Peace Sunday 2020: solidarity and our interconnectedness
Boat in the midst of the storm
Have a large backdrop painted blue (blue sea and sky).
Create a boat cut-out to place on the “sea” backdrop.
Provide blue paper “wave” cut-outs. (Ensure colour is not too dark to see the writing on it.)
Ask congregants to write on the “waves”: what issues or realities they are experiencing that might be causing crises? These could be personal, communal, societal, etc.
Encourage congregants to place these waves all around the boat.
Invite congregants to think about how God, through Jesus and the church community, offers assurance, help or support – a safe place in the boat – during these times.
Take the time to validate the things that have or can cause chaos.
Reflect on how to help one another in extending Jesus’s arms of comfort and assurance.
Drawing comfort
Who has demonstrated Jesus’ comfort and assurance to you? Draw or take a picture of them.
If they give you consent, share the photo publicly with a word of thanks.
With permission, send your story and photo to photo@mwc-cmm.org to share with the global Anabaptist family.
Reader’s Theater: Jesus Calms the Storm
Based on Mark 4:35-41 (NIV)
Parts: NARRATOR, JESUS, ALL (congregation as the disciples)
Feel free to adapt the script to Matthew or Luke’s version of the story. Also, feel free to add sound effects for the storm, either recorded or a portion of the congregation live.
NARRATOR Jesus had been teaching and healing all day in Capernaum, near the Sea of Galilee. When evening came, Jesus said to his disciples,
JESUS Let us go over to the other side
NARRATOR Leaving the crowd behind, the disciples took Jesus along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him.
A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.
Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him,
ALL Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?
NARRATOR Jesus got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves
JESUS Quiet! Be still!
NARRATOR Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
JESUS Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?
NARRATOR They were terrified and asked each other,
ALL Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!
Strength is commanding the wind and sea to obey, Strength is wielding a slingshot in the face of a raging giant. Strength is accepting vulnerability from inside the boat, Strength is standing in solidarity with the powerless. Strength is turning a cheek, Strength is loving an enemy. We come to worship a God who redefines our vision of strength.
Send us into the world’s turbulence as instruments of Your peace, and send us as agents of Your justice, that all might know the truth of Your ways.
Send us as artists who bear the joyful burden of Your creativity, that we might bring light into the darkness, and hope among the despairing.
And grant us the joy of fellowship, with Your Spirit and with one another, this day and forever. Amen!
—Rev. Mark S. Burrows. Included in the Spring, 1998 issue of Connections magazine.
Stand by Me
When the storms of life are raging, Stand by me (stand by me); (2x) When the world is tossing me Like a ship upon the sea, Thou who rulest wind and water, Stand by me (stand by me).
–Charles Albert Tindley (1851–1933) was a self-taught songwriter and Methodist Episcopal minister. Hymnary.org says: “Tindley was known for being a captivating preacher, and for also taking an active role in the betterment of the people in his community. Tindley was able to draw people of multiple races to his church ministry; likewise, his songs have been adopted and proliferated by white and black churches alike.“
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen. –St. Francis of Assisi
Master, the tempest is raging
Refrain: The winds and the waves shall obey thy will. “Peace, be still!” Whether the wrath of the storm-tossed sea, Or struggles or evil, whatever it be, No water can swallow the ship where lies the Master of ocean and earth and skies: They all shall sweetly obey thy will. “Peace, be still! Peace, be still!” They all shall sweetly obey thy will. “Peace, peace, be still!” –Mary Ann Baker
Jesus walks on water (Matthew 14:22-33) and Jesus calms the storm (Matthew 8:23-27; Mark 4:35-41).
You can imagine Jesus walking on top of the turbulent water thrashing against the boat, or the storm-high waves covering the boat, and understand the fear the disciples must have felt – to the degree that they thought they were seeing a ghost, or were sure they would be drowned in a shipwreck. We too can go through circumstances that flood us with fear, in which we feel nauseous without being ill, or where we are sure we will fail and don’t even try.
The storms in our lives can be varied: our health is in peril; our finances or marriage on the brink of despair; our child’s life in danger. I don’t know which one you are going through, but at these tumultuous times we experience true anxiety; we feel alone, depressed, undeserving of God’s grace; without hope, as if we are trapped in a deep, dark hole that we cannot escape from. On a personal level, these daily occurrences seem increasingly more difficult. It also happens on a global level with conflict and disagreements that turn into violent clashes that can even lead to the loss of life for some people. So, some people ask, “Where is the world headed?” We cannot deny the truth of these circumstances.
