Greetings in the name of our risen Savior!

I am writing to officially invite you to the 2005 gathering of Bridgefolk, to be held July 21-24 at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.  Previously we asked you to mark these dates on your calendar, and later announced the decision of the Bridgefolk Board to hold our conference at EMU. 

But now it is time to register for the conference.  Attached you will find a registration form, along with a tentative program.  These items are also available at the Bridgefolk website, www.bridgefolk.net, along with additional information and program highlights.  You will note that the arrangements and costs are very similar to previous years.

This year's Bridgefolk conference will focus on the role of friendship in building the Mennonite Catholic bridge.  As we look back over the past few years it is clear that friendships of all kinds have played a major role in bringing us to this point. The advice we once received from leaders of the Sant'Egidio ecclesial community rings true: "Proceed through friendship."  We want to give special attention this year to how friendships in various settings and locales are creating new bridges.

Speakers this year will talk about the role of friendship in peacemaking, in community building and in ecumenical relationships, especially at the local level.  The 'haiku' snapshots that were such a big success last year will focus on individual stories of friendship between Mennonites and Catholics. And as usual there will be plenty of free time for participants to renew old friendships and to make new ones.

Holding this summer's conference at Eastern Mennonite University is a major step forward for Bridgefolk.  It anchors us more firmly on the Mennonite side, and we also expect that the new location will attract a considerable number of new people into our conversation.  For that reason it's important for people who have attended in the past to return in order to help the new participants feel welcome.

Please register as early as possible.  And think about bringing someone with you. Remember that your presence at the Bridgefolk conferences is one of the most important contributions to the bridge you can make.

Gerald W. Schlabach
Bridgefolk Executive Director
gwschlabach@stthomas.edu
http://bridgefolk.net

PS: The Mennonite/Catholic Theological Colloquium will also meet at EMU on July 20-21.  We will be sending out more information soon, but you can get a preview at www.bridgefolk.net/mctc05.