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Mennonite Church USA

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The Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) is an Anabaptist Christian denomination in the United States. Although the organization is a recent 2002 merger of the Mennonite Church and the General Conference Mennonite Church, the body has roots in the Radical Reformation of the 16th century.

Mennonite Church USA
ClassificationAnabaptist
TheologyMennonite
PolityCongregational
ModeratorDavid Boshart
AssociationsMennonite World Conference Christian Churches Together
RegionUnited States
HeadquartersMennonite Church USA has offices in Elkhart, Indiana, and Newton, Kansas.
OriginFebruary 1, 2002
Merger ofThe General Conference Mennonite Church and the Mennonite Church
Congregations625 (2018)
Members69,223 (2018)[1]
Official websitemennoniteusa.org

Total membership in Mennonite Church USA denominations decreased from about 133,000, before the merger in 1998, to a total membership of 120,381 in the Mennonite Church USA in 2001[2] and 78,892 members in 2016.[3] In May 2021 the main page of their website stated a membership of about 62,000.[4]

History

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Mennonite Church (MC) (Mennonite General Conference and Mennonite General Assembly)

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Main article: Mennonite Church (1683–2002)

Dutch and German immigrants from Krefeld, Germany, settled in Germantown, Pennsylvania, in 1683. Swiss Mennonites came to North America in the early part of the 18th century. Their first settlements were in Pennsylvania, then in Virginia and Ohio. These Swiss immigrants, combined with Dutch and German Mennonites and progressive Amish Mennonites who later united with them, until 2002 made up the largest body of Mennonites in North America (in the past often referred to as the "Old Mennonites"). They formed regional conferences in the 18th century. As early as 1725, delegates from various Pennsylvania Mennonite settlements met to adopt the Dordrecht Confession of Faith as their official statement of faith. The "Old" Mennonite Church was marked by ties of communion, pulpit exchange, and common confession, rather than formal organizational ties. Many, but not all, of the conferences joined the North American conference, the Mennonite General Conference, in 1898. The Mennonite General Conference was reorganized in 1971 as the Mennonite General Assembly. The Mennonite General Assembly merged with the General Conference Mennonite Church in 2002.[5]

General Conference Mennonite Church (GCMC)

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Main article: General Conference Mennonite Church

The General Conference Mennonite Church was an association of Mennonite congregations located in North America from 1860 to 2002. The conference was formed in 1860 by congregations in Iowa seeking to unite with like-minded Mennonites to pursue common goals such as higher education and mission work. The conference was especially attractive to recent Mennonite and Amish immigrants to North America and expanded considerably when thousands of Russian Mennonites arrived in North America starting in the 1870s. Conference offices were located in Winnipeg, Manitoba and North Newton, Kansas. The conference supported a seminary and several colleges. By the 1980s, there remained little difference between the General Conference Mennonite Church and many conferences in the Mennonite General Assembly. In the 1990s the conference had 64,431 members in 410 congregations in Canada, the United States and South America.[6]

Merger

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In 1983 the General Assembly of the Mennonite Church met jointly with the General Conference Mennonite Church in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in celebration of 300 years of Mennonite witness in the Americas. Beginning in 1989, a series of consultations, discussions, proposals, and sessions (and a vote in 1995 in favor of merger) led to the unification of these two major North American Mennonite bodies into one denomination organized on two fronts – the Mennonite Church USA and the Mennonite Church Canada. The merger was "finalized" at a joint session in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1999, and the Canadian branch moved quickly ahead. The United States branch did not complete their organization until the meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2001, which became effective February 1, 2002.

The merger of 1999-2002 at least partially fulfilled the desire of the founders of the General Conference Mennonite Church to create an organization under which all Mennonites could unite. Yet not all Mennonites favored the merger. The Alliance of Mennonite Evangelical Congregations represents one expression of the disappointment with the merger and the events that led up to it.

