E ARE A privileged people in many ways, but here's one more. Think for a moment how few people in human history can say they were around to welcome in a new millennium--not just a new century, mind you, but a thousand-year milestone. Because the modem calendar was established after the birth of Christ, only the folks living in 999 A.D. have knowingly experienced such a transition.
That observation isn't nearly as important as the promise of Christ's return, but Richard Kyle informs us in our lead article (page 4) that these two events have often been connected in the minds of people. So, can we expect increasing end-of-the-world fervor as 2000 approaches? Probably, but Kyle adds some necessary words of caution as we consider the historical and biblical record.
Storytelling is a declining art in many respects, but a good story can communicate truth powerfully even as it entertains. Dan Unrau, besides being a pastor, is a gifted storyteller from British Columbia. He shared the story of "Tante Nuht" at the General Conference convention in July. We enjoyed it so much, we thought we'd share it here, too (page 8). Enjoy his gift of holy imagination. It takes creative imagination to communicate effectively with high school youth about consistent Christian discipleship. From his experience as a nationally known youth specialist, Duffy Robbins offers some suggestions that can help us support our youth as they try to combine their faith with their everyday living (page 11).
We've combined Robbins's article with a piece by Gary Newton, a Mennonite Brethren pastor and seminary prof from Colorado. Newton outlines a strategy for effectively communicating biblical truths so our youth can begin to think Critically about their faith and apply it to the world in which we live (page 12).
In our Bodylife section, assistant editor Connie Faber surveyed Mennonite Brethren congregations using the popular Awana club program for kids (page 20). The results indicate a mix of satisfaction and concern. Our intent is to identify both elements.
Read with purpose, folks. Remember, with every passing day the end of the world draws closer.-DR
• NOVEMBER 7-9-Southern District Conference convention, Ramada Plaza Hotel, Edmond, Okla.
• NOVEMBER 7-8-Pacific District Conference convention, hosted by Bethany Church, Fresno, Calif.
• NOVEMBER 14-16-Central District Conference convention, Minneapolis, Minn.
Doomsayers have included such diverse groups as Christians, scientists and more than a few wackos. How worked up should we get about the end of the world? BY RICHARD KYLE 8 Within the reach of Tante Nuht
She was unpredictable and outrageous. How could a boy not be scared of her-but also captivated, too? BY DANNY
UNRAU
11 Young walkers
Today's Christian youth have a hard time matching their walk with their talk. Here's why. BY DUFFY ROBBINS
Here's a Bible-study strategy that encourages youth to think biblically as well as morally. BY GARY C. NEWTON
by Neil Uhl14 • Politics and faith : an uneasy Coalition
• Just pray
•
•
•
• SPOTLIGHT : In step with Awana? 20
• The Carden contribution 24
• Recycling makes sense-and cents-at FPU 26
• New TREK program focuses on young adults 27
• Church notes 27
• Deaths
ART CREDITS: Cover and page 4, "The Four Riders of the Apocalypse" woodcut by Albrecht Dure r; page 8, Ed Wallowitch ; pages 11 and 13, CLEO Photography; pages 24 and 26, Fre sno Pacific University; page 2 8, Maurine Regehr
VOLUME 60, NUMBER 9 EDITOR
BOARD OF COMMUNICATIONS : Noelle Dickinson, chair ; Phil Neufeld, Dalton Reimer, Herb Schroeder, Kathy Heinri chs Wiest
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Ratzlaff
Connie Faber
As this millennium draws to a close, many Christians, occultists and even scientists warn of great calamities. Should we prepare for the apocalyse?
THE END IS COMING.
HE YEAR 2000 IS UPON US. IS THE END NEAR? YES, SAY dissimilar categories of people-dispensational fundamentalists, Our Lady of Fatima, some environmentalists, UFO people and the interpreters of Nostradamus and the Mayan Calendar Stone. Will 2000 unleash a flood of doomsday prophecies? Probably. But not with certainty. In 1000 A.D., an apocalyptic mood existedbut not to the extent once believed. It was not wide· spread . In 1999, the apocalyptic activities 'could be fewer than anticipated.
But if the last 30 years of the 20th century are any indication, we will encounter intense apocalyptic expectations. These years have witnessed a surge of predictions from several quarters. In fact, prophecy books-whether Christian, occultic or secular-have been a growth industry. They have become big sellers.
Christian fundamentalists insist that the second cOming of Christ is imminent. They claim to hear better than ever "the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse-War, Plague, Famine, and Deathgalloping toward Armageddon," says Hillel Schwartz.
Occultists tell of great calamities to come at the end of this millennium "New Age astrologers foresee psychic anguish, earthquakes and economic collapse" before the dawn of the Age of Aquarius . More down-to-earth scientists have even jumped on the bandwagon, warning us of impending human-made disasters.
Of all the groups that have been infected by this apocalyptic mood, the Christian dispensational premillennialists have operated at a fever pitch. Dispensationalism divides biblical history into periods, called dispensations In each of
these dispensations, God tests humankind in a different way.
In respect to eschatology, dispensationalism is premillennial and pretribulational. In other words, Christ will partially return at the start of the tribulation, secretly rapturing the church into the air. The rest of the world must suffer through a terrible tribulation. During the tribulation, the antichrist reveals himself and wreaks evil deeds upon humanity. God also pours out punishment on the evil world. At the end of these seven years, Christ returns to set up his earthly rule. The hallmark of dispensational eschatology is the rapture of the church at any moment
Dispensationalism has differences within its ranks, including scholarly and popular elements Yet, it has been the popularizers who have
EVENTUALLY
reached the average person and have aroused conSiderable apocalyptic excitement.
Spurred on by Hal Undsey s best-selling The Late Great Planet Earth, a host of fundamentaliSt preachers, authors and TV personalities brought an apocalyptic message to millions of Americans. Jack Van Impe, Salem Kirban, Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, John Hagee, to name only a few, warn us that floods, fan'lines, earthquakes , diseases and wars will precede the second coming of Christ.
Dispensational premillennialism has driven the late 20thcentury doom boom for several reasons . First, dispensationalism maintains an intense expectancy for Christ's return without locking itself into setting dates. To be sure, some dispensationalists fall into the datesetting trap. But dispensational theology does not require this.
Second, the events of the 20th century seemed to fulfill the projections of dispensational theology. World War 1, the return of the Jews to Palestine, the emergence of communism, the rise of totalitarianism, the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, the rise of Soviet power, the development of the atomic bomb, the emergence of the Common Market, and the 1967 Mideast War are but some examples. In the eyes of many people, such events validate dispensational eschatology.
Third, the books of Daniel and Revelation contain much symbolism. This symbolism gives
by RICHARD KYLE
tremendous flexibility to the interpreters , allowing them to read current events into the prophe tic books .
Fourth, Protestant evangelicalism and fundamentalism have been very successful in the late 20th century. They have grown in numbers and have acquired much power and wealth. Dispensational premillennialism is a sizable component of this subculture and has shared in its success
Finally, the proponents of dispensational premillenrualism have skillfully used the apparatus of modem communication to promote their ideas . Cable television , video recording , and mass-market paperbacks have brought apocalyptic themes from the margins of society into the mainstream of American culture
But the Christian fundamentalists are not the only ones caught up with this end-time madness . The same impulse has driven a number of individuals and groups on the fringes of American religion. For example, in recent years apocalyptic pronouncements have been made by the following groups and individuals: Herbert Armstrong of the Worldwide Church of God; the Jehovah's Witnesses; Elizabeth Clare Prophet of the Church Universal Triumphant; the Children of God; and the Branch Davidians.
Several famous prophets have had bad vibrations regarding the end of this millennium. A short list would include Nostradamus, Edgar Cayce, Jeane Dixon and Ruth Montgomery.
Through history, most end-time scenarios have had a religious base The end of the world could come only at the hands of God or a natural calamity. But now humankind can do it without God's help. We have developed the means to destroy ourselves. The ultimate weapon, of course, is nuclear annihilation.
But the Cold War has ended and in 1991 the Soviet Union unraveled. Thus, nuclear apocalypticism has gone out of style. This vacuum, however, is sufficiently fLlled by the "esocatas-
Cable television, video recording, and massmarket paperbacks have brought apocalyptic themes from the margins of society into the mainstream of American culture.
The order of events concerning Christ's return is not the most important dimension in the Christian teaching regarding the end of the world. Yet, it has taken center stage.
trophists." They tell of disasters brought on by overpopulation, global warming, ozone depletion, chemical weapons, world hunger, AIDS and other diseases.
As one can see, people are confronted with at least three apocalyptic traditions-the Christian, occult and scientific. Christians will want to distance themselves from occult apocalypticism. But, hopefully, no one will readily dismiss the dire predictions of many scientists Some doomsday scientists may have jumped the gun. Yet, even the more conservative scientists are sending out warnings-something must be done about our exploding population, environmental problems and the spread of nuclear weapons. And hopefully, one's eschatological position will not sedate them to such problems. The hope of Christ's imminent return should not deter Christians from working to alleviate an environmental or nuclear apocalypse.
Still, Mennonite Brethren primarily encounter a diversity of Christian end-time ideas. To be sure, the personal and visible return of Jesus Christ is an inescapable biblical truth. Most Christians also agree on the major issues of judgment, heaven and hell. But the Christian community has no consensus regarding the chronology of most end-time events-the Second Advent, the tribulation and the millennium. In fact, some Christians reject the concept of a literal future
golden age on earth.
Legitimate differences exist regarding the interpretation of the prophetic passages of Scripture. So Christians need to hang loose in respect to aspects of the Second Advent The timing and chronology of Christ's return should not be an issue among Christians.
Aithe 20th century winds down, Mennonite Brethren should avoid two common misakes related to end-time thinking. On one hand, some Christians have become obsessed with it-especially the chronology of Christ's return. They see nearly every twist and tum of current events as the fulfIllment of prophecy. Prophecy books sell like hotcakes and prophecy sermons pack out the sanctuary.
On the other hand, some Christians ignore Bible prophecy. And in doing so, they pay scant attention to an important part of God's Word. They have seen the excesses of apocalyptic thinking and want no part of it. We cannot know when Christ will return, they correctly reason. But then they completely ignore the subject of prophecy.
Eschatology is a broad subject. Unfortunately, end-time thinkers focus on primarily one aspect of it-the chronology of when the end will come. The order of events concerning Christ's return is not the most important dimension in
Be prepared for the certainty of the unknown
What do Mennonite Brethren believe about the end of the age? The following statement, titled "Christ's Final Triumph , n stands as Article 18 of the proposed Mennonite Brethren Confession of Faith as revised by the General Conference Board of Faith and Life BFL invites written responses to this and all articles of the proposed Confession of Faith, which has been distributed to Mennonite Brethren congregations in the United States and Canada Responses can be directed to : General Conference Board of Faith and Life, 315 S. Lincoln, Hillsboro, KS 67063 .-eds.
E BELIEVE that our lord Jesus Christ will return triumphantly at the end of this present age The church must always be prepared to meet the lord because the time of Chri st' s coming is not known
• The last days. In these last days , the interim between the first and the second coming of Christ , the church carries out its mission in the world Believers often endure tribulation because of their witne ss to Christ. In spite of opposition by evil powers, the church lives with the assurance that Christ's kingdom will be victorious in the end
The last days come to an end with Christ's return The New Testament variously describes this glorious event as the ble ssed hope, the day of Jesu s Christ , the lord's day, the la st day, the great day, the end
• Death. Sin ce Chri st broke the power of death by his resurrection , believer s are not in bondage to the fear of death In contra st to unbelievers, Christ's followers go to be with the lord when they die, awaiting the re surrection of the body Believers who are alive at Chri st 's coming will be transformed and ,
the Christian teaching regarding the end of the world. Yet, it has taken center stage Why? Humans crave to know the future-including when it will end.
This intense appetite to know when the end will come has led to the worst problem of alldate setting . Oh, many end-time prophets will not admit to date-setting They may call their predictions "suggestions." Or, perhaps they condition their prognostications with the words if, ought, and should. Those who only "suggest" a time for the end have been called implicit datesetters .
Such date-setting (or suggestions if you please) grows out of several trends-above all, misreading the signs of the times and imposing current events on Scripture. In Matthew 24, Jesus's disciples pose the question that has been asked for centuries : "What shall be the sign of the coming and the end of the world?" They impatiently wanted a sign So do we.
And Jesus proceeded to give them a signtwo chapters of signs. He described all kinds of dire scenarios-famines, earthquakes, wars and pestilences But in Jesus's day, people misread the signs. People today make the same mistake
Jesus gave his disciples clues, hints as to when the end would come. He did not give them an exact blueprint or a timetable for the end of the world . But like people of old, Christians
like th ose rais ed from the dead, will receive new and gloriou s bo d ies, fit for their heavenly existen ce.
• Judgment . When Christ returns , he will destroy all ev il powers, in d ud i ng the antichri st , who appears at the end of history Satan and all those who have reject ed Christ will be co nd emned to eternal pun ishment away from the pr esenc e of God Believe rs, too , must appear before th e judgment seat of Christ to have their live s ev al uated, but they w ill enter the eternal re ign of God
• The eternal reign of God All Go d 's childr en will b e united with Christ when he appe ars and will reign with him in glory, justi ce, and peace Heaven is de sc ribed as the Father's house with many room s, the eternal tents, paradise, the new Jerusalem , th e ci ty of God When we enter our eternal home , th ere will be no more pa in, no more sorrow , and no mor e death God will make all things new, and God will be all in all. "Maranatha! Amen Co me, lord Jesus!"
today are not satisfied with clues-they want a precise road map.
A second source of the end-time hysteria resides in a faulty method of biblical interpretation-the pesher hermeneutic. The pesher method contends that biblical prophecy is being fulfilled in one's very day . For example, modem doomsday prophets read current events back into Ezekiel, Daniel and Revelation. Do the biblical prophets really speak of Cobra helicopters, AIDS, tanks, nuclear weapons, African killer bees, computers, oil and a unified Europe?
Al of these problems are compounded by two trends within American evangelical·sm-a strident populism and anti-intellectualism . Few of the prophecy popularizers have any serious theological training. But who cares! Anyone can interpret the Bible, even the difficult prophetic passages. God has given them a special insight into Scripture Unfortunately, these popularizers usually manhandle the Bible and twist biblical passages out of their context.
