Hi Joel,

There are problems in the world, and there are problems among Mennonites, but there are some times when some of us do some things right. Here are a few:

Shalom Mennonite in Newton, Kansas and First Mennonite in Moundridge, Kansas have publicly committed to providing sanctuary to immigrants.

Lancaster, Pennsylvania welcomes refugees. (The nicest compliment I ever got was from my friend C., who said that she watched BBC’s coverage of Lancaster’s welcome of refugees and understood me better by seeing where I was from.)

Harrisonburg, Virginia, also a place with a lot of Mennonites, sees its immigrants as a source of strength.

RAICES, a key nonprofit fighting the separation of immigrants and asylum-seeker families, is a project supported and led by Mennonites on the ground in San Antonio.

Above, the “Welcome Neighbors” sign in our yard. You can purchase yours or download directions to get one printed here. You can choose your sign to include a welcome message in English, Arabic, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Ukranian, Nakawe, Somali, Amharic, Farsi, Hindi, Mandarin, and Swahili. The signs, which originated with a Mennonite church in Harrisonburg, appear all across the US. 

Of course, this doesn’t mean that every Anabaptist practices God’s command to welcome the stranger, care for the traveler, or extend radical hospitality. And all of us can do more and do better. But these are stories that inspire me to do just that.

Rebecca