Emmanuel Mennonite Church, Winkler, MB

Friday Evening, March 1 - Worship Service and Celebration - Link to the livestream

Saturday, March 2 - Delegates, guests meet, learn, and deliberate.

Theme: "From Every Nation: Living Into an Intercultural Church"

Revelation 7:9-17 envisions “a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages,” standing before God and the Lamb in worship. It is God’s desire that this future, heavenly vision become a present reality here on earth, reflected in the church. Jesus Christ has “broken down the dividing wall” between ethnicities and cultures to “create one new humanity” (Eph 2:11-22). God’s Spirit has been “poured out upon all flesh,” bringing together people from all nations into one body (Acts 2:5-17). Gathering 2024 will encourage and equip us to live into this intercultural vision for the church, both as congregations and as a regional church.

Intercultural church” is currently an area of focus across all the regional churches that make up Mennonite Church Canada. This is understood both as ethnic/cultural diversity within congregations and as ethnic/cultural diversity across the regional church (e.g. encouraging new Canadian congregations). We recognize within MCM that we have work to do to become more intercultural. Fanosie Legesse, MC Eastern Canada’s Intercultural Mission Minister, will be our guest speaker to prompt us toward living into an intercultural church that reflects the vision of Revelation 7.

Report Book.  (v3. Feb 16 version) (pdf)

Addendum document. (Feb 16) (pdf)

General Schedule

Friday, March 1
10:00 am: Leadership Day (Covenant Mennonite Church, Winkler)

• See information, schedule, and registration here

6:30 pm: Gathering Registration (this and all else at Emmanuel Mennonite Church, Winkler)
7:00 pm: Worship Service

• Service of remembering, lament, thanksgiving, praise, and inspiration, culminating in communion

Saturday, March 2
8:30 am: Gathering Registration
9:00 am: Plenary Session

• Opening worship
• Keynote address by Fanosie Legesse, Intercultural Mission Minister for Mennonite Church Eastern Canada
• Table discussion around intercultural church

10:30 am: Break
11:00 am: Plenary Session

• Introduce resolution to endorse a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty. Read it here.
  
• Staff program reports
  
• 12:15 pm: Lunch
  1:15 pm: Plenary Session
• Application by River East Church for affiliate membership
• Prayer
• Elect/affirm nominations to board, committees, etc.
• Financial report

2:00 pm: Breakout Sessions

• Connecting with Our Newcomer Neighbours
• The Story of Vietnamese Mennonite Church
• Gaza: What's Going On and How Can We Respond?
• A Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty: What Is It, and Why Should We Endorse It?
• Talking about Clergy Misconduct

2:45 pm: Plenary Session

• Approve budget
• Vote on resolution to endorse a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty
• Closing worship

3:30 pm: Adjournment