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2010-05-04 issue:

MCC leaders respond to MC USA's concerns

Leader names the challenge in creating boards large enough to represent all

by Everett J. Thomas

Print Article

The chairs of two Mennonite Central Committee boards responded to a news article published by The Mennonite in April ("MC USA Moderator Questions MCC"). MCC U.S. board chair Ann Graber Hershberger and MCC (binational) board chair Herman Bontrager released a statement on March 19 in response to the article, which first appeared in the March 15 TMail.

"As your readers try to understand the concerns raised by Mennonite Church USA Moderator Ed Diller,” they wrote, “perhaps a bit of background will be helpful. ... Mennonite Central Committee is working on revisioning and restructuring—the New Wine/New Wineskins process of the past 18 months. The process included more than 2,000 people from Canada, the United States and around the world. All 14 denominations that have representatives on the MCC Canada, MCC U.S. and MCC (binational) boards, plus the 12 MCC boards, are being asked to give multiple rounds of feedback and will approve the final proposals. Mennonite Church USA is fully engaged in this, and moderator Diller’s letter was part of the first round. Decisions on bylaw changes are part of the process and will be finalized no earlier than 2011."

The statement referred to a Dec. 28, 2009, letter sent by the Mennonite Church USA moderator. In the letter, moderator Ed Diller expressed his concern that MCC will become a nongovernment identity, as has happened to Heifer International, and insisted that it "remain close to the church and not go the way of other nonprofit organizations." As to its accountability to sponsoring denominations, Diller said, "Global Anabaptists should participate in a [new] governance board, but non-Anabaptists should not." 

MCC's leaders did not respond to the concern about the organization becoming an NGO (nongovernmental organization), but they did note the difficulty of including so many groups in the reorganizational process.

Bontrager and Hershberger said, "One challenge is to create board tables large enough to accommodate representatives of all the groups that need to be there: Canadian and U.S. Mennonite and Brethren in Christ churches, local MCC offices and Anabaptist partners around the world who work with MCC in relief, development and peacebuilding in the name of Christ, the mission entrusted to MCC by the churches."

Diller responded to the statement by email on March 23. “At this point the discussions with MCC are still focused on concepts,” Diller wrote. “While we believe that it is appropriate for us to express our strong desire for each of Mennonite Church USA and MCC to continue the close alignment with the other, it seems inappropriate for Mennonite Church USA to choose the time when MCC should release 'thought pieces' for broad public discussions of direction and detail. Mennonite Church USA and its members have been profoundly shaped and influenced by their connection and work with MCC in the past, and we look forward to a future where together Mennonite Church USA, MCC and other denominations and persons involved in the work and ministry of MCC will continue to bring God’s healing and hope to the world."

The boards of the 12 MCCs (provincial, regional, national and binational), which include representatives from 21 Brethren in Christ and Mennonite denominations, adopted this new identity statement in 2009: "Mennonite Central Committee is a worldwide ministry of Anabaptist churches."

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