In a week and a half we have a unique occasion for celebration – Pastor Mark will be ordained for pastoral ministry.  Mennonite theology values the priesthood of all believers.  We all have access to the Divine and share in the call to embody the healing and reconciling ministry of Jesus.  We also recognize certain offices of ministry, among them chaplains and pastors.  The priesthood of all believers doesn’t necessarily mean the pastorhood of all believers! Our denominational Polity Manual says: “Ordination is an act of the church that confirms those whom God and the church have called to particular roles of leadership ministry – both to build up the local body and to further engage the congregation in the mission of God.” In our polity, credentialing for ministry is a two-step process.  A pastor is first licensed, a temporary credential for a time of testing and discernment by the

Yesterday I attended the convocation chapel at the Methodist Theological School in Ohio (MTSO) which honored the careers or retiring professors Dr. John Kampen and Dr. Linda Mercadante.  Both have Mennonite ties.  John and his wife Carol are long time members of Cincinnati Mennonite Fellowship where I pastored prior to CMC.  Linda and her husband Joe Mas attend CMC. Both gave reflections.  John recalled what he feels to be the most important accomplishment of his professional career:  While teaching and serving as Academic Dean at Payne Theological Seminary, an African Methodist Episcopal Church school, he helped them become an officially credentialed seminary.  They continue to form black leaders who are shaping communities and institutions. Linda spoke of MTSO as a haven for her over a long academic career that included personal challenges.  She began her career surrounded by male faculty and has seen the institution grow to embrace female faculty. 

This month we’re welcoming 16 new members into CMC.  Four joined this past Sunday.  Another 12 will join this coming Sunday.  As has become our custom, we’ll hear brief reflections from each of them.  We’ll share Communion, served by new members.  And we’ll recite together our Membership Commitment statement – an old practice with new (and fewer!) words. Membership actually seems like a bit of an anomaly for how we generally do church.  About 30 years ago missiologist Paul Hiebert proposed the now-common categories of Bounded Set and Centered Set.  Groups that operate as a Bounded Set actively define who’s in and out.  They emphasize lines and boundaries, and what criteria determines those boundaries.  A primary image here is a fence. A primary image for Centered Set groups is a well.  There are no limits on how far away you are from the well, but if you’re thirsty you’ll move

Over the past few years, our congregation has enjoyed having various pastoral interns work among us.  When we are approached by people seeking to intern with us, it is often with the expressed hope that our congregation has something to teach them as they test out their gifts in ministry.  It takes a lot of grace to be a teaching congregation, and I am grateful for the ways that Columbus Mennonite gracefully and patiently seeks to nurture not just interns but all people stepping into new leadership roles.  Indeed, my first year as pastor at CMC was my first time in a pastoral role, and I am eternally grateful for the love and support (and patience!) that has been shown to me.  But we do not just teach interns and other new leaders, we also strive to learn from them and welcome the ways their unique gifts can breathe new

Even though I’ve had my back to it for much its creation, The Sketch (feels like it should be capitalized) has been a rich part of Lent worship. The idea came out of an initial observation that the scripture readings for each week of Lent this year contain key images that fit together into a coherent landscape.  That landscape is now complete. In the upper left is the wilderness of Lent 1 in which Jesus fasted and listened for the Spirit’s path. Lent 2 featured Abraham looking at the stars and Jesus walking toward the city of Jerusalem Lent 3 included the parable of the unfruitful fig tree (left foreground) and an invitation to the living waters. In Lent 4 we pondered the parable of the prodigal son (or species) where the field on the right and animals took shape.  What an adorable pig. The story of Lent 5 took