The hikers, Maoz Inon, 32, and David Landis, 25, have just taken a short hike down from the Mount of Beatitudes to the shore of the Sea of Galilee on part of the new Jesus Trail hiking route they have mapped out over the past five months.
“Can you imagine what it would be like for a hiker after walking the route for some hours and then to arrive here, or at another holy site? It is different than arriving on an air-conditioned bus,” said Inon.
The two young entrepreneurs — Inon, a Jewish Israeli, and Landis, an American Mennonite tourist who divides his time between Israel and other travel destinations — met over the Internet when Landis came across
Inon’s travel blog.
For several years Inon had toyed with the idea of mapping out a hiking trail along the route of Christian holy sites in Galilee. He found a partner in Landis, who shared his passion for hiking and world travel.
Landis mapped out the trail using Global Positioning System navigation and Google Earth, which offers searchable satellite imagery and maps. A map or GPS files of the route can be downloaded from the Web site — www.jesustrail.com — and an experienced hiker can set out on his own. The Web site also includes information about the trail,
accommodations, tour operators and other logistics.
The 40-mile trail, which follows the pre-existing Israel National Trail as much as possible, begins in Nazareth and passes through places of Jesus’ ministry: Cana, the site of the wedding feast and Jesus’ first miracle; Tabgha, where Jesus multiplied the loaves and fishes; and Capernaum, which served as Jesus’ home base during his ministry. The trail also includes traditional Israeli tourist sites such as Zippori, famous for its Byzantine mosaics, and the Cliffs of Arbel, with their
panoramic views.
The trail culminates at the Mount of Beatitudes. An optional return route of equal distance passes through additional sites on a circuit back to Nazareth.
Most of the trails are accessible to all hikers, with varying degrees of difficulties. Public transportation is easily accessible from many parts of the trail.
The trail follows the growing trend in pilgrimage hikes such as the Way of St. James to Spain’s Santiago de Compostela and the St. Paul Trail in Turkey, said Inon. A group from Harvard University is putting together a trail following in the footsteps of Abraham — from eastern Turkey, through Syria, Jordan and ending in Hebron, West Bank — as an interfaith peace-building project, he added.
The Israeli Ministry of Tourism has been considering a similar idea for almost eight years, but the wheels of bureaucracy turn slowly, said Amir Moran, who is working on the planning of the Gospel Trail for the Ministry of Tourism and the Galilee Development Authority. The Ministry of Tourism path, which will in many places follow the Jesus Trail, will include marked paths, parking lots, shaded areas, rest areas and other facilities, Moran said. The project, which is expected to be completed in about two years, will cost between $2 million and $3 million, he said.
“We as a public group need to make sure the tourists have a safe path to follow. There are things we as public officials can do which Maoz can’t do. I very much support Maoz’s initiative. The idea is a very
natural one,” said Moran.
Though it may be hard for the Western mindset to comprehend, Inon said with a grin that he and Landis expect no financial compensation for the work they are doing. They hope their path will attract more tourism to the area and encourage people to spend more time in northern Israel, eating at local restaurants, buying supplies from shops along the route
and visiting the small villages and Christian monasteries in the area.
“You give and you get,” said Inon, adding that they both enjoy the work they are doing and the people they are meeting along the way.
“Hiking is a much more humble way to travel,” said Landis. “You are in contact with people that you meet, you have to work for it and appreciate it more.
“You can connect with the way Jesus walked and lived as a real person. It is something that is moving and living. It is not just something that happened a long time ago that existed in one place, but something you
can participate in in a different way.
“Jesus didn’t build churches,” he added. “Jesus met people by walking from village to village.”
Copyright (c) 2008 Catholic News Service www.CatholicNews.com Used with permission of CNS
John Tyson, an Eastern Mennonite University student, said he “had thought about it for some time and felt that the time and place were right.”
And so, early on Easter Sunday, the junior biblical studies and philosophy major from Lansdale, Pa., was baptized in the Jordan River into the community of faith.
What made the experience even more special was that Tyson was baptized by Linford L. Stutzman, associate professor of culture and mission at EMU, and the baptism was witnessed by the 29 students in his Middle East study group. Dr. Stutzman and his wife, Janet M. Stutzman, are leading the cross-cultural seminar during the university’s spring semester.
