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And an interesting convention it was. When it was all over at 6:00 p.m., Saturday, the Manitoba MB Conference was without a moderator, an assistant moderator or a secretary.
The convention, using the theme "Travelling One Road", started on Friday evening with Concord College's worship band leading worship. Michael Siebert, leader of the band, stated that the goal of worship was to get past the things in the worshippers' minds into a place where worshippers can be truly intimate with God.
Moderator John Unger continued the theme with a message on Unity, based on John 17 and the convention them e Scripture, Ephesians 4:1-6. Unger stated that although Christians are one body in Christ, unity cannot be taken for granted. Unity is always difficult--and becomes precious when conflict is overcome in order to achieve it. Unger stated that the road this past year had been difficult for the Manitoba Conference, and the easiest thing would be to start quarrelling with each other. He continued, "What has been left behind weighs heavily on our minds, and before we can reach the unity of Ephesians 4:3, we need to deal with the getting along issues of verse 2." He also said, "We've learned to get over ourselves; we have grown up; we've learned to be humble; we are learning not to push and retaliate; we've learned patience; remembering how patient God has been with us, we choose to put up with one another."
During the last two years, there have been repeated calls for repentance. Much pain still exists in the churches, Unger said, repentance is necessary, and he called for it again during this convention. "Stories" have been told about the various agencies and about the processes that have shaped the Conference in the past year; the whole truth has not always been spoken, and when it was spoken, it was not always done graciously. These things need to be repented of.
Unger finished his message after the communion service. He stated that when wallpaper and paint are removed from the walls in an old house being redecorated, they reveal many remodellings that have taken place in the past; but when the new paint and w allpaper are applied, the wall will again look unified. This is not what Paul was speaking about in Ephesians. Paul spoke about a unity underneath, not just on the outside. Even when there are differences in a church in leadership styles, backgrounds and gifts, when the surface is scratched, there is a deep unity because of the grace that Christ has given to each church. God has created this unity, and it must be preserved--by fighting for it, promoting it and guarding it from those who would pull it down. If there is to be room for neighbours in our churches, he said, there must first of all be room for each other. The singing of "One Heart, One Mind" became the concluding prayer.
Two student leaders from Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute in Winnipeg, Jenifer Hiebert and Jennifer Hazeu, testified about the willingness of the students to be involved in spiritual things. Hazeu indicated that students at first thought chapels were a waste of time, but are now attending prayer and praise and worship meetings. As well wwjd (What would Jesus do?) bracelets are being worn by about 200 students, and another 100 have been ordered. There is a focus on becoming one in Christ.
Saturday morning began with the Nominations Committee reporting on the 10 unfilled slots on the slate. Although there was concern expressed and prayer offered, only two more nominees were identified, which brought the unfilled slots to 9. (One nomination came to a slate which already had a sufficient number of nominees.)
A short video followed, produced by Campus Crusade, telling the story of a farm family preparing for the harvest. As the movie unfolded, the theme "Are we ready for the harvest?" and "What are we doing about it?" became clear. When the young father dies unexpectantly the night before the harvest is to start, his wife and three sons fear the harvest will be lost, but the community rallies around and helps bring in the harvest.This was a powerful analogy of how Christians need to rally around the church as it fulfills Christ's mandate of evangelism.
Then, as if to answer the movie's questions, a second video was given, showing the work of MBC in Ukraine, Russia, Mexico and South America.
After the video, Samir Youssef, MBC's new staff member who is jointly sponsored by MBMS International to produce an Arabic radio broadcast targetting Muslims, was interviewed on stage. Demonstrating his skill as an evangelist and worker among Muslims, he told about a time he was asked to send a Bible to a Muslim in another community. Youssef explained that he didn't know how to send the Bible so that government censors would not notice it. His friend replied that he should put a Koran cover over the Bible and then there would be no problem. Not wanting to risk being caught, Youssef said that he wrapped the Bible with the most expensive Koran cover he could find and shipped it. The Bible escaped detection.
David Balzer, director of the English program, "Connecting Points" , gave delegates a quick overview of what his program is doing by mentioning a couple of individuals with whom he has had contact. Through his program, people have had a personal enc ounter with Jesus. Balzer said his goal is to bring the gospel to others in a relevant, meaningful way, and to produce a program "where real people meet a real God". Emotions overtook Balzer as he quipped the heart of the message: "Yes, Jesus loves me!"
A revised recommendation was submitted which asked that MBC be allowed to expand its board from 10 to 12 members and that, in consultation with the Committee of Reference and Counsel, MBC be permitted to appoint these two additional members from outside th e Manitoba MB conference. Acceptance of the new recommendation waited until after the Constitution Committee had given its report.
After allowing for discussion on the statement over coffee, questions from the floor demonstrated there was a lack of understand of a what a mission statement should be: a succinct statement of who the Conference is and what the Conference should be doing. In the end, it was accepted, with the provision that once the vision statements for the various Conference agencies are completed and the work of the agencies has been reviewed, the churches would get final appr oval. CRC will appoint a review committee to complete this work.
Another issue highlighted by CRC generated discussion throughout the day. Manitoba MB Conference has talked about appointing a conference minister for many conventions. However, due to lack of funding, CRC planned to appoint four area ministers who would work with the pastors and churches in their areas. So far, only one has been appointed: John Willems is responsible for the south-central part of the province. George Toews, pastor of Manitou MB Church, stated, "We need a conference minister." In fact, he suggested that other agencies could perhaps reduce their funding so that Manitoba could afford to appoint someone. Keith Poysti, chair of the Congregational Committee of Caregivers stated, "We need somebody who can connect pastors and churches through visitation. Gerry Ediger indicated that Manitoba was the only conference without a conference minister. When a motion was made that CRC and the Executive work toward appointing a conference minister during this next conference year, it was passed by a good majority.
