The Officers’ Column
Solidarity comes from the Latin solidus — whole, firm, united. It is more than sympathy (“I feel sorry for you”) or empathy (“I understand how you feel”). Solidarity says, “I will stand with you.” It is the willingness to bear one another’s burdens.
Our church has recently studied the text from Matthew 9:9–13. It gives us a clear picture of this Christ‑shaped solidarity. Jesus does not save from a distance. He enters humanity and sits at the table with tax collectors and sinners. He stands with those others avoid.
As John Stott observed, the cross first reveals God’s identification with sinners before it reveals God’s judgment against sin.
Solidarity is the witness of Incarnation itself.
My local congregation Maranatha has tasted this grace. When our Indonesian‑American congregation began worshipping alongside immigrants from diverse ethnicities, we discovered that solidarity is not a program but a table.
We listened to stories of displacement, shared meals, prayed in multiple languages and carried burdens that were not originally ours. In those moments, Bonhoeffer’s words rang true: “The church is the church only when it exists for others.”
Throughout the Gospels, Jesus forms a community that stands with the poor, the mourning, the meek, the sick and the forgotten. Solidarity is an act of standing together – the strength that makes the body of Christ whole.
May the Mennonite World Conference global family in 2026 embody this firm, united, Christ‑like solidarity with courage and joy.
—Sunoko Lin is the MWC Treasurer and serves with the Officers. He is also pastor of Maranatha Christian Fellowship, an LMC member church in California.
