Donated food packages at Bowls of Hope/Chilliwack Bowls of Hope Society 

    Laughter and leadership

    We are blessed as a congregation to have our own building. Through this, as a congregation we have been able to provide space for many different community outreaches. 

    One example is Bowls of Hope. This not-for-profit organization has a room full of food supplies in our building. They provide struggling families with meal plans weekto-week to make sure they have food. I see hope in the way my congregation is reaching out and helping those around it. 

    The real special moment for me was when the youth group volunteered to help at Bowls of Hope. I saw the youth kids having fun. They jumped into the kitchen to help prepare the ingredients for soup to feed 1 000 children in our city. There were tears (yes, that might have just been because of the onions), lots of laughter – and a sense of hope. Hope for the ways in which the church is aiding the community around them and hope for the youth in the servantheartedness already present in situations like these. 

    I am extremely blessed by my home congregation and have appreciated the time I have had reflecting on the hope I have around it. This fills me with excitement to see where the Lord moves next in this time and to see how these youth inspire others.  

    Ashley Rempel is a high school French and social studies teacher from Chilliwack, B.C., Canada. She serves at the Mennonite retreat centre Camp Squeah in summer. A member of Eden Mennonite Church, Chilliwack, B.C., Canada, she served as the MC Canada representative for her region at the Global Youth Summit (GYS) in Indonesia. There, she found hope in attending workshops with youth pastors from around the world to listen to their experiences and hear their input of how to make youth groups and the church welcoming for this next generation.

    Ashley Rempel spoke at Renewal 2023 – Jesus Christ, our hope – in Abbotsford, B.C., Canada, 25 March 2023. This article has been adapted from her presentation.


    Courier July 2023

  • Paraguay  

    Acouple of years ago as we were swimming upstream against COVID-19, hope seemed to be hard to come by. I don’t know about your churches, but we were forced to dive into the deep end of the modern digital age – or rather bellyflop into it. 

    Month after month, we worked tirelessly on learning how to film high-quality video, add the little subtitles and create engaging content to make the services dynamic and participatory for all group ages at  the same time!  

    Eventually, we got better at it and we paddled through the two-year parenthesis. 

    At the beginning of last year, COVID-19 restrictions loosened up and we were finally able to return to “normal.”

    But how do you “be normal” after such a long time? Our numbers weren’t what they were and our online participation was meager. On top of that there were significant financial losses among many of our members and deep pain over those who were no longer with us.  

    As a congregation, we didn’t have a special verse for this time. But if I had to say we had one – Galatians 6:9 would have been it. 

    “So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.”

    During COVID-19, we hoped that the people would return.  

    And they did.

    Then, we hoped that the first year back together would prove to be a year of growth and reconnecting after such a long separation.

    And it was.  

    We now see the pews filling up with brothers and sisters, the children running through the yard in their Sunday School programs, the youth going out to local hospitals and doing evangelism, small groups meeting in homes and uplifting each other, etc.  

    On the other hand, paradoxically (and somewhat unconsciously), we had also hoped for some facets of our pre-pandemic lives to return. With a great sense of weariness and melancholy, we realized that we could never recover all that had been lost along the way. Not all that we had hoped for came true. 

    I can’t quite say what the secret is to finding or having hope. However, I think the Apostle Paul was onto something when he encouraged us to “not give up” as we strive – and hope – for what we desire. It was in our time of loneliness, isolation, separation and loss that we vividly felt the urge to hope for something else – something more.  

    Last year we were able to meet in person and celebrate MWC’s Assembly 17 in Indonesia. Our encounter felt like a true homecoming after a long time of separation. As we met, we harvested a global collection of testimonies, which we then took home to share with our communities. We heard stories, much like our own, filled with difficult challenges and joyful triumphs.  

    May we continue to be encouraged to patiently await and enjoy God’s plentiful harvest. And not give up on hope.   

