Reaching Beyond the Mennonite Comfort Zone: Exploring from the Inside Out

In clear and forthright language-enlivened with numerous examples-Schirmer challenges Mennonite congregations to reach beyond their "comfort zones" in welcoming newcomers into the church. Along the way, he does not hesitate to name the stereotypes, cultural blind spots, and outrights hypocrisies he has encountered in his lengthy sojourn among the Mennonites. His goal, however, is less to chastise than to tranform. His vision is a Mennonite church in the twenty-first century that is "missional" at its very core.