“The community I’ve experienced in this cross-cultural group and the journey we are sharing is something special,” Tyson said afterwards. “I’ve been active in the Mennonite church for several years, but traveling with this group has been the place where I’ve been most at home with God and the world.”
“John had asked about the possibility of being baptized several weeks before Easter, when our group was still in Jerusalem,” said Stutzman. “I mentioned that the Jordan River runs through the back of Kibbutz Afikim, and that we would be there over Easter. Perhaps that would be a good opportunity.”
The EMU group arrived at Kibbutz Afikim, secular Jewish agricultural commune, on Mar. 17. On Easter Sunday morning, they rose early and assembled at 5:30 for the 20-minute hike to the Kibbutz graveyard, which overlooks the Jordan. There, the students led songs and read scriptures as the sun rose over the Golan Heights.
The group then hiked down toward the Jordan.
“I recounted the journey of learning and faith that everyone is traveling on this cross-cultural, paralleling the journeys of faith in Scripture, how wilderness and water are so much a part of it, and how baptism connects to these stories–Moses and the Hebrew children crossing the Red Sea, the Hebrews wandering through the wilderness then crossing the Jordan to the promise, John baptizing in the Jordan, Jesus being baptized in the Jordan. All of these places and events have been part of the group’s travels, and all relate to the meaning of baptism,” Stutzman recalled.
Tyson then recounted his own journey of faith and why he chose to be baptized at this point in his life.
“I decided that taking this step was appropriate and the time and place and people only confirmed that,” he said. “For me, water baptism symbolized the life of God at work in the world through things we often take for granted but that create new life.”
The men waded into the middle of the Jordan, and Stutzman poured water over Tyson’s head. They then returned to shore, where students gave encouragement and blessings, and sang several songs.
Tyson has been attending Souderton (PA) Mennonite Church since age 17 and is a graduate of Christopher Dock Mennonite High School. He will serve as an intern with Franconia Conference this summer.
It is the fifth time for Linford and wife Janet, a former director of alumni/parent relations at EMU, to lead a cross-cultural program in the Middle East. The group is scheduled to return to campus Apr. 22.
ELKHART, Ind. (Mennonite Mission Network and Franconia Conference) — Last year, Mennonite Mission Network and Franconia Mennonite Conference collaborated on the first Youth Venture experience in Israel.
This summer, Franconia Conference will again partner with Mission Network to offer another Youth Venture learning experience in Nazareth, Israel, and will add a new location: Mexico City, Mexico. Both trips will take place in July 2008.
“This is a relevant collaboration because it brings Mission Network’s skills and Franconia conference’s relationships together,” said Steve Kriss, director of communication and leadership cultivation for Franconia Conference.
The Israel experience will be led by David Landis, Franconia conference associate for communication and leadership development, who also led last year’s trip. The group will begin its time in Nazareth volunteering at Nazareth Village, a first-century recreation of life during the time of Jesus.
They will then travel to Jerusalem and Bethlehem, where they will live with Palestinian families in the West Bank.
Landis hopes this year’s trip will be more educational and experiential and allow participants to meet with Israelis, Palestinians, Christians, Muslims and Jews.
An orientation will be held in the Philadelphia area.
The Mexico experience will be led by Franconia Conference staffer Lora Steiner, and will be hosted by Mexico Mennonite Conference, one of the Franconia’s partners in mission.
The first part of the trip will be spent in Mexico City, participating in service projects with local Mennonite churches and living with families from the churches.
The group will then travel toOaxacato explore some of Mexico’s past and current context, visiting Mayan ruins, a coffee plantation, and exploring the city.
Mennonite Mission Network works to partner with area conferences, congregations, and other groups in order to promote collaboration and networking.
“This partnership [between Franconia and Mission Network] allows us both to bring our vision and passions together and to work on these trips collaboratively instead of each trying to do something alone. It’s been a wonderful way to bring all of our unique gifts together,” said Arloa Bontrager, Mission Network Youth Venture director.
