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Letters to the editor
Mennonite Brethren Herald welcomes your letters on issues relevant to the Mennonite Brethren Church, especially in response to material published in the Herald. Please keep your letters courteous, brief and about one subject only. We will edit letters for length and clarity. We will not publish letters sent anonymously, although we may withhold names from publication at the request of the letter writer and at our discretion. Publication is also subject to space limitations. Because the Letters column is a free forum for discussion, it should be understood that letters represent the position of the letter writer, not necessarily the position of the Herald or the Mennonite Brethren Church. Send letters to:
Letters, MB Herald
3-169 Riverton Ave.
Winnipeg, Man. R2L 2E5
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or by e-mail to mbherald@mbconf.ca. (Please ensure that your postal address is included in your e-mail correspondence.) |
All should serve
Ministry is a holy calling by God. Stepping into the waters of baptism in Christ is our ordination into ministry. The Holy Spirit taps women, men, boys and girls on the shoulder to live a life of discipleship, to follow Jesus Christ everywhere. Our Anabaptist roots remind us of the priesthood of all believers. It is a shared leadership model. The church needs to be a sanctuary where the full humanity of all its members can be lived out. Inclusive participation of everyone is vital to the church’s health and longevity.
Faith Wiebe-Peters,
Killarney, Man.
Unfortunate inclusion
People and Events (March 22) contained an item from the 2002 Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches, which includes the Mormons among the churches listed. That is an unfortunate involvement in falsehood, on the part of both the source and the publisher, and fails to support the efforts of all engaged in Christian apologetics; in fact, it defeats them.
Jake K. Balzer,
Calgary, Alta.
Obituary reminds of Christian character
In the Deaths column (March 22), I learned of the passing of Henry A. Thiessen from Abbotsford. I did not know him until, in the late 1970s, he responded to an ad we had placed in the local papers regarding a refrigerator we had for sale. It was an old one, and our asking price was $50. He said he would buy it, and though I repeatedly stated we did not want more than $50, he insisted he would pay us $60. About one year later, I met him and he told me the refrigerator was working fine and he knew it was worth more than $50. I cared little about the extra $10 but was deeply impressed by his way of doing business and his nonmaterialistic attitude. Most would have counter-offered my asking price by offering me less. He, in this business transaction, reflected his Christian value system. I give him tribute and thank him for giving me a breath of fresh air in business ethics.
Wilmer Kornelson,
Abbotsford, B.C.
Pastoral wisdom
John Redekop in “Challenging Three Denominational Myths” (March 22) identifies a problem, distinguishes three wrong perceptions as to the cause, and then presents the “sober truth”. The problem is diminished support among MBs for Conference ministry, Conference meetings and overall denominational identity. Redekop cautions us against attributing this problem to unwieldy Conference structures, aloof Conference leadership, or members who are “maxed out”. The sober truth, says Redekop, is that lagging Conference support is primarily the fault of our pastors, who are providing “spotty support” to Conference work and displaying an overall reluctance to promote Conference personnel, ministry or identity.
Let’s assume that Redekop has indeed presented the truth as to why Conference support is less than it was in the 1950s. The glaring omission in Redekop’s piece is the absence of any reason why we should think this is in fact a problem – he just assumes that it is. In my view, that assumption is the real problem hindering enthusiastic support for our Conference structures. It could be that pastors have good reasons to direct finite church resources elsewhere. And if that’s the case, then “spotty support” isn’t necessarily a sign of pastoral failure, but it could be a sign of pastoral wisdom.
Myron A. Penner,
Lafayette, Indiana
Slandering Yancey
Re James Toews’s review of Yancey’s Soul Survivor (April 19):
- He accuses Yancey of slandering the church. My Oxford defines slander as a “malicious, false and injurious statement”. Now, apparently the “false” part is not the issue since Toews states, “In fact, the church and society of Yancey’s youth was home to the Ku Klux Klan.” So, does he mean it is malicious and injurious for Yancey to tell this truth to the world? If those who denounce such blatant and public evil are “slandering”, then where does that leave people who’ve suffered from the evils of church leaders in less public settings?
- Does Toews truly believe the church requires the protection of silenced voices? That it is the duty of those who see evil in the church to keep quiet and pretend to be nice?
- The review assumed that pastors and leaders carry no more responsibility for the church than any other member. The Scriptures clearly warn that teachers and pastors carry a unique responsibility and are answerable for leading people down the path of truth. Was Yancey, as a boy, to blame for a preacher ordering him in the name of God to hate children of another colour? Or was no evil done and no one is to blame? Did Toews forget how tough Jesus was on religious leaders, calling them snakes and fakes?
- The review is titled “How my faith survived Philip Yancey”. What faith did Yancey threaten – faith in Christ or faith in a religious organization?
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Dorothy Siebert,
Winnipeg, Man.
Thanks for the Internet
Thank you very much for making the Herald available over the Internet. I do not have access to the magazine anymore, and it is nice when I get the opportunity to be able to read through back issues. There is a lot of very helpful information in the Herald and I enjoy reading it. I recently found information that is very helpful and gives me hope.
Marilyn Jewell,
Three Hills, Alta.
Last modified June 13, 2002.
© 2002 Mennonite Brethren Herald.
Published by the Canadian Conference of MB Churches.
Masthead and usage information.
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