MennoNet.com

The difference between a betrothal and marriage is that a marriage is physically consummated whereas a betrothal is a pledge. My understanding is that in the Bible the word for divorce is something like "break." To "divorce" in Bible-speak then is simply to end a relationship: a ...

I should also add that here in PA, I've even see some Mennonite churches do the pronoun (he/him) thing. That signals an extreme form of liberal whiteness that we need to drop. I think people from other cultures think that is pretty weird.

Well, I visited one in Washington DC once. It was vastly more diverse, open, and welcoming to outsiders than the typical conservative Menno church. And they had a huge number of outreach programs in the local community. I don't have a great way to express myself on this topic--I'm hoping somebody o...

What most disappoints me on this thread is the misinformation that is thrown around. People throw falsehoods around with a misplaced confidence. We do this in our churches as well and then gleefully describe how much we love our enemies. Let's try to be much more careful. As someone thinking about s...

Thanks for all the responses. I'm trying to find a nonoffensive path forward. And I'm more interested in the state of affairs in the church than in government. At least in Pennsylvania, if you go from a conservative Anabaptist church to a liberal church in the same town, the liberal church will typi...

Wow, this thread is complex. I dug deeper on the letter that ErnestEby posted written by Marlin Weaver and it is disturbing. Marlin has been sending this "open letter" to people not even connected to the issue. At least two ministers I know of in PA got the letter a while back and said, &q...

To many of us, our communities are too ethnically monolithic. I'm wondering if the phrase "white privilege" is helpful or offensive? Here is some food for thought on the topic. https://www.csmedia1.com/neffmc.org/white-privilege.pdf How can we better diversify? For those in the Lancaster a...

This is great--thanks Ohio Jones, exactly what I was looking for.

At Neffsville Mennonite, Oasis Chorale starting recording their next album. Anyone know when it will come out?