Mennonite Action, a grassroots group organizing against Israel’s war on Gaza (and recently against Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s oppression of immigrants), emerged on the scene in late 2023 and has grown in its influence among Anabaptists. This book provides a thorough guide to its work and how to get involved. 

The preface describes the purpose: “We see this resource as one that will inform the greater community about the work of Mennonite Action and motivate inactive Anabaptists to engage collectively in the work given to us by our confessions of faith.”

The book’s organization shows its appeal to two audiences: those “inactive” Anabaptists who may be interested in being more active and those already committed to action who need guidance for organizing. The book is divided into these parts: a study guide, an organizing guide and appendices.

The study guide is a four-week curriculum for adult Sunday school classes, small groups or ad hoc study groups: “It’s a tool to help you engage more people in your congregation and community in deeper conversation and move them into action.”

Each week addresses a different topic and is paired with one of the appendices. The sessions are “Mennonites and Quietism,” “Living in Complex History,” “Israel, Palestine and the Bible” and “Give Us Courage, Give Us Hope.” Each session is organized around a scripture lesson, scripture background and discussion and action.

The book is unapologetic about promoting action — specifically, action toward opposing the genocide in Gaza. It is not meant to be merely an intellectual exercise. The unspoken message is that “Mennonite action” is this kind of action rather than others, and that “inactive” means not active in the way the book promotes. This may be off-putting for some but is also refreshingly straightforward.

The major part of the book is devoted to the organizing guide, which is “to assist you as you engage your congregation and your community, organize a local or regional Mennonite Action chapter, plan and execute actions and campaigns and build collective power together.”

It is amazingly thorough and provides excellent information for anyone organizing actions.

It covers these areas: Building Solidarity and Power to Resist Authoritarianism; Providing Mutual Aid and Raising Funds; Planning Public Actions and Events; Communicating Strategically; Organizing Congregations, Campuses and Youth; Forming Teams, Chapters and Coalitions; Developing Leadership and Group Capacity; Running Effective Meetings; and Ensuring Movement Safety.

This guide could be useful for any organizing. It includes interesting details. For example, there’s the SWOT analysis: an assessment of a group’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as the opportunities and threats it faces. Jesus called this “counting the cost.” Groups should not go into action blindly or naively. And, while effectiveness is not the only measure of success, groups want to be as effective as they can be.

Another example is the snowflake model, which has four main components: 1) distributed leadership; 2) mutual accountability; 3) clearly defined responsibility; and 4) capacity for exponential growth. 

Sprinkled through the book are stories illustrating its points. These enhance the book’s instructive tone. I especially liked the story by Naomi Shihab Nye, a Palestinian-American poet and novelist, of her encounter with an Arabic-speaking woman in an airport who needed a translator and then provided cookies for others at the gate waiting for a delayed flight. She writes: “This is the world I want to live in. The shared world.” It’s a story of hope, which we all need.

Timothy Seidel’s conclusion offers a helpful perspective. The journey toward justice is long and ultimately to be guided by God’s Spirit. He writes: “Our outward-facing public action is at the same time an inward-facing act of collective formation. It is an opportunity to encourage, strengthen and form us into a people steadfast and seeking to live out our faith through public action.” 

Much of Mennonite Action’s action involves worship and song. It is clearly based on a faith commitment to the God who is “steadfast Love from whom there is nothing that can separate us.”

The book includes a helpful glossary and bibliography.