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2008-06-17 issue:

Global Church Congregations begins

Mennonite World Conference unveils congregational partnership program.

by Mennonite World Conference

Print Article

Mennonite World Conference is unveiling a new way for individual congregations of MWC member churches to participate in and be supportive of the global church and MWC. 
Called Global Church Congregations (GCC), this new initiative had its “trial run” at the 2006 General Council meetings in Pasadena, Calif.

For the Pasadena gathering, a dozen congregations—all of them from North America—made financial contributions to the MWC travel fund, sent participants to the General Council meetings and agreed to host delegates from churches in other countries after the Pasadena meetings.

GCC is again operating in connection with MWC’s Assembly 15 in Asunción, Paraguay. Instead of just for North American churches, the goal is for at least 30 congregations from throughout the world to participate. A key feature of the program will be the pairing of congregations from different parts of the world to work together to:

-establish a congregational communication and prayer link with each other and with MWC;
 send a delegate from each congregation to MWC gatherings as possible;

-study one “Anabaptist Shelf” book selection;

-agree upon and make an annual per member contribution to MWC according to MWC’s fair share formula.

A gathering of GCC representatives present at the Paraguay assembly is being planned by MWC. However, it is hoped that the program will be largely self-administered with congregational pairs making use of each other’s gifts to resolve problems and meet challenges, said Tim Lind, church-to-church relations coordinator.

 Administrative leadership for the GCC program will be provided by MWC staff from Democratic Republic of Congo.

GCC is seen as a natural continuation of MWC’s emphasis on global gift sharing.
While it is not intended to be primarily a “sister congregation” program, GCC will allow congregations from different cultures to discern together how they can both participate more fully in the work of the global community through the sharing of gifts.

Application forms are available here.—Mennonite World Conference

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