MWC Global Church Sharing Fund responds to pandemic needs

Instead of being a great leveller, the COVID-19 pandemic is exposing pre-existing systemic inequalities that benefit some and disadvantage others. How can the Anabaptist family respond?

Mennonite World Conference invited Anabaptist mission and service agencies to coordinate their financial response to COVID-19 hardships experienced especially by under-resourced member churches around the world.

A golden opportunity to strengthen health systems

In the name of Mennonite World Conference, members have contributed Can$56 470 to the Love My Neighbour campaign, and US$26 189.30 to the USA Interfaith Movement to End the Pandemic campaign LMN inspired – all supporting UNICEF’s COVID-19 vaccination campaign.

22 March 2022

Strengthening the arms of response

Encouraged by the emerging Global Anabaptist Heath Network, Mennonite World Conference called for churches and individuals to support UNICEF’s efforts to deliver COVID-19 vaccinations to low income countries.  

18 January 2022

Only God could turn disaster into ministry

In multireligious Indonesia, many people have never been inside a church. The pandemic is changing that for residents of Semarang (population 1 800 000) and surrounding area.

In coordination with the local government, police and military forces, the 2022 MWC Assembly host venue JKI Injil Kerajaan (Holy Stadium) is holding a vaccine clinic, dosing up to 8 000 people per day in a country struggling to vaccinate citizens amid a severe infection wave.

13 September 2021

MWC continues pastoral response to COVID-19

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, stories poured in from MWC member churches about job loss and hunger in their congregations and communities due to shut downs. Mennonite World Conference began collecting funds to respond to pandemic-related needs within and through the household of faith.

A year into the pandemic, MWC is blessing and affirming Mennonite-Anabaptist mission and service agencies as they continue their efforts to respond to the pandemic in partnership with Anabaptist churches around the world.

6 February 2021

Pandemic fund targets inequalities in global church

Up to November 2020, the MWC COVID-19 fund has supported 45 humanitarian initiatives carried out by 53 national Anabaptist churches in 28 countries, with a total project value of US$414,711.

24 November 2020

Fearless and prudent: Our churches in this time

The 12 MWC regional representatives gather online every quarter to reflect on the struggles and joys of the Anabaptist churches in their regions. In our latest gathering, they shared the burdens and creative resilience they see in churches in response to COVID-19.

14 October 2020

COVID-19 global response fund helps churches - Update 3

“We pray to the Lord for strength to endure and not to resign ourselves, confidence to keep our work in the midst of adversity, willingness to continue proclaiming the gospel...and to experience his shalom.”

Mennonite World Conference’s COVID-19 inter-agency task force has approved 35 relief proposals with several more approvals in process, including assistance for Mennonites in Venezuela.

3 September 2020

MWC COVID-19 response fund reaches remote Indonesian island

For people in Sumba Island, the COVID-19 pandemic may not be their top worry. Thanks to their remote location, less than two dozen infections have been confirmed on the island as of 4 August 2020. However, the community is devastated by the economic blow of the coronavirus lockdowns.

14 August 2020

COVID-19 global response fund helps churches - Update 2

“The church’s response is unique in that we provide accompaniment rather than just distribute rations. This means walking together to feed not only the body but also the soul in these desperate times in which many have lost sight of the meaning of life,” says Yanett Palacios, president of Iglesia Evangélica Menonita de Guatemala. Mennonite World Conference’s COVID-19 inter-agency task force has approved 21 relief proposals, including that of Yanett Palacios of IEMG, a national MWC member church in Guatemala.

31 July 2020

COVID-19 global response fund helps churches - Update 1

“It will reflect our love of Christ to them; [that] we care and are concerned for them and it will also bring smile in their faces,” says Bishop Dr. Bijoy Kumar Roul, Chairman, Brethren In Christ Church, Cuttack, Odisha, India. Mennonite World Conference’s COVID-19 inter-agency task force has approved 21 relief proposals, including Bishop Bijoy Roul’s from BIC Church Odisha.

16 July 2020

Mennonite community at centre of COVID-19 response in Kudus

As the world deals with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Mennonite community in Kudus, Central Java, Indonesia, joins hands and works with the local government to mitigate the risk and manage the spread of COVID-19 cases in Kudus, a city of more than 800,000 residents.

