New Voices: By and about young adults

Renewal is a potent word. If we played a word association game with “renewal,” the first words that came to your mind would probably be different from what came to my mind, which would be different from the responses of your neighbor, best friend, pastor, coworker or hairstylist.

I was in a meeting where we were discussing the need for renewal within Mennonite Church USA. As I reflected on the meeting, I realized everyone in the room had a unique working definition of the word renewal.

I thought of revival and conversion, of composting and recycling. I thought of people who have left military service because they became conscientious objectors to war. I thought of youth who have left destructive life patterns because they encountered the genuine love and acceptance of Jesus. And I thought of my own struggle to understand what it means for me to experience constantly the renewing of my mind.

I appreciate the J.B. Phillips version of Romans 12:1-2, which says, “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold, but let God remold your minds from within.”

While this is a more passive interpretation than the standard “do not be conformed to the pattern of this world,” it conveys more vividly the subtle power of our world to mold us into its own image, which is what will happen to us by default. It is only with intentionality, a yielded posture, relationship with like-minded people and spiritual disciplines that our minds will be remolded or renewed into the image of Christ. This stark contrast helps me see why it is so hard for me to be renewed continually in contrast to the world around me.

Gospel stories revolve around Jesus challenging not only the cultural but the religious status quo. His words and his actions reveal something radically different from the options offered by the pervading culture. His message calls into question every area of life. So what does it look like for Mennonite Church USA to experience renewal?

Raising a generation of children and youth that value relationships and a balanced life above an unbridled pursuit of being the best athlete or scholar or musician will require not only a countercultural commitment of the youth themselves but their parents and their faith communities.

A church that interprets the use of technology through the eyes of Christ will run counter to a culture that is happily being molded into whatever image the newest technology has to offer.

An ongoing commitment to the unusual life of simplicity becomes increasingly more difficult in a world that offers more convenience every day if only we are willing to accept the world’s mold of consumerism, efficiency and accessibility.

We live in a world where conflicts, especially those dealing with deeply held convictions, involve speaking as loudly as possible so that the other perspectives are drowned out. Listening to others, especially if we are to listen deeply enough to hear the pain associated with those beliefs, is countercultural.

Radical love and respect for all people stands out in a culture where women become CEOs but can still be objectified, and a race barrier can be broken by top executives while gross racial inequities continue in every community in the United States.

Welcoming the stranger is a radical stance in a context where policies receive more attention than the people affected by them.

Maintaining a commitment to genuine discernment within a community requires time and energy, which runs counter to a results-based and fast-paced world.

Constant renewal in our commitment to Christ’s teaching of peace requires creativity in a culture and world that are constantly presenting new conflicts in which to mold us.
What does renewal look like if we accept a holistic and biblical understanding of the Holy Spirit promised by Jesus Christ? How do we avoid the many competing and incomplete narratives of the Holy Spirit’s work in the life of the church and accept one that is complex and challenges each of us as well as our community of faith?

In his book The Irresistible Revolution, Shane Claiborne says, “Conversion,” or we might substitute renewal, “is not an event but a process, a process of slowly tearing ourselves from the clutches of the culture.” What will it mean for us to be renewed?

Jon Heinly is youth minister for Lancaster (Pa.) Mennonite Conference and Lancaster Mennonite Schools. He can be reached at jheinly@lancasterconference.org.