2014 Many Peoples Sunday: Seeking the pearl of eternal unity which is hiding in the ocean of our visible diversity

Theme: Seeking the pearl of eternal unity which is hiding in the ocean of our visible diversity.

We live in a very exciting and challenging time. The identities of the people who make up the constituency of both Mennonite Church Canada and Mennonite Church USA are expanding. On this Sunday, we celebrate that we are becoming more like the ideal body of Christ that embraces the diversity of many nations, languages, colours, cultural norms, etc.

Diversity is also a challenge when both those whose Mennonite heritage is long and those who recently joined this group put focus excessively on the diversity instead of the things that unite them. Scriptural descriptions of the people of God do not have the same focus. They simply use adjectives like, “My people”, “the children of God”, “the church”, “the living stones”, “priests of the Kingdom”, etc. Many People’s Sunday helps churches to make intentional reflections on what it means to embrace and engage the body of Christ that includes many people with rich and diverse contexts.