The Bridgefolk Steering Committee met a St. John’s November 8-10, 2002. Present were: Sheri Hostetler; Ivan and Lois Kauffman; Abbot John Klassen, OSB; Marlene and Stan Kropf; Weldon Nisly; Gerald Schlabach; William Skudlarek, OSB; and Regina Wilson. Subjects covered included: creating a mission statement, confirming the Bridgefolk name, considering structures for the organization, planning the 2003 conference; reviewing the newsletter and suggesting the idea of regional groups.
MISSION STATEMENT:
The goal of the mission statement would be to articulate a vision that allows for those who desire an ongoing relationship, a way of being Catholic and Mennonite, as well as those who are interested in the movement and supportive, but do not necessarily want to immerse themselves in it. The steering committee will send out the draft of a mission statement to Bridgefolk participants before finalizing it.
NAME “BRIDGEFOLK”:
The committee considered whether to keep “Bridgefolk” name and decided that although it is somewhat “quaint,” it expresses the grassroots, familiarity and unpretentiousness of the movement. It was agreed by consensus to keep the name.
STRUCTURE:
Bridgefolk has contacts with individuals and groups from both Catholic and Mennonite organizations. Should Bridgefolk consider linking up with another group to gain help in accessing funding sources? The committee determined that the long-term goal is linkage with St. John’s Abbey (and perhaps St. Benedict’s Monastery) while working toward some kind of legal independence (following the model of the Ecumenical Institute, which is strong and independently incorporated, yet connected to St. John’s University). A fund-raising letter, seeking seed money, will be mailed to people on the current mailing list.
CONFERENCE:
The theme for the 2003 gathering will be “Spiritual Practices for Violent Times: Catholics and Mennonites Bridging the Divide. Presenters will tell stories of
1) How St. John’s Abbey responded to the violence of sexual abuse.
2) How peacemakers have lived and worked in the midst of oppression, war and violence.
3) How families and communities committed to peacemaking have resisted the violence of consumerism
A fter each story, small group discussions will discern the spiritual practices contained in the story, how they support a peaceful Christian response to violence and how they benefit our churches. The time will also include shared worship and spiritual practice, as well as consideration of other spiritual practices that sustain peacemaking.
The gathering will take place July 17-21, 2003, at St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville, Minnesota.
MARTYR’S PROJECT:
Ivan reported that the idea of a joint Mennonite-Catholic study of the persecution of Anabaptists by Catholics in the 16th century has arisen out of the international Mennonite-Catholic dialogue and last year’s Bridgefolk Conference.
The initial gathering will focus on Brad Gregory’s book Salvation at Stake. It will take place at St. John’s University immediately prior to the Bridgefolk conference.
See www.Bridgefolk.net for final Martyr’s Conference information.
NEWSLETTER:
The Bridgefolk Newsletter is online and publicly available to anyone who is interested. At the time of the steering committee meeting subscription list was 99. We still don’t know how often it will come out. The committee’s hope is that that it will provide a venue for the sharing of stories of personal experience, Mennonites and Catholics working together, experiences of bridging, etc.
REGIONAL GROUPS:
The committee discussed how the dynamic of Bridgefolk conferences might be made available to local groups. The goal would be to offer Mennonites and Catholics the opportunity to tell their personal stories of crossing over or bridging the two traditions so that growth can occur.
This could occur in local or regional groups by offering them the outline of the Laurelville 1999 conference, along with the help of steering committee members for facilitating retreats. Along with storytelling, a celebration of healing could be included, with some ritual elements that would hold the pain and celebrate the healing.
SANT E’GIDIO:
A group of Mennonites has been invited to visit the Sant E’gidio community in Italy. Lois and Ivan are serving as liaisons.