Both trips will focus on building relationships and understanding the complex issues and perspectives that affect people in both regions.“These experiences are an important way to cultivate young leaders by giving them the opportunity to be out in the world and not only to serve, but to experience and learn as well,” said Kriss.
Youth Venture offers young adults age 14-20 the opportunity to join with other teens for one-to-four weeks of service in July or August. Youth Venture recruits a team leader and invites participants into groups that will live and work together in various North American and international mission projects, pray, and study the Bible together.
“We want youth and young adults to come away with a vision for a lifetime of service and mission, whatever that may look like for them,” said Bontrager, “Hopefully their understanding of the world and how God is working can be shaped and expanded through these experiences.”
Cuban pastor Beatriz Lopez arrived in the United States earlier this month on an invitation to visit with leaders from several church organizations, including Franconia Mennonite Conference. Beatriz is the President of the 55-year-old Pentecostal Holiness Church in Cuba, an organization of 30 churches, 16 missions, and a number of house churches throughout the island.
The Pentecostal Holiness Church of Cuba receives support through a partnership between Calvary Chapel Norristown (PA) and Franconia Conference, which has a historic relationship with Christian ministries in Cuba. The support received has provided leadership training through seminars and workshops for pastors and lay leaders in Cuba’s churches. The partnership has also helped repair and update facilities at the national camp of the Pentecostal Holiness Church where retreats for men, women, and children, an annual national convention, and a school for leadership training are held. The resources and people provided throughout the years have helped build and repair the camp’s church, bathhouse, guesthouse, and kitchen. Currently the partnership between Franconia Conference and Calvary Chapel of Norristown is helping the camp to construct a new worship space so that the current space can be converted into a dormitory.
Pastor Beatriz is the first woman serving as president of the Pentecostal Holiness Church in Cuba and has been serving in that role for six years. She is also a single mother of two sons in their 20’s. As a teenager Beatriz felt the calling to serve the Lord and began seminary at age 15. By age 19 she was an experienced evangelist and beginning her first pastorate. Beatriz noted that while pastoring and and working is tough, the ministry and business worlds in Cuba have long been accepting of and invitational towards women leading.
The president of Cuba’s National Council of Churches, where Beatriz is a member, is also a woman. The Pentecostal Holiness Church in Cuba has a good relationship with the state of Cuba and is active in the National Council of Churches.
After her visit with Franconia Conference, Beatriz visited congregations in Boston, Oklahoma, Alabama, and North Carolina before returning to Cuba. Adamino Ortiz, a member of Nueva Vida Norristown (PA) New Life has initiated the relationship with Calvary Chapel and serves as liaison and coordinator in the Cuba partnerships with Franconia Conference.
On November 15, powerful winds swept in from the Bay of Bengal creating a surge of water that rolled up rivers and streams, deep into Bangladesh. Cyclone Sidr was the worst cyclone in more than a decade. Hundreds of thousands of people are homeless, left with nothing but what they could carry as they fled to the safety of shelters. Crops, schools, and roads were destroyed and livestock swept away. According the news reports, the cyclone claimed more than 3,400 lives. TheUnited Nations estimates that more than 273,000 homes have been destroyed and 650,000 damaged in the country.
Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) workers Larry Fisher, formerly of Churchville, VA, and Mokhles Rahman, of Bangladesh, visited the southern Bangladeshi districts of Bagerhat and Pirojpur from Nov. 19 to 21 to survey the damage. Larry writes, “We came away with the feeling that the need is indeed very great and that we should respond in a significant way.”
In response to the need for housing and food MCC, along with partners, has promised a response valued at $500,000 that will: provide food immediately for 10,000 families for one month by making local purchases of rice, lentils, oil and salt ($38 provides these items for a family of 5 for one month); and reconstruct up to 1,500 homes ($200 provides material to rebuild one bamboo/slat home). More families are likely to receive food as MCC Bangladesh establishes additional distribution channels.
For information on MCC’s relief efforts on Bangladesh and how you can help please visit www.mcc.org.
GOSHEN, Ind. — A Franconia Conference native is participating in the Goshen (Ind.) College Study-Service Term (SST) in Peru during this fall, along with 15 other students.
