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 1310 Taylor Ave. Winnipeg, Man.  R3M 3Z6 or send via e-mail. (Please ensure that your postal address is included in your e-mail correspondence.)

Reality check

Re “Pastoral burnout” and “Who’s choosing church ministry?” (Features, Nov. 24). I deeply appreciated Brian Wiebe’s inside look at pastoral burnout and Laura Kalmar’s insightful overview of the pastoral trends survey. As someone who has a responsibility to help prepare men and women for ministry, this kind of reality check is invaluable, both in terms of calibrating the training we offer seminarians and the type of resourcing we offer churches and pastoral staff.

Pierre Gilbert,
Winnipeg Centre for Ministry Studies
CMU/MBBS

Truly thankful

On behalf of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, please accept our thanks to the thousands of men and women who prayed and served at the October Franklin Graham Festival in Winnipeg. It was very encouraging to see that our Mennonite Brethren made up a good number of these volunteers. We are truly thankful that God touched the hearts of thousands of Manitobans as they made decisions for the Lord.

Also, on behalf of Samaritan’s Purse, please accept our thanks to each of our Canadian Mennonite Brethren congregations for their ongoing and tireless support of Operation Christmas Child. This “shoebox” ministry continues to bring joy to millions of children, suffering in wartorn and impoverished countries.

Don Neufeld,
Corman Park, Sask.
Director, Billy Graham Evangelistic Association
Samaritan’s Purse

Perplexing articles

Re “People of ‘the Logic’ ” (Intersection, Oct. 13), “On the other hand . . .” (Intersection, Nov. 3). I was intrigued and bewildered by James Toews’ two related articles. He concludes that the “In the beginning was the Word” in John 1:1 translates as “In the beginning was logic and reason.” Toews infers that this is cerebral logic and reason, rather than logic and reason superimposed by the gift of faith – to know God beyond the capacity to understand him. He concludes his first article by suggesting that reason is indispensable to faith. This feels like an attempt to own God through understanding.

In the second article, Toews refers to the issue of little children and the gospel message. He doesn’t say that perhaps children can assimilate the gospel because logic and reason don’t yet get in the way of their faith. Toews observes that God’s logic goes far beyond human logic. However, he ends by saying that everyone can receive this logic by obeying the biblical exhortation, “ Whoever has ears, let them hear.” This is perplexing.

Perhaps more clarification is necessary. And perhaps Toews could include biblical examples where reasoning seems to be an obstacle to knowing God, even as far back as the Garden of Eden.

Jake Janzen,
Abbotsford, B.C.

Hiding our dysfunction

Re “Surviving pastoral burnout” (Features, Nov. 24). Brian Wiebe speaks candidly about his experience of stepping down from pastoral ministry. Here’s my take on why such things happen: Mennonite Brethren talk with pride about peace and reconciliation. Yet, it’s often little more than window dressing, hiding a dysfunctional church culture. Innuendo, backstabbing, and slander become the weapons of choice when we disagree with someone, instead of obeying Jesus’ commands.

It’s sad when Christians bang the drum of peace, but lack the courage to deal with things, face their fears, and speak with people with whom they are at odds, in order to enjoy real relational harmony. And so, the people who say they’re committed to peace resort to waging a clandestine war, which is the logical outcome for a church culture that only allows for happy faces. Such pent up frustration will, in the end, come out sideways and destroy life.

Nils Langhjelm,
Greendale, B.C.