Decline

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Since its merger, a large number of conservative congregations have left Mennonite Church USA. 2013 saw nine congregations leave, and in 2014 at least 12 did so.[7] In November 2015, the Lancaster Conference, Mennonite Church USA's largest conference, with 13,838 members in 163 congregations in six states plus the District of Columbia, voted overwhelmingly to leave the denomination by the end of 2017.[8]

By early 2016 the membership had decreased to 78,892 members.[3] This decline was is generally attributed to the denomination's increasingly liberal position towards same sex marriage, among other issues, which caused many congregations to leave Mennonite Church USA.[8] In April 2016, the Franklin Mennonite Conference, a conference with 14 congregations and about 1,000 members in Pennsylvania and Maryland, voted to withdraw from the Mennonite Church USA.[9] In 2018 the number of baptized members had fallen to 69,223 and the number congregations to 625.[1]

Political Involvement

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For most of its history, the Mennonite Church has stayed away from political involvement. This came from a desire to separate the church from the culture of the world.[10] In 1968 Mennonite Central Committee, the governing body for the Mennonite Church, created an advocacy office in Washington, DC.[11] This was a drastic shift in how the church approached politics and was not appreciated by many members at the time. Since then, the church has become more politically involved as this became more normalized.

Structure

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Convention and delegate assembly

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Every other year, Mennonite Church USA holds a week-long, church-wide convention. The convention includes gatherings for adults, youth, junior youth and children (K-5, Preschool and Infants/Toddlers). During the convention, there are worship sessions, seminars, alumni gatherings, and special dinners. Also, taking place during the convention is the Delegate Assembly. Delegates from local congregations, regional area conferences, and constituency groups gather to develop vision and direction for the national denomination. Previous conventions have been held in Nashville, Tennessee (2001), Atlanta, Georgia (2003), Charlotte, North Carolina (2005), San Jose, California (2007), Columbus, Ohio (2009),[12] Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (2011), Phoenix, Arizona (2013), Kansas City, Missouri (2015, 2019, 2021, 2023),[13] and Orlando, Florida (2017).[14]

Area conferences

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Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church, a Western District Conference congregation

All congregations in the denomination belong to an area conference, and it is the area conference that is the component part of Mennonite Church USA. There are currently 21 area conferences with many of them overlapping geographically due to conference structures prior to the merger. Recently, some divisions have occurred and the Lancaster Conference (not included here) voted in 2015 to leave the Mennonite Church U.S.A. by 2017.[8]

Agencies

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Mennonite Church USA maintains five church-wide ministry agencies: Mennonite Mission Network,[31] Mennonite Education Agency,[32] MennoMedia (formerly Mennonite Publishing Network),[33] Mennonite Health Services,[34] and Everence (formerly Mennonite Mutual Aid).[35]

Mennonite Education Agency

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The mission of Mennonite Education Agency (MEA)[32] is to strengthen the life, witness and identity of Mennonite Church USA through education. MEA helps provide leadership to Mennonite Schools Council,[36] elementary and secondary schools throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada. MEA also helps bring support and leadership to Mennonite colleges, universities, and seminaries located throughout the United States. It also works with various people and groups within Mennonite Church USA to help involve them and show the unique qualities of Mennonite education. MEA works with Mennonite Church USA to provide leadership to church educational programs.

Colleges and seminaries

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The Goshen College Music Center in Goshen, Indiana.

Mennonite Church USA provides denominational oversight through Mennonite Education Agency to five colleges and universities and two seminaries in the United States:

Secondary schools

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Faith and practice

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Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective

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A Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective[37] provides a guide to the beliefs and practices of Mennonite Church USA. This confession was adopted in 1995 at a joint session of the Mennonite Church and General Conference Mennonite Church in Wichita, Kansas. It contains 24 articles ranging from the more general Christian theologies of God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit to the more distinct Foot Washing; Truth and the Avoidance of Oaths, Peace, Justice, and Nonresistance; and The Church's Relation to Government and Society.