    Cynthia Dück is the MWC Regional Representative to Brazil and Paraguay. She lives in Asuncion, Paraguay, together with her husband and three teenaged children. They attend and serve at Mennoniten Brüder Gemeinde Concordia / Iglesia Hermanos Menonitas Concordia (Concordia Mennonite Brethren Church).
    Cynthia Dück spoke at Renewal 2023 – Jesus Christ, our hope – in Abbotsford, B.C., Canada, 25 March 2023. This article has been adapted from her presentation.


    Courier July 2023

  • Ethiopia 

    Ethiopia is a country located in the Horn of Africa. We’re unique in some ways but the same with the rest of African countries in some other ways. We’re a very poor country with a population of around 110 million.  

    Living in a country where problems are like the air you breathe – it’s not easy; especially when you have access to go out of the country and declare your freedom. But staying and living among my people – it’s a bittersweet reality, but that’s who I am. That’s where I can find purpose in my life.   

    Drama of trouble   

    This last year, 2022* it was a very joyful, and the same time, a very sad time personally and as a nation.

    Our country is passing through a lot. We were happy at some point last year that the conflict in the north was over, but unfortunately, another one started in the western part of the country.

    Let’s talk about our economy. It started to deteriorate – as you also faced – during COVID-19, but it continues to go down due to the non-stop conflict in the country. 

    Unfortunately, the conflict also is followed by tribalism, which has become a chronic problem. It has become a challenge for us to live together; this intolerance of difference has started to dismantle our very fabric of society.

    This also leads the country into another wave of economic and political disaster. It’s going from bad to worse. Food inflation is skyrocketing and makes so many people struggle. 

    Droughts also hit the southeastern part of our country where now, it gets really worse such that people start to die due to hunger.

    The religious conflict between the Orthodox and the evangelicals, or the Protestants along with the Muslims, is another character in the cast of this drama of trouble.

    So, the life we’re living in our country is very difficult to live.

    Living despite    

    Such a situation is really challenging our churches, our societies, our congregations, our friends and our society in large, but we’re living.  

    We don’t know how, but we’re able to live everyday as a nation. We’re supposed to have collapsed, but we’re going. Of course, not in the standards of the West, but we’re moving.  

    If I have to give you an explanation, I just don’t have it. 

    All the political social economic explanation and analysis would indicate that we should collapse. We should be ‘the new Syria.’  

    For some, living everyday is just a miracle. Waking up in the morning, for some, is really a miracle.

     But we’re living. How?   

    An answer in God 

    As a Christian, I have an explanation. I believe that God is our strength. God is the creator of us, our Saviour who never gets tired or weary with our poverty or our conflicts.

    I know so many people get tired. Even for me, I get tired asking of people to pray for our country month after month, year after year, about this or that: pray for the conflict in Ethiopia; pray about the poverty levels. It gets tiring for so many people across the globe to hear that we keep on “begging.”  

    But I believe in the Creator of us, our Saviour, who never gets tired, who never gets weary of our problems.  

    God gave power to the weak, provides for the needy, and gives us strength to move and the ability to see tomorrow. We don’t know how, but God does it. Jesus is our hope. 

    I found one definition of “hope” on the internet. It says: “Hold On; Pain Ends.”

    So God is our hope. Hope that makes us to hold until the pain goes away or that enables us to endure it.  

    I’m able to pass it through. I’m able to pass it through and through and through, with all this personal and nation crisis, in fellowship with my fellow brothers and sisters. 

    We pray together every day.  Starting early in the morning from 5:00 to 6:30 am. We might sound really pious, but we simply pray and ask God for strength, for power, for more grace to live every day.  

    We gather together to share our personal burdens and also our country’s cry. We encourage each other with the hope that we receive from Christ who himself is our hope.  

    So, brothers and sisters, as we celebrate our history and foundation as an Anabaptist movement, we turn to the same source as our persecuted forefathers and foremothers: that’s Jesus Christ. He is the only hope to hope for – with or without pain.  

    Tigist Tesfaye is a youth mentor and coach, a member of Debub Meserete Kristos Church in Ethiopia, and author of Mewetacha (The ladder – a dream connector). She is secretary of the Deacons Commission

    Tigist Tesfaye spoke at Renewal 2023 – Jesus Christ, our hope – in Abbotsford, B.C., Canada, 25 March 2023 (presented via video). This article has been adapted from her presentation. 

