Mennonite on the move.

I’m in Greensboro, NC for the rest of the week for the bi-annual Mennonite Church USA convention, and I always feel a bit weird at things like this. I love my denomination, and I love what they stand for at their best. But it’s also always a bit surreal.

There are only three MC USA churches in my state. Our conference, the Gulf States Conference, is the smallest. It’s a pretty lonely place to be Mennonite, to tell you the truth. In the US, Mennonites are found in quantity in the Midwest and Northeast. And there are relatively none in the Southeast, especially the deep south. And I’m unapologetically Queer-affirming and am a Christian Humanist, and honestly, the denomination hasn’t always known what to do with somebody like me. 

And I’m an introvert, and in general, I don’t think introverts go to conferences and conventions.

But here I am. My role as pastor at Open Door Mennonite Church doesn’t require me to go, but it’s good if I can. So yesterday I drove 11 and a half hours to get here, and arrived around 7 last night. After checking in, I went to the exhibit hall and ran into a dozen or more folks I know from around the country, and a few more who only know me from social media. 

So today I shall fortify myself with coffee and sit in sessions and put my extrovert face on and hang out with my folks. And then tomorrow, get up and do it again.