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MKC promises memorable and inspirational Assembly
The MWC Assembly in Ethiopia in 2028 takes its first steps toward celebration with the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) and appointment of a national advisory council. From 11-17 January 2024, MWC leaders Liesa Unger (Chief International Events Officer), Sunoko Lin (treasurer), Lisa Carr-Pries (vice president) and Henk Stenvers (president) visited Ethiopia. They…
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Assembly financial update
As the year draws to a close, MWC is finalizing the numbers on the Assembly in Indonesia. “We are very pleased to report that, as of publication time, we met the financial goal of breaking even,” says Chief Operating Officer Jeanette Bissoon. This was MWC’s first time hosting a hybrid event with in-person and online…
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Assembly tours and service projects
Assembly activities Connecting with people is at the heart of MWC Assemblies. Participating in local tourism and serving with local ministries provided another chance to connect. “I get a lot of value and joy out of helping people,” says Daniel Beachy, who signed up for a service activity. “It was a lot of fun planting…
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Assembly small but full of joy
With its national motto of “unity in diversity,” Indonesia proved a fitting host for the 17th Assembly of Mennonite World Conference – downsized by COVID-19 restrictions but full of joy, beauty and fellowship. In an outdoor venue at a Mennonite Bible college (JKI) on a mountaintop in the city of Salatiga on the island of…
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Masks on; Assembly begins!
Assembly in Indonesia 2022 is about to begin on 5 July 2022 with strict health protocols in place, as mandated by the local health authority. “As per government protocols, we mandate mask-wearing in all indoor spaces and crowded outdoor spaces. Seats are arranged for social distancing, and compliance to mask-wearing is checked at entrances and…
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How the Assembly Hub crosses barriers of space
“It’s not the planned things that change us; it’s the encounters,” says Benjamin Isaak-Krauß, a two-time Assembly participant from Germany. Online participants find space for those barrier-crossing encounter at Mennonite World Conference’s event in the Assembly Hub. Event programs can be inspiring; however, the moments that make life change are often spontaneous connections over food…
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Assembly strives to lower carbon footprint
“Gathering” has become a bigger idea. Two years of changing pandemic restrictions taught people to be together virtually. Mennonite World Conference’s global Assembly benefits from this Zoom savvy. MWC’s event is open for anyone around the world to register to participate in these five days of fellowship from wherever they are. Additionally, recordings on the…
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What’s happening in Assembly worship services?
Everyone can travel to Indonesia for this year’s Mennonite World Conference hybrid Assembly. Around 1250 will do so in person, while thousands of others will visit Indonesia through screens. Through a daily “Panorama Indonesia” presentation, participants follow Jesus across barriers by sampling the multifaceted ministry activities of three host synods.* Each Assembly plenary session opens…
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Assembly participants on-site nearly doubled
The Indonesian Assembly just got a little bit larger. The National Advisory Committee for Assembly 17 and the executive committee of MWC have decided to raise attendance numbers for the gathering in Indonesia to 1250. COVID-19 cases in Indonesia remain low so the Indonesian government has lifted quarantine restrictions for travellers. “We would love to…
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Connect with local congregations during Assembly online
How is the gospel being shared in Indonesia, a country with the largest Muslim population in the world? Find out as you worship together with four local congregations that will host the evening worship sessions during MWC’s Assembly 17: in Jepara, Solo, Margokerto and Ungaran. “Through these satellite locations, all participants can see, hear and…
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Why have an Assembly?
Former MWC president Danisa Ndlovu (2003-2015) spoke with MWC about hosting the 2003 Assembly in Zimbabwe, his home country. This interview has been edited. “Circumstances tend not to favour expectations. You don’t choose what is happening at any given point in one’s life. Even so we remain a church. “For the church in Zimbabwe to…
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How Assembly food waste will end up as fertilizer
In Indonesia, a country where sorting and proper treatment of trash is rare, how do we run the Assembly sustainably? In 2019, Bangun P. Nugroho, a member of Jemaat Kristen Indonesia (JKI church) Holy Stadium in Semarang, Central Java, realized that landfills are filling up fast with a mix of organic and inorganic waste. The…