Their populism is compounded by anti-intellectualism. Evangelicals seldom engage in substantial biblical or theological studies What they want out of church is to feel good. Books that sell well focus on sensational or subjective subjects-Satan, demons, prophecy, conspiracies or personal growth . In such a climate, apocalyptic speculations and eschatological titillations will continue to thrive . Indeed, there is a ready-made audience for apocalyptic sensationalism.
But I do not want to end this on a sour note Eschatology as a broad concept includes some glorious subjects-among them, Christ's return, the millennium and heaven
Eschatology provides a window to both the present and the future The last days began in the first century A.D. Christians were called then and now to focus on Christ, not the signs of the times. Still, they must be prepared for Christ's second coming. And this preparation includes the call to holiness, right living, justice and evangelism
Christians know what the future holds-the triumphant return of Christ and the universal rule of God-and they are to live in the present with that in mind •
Richard Kyle is professor of history and religion at Tabor College in Hillsboro, Kan. His article has been excerpted from a forthcoming book, The Last Days Are Here Again: A History of the End Times (Baker Books).
The last days began in the first century A.D. Christians were called then and now to focus on Christ, not the signs of the times.
Withi,
F IT CAN ACCURATELY be said that the colonial British "kept a stiff upper lip!" then it can just as accurately be said that my Germanic forebears "kept both lips stiff." Except for Tante Nuht. Somehow this woman had decided to live her life at breakneck speed, screaming and laughing. She seemed to not even notice that the family tended to the somber. Even the fact that her husband, John, earned his living as coffin maker-and he even had the planning and the foresight to build their own personal caskets
he reach of Tante Nuht
by DA NN Y UNRA
that sat out in the shed quietly waiting for 20 years, silently calling--never dampened her zest for life.
Tante Nuht and Uncle John came out to visit us on the fann one summer. It was only a few minutes after their arrival in our home before we children knew that we were in for an adventure, an unforgettable relationship with this wild woman in a longish black dress, kerchief, brown stockings rolled to a neat ring just below her knees, and clunky black shoes. Tante Nuht was mousy-looking, with little round granny glasses out in front of squinty eyes that were as unreadable as a poker player's, an"d white hair pulled tightly back into a severe bun, but there was nothing mousy nor meek about this woman.
On the rust day of Tante Nuht's visit she announced her intention to butcher a few chickens from our flock, "For chicken soup as it should be made!" She found a cleaver in the kitchen drawer and herded us kids ahead of her out of the house and toward the bam, looking for her free-ranging barnyard victims. She didn't have to enlist our help to join her, we had already surmised that this woman was a walking, talking adventure, a pre-Disneyland amusement experience on two legs.
Tante Nuht shrieked at the older kids to catch the visually selected but unwary chickens scratching in the weeds or fluffing around in the little dust pools they create for their own purification, fun and relaxation. We younger children waited with Tante Nuht by the chopping block, a stump permanently stained dark and red with dried blood across the top and running down the sides. The block was flagged with vestiges of
guillotined feathers in and around the slashes and welts of axes that had done their work on hundreds of hens over the past number of years of noodly-good eating at our house.
The chickens scattered out of their routines, flying madly in all directions as the big kids picked on the selected victims and the dog joined in the excitement of the hunt. A plump brown hen, perfect for soup stock, was handed to Tante Nuht. She pulled back its wings around its legs, grasping the feet and the long end wing feathers in one hand, and turned the bird around to examine all its sides. Then pulling the chicken across the top of the block so that its head would be extended out behind its full body, Tante Nuht exposed its neck to the cleaver that she had been sharpening with a stone all the while the chickens had been scouted and caught. With the sudden and piercing scream of a black-belt breaking a board, Tante Nuht raised her killing tool in a high arc over her head and brought the cleaver down and through the neck of the chicken in a clean and vicious swipe. The head shot off the edge of the block as the decapitated body of the chicken convulsed and blood spurted out the pulsating red end where the chicken's head used to be.
Tante Nuht's head came up from the bloody intensity on the block with a delicious grin on her face, and brandishing the bleeding hen in one hand before her, and the upraised bloody cleaver in her other, she chased us screaming from the butcher block and out into the wide barnyard. And we ran. We ran like we had never run before . After all, we had never been chased
Her feistiness, love of life, and attractiveness must have rubbed off of God somehow.
by a bleeding headless chicken before, nor a woman anything like this. While we suspected that this sparkly-eyed woman felt great affection for us, the grizzly sight and smell of fresh blood and her shouting, threatening wildness sent us scattering in panic.
Later that same evening we were hardly surprised when Tante Nuht chased us around the yard on my brother's bike, swinging a baseball bat over her head, her dress pulled up high enough to not interfere with her peddling.
A few days into Tante Nuht's visit, she and her husband and Mom and Dad stopped their work and got ready to go out Putting on their "church clothes," neither mother nor father made any fuss about me getting my ears cleaned or my nice clothes on, so I soon realized that I was being left at home with the big kids. I didn't like being left behind so I slammed out through the screen door and locked myself in Dad's green '52 Ford, making sure the keys were in the car with me. I pouted down behind the steering wheel and waited.
It wasn't long before Mom and Dad and Uncle John and Tante Nuht came out of the house I watched Dad's face as he pulled on the door handle of the car door and I watched his eyes as he realized that the door was locked. About the same time he saw my little face looking up at him through the window glass.
"Open the door, Danny!" he said, not really suspecting my criminal intentions.
I shook my head, "No!"
Puzzled, he ordered again
"No!" I said, out loud this time, suddenly knowing my mother wouldn't be terribly reasonable about all this, and then horror of horrors, realizing too that I might be invoking the wrath of that crazy woman, Tante Nuht. In my rising fear all I could see was a bloody cleaver and a swinging baseball bat. I had made a mistake. A big mistake. I knew as a kid knows something for sure that if Tante Nuht ever got a hold of me, I would never survive. I knew then that I would never unlock the door.
My dad, as always, tried reasoning with me
to raise the lock knob. I just watched as Tante Nuht walked round and round the car, muttering and threatening.
I can't remember how they fmally got in I think Dad wedged his hand in through the little triangular vent window at the front of the door, but it's all a little fuzzy now. It must be that the terror I went through realizing I had made myself an enemy of Tante Nuht has hidden itself deep in my suppressed memory.
Tante Nuht stands in my family's memory as a terrible but wonderful person. While we always knew to stay just out of range of whatever her weapon of the day was, we loved this woman. We were awed by her; we were amazed by her; we were captivated by her zestiness, her enthusiasm, her creativity.
I don't know where the tradition that God is a slow-moving serious old man comes from. I think there's good evidence in Scripture and in observing creation that the feistiness, the love of life, the attractiveness that we saw in Tante Nuht rubbed off of God somehow. While we do tend to keep our distance from God-to get too close would mean we might get awed to death-there is so much about God that makes us gravitate toward him, wanting to just be close and in the vicinity all the time.
Tante Nuht had an infectious spirit; God is the infectious Spirit Tante Nuht was outrageous in her behavior; God is outrageous in how he loves us, sent his Son to save us, sends his Spirit to help us.
When I see the God who made Tante Nuht, I want to travel with him, anywhere, anytime, and love him, all the while being just a little bit afraid. I am not wise enough to know what his next move may be, but I do hope to see him make it. •
Danny Unrau is pastor of the Fraserview MB Church in Richmond, B. C This story is excerpted with permission from his new book, Saints, Sinners & Angels, a collection of anecdotes and stories published by Kindred Productions.
It must be that the terror I went through realizing I had made myself an enemy of Tante Nuht has hidden itself deep in my suppressed memory.
OUNG WALKER
We can help our young people live out on Monday the faith they profess on Sunday
BY DUFFY ROBBINS
AVE YOU EVER HAD THAT SINKING
feeling that one of the toughest parts of Christian nurture is not getting kids to become Christians, but getting them to be the Christians they've become? A major facet of nurturing teenage discipleship is helping our students to "walk their talk."
Our youth are often good "talkers" but bad "walkers " for a number of reasons. Of course , sin has a little to do with it After all, flimsy obedience and cheap faith was not invented by the current generation of teenagers .
On the other hand, we need to be aware of some factors that make the issue even more cloudy for today's youth.
• Biblical illiteracy. A few years ago, E. D. Hirsch's book, Cultural Literacy (Houghton Mifflin), made waves by arguing that the vast majority of today's high school graduates are virtually illiterate. Hirsch cited an ignorance about the great classics of literature, a limited knowledge of history and almost no knowledge of world geography (One study showed that more than 50 percent of American high school students thought Columbus discovered America sometime during the 1700s )
But , if that scares you, consider for a moment that we now have a growing number of teenagers who can't even cite all 10 of the Ten Commandments. When our youth lack any sense of biblical landscape, it's no wonder they often confuse a mountain of biblical teaching for a molehill of personal taste. Both inside and outside the
church, we have a generation of youth who have virtually no notion of how the Bible guides us in daily moral choices.
• Superficiality. I can recall the feeling of awe that I felt on my wedding day when I began to realize the depth of the commitment I was preparing to make. I had seen this marriage commitment up close in the lives of my own parents. I knew what it meant. You might say I was "marriage literate "
I knew that within minutes, I was going to solemnly proclaim my "yes" to one particular woman, and that if I really meant "yes" to this woman, it was going to mean saying "no" to every other woman on the planet except for this woman That 's serious commitment!
Because our youth have grown up in a culture that thinks of commitment as any decision lasting beyond sundown , our teens are making superficial commitments to Jesus Christ . They
More often than not, our youth witness a church that is confused about righteousness and timid about sin.
are quite willing to say "yes" to Jesus, but they do not understand that a "yes" to Jesus means saying "no" to anything in our lives that is "not Jesus. "
• Lack of authentic models. With the growing amount of publicity given to the moral failures of various well-known Christians, it is increasingly difficult for teenagers to take seriously the gospel's call for righteous living. There is a growing sense of cynicism that everybody preaches that kind of commitment, but nobody lives it out.
Within my own denomination, there are ample stories of youth pastors and senior ministers who will betray their commitment and their calling by some public act of sin. In the unlikely event that the conference or church leadership actually agrees that sinful behavior is actually sinful, then there may be some mild request for confession or forgiveness.
More often than not, our youth witness a
elping youth connect with the Bible
A creative teaching strategy can help youth to think through moral and ethical issues based on biblical principles
by GARY C. NEWTON
Why do teens do what they do?
I don ' t know Everyone else is going What else is there to do It can't hurt me that much Who cares.... It feels OK to me.... It will be a blast... Unfortunately, teens are probably not much different than their parents who were teens in the 60s and 70s During those turbulent years , they too probably didn ' t think much about why they did what they did, even if they were Christians
Did the baby boomers in their youth ever wrestle with the lyrics of songs from the Beatles or the Stones? Did they ever discuss the philosophy behind the movi e " The Graduate" or the TV show "Satur-
church that is confused about righteousness and timid about sin. We all know that actions speak louder than words. Obviously, our discipline must always be exercised in the arena of grace and forgiveness. But when will our youth get to see a church that exhibits philadelphia (brotherly love) and "hamartophobia" (fear of disobedience to God)?
• Wrong views of God. A study of Luke 19: 11-27 will show that the unfaithful servant acted as he did because he had a wrong concept of God. "I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man " (v. 21).
In youth ministry today we are working with teenagers who often labor under one of two false assumptions. One is that God is "a hard man" (Lk. 19:21), a God whom we fear and from whom we hide.This is the "Santa Claus" god who's "making the list and checking it twice" because "he's gonoa find out who's naughty or nice ."
sages of the Beatles with contemporary counterparts like Marilyn Manson, or TV's oldie " Bewitched " with today's " Beavis & Butthead " Technological advances in the media, such as the Internet , VCRs , cable TV, virtual reality and satellite TV, while they may provide opportunities for the advancement of the kingdom , will al so mushroom the potential for evil. Our teens will need to be much better prepared to make tough, biblically ba sed decisions in thi s increasingly seductive world
day Night Live" ? Did the boomers ' youth leaders ever get their students to think through the i r moral d ilemmas in the light of Scripture? Or were students just expected to do the right things , fortified with a few narrowly se lected verses? Was youth group a place where teens dug into the Bible to find principle s to deal with questions about life? Or was it merely a place to hang out and meet friends?
While today' s parents may have made it through the "feel good " decade of the 60s , the " me-centered " culture of the 70s, the " go for it" ideology of the 80s and the "be true to yourself" philosophy of the 90s , their teens have mu ch more to risk Compare the mu sical me s-
The following teach i ng strategy, based on Nicholas Wolterstorffs Education for Responsible Action , will help teens to think through moral and ethi cal issues in their lives based upon principle s in God ' s Word . It combines a sen sitive, student-c entered discovery approach with the firm belief that God's Word contains every principle needed to live godly lives in a pagan world
Thi s approach could be adapted for various uses in a Bible study , Sunday school class, youth group or family situation
1. Stimulate thinking, don't preach . When teens ask question s about issue s in their lives and culture , don ' t always tell them your opinion Help them
The second false view of God that pervades the teenage culture is the "George Bums" view of God-sort of a cigar-smoking old geezer who knows that "every now and then, we all want to have a good time, so let's not be so puritanical "
Unfortunately, as we all know, Santa Claus doesn't inspire much genuine year-round obedience. And, as C.S. Lewis reminds us, the latter view gives us not so much a Father in heaven, as a Grandfather in heaven, a senile old gentleman whose major goal at the end of the day is that everyone had a good time.
• Lack of practical teaching. Our kids hear us teaching in vague terms about "loving our neighbor, " but they aren't really sure what that means in practical terms. How do I "love my neighbor" when my neighbor asks for my answers on the English exam?
One of the reasons our youth do not live out their faith on a consistent basis is that they lack
practical teaching about how to do that. What they need from us is just some practical helpnot nagging-just practical training in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16,17).
Art thou willing to be a jumper cable?
A faith that is all talk and no action is, according to James, a faith that is "dead." But God is a God of resurrections He can use committed youth workers who are willing to be authentic models, practical teachers and patient mentors to jump start the hearts of teenage Christians so they can get back on the road to "being" the Christian they "became." •
Duffy Robbins, a well-known youth speaker, teaches at Eastern College in St. Davids, Pa. He will be the featured speaker at this fall 's Southern District Conference adult convention to be held in November in Edmond, Okla.