    * This refers to the Gregorian calendar system. In Ethiopia, we use the official calendar of the Orthodox Tewahido Church which has 13 months and has a different starting point that puts it seven or eight years behind the Gregorian calendar. 


    Courier July 2023

  • Portugal 

    The world changed profoundly since 24 February 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine. This has had a strong impact on all Europeans.

    We have 14 Mennonite conferences in 11 countries in Europe, all of them with their own culture, history, work within our Anabaptist-Mennonite family.  

    In 2018, the Association of Mennonite Brethren Churches in Ukraine hosted our annual gathering with participants from Austria*, France*, Germany*, Lithuania, Netherlands*, Portugal*, Spain*, Switzerland* and the MWC president in Zaporizhzhia and Berdiansk. 

    So you might imagine when the violence began last year, people from all the conferences in Europe started asking: “What are we going to do to help our brothers and sisters?” 

    From the smallest to the biggest, they all wanted to help in different ways. All the conferences had a role to help what is going on in Ukraine. Some send funds, all pray, of course, and some even take initiative to bring relief supplies directly to Ukraine. 

    There was one conference – a small conference, located close to Ukraine – who started to help right away in a very specific, caring way. 

    The Mennonite Brethren church in Lithuania (Lietuvos Laisv≈≥j≈≥ Krik≈°ƒçioni≈≥ Ba≈ænyƒçia), started to pack vans in Vilnius and drive all the way to Ukraine to share goods with MB brothers and sisters in Ukraine. 

    They stop in Poland overnight, pass through the border and drive on into Ukraine to meet the brothers and sisters and give them supplies. Then they turn around to drive home, often waiting hours at the border due to the long lines of people seeking to leave.  

    At first, they didn’t even have time to explain about their excursions; they just started acting. 

    I shared with other churches when I learned of this. They also sent funds and goods. 

    The big effort by all the rest of the European family, each of them in a different way, to bring relief was a fantastic way to show hope to our sisters and brothers in Ukraine. 

    This solidarity is not only between Anabaptist-Mennonite churches in Europe and Ukraine but between the European churches to help each other help Ukraine.   

    It is a living out of 1 Corinthians 12:26-27: “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” 

    The situation in Ukraine is still a challenge. We keep in touch as the needs continue, and we keep praying. 

    We thank God that hope was never lost. Keep praying.

    José Arrais is from Lisbon, Portugal. He is a member of Loures Mennonite Brethren Church and serves as MWC’s regional representative in Europe. His work of interacting with the European Mennonite church leaders, hearing their needs, challenges, and blessings, is a source of joy and motivation to prayer, and he is eager to continue deepening and adding to those relationships. José Arrais is married to Paula; they have three children and one grandchild.  José Arrais spoke at Renewal 2023 – Jesus Christ, our hope – in Abbotsford, B.C., Canada, 25 March 2023. This article has been adapted from his presentation.

    *Indicates national churches from this country are members of MWC.


  • Myanmar 

    I want to highlight some of the political situation and current events in Myanmar.  

    Political climate 

    Regarding the political situation, I will not provide details.  

    Since the military coup on 1 February 2021, there have been terrorist killings and armed revolutions in all regions in Myanmar.  

    I will present a few highlights only citing the United Nation’s report (27 February 2023): 

    • There are 1.6 million refugees who have fled their homes in Myanmar, and the people of Sagaing Division and Chin State are facing the worst. 
      • The conflicts are continuing throughout Myanmar, and the humanitarian needs of displaced people and refugees are increasing. 
      •  IDPs are living in precarious conditions in displacement camps and temporary camps, and are mostly sheltered in the nearby jungles. 
    • According to Media Monitor Collective, since the military coup, 53 786 civilian houses have been burned and destroyed. 
      •  In addition, there are 2 725 civilian deaths due to armed conflict, and Sagaing Division has the highest number of deaths with 2 047, according to Media Monitor Collective. 
      •  24 065 civilians have been arrested and detained as a result of the coup and armed conflict.
    • According to information from the United Nations and civil society organizations, the people of Sagaing Division and Chin State are the most affected by the war and are in need of emergency assistance. (Most of our Mennonites are living in the conflict regions.) 

