Five hundred years ago today a group of young believers gathered in the home of Anna Manz in Zurich, Switzerland. During the meeting Conrad Grebel baptized George Blaurock who then baptized the others. The attendants had been baptized as infants and their decision to be re-baptized as adults was a radical and illegal act that…
Category: Faith and Calling
The Discipline of Bible Reading
Last year, when I gave my testimony to the Seek cohort, I noted that reading the Bible from cover to cover, over and over again, was a spiritual discipline that I learned from a young age. This caught Charlotte’s attention and she decided that she was old enough to read the entire Bible. So most…
Article: The United Nations is a Mission Field
The Mennonite Central Committee Representative to the United Nations, Chris Rice, recently wrote an article for Christianity Today about his work titled “The United Nations is a Mission Field.” We’ve greatly appreciated working with Chris particularly during the coup in Myanmar. He was very active in connecting the voices of communities on the ground to…
Reflections on Political Violence
The 48 hours around my birthday were intense this year. In Myanmar, there were widespread non-violent demonstrations and general labor strikes protesting the February 2021 coup d’état. The military junta responded with brutal force. They turned guns and grenades against the peaceful protests. They forced Doctors and Teachers to go to work at gunpoint. Doctors…
Reflections on breaking relationship and breaking bread together
I’ve been reading a book by J. Nelson Kraybill titled Stuck Together: the Hope of Christian Witness in a Polarized World. It’s a very inspiring book that speaks to the kind of presence I personally believe Christianity should have in the world. Nelson writes from a lifetime of experience and seamlessly weaves together contemporary real…
Let the meditation of my heart
After my Father died I went through a cycle of depression and anger. I wasn’t angry at God or even what had happened, I was just angry in general. My first internal reaction to most interactions was negative. I held on to uncharitable thoughts and petty grudges for no reasons. I knew this was a…
Elijah, Highs and Lows
When I’m low I often think about the prophet Elijah. Specifically, how he lived for three years on the run while drought and famine plagued the land, then how he confronted King Ahab and challenged 450 Prophets of Baal to a public contest on Mount Carmel. There, in front of a crowd of witnesses, Elijah’s…
Who is Marcy (Weber) Ninomiya?
Last month the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) contacted us to invite to join a book launching for the memoir of Marcy (Weber) Ninomiya. Marcy, her husband Akiie, and Naoko from JICA also decided to visit the MCC Cambodia office a few days before and catch up on MCC’s work in the region. Marcy is…
My Father has Cancer
One of my formative childhood memories is my of Father mourning his Mother, my Nana, as she was dying of cancer. I was 4 years old when she was diagnosed with lung cancer that had spread to her brain. I remember that my Father often wept for his Mother. It’s the only time I remember…
Worship Guides from MCC Peace and Justice Ministries
I wanted to share two new worship guides from MCC U.S. National Peace and Justice Ministries. These are intended for fall church services or personal/family prayer time. Each contains prayers, song suggestions, Bible readings, and informative reflections. Climate Action for Peace: International Day of PeaceThis year, MCC’s Peace Sunday packet centers on the theme of Climate Action…