One of the reasons our youth do not live out their faith on a consistent basis is that they lack practical teaching about how to do that.
clarify important is sue s and explore answers for themselves. Give them the as surance that through careful research , Scripture doe s pro vide us with principles for living
2. Encourage the open sharing of feelings related to the issue at hand. Get them to talk about the dilemmas openly. Don't judge them, their words or their feelings Listen Ask sensitive que stions to help them clarify and define the various aspects of the problem. Try to get them to look at the dilemma from various perspectives. Challenge them to look at both sides of an issue
3. Challenge them to properly research the significant issues. After getting them to clarify the most significant issues related to the dilemma, give them guidance on how to study the issues from a scriptural perspective Show them how to use a concordance , topical Bible or computer program to research Scripture related to a particular issue Help them to understand that they must keep in mind the type of literature and context of a passage before drawing a principle from it.
4. Help them draw principles from Scripture. For each of the related passages in Scripture , help them to write out a principle or "axiom" for living that would be somewhat universal in its applications, like a proverb Have them compile a list of principles from the various passages related to the issues Get them to pick the most applicable principles
from their list.
5_Help them apply the principles to the problem or dilemma Get them to think of specific ways they would apply the principles to the problem or question they are dealing with For each principle , get them to suggest various plan s of action
6. Get them to evaluate the consequences of each action plan. Help students to think thr9ugh the short- and long -term co nsequen ces of each principlebased action plan
7. Help them choose an action plan. En courage them to prayerfully evaluate the various principle-ba sed action plans and to decide which is the most consistent with b ibli cal values . Challenge them to commit themselves to follow through with the appropriate actions regardless of the cost .
8. Keep them accountable to follow through. Ask them how you could help them follow through with their commitments . Give them the necessary encouragement and structure they ask for. Pray continually for them •
Gary C. Newton is pastor of the Belleview Acres MB Church, Littleton, Colo , and teaches at Denver Seminary .
Politics and faith: an uneasy Coalition
INCLUDED IN my personal collection of books is an 1886 copy of the Bible _ It is a beautiful edition , with engraved illustrations and extensive commentaries . But what strikes me most while perusing its pages is not its technical o r aesthetic qualities, but rather a single page titled, "Our Temperance Pledge." An ornate banner proclaims the purpose of the page, and blank spaces await signatures as readers "solemnly promise, God helping us, to abstain from aU distilled, fermented and malt liquors including wine and beer, and to employ aU proper means to discourage the use of, and the traffic in , the same."
This has not stayed in my memory because of its historical novelty, but rather because of its context: its inclusion between the pages of Scripture was oddly disconcerting. Of course, Paul did advise, "Do not get drunk on wine , for that is debauchery" (Eph. 5: 18), but to see such an absolute proclamation in a Bible on what was such a volatile and political issue seemed to me to be out of place, if not inappropriate. Consumption of alcohol was made no less than a serious moral transgression , a direct violation of the law and will of God Every true, piOUS Christian was thus expected to renounce drink in any form, lest he compromise his faith.
One hundred years later, the religious teetotalers, fighting to save the moral worth of our nation through divinely sanctioned prohibition, have disappeared Their attitude , though, still thrives in contemporary Christianity-only the issues have changed.
The Christian Coalition has gone so
Forum is a column of opinion and comment on contemporary issues facing the Mennonite Brethren Church. Manuscripts expressing an opinion for Forum should aim for a length of 800 words . Authors must sign articles, identify their church membership and vocation, and include a clear photo of themselves
BY NEI L UHL
I have never seen any reference to schools, public or private, in my Bible; nor do I recalljesus's parable about the five-term senator who refused to retire.
far as to include school vouchers, congressional term limits , and a balanced budget amendment on its list of Christian issues, with direction on how a Christian oUght to vote regarding these things. I have never seen any reference to schools, public or private, in my Bible; nor do I recall Jesus's parable about the five-term senator who refused to retire.
The Coalition, furthermore, publishes a "Congressional Scorecard," ranking senators and representatives according to the congruity of their voting records with the Coalition's "Christian" values , implying that there is an explicit way that a good Christian should, by virtue of her faith, vote
It doesn't seem correct to place such a judgment on the casting of a baUot Could it be that Christianity is not as politically applicable as many activists suppose, and the line between "Christian " and "non-Christian" in this area is not so easily drawn?
Thesubject guide of the New Stu· dent Bible lists references to topics such as baptism, forgiveness and prayer; it also has two passages under "abortion," neither of which make reference to any medical procedure. Few biblical texts deal with modern political questions in a direct manner; only by interpretation can they be applied to current issues Often this interpretation is taken to be part of the Scripture itself, and not an adaptation of an archaic text for the purpose of modern relevance . In the mid-1800s Christians argued on both sides of the slavery debate : abolitionists appealed to biblical principles like equality and love for one's neighbor , while antiabolitionists point· ed to numerous commands for slaves
to respect their masters. In the fight over the prohibition of alcohol, Paul's warning against wine was placed against his recommendation to "take a little wine for the sake of your stomach" (1 Tim . 5:23). The current abor· tion dispute is even more confused. It suffers not from the ambiguity of contrasting Scriptures, but from an utter vagueness and lack of Scripture to which to refer.
Present within the Christian com· munity is a vast diversity of views, and it is entirely proper. What ties ChristiaRs together worldwide is the mutual belief in Jesus as Savior. It is this belief, and nothing else, that makes somebody a Christian The church has been divided into countless denominations over opinions ranging from the nature of sin itself to the support of one royal faction over another.
Problems like these have never been resolved , nor is it likely that they ever will be, for there are very few explicitly biblical Christian doctrines . Even nonpolitical matters, like divine grace and the sacraments, are subject to myriad theological analyses, and these are far closer to the core of the Christian religion than the balanced budget amendment or Supreme Court nominees
The issues are not as clearly delin· eated as fundamentalists seem to think ; there is always space for inter· pretation To claim there is a strictly defined "Christian" point of view in political affairs is to assume that one 's own understanding of Scripture is accurate and infallible ; it is to naively reject a world of possibilities. •
Neil Uhl, a member of the Lincoln Glen MB Church in Sanjose, Calif., is a student at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, Calif.
Balanced spirituality?
Regarding Walter Unger's article, "Balanced Spirituality" (August), I would like to advocate truly balanced spirituality in an area I feel Unger fails to do so.
Unger's premise that authentic spirituality is founded on a clear understanding of Scripture is indeed sound. Believers should be ultimately concerned with obedience, faith and servanthood. The emotions they mayor may not experience should not form a basis for their theology nor defme their relationship with God
In Unger's fourth reflection on moving toward a balanced Christian spirituality, he strays from the "balanced" approach employed in his previous three reflections. Spirituality, Unger writes, should be grounded in Scripture, "not in experience or emotion." While this is true, where is the balance Unger claims to share? Surely, emotions have some role to play in balanced human spirituality. God created us as beings capable of intense emotion, yet Unger leaves this capability untapped.
In Acts 3, Peter heals a cripple who has stationed himself at the temple gate . When the man's feet and ankles are made strong, he goes with Peter and John into the temple courts walking and jumping and praising God. In response to the cripple's dramatic expression of joy which attracts the attention of multitudes of people in the vicinity, Peter turns the attention to Christ: "It is Jesus's name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see." Peter advocates balanced spirituality by validating the cripple's emotional high in light of faith in the name of]esus. Emotion, while not being the basis of faith, acts as a human response to the power of God.
I propose that there is room for "emotional highs" in balanced spirituality. Clearly, human responses to the miraculous intervention of God will be full of emotion, intensity and exhilaration.
Unger writes, "Jesus characterized
the true believer in nondramatic, service-oriented terms." But Jesus also painted a very dramatic scene in his commission to his disciples: "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well" (Mk. 16: 15-18).
Too many times I hear how Christians shouldn't base their spirituality on signs, wonders and emotion, but where do these things fit in? Balanced spirituality must not just caution believers not to put faith in experiences; it must define the role of signs, wonders and emotion in a believer's spirituality
Paul & Candi Reimer Fresno, Calif.
Corrected translation
I want to comment on a news article reporting Hugo Zorrilla's participation in a Spanish Bible translation project (June). The second paragraph refers to a Spanish King James Version (KJV). There is no such translation The Reina-Valera (standard Spanish Protestant Bible) was translated from the Greek (1569) and Hebrew (1609) before the KJV.
The work was done in Spain and in various parts of Europe due to the fact that Spanish Protestants had to flee the Spanish Inquisition. Unlike the KJV, it has gone through several revisions (1860, 1881, 1909, 1960, 1975, 1995) as the Spanish language has changed.
There have also been a number of "parallel" revisions which had been worked from the 1909 translation, such as the RVA done by the Baptist Publishing House in EI Paso, Texas
I make these observations because calling the Reina-Valera a Spanish KJV makes it sound as if it were translated
The Christian Leader we lcomes brief letters of relevance to the Mennonite Brethren Church All letters must be signed and will be ed ited for clarity and length. Send letters to Christian Leader, Box V, Hillsboro, KS 67063; fax: 316-9473266; e-ma il: ch leade r@southwind .net.
from the English and negates an important part of Spanish Protestant history which many Americans (including Latinos) do not know. Thanks for the good work.
Juan Francisco Martinez Guatemala City, Guatemala
Alternative media
In response to "Call for a New Ethic" (Media Matters, July), I have given up television for many years and rarely read the local daily newspaperor any daily (which I find to be largely propaganda, censored of many viewpoints and events which go on) I occasionally listen to radio news, but find it overwhelming on a daily basis. I fmd alternatives necessary: I read weekly local papers, two of which are mailed to everyone in the area, some of which I go out of my way to pick up about once a week. The latter are less conservative and really are an alternative and more real to me.
Nancy Keating Aptos, Calif.
BY PHILIP WIEBE
Just pray it
Much in our spiritual lives would benefit from the concept of 'Just doing it." These days we often make things trickier than they need to be.
OCCASIONALLY I receive press releases from an organization dedicated solely to developing and implementing
prayer strategies . At various times I've read about prayer marches, prayer walks, prayer journeys , concerts of prayer, and other big events involving thousands of Christians.
I like the idea of putting so much effort into prayer. In an age hung up on the bottom line-how will this contribution given or time volunteered produce measurable results?- there is something pleasingly unpretentious about prayer. "Your kingdom come, your will be done ." How can that be measured? We realize God works in ways beyond-and different from-what we ask or think.
On another level, though, I read about prayer marches and so on with mixed feelings. Are they really more effective than the earnest prayers of a lone person or small gathering?
I ask this as one who is pondering my own prayer life-and sometimes lack of a prayer life. Like so many in our busy time, I struggle with taking time to pray. Maybe that's why "prayer events" are appealing . They seem more forceful and effective than the routine prayers of my humble self or small congregation. They feel more like doing something than going in my closet to pray.
I don't mean in any way to diminish sweeping prayer assemblies and strategies. They can be unusually effective and powerful. But at times the big event can overshadow the everyday calling. What good are my piddly prayers next to the supplica-
tions of thousands?
Actually, plenty good . The Bible is remarkably straightforward about prayer. The Psalms record prayers that are considerably more forthright and gritty than many of us are used to today. "Arise, 0
LORD! Deliver me, 0 my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked" (ps.3 :7) .
Doesn't sound much like "prayer language" to me. The point being not that we should start praying for God to knock out people's teeth, but that we could learn something from the psalmists' brutal honesty before God. They didn't put on the prayer face or "go to prayer," as we sometimes say. They just prayed.
Jesus was very matter-of-fact on the subject of prayer. "When you pray, " he taught , "do not be like the hypocrites , for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street comers to be seen .. .. But when you pray, go into your room , close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen" (Mt. 6 :5-6) "And when you pray," he added, "do not keep on babbling...for your Father knows what you need before you ask him" (Mt. 6:7-8) .
A phrase that comes to mind echoes the famous athletic shoe ad : "Just pray it." No need for formulizing or strategizing or mega-sizing. The kind of praying Jesus seems to value the most, in fact , rises not from the packed stadium or prayer march, but from the lone , lowly miscreant on the comer: "God, have mercy on me , a sinner" (Lk . 18:13).
Still, I sometimes have difficulty just praying it. Praying effectively , I think, requires the right conditions, the right words, the right feelings, the right approach , and so on But Jesus made clear that all it takes to pray is God and me, here and now, no assembly required.
Much in our spiritual lives would benefit from the concept of "just doing it ." These days we often make things trickier than they need to be. Not long ago, for example, I experienced what I considered a "dry spell" in my praying and serving and worshiping. My heart just wasn 't in it . Or so I thOUght. Then one morning God and I had a conversation that went, spiritually speaking, something like this :
Me: Surely, God, you must be disappointed in my pitiful attempts to serve you.
God: I am? How do you mean?
Me: You know, my heart not being in it and all.
God: Hmm Haven't you been reading my Word and seeking me?
Me: Well , yes.
God: Haven't you been following through on your commitments?
Me: Of course.
God: Then how is your heart not in it?
At that point I realized I'd equated my "heart" too much with feelings and not enough with actions Certainly emotional involvement is important and desirable in our spirituallives. But, as Walter Unger noted in last month 's Leader, "The Scriptures teach that believers should be far more concerned about obedience than warm feelings."
Thousands of years ago the prophet Isaiah spoke to the people 's lack of heart in prayer and worship and service. But Isaiah's admonition was not to "put more feeling " into it, as we might counsel today. The . prophet's message was this : "Stop doing wrong , learn to do right!" (1 :16,17).
That's the kind of heart that really loves God.
INQUIRING MINDS
BY MARVIN HEIN
QIf "seers" or "wisemen" ofbiblical times had genuine understanding of general and specific events to come and could accurately predict, are there genuine prophets, seers or psychics today that believers could consult?
(SOUTH DAKOTA)
AThe inquiry comes from someone who is the victim of having his name and address sold to a number of "psychic" organizations. Consequently he is deluged with invitations to use and pay for their superior "insights."
While we see some of the abovedescribed activity practiced in the Old Testament, it is interesting to see that it was also forbidden . Deuteronomy 18:lOffstates: "Let no one be found among you who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults with the dead."
An even more fascinating word comes in Deuteronomy 13:1ff The writer states that even if a prophet foretells by dreams and the prediction comes true, don't follow that person because he is promoting another god . Moreover, the people are cautioned against accepting miracle workers even when the miracles occur. While it cannot be denied that there were legitimate foretellers who ministered for God and Israel in the Old Testament, Scripture cites enough warnings to make us cautious about following such persons.
It is clear from both testaments that efforts to foresee or predict future events is off limits to God's children because that is God's domain. The psalmist insisted that his times were in God's hands, not man's. We are forbidden to take the role of God by predicting the future.
