Why would Mennonite Church USA want to join Christian Churches Together in the USA?
Mennonite Church USA is one part of the body of Christ, with important gifts to offer and to receive as we seek together to be faithful. Christian Churches Together (CCT) is a broad forum of Christian churches where we can share our distinctive Mennonite-Anabaptist voice. There is presently an openness among other Christians to hear from Mennonites that we have not known before in our church’s history. We can also learn from the experiences and perspectives of others and, where appropriate, engage in shared witness and mission in the world.
What will CCT do?
At least once a year, CCT will bring together leaders of a broad range of Christian denominations. A primary emphasis initially will be on building relationships through prayer, fellowship and conversations about our commonalities and our differences. With prayerful discernment over time, there may be opportunities for shared witness and mission. CCT will regularly sponsor national and regional forums on diverse topics (e.g. evangelism, worship, public policy).
In CCT, decisions will not be reached by majority vote, but only by full consensus of all groups. Only when all members present either say “yes” or agree to “stand aside” will the body move ahead on any action. If several denominations in CCT (such as the peace churches) want to say or do something together, CCT contacts can give them an occasion for doing this.
Why join CCT rather than the National Council of Churches or the National Association of Evangelicals?
CCT gathers together a significantly broader spectrum of the Christian church than other existing groups by including Pentecostals, Roman Catholics, Orthodox, Evangelicals and mainline Protes-tants. Significant leaders of both the NCC and the NAE have been supporting formation of CCT.
American Christianity has been polarized between a “Religious Right” and a “Religious Left.” The National Association of Evangelicals would not admit a denomination to membership if it wanted also to join the National Council of Churches. Mennonites have wanted to work toward developing relationships with Christians in both camps rather than to further the polarization between them. We are thankful that CCT offers an opportunity for us to do that.
For roughly the past twenty years, Mennonites have sent observers to both NCC and NAE meetings and we anticipate continuing to do so.
What resources of time and money will we need to commit? Would this compete with our relationship with the Mennonite World Conference and its member churches?
A very modest CCT budget is proposed to cover one professional and one support staff member, with costs allocated on the basis of size of denomination, annual denomination budget, etc. Costs to Mennonites would be very small compared with Mennonite expenditures for Mennonite confer-ence, mission, and relief programs. In fact, Mennonite leaders in other parts of the world occasion-ally chide us in the U.S. for not relating formally to other Christians through bodies like CCT.
The principal cost we would project for the Mennonite Church USA would be the staff time and money involved in sending a denominational leader to the two-and-a-half day annual general assembly—but sending a representative to share with and learn from Christians of other traditions can be a key element in our work toward a Christian church that witnesses more faithfully to the Lord Jesus Christ.
In joining CCT might we be tempted to compromise our core convictions?
Member churches continue to stand on their own statements of faith and doctrine. Because of the consensus model of decision-making (see above), CCT can not speak or act over the objections of a member church. CCT will thus primarily provide a setting for conversation and relationships. Unlike other ecumenical bodies, CCT will likely sponsor few programs or public statements. Nonetheless, any attempt to witness and learn from others in mission or interchurch dialogue at home or abroad can challenge and change us. We need to continually discern what leads to greater or less faithfulness.
What might CCT membership mean for local Mennonite congregations?
Experiences in interchurch relations at the congregational level can inform and guide contacts between denominational leaders at CCT meetings and vice versa. Regional forums sponsored by CCT could be points of meeting and conversation with Christians of other denominations in geographical areas.
In which of the five CCT families would we participate and why?
Upon joining CCT, each member church participates in one of five church families (Evangelical/Pentecostal, Historic Protestant, Historic Racial/Ethnic, Orthodox, Roman Catholic) for the pupose of selecting representatives to a steering committee. Like Mennonites, many denominations may find themselves in more than one of these families and not entirely at home in any single one. Mennonites are certainly an Historic Protestant denomination. However, because of our commitment to the good news of God’s gracious love and the invitation to conversion and radically transformed lives as we follow Jesus Christ, Mennonite Church USA would most likely participate in the Evangelical family. This may also be where our distinctive voice could be most helpful. Regardless of which family Mennonite Church USA participates in, we will represent the convictions and practices central to our Anabaptist tradition as we seek to build bridges between all parts of the body of Christ.
In short, what does membership in Christian Churches Together mean for Mennonite Church USA?
The bottom line is: 1) a Mennonite Church USA leader will participate in a two-and-a-half day annual CCT assembly; 2) Mennonite congregations and conferences could participate in regional CCT forums on diverse topics; 3) Mennonite Church USA will make an annual membership contribution (anticipated at roughly $1000); and 4) we will signal our desire as a denomination to be in relationship and dialogue with other members of the body of Christ.
What is the process for further discernment regarding our participation in CCT?
Strong affirmation for futher exploring membership in CCT was expressed by delegates at the Delegate Assembly in Charlotte in 2005. This material was prepared in response to questions raised by delegate table groups there. Area conferences are encouraged to process participation with their leadership and/or congregations and send affirmations, reservations, questions or comments to André Gingerich Stoner, Interchurch Relations, Mennonite Church USA, P.O. Box 1245, Elkhart, IN 46515 or AndreGS@MennoniteUSA.org (with copies to your CLC represen-tatives) by Feb. 15, 2006 . Congregations and individuals are welcome to send responses to the same address. We value this counsel as the Constituency Leaders Council and Executive Board discern whether to bring a recommendation about CCT membership to delegates in San Jose 2007.
Further information about Christian Churches Together can be found at www.christianchurchestogether.org.
Drafted by André Gingerich Stoner, director of Interchurch Relations, Mennonite Church USA and Albert Meyer in consultation with George Brunk III, Ron Byler, Judy Zimmerman Herr, Nelson Kraybill, John Rempel, Jim Schrag, and Tom Finger.