Mardi Rahayu Hospital was built in 1969 by members of Gereja Kristen Muria Indonesia (GKMI) Kudus congregation after five years of running a clinic beside the church building. The hospital has been treating COVID-19 cases since 20 March 2020.

19 May 2020

12 considerations before you reopen your church doors

When stay-at-home guidelines are eased and church doors and sanctuaries reopen, worship and church ministries will, undoubtedly, look different than before the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak. And so it should – so that we continue to keep ourselves and our faith communities safe and healthy. But that means pastors and church leaders should prepare for what the “next normal” will be for the congregation and its ministry. The following are some things to consider before inviting congregants back into the (physical) pews.

Jesus Christ: our only hope

The world appears to be without hope. But an answer for humanity today is waiting within the pages of the Bible.

Church in times of Coronavirus

This is a profoundly challenging time for all of us around the globe. The corona virus has struck many of us and our communities, and will continue to do so. In times of such adversity we wish so much to gather, to pray together, to plead with one voice for healing and hope. And we want to reach out in person to those who are suffering – embracing them with hugs, food, and personal visits. That is how we are used to showing God’s love.

Video updates from the global family

A call to prayer for the human family

“Let us join our brothers and sisters in Christ across communions by joining our prayers with theirs in solidarity and faith in Jesus,” says Mennonite World Conference general secretary César García.

Do not fear: Prayers for COVID-19

With Coronavirus (COVID-19) unsettling the global human family, Mennonite World Conference leaders put confidence in the living God who says, “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you” (Isaiah 41:10).

MWC calls for prayer and precautionary measures

Following the World Health Organization’s declaration of the novel coronavirus (nCoV) outbreak as a global health emergency 30 January 2020, Mennonite World Conference calls for Anabaptist and Mennonite congregations around the world to unite in prayer and to exercise precautionary measures in the church.

Renewal 2027 and Executive Committee meetings in B.C. cancelled

Prayers

July 2020:

We pray for everyone who has been affected by Covid-19. For those who have died; for those who have been ill; for the family members that this has affected; for those whose jobs and livelihoods have been affected by the economic downturn that this pandemic has caused; for all of us as our lives and our “normals” have changed.

May 2020

Pray for pastors who continue to serve their congregations where members have lost their jobs and are no long able to give financially. Praise God for provision from unexpected places despite hardship.

Praise God for the businesses that have been able to switch production lines to make personal protective equipment and hand sanitizer. Praise God for volunteers who have helped to sew masks and prepare food packages those people without an income.

Pray for families who are mourning lost loved ones. Pray for church leaders who need to find creative ways to provide meaningful rituals for mourners in a time of social distancing.[edit this prayer]

We pray for those who are facing hunger due to food shortages, harvest disruptions, and the effects of climate change on local food production. May God provide and may those with many resources share with those who have less, on both local and international levels.

We are mindful of the many persons – doctors, nurses, family members, friends – who are caring for those who are suffering from COVID-19. We give thanks for their self-giving, and pray for their safety and on-going energy. May the Risen One be there at the bed side, in the hospital, along with them.

April 2020:

We are mindful of the many persons – doctors, nurses, family members, friends – who are caring for those who are suffering from this contagious illness. We give thanks for their self-giving, and pray for their safety and on-going energy. May the Risen One be there at the bed side, in the hospital, along with them.

We are also mindful of those many within our global family for whom physical distancing is impossible. We pray for God’s gracious protection.

May this global crisis draw us closer to God and closer to each other. May we find ways to show and witness to the love of God in Jesus Christ. And may we have the courage to be the Body of the Risen One in this hour of our world’s suffering.

February 2020:

Mennonite World Conference calls for Anabaptist and Mennonite congregations around the world to unite in prayer and to exercise precautionary measures in the church. Pray for people who are isolated, afraid or ill, especially in Wuhan, Hubei Province and mainland China. Pray for wisdom for Chinese government and health authorities working to contain the outbreak, and for courage, compassion and safety for healthcare workers who work tirelessly to save lives. Also pray for wisdom for all governments and health authorities working to prevent the spread of the virus. May they act with compassion and caution.