    We are also happy to record that MWC provided US$10 000 for food and medicines for 415 refugee families of Mennonite in last year. Thank you, MWC.  

    Inflation and food shortages 

    Due to the impact of civil war, conflict and domestic inflation, livelihoods have become rare. There is a shortage of jobs. Meanwhile, the price of goods is rising at an alarming rate.  

    Not only the war victims, but there is a lack of food in many places. More than 45 percent of the country is suffering from food shortages. In Myanmar, we people usually eat food three times a day, but now, many people only eat once a day. This number is increasing. Some don’t eat even once a day. 

    BMC Mennonite families are also greatly affected by the food shortage. Some members attend Sunday worship without eating at all. It is our great challenge to help the vulnerable Mennonite families in the congregations. 

    International organizations are unable to come and help.

    Mennonite youth and armed revolution 

    After the military coup, young people took up arms against the military. The armed struggle is affecting our Mennonite youth: some Mennonite youth are also willing to join the armed struggle. Some young people are already participating in the armed revolution. They also have a bitterness and avid to take arms against the military.   

    Our biggest challenge is the Mennonite youth and the armed revolution. We are also guiding our young people not to get involved in armed revolution, violence and political conflict. We absolutely do not want our youth to participate in the armed revolution. We absolutely do not want our youth to be involved in the political conflict.  

    We are peace-loving Mennonites because we believe only in the nonviolence movement.  

    Therefore we are holding Mennonite Youth Peace Conferences in several regions. We fully believe that through the Mennonite Youth Peace Conferences, our youth will be trained as peacemakers.  

    We also request you to help us with prayer support for this project of the Mennonite Youth Peace Conferences. 

    I would also like to record my special thanks to our friends, Mennonite Church Canada for prayers and financially supporting for the Youth Peace Conferences and any other things we need in  mission work. 

    Dear MWC and Mennonite Church Canada, you are the angels sent by God to Myanmar. You fed us when we were hungry. When we are down, you comfort us. You help us when we are refugees. You bring us a ray of hope when we are hopeless.  

    The world forgets our condition, but you remember us. You are true and very Mennonite.  

    Eventually Jesus Christ is still our hope. Shalom.   

    Amos Chin is the president of Bible Missionary Church – Mennonite, and MWC member church in Myanmar. He also serves on the MWC Executive Committee.
    Amos Chin’s presentation at Renewal 2023 – Jesus Christ, our hope – was delivered by John D. Roth in Abbotsford, B.C., Canada, 25 March 2023. This article has been adapted from her presentation.


  • South Korea 

    To talk about hope, I have to start with despair.   

    There’s a question that I often get when I say I’m from Korea. It’s “Which Korea?”  

    Yes, it’s been 77 years since Korea was divided into North and South Korea. The deep-rooted fear that comes from a history of war and the insecurity that comes from that fear have created a lot of different forms of despair

    South Koreans have four major obligations. One of the obligations is the duty of national defense. And one of the duties of national defense is the duty of military service. This obligation applies to men between the ages of 18 and 40 in South Korea. They are conscripted to serve as soldiers for one and a half years. After that, they have to train regularly as reserve soldiers. 

    People say it’s gotten better, but the military culture is still very violent. The stories of bullying, suicides and shootings is not hard to find in the news. 

    When you think of conscientious objectors in South Korea, the most common group that comes to mind is the Jehovah’s Witnesses. There are also various organizations such as World Without War. And there are struggles of those who have survived imprisonment and stood up for their beliefs.  

    As of 2020, conscientious objectors no longer go to jail. This is something I’ve found hope for over this past year, but there’s still a long way to go. The current alternative service system has a punitive nature to it, where you have to serve twice the length of your military service and you are only allowed to work in prisons. 

