Thank you, John Longhurst, for your analysis of the unfortunate demise of the Mennonite Brethren Herald (North of the 49th, Nov. 25). More than 35 years ago, I was a subscriber because I was raised in the Mennonite Brethren church in British Columbia and treasured my faith heritage, though I had relocated to the United States and became a member of what is now a Mennonite Church USA congregation.
I remember writing a letter to the editor of the Herald as a response to an article concerning women in ministry and pastoral leadership, a subject fraught with conflict in many churches of the time, including my own conference and congregation, and debated in some Mennonite and MB groups even today.
The letter was never published. I did receive a personal letter thanking me for my kind words about my MB background but explaining that my letter would not be published because my viewpoint did not reflect the official “biblical” position of the MB church leadership of the time. Needless to say, I did not renew my subscription.
In retrospect, there is a certain lack of the biblical virtue of humility — and, dare I say, a certain evidence of arrogance — when a church claims to have obtained a corner on the truth for all time and refuses to hear or acknowledge dissenting voices.
Verna Zook
Iowa City, Iowa
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