It is obvious, however, as you
search the Scriptures, that we can gain wisdom from wise counselors. Some people, either by native abilities or training, can guide others in ways that are right and wholesome. Priscilla and Aquila counseled someone as wise as the Apostle Paul. In the Old Testament, Moses was assisted by those who gave wise counsel.
In the same way, pastors, counselors and others gifted by God can be helpful in giving insight to others who may get lost in the way. In the epistles, older women are encouraged to teach the younger. The Holy Spirit is described as a counselor; no doubt his ministry often comes
tornado struck without the people having knowledge of its approach. I'm frankly persuaded that in this storm, God simply allowed nature to take its natural course.
I have no question about God's ability to turn the storm. But more often, I think, he doesn't Powerless to act contrary to the laws of
Who understood better than (Jesus) nature? No! Willing to act contrary to those laws? Not all that often. There is this mysterious, often inexplica- that within the
Father's providence ble tension between some people flourish and for others life is a dayto-day crucifixion through people. experience?
But nowhere in Scrip-
God's loving mercy desiring to spare us from evil, and his marvelous wisdom in allowing us not to have prayers answered according to our expectations. . ture are we encouraged to follow the counsel of those who predict the future. More often than not, when the New Testament speaks of a prophet, the meaning is of a "forthteller" as contrasted to a "foreteller."
QCan we expect a God who is both just and mercifUl to intervene in the natural cycle of sin and death? (CALIFORNIA)
ASome people believe God is powerless to act contrary to the laws of nature. I have to confess that I believe God often doesn't answer our prayers when we ask something that goes against his natural laws.
We have a little mental jockeying at our house about God answering prayers when storms or tornadoes approach. One Christian community says that in answer to their prayers, God redirected a tornado so they were missed. But in the same storm, another Christian community never had a chance to pray because the
Have a question about a Bible passage, doctrine, conference policy, or other spiritual issue? Send it to "Inquiring Minds," c/ o Marvin Hein, 4812 E. Butler, Fresno, CA 93727.
Jesus knew something of that tension. Who could understand better what it meant not to have his prayer answered prior to the cross experience? He didn't want to die. But he did. Who understood better than he that within the Father's providence some people flourish and for others life is a day-to-day crucifIXion experience?
I cannot understand God I can, however, trust him. I know God listens to us . When God answers my prayers like I ask, I rejoice in his goodness . When God doesn't, I swallow hard and try to pray like those Old Testament "furnace-prospects" who said in effect, "We know you can deliver us from the fiery furnace, but if you don't we will still follow you ."
If and when I am tempted to doubt God's wisdom in his treatment of me, I try to remember that list of men and women of faith given in Hebrews 11. The people who were torn asunder and stoned and sawed in two were no less faithful to God, and no less loved by him. You can't really judge God by the way he allows his children to suffer or prosper.
BY ROSE BUSCHMAN
A matter of integrity
It was a matter of two people's integrity-and four almost·stranded college students benefited from it that day.
.NROUP WAS going to an outdoor breakfast at a recreation area the next orning. One member asked me if I
volunteered to cash a check at the next bank we came to. We stopped in a small Arizona town and I went in. The teller refused to cash my $50 check and so I asked to see a bank official. This man explained to me that because they was going to join them. "No" I said, "I'm not planning to go." I didn't say that I hadn't been invited However, later that evening the group leader did invite me so I agreed to go.
The next morning when I appeared at what I thought was the right time and the designated spot to catch the bus, no one was there. I drove around for 15 minutes trying to fInd someone who knew some· thing about the outing, but had no luck. Since I didn't know where the group was going I couldn't drive out to the breakfast site on my own. I later found out that the group had met and left an hour earlier. No wonder I couldn't find anyone
My big concern wasn't missing the breakfast, although that would have been a real treat given the beautiful morning. Rather, I was more concerned that people would think I hadn't kept my word. I had said I was going and then I didn't show up! For me it was a matter of integrity.
During my college years I spent one summer as a camp counselor in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California. Four of us college students drove out from Kansas and spent six weeks there. On the way home, somewhere along Route 66, we suddenly realized that between the four of us we didn't have enough cash to buy gas to get home. Those were the days before college students had credit cards
Since I had some money in my checking account back in Kansas, I
were a small town bank on Route 66 they had had too many bad experiences with phony checks and so their policy was not to cash any out·of-state checks.
I explained our rather desperate situation and asked him if he would call my bank manager in Hillsboro to verify that I had enough money in my account to cover the check. He finally agreed to do so and asked his secretary to place the call.
In the meantime, we sat in his office and waited. To fill in the time, he asked me about the college I was from, what I had done that summer and what my educational plans were. When I mentioned Tabor Col· lege , he asked, "Do you know James and Betty Thomas?"
"Yes," I said. "They are Tabor grads and I think they are working somewhere in this area. We're from the same school although they were several years ahead of me in college "
"In that case," he said, "we don't need to make the phone call. If you belong to the same people that they are from, then I have no problem trusting you. "
He picked up the phone to cancel the call to Kansas, only to be told by his secretary that my bank manager was on the line A friendly conversa· tion between the two officials ensued .
My manager said, "If she needs more than $50 give it to her. She's good for whatever she needs. I will personally see to it ."
After the Arizona man hung up, he told me he knew Jim and Betty and what fIne people they were , working on an Indian Reservation nearby . Obviously, they were held in high esteem by people in this community. It was a matter of two people's integrity-and four almoststranded college students benefIted from it that day. * * *
Mona and I were having coffee and talking about some mutual concerns we had. Eventually the talk shifted to people we knew and what they were doing. Mona, who had connections to a feedlot operation, had a way of getting off on tangents and this morning was no exception.
"Now, you know __ " she said, mentioning a farmer we both knew. "When we buy grain from him we have to be very careful to check the quality of what he has. He tries to pass off his grain as a higher grade than what it really is. You really have to watch him."
I probably wouldn't remember this conversation except that this man is a Christian, and at the time of our conversation I wondered what Mona thOUght of his Christianity. It was a matter of this farmer's integrity.
• • *
The copy machine policy at one high school I taught at let us use a bypass key to make school copies, but expected us to pay for personal copies. One day I was in the library feeding coins into the machine as I made several copies for myself One of my students came up to me and asked why I didn't use the key instead of putting in my own money.
"These are copies for myself," I replied, "so I have to pay for them."
"But no one would know if you didn't tell them," he answered.
"But I would know, " I replied. This time it was a matter of my integrity.
Heallhy Churches Growl
Let Mission Analysis and MISSION USA help you discover the health ofyour church!
It was a passionate, from-the-heart request. I'll never forget it! Pastors had gathered for dialogue and fellowship. Some among us were experiencing the privilege of serving in large, growing churches. Fred Fulford was one of those, and his desire caught my attention: "I pray that I will have a heart after God, rather than a heart after goals:'
Where church families are concerned, there is the possibility that the primary focus becomes numbers and growth. It is not only a potential downside of vision and goal setting (both of which are necessary); it is also at times a convenient escape from the more important issue of spiritual health . A quick review of the early church in Acts tells us that they focused on being spiritually vibrant. The result was that their goal, faithfulness to their mandate to make disciples in the power of the Holy Spirit, was met by natural church growth.
It's normal for healthy churches to grow! That's why we're offering Mission Analysis to our churches. Part of the MISSION USA mandate is to help churches be revitalized so that we can be effective in "Wlnning Some" from our circles of influence into the family of God.
MISSION ANALYSIS offers a questionnaire that is filled out at the local church level. The results will show the state of church health in the following eight essential elements: Leadership, Ministry, Spirituality, Structures, Worship Service, Small Groups, Evangelism and Relationships. The foundational
An example: Profile of a typical church
book, Christian Schwarz's Natural Church Development, is the result of research in more than 1,000 churches in 32 countries on all five continents. Schwarz 's study indicates that churches with good health in all the above areas GROW NATURALLY. We believe it would please God if Mennonite Brethren churches in the USA were healthy and growing. And we believe that MISSION ANALYSIS can help We'll partner with the first 50 churches that apply for this self-study in this fiscal year.
Will your church be participating in this pursuit of being a church after God's own heart?
Ed Boschman, Executive Director MISSION USA
MISSION USA BOARD:
Ed Boschman, Phoenix, AI.
Chuck Buller, V_, CA
Rkk Eshbaugh, Topeka, KS
Ernie Friesen, Wichita, KS
Tun Geddert, Fresno, CA
Phil Glanzer, New Hope, MN
Lorelfa Jost, Aurora, NE
Fred Leonard, dovis, CA
Howard Loewen, Fresno, CA
Stephen Reimer, Shafter, CA
Oorke Rempel, Buhler, KS
Mike Schuil, Reedley, CA
Clint Seibel, HiUsboro, KS
Randy Steilert, Bakersfield, CA
TIm Sullivan, Hillsboro, KS
Ex Officio Members:
Henry Dick, Fresno, CA
ainlon Grenz, Bismark, NO
Roland Reimer, Wichita, KS
Instepwith Awana?
• This international Bible club program for kids has been adopted by many Mennonite Brethren congregations It generates enthusiasm, but also some challenges.
BY CONNIE FABER
IT'S WEDNESDAY night and the gymnasium is mI'ed with lively children and enthusiastic adults sporting matching gray and red uniforms A whistle blows. The children scramble to line up on their assigned color line.
"Present colors!" calls the commander. Two children, each carrying a flag, march to the center.
"Right-hand salute," says the lead· er. Children place their right hand over their heart and pledge allegiance to both flags.
This is not a school or civic event. It is Awana, which describes itself as "an international, nondenominational, Bible-centered youth organization providing weekday clubs for 3-yearolds through high schoolers "
"Post colors," calls the commander and the two flags, one the American stars and stripes and the other emblazoned with the Awana logo, are retruned to their stands. Games, Scripture memory and a closing assembly will follow during the next two hours.
About 30 Mennonite Brethren congregations-or one in four English-language congregations in the U.S Conference-use Awana. Enthusiasm for Awana is widespread, but it also generates its share of challenges and some criticism.
Awana has built its reputation on a highly structured program emphasizing evangelism, Bible memorization,
games and rewards and a low leaderto-student ratio. But these strengths are also at the heart of some frustrations and reservations.
At the heart of the Awana program is evangelism-a reason cited by many Mennonite Brethren congregations for their involvement in it. According to the Awana pledge, recited at the beginning of each club meeting, the goal of the program is to "reach boys and girls with the gospel of Christ and train them to serve Him."
Children are the primary focus for evangelism, but several congregations have started Awana programs with the hope of reaching parents, too-something Awana encourages and supports But how well is the latter goal realized?
Two years ago, Garden Valley Church in Garden City, Kan., recorded 20 salvation decisions among club members. Half of the young people recently baptized at Zoar MB Church in Inman, Kan., are Awana converts. "Every year we lead children to the Lord," says Steve Prieb, Garden Valley pastor, "but I'm not sure we reach families."
Prieb's observation is not uncommon among participating Mennonite Brethren congregations. In addition to making contacts with parents when children arrive and depart each week, the Awana program encourages home
contacts in the form of visits, phone calls and letters for the purpose of encouraging and evangelizing clubbers . Additional follow-up is recommended to enable congregations to reach "whole families for Christ." But some commanders surveyed for this article acknowledge that their home follow-up has been a weakness.
"The process of working with the program provides good discipleship for new or young-adult Christians," says Ed Boschman, Mission USA executive director who has been involved with Awana as a pastor . But Boschman cautions that Awana should not be a congregation's primary outreach tool. He says Awana is most effective when it is used alongside an adult outreach program.
When Grace Bible Church, a congregation of about 90 members in Gettysburg, S.D., began their Awana program seven years ago, the goal was to reach children and their families, says pastor Jim Weems. Parents are invited to attend a BIble study while their children are in Awana. Weems says that thanks to Awana, 10 adults are currently involved either in worship or discipleship groups. Awana has also contributed to Grace Bible's high school youth program as former junior high students whose parents may not be involved in church life maintain a connection with the congregation.
Morgan Boes. Stuart Reimer and Angela Bartlett proudly receive their Sparky Awards at the Westport MB Church year-end Awana program.
As a church-planting tool, Awana has its limitations. Castle Rock Faith Fellowship, a Colorado Front Range church plant, ran an aggressive Awana program in the mid-1980s, says Daryle Baltzer, who became interim pastor in the early 1990s. The program drew almost 90 children during its frrst year; in five years it grew to involve children from as many as 100 families.
But, while the number of children was high, few adults came to Castle Rock because of Awana. For all its efforts, the congregation had fewer than 20 members, although worship attendance was higher.
"It's difficult for a church plant to run Awana," Baltzer says. "You need many high-energy adults. At Castle Rock it required almost everyone in the congregation to be involved. They were burned out." The congregation disbanded in 1991.
A wana is a highly structured and .nrusciplined program-for the children who participate as well as their adults leaders. Congregations are required to follow the procedures outlined in the Awana handbook. The structure and rigid expectations can lead to legalism, says one pastor.
For many Mennonite Brethren congregations accustomed to flexible club programs, such restrictions can be challenging, says David Wiebe,
Christian education director for the Canadian MB Conference.
Awana strongly emphasizes memorizing and understanding Scripture, but Awana material is available only in King James and New King James versions. Wiebe believes using a more modem translation would give leaders and students more time to focus on ways to apply the concepts learned in the memory verses.
"The King James Version has been a weakness since no one speaks KJV English," says Karla German, commander of the Wes tport MB Church Awana club in Collinsville, Okla. "NKJV has helped a lot."
"NKJ verses are very difficult for children who have never heard the Bible or for those who are weak in reading," says Sue Frantz, Shafter (Calif.) MB Church commander for third through sixth grade. "We allow our struggling clubbers to say one verse at a time (rather than three as suggested by Awana)."
Shafter has used Awana for 21 years and currently has about 120 children involved, about one-third of the children come from other congregations and another third have no church affiliation.