    There are also alternative services that are not a conscientious objection in nature. My younger brother graduated from a government-run agricultural university and started farming potatoes. In Korea, the number of farmers is decreasing, and there are no young farmers, so a select group of young men is chosen to farm in place of his military service. Similar cases are also found in certain industries. The application process is very tough, and the duration is also three years. 

    My younger brother was recently informed by the government that he was allowed to replace military service with farming. The church had been praying together and I can’t tell you how fortunate he is. But, no, it’s not a feeling of relief, because my friends still have to go to the army, and my neighbours still have to go to the military. 

    Korean Mennonite churches are constantly trying to stand in solidarity with conscientious objectors. We invite them to give lectures, and we try to listen to their voices through face-to-face meetings. Our motivation and hope in the midst of the struggle for recognizing the legal status of Conscientious Objectors are in Jesus who is our teacher and example for the longstanding commitment in the AnabaptistMennonite community to the principle of nonviolence. 

    Most people may think that there is nothing wrong with the current system of conscription. But I see despair. I’m grateful that there is a community that also sees despair and takes action. That community is my local congregation and Mennonite Church South Korea (MCSK). We also have MWC walking the path together with us as disciples of Jesus.  

    Recently, MWC has issued a statement of support for conscientious objectors, largely in response to the challenges that the MCSK is facing. The MWC statement is an effort to stand in solidarity with us. And that signifies hope for me, and for my fellow Mennonites in Korea.  

    Thank you.

    —Kkot-ip Bae (Î∞∞ÍΩÉÏûé) is a member of Nonsan Peace and Joy Mennonite Church in South Korea. She studied sociology and digital media content and works as social economy program planner specialist with design responsibilities for social value propagation. She is the Asia representative in for the MWC YABs Committee (Young AnaBaptists).  Kkot-ip Bae spoke at Renewal 2023 – Jesus Christ, our hope – in Abbotsford, B.C., Canada, 25 March 2023. This article has been adapted from her presentation.


  • Inspiration and reflection

    Perspectives

    Country Profile

    Resources

    General Secretary

    Word from the editor

    Partake in this global communion

    What a joy to be together!

    This issue of Courier features Renewal 2023.

    Three years after it was first planned, this special event took place in British Columbia.

    Renewal is a series of events to remember the birth of the Anabaptist movement in 1525 and to look forward to who and what the Anabaptist-Mennonite church is becoming around the world today and for the future.

    Mennonite World Conference initiated this series of events in 2017, the year Lutherans were commemorating their church’s 500-year anniversary. Each year, alongside the Executive Committee, MWC and local member church hosts organize a local event where MWC’s international guests from each continental region share inspiring stores of God at work through the church today.

    “We sang together, we prayed together and we heard testimonies from sisters and brothers from different places and different contexts on how they experience Jesus Christ, our hope. Testimonies that made us realize that even when we are one, our circumstances are very diverse. And that is the beauty of Mennonite World Conference; although our context is very different, we are one in Christ. We are one in our hope that it is Christ that reaches out to us and says, ‘follow me’! He reaches out: it is on us to grab that hand and live in hope.”

    Those were president Henk Stenvers’ words to the Anabaptist-Mennonites who gathered in Abbotsford, B.C., Canada in March 2023. He had just returned from visiting Mennonite and Mennonite Brethren churches in Peru and Colombia and he brought greetings from those brothers and sisters to the ones in Canada.

    “Mennonite World Conference is the living witness of that hope, bringing people together in one communion, over borders of nationality, colour, language, economic circumstances and culture. Just like God wants to bring people together, Mennonite World Conference wants to break walls down so that we can be a communion that is a gift from God.

    “It is important for churches to know that we are part of a bigger communion: that sisters and brothers around the world know about them; share our triumphs and challenges; and pray for each other. My experience in visiting churches in many parts of the world has taught me that being part of a big, global communion gives hope, especially for churches that are isolated, or that experience conflict and persecution. The felt solidarity, the prayers, the visits, sometimes financial help, that all lifts up the hearts of the people in the churches.

    “Mennonite World Conference is us all,” Henk Stenvers says. “And I want to encourage you to be part of the daily life of MWC. To stay informed about what is happening with our sisters and brothers in other parts of the world.”

