Mission Statement to End All Mission Statements

We come together as: independent women like Mary and Martha,
men discovering alternative power structures like the ruler Nicodemus,
children blessed like those who came to Jesus,
sexual outcasts discovering scriptural truths like the Ethiopian eunuch,
people with physical and mental illnesses like the "unclean" whom Jesus desired to touch,
collaborators with nationally and economically oppressive structures who are learning to repent and live justly like Zaccheus,
maritally suspect yet bold evangelists like the Samaritan woman,
rural like those who heard the sermon on the mount, and
urban like the crowds who shouted, "Hosanna!"

This comes from the "Congregational Vision" of the Germantown Mennonite Church right here on Washington Lane. When I read this, I thought immediately of Gerry Shank, Geoff's counselor in college. Gerry has passed away but he really lived like this. He was slight and graying, with kind eyes and the sheltering presence of a good friend. He wore chinos and broadcloth shirts that looked like he might go birdwatching in the woods a little later. I had some sessions with him and you could see that he believed that the Bible held the range of our humanity-- and so it was okay and normal to struggle. Not just okay but it was excellent and right to struggle. He was unflappable and nothing you could say could scandalize him. He responded to the Vietnam War in true Mennonite or Quaker fashion. He went to NYC to work with homeless teenagers. Looking at this statement, I see that he was so grounded. There were no "outcasts," no one Jesus was too good for. I so admire this. I want to meditate on this.