Other items on the CRC agenda were the closure of Winkler Bible Institute and two churches (Brooklands Community Church and New Hope Church) this past year. A prayer of thanks was offered by Neil Block for the ministry the two churches had in their communities and in the Conference.
Former staff and faculty members, as well as former board members of Winkler Bible Institute, were recognized for their contribution to biblical education in the Conference. John Wiens, chair of the outgoing board, indicated that the decision to close the school was probably the most difficult decision he had ever been involved in, but it was a unanimous board decision. Severance packages to faculty members have been paid out, and 12 students who had planned to continue their education at WBI were given bursaries to continue their education at another institution. A constitutional change was voted on, which replaced Winkler Bible Institute with Concord College in the Manitoba MB Conference Constitution.
Olfert stated, that although no director has yet been announced for the School of Discipleship, it is still scheduled to begin in September. SOD will be divided into three phases, the first a three-month intensive discipleship course with a Bible teaching and ministry skills emphasis in Canmore, Alta.; the second a crosscultural experience, either in Canada or at an international location; and the third an incorporation of what students have learned with what they need for work in the church.
A motion that Concord College's participation in the Mennonite College Federation be approved, subject to review of final documents by the Committee of Reference and Counsel and the Board of Directors was passed without questions or comments, and with little opposition.
The Worship Committee, chaired by Carolee Neufeld, illustrated its ministry by leading in a short worship time. Ken Klassen in formed the delegates that the resource library formerly housed at Winkler Bible Institute was being moved to Concord College. Lifesteps Seminars conducted by Canadian MB Conference Board of Christian Education Ministries executive director David Wiebe are meeting needs in many areas. They provide fresh motivation, new ideas for teaching, and opportunities for developing new friendships.
* holding a Faith and Life conference Oct. 18 on caregiving and small groups (125 people attended);
* launching a newsletter for pastors called }{/i/f0 Sharing Network}{/f0 , sent to all Manitoba MB pastors twice a year;
* planning a pastors and spouses' retreat for May 4-6 with keynote speaker Pierre Gilbert from MB Biblical Seminary, Fresno (Poysti encouraged delegates to send their pastors);
* establishing guidelines for interviewing candidates for pastoral ministry with no Mennonite Brethren background and/or training. Poysti called the guidelines a way to ensure "a comfortable fit" for non-Mennonite Brethren pastors with congregations. A final draft of the guidelines will be ready for the 1999 convention.
When Poysti was asked why the pastors' and spouses' retreat was scheduled for the middle of the week, when that would keep many of the spouses from attending, he replied that pastors find it difficult to get Sundays off. The response to that was "That's a cop-out!"
The second church highlighted was Iglesia Evangelica Vida Abundante, the Spanish Church in Winnipeg. Former pastor Ernesto Pinto was praised for his accomplishments over the last ten years. Having returned from Family Life crusades in Peru and Honduras, he is full-time producer of Spanish programming at MB Communications. It was announced that since the fire at the St. Boniface Evangelical Church in February (which the Spanish Church was using as a meeting place) Portage Ave. MB has opened a room in its church for the Spanish congregation to meet in.
After this, Simonhouse Bible Camp in northern Manitoba gave delegates a few highlights from its summer program. Tracy Bird, a summer counsellor at the camp, testified how she was able to impact the lives of her campers, especially one girl who was battling thoughts of suicide. Tracy exclaimed at the end of her testimony that camp " is not a place to have fun, but a place where we change lives". A slide presentation combined with the song, "I'm so glad that you came", confirmed her words.
In closing, the MCE report focussed on the northern Manitoba MB churches as they have had to deal with fallout from labour problems at the mines. Tension between unions and management has put a strain on the churches. People are shocked as they have seen the value of their homes reduced to nothing. A concert of prayer for the northern communities alerted delegates to the needs facing the MB churches in Flin Flon, Thompson and Snow Lake.
The salary structure for MBCI has been under review for some time. At the convention in 1995. An employment policy was accepted which would set salaries for the educational institutions at 95% of the external employment market (in MBCI's case, the Winnipeg School Division) 12 months removed. These salaries were to be reviewed once every five years. In the interim, any cost of living increases, based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for Winnipeg and approved by the Conference were to be applied to educational staff also. However, because Winnipeg School Division salaries were remaining very stable and not keeping up with the rise in the CPI, it meant that MBCI salaries were going up faster than the school division's. This would have meant a cut in MBCI's salaries when they would be reviewed in five years. Therefore, salaries at MBCI will be frozen until they again align with the school district.
The Personnel Committee also proposed a "Children's Ministry Policy and Guidelines on Child Abuse and Safety" . Each church will now need to review the policy, suggesting possible changes to the Personnel Committee for final approval in 1999 and in the meantime adopting the policy for its own use. A confidential central registry of workers is to be maintained by all churches. Each church will need to decide whether this information can be passed on to another church when the worker moves.The Harassment Policy was also adopted by the convention. Again, changes can be suggested to the Personnel Committee, with final approval at the convention in 1999. The final draft will be written in gender-neutral language. This policy goes beyond sexual harassment to include " behaviour that is likely to undermine the dignity, self-esteem or productivity of any staff member or parishioner". Both policies are needed to satisfy insurance requirements as well as government requirements.
Peter Woelk and Susan Brandt
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