Some congregations make adjustments for children who have difficulty memorizing. "We quietly allow more helps if necessary, give out portions of verses or use the Awana mate-
The Awana way
Awana Clubs Int e rnational is a nondenominational youth organization providing weekday clubs and programs for 3-year-olds through high schoolers The acrostic Awana is taken from the fi rst letters of "Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed" ba sed on 2 Timothy 2 : 15
A two-hour club meeting is divided into thre e 40-minute segments Following the opening ceremony , games are played on the Awana game square with four teams and are ideally played in age groups with boys and girls separated
Next, small group s of children are supervised by an adult during handbook time The groups work on Awana booklet s, handbooks and memory packets The evening conclude s with a large-group council time whi ch includes announcements , award presentation s, songs, testimonies, a devotional and an invitation for salvation . Awana can be an expensive program Club participants are required to buy a uniform , handbooks and to pay weekly dues Annual total costs vary from $20 to $48 per child . Several Mennonite Brethren congregations indicated they provide used uniform s at a reduced cost and assist familie s in finan ci al need Regional competitions, such as the Grand Prix, add additional expenses for families as do special club events such as bowling parties, meals and other social activities
In addition to instruction s provided in various manuals , Awana leaders can receive help from Awana " missionaries " Local clubs are encouraged to financially support these individuals Missionaries also sponsor special regional events such a s Awana Olympics , Awana Grand Prix and Bible Quizzing
rial for slow readers and learning disabled children," says Rubena Hiebert of Country Bible Church in Orland, Calif
Success in Bible memorization translates to various awards in the Awana program . Children receive badges and pins to display on their
uniform and "Awana Bucks" to spend at the church's "store" containing treats and prizes. While the main strength of the program is its emphasis on Bible memory, club leaders agree the unique Awana games and rewards keep many children coming back.
"The reward system can be frustrating for clubbers who have difficulty memorizing because they don't receive recognition or rewards," says Curt Wall of the Mountain Lake (Minn.) MB Church. "We become more lenient and recognize clubbers for enthusiasm and hard work."
"The reward system has its dangers," Boschman adds "Built in immediate gratification and on-going reward systems should be watched so that we don't teach the wrong things to the kids in the process. "
Eachweek groups of four to six children work through workbooks and recite verses with an adult leader . "The most important part of Awana is a committed Christian adult listening to a child recite a verse from God's Word," Frantz says "One·on·
one instruction doesn't happen much anywhere anymore."
But this kind of interaction demands heavy adult involvement. Recruiting and motivating adult leaders concerned half of the 16 commanders who responded to a Leader survey. The survey indicated these programs required 470 adults to work with the 1,360 children involved last year.
"It takes a lot of people to run it right," says Dennis Penner of Valleyview Bible Church in Cimarron, Kan., where one in six adults is involved in Awana.
Randy Friesen, commander of the Garden Valley club, says, "It's not a weakness in the program, but a challenge to find enough leaders who can attend consistently and be prepared to share in council times." His congregation of 196 has 30 adults working with 130 children
Laurelglen Bible Church in Bakersfield, Calif., has about 200 children and 60 adults involved in their Awana program. Commander Mike Gaedke says, "It's a little tough sometimes to get all the leaders to catch the vision
Bob Wiebe of the Shafter MB Church sets up cars for the 1997 Awana Grand Prix. a regional event coordinated by the area Awana missionary.
Bradley Kroeker of Shafter studies the competition at the Awana Grand Prix.
of what God could do if they would follow the guidelines wholeheartedly "
Gaedke says it's important to balance recruitment of Awana leaders with the leadership needs of other programs, such as Sunday schooL
Few commanders who were surveyed raised it as a concern, but Wiebe and Boschman agree that the strong patriotic and militaristic nuances in Awana are a concern for some Mennonite Brethren. Both the national and Awana flags are saluted each week and patriotism is an element of the handbook program "The formal flag ceremony with its order and attention sets a high standard of discipline for the rest of the club meeting , " states the Awana training manual for leaders . "It also creates an attitude of cooperation and unity and provides an excellent opportunity to teach boys and girls respect for their flag and country."
It can also create tension in a denomination which emphasizes kingdom citizenship over national allegiances. "As a denomination which has a strong kingdom theology, thinking of the church as a nationalistic organization is problematic for some of our people," says Tim Sullivan, pastor of Parkview MB Church in Hillsboro , Kan.
While Awana users raise concerns about the program's approach to memorization, competition and rewards, and its patriotic emphasis, the more troublesome component for some congregations has been the organization's theological orientation and rigidity.
Wiebe reviewed the Awana program in the early 1980s at the request of a congregation concerned with Awana's theology. In his written review, Wiebe and the Canadian Conference Board of Christian Education did not endorse Awana "because the Awana doctrinal statement must be signed without reservations and with full intent to teach the handbook contents as they are presented. "
Three Awana doctrinal statements are consistently cited as problematic by Mennonite Brethren pastors and congregations affiliated with Awana.
• Awana maintains that the work of the Holy Spirit is limited to those
activities not seen as "unusual, such as speaking in tongues ." Local congregations identified with the charismatic movement are not granted an Awana charter. But the Mennonite Brethren Confession of Faith does not discount speaking in tongues "All gifts of the Holy Spirit are operative today," says David Froese, Westport pastor.
• Awana states an individual is eternally secure in Christ. While opinions on this issue vary and the Confession of Faith doesn't speak directly to the issue, Mennonite Brethren generally tend to allow for the loss of salvation in extreme cases, such as an individual who rejects Christ later in life .
• Awana holds to a specific eschatology-Christ will return before the millennium and before the tribulation. While Mennonite Brethren hold a diversity of views on this matter, the 1997 draft of the Confession of Faith states, "The church must always be prepared to meet the Lord because the time of Christ ' s coming is not known ."
When Parkview considered signing on with Awana six years ago, congregational leaders were uncomfortable with Awana's position on several issues Pastor Sullivan signed the first charter, but also attached a copy of the General Conference Confession of Faith and a letter stating their intention to teach from its viewpoint.
"Our Confession of Faith is broader in a lot of ways then Awana ' s," Sullivan says. "We did not want to be painted into a comer. We decided to let them agree to our statement rather than to have us agree with them." Sullivan asked Awana to contact him if there was a problem with this procedure and Awana did not.
David Froese of Westport says the program is not without its tensions. He has been involved with Awana in three churches over the past 20 years.
"Those (doctrinal statements) with which I personally disagree are negotiable aspects of the Awana statement and they aren 't that significant in the curriculum," he says . "It's a narrow, clean-cut, boxed approach to life that comes from a more fundamental approach than an evangelical one "
Froese regrets that some denominations are rejected by Awana "I can live with it, but it colors the way I view Awana "
IN BRIEF
• APPOINTED : Two new d ean s were appoint ed at Fre sno Pa ci f ic Unive rsity thi s summer . Stephen Varvis, a 12year veteran of th e f ac ulty , beg a n d uti es as d ea n of th e undergradu ate colleg e Ju ly 1 Varvis served as bu siness ma nag er fr o m 1985 to 1992 He th e n jo in e d the t ea ching faculty i n 1992 and has se rved as chair of th e division of interdisciplinary studie s, professor of history and chair of the fa culty se ss ion Meanwhile , Wendy Wakeman wa s appointed dean of the Fre sno Pacific School of Prof e ss ional Stud ies June 1 Before coming to FPU , she wa s dean of continu ing studie s at Beth el Coll ege in St . Paul , Minn . (FPU)
• RECOGNIZED : For the second straight year , Tabor College has been ranked by Money magazine as one of the top 100 best buys among U S college s The magazine compi led 16 measure s of education quality whi ch were then compared to tuition and fee s Tabor ranked 72 nd overall and 12 th among small liberal art s colleges , and i n th e t o p 25 among all midwe stern co ll eges (Te)
• RANKED : Fresno Pacifi c Unive rsity was rated fifth among w estern univ ersitie s by U.S News & World Report in thi s yea r ' s "Amer i ca' s Be st Co llege s" i ssue published Aug . 2 1. Thi s is the fir st t im e FPU has been ranked since the schoo l wa s recla ssified as a reg ional uni vers ity in 1993 Schools ranked in th e "B es t Value " cate g orie s are "above average academically ; o nly the top quarter of reg i onal institut io ns in th e qual i ty ranking a re c on si dered, " according to USN&WR The l i st include s the top 15 schools that offer " a high qual ity edu ca tion at rea sonable cost " in four region s nationally (FPU)
• PUBLISHED: Veteran Mennonite Brethren missionary Dorothy Louise Kopper has written A ssignment : Zaire, a book combining her personal experience s with historical facts about the Democratic Republic of Congo, former ly Zaire Kopper spent 35 years there, from 1952 to 1987 Cop ies of her book are available by writ ing Kopper at 25 01 Bernard #11 , Bakersfie ld, CA 93306
"I like to think of Fresno Pacific University as a Mennonite Brethren gift to the larger Christian world."
-ALLEN CARDEN
The Carden contribution
• 'People will think about excellence, ' vows Fresno Pacific's new president
ALLEN CARDEN will be inaugurated Oct. 13 as the seventh president of Fresno Pacific University. Now in his 27th year in Christian higher education, Carden has served at two other institutions as an administrator and teacher: Biola University and Spring Arbor College. He comes to FPU with five years of experience as president of Spring Arbor (1991-1996). He began his new assignment July 1. The Leader talked with Carden recently about his new assignment. Following are excerpts of that interview
CL: What is it about Christian higher education that attracts you?
CARDEN: I know what it did in my own life as an undergraduate student at Biola for four years I gained a perspective, an integrated worldview, that helped me pull together my Christian faith, biblical principles and the world of knowledge The world began to make sense to me after I thought through how the pieces of this puzzle of life fit together . At a Christian liberal arts institution we can provide students with the tools to make that meaningful discovery for themselves
We are a wonderful alternative to sec-
Allen Carden, FPU's seventh president_
ular higher education , which is good as far as it goes. But it lacks a wholistic approach to life by ignoring the spiritual dimension, in most cases, or in perverting the spiritual dimension in other cases. We in Christian higher education have , in many respects, more academic freedom and can give a more realistic view to our students of what the human condition is all about.
CL: What attracted you to Fresno PacifiC University?
CARDEN: The fact that Richard Kriegbaum had been here. I respect him highly. I was aware of how far Fresno Pacific had come in its development, in good measure, due to Richard's leadership.
I was pleased with the diversity of the programs, the fact that the institution is involved in graduate studies and in providing educational opportunities for working adults, and was also interested in making a difference in the greater Fresno community
I feel very much at home with Mennonite Brethren worldview and theology. The fact that FPU was back home in California was a draw, particularly after 10 upper-midwestern winters.
CL: What has your exposure been to Mennonite Brethren?
CARDEN: I have never been a Mennonite Brethren until now Before we made a decision to come, I wanted to make sure that this was a theological tradition with which we could be compatible so I did quite a bit of reading. We have not yet joined a Mennonite Brethren church, but we have made a commitment to do that.
I am attracted to the ideas about community within the church. I am attracted to the believer's church tradition, the voluntary aspect of our faith and service. I find the interest in making a difference in the broader
community very appealing. We are here to serve and not to withdraw from the world I also find it very attractive that the church thinks globally rather than nationally or locallythat we are in this as the human race. I find the emphasis on peace and reconciliation-the futility of violence and the renewal that comes through peace and alternative methods to violenceto be biblical and highly attractive.
CL: What does it mean to you for FPU to be a Mennonite Brethren institution? How does that identity shape its vision and mission?
CARDEN: I like to think of Fresno Pacific University as a Mennonite Brethren gift to the larger Christian world. The school is really a blending between the Anabaptist tradition and the best of the evangelical tradition.
We are a Mennonite Brethren institution with an expanded base in terms of our ministry opportunity. Only a small percentage of our students are Mennonite Brethren, as are approximately half of our faculty We realize that there are not enough Mennonite Brethren students and scholars to go around between our institutions.
The fact that we are a Mennonite Brethren institution means that we cherish community in ways that would not be found elsewhere. I have already seen in our dealings with one another as faculty, administration and students a clear desire to find consensus, to look for common ground, to avoid unnecessary confrontation, to model peace.
Within the Mennonite Brethren tradition there is a desire to approach the Christian life incarnationally. By that I mean, we are here not just to talk the talk but to walk the talk. We are to model the life of Jesus in our own frail, human ways. We are Christ's living, walking representatives . And we are to incarnate his spirit and his life within us on this campus and in all of life.
CL: What do you see as FPU's strengths currently?
CARDEN: The university has a wonderful heritage of innovation and overcoming obstacles. To think how far the school has come since 1944 boggles the mind and is a testimony to the faithfulness of God It began as a
want the church to view the college as a prophetic voice for the church , to be a seedbed of leadership and ideas-good ideasfor the future of the church. II
- ALLEN CARDEN
very small Bible institute and is now a university with multiple master's degree programs. In addition to our 1,600-1,700 students, we minister to more than 12,000 students a year in our School of Professional Studies We serve a broad constituency. I think that's a real strength.
We have invested in the Fresno community and this is a strength. We are service minded . The university has a very good reputation in Fresno as being a community player. For example, we moved into a declining condominium development near the campus, purchased multiple units, refurbished them and are providing them to buyers and renters to help stabilize the neighborhood
CL: What specific areas do you want to focus on in these first years?
CARDEN: We need to develop additional campus facilities. We have some great facilities, but there is also much to do. The physical surroundings are not the heart of the institution, but they're important
Another area is growing enrollment , particularly in the traditional undergraduate program. We have a lot to offer and have not perhaps gotten our story out to a broad enough audience . I would like to move us to around 800 full -time equivalency; we are at around 600 now . I feel we can do that without adding much in the way of faculty or staff.
like most Christian institutions, we are highly tuition driven and that will
continue for the foreseeable future . But we would like to build the endowment of the institution.
I also want to strengthen our ties with the Mennonite Brethren Church. Coming in from the outside, I may be in a good position to do that. I want the church to view the college as a prophetic voice for the church, to be a seedbed of leadership and ideasgood ideas-for the future of the church.
CL: How do you see your role as president of FPU at this pOint in the school's development?
CARDEN: I see myself as a scholar, a cheerleader and pastor I want to set a tone of academic excellence. I also want us to realize how good we really are. Sometimes it ' s easy to look inward and see our weaknesses and shortcomings. Coming from the outSide, I can tell this community that FPU is a fantastic place.
I see part of my role as being a cheerleader to our own faculty and staff in addition to our external constituencies.
I see the president also in a pastoral role. I have a congregation, as it were, here in Fresno of 2,000 people with our students, faculty and staff. I view the presidency as a sacred trust . This is something the Lord has called us to do. This is his institution.
My personal motto, which I have on the front of my desk, is "The Lord's Work in the Lord's Way"- something I borrowed from Francis Schaefer years ago. I want personally and corporately to be doing the Lord's work in the Lord's way
CL: If a school, at least to some degree, reflects the personality and vision of its president, what will FPU be like five to 10 years down the road?
