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2007-02-06 issue:

The middle church

Editorial

by Everett J. Thomas

Print Article

Members of Mennonite Church USA connect with our denomination first through congregations and then through the area conferences of which their congregations are a part.

But apparently we are not highly committed to area conferences. That is a major problem.

Without strong links between congregations and denomination, Mennonite Church USA will have trouble functioning as well as it could. There will be even fewer bonds between congregations and, ultimately, between members across the church.

This problem is revealed in a new profile of Mennonite Church USA members (see page 8). The survey included questions about four elements of the church: congregation, area conference, denomination and the broader Christian church. When asked to which part of the church they were the most highly committed, respondents ranked area conferences last.

Mennonite Church USA leaders have been focused on the plight of area conferences for at least two years. Constituency Leaders Council created a task force last year to look at the role of area conferences in our new denomination. CLC and Executive Board will meet together in March to review the findings and recommendations from the task force (see page 20).

When congregational members think about an area conference—if they consider it at all—they probably know of at least one function vested there: the pastor-placement system. This is a critical task because the choice of ministers usually determines how Anabaptist a congregation will be.

Another function vested in area conferences is the power to establish membership guidelines for congregations wanting to be a part of the denomination. This is also a critical task, especially for those areas of the church that want doctrinal  or teaching positions to be consistent among the congregations in their conferences.

Beyond these two powers, conference activity is not uniform. We have 21 area conferences, and no two are alike. Each has its own culture and structure. But it is through these differences that much of our diversity is managed.

To look at it from another side: One of the ways we manage diversity in Mennonite Church USA is through the area conference structure. This happens in several ways.

First, within the area conference, any differences from congregation to congregation are worked out in ways that may be unique to that part of the church. For example, how Western District Conference works out the diversity among its member congregations may be different from how Virginia Mennonite Conference works out its differences.

Second, there is diversity from one conference to another within Mennonite Church USA. In some parts of the church, congregations are located in the same county or city but belong to different conferences. This is not the situation for all congregations, but in many major Mennonite population centers it is a way that diversity from congregation to congregation can be accommodated.

If area conferences—what might be called “the middle church”—carry such critical roles for denominational strength, why is our commitment to them so low?

Mennonite Church USA leaders are moving into what they call a “Six-Year Review” (a process mandated by the Transformation Team and membership guidelines of 2001). This review of our ecclesial structures may provide an opportunity to change some things to help area conferences. What those things are has not been determined, but the review may answer the question.

In the meantime, have a conversation with other members in your congregation and learn whether the findings also represent your congregation’s commitment to your area conference. If so, also consider what this low commitment to the middle part of our church will mean long-term for our unity and strength as a young denomination in this country.

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