A two-way street- Central Plains hosts visitors from partnership countries

Members of the Ecuador Partnership
Members of the Ecuador Partnership met in Illinois in June to continue building on the relationships that have developed over the past 11 years. Photo by Don Rheinheimer. Download full-resolution image.

MOLINE, Ill. (Mennonite Mission Network)—Ten visitors from Ecuador and Colombia were among the participants at the Central Plains Mennonite Conference annual meeting in Moline, Ill., June 16-19, and the annual Ecuador Partnership meeting that followed, held Sunday afternoon at Casa de Oración Emanuel Mennonite Church in Davenport, Ill.

Communicating in both Spanish and English, the visitors shared stories and reflections during table discussions, showed slides and spoke about their churches in a workshop, and joined in the fellowship at mealtimes and between sessions.

The Ecuador visitors were from the Mennonite churches of Quito and Riobamba, which grew out of the work of Cesar Moya and Patricia Urueña, mission workers since 2000, through a partnership of Mennonite Church of Colombia, Central Plains Mennonite Conference, and Mennonite Mission Network.

Over the years, members of the Ecuadorian churches have hosted many work teams, fellowship groups, and partnership delegations from North America. Don Kempf, who coordinates partnership involvement for Central Plains, described this visit as "a time of celebration as we renew acquaintances and can return the kind of excellent hospitality that we have received as we traveled to Ecuador and Colombia in past years."

In Partnership meetings, 25 people representing Central Plains, Mission Network, the Mennonite Church in Colombia, and the churches of Quito and Riobamba, gathered to hear reports of each group’s activities, and for an update from Moya and Urueña, who have been teaching and researching at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, Ind., for the past year.

AMBS included published writings by Moya and Urueña in their celebration of AMBS writings. Published in Spanish, these writings are Moya’s book, Conflict, Liberation and Reconciliation, and a collaborative work, "Booklets of Biblical Theological and Pastoral Training," for theological education with indigenous churches, for which Moya and Urueña served as theological and pedagogical consultants. In addition to teaching, writing and researching, Moya and Urueña have traveled to various churches, mission festivals and banquets to share about their work in Ecuador. This summer, they attended courses at Summer Peacebuilding Institute at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, Va. Moya also said that he had learned much about American culture and the Anabaptist theological perspective from the North this year.

As pastors of a church in Ecuador with a strong ministry to refugees, Moya and Urueñawere especially interested in the experience of immigrants in America.

"They live in uncertainty, and furthermore, it isn’t easy to find work and provide for their families," they observed.

In sharing their concerns for immigrants in a Sunday school class, Moya and Urueña were surprised to find that some brothers and sisters support anti-immigrant laws without fully considering biblical teaching about treatment of strangers.

"North American Mennonite churches have a great challenge to respond to this problem and share God’s love in a holistic way," they wrote in one of their reports. Moya and Urueña will continue traveling to churches and writing before they return to Ecuador in August for another three-year term.

While Moya and Urueña were in Elkhart, the Quito congregation has continued its ministries with refugees and neighborhood children. Three North American mission workers—David Shenk of Virginia, and Erica and Kelsey Hartman, sisters from Indiana—were in Quito since last year. Shenk is serving two years with the refugee program, while the Hartmans served nine months in Quito church ministries and the Hazel McCallion School, which collaborates with the church in peace education.

Peter Stucky, representing the Colombia Mennonite Church, called on those in Central Plains and in partnership countries to continue to heed the call of mission.

"We are committed to challenging people (to serve) in their missionary calls within and outside the national borders," he said.

##

Mennonite Mission Network, the mission agency of Mennonite Church USA, leads, mobilizes and equips the church to participate in holistic witness to Jesus Christ in a broken world. Media may contact Andrew Clouse at andrewc@mmnworld.net, 574-523-3024 or 866-866-2872, ext. 23024.