Sexuality discussions

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The Brethren Mennonite Council has been active since 1976 to encourage "full inclusion" for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons in the church.[citation needed] In 1986 the General Conference Mennonite Church (one of the predecessors of Mennonite Church USA), meeting in Saskatoon,[38] adopted a statement on sexuality establishing heterosexuality as the only legitimate form of sexual expression. In 1987, the Mennonite Church (another predecessor of MC USA) issued the Purdue Statement, with similar language.[39] At the 2009 convention in Columbus, some protested for the further discussion of human sexuality.[40] In 2015 discussions revolved around the decision by multiple conferences to license openly LGBT members for church ministry. Two districts within the denomination had licensed pastors openly in committed same-sex relationships.[41] Due to the denomination's increasingly liberal position, the Lancaster Conference voted in November 2015 to leave the Mennonite Church USA.[8] At the same time, toward the end of 2015, the Western District Conference voted to allow ordained ministers to officiate at and perform same-gender marriages.[42] On 29 May 2022 the church repealed the Membership Guidelines that forbids pastors to officiate same-sex marriages. Some area conferences already allowed pastors to solemnize same-sex marriages. The church also voted in favor of an apology to the LGBTQ community.[43]

Life issues

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Mennonites have a commitment to pacifism,[44] and members of Mennonite Church USA have a history of being conscientious objectors in wars as a way to uphold a commitment to nonviolence.[45] They also oppose abortion and capital punishment.[46]

MC USA has passed a resolution committing to creation care (2013) as developed by Mennonite Creation Care Network (MCCN), which in 2013 had a membership directory of 650 individuals[47] to "advance the commitment of congregations and members in caring for creation as part of the good news of Jesus Christ" and a resolution on "Seeking Peace in Israel and Palestine" (2017).[48][49]

MC USA released a "Churchwide Statement on Immigration" in 2014 that states, "We advocate for just and humane immigration policies for immigrants and refugees, and we empower congregations, area conferences and denominational staff to serve as advocates for these vulnerable groups of peoples and resolutions pertaining to immigration."[50]

