Anabaptist World call for submissions: ‘What if they don’t come back?’. 

Deadline: March 1. About 600 to 1,200 words. Photos would be a bonus! Article submission at editor@anabaptistworld.org.

For many of us, the coronavirus pandemic has uprooted church as we know it. Congregational life, and the community that it creates, has shifted, revealing unexpected challenges and opportunities.

We invite everyone — both lay people and pastors — to respond with your experiences of church during these times.

• How is your congregation responding to the challenges of COVID-19?
• What should congregations be doing?
• How do we care for each other when we can’t be together?
• How do we move toward each other in a time of division if we can’t be in proximity?
• How do we reach out when we really should stay home?
• Are you worried that some people may not come back when it is safe to be together?
• How can we keep these losses to a minimum?
• How are new people being integrated into church when not everyone is physically together?
• What new things have been transformative for your church and will continue when the pandemic subsides?
• Do current challenges present opportunities for transformative change?

This submission call is partly based on ideas that will be explored on Feb. 20 in the Hesston College online event, “What If They Don’t Come Back? Pastoring Through COVID.”