The board of Mosaic Mennonite Conference is recommending the conference end its membership in Mennonite Church USA. Delegates will vote on the proposal Nov. 1.

With about 7,500 members in 60 congregations, Mosaic is one of MC USA’s largest conferences. Based in Lansdale, Pa., it has members from coast to coast.

If Mosaic withdraws, it would be the sixth conference to do so — after Lancaster, Franklin, Southeast, North Central and South Central — since the denomination was formed in 2002 in a merger of two predecessors.

The Mosaic board made the recommendation at its Sept. 15 meeting and announced it Sept. 18.

A Mosaic release said the conference and MC USA “have been unable to reconcile significant differences around polity and intercultural practices.”

“Mosaic has been growing quickly, organically and in relational ways in Colombia, Mexico and beyond,” Mosaic board member Haroldo Nunes said. “When we share these realities with MC USA, including the challenges that our non-English speaking pastors have, they are not readily responsive to our needs. By staying within this limiting structure and continuing to wait, our vision and mission is being impacted.”

The Mosaic board approved a “Centering Document” as a “framework for how Mosaic engages within its own diverse community and in its relationships with other Anabaptist bodies.”

Mosaic leadership minister Josh Meyer said the document “calls us back to the center — Jesus — and invites us to embody both gracious hospitality and high expectations.”

In a statement to AW, Glen Guyton, MC USA executive director, called Mosaic’s centering document “beautiful” and said it “shows me how closely aligned we are theologically and the important role that the people of Mosaic had in shaping who Mennonite Church USA is today.”

Guyton continued: “We invite the members of Mosaic to continue sharing their voice and Anabaptist witness as the world becomes more divided and Christian nationalism embeds itself in our society. More than ever, in a world that draws lines and creates confusion, we as the body of Christ need to be that shining city on the hill. We hold the delegates of Mosaic in our prayers during their time of discernment.”   

The Mosaic board’s recommendation comes after Mosaic and MC USA leaders declined each other’s proposals about affiliation and process. Last November, Mosaic delegates endorsed the idea of a partnership with MC USA. Conference leaders later defined this as a proposal to become a program entity, an organization that provides services to meet churchwide goals.

The MC USA Executive Board decided in May that such a relationship “is not viable within our structure.” The MC USA board then proposed a mediated conversation, which Mosaic leaders declined “at this time.”

In late July, Mosaic moderator Angela Moyer Walter requested further conversation with MC USA’s executive committee. Marty Lehman, who became MC USA moderator in July, told AW she regretted that she had not responded to the request and that a lot of staff were on vacation after the denomination’s convention earlier in the month.

Mosaic is in its third year of discernment about affiliation. At last November’s assembly, delegates extended the process for a year.

Besides discontinuing membership in MC USA, the board recommends Mosaic “cultivate healthy mutual partnerships with Mennonite Church USA, Mennonite World Conference and other Anabaptist communities.”

The Mosaic announcement said the board’s decision “follows years of prayerful discernment and attempts at dialogue and understanding with MC USA.”

Moyer Walter said: “MC USA leadership has shown minimal willingness to address structural issues related to polity, intercultural practices and global partnerships that significantly impact Mosaic. While the denomination was once open to change, that momentum has stalled. Our existing status within MC USA is not healthy and the board believes moving toward a mutual relationship will allow Mosaic to flourish.”

At the MC USA convention in July, Guyton announced a process of “reimagining the church” would begin this year, with outcomes to be presented at the 2027 delegate assembly.

Stephen Kriss, Mosaic executive minister, told AW that a perception of differences in theology and practice between Mosaic and MC USA was a factor in the recommendation to discontinue membership. Two congregations left Mosaic in the past year due to disappointment that Mosaic remained a member. He said Mosaic includes congregations that want to stay in the denomination and others that want to discontinue membership.

Mosaic’s announcement said the conference “continues to operate from a position of financial strength.”