MC USA's "Churchwide Statement on Sexual Abuse" (2015) states, "We resolve to tell the truth about sexual abuse; hold abusers accountable; acknowledge the seriousness of their sin; listen with care to those who have been wounded; protect vulnerable persons from injury; work restoratively for justice; and hold out hope that wounds will be healed, forgiveness offered, and relationships established or reestablished in healthy ways."[51]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b U.S. Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches at World Directory of the Mennonite World Conference.
  2. ^ "North America" (PDF). Mennonite World Conference. 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-06-06. Retrieved 2009-12-03.
  3. ^ a b Huber, Tim (Jan 26, 2016). "Lancaster's distancing shrinks roll: A few churches want to stay with MC USA; others are dropped from denomination's membership number". Mennonite World Review. Mennonite World Review. Retrieved August 24, 2016. "MC USA's new, lower membership total is based on only 1,091 members from LMC"(Lancaster Mennonite Conference)
  4. ^ Main Page at mennoniteusa.org.
  5. ^ "Mennonite Church (MC) – GAMEO". gameo.org. Retrieved 2018-08-08.
  6. ^ Mennonite Directory, p. 16
  7. ^ Mennonite World Review: Ohio Conference loses more churches
  8. ^ a b c d Huber, Tim (19 November 2015). "Lancaster Conference to leave the Mennonite Church USA". mennworld.org. Mennonite World Review. Retrieved December 11, 2015.
  9. ^ Mennonite World Review: Franklin Conference votes to leave Mennonite Church USA. mennworld.org. Mennonite World Review. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  10. ^ Miller, Keith Graber. Wise as Serpents, Innocent as Doves: American Mennonites Engage Washington. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1996.
  11. ^ jamesstuckeyweber (2014-04-17). "Washington Office". Mennonite Central Committee U.S. Retrieved 2020-11-06.
  12. ^ "Mennonite Church USA Convention Records, 2003-2009 | Mennonite Church USA Archives". mac.libraryhost.com. Retrieved 2019-04-19.
  13. ^ "MWR : MC USA picks KC for '19 convention". www.mennoworld.org. Retrieved 2019-04-19.
  14. ^ "Mennonite Church USA convention comes to Orlando July 4–8". Mennonite Church USA. 2017-06-07. Retrieved 2019-04-19.
  15. ^ "Allegheny Mennonite Conference". Archived from the original on 2015-03-25. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  16. ^ "Central District Conference". Archived from the original on 2016-03-16. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  17. ^ "Central Plains Mennonite Conference". Archived from the original on 2016-03-11. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  18. ^ Eastern District Conference
  19. ^ "Franklin Mennonite Conference". Archived from the original on 2009-03-01. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  20. ^ "Gulf States Mennonite Conference". Archived from the original on 2009-03-01. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  21. ^ "Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference - a community of congregations joyfully following Jesus...engaging the world God loves". Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  22. ^ "Mountain States Mennonite Conference - An area conference of Mennonite Church USA". mountainstatesmc.org. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  23. ^ "New York Mennonite Conference". www.nymennonite.org. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  24. ^ "North Central Conference of the Mennonite Church". Archived from the original on 2009-03-02. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  25. ^ "Ohio Conference of the Mennonite Church". Archived from the original on 2016-04-05. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  26. ^ "Pacific Northwest Mennonite Conference - A conference of the Mennonite Church USA". pnmc.org. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  27. ^ "Pacific Southwest Mennonite Conference". Pacific Southwest Mennonite Conference. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  28. ^ "South Central Mennonite Conference". Archived from the original on 2009-03-02. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  29. ^ "Southeast Mennonite Conference". Archived from the original on 2009-03-02. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
  30. ^ "Western District Conference - An area conference of Mennonite Church USA". Western District Conference. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  31. ^ Mennonite Mission Network official website. Accessed 2006-03-14.
  32. ^ a b Mennonite Education Agency official website. Accessed 2006-03-14.
  33. ^ MennoMedia official website. Accessed 2015-01-19.
  34. ^ Mennonite Health Services official website.
  35. ^ Everence official website. Accessed 2006-03-14.
  36. ^ Mennonite Schools Council official website Archived 2012-09-18 at the Wayback Machine. Accessed 2011-03-01.
  37. ^ Confession of Faith in a Mennonite Perspective (1995), Herald Press ISBN 0-8361-9043-2. Online copy, accessed 2006-03-14.
  38. ^ "Resolution on Human Sexuality, 1986". General Conference Mennonite Church. Archived from the original on 2012-09-05. Retrieved 2018-12-24.
  39. ^ Johns, Loren. "Homosexuality and the Mennonite Church" http://www.ambs.edu/LJohns/H&MC.htm Archived 2008-10-05 at the Wayback Machine
  40. ^ Barr, Meghan. "Mennonites in Ohio protest exclusion of gays" http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/feedarticle/8589237
  41. ^ Yoder, Kelli. "Central District Licenses Pastor in same-sex relationship". mennworld.org. Mennonite World Review. Retrieved October 13, 2015.
  42. ^ Schrag, Paul. "WDC: Same-sex marriage won't bring censure". mennoworld.org. Mennonite World. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
  43. ^ Schrag, Paul (2022-05-29). "Delegates repeal Membership Guidelines, pass LGBTQ-affirming resolution". Anabaptist World. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
  44. ^ "Historic Peace Churches". Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved Jan 12, 2013.
  45. ^ "Conscientious Objection." ThirdWay.com. Retrieved 2018-12-08.
  46. ^ Mennonite Church USA (1995). "Article 22. Peace, Justice, and Nonresistance." MennoniteUSA.org. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  47. ^ "Creation Care Resolution for Mennonite Church USA" (PDF). Mennonite Church USA. July 5, 2013. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  48. ^ "Seeking Peace in Israel and Palestine" (PDF). Delegate Assembly at Orlando 2017. Mennonite Church USA. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  49. ^ "Israel/Palestine Initiatives". Mennonite Church USA. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  50. ^ "Churchwide Statement on Immigration. 2014 Revision of 2003 Statement" (PDF). Mennonite Church USA. February 15, 2014. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  51. ^ "Churchwide Statement on Sexual Abuse Passed by the Mennonite Church USA Delegate Assembly at Kansas City, Missouri" (PDF). Mennonite Church USA. July 3, 2015. Retrieved June 17, 2019.

References

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  • Encyclopedia of American Religions, J. Gordon Melton, editor
  • Handbook of Denominations in the United States, by Frank S. Mead, Samuel S. Hill, and Craig D. Atwood
  • Mennonite Church USA, 2003 Directory
  • Mennonite Directory (1999), Herald Press. ISBN 0-8361-9454-3
  • Mennonite Encyclopedia, Cornelius J. Dyck, Dennis D. Martin, et al., editors
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