Katharine E. Derstine, daughter of John and Sheryl Derstine, is majoring in business. She is a 2005 graduate of Christopher Dock Mennonite High School and attends Blooming Glen Mennonite Church. The SST is being led by Duane Stoltzfus, associate professor of communication, and his wife, Karen Sherer Stoltzfus. The group will return at the end of November.
Located in South America along the Pacific Ocean, just south of the equator, Peru is a country of contrasts. It is home to the Andes Mountains, the Amazon rainforest, a desert blanketing the coast and a wealthy capital surrounded by shantytowns. Indigenous people make up 60 percent of the country’s population.
Students will spend the first six weeks studying Spanish and learning about Incan history, the 1980s civil war and the women’s movement in Peru. During the second half of their stay, students will spread out across the country to live with families and volunteer at service assignments.
Since SST began in 1968, more than 6,500 students and 230 faculty leaders have traveled to 20 countries; the college currently organizes SSTunits to study and serve in China, Germany, Cambodia, Senegal, Peru, Jamaica and Nicaragua. Goshen established an SST unit in Peru in 1995.
Franconia Mennonite Conference Partner in Mission, Grace Assembly Network, felt the personal impact of Hurricane Dean last week. Pastor Lesly Bertrand, church planter and president of Grace Assembly, wrote this week about the hurricane and the opportunity to partner with him in emerging ministry opportunities:
Last Sunday evening Hurricane Dean crossed between Haiti and Jamaica, hitting the southern end of our island. According to the Haitian Government report, roughly 10 people died, 450 houses were destroyed, and 3,000 people are homeless. Among those victims are some members of our churches. One of our pastor’s reports that houses around him were destroyed and he lost his entire garden. Some families are currently living in the church building because they lost their houses. It is very possible that famine will result in the coming weeks.
Grace Assembly Network consists of 24 congregations, three church plants, seven schools, and 30 pastors. Evangelism and equipping leaders are two central values for this growing and vibrant network of churches. Ministry is challenging in a country hampered by extreme poverty and political instability. Franconia Conference has partnered with Grace Assembly Network over the last several years in leadership development as the congregations have faced threats and addressed possibilities for ministry and hope. Grace Assembly also partners with the Hopewell Network of Churches and is connecting with Mennonite World Conference.
Help make a difference. For every dollar received, Franconia Conference will match $.50 (up to $1000). Make checks payable to Franconia Mennonite Conference (note “for Haiti ministry†in the memo line) and send to 771 Route 113, Souderton, PA 18964.
Since 1985, more than 700 persons have participated in Youth Venture, a program that provides opportunities for youth and young adults to join together for service and learning experiences, seeking to capture the imagination and passion of youth and young adults to invest their lives in bring healing and hope to the world.Youth Venture offers the offers the opportunity to join with other young Anabaptists for one to four weeks of service in July or August in various North American and international mission projects.
In July and August of 2007, Franconia Mennonite Conference will partner with Mennonite Mission Network to offer a collaborative experience for youth and young adults at the Nazareth Village in Israel. This is the first time for such a collaboration, and both parties hope that by working together, a more effective and networked program can be developed for participants. David Landis, Associate for Communication and Leadership Cultivation for Franconia Mennonite Conference, will serve as team leader.
Five years ago Mennonite Mission Network began a vision of collaborating with Mennonite Church USA conferences and other affinity groups, seeking out ways to live into what networking really means. Del Hershberger, MMN Director of Christian Service, states “We believe that networking with other folks who have a passion for ministry creates new, exciting possibilities that we never could have thought of or done by ourselves. I see this as a first step in FMC and MMN each bringing our ideas, passions and resources together to enhance the faith formation and leadership development of young adults.”
Participants in the Youth Venture trip to Nazareth Village will discover the land where Jesus walked while serving at a recreated village of first century Nazareth, working on maintenance projects, at a hospital or a children’s camp. Living with local Arab Christian families will provide opportunities to understand God’s continuing work in the Middle East. Many assumptions about the way the world functions are challenged as participants discover and exercise their gifts. The experience aims to explore real ways for participants to see God’s love and concern for the connected world far beyond anything they’ve imagined.
