Leadership: A word from Mennonite Church USA leaders

We live in such a polarized world. The recent elections again revealed the polarization in which we live and the context in which our church and institutions minister. There is a better way. We are called to offer hope to a world that seems to have lost it, to bestow love and compassion where there is brokenness and hatred, and to become agents of “healing and hope,” to which our denominational vision statement so eloquently calls us.

I recently heard a character on television expressing guilt at his inaction. He described his response as “an ostrich that puts his head in the ground.” I wonder how many times that phrase might describe me. It is sometimes easier to look the other way as if that will somehow eliminate the issue or situation. But it never does.

As Christian leaders we have a responsibility to respond instead of looking the other way. As Anabaptists, we have something to share with the world in the midst of all the polarization. We need to speak boldly, to help train and prepare leaders to face the present and future world and to respond to the needs around us by taking on leadership roles.

Our church has not escaped the polarization in our culture. Many times I have been asked to take part in arguments between those who favor Mennonite education and those who favor public education. This type of argument creates a false choice; it implies that being in favor of one means that one must be against the other. Instead of using “or” in this discussion, let’s use “and” when speaking about education.

It is also important to acknowledge that Mennonite education is distinctive from public education and needs to continue to be distinctive. The church plays an important role in helping shape this distinctiveness, which also enhances the church’s ministry, including its missional calling. Mennonite schools, colleges/universities, seminaries and educational programs are actively engaged in helping develop leaders for the church and beyond. Mennonite education offers an alternative to the distorted, polarized worldview—a Christ-centered, servant leadership where God’s love is shared regardless of a person’s job title.

I have experienced this type of leadership from mentors and role models in the Mennonite church. I have seen it in graduates who are starting their careers with a burning desire to make a difference in the world. I have seen it in faculty and staff who have given their lives (and often have given up more financially prosperous careers) because they believed in the importance of the school’s mission. Our world desperately needs more leaders who see Jesus as their model for leading.

Mennonite educational institutions are not the only setting where such leadership development takes place, but they serve an important role in the church in this endeavor. With technology, Mennonite education no longer has to be bound by geography, only by relationships and the ability to communicate effectively. Mennonite education, at all levels, deserves our support and commitment—whether through prayer, advocacy or financial contributions. Mennonite education is a gift for everyone.

This month, as part of a Mennonite Schools Council and Mennonite Education Agency initiative, Mennonite Publishing Network is publishing Teaching that Transforms: Why Anabaptist-Mennonite Education Matters by John D. Roth, a well-known writer and professor of history at Goshen (Ind.) College. Through the book we hope to share widely about the Anabaptist-Mennonite theology that serves as the foundation for the pedagogy, beliefs and practices present in Mennonite educational institutions.

According to Roth, the book also provides “a framework for an open, lively, vigorous and honest conversation about the nature of our Christian witness to the world and our assumptions about the future of the church.”

I hope this book will be read and discussed by many across our church, especially by those who hold different points of view. I hope people rediscover the role Mennonite education plays in the church’s Christian witness to the world while also being inspired anew to become agents of “healing and hope.”

Carlos Romero is executive director of Mennonite Education Agency.