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2009-11-03 issue:

Work instead of worship on Sundays

Faith Mennonite and Philippi Mennonite serve in place of worship annually.

by Anna Groff

Print Article

Members of Faith Mennonite Church, Newton, Kan., wanted to do something special to celebrate its 50-year anniversary last year.

Around that time, an article appeared in the Wichita Eagle about a Presbyterian church that held a service day in honor of its anniversary. Also, Pastor Gordon Smith had been contemplating ideas from Faith in Action, a program that encourages Christians to "be the church," not just go to church.

Photo: Lester and Mary Beth Lind lay block during Philippi Mennonite service project. Photo by Mike Miller.

So Faith Mennonite Church decided to serve on Sunday.

They put together a task force that planned a time of service in place of morning worship. That day went so well, Faith Mennonite decided to do it all over again this year.

On Sept. 30, 138 people from Faith Mennonite went to 11 different job sites, says Harold Wiebe from the task force. After working eight hours, they returned to the church for a celebration service, which included photos from projects. The task force also provided ongoing service projects for members to sign up for to keep the momentum going, says Wiebe.

"People have been surprised that a congregation would come together in this way to serve the community,' says Smith. "It's been a powerful witness for people."

"We noticed how this also transforms us," he says. "Showing God's love in a concrete way in our community translates into experiencing God's love ourselves."

Some members went to the Laundromat, where they paid for people's laundry and volunteered to play with their children. Another group stayed back at the church and worked on classroom projects for teachers in the area. Other teams worked on repair projects at homes in the community, at the Harvey Country homeless shelter and at a home for children, as well as at the local Mennonite Central Committee center and Kidron-Bethel Village, a retirement community.

Prior to the day, members studied the book of Luke in Sunday school and other groups. The task force also offered devotional sheets for three weeks before the day.

"We tried to help people prepare their hearts and minds," says Wiebe, leader in the task force, and Smith describes the day as "bathed in prayer."

Many members serve at Habitat for Humanity or the Etcetera Shop individually, but serving collectively makes more of an impact, he says. Smith says he affirmed the individual service members already commit to but also encouraged members to work together.

For some members, this day proved a stretch. "We're used to coming to church on Sunday," Smith says. Some members even wondered if it's OK to work on the Sabbath. To respond, the task force described the day as service, not work.

Smith also believes they received a better turnout on the Sunday than they would have on a Saturday. Next year, Faith Mennonite will explore inviting other churches in the community to join.

Philippi Mennonite Church
For the past decade, Philippi (W.Va.) Mennonite Church members have worked on a foundation in preparation for a new house to be built each summer through a local service agency with volunteer labor and donated material. About five years ago, they started combining a work day and church service on a Sunday each year.

Mike Miller, a member of Philippi, also works for Heart and Hand—the service agency that coordinates the projects.

"Mixing hard work with prayer, singing and fellowship help remind us of why we do service work in the first place," says Miller.

Conversations emerge during the project that might not have otherwise happened.

"As we were working … one member of the congregation challenged us to share verses from the Bible we had memorized," says Anni Corley, a member of Philippi.

"A church working on Sunday must be a curious spectacle, but Jesus freaked out the religious community with his interpretation of how to live life, including what is acceptable on the Sabbath," Miller says. "The day feels holy to me."

Reader Comments

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  • Posted by Brian Paff at Monday, March 08, 2010 at 09:07 AM

    How refreshing. Is this too emergent for the broader Mennonite Church to adopt? Can we resolve to look for ways to be missional as opposed to only meditating on and preaching about it? Thank you, Philippi and Faith, for showing us a third way.