Stephen Kriss, FMC Director of Communication and Leadership cultivation says, “I’d hope this represents a new way to embody the network paradigm that both Franconia Conference and MMN are living into in these days of rapid change and global connectivity. In working together, we’ll share our resources to create opportunities to engage the world and to find new possibilities to incarnate the Good News that speaks to a new generation, our congregations and the world.
For more information on Youth Venture, go to http://www.mennonitemission.net/Work/Service/YV/. The Nazareth Village experience will be held from July 23 to August 10, 2007, flying in and out of Philadelphia.
In a February visit where U.S. religious leaders were told they were the first American delegation to meet face-to-face with a sitting Iranian president in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Mennonite Central Committee’s Ed Martin saw an unexpected fruit of nearly two decades of MCC work in Iran.
“I would have never dreamed that our work in Iran would lead to such a meeting. We usually work at a community level. Yet, through the relationships built up over the years, to be suddenly sitting in the presidential offices was amazing,†said Martin, who is director of MCC’s Central and Southern Asia programs and has overseen the Iran program for 17 years.
MCC began working in Iran after a devastating earthquake in 1990, providing the humanitarian aid the organization is known for. Through years of work on other relief projects, as well as a student exchange program founded in 1997, MCC built networks of ties that led to the February delegation.
The 13-member group of U.S. religious leaders, co-sponsored by MCC and American Friends Service Committee, included representatives from the United Methodist, Episcopal, Catholic, Mennonite and Quaker churches as well as representatives of Sojourners/Call to Renewal, Pax Christi and the National Council of Churches. They were in Iran Feb. 19-25 and plan to visit U.S. policymakers in Washington, D.C., on March 6-7.
Having leaders of other groups, such as the United Methodist Church and Sojourners, really multiplies the impact of the visit, said J. Daryl Byler, a delegation member and director of the MCC Washington Office.
“They represent huge networks of people, and they can share the experiences through those networks,†Byler said.
Delegation members from MCC say they are encouraged by the conversations they had with leaders in Iran, that they will continue work to call U.S. government leaders to meet with Iranian leaders and that they hope U.S.
Christians continue to pray for and remember Iran and its people.
And they find themselves reflecting back on how long-term MCC work led to ground-breaking conversations.
Between two narratives
Delegation leader Ron Flaming, MCC’s director of international programs, said as the delegation met with leaders in Iran, he was struck by the realization that how Iranians view the country’s history differs sharply from how most Americans would view it.
For Iranians, the overthrow of a democratically elected government in 1953 and the installation of the Shah by the U.S. government was a sore point, as was U.S. support for Saddam Hussein during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. The delegation met with Iranian leaders who described the Shah as a brutal dictator known for his opulent living. The overthrow of the Shah, from this point of view, was a liberation movement.
Americans, on the other hand, remember the overthrow of the Shah as the hostage crisis, the 444 days that Americans were held hostage. Night after night, television news would broadcast images of angry Iranian students and U.S. hostages. More recently, after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, George Bush cast Iran as part of an “axis of evil.â€
“I think the delegation was keenly aware we sat between these two narratives and found how difficult it was to make the bridge,†Flaming said.
On the other hand, Iranian religious leaders spoke passionately of the need to work for peace. An Armenian Evangelical pastor said even small steps are important. Sometimes in building a bridge, he told them, you must begin with placing a few pebbles to start a foundation.
“It feels like what we need right now is somebody to help start building a bridge,†Flaming said. “We’ve got two governments who are posturing – neither wants to seem weak. If somebody would start a dialogue, there’s the possibility of the other responding.â€
“The other impression I got over and over again is the Iranian people feel they are not respected,†Flaming said.
He said Iranians asked delegates to consider the country’s track record.
“They say with some intensity that they have never invaded another country, have never used weapons of mass destruction even though Iraq used them against Iran,†Flaming said. Iraq used chemical weapons in the Iraqi-initiated war with Iran in the 1980s.
Flaming and Martin said the group was told over and over again that Islam prohibits the development, stockpiling and use of any weapons of mass destruction. “While it doesn’t guarantee Iran would never develop a nuclear bomb, it makes it clear there’s a very strong public and religious consensus against it,†said Flaming.
