christianity – Page 4

Retired

May 6, 2025

Today was my first Tuesday where I did not head out to Poole Church. I did some chores around the yard, and did some errands in town. I read some books, did the crossword, and I tried to finish my jigsaw puzzle of the Kissing Bridge of West Montrose. I will not bore you everyday with my plans and schedules, but I thought maybe you might want to know.

During our Anabaptist tour, I reflected on the book of Acts. The book is a travelogue with some of the important events with the early church. The church began in Jerusalem, and then went to all over the known world including Rome. It is one of the longest books in the New Testament, and provides us with a glimpse of the early leaders like Peter, Paul and Jesus’ brother James. After chapter nine, it is mostly about Paul and his interaction with the early churches in Corinth, Philippi and Ephesus among the many cities that he visited, and wrote letters to those communities.

I do not think that Paul intended to write Scripture. He was a good Jewish believer, and so the Law was enough for him. He was a Pharisee, and so was connected to the politics of the synagogue and temple. According to Acts, he often went to a synagogue when he came to a new city. He wrote his letters for encouragement and some admonition. The churches did not always get along with each other. This is why the letters are so good, they are about real issues. And Paul did not announce these letters as Scripture. It took the church over 300 years to announce these letters as God’s word.

I offer you the trillium flower as a symbol for the church going forward, with God as the perfecter of our faith.

Praying always for Gaza. AMEN.

Sacred and unsacred stories

ou can access this Ponder Anew at ponderanew.site on WordPress.

April 20 Happy Easter !!! Christ is Risen !!

Good morning.

We have just completed leading an Anabaptist tour, from the Netherlands through Germany and France, finishing in Switzerland. We arrived here in Amman Jordan early this morning, just in time for Easter . Our daughter Hannah and her husband Alaa live here.

Don’t Worry by Mary Oliver

Things take the time they take. Don’t

worry.

How many roads did St. Augustine follow

before he became St. Augustine ?

The Anabaptist tradition was a small part of the Reformation in the 1500s, but it is important for our history and faith. We visited the site of the famous Dirk Willems story. We stood in the churches of Pingum and Witmarsum where Menno preached . Menno took 12 years to become Anabaptist.

The Swiss Reformed church persecuted the early adult baptizers. We heard stories about the cities of Bern and Zurich putting to death people who believed in adult baptism and non-violence. It was dangerous to be Anabaptist for hundreds of years in Switzerland.

In 2004, the Reformed Church offered repentance for the violence done to the Anabaptists. ” We acknowledge this historic sin and, from today’s point of view, consider it a betrayal of the Gospel …” Many of our guides on the tour were Reformed persons who told the stories with sadness and humility.

We all walk our roads of life, and maybe we will all become saints in the eyes of God. Keep the faith.

Shalon for all our journeys of life and faith. Remember our ancestors.

(The flag of the city of Bern)

Fred

black and white shadows

crush humanity’s freedom

am I complicit ?

MPL 2025

A new road…

March 31, 2025

Good morning,

For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. Ephesians 1:15-19

Today, I start a different path to God. I have been at Poole since March 2017, and full-time since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. I began as an intern pastor at my home congregation in June 1982, the summer Shirley I got married. During our time in Thailand working with refugees, I preached a few sermons in the Vietnamese and Cambodian churches. My first congregation, Bethel Mennonite in Lancaster, was where I served from 1987-1991. I was at Floradale from 1991-2016, a full 25 years.

Poets and theologians have written about the paths to the eternal since forever. Jesus said the narrow way is better than the wide way. Have you ever taken the wrong road, spiritually ? When my home church encouraged me to be a pastor, they wanted me to go to Bible School after high school. I decided to go to Trent University. Was that the wrong or even sinful path ? Maybe so, but God’s grace was extended to me. When we got married, we decided to go with MCC and not to finish my schooling to be a pastor. Was that the wrong or sinful path for our journey with God ? God’s grace again was extended to me/us.

The road as a pastor, for me, has been a calling that was not always easy. Conflict has always been a challenge for me. Knowing when to intervene, and when to be silent is not easy. Often I thought the sermon could be better, but by Tuesday the next sermon needed to be started. The second guessing did not stay with me. The most satisfying part of my work has been walking alongside people when they are hurting, and when God does answer our questions about life and death. God’s grace flourishes at these times.

Thank you for pondering, listening and responding to my Ponder Anew blog.

“I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I

—I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.” Robert Frost 1916

https://ponderanew.site/

The above link will take you to my Ponder Anew WordPress site.

Fred

black and white shadows

crush humanity’s freedom

am I complicit ? MPL 2025

The Bruce, Mary and Steve

March 27, 2025

Good afternoon,

The Bruce writes in (2023) Orders:

The pastor preaching shades of hate
The self-inflating head of state
The black and blue, the starved for bread
The dread, the red, the better dead
The sweet, the vile, the tall, the small
The one who rises to the call
The list is long—as I recall
Our orders said to love them all
The one who lets his demons win
The one we think we’re better than
A challenge great—as I recall
Our orders said to love them all

Mary Oliver writes in When Death Comes :

When it’s over, I want to say all my life
I was a bride married to amazement.
I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.

When it’s over, I don’t want to wonder
if I have made of my life something particular, and real.

I don’t want to find myself sighing and frightened,
or full of argument.

I don’t want to end up simply having visited this world.

Steve Martin ( 2025 ) writes:

Intrepid guide

Prodding gently

the contented

the agitated

those convinced

those floundering

over

narrow trails

toward

untapped destinations

resurrection moments

As you can see, I am all over the emotional map in my last few days of being pastor here at Poole. As I mentioned at the worship reflection last Sunday, I have been blessed in serving three congregations. I have grown as a person and pastor at all three. I have been a congregational pastor since 1987. The world and the church have changed, and I too have changed my beliefs and faith. God has been the constant, but if I have changed, then I guess God has changed in my body, mind and soul. If I change, then my understanding of the Divine Master has also moved to a stronger and more merciful place.

Praying for the peace of this world to arrive in Gaza, West Bank, Yemen and Syria. AMEN

Fred

black and white shadows

crush humanity’s freedom

am I complicit ? MPL 2025

What are you going to do ?

March 26, 2025

Good afternoon,

So what are you going to do ? This is the question for me everyday since I announced I would not accept another term of service as pastor here at Poole. It is not only from Poole people, but from friends and family and strangers. Some say that one ‘ should do nothing for six months ‘, while others say ‘ do what you love ‘ and some people say, ‘ it will be revealed to you in a good time ