Posts in category Articles

Are Mennonites allergic to evangelism...

Tshimanga calls for action in mission and evangelism By Virginia A. Hostetler Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA – Energy was still high in the penultimate plenary session of PA 2015, featuring the work of the MWC Mission Commission. Speakers issued sharp challenges to Anabaptists, calling for a more active and evangelistic discipleship. There is an uneasiness regarding […]

Our religion is relationship worked o...

PA 2015 Saturday night worship service By Doreen Martens Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA – Love for neighbour is absolutely central to the gospel, speaker Bruxy Cavey said in the final plenary service of PA 2015. This evening saw the passing of leadership from Mennonite World Conference president Danisa Ndlovu to incoming president Nelson Kraybill. In a […]

Half-day tours extend the Assembly ex...

Bus trips take guests to points of interest throughout central Pennsylvania By Matthew Hahn Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA – All week, 33 different half-day tours have extended the PA 2015 experience beyond the Farm Show Complex in Harrisburg to numerous sites of interest and significance throughout central Pennsylvania. On the busiest days, more than 20 coach […]

Doing something about faith

MDS house build at Mennonite World Conference Assembly erects homes in 5 days Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA – Pounding nails may be the last activity one might expect at an international church convention, but for many at the Mennonite World Conference’s PA 2015, it was a perfect fit. Every afternoon, just outside the air-conditioned halls of […]

Children’s program inspires faith, de...

Adults and children walk with God in doubt and conviction at PA 2015 By Laura Kraybill “Okay, Penguins, it’s time to go shear sheep.” This might cause confusion if you were not at the children’s program of MWC. For the 281 children attending PA 2015 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, it caused excitement. Participants hastily finished snacks […]

An agricultural host for a global Ass...

Mennonite World Conference Assembly takes place at Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex By Devin Manzullo-Thomas Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA – Would the attendees of Pennsylvania 2015 accept “an occasional farm smell” in their meeting space? That’s just one of the many questions PA 2015 National Coordinator Howard Good of the USA asked as he and his team […]

Part of a bigger family

Youth program encourages trust-filled interactions By Laura Kraybill “But The Lord said to me, ‘Don’t say “I am too young,”’ proclaimed a chorus of young voices 24 July 2015 at the youth program for MWC’s PA 2015. Sprawled across the concrete floor of the youth hall, several hundred teenagers began their morning with this affirmation […]

“It is like a village in Africa”

Global church village is a marketplace of stories and sharing By Doris Dube “I don’t know of any other place where I have encountered so many parts of the world all in one place,” says Donella M. Clemens of Perkasie Mennonite Church, Pennsylvania, as she watches people streaming in and out of the “marketplaces” of […]

At MWC assembly, MCC cans vegetables ...

International participants can beans in Pennsylvania heat By Tim Huber Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA – Mennonite Central Committee’s mobile meat canner went vegan for Mennonite World Conference PA 2015, switching for one week from pork, beef and turkey to green beans. Slipping out a back door into a parking lot, attendees donned hairnets, a few beard […]

Signs, signs, everywhere signs

Designer creates visual information that communicates across languages By Byron Rempel-Burkholder Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA – It’s easy for anyone to get lost in the Harrisburg Farm Show Complex, especially if you can’t read the English signs above the entrances to the vast halls that are typically used for livestock shows and auctions. That was the […]