    As you read the stories in this Courier, you are taking part in MWC. You are witnessing how our hope in Jesus Christ transcends barriers, uniting us as one body. Please share these stories with one another, and share your stories of following Jesus Christ with us.

    —Karla Braun is editor of Courier and writer for Mennonite World Conference. She lives in Winnipeg, Canada.

  • “That they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:21)

    With these words from the Gospel of John 17:21, we warmly greet the sisters and brothers of Anabaptist churches worldwide and also those from other Christian communions.

    At this moment in history, we reflect on the first 500 years of the Radical Reformation.

    Renewal” is the name that the Mennonite World Conference has given for a decade of regional events around the memory of five centuries of our existence as a community of faith. We are approaching these 10 years of commemorations by focusing on our history from a global, ecumenical and transcultural perspective.

    We remember the past to look toward the future. We want to recall our roots as we express gratitude to God for the inheritance of the faith we have received. But we also come before the Lord in a spirit of repentance and renewal, committed to learning from the past to grow in our relationship with God both here and now and in the years to come.

    Why do we need each other?

    With the theme of “Jesus Christ, Our Hope,” we seek to explore how our Anabaptist tradition has offered its witness to the world about Jesus as our hope since the 16th century.

    Unity is one of the challenges that we have historically faced in the Anabaptist world.

    Why do we need to be one globally with other members of our family of faith?

    Why do we need something like Mennonite World Conference, a body that facilitates unity around 10 000 local congregations, 108 national conferences and 1.5 million baptized believers?

    In contexts of persecution, oppression or violence, reasons why we need a global church seem more evident to our members: a global communion offers support when local congregations cope with difficult circumstances (e.g. financial resources, political advocacy, pastoral care).

    In Africa, Asia, and Latin America, global interdependency is crucial for projects exceeding a local church’s capacity (e.g. mission, theological education, formation of new agencies).

    What do our churches say about Jesus?

    However, beyond pragmatic reasons to look for unity, our Anabaptist tradition must recover the idea of a visible global church.

    The reason I affirm this has to do with the New Testament concept and practice of ecclesia. Scripture speaks of interdependent local congregations that lean on each other for theology, pastoral care, financial support in times of crisis and mission, among other things.

    However, even more, critical is the fact that Jesus linked the credibility of his life to the unity of his followers.

    Mennonite World Conference is the global “space” where we can receive unity as God’s gift.

    As we thank God for Jesus Christ, our hope, let us also maintain an attitude of repentance for the divisions that have arisen among us, negatively affecting the impact of Jesus’ life and ministry in a world marked by polarizations, divisions and fragmentation.

    • Let us ask for forgiveness for all the wounds that we have caused on Jesus’ body.
    • Let us seek the renewal that sees the lack of unity of the church as evidence of sin.
    • Let us seek the unity that comes from a contrite heart that recognizes its sin.

    I pray that reflecting on John 17:21 will renew our understanding of Jesus as our hope.

    May we embody hope by showing the world that the blessing of unity is possible when Jesus is the centre of our lives.

    César García is general Secretary of Mennonite World Conference. Originally from Colombia, he lives in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. He delivered a version of this speech at Renewal 2023 in Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada, on Saturday, 25 March 2023.


  • In 2017, Mennonite World Conference began a series of events called Renewal.  

    The original vision was organized with a view toward the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Anabaptist movement in Zurich, Switzerland, in 2025. 

    It included several key components:  

    1. The event should honour the past but focus primarily on the present and the future. 
    2. The event should take note of Anabaptist beginnings but should focus especially on the global witness of the church today, highlighting the expressions of Anabaptism in the cultural context of each host country. 
    3. The event should connect with ordinary church members as they testify Holy Spirit’s presence in the church today. 

    The format of each Renewal event has varied. Sometimes it has been a day-long gathering, with meals and workshops. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, we hosted the event on-line as a global webinar. In Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada, we celebrated with a two-hour evening worship service.  

