Mennonite World Conference
Template:Infobox Christian denomination Template:Anabaptist vertical The Mennonite World Conference (MWC) is an international Mennonite Anabaptist Christian denomination. Its headquarters are in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.
History
The first Mennonite World Conference was held in Basel in 1925.<ref>J. Gordon Melton, Martin Baumann, Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices, ABC-CLIO, USA, 2010, p. 1859</ref> Its main purpose was to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Anabaptism. An assembly is convened approximately every six or seven years.
Christian Neff (1863–1946), a Mennonite minister in Germany, is often called the "father" of the Mennonite World Conference. Neff, through the Conference of Mennonites in South Germany, issued the call for the first gathering in 1925, and was president of the following meetings in 1930 and 1936.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The MWC prints a quarterly news publication in three languages—Spanish (as Template:Lang), English (Courier), and French (Template:Lang.) This project began in 1986. The Mennonite World Conference considers that its mission is to (1) be a global community of faith in the Anabaptist-tradition, (2) facilitate relationships between Anabaptist-related churches worldwide, and (3) relate to other Christian world communions and organizations.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The official repository of Mennonite World Conference is the Mennonite Church USA Archives.
According to a census published by the association in 2022, it would have 107 member denominations in 59 countries, and 1,47 million baptized members in 10,300 churches. <ref>Mennonite World Conference, About MWC, mwc-cmm.org, Canada, retrieved November 5, 2022 </ref>
Beliefs
The Conference has an Anabaptist confession of faith.<ref>Mennonite World Conference, Shared convictions, mwc-cmm.org, Canada, accessed May 5, 2023 </ref>
Affiliated organizations
GMF
The Global Mission Fellowship (GMF) has 71 mission member organizations. <ref> Mennonite World Conference, Global Mission Fellowship, mwc-cmm.org, Canada, accessed May 5, 2023</ref>
GASN
The Global Anabaptist Service Network (GASN) supports humanitarian aid projects.<ref> Mennonite World Conference, Global Anabaptist Service Network, mwc-cmm.org, Canada, accessed May 5, 2023</ref>
Conferences
| Year | Location | Conference Focus |
|---|---|---|
| 1925 | Template:Flagicon Basel, Switzerland | 400th anniversary of Anabaptism |
| 1930 | Template:Flagicon Free City of Danzig | Mennonite Relief Efforts |
| 1936 | Template:Flagicon Amsterdam and Elspeet, Netherlands | 400th anniversary of Menno Simons' conversion |
| 1948 | Template:Flagicon Goshen, Indiana, and North Newton, Kansas, United States | Relief, Nonconformity to the World, Faith and Life, Missions, Young People's Work, A Young People's Program, the Peace Testimony, Colonization, Institutions and Mennonite Life, and Christian Education<ref>Mennonite World Conference in Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online</ref> |
| 1952 | Template:Flagicon Bettingen, Switzerland | The Church of Christ and Her Commission |
| 1957 | Template:Flagicon Karlsruhe, West Germany | The Gospel of Jesus Christ in the World |
| 1962 | Template:Flagicon Kitchener, Ontario, Canada | The Lordship of Christ |
| 1967 | Template:Flagicon Amsterdam, Netherlands | The Witness of the Holy Spirit |
| 1972 | Template:Flagicon Curitiba, Brazil | Jesus Christ Reconciles |
| 1978 | Template:Flagicon Wichita, Kansas, United States | The Kingdom of God in a Changing World |
| 1984 | Template:Flagicon Strasbourg, France | God's People Serve in Hope |
| 1990 | Template:Flagicon Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | Witnessing to Christ in Today's World |
| 1997 | Template:Flagicon Calcutta, India | Hear what the Spirit is Saying to the Churches |
| 2003 | Template:Flagicon Bulawayo, Zimbabwe | Sharing Gifts in Suffering and in Joy |
| 2009 | Template:Flagicon Asunción, Paraguay | Come together in the way of Jesus Christ<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| 2015 | Template:Flagicon Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States | Walking with God |
| 2022 | Template:Flagicon Salatiga, Jepara, Surakarta, Margokerto, Ungaran, Semarang, Indonesia | Following Jesus together across barriers<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
Notes
References
- Mennonite Encyclopedia, Harold S. Bender, Cornelius J. Dyck, Dennis D. Martin, et al., editors