The Mennonite name for churches may or may not be efficacious (“By any other name,” May 6). I can give a personal witness from a different context: When I arrived at the ­Federal Emergency Management Agency in 2009 as a presidential appointee, I was an unknown novice. Word got around to career officials that I was a Mennonite. A doorway to acceptance and inclusion, sometimes only begrudgingly and partially opened to political appointees, swung wide for me because of Mennonite Disaster Service. MDS’s reputation for letting its “yea be yea” and its “nay be nay,” quality workmanship and humility far exceeded its relatively modest size. A reciprocal effect was also true: By being known to be a Mennonite, I was conscious of representing a tradition that helped govern my way of being.

David L. Myers, Ocean Pines, Md.

Myers directed the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships from 2009 to 2017 and also served as senior adviser to the FEMA administrator from 2013 to 2017.

I appreciated the articles by Brad Roth and Ron Adams (May 6) about ­changing church names from “Mennonite” to some other generic-sounding name. As a pastor at Faith Mennonite Church in Minneapolis/St. Paul in the ’80s, I saw the congregation benefit from the name. We had a reputation as a peace church, and others told us we had an influence far beyond our numbers. I received invitations from high schools, colleges and seminaries to speak about Mennonites and our beliefs. This would not have occurred if we had a name like Community Bible Church. Our membership increased when some of our families moved to be near the church, which influenced other neighbors to attend. “Mennonite” was not a hindrance. It clearly defined who we were.

Myron Schrag, Goshen, Ind.