It was Tuesday, December 31, the last day of the year 2019, when Sangmin Lee called me with excitement to report news of his amnesty. Early in 2014 Lee was sentenced to 18 months in prison for refusing, on the basis of his faith, to complete his mandatory military service. Although Lee was freed on Keep Reading…
Matt Anslow — Australia
“Christians are taking on this role of witnessing publicly—even paying the cost of being arrested—in order to witness to compassion for refugees.”
Olga Rubel — Ukraine
“Though we are already Mennonites in name, we are learning how to be real peacemakers and what it means to reconcile.”
Mennonites in Sidi, Burkina Faso
Pour français cliquez ici Note: This story has been updated. In the village of Sidi, Burkina Faso, Mennonite Christians face losing access to the land they farm, because of a growing conviction that the requirements for land use in the village are in conflict with their faith in Jesus Christ. Land in Sidi is managed Keep Reading…
Prayer and fasting
Today’s post is focused on the Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) and their experiences amidst the violence that currently wracks northern Nigeria. The Church of the Brethren (US) has identified next week (August 17-24) as a week of prayer and fasting for the EYN and for the violence in Nigeria more generally. Keep Reading…
Write a letter of encouragement to Sang-Min Lee
Over the past few weeks, we’ve shared on the blog and on Facebook about Sang-Min Lee, a young Mennonite from South Korea who has refused to fulfill his mandatory military service, as a matter of faith and conscience. On April 30th, Sang-Min was convicted and sentenced to an 18-month prison term. Many people around the Keep Reading…
Binh Thanh Congregation (1975-2003)
This story of the Binh Thanh congregation in Ho Chi Minh City (then Saigon) begins in the weeks following the People’s Revolutionary Army’s takeover on April 30, 1975. The following excerpts are taken from: Luke Martin, Nguyen Quang Trung, Nguyen Thanh Tam and Nguyen Thi Tham, “The Mennonite Church in Vietnam,” in Churches Engage Asian Keep Reading…
Update on Sang-Min Lee’s case
On Tuesday, we posted about Sang-Min Lee, a young Mennonite in South Korea who has refused to fulfill his obligatory military service. Yesterday we received some surprising correspondence from him. The judge has delayed his trial, without any explanation! So Sang-Min is not in prison at this moment, which is reason for rejoicing. At the Keep Reading…
Trial day for Mennonite CO in South Korea
By John D. Roth It was one of the passages narrating the week of Jesus’ passion that first led Sang-Min Lee to consider the way of peace. Soon after he became a Christian, Lee was moved by Jesus’ teaching to love our enemies, especially his rebuke to Peter for defending him with a sword in Keep Reading…
Salvador Alcántara
Pastor Salvador Alcántara, from the rural precinct of El Garzal, Simití, Sur de Bolívar, Colombia, is an exemplary and inspiring man. He is a husband, father, grandfather, pastor of the Foursquare Gospel church in El Garzal, farmer, president of the local comunal action council (junta de acción comunal), and vice-president of ASPROAS—the Alternative Producer Association Keep Reading…