CAJiDEN: I would like Fresno Pacific to be known as a place of caring and excellence. Everything we do will demonstrate the love of Christ. There will be a difference here because of our fundamental commitment to Jesus Christ and what it means to be his followers. People will think about excellence-from the way the grounds look to the way we greet students when they come into the offices .
Recyling
efforts
making sense-and cents-at Fresno Pacific
• Program helps the school's bottom line, environment and the lives of some students
SOMETIMES good stewardship isn't painful.
While politicians, businesspeople and activists argue over inches to balance natural resources and modern lifestyles-and everyone else worries that they will have to pay no matter which side wins-Fresno Pacific University has found a way to do good and to do well.
The university's recycling program helps the environment, the budget and the lives of at least some students. Instead of trashing thousands of pounds of cast-off glass, plastic and paper each month , the school works with a recycling firm and a campus program for people with developmental disabilities
Before beginning the present system last September, the university paid monthly city trash removal rates that rose from $747 to $1,647 in one year, according to Mark Patton, recycling coordinator and safety officer Since the city made no distinction between trash and treasure, "we had no incentive to recycle," Patton said.
Today the university pays a private company $46 per ton to haul what can't be recycled, "so anything we divert from the waste stream saves money," Patton said.
largest collector and marketer of waste paper.
Some 75-100 Central California industries, offices, warehouses, retail stores and packing houses have similar agreements with Smurfit, according to account representative William Winchester, who serves the region from Tulare to Turlock. "Anyone using a box is a potential client. "
A 1990 Fresno Pacific graduate, Winchester wants to add recycling to the unofficial university curriculum. Students can learn about recycling, carry that habit throughout their lives and greatly benefit society, he said.
independence through vocational and social skills. "We want to make them positive members of society," said Dennis Zink, who teaches in the program. The half dozen students who work with recycling, one of several
"It really is the right thing to do, and it reflects our faith. As a Christian community we shouldn't just be adding to the landfill."
on-campus and community job sites, earn money through the Workability and Summer Youth Experience programs, and Zink helps them with financial issues such as checking accounts . ATP students have a tie to the recycling program since they began it, Zink said. Working out of the
-MARK PATTON garage of a university-
Students in the Adult Transition Program learn more than the difference between clear and colored glass. ATP students gather the recyclables and sort the contents for Smurfit
Operated by the Fresno County Office of Education, ATP helps people with developmental disabilities gain
owned house, they collected white paper and aluminum cans and took them to a recycling center in a van The system was not effective, Zink admits, and what little profit there was went to class trips, pizza parties and graduation caps and gowns. Working with Smurfit provides many more opportunities "We gained so much in skills and employability," Zink said The university hired ATP grad Bernardo Luna to work full-time on recycling.
When ATP operated alone, collections ran between 350 and 1,168 pounds per month, while the city picked up 10,620-21,200 pounds of waste per month Smurfit entered the picture in January and recyclables rose to 5,824 pounds for the month while waste removal fell to 6,920 pounds.
By providing all the labor , ATP remains critical to the effort's success "ATP is the recycling program," Patton said.
Recyclables are picked up daily from offices and other sites. How much is collected varies. "In March, AIMS (an on-campus mathematics and science resourcing program) cleaned out one of its storage facilities and brought more than four pickup truckloads ," Patton said
What can be saved goes to Smurfit Recycling, which provides sorting containers ranging in size from wastebasket add-ons to the six-ton bins in return for an exclusive contract to pick up the materials. The company manufactures paper products from some of the recycled cardboard and paper, then sells the rest along with all metal, plastic and glass With offices in 15 states, Smurfit is the industry's FPU's Bernardo luna collects paper and other recyclables. Though recycling is on the
rise at the university, Patton says most reusable material still slips through the cracks. "We're at the tip of the iceberg." The recycling steering committee, comprised of faculty, students and staff members are working to get more bins and figuring out the best locations for them. "We want to make it easier to recycle it than to pitch it," he said.
Enthusiasm has been plentiful, from top administrators to the 1,600 students and 200-plus faculty and staff members, Patton said. "It all comes down to people choosing to do this, and the campus has been nothing but supportive," Patton said .
This backing comes from the recycling project's strong link to the university mission, Patton believes. "It really is the right thing to do, and it reflects our faith . As a Christian community we shouldn't just be adding to the landfill. "
New TREK program to focus on young adults
• YMI program will include nine months of teaching and ministry experiences
YOUTH Mission International is sponsoring a new discipleship program for college and career adults The program is called TREK, an acronym for "Training, Risking, Enlarging the Kingdom . " About 30 "tREKies" are beginning their ninemonth experience this month in Abbotsford, B.C.
"TREK is a hands-on discipling program for young leaders who have a track record of service and a commitment to the local church," says Randy Friesen, YMI director.
The program is divided into two phases-two months of discipleship training in the greater Vancouver area followed by a seven-month team ministry assignment.
Steve Klassen, part-time MB Missions/Services secretary for church relations, will direct the program on a half-time basis. Dave and Heidi Gray, YMI alumni from Fresno, Calif., will function as full-time staff during the first phase and Nathan Regier, an MB Biblical Seminary grad currently on
staff at Columbia Bible College, will serve as part-time staff.
ViSiting speakers are scheduled from partner agencies : MB Missions/ Services, the Canadian MB Conference Board of Evangelism, Mission USA (U.S. Conference), MB Biblical Seminary, Columbia Bible College and Bethany Bible Institute.
"TREK is an opportunity for denominational agencies like MBM/S to sit with, and indeed recruit, young leaders preparing for further service," Klassen says.
Worship, Bible meditation, group intercessory prayer and inductive Bible study will also be incorporated. Because "part of the vision of TREK is to teach young people the importance of the local church as God's instrument in the world," TREK teams will be linked with local churches in the greater Vancouver area , Klassen says.
Klassen reports Abbotsford is an ideal location for the training portion because Mennonite Brethren enjoy tremendous diversity and worship in as many as 11 different languages in the greater Vancouver area.
In October, five teams will be commissioned for service. International teams will serve in Peru and Jordan The Peru team will work with MBM/S missionaries. The Jordan team will be trained in Abbotsford by the newly formed MBM/S Muslim Ministry Team. Members will attend the Amman Language Institute in Jordan and be in regular contact with Arab World Ministries.
Domestic teams will serve Mennonite Brethren congregations in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Visalia, Calif The fifth team will travel in North America recruiting and representing YMI. This team is available for special youth or mission-emphasis events from November 1997 through May 1998.
Klassen says some of the overall vision for TREK comes out of a proposal regarding a mission training center he and Ray Harms-Wiebe submitted to several Mennonite Brethren agencies in January 1996.
MB Missions/Services and the Canadian Conference Board of Evangelism had designated $10,000 toward the proposed training center for 1997, which has now been redirected toward TREK.
-From a report in the MB Herald
. CHURCH NOTES
• Baptism/Membership
GRANT, Neb. (New life Fellowship)-Ashley Harms, Sara Marshall, Ryan Sperling, Rachelle Regier, Melissa Regier, Rebecca Watkins and Dedra Kugler were baptized and taken into membership April 27.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (Heritage Bible)Maxine Bradrick, Craig and Rayanne Braun, Brent and Lynn Casper, William and Evelyn Hall, Loyal and Cathy Kropf, Cynthia Patton and Amy Wagner were welcomed as new members April 20.
SALEM, Ore. (Kingwood Bible)-Danika Allen , Wes Barrett, Cory Bergman, Kayla Gookin, Krystal Gookin, and Tenae Smoker were baptized July 13.
BETHANY, Okla. (Western Oaks)-Brady Brown, Sheldon Brown, Wesley Brown, Janina Ediger, Jeremy Ediger, Daniel Foote, Rachel Foote, Jeanne Martz and Angela Shackelford were baptized July 27 following a series of baptismal classes.
WICHITA, Kan. (First)-Becky Klassen, Heidi Schepis, Steve and Corinna Schmidt, Greg and PinPin Schunk, Thane and Chris Spahr and Mark and Wendy Wine were welcomed at a membership reception Aug 3
FAIRVIEW, Okla.-Kenneth and Wilma Kusch were received as new members Aug. 17
YALE, S.D. (Bethel)-Scott Loewen, Usa Loewen, Benji Wipf, Desirae Kleinsasser and Nick Hofer were recently baptized Helen Wedel, Kevin and Virginia Hofer and Harold and Darla Loewen were recently welcomed as new members.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (EI Camino Bible)Orin Fisher, Bethel Schroeder and Sue Woolfitt were recently baptized and accepted into membership .
DOWNEY, Calif. (living Hope)-Eva and Rene Ramivoz and Fay Campbell were recently baptized Daryl Thompson, Mary Parmer, Keith Carey, Sandra Mansfield and Clarita Riedel became members of the congregation upon their confession of faith. Pastor Glenn Koons reports that on-site membership is currently 45.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (Northwest Community)-Kelly Bell and Jordan Aiken were baptized June 8. The congregation meets monthly for worship and small groups are working through a relational evangelism study A women's Bible study and a new believer'S Bible study have also been organized Public services will begin this month on Saturday evening at a local high school. Jim Aiken is pastoring this church
planting venture of the Pacific District Conference.
• eel e bra t ions , " .,
HENDERSON, Neb -About 200 people toured the congregation's new Family Center during an open house July 20.
BLAINE, Wash. (Birch Bay Bible)-More than 325 people participated in weekend activities July 26-27 in celebration of the congregation's 60th anniversary.
HARVEY, N.D.-Charles and Dolly Reimche celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a program July 6 Mr. and Mrs. Milbert Ortman celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary July 27.
DINUBA, CaIif.-Flowers were placed in the sanctuary July 6 in honor of Peter and Sophie Enos's 60th wedding anniversary.
INMAN, Kan. (Zoar)-The family of Elmer and Katherine Ensz hosted a 50th wedding anniversary celebration July 20. Ensz serves as visitation pastor
FRESNO, Calif. (North)-Flowers marked the 50th wedding anniversary of Ralph and Margaret Cornwell July 20.
FREEMAN, S.D. (Salem)-Joe and Alma Hofer celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with their family July 20.
REEDLEY, CaIif.-A floral arrangement in the sanctuary Aug 10 marked the 50th wedding anniversary of Sam and Lillian Pauls.
BUHLER, Kan.-A reception July 20 was held in honor of the 50th wedding anniversary of Eldon and Luella Jost.
GARDEN CITY, Kan. (Garden Valley)-A floral arrangement July 27 marked the 50th wedding anniversary of Dave and Sal Regier
SHAFfER, CaIif.-Henry and Faith Ratzlaff celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with their family Aug. 3.
DELFT, Minn. (Carson)-Waldo and Rachel Wiens celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary Aug 9 with an open house and program.
HILLSBORO, Kan.-The family of Orlando and Marie Schultz provided pulpit flowers and hosted a reception Aug. 17 in honor of their parents' 50th wedding anniversary.
Words of encouragement
J B Toews, veteran Mennonite Brethren leader from Reedley, Calif , talks to participants in a Mennonite Central Committee fruit-drying project near Reedley He told of his experiences as a child in the Ukraine, where his family was among the first to receive help during a fami ne
The frult-cirying project involved 86 people on two bus tours in late July and early August The tours, organized by Prudent Tours of Hillsboro, Kan , drew participants from several states and Canada In all, the two tours cut a record 2, 869 trays (about 6,886 pounds) of culled white and yellow peaches and nectarines
By the time the dried fruit is sold at regional MCC sales, and other money-generating contributions are included, the tours will have raised $40.360 for MCC ministries according to Jerry Linscheid. resource development coordinator for West Coast MCC This was the sixth year Prudent has organized the tours. raising well over $100.000 for MCC
• Fellowship
ADAMS, Okla.-The congregation gathered with the Balko MB Church July 20 for a picnic at Beaver State Park.
BRIDGEWATER, S.D. (Salem)-The congregation invited the Silver Lake congregation of Freeman to a church picnic July 20.
DELFT, Minn. (Carson)-The congrega· tion met for an outdoor mOrning worship service July 20 at their original site The group reminisced about the early life of the congregation A picnic lunch followed
HILLSBORO, Kan. (Ebenfeld)- The congregation met for the morning worship service Aug. 3 in the city park Morning activities included swimming, organized recreation and a hamburger fry
SALEM, Ore. (Kingwood Bible)Unchurched friends were invited to attend the worship service and picnic Aug 10 The congregation had a camping retreat July 25-27.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif (Heritage Bible)Men from the congregation went whitewater rafting Aug 16
• Ministry
GRANT, Neb. (New Life Fellowship)-The congregation sent six individuals with Youth Challenge to Jamaica June 10-19 . Participants were adult leaders Dave Pratt and Arlene Harms and teenagers Joel Watkins, Erica Dudo, Dedra Kugler and Amber Pratt.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (Laurelglen)Members of the congregation met nightly July 16-20 to pray for youth group members . The youth group sent a team of students to Mexico and another to Washington, D C
GARDEN CITY, Kan. (Garden Valley)The congregation has sent a construction team to Mexico for the past five years This year the group built classrooms for a church. Team members were Megan Alexander, Heather Siebert, Hilarey Dechant, Billee Paxson, Katie Simpson, Danelle Teetzen, Micala Teetzen, Twilla Siebert, Janet and Randy Bartel, Bill Paxson, Steven Ensz, Aaron Zeller, Jim Terry, Jeremy Wissink, Matthew Lightner and Nathan Piper
GETTYSBURG, S.D. (Grace Bible)-Steve and Marcy Knoble were commissioned as the congregation ' S first missionaries July 13 The couple and their daughter will serve with TEAM in Nepal
HILLSBORO, Kan. (parkview)-Two couples were commissioned for overseas workJuly 27 Harry and Millie Friesen will return to Japan as MB Missions/ Services
,
workers. Friesen has been serving the congregation as visitation pastor Ryan and Kristin Gerbrandt have accepted a twoyear assignment in Romania with Evangelical Free Church Mission. On Aug. 17, the Gerbrandts were also commissioned by the Enid (Okla.) MB Church
HESSTON, Kan.-Robert Lind, Willis Duerksen, Tony Wahl and Richard Prieb traveled to Guatemala Aug. 1-15 with Mennonite Central Committee to help build classrooms for the K'ekchi Mennonite Church. lind had first visited this area 20 years ago when there was only one K'ekchi church. Today there are about 75 congregations.
