Mennonite Brethren youth have been meeting for a national youth convention every three years since 1971. Although it’s impossible to measure the spiritual impact of these rallies, it seems clear from informal evidence that they strengthen ties within youth groups, provide a sense of national MB community, produce spiritual commitment, and foster the future leadership of our churches.

NYC has changed over the years to reflect new generations. The first (Banff ’71) was marked by skiing, competitive Bible quizzing, prayer “huddles” and a session of public “sharing” that lasted from Thursday evening to noon Friday. It was the time of the Jesus Movement and the Canadian revival.

Music evolved from choirs to rock bands, complete with multimedia effects. Some NYCs were rowdy, others were calm. Banff ’95 created controversy with its New Year’s Eve “dance.” That one was also marked by the tragic death of Amanda Derksen on the trip home. Recently, NYC has moved – into the city and around the country – and added a mission focus.

A significant challenge NYC faces for the future is the loss of B.C. participation. This year, only three people from B.C. attended. Perhaps the 2007 event should be held in B.C., not only to re-connect youth of that province with the national project but also because their cultural diversity, numbers and often cutting-edge church life are gifts that could bless youth in the rest of the country.

The NYC tradition is a good one and it’s worth continuing. The sharing of Banff ’71 made the first national youth convention that year’s “most momentous spiritual event for our brotherhood,” said the Herald report. For all the reasons given in the reports about the 12th convention in this issue (and because youth represent our future), the same may well be said about NYC’04.

How hearts and hands extend

Our family spent Christmas together in Alabama, where our oldest son and his family live. We especially enjoyed two days in the glorious winter sunshine of the Gulf Coast. In a lull between beach activities, table games and eating, we turned on the television. There we learned of the tsunami disaster.

It took some repetitions of the images and statistics for the reality of it to penetrate my mind. When it did, I felt overwhelmed. We were helpless and far away.

I recall thinking then – and the thought was a comfort – that MCC would be there.

Sure enough, on our homeward trip we caught a radio interview with Willie Reimer, director of material resources for Mennonite Central Committee, who provided information on conversations with partner organizations in the affected areas. Assistance and assessment were underway, he said. It was like hearing that my own heart and hands were already extending compassion into places of dire devastation.

The next day, I happened to hear another radio interview, this one with Ray Dirks, artist and author of In God’s Image: A Global Anabaptist Family. He talked about the Mennonite community in Indonesia. It was another connection.

Back in the office, there were news releases from the Mennonite World Conference, elaborating the involvement of the Mennonite community in Indonesia, and from MCC, announcing figures for its immediate and long-term response.

I was particularly moved (and a little afraid on their behalf because of what they would witness) to hear that the young members of a TREK team, so recently arrived in Thailand to assist Mennonite Brethren missionaries in Chonburi province, had been flown to Phuket, courtesy of the Chonburi governor, to help with cleanup and relief. (See News.)

The fact is, while it’s easy enough to be mesmerized by horror, it’s difficult to care about people in the abstract. As Alex Beam wrote (Boston Globe, Jan. 4), “Compassion is like a radar signal that loses force the further it radiates from our hearts.”

That’s why it’s wonderful to belong to a community of faith larger than the local congregation. Our denomination, as well as our wider affiliations as a faith family, gives us links that extend us farther than we can go alone. We have context for our compassionate interest, trustworthy mission and relief agencies for our charitable dollars, and specific people for whom we can pray.

Being “ours” does not make these connections better than others on the disaster ground, but they take us there. And they will sustain our involvement as the media story fades, because they have our hearts and hands with them.