Cross Purposes
Richard A. Kauffman
Where were you on the morning of 9/11—that is, if you were born and are old enough to remember? I was pastoring the Toledo Mennonite Church at the time. That morning I was in a pastors’ meeting at a restaurant on the edge of Pettisville, OH. One of the owners interrupted our meeting to tell […]
From Privilege to Cruciformity
Richard A. Kauffman
Many of you here know of Michael “MJ” Sharp, I assume. He spent part of his growing up years in Goshen and went to Bethany Christian High School, where he had a bit of a reputation as a trouble-maker. But he was very smart and had an expansive vision of what he wanted to do […]
Rooted and Grounded in Christ’s Love
Mark Schloneger
Giant sequoias can grow to over three hundred feet tall, weigh over twelve million pounds, and are known to have lived over three thousand years. In terms of sheer size, there is no other tree that comes close to the giant sequoia, and there are trees standing today that were alive when David became king […]
the Church, formed
Mark Schloneger
Before I begin, I want you to know that I prepared this sermon in Berkey’s first and second grade Sunday school classroom. When I opened the door, chimes hanging on the door welcomed me inside. You know what? I’d like chimes to ring whenever I enter a room. I felt good in that space. I […]
A Two-Handed Theology
Joanne Gallardo
I have had a really difficult time loving my neighbor lately. I mean that both in the literal and more metaphorical sense. I don’t understand the point of view of my actual neighbor. She tells me about how our current pandemic has been planned, because she saw “Plandemic” before the media shut it down. She […]
Chasing the Harvest
Mark Schloneger
Marisol is a farm worker and single mother from Mexico. She came to the United States to work in the seasonal fruit harvests She is vice-president of the local chapter of Lideres Campesinas, a farmworker women’s leadership and outreach group. In her own words: Working in the fields I earn $300 weekly before taxes. […]
Good Body
Mark Schloneger
Well, it’s time to address the elephant in the room: Shakira, J.Lo and the Super Bowl halftime show. Now, I know what you’re going to say. You’re going to say, “I haven’t thought about that for two weeks,” or, “I never thought about it at all,” or, “I don’t want to think about it again.” […]
What It Takes
Mark Schloneger
A few years back, a Super Bowl commercial for Doritos and Pepsi Max was pulled before it had the chance to be aired. That’s because a lot of Christians complained that it was too offensive. Letters were written, petitions were circulated, and some vowed never to eat Doritos or drink Pepsi again. Given the controversial […]
The March of the Kingdoms
Mark Schloneger
With a high school band or soldiers in basic training, one of the first things taught is how to march. And that’s not an easy task. Learning how to march takes practice, hours and hours of practice. Hours and hours spent paying attention to even the slightest details. The length of the stride. The pace […]
Crossing the Chasm
Dan Schrock
A friend of mine was recently asked to speak at a major denominational meeting. For his talk, he chose a topic he was passionate about. It was a topic he knew really, really well because he had been thinking about it for at least 10 years. So when he sat down to write his speech, […]
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