HILLSBORO, Kan. (Ebenfeld)-A sending service Aug. 17 commissioned Nate and Cherylen Gift for study at MB Biblical Seminary in Fresno, Calif.
OMAHA, Neb. (Faith Bible)-The congregation has developed a presentation concerning their urban ministry efforts. The presentation includes a slide show, personal testimonies, a message and music.
REEDLEY, Calif.- The congregation began remodeling their sanctuary this summer and have donated seats to several Pacific District congregations. North Hollywood Iglesia De Restauracion La Senda Antigua received 400 chairs for their new sanctuary in Pacoima. A new Slavic congregation in Bellingham, Wash., will pick up the remaining 600 seats this fall.
• Proclamation
RAPID CITY, S.D. (Bible Fellowship)Phil and Carol Bergen of Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission participated in Sunday services July 20. Carol also participated in vacation Bible school activities the precedingweek.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (Laurelglen)-Alan Keyes, former U.S. ambassador, presidential candidate, author and speaker, spoke at worship services July 19-20.
LITTLETON, Colo. (Belleview Acres)Pastor Gary Newton exchanged pulpits Aug. 24 with area pastor Felix Gilbert. Gilbert, who is the pastor of a dynamic African-American church in Denver, also brought his worship band
• Teaching/nurture
HAYS, Kan. (North Oak Community)Camp L.I.F.E. (Lives Invested for Eternity) was held June 4-5 at Rohr Family Campgrounds. The vacation Bible school camp included Bible stories presented by pastor Ken Ediger, who dressed in Bible costumes .
ENID, Olda.-Kris Gosney of Fairview,
Okla., spoke about victory in times of loss at the July 13 evening service Gosney shared from her own experiences following the death of her son in a truck accident. She is a member of the Fairview MB Church and was a speaker at the 1997 Southern District Conference women's retreat.. Vacation Bible school July 14-18 involved 64 children.
RAPID CITY, S.D. (Bible Fellowship)Vacation Bible school July 13-19 involved
191 students and 61 workers. Seven decisions were reported and more than $1,000 was raised for a Siberian camping program.
HILLSBORO, Kan.-About 120 children from the church and community and 48 staff participated in vacation Bible school July 14-18. The group raised $354 and towels were donated to help with Youth Mission International's work in Tijuana , Mexico.
communion intimacy to confession celebration and praise .. Sixteen songs Thirteen c;omposers, all from Mennonite Brethren churches in North
BOln
REEDLEY, Callf.-A total of 191 registered students and 50 staff were involved in the primary vacation Bible school and 80 registered students and 30 staff were involved in the junior vacation Bible school]uly 7-11 .
FRESNO, Calif.-College Community Church of Clovis, Calif., and Fig Garden Bible Church of Fresno joined forces to host a one-week vacation Bible school this summer. Members of both congregations taught 75 children from their churches and the community "The event was a tremendous success with almost half of the attendees coming from the community at large," says Marci Winans of Fig Garden. The two congregations plan to repeat the joint effort next year.
SAN JOSE, Calif. (Lincoln Glen)-A local group of Mennonites presented an educational and entertaining program on Mennonite history and folklore Aug. 10. In late July, the group had presented a folklore symposium on Mennonites at the national convention of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia.
NEWTON, Kan.-Greg Schmidt, who resigned July 1 as associate pastor of Koerner Heights Church in Newton, has accepted a call to be pastor of a new congregation in the city called Crossroads Community Church . The congregation, begun by a group of 20-25 people from Koerner Heights, is currently unaffiliated
FAIRVIEW, Okla.-Youth pastor Wendell Loewen and his family were honored with a farewell service July 20. Wendell, his wife , Shelly, and their two children have moved to Hillsboro, Kan., where he is teaching in the Tabor College Bible department.
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (Heritage Bible)Bryan Whitfield has accepted the call to serve as pastor of evangelism and discipleship. He was installed Sept. 7.
BETHANY, Okla. (Western Oaks)-A farewell reception was held July 27 for pastor Larry Ediger and his family. Ediger will be teaching music and Bible at Kansas City Christian Schools
EUGENE, Ore. (North Park)-Randy and Stacey Reiswig were installed as pastoral couple July 20. Pacific District minister Henry Dick gave the installation sermon.
REEDLEY, Calif. - Mark and Karen Thompson were honored with a farewell and sending service July 20 after nearly six years of ministry with the congregation as minister of family life and disciple-
ship. They will be leading Grace Community (MB) Church in Capitola , Calif.
WICHITA, Kan. (First)-Ernie Friesen has joined the pastoral staff as interim coordinator of caregiving.
OMAHA, Neb. (Millard Bible)-Rod and Donna Anderson were installed as the church-planting couple of an extension ministry in Papillion The project is sponsored by the Central District and Mission USA.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (El Camino Bible)Pastor Russ Biehn was ordained Aug. 31 with Pacific District minister Henry Dick officiating. This summer Biehn received his doctorate of ministry
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (Laurelglen)-A reception is scheduled Sept. 7 to welcome Jenny Crossman as the new children's director She has most recently served at Heritage Bible Church in a similar capacity and will work part-time under Ken McDuff, associate pastor of family ministries.
ROSEVIU.E, Calif. (Roseville Oaks Community)-Pastor Brad Schmidt has resigned, effective immediately. He has not announced his plans.
• Youth
MADERA, Calif. (Madera Avenue Bible)A German dinner featuring bierocks and German sausage was served July 23 to
raise scholarships for full·time undergraduate students who are members of the congregation. Students artending Fresno Pacific University will be awarded $500 a year with lesser amounts awarded to other twoyear and four-year vocational, college and university students.
INMAN, Kan (Zoar)-Youth group members met Aug 8 10 for a kickoff retreat at Morning Star Ranch near Florence, Kan.
. DEATHS
BROWN, MALINDA, Cordell, Okla., a member of Bible MB Church of Cordell, was born June 20, 1913, to Henry and Amanda Kiehn Wedel in Bessie, Okla., and died July 11, 1997, at the age of 84 She is survived by her daughters, Millie and husband Bob Maynard of Weatherford, Okla , and Jean and husband Larry Nightengale of Cordell; three brothers, Harry and wife Jewel, Ruben, and A.]. and wife Jessie, all of Cordell; three sisters, Lea Javorsky and husband of Cordell, Rosella Hom of Lookeba, Okla , and Susie and Art Hom of Midwest City, Okla.; one sister-in-law , Edna Wedel of Cordell; five grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren
DAVID, MARTHA, Inola, Okla., a member of Parks ide MB Church in Tulsa, Okla., was born March 26, 1911, to Henry and Elizabeth Beier Berg at Gotebo, Okla., and died Aug . 10, 1997, at the age of 86. On June 3, 1933, she was married to Alfre d David, who survives . She is also survived
Bom Li II·
by three sons, Wesley of Cave Springs, Ark., Charles of Mead, Okla., and Donald and wife Martha of Tulsa; two daughters, Virginia and husband Donald Epp, and Bar· bara Ediger, all of Tulsa; two brothers, John and Arthur of Fresno, Calif.; three sis· ters, Emma Kohfeld and Ruth Friesen, both of Reedley, Calif , and Esther Nickel of Inola; 12 grandchildren and 19 great· grandchildren.
ENNS, RUBY BERNICE, Toutle. Wash., was born March 29, 1913, in Com, Okla., and died July 24, 1997, at the age of 84. On Sept. 7, 1941, she was married to Henry B. Enns, who survives. She is also survived by two sons, Paul and Nelson; a brother, Cornelius Reimer; five Sisters, Liesbeth Enns, Lillie Kliewer, Tillie Kop· per, Naomi Janzen and Sara Ann Flaming; four grandchildren and three step-grandchildren.
FRIESEN, HELEN KUPPENSTEIN, Reedley, Calif., a membe r of Reedley MB Church, was born March 26, 1914, in southwestern Siberia to Gerhard J. and Anna Friesen Klippenstein and died July 26, 1997, at the age of 83. On Dec. 19, 1935, she was married to Nick Friesen, who survives She is also survived by two daughters , Erma and husband Wilfred
Martens and Vema and husband Jim Penner; one son, Dennis and wife Debbi, all of Reedley; one daughter-in-law, Sharon of Reedley; one sister, Anna Penner of Reedley; one brother, Pete Klippenstein of Dinuba, Calif.; 19 grandchildren and 14 greatgrandchildren.
GRUNAU, SARA E., Enid, Okla , a member of Enid MB Church, was born April 20, 1904, in Orienta, Okla , to Cornelius C. and Sarah Kroeker Grunau and died July 22, 1997, at the age of 93. She worked as a Mennonite Brethren missionary to Native Americans in Indiahoma, Okla She is survived by one brother, C.J Grunau of Fairview, Okla.; one sister, Mary and husband Dave Braun of Reedley, Calif.; one Sister-in-law, Edna Grunau of Owasso, Okla., and numerous nieces and nephews
HEINRICHS, ALLEN, Hillsboro, Kan., a member of the Hillsboro MB Church, was born April 9, 1919, near Colony, Okla., to Jacob and Maria Suderman Heinrichs and died July 28, 1997, at the age of 78. On Aug. 19, 1941, he was married to Kathryn Schroeder, who survives. He is also survived by his son, Dennis and wife Ruth of Great Bend, Kan.; one daughter, Kristin and husband Brad of Denver, Colo.; and three grandchildren
Images of the Church in Mission
The Bible shows that the very existence of the church is grounded in God's saving mission. John Driver offers studies of 12 biblical images for understanding the church. He explores images of pilgrimage, of God's new order, of peoplehood, and of transformation. The images the church uses to understand itself will largely determine what the church will become. By its calling, the church must be in mission.
"Soaked in Scripture and fertile with metaphors. Good preparation for mission." - Ervin Stutzman, Moderator, Lancaster Mennonite Conference Paper, 240 pages, $19.99; in Canada $28.50.
Orders: 800 759-4447 www.mph.lm.com
Press
Communications 8r..
Media Administrator
Location: Fresno, California
Starting date: as soon as possible
Deadline for applications: until position is filled
Duties:
oManaging editor, Witness magazine
oWriter
oOversee media productions, including direct support of other staff and overseas workers
oDirect media strategy for MBM/S (ie budget, reporting, planning)
Qualifications Desired:
oExcelient writing and editing skills
oBachelor's degree or equivalent or experience
oUnderstanding of print and electronic media
oManagerial skills
oChristian commitment and lifestyle consistent with Mennonite Brethren
Confession of Faith
oMembership in Mennonite Brethren Church
HOFER, EVELYN JEANNETfE, Freeman , S.D., a member of Salem MB Church of Bridgewater, S.D., was born July 13, 1921, to Jacob L. and Anna S Hofer near Free· man and died July 11, 1997, at the age of 76. On Oct. 13, 1940, she married Arnold M. Hofer, who survives. She is also sur· vived by a daughter, Debbie and husband Lyndon Graf of Marlow, Okla.; one sister, Marjorie Hofer of Freeman; four brothers, Melvin and wife Emma, Kenneth and wife Glennis, all of Freeman, Vernon and wife Norma of Marion, S.D., and Merlin and wife Sylvia of Dolton, S.D.; one sister·inlaw, Marie and husband Darius Hofer of Freeman; and three grandchildren
JANZEN, ANNA MIRANDA, Independence, Kan , was born March 5, 1917, near Meno, Okla., to John and Agnes Schartner Koehn and died Aug. 8, 1997, at the age of 80. On Jan 1, 1938, she was married to Daniel Janzen, who survives. They served the Southern District in the Marshall, Ark , area, where they were active in the Barren Hollow church-planting work, and pastored the Okeene (Okla.) MB Church. She is also survived by six children, Mary Nickel of Oklahoma City, Okla., Roger of Independence, Diane Claassen of Hillsboro, Kan., Carol Nachtigall of York, Pa ., Nita Rae Kleiber
of Independence, and Daniel of Hillsboro; 18 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
KROEKER, JOHN, Wichita, Kan., a member of Wichita First MB Church, was born June 24, 1912, to Abram and Agatha Langeman Kroeker in Neu Halbstadt, Russia, and died May 15, 1997, at the age of 84. On June 16, 1940, he was married to Hulda Loewen, who survives. He is also survived by three daughters, Nancy and husband Reg Boothe, Linda and husband Pakisa Tshimika, and Ellen and husband Gil Zemansky; and eight grandchildren.
NELSON, JESSIE MASON, Gettysburg, S.D , was born Aug 15, 1906, to John and Laura Portis Mason in Forman, N.D., and died July 10, 1997, at the age of 90. On Aug. 29, 1929, she was married to Lyle Nelson, who predeceased her She is survived by two sons, Dwayne and wife Juanita of Longmont, Colo., and Paul and wife Cheryl of Gettysburg, S.D.; one half-sister, Clara Jane Chadwick of Dayton, Tenn.; one half-brother Ross Jacobs Mason of San Antonio, Texas; 10 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren.
NIKKEL, HOMER H., Inman, Kan., was born Oct. 19, 1923, to Abraham R. and
Sara Dyck Nikkel in Harvey County, Kan., and died July 23, 1997, at the age of 73 . On Nov. 28, 1943, he was married to Wilma Dirks, who survives. He is also survived by four sons, Harlan and wife Kathy of Benton, Ark., Howard and wife Ellen of Anaco, Venezuela, Rodney and wife Debbie of Hutchinson, Kan., and Russell and wife Melody of Isabel, Okla.; 11 grandchildren, three step-grandchildren and three step-great-grandchildren.
PAULS, EUZABETII KOOP, Com., Okla., a member of Com MB Church, was born Dec. 29, 1903, to Henry and Elizabeth Janzen Koop in Washita County, Okla., and died July 27, 1997, at the age of 93 . On March 28, 1926, she was married to John W . Pauls, who predeceased her. She is survived by four sons, Arthur and wife Leola of Dallas, Ore., John and wife Evelyn of Okeene, Okla., Edgar and wife Marlene of Com, and James and wife Lavada of Denver, Colo.; four daughters, Elizabeth and husband Ben Brown of Com, Hannah and husband Don Utz of Haysville, Kan ., Miriam and husband Robert Roland of Portland, Ore., and Martha Ann and husband Don David of Tulsa, Okla.; one brother, Aaron and wife Ann of Wichita, Kan.; 28 grandchildren, 45 great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.