We are not exempt from these experiences as children of God because “In the world you face persecution.…” John 16:33 (NRSV). Our Christian duty is to reflect the victorious character of Jesus.
I invite you to imagine Jesus walking over the turbulent water as related in Matthew 14:27 when he said to the disciples: “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”
After a time of much anguish, like when you are about to lose your life, or you think you are going to fail, hear the calming voice of Jesus in Matthew 8:26 saying “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a dead calm. Oh, what a glorious experience!
This wonderful sensation of being protected by the love of God through the manifold expressions of God’s power is available to you for your life. Jesus is extending his hand to assist you and will not let you perish in the turbulent water of this life. He is here to heal you of all your infirmities and all the pain it is possible to experience. There is no one who better understands these difficult situations that we must live through. When the night is at its darkest and most threatening; when you have lost all hope; Jesus walks toward you with every intention of rescuing you, sustaining you and consoling you.
It is possible that you can hear his voice saying: “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” (Matthew 8:26). Often, we need to pause and turn our face to Jesus so that we may live out our peace; that peace that allows us to overcome the situation; that peace that fills us with strength to carry on, that enables us to do that which our anguish gets in the way of.
Take the time that you need to today to repeat the words of the disciples: “What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?” (Matthew 8:27) We put our trust in God. He will not put us to shame.
—Adriana Belinda Rodriguez Velasquez is a member of the Peace commission. She is a member of Caminando con Dios, part of the Iglesia Evangélica Menonita Hondureña.
Do not be afraid
The 17th of August 2011 is an unforgettable date for me. It is Indonesia’s independence day, one day after my 49th birthday Ð and the day the Chinese government tightened the regulation of bird’s nest imports from Indonesia.
Many entrepreneurs collapsed due to Chinese government’s decision. We were one of the entrepreneurs who were affected by the decision.
Our business stopped. Almost every day the price depreciated to the point that exporters refrained from buying raw materials. Unexpectedly, loss after loss must be experienced by me.
I hoped that the working conditions would recover soon so I could pay my obligations on time. However, for almost eight months the conditions did not recover, instead it worsened! Our business had to be auctioned.
During the hard times, my wife gathered our children and conveyed the impact of the condition to them. We were preparing them mentally if we had to move to our shop because the house had to be handed over to the bank. My wife asked the children to pray for the peace and gratitude to keep our family close.
We imagined they would be terrified, crying and asking questions. However, our children were calm. ÒIt’s okay, Mum; living in the shop is the same as living in an apartment,Ó said our youngest daughter.
ÒI’m sure this house will still be our home, I’m not afraid. God will surely help,Ó said our eldest daughter.
ÒBut mum, dad is still able to work with the drinking water business, isn’t he?Ó said our son. My wife said yes.
We were very blessed with their answers and it gave us the strength to remain enthusiastic to fulfill our responsibilities toward them. I could feel that in the condition we were in, the experience of faith with God was increasingly evident in our lives.
We held hands together and prayed, asking God to give us strength and comfort.
We prayed to be spared unnecessary costs. We prayed for our health, for our daily needs, school fees; to avoid breakdown to the vehicles, electronic devices, household appliances; even for the lightbulbs in our house to last.
We prayed for God to watch the words that came out of our lips and keep us away from quarrels and conflicts, so that we would always be together in the face of struggles.
In my morning prayer on 12, 14 and 16 January 2012, I recorded in my journal that I read about God’s fire, purifying gold, and not relying on your own strength.
It really gave me the confidence. We were sure that we were not alone. God would hold our hands and lead to victory after victory.
ÑAgus Setianto is national co-coordinator of Assembly. He is a member of GKMI (Gereja Kristen Muria Indonesia) Gloria Patri, Semarang, Indonesia.
Opening Prayer
Invitation to Trust
When dangers invade our sense of safety and we wonder if our Redeemer cares, we hear the invitation: Be at peace. Be calm.
When we face job loss and financial downturns, and our sense of security is shaky, we hear the invitation: Be at peace. Be calm.
When our congregations experience distress, conflict, and loss of significant leadership, we hear the invitation: Be at peace. Be calm.
When controversial issues and rigidity of spirit threaten to tear at the very fabric of the faith community, we hear the invitation: Be at peace. Be calm.