As the delegation learned about Iran’s ancient culture and its emphasis on education, they also found that Iranians, from religious leaders to the President, were well-versed in Christianity.
One of the inequalities that Martin has noticed in years of working at Christian and Muslim relations is how much Muslims know about Christianity, Jesus and the Bible – and how little most Christians know about the Quran. “If we’re going to have serious dialogue, we’re going to have to know more about the Quran,†Martin said, noting scholars he’d met in Qom who have read the entire Bible several times and can readily recite from it.
Moving forward
The group released a statement calling on the U.S. and Iranian governments to immediately engage in direct, face-to-face talks and to cease using language that defines the other using “enemy†images.
“Our two governments need to find a way to engage each other, and that’s critical. If that doesn’t happen, the current tensions are not going to get resolved,†Flaming said.
Delegates came away convinced they needed to work diligently to call on the U.S. government to talk to Iran about the current tensions between the two nations. They are also hoping that Christians in the U.S. will contact their lawmakers to express their desire for talks between the U.S. and Iran.
“If governments aren’t talking then it’s still a very dangerous situation,†Byler said.
Two days after the delegation returned, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced that the United States will participate in Iraqi-led talks with Syria and Iran, to seek ways to stabilize Iraq. “This could be a good first step toward direct bilateral talks with Iran on a range of issues,” said Byler.
The delegation’s statement, which is online at www.irandelegation.org, also calls on governments of the two countries to promote more people-to-people exchanges including religious leaders, elected leaders and civil society.
Any points of contact can help lay the foundation for relationships and peace, Flaming said.
Light of peace
In addition to contacting lawmakers, U.S. Christians are invited to pray for the people of Iran and its leaders.
The group took small ceramic oil lamps, along with wall hangings, to give as gifts. “We told people the lamps are a symbol of our commitment to remember the Iranian people in our prayers at this time,†Flaming said.
Now, he said, “We are inviting churches to also use oil lamps to remember Iran in this time of difficulty and to pray for its leaders and its people.â€
For years, MCC workers in Iran have known that small gestures of gratitude, thoughtfulness and welcome can mean a lot. On this delegation, Flaming gave the President a note from sixth-graders at Akron Mennonite Church, saying they were praying for the President and for peace between the two countries. It made a visible impact on the president, and he said he would like to write a response to the children.
Flaming noticed that when delegates gave the gift of a handmade wall hanging, people’s faces lit up. “That was the time in the conversation where they were the most animated – the twinkle in the eye, the warmth in the smile, the firmness of the embrace,†he said.
Looking back
MCC’s involvement in Iran began with the giving of gifts of another kind – material aid for people caught in a devastating earthquake in 1990. MCC worked through Iranian Red Crescent Society and later worked with the Iranian government’s Housing Foundation to construct 15 village health clinics in earthquake-affected areas. MCC workers in 1991 served in an Iraqi refugee camp in western Iran, reaching out to some of the more than 1 million Iraqi refugees from the Persian Gulf War. MCC has also worked with Afghan refugees in Iran.
In 1997, MCC began a student exchange program to bring U.S. or Canadian Mennonites to study in Qom, Iran’s holy city, and Iranians to study in Ontario. As Martin set up the program, people told him they knew about MCC because of its work with the Red Crescent Society. MCC began to sponsor Iranians to attend the Eastern Mennonite University’s Summer Peacebuilding Institute (SPI).
In September 2006, MCC was asked to organize a meeting in New York of U.S. religious leaders and the Iranian president – an unexpected outgrowth of the relationships that had been built one-by-one over nearly two decades of work.
“It was a clear result of a network of relationships built over years,†Martin said. “MCC’s strength, I think, is developing relationships with people with whom we work and act.â€
And now, as delegates go back into their communities, Flaming is cheered by how MCC has built on those relationships with this delegation, widening the ties between the people of Iran and the United States. “There is something that feels good about being able to broaden the net, to welcome the broader church on the journey with us,†he said.
