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2010-02-01 issue:

Mennonite army major a misnomer

Major Mark Nordstrom is a Missionary church member, not a pacifist

by Anna Groff

Print Article

Major Mark Nordstrom told a reporter that he shows love for his neighbor by putting himself in harm's way.

The reporter's news story carried the headline "Mennonite Chaplain Charts His Own Path." It is found on Military.com and was published in Stars and Stripes in 2007.

"I'm not a pacifist in the way most Mennonites are," Nordstrom was quoted. Nordstrom is a part of the Missionary Church.

The Stars and Stripes reporter also interviewed Michael Sharp, a counselor at Military Counseling Network in Germany at the time and now a student in Germany.

"Personally and from my experience, I'm surprised that someone would call [himself] a Mennonite if he is not pacifist because that's one of the main things Mennonites are known for," Sharp said in a phone interview with The Mennonite on Jan. 12. "Obviously some issues are much more important to us than others."

Former Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary president Nelson Kraybill also investigated this story. He contacted Tom Murphy, the Missionary Church leader quoted in the Stars and Stripes article.

"Murphy agreed that Chaplain Nordstrom is not a Mennonite and should not have been presented as such," wrote Kraybill on Jan. 12.

Sharp said he wants Mennonites to stand as witnesses. "I want people who hear about Mennonites automatically to know they do not go to war," he said.

However, Sharp said the article does not offend him or worry him. "The article is going out to the military community. It is a feel-good story where a chaplain gets to talk about how good Christians get to go to war."

In fact, Sharp said he worries about attitudes within Mennonite Church USA.

Sharp said he feels more concerned about Mennonites supporting war and the growing number of Mennonites who show openness to entering military service.

According to Conrad Kanagy's Church Member Profile, 21 percent of members would enter military service if faced with a draft, compared with 11 percent in 1972.

"I'm glad this [article on Nordstrom] is raising eyebrows in the United States," Sharp said.

Sharp said he would like to get together and talk with Nordstrom if the opportunity arises.

Reader Comments

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  • Posted by twocyldoc at Friday, February 05, 2010 at 07:14 PM

    I don't understand the uproar over Major Norstrom. I consider him a peace officer just as I consider our local police as peace officers. Do pacifists also object to them as they do peace officers in the military?

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