How can peace have a chance in Central America?
TOday people in this war-scarred region are healing wounds, one family at a time. By teaching and living the gospel of peace, Central American Anabaptists are sowing new life in their communities.
Your contributions can help MCC support healing in Central America:
$7 Cdn./$5 U.S. subsidizes publishing of Christian education materials for use in congregations and preparing lay leaders.
$140 Cdn./$100 U.S. pays for a person to take one course in a two-year peacemaking program.
To contribute, send your check marked Sowing new life #5940-7220 to your nearest MCC office.
BOD)
Mennonite Central Committee
SIEMENS, HARRY F., Buhler, Kan., a member of Buhler MB Church, was born Dec. 9, 1901, to Henry and Sara Friesen Siemens in McPherson County, Kan., and died Aug. 10, 1997, at the age of 95 On April 11, 1926, he was married to Lena Esau, who predeceased him. He is survived by two daughters, Lovella and husband Elmer Adrian and Elma Jean and husband Harold Brandt of Garden City, Kan.; one son, Floyd and wife Marie of Buhler; one sister, Marie Duerksen of Reedley, Calif.; nine grandchildren and 17 greatgrandchildren
TOEWS, NETTIE ROSE EPP, Henderson, Neb., a lifelong member of Henderson MB Church, was born Dec 7, 1912, near Hampton, Neb., to Peter C. and Helena Epp and died July 14, 1997, at the age of 84. In May 1935, she was married to John H. Toews, who predeceased her in 1987. She is survived by two sons, Arley and wife Elaine and Leo and wife Janice; three grandsons and one great-grandson.
WARKENTIN, GLADYS SCHROEDER, Reedley, Calif., a member of Reedley MB Church, was born Oct. 13, 1918, to Peter and Anna Schroeder at Com, Okla ., and died June 19, 1997, at the age of 78. On
Oct. 25, 1936, she was married to Hank Warkentin, who survives. She is also survived by her three children, Donna Philipp, Alice Agao, and Ralph "Bud" Warkentin; eight grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
•
75th ANNIVERSARY
Yo u'r e i nvited to a church birthday party, Saturday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. at Country Bible (MB) Church
• Old-fashioned hymn-sing
• Birthday cake
• Renew old friendships and form new ones.
Then join us for our 75th anniversary celebration, Sunday, Oct. 5, 1997 at 10 a.m. at Capay Elementary School, Orland, Calif.
Invitation: TO: Born-again Chnstians
King Road MB Church in Abbotsford, B.C., is seeking volunteers for its Church Partnership Evangelism outreach to ....
8. PERU - Sullana, Trujillo April 4-27, '98 $1,200
9. UKRAINE - Tchernovtsky, Odessa. May 16 - June 8, '98
10. CONGO - Kinshasha May 1-25, '98
11. FIJI ISLAND - Labasa June 5-22, '98
12. PARAGUAY - Asuncion, Chaco July 4-20, '98
13. UKRAINE - Dnipropetrovsk, Novomoskovsk, Berdyans, Alexandria. July 25 - Aug 18, '98 $1,600
Note: Dates may be subject to change. pending further confirmation of some campaigns 'Canadian dollars
• Team up with national Christians and witness for Christ door to door.
• Some knowledge of the language of the country is helpful.
• Between 800-2,800 persons have prayed to accept Christ as their personal Savior and Lord during a two-week CPE campaign Come and be a part of an enriching spiritual experience-discover what God can do through you. For more information, contact: CPE office: Tel.-Fax: 604-864-3941, or Evelyn Unruh, 604852-5744; or Peter Loewen, 604-853 -3173 or FAX 604-853-6482
Church Partnership Evangelism is a "church-to-church" effort that involves lay members in personal evangelism worldwide. Your application to participate will be forwarded to the C P.E. Executive Committee for processing
Peter Loewen CPE Promoter
Harold W Ens MBMIS General Director
Pauls Resident of Palm Village since 1984. Happy and healthy!
Independent Living · Residental Care
Health Care Center (completion winter '97 - '98)
more information, call
MEDIA MATTERS
BY BURTON BULLER
Media Literacy 101
In today's world, where a high school graduate has already watched 15, 000 hours of television, media literacy is not an option.
" D ADDY' READ ME a book!" It seemed like at least the zillionth time 5-year-oldJacob had asked
book reading by parents had almost effortlessly taught Jacob to read. Not an unusual happening. Many children accomplish the same reading skills at me to read a book. And not just any book. A favorite book!
"OK, Jacob Pick one out. Let's read one more before you go to bed."
The book he brought was dogeared and falling apart from overuse. I knew he had mostly memorized the pages.
"Tonight, Jacob, you read me this book."
"Don't be silly. You know I can't read. You read me the book."
"You know most of these words, " I said encouragingly. "You read, and if you have trouble, I'll help along."
"OK."
And off he went, "reading" the entire book without a hitch. I noticed that he read only those words on the page, and not words from the following page-something I thOUght he would do if he had truly memorized the book.
After he was done, we celebrated by whooping it up, and running to tell Mommy. Then I asked him to read another book, a book he seldom asked about. This book, too, he read, missing only a few words with which he was unfamiliar
That conftrmed it for me. He knew how to read. Early in kindergarten, and knowing that neither I nor his mother had intentionally taught him to read, I began investigating how this momentous thing had come about
I didn't have to look long . Jacob was an avid watcher of "Sesame Street." That, and a regular diet of
the same age, or even earlier. But noteworthy, because this time it was my child
I began to pay more attention to "Sesame Street." With creative repetition and frequent reinforcement, the writers and producers of this PBS program did what ftrst-grade teachers had previously struggled to do with children a year or two older. Under the guise of entertainment, they had given one of the most precious gifts children receive in early childhood-the gift of literacy
Knowing he could read changed Jacob's life completely. A whole new world was opening to him, simply because he had mastered the basics of print literacy.
He would spend the next 12 years of his life in mandatory school, where much of his time was devoted to improving his language arts skills. He was taught to read for meaning, to uncover underlying subtexts of the primary texts. Tom Sawyer was an interesting kid's story, but what else did Mark Twain have in mind when he wrote it?
For 12 years Jacob studied the printed page Never in those 12 years did he receive any formal instruction in media literacy. Yet today, at age 19, I estimate he watches three to ftve movies per week and spends countless hours on the computer. He continues to read-because he also likes to write. I suspect that is a bit unusual. More
common for young people his age would be the heavy movie and television watching with reading limited to essential information-gathering
The fact that he received no formal education in media literacy bothers me. To spend so many years developing critical thinking skills associated with the printed page while ignoring the media is doing a disservice to our young people. We know they will spend far more time engaged in the media than in reading. Why do we not spend an equal amount of time preparing them to think critically about the values and subtexts of television, movies and video games?
I can only guess that we feel somehow the ability to critically "read " the media will rub off on our young people. Maybe, to some extent, it does. But does it do so in time for them to make use of it when they need it most-those early, value-forming years?
We know that value-formation in youth is heavily influenced by parents and other signiftcant adults. But it is also clear that both peers and the media have some influence By encouraging our children to choose friends with positive values, we seek to influence the formation of values in our children. By encouraging our children to watch positive TV programs, we seek to influence the kind of values available for consideration.
By inSisting that our children become media literate at an early age, we take a giant step toward helping them ftlter out the negative values and reinforce the positive values in the television and movies that they watch.
In today's world, where a high school graduate has already watched 15,000 hours of television, media literacy is not an option It is as mandatory as print literacy. What a shame that our schools and churches have not yet risen to this challenge .
LET ' S TALK ABOUT IT
A GUIDE FOR GROUP INTERACTION
SESS ION 1 Forecast in g the end
Ba sed on "The End Is Coming! .. .Eventually, " page 4 .
GET READY - Getting started
• What tends to be your response to the end times : (a) only God knows, so I don't worry about it ; (b) it frightens me ; (c) it influences the way I live each day
GET SET - Examining the iss ues
1 What are the various approaches to the end times, as described by Kyle?
2 Review the five rea sons g iven for the popularity of dispensational premillenniali sm?
3 To what extent do you think Christians should be involved with the doomsday predictions of scientists? Are we too involved or not involved enough?
4. What reasons are given for Christians not being involved in the timing and chronology of Christ's return?
GO - Applying idea s to the way we live
1 Of the two trend s within American evangel icalism identified by Kyle, which is of the greatest concern in your congregation or Bible study group?
2 What could encourage more substantial biblical or theological study in our churches?
3 . How ought we to relate to brothers and sisters who are more concerned with sensationali sm than with biblical truth?
4 What are the "glorie s of the end of time" that motivate your walk with Chri st and relationship with others today?
SESSION 2 The out r ageousness of God
Based on "Within the Reach of Tante Nuht " page 8
GET READY - Getting started
• Which of your relative s is most like Tante Nuht?
GET SET - Examining the issues
1 What do you like best about Tante Nuht?
2 What do you think gave Tante Nuht joy?
3 What similarities do you see between Tante Nuht and God?
GO - Applying ideas to the way we live
1 How could she instill both fun and fear in those around her?
2 . What things cause you to gravitate toward God?
3 Review Scriptures such as Romans 8 : 1 and John 3 : 16 that describe the "outrageousness " of God What happens if we no longer see God as outrageous?
4 In what ways can you describe the " infectiou s sp irit" of God ?
SESS
I ON 3 Tee n s and disc i pleship
Based on "Young Walkers ," page 11, and "Helping Youth Connect With the Bible, " page 12
GET READY - Getting started
• What nurtured your faith as a teenager?
GET SET - Examining the issues
1 As you review the factors suggested by Robbins , underline the words and phrases that highlight the key issues in each
2 Do you agree or disagree with the la st paragraph under " Superficiality " ? Why or why not?
3 W ith which "wrong" views of God are you most likely to identify?
4 Cite examples of "practi cal training in righteousne ss "
GO - Applying ideas to the way we live
1. Apply Newton ' s teaching strategies to a Scripture passage you have recently studied individually or as a group
2 To what extent are you as an adult exposed to this kind of approach to Scripture?
3 . Are these strategies realisti c for use with youth or adults? If you would like to see more of them used in your congregation, how would you begin to implement them?
4 What is the greatest challenge for your congregation : to encourage people to become Christians, or to help them be the Christians they ' ve become?
SESS ION 4 Meaningful prayer life
Based on Ph 'lip Side, page 16
GET READY - Getting started
• Share thoughts about a "prayer event" you've attended.
GET SET - Examining the iss ues
1 Identify the principles of prayer highlighted in the Scriptures given in the article What additional teachings can you list regarding prayer?
2. Are large prayer gathering s " more effective than the earnest prayers of a lone person or small gathering " ? Why or why not?
3 What are essentials to a meaningful prayer life and experience?
GO - Applying ideas to the way we live
1 With which " prayer difficulty" in the art i cle do you identify?
2 What in your spiritual life would benefit from "just doing it"?
3 Review a recent conversation between you and God regarding your prayer life What instruction and encouragement is God giving you?
Awaiting a truly sacred assembly
IF YOU BUY INTO the "bigger is better" approach to life-and it's amazing how profoundly that assumption influences our thinking-then we can only wait expectantly for what promises to be the greatest gathering of Christian men in American history.
A massive movement of men from across this country is expected to converge on Washington, D.C., Oct. 4 to take part in a Promise Keepers event called, "Stand in the Gap: A Sacred Assembly of Men." Just how many men will gather in our nation's capital is anybody's guess. When the notion fIrst emerged a few years ago, PK talked about 1
Bill McCartney, former University of Colorado head football coach and founder of Promise Keepers, says the goal of the "Sacred Assembly" is to "gather a diverse multitude of men to confess personal and collective sin, presenting to the Lord godly men on their knees in humility, then on their feet in unity."
That's a laudable goal. But does it require the presence of several hundred thousand other men and incalculable dollars in travel expenses to accomplish it? If it does, what hope does the sacred assembly of a mere "two or three gathered in my name" have? And if it doesn't, what else million men. More recently, some talk of 2 million.
Whatever the fmal tally, this is a big event. How big? Consider the logistical impact as of mid-August, as reported by EP News Service:
• Two months before the event, Washington was virtually sold out of hotel rooms; 90 percent of the 90,000 hotel rooms in the city were booked for that date.
I hope PK leaders, speakers motivates a massive assembly such as this one?
and participants will resist the temptation to broaden
the call for the renewal of Christ's church into a rally for nationalistic renewal
• Washington's Dulles and Nation- and resurgence. al airfIelds were already at maximum capacity for charter flights. No more will be accepted.
• Greyhound reported that all 75 of its charter buses were booked by men planning to attend the rally; American Bus Charters had reserved more than 75 percent of its fleet.
• Amtrak said they were sold out on their D.C. routes from Atlanta and New Orleans on Oct. 3, the eve of the event; by now, the same is likely true for their routes from Chicago and Los Angeles.
Add to this other airports in the region, smaller bus lines, vans, cars, campers and myriad other modes of transportation and you have the potential for an unprecedented assembly. Louis Farrakhan's "Million Man March" could seem like an intimate huddle by comparison.
This, indeed, could be the greatest gathering of men in American history.
At least, if bigger is better. But is it? Elsewhere in this issue, Philip Wiebe raises some appropriate questions about our fIXation with big events. "At times the big event can overshadow the everyday calling," he says. I think he's right.
EP News reports, without attribution, that this assembly is being held in Washington, D .C., for logistic, not political reasons. "The nation's capital is one of the few places in America with the public transportation, sanitation, safety and crowd control resources in place to accommodate a gathering of this size," EP states. It adds: "Washington, D.C., was also chosen because of its
role as the emotional heart of America, set apart as a piece of land for all people."
I hope the "Sacred Assembly" stays true to the stated agenda. But it won't be easy. Washington is also the political heart of America; any massive gathering there is a political gathering simply by defInition. I hope PK leaders, speakers and participants will resist the temptation to broaden the call for the renewal of Christ's church into a rally for nationalistic renewal and resurgence.
If the "Sacred Assembly" turns out to be an effort to "turn America around" and renew its social, economic and political life, then much of what is said and spent will have limited eternal value. But if Christian men come to Washington to truly "confess personal and collective sin," and are energized to commit themselves to living the gospel by pursuing justice, eliminating racism, battling materialism, maintaining purity and seeking reconciliation in their personal relationships and in their home congregations, then the "Sacred Assembly" can truly be a great gathering for the church in America.
And God's kingdom, not America's domination, will be advanced.