It’s hard to believe that 15 years have passed since our congregation first began to relate to our sister church in Puebla, Mexico. Little did we know that what began as an initiative of Franconia Mennonite Conference and the Conference of Mennonite Churches in Mexico would eventually become a thriving relationship between our two congregations.
Last week a group of 6 persons from our congregation (Pastor John Ehst, Bill Gotwals, Alex and McAllister Tellado, David Landis, Arnold and Marlene Derstine) attended the anniversary weekend of our sister church. This annual celebration of God’s faithfulness in the life of the church seemed an appropriate setting to also recognize and celebrate 15 years of walking beside each other as congregations. It was a time to both reminisce about the past as well as dream about the future.
Initial conversations with the Maranatha congregation began in 1992. In the spring of 1993, the first of many exchange visits took place. A team of four persons from Franconia went to work along side our Mexican brothers and sisters who had recently purchased a new property for the church. Over the years many from our congregation have been encouraged and blessed as the chorus, young adults, youth teams and mixed groups have had the privilege of visiting with Maranatha and participating in the life and ministry of their congregation. Throughout the years we have also been blessed to receive groups from Maranatha through which many significant relationships have been established.
Our weekend together was a significant reminder of the many meaningful relationships that have developed and grown over the last 15 years. It was also a reminder that our relationship together actually began long before the sister relationship emerged.
Perhaps the most meaningful part of the Sunday morning celebration was giving thanks for and recognizing the dedication and service of faithful leaders both past and present. It was a blessing to have David and Shirley Yoder there with us. David and Shirley are the original church planters of Maranatha. The congregation was moved as David expressed the overwhelming joy he and Shirley experienced in coming back to the church for the first time in 35 years and witnessing God’s faithfulness in bringing forth fruit from the seeds that were sown.
Maranatha is indeed a congregation that has come a long way since the early 1960’s when David and Shirley used the living room of their home as a chapel for Sunday morning services and weekly bible studies. On this Sunday the auditorium was full of people and praise as we celebrated God’s faithfulness together through inspiring worship, prayer and hearing God’s word.
It was encouraging to reflect on how God has brought us together – two congregations with distinct cultures but the same vision and desire to be salt and light here on earth. Throughout the weekend we took time to think, dream and pray about our future together as partners in the Gospel. We look forward to how God will continue to use this relationship to further His kingdom.
TABGHA, Israel (CNS) — As the two hikers reach the parking lot of the Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes, a group of tourists scrambles into their waiting air-conditioned bus.
Landis mapped out the trail using Global Positioning System navigation and Google Earth, which offers searchable satellite imagery and maps. A map or GPS files of the route can be downloaded from the Web site — www.jesustrail.com — and an experienced hiker can set out on his own. The Web site also includes information about the trail,
The Israeli Ministry of Tourism has been considering a similar idea for almost eight years, but the wheels of bureaucracy turn slowly, said Amir Moran, who is working on the planning of the Gospel Trail for the Ministry of Tourism and the Galilee Development Authority. The Ministry of Tourism path, which will in many places follow the Jesus Trail, will include marked paths, parking lots, shaded areas, rest areas and other facilities, Moran said. The project, which is expected to be completed in about two years, will cost between $2 million and $3 million, he said.
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John Tyson, an 
Tyson then recounted his own journey of faith and why he chose to be baptized at this point in his life.
Cuban pastor Beatriz Lopez arrived in the United States earlier this month on an invitation to visit with leaders from several church organizations, including Franconia Mennonite Conference. Beatriz is the President of the 55-year-old Pentecostal Holiness Church in Cuba, an organization of 30 churches, 16 missions, and a number of house churches throughout the island.
Located in South America along the Pacific Ocean, just south of the equator, 
Franconia Mennonite Conference (FMC) and 
In a February visit where U.S. religious leaders were told they were the first American delegation to meet face-to-face with a sitting Iranian president in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Mennonite Central Committee’s Ed Martin saw an unexpected fruit of nearly two decades of MCC work in Iran.
Arnold & Marlene Derstine, 
Our weekend together was a significant reminder of the many meaningful relationships that have developed and grown over the last 15 years. It was also a reminder that our relationship together actually began long before the sister relationship emerged.