    But at each occasion, we have sung together, prayed together, shared together, been inspired together and welcomed the presence of the Holy Spirit as the good news of the gospel continues to find expression in many different cultures and contexts. 

    Begun as a renewal movement, Anabaptism has endured only because each generation of Anabaptist-Mennonites has been renewed by a fresh movement of the Spirit.  

    Beginning in 2017 in Europe and culminating in 2028 in Ethiopia, the MWC Renewal initiative has celebrated this ongoing renewal of Anabaptism around the world.  

    Join us in 2024 as we celebrate the MWC Renewal event in Brazil, and then again for a global family reunion in Zurich in 2025.  

    And be sure to keep 2028 on your calendar when we gather for Assembly 18 to celebrate the remarkable ways that the Holy Spirit has been moving in the Meserete Kristos Church in Ethiopia! 

    —John Roth, coordinator of Renewal events 


  • “My heart hasn’t stopped beating fast since hearing the testimonies last night,” said mission committee member Joanne Lang at Arnold Community Church, B.C., Canada. Her local congregation was one of 29 that hosted Mennonite World Conference guest(s) for Sunday worship. The previous night was the 2023 local iteration of Renewal 2028, a series of events begun in 2017 to commemorate the beginnings of the Anabaptist movement.  

    At South Abbotsford Church, 25 March 2023, five international guests and one local speaker shared testimonies of Jesus Christ, our hope.  

    “Dear Mennonite World Conference, you are the angels sent by God to Myanmar,” said Amos Chin. “When we are down, you comfort us; you fed us when we are hungry; you help when we are refugees, you bring us a ray of hope when we are hopeless; the world forgets our condition, but you remember us,” he said. Event organizer John Roth delivered Amos Chin’s speech about the difficult conditions in Myanmar because he did not receive permission to enter Canada. “Ultimately, Jesus Christ is still our hope.” 

    “Living in a county where problems are like the air you breathe, it is not easy… but we are living,” said Tigist Tesfaye of Ethiopia. She delivered her speech via video because her visa to Canada had been denied. She is tired of asking for prayer over again, she said, “but we have a Saviour who is our hope.  

    “Hope was never lost,” said José Arrais of Portugal. The Mennonite churches in Europe drew together to respond to needs created by the war in Ukraine.  

    “To talk about hope, I have to start with despair,” said Kkot-Ip Bae of South Korea where military conscription is mandatory. The MWC statement on conscientious objection signifies hope to Mennonites, she said.  

    “I can’t say what the secret is to finding hope, but I think the Apostle Paul was on to something when he encouraged us to not give up,” says Cynthia Dück of Paraguay.  

    “I’m very thankful to have quite aa long list to choose from of where I see it [hope],” said Ashley Rempel from Chilliwack, B.C., Canada; a member of Eden Mennonite Church. She talked about how the youth she mentors show her hope in following Jesus.  

    Due to slow visa processing or denials, the event was missing not only two of the speakers, but an additional four representatives from Africa and one from Latin America. They had been invited for the church visits and the next week’s Executive Committee meetings at Camp Squeah. 

    “We are one in our hope that it is Christ who reaches out to us and says ‘follow me,’” said MWC president Henk Stenvers of the Netherlands. “MWC is the living witness of that hope, bringing people together in one communion over borders of nationality, colour, language, economic circumstances and culture.”  


    Watch for full testimonies published in the online-only July 2023 issue of Courier. Click here to subscribe. 

    View photos from the event:

     Abbotsford, BC, Canada

  • “By sharing the story of the global church, we can expand the concept of community. In the process of finding a Jesus-centred neighbourhood, not an ‘I’-centred neighbourhood, we can break down walls,” says Kkhot-Ip Bae. The Mennonite Christian from South Korea is the Asia representative on the YABs Committee. 

    Join us in person or via livestream from South Abbotsford Church, B.C., Canada to hear these stories from the global church on 25 March 2023 at 6:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time (1:30 a.m. 26 March UTC) 

    Renewal 2028 is a series of events commemorating the 500th anniversary of the beginnings of the Anabaptist movement.  

    This year’s local event is held in English only. 

    Read more 

    Watch livestream 

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