When our lives feel chaotic and desolate because of illness or sorrow, we hear the invitation: Be at peace. Be calm
Help us to know, O God, that the one who calmed the dangerous sea is present with us, cares for us, and can calm the stormy waters of our lives. Help us to trust more fully and more deeply in you. We pray in the name of Jesus, who invites us to be at peace. Amen. —Connie R. Burkholder, Monitor Church of the Brethren, McPherson, Kansas, USA. Used by permission.
Prayer
You who are weary Sleeples Tired Depressed Discouraged
Do not be afraid!
You who are fed up Hopeless Visionless Fearful Tearful
Worship service at La Voie du Salut in Guinea. Photo: Guilvogui
Intercession
Intercessions in time of crisis
God of mercy, God of comfort, we come before you in this time of difficulty, mindful of human frailty and need, confused and struggling to find meaning in the face of suffering.
We are grateful that even as we share in the joy of Christ Jesus, we can also share abundantly in comfort in the midst of suffering.
For victims of fire or flood, storm or earthquake, famine or disease, For those whom disaster has left homeless, injured, or bereaved, For refugees and those separated from loved ones, (The liturgist may add specific petitions relating to the immediate crisis.) For all who are in danger, trouble, or anguish,
We ask the presence and strength of your Spirit.
Give all who suffer the love that bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
We know that suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because your love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.
Be the support of all who give their strength, their skill, and their stamina in a ministry of mercy.
Open our hearts in generosity that we may be partners in their commitment to bring relief.
Where tempers flare and a partisan spirit provokes new hostility, raise up people who have patience and restraint.
Where indifference allows crisis to deepen and suffering to go without relief, awaken deliverers who have zeal and strength.
We pray for those who are engaged in making important decisions in this time, for those who report on these events, and for those who shape public opinion.
Give them the courage to speak out and the restraint to listen, that together we may discern the truth and hold aloft its light.
Take away the temptation to trust in human power and military solutions, and give us the courage to be your servants to the community of nations.
Direct all governments in the way of peace and justice, that your will may be known and done among the nations. Deliver us from the sins which lead to war and conict, and strengthen within us the will to establish righteousness and justice on the earth.
We pray for those who are suffering and can make no sense of tragedy.
Help them to turn to the One who embraces us in our lives – even Jesus Christ, who lived and suffered among us.
There is no one who is righteous, not even one, for we have all turned away from you. Make us aware of our common need of a Savior, and remove from our hearts the pride, ambition, and greed that would lead us to enslave and demean other people.
Member churches around the world celebrated Peace Sunday 2021 using Mennonite World Conference’s Peace Sunday worship resource: “Finding hope and healing in crisis.” Photo: Ashish Kumar Milap
A prayer for storm survivors.
The words in regular print are spoken by one voice. The words in bold print are spoken by all.
Jesus, we see you calming stormsstorm tossed seas and stormy lives. Extend your power and grace again, especially upon these most recent storm victims. Speak peace and healing over bodies and spirits broken by the chaos. Jesus, speak peace. Silence
Speak peace and hope over families and communities devastated by sudden loss. Jesus, speak peace. Silence
Speak peace and unity over diverse groups of people so they would come together for greater provision, just distribution, and effective rebuilding. Jesus, speak peace. Silence
Speak peace and protection over rescue workers as they reach out to those who are suffering. Jesus, speak peace. Silence
You are the Prince of Peace. You are the Resurrection and the Life. You are strong to save. Our hope and trust are in you. Amen. —Rev Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia is a United Methodist minister in the United States. This prayer was posted to her blog on Christian practices, Revlisad.com.
This workshop will explore the way MWC gets involved in political advocacy and how MWC member churches can request such help. It will also explore how MWC can further support its member churches and some of their ongoing struggles.
Presenters: Andrew Suderman is MWC Peace Commission secretary and a member of St. Jacob’s Mennonite Church (Mennonite Church Canada) and of Shalom Mennonite Congregation (Harrisonburg, Virginia, USA). Joji Pantoja is MWC Peace Commission chair (2015-2022), a Mennonite Church Canada Witness worker in the Philippines and founding member of Peacebuilders Community Inc.
MWC and Political Advocacy
The Global Anabaptist Peace Network (GAPN) is a network that seeks to connect and support peace organizations (agencies, schools, training programs, research projects, think-tanks, activist-focused initiatives, activists, scholars) that have emerged from and serve our global Anabaptist-Mennonite church communion. Our hope is to provide a supportive community as we work together at making our world a better and more just place. We want to help one another in embodying and witnessing to justice, peace, and reconciliation.
In our pursuit of these goals, the GAPN seeks to:
Connect the “fruit” of our Mennonite World Conference related churches and walk in solidarity with, and support, one another.
Strengthen the church and communities of peace and justice in our world and for the world.
Createopportunities to explore what it means to be dedicated to Jesus’ way of peace.
Nourish our Anabaptist-Mennonite Christian identity and our peace consciousness.
In seeking the above goals, the GAPN provides the following in our ongoing communal effort in being agents of peace and justice:
Sharing news and resources: we share and provide information, prayer requests, and resources (such as training and educational material) among member organizations.
Connect: we want to connect and learn from one another. In order to foster this connection, we help to provide and map organizational presence and activity and share that with member organizations.
Create spaces: we create spaces whereby member organizations can connect, learn, and be transformed through gatherings and opportunities to come together. The GAPN supports and facilitates spaces for members to meet, share, learn from one another, and connect, both incarnationally (i.e., in face-to-face gatherings) as well as virtually.
We welcome your involvement in the GAPN! Please fill out this form and return it as indicated.
During the past two years, MWC asked member conferences for accounts of experiences in peacemaking. MWC’s Peace Council considered these stories during two days of meeting in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, in August 2003. The following summary was developed out of that discussion.
1. Continuum of peacemaking activities:
All Christians are called to be peacemakers, but this can happen on a variety of levels. The Peace Council discussion identified the following levels, acknowledging that this is not an exhaustive list:
a. Peace with God: individual con-version creates a new person who can live at peace. This is the base for all the other levels of peacemaking.
b. Peace within one’s self: self-esteem and integrity are important components of peacemaking.
c. Peace within the family: churches work with family life and relationships and with issues of domestic violence.
d. Peacemaking within congregations and conferences: churches have dealt with internal conflicts.
e. Peacemaking with neighbours: churches have worked at solving conflicts with others and among groups in their communities.
f. Peacemaking with other Christians: conversation and witness reaches across historical divisions.
g. Peacemaking with members of other faiths: churches struggle with questions of how to relate with respect and witness with integrity.
h. Peacemaking within nations and between nations: churches have worked for peace on national and international levels.
i. Peacemaking with the environment: churches strive to live in ways that care for the earth.
j. Peacemaking with enemies: at all levels of relationship, this is a spiritual challenge.
2. Biblical virtues that undergird peacemaking:
The peacemaking activities of churches grow out of their reading of the Bible. A number of biblical virtues serve as a basis for peacemaking:
liberty
self-esteem
love
repentance
corporate-ness
suffering (including patience, forbearance, and endurance)
reconciliation (which includes restoration)
justice and peace held together
confrontation of injustice
joy
courage
humility
forgiveness
witnessing
3. Practices that form Christians as peacemakers:
Peace Council participants noted these practices that instill peacemaking as a habitual practice for Christians:
a. Catechizing and discipling: the Christians’ identity as peacemakers is imparted in the way churches teach and receive new members.
b. Worship: peacemaking identity and habits are instilled in the way congregations worship God.
c. Prayer: peacemaking habits are engendered by prayer and the spiritual disciplines. Witness to the powers can also be considered as prayer.
d. Christian education: this shapes peacemakers; Christian education should include specific training for all ages, including church leadership, in peacemaking skills.
e. Voluntary service: these activities can help young Christians learn peacemaking as they do it.
f. Global awareness: this expands understanding of those beyond our boundaries; global awareness should include awareness of inter-ethnic and inter-faith differences.
g. Non-violent action: advocacy to those in power and actions that confront injustice help Christians develop peacemaking skills.
4. Recommendations to MWC:
The Peace Council participants encouraged MWC to continue making peace a central part of conversation between member churches. To help this happen, the council made these recommendations:
a. MWC should encourage all member churches to find ways to cooperate with other Christian churches and groups in their contexts in peacemaking efforts, with special attention to activities of churches in the United Nations’ Decade to Overcome Violence.
b. MWC should designate one Sunday each year as a global peace Sunday, encouraging member churches to hold special worship services around, similar to what is now done for the World Fellowship Sunday. Suggested worship materials should be provided for this day.
c. The next MWC world assembly should have one day or one worship service with a theme of peace. This could include sharing stories from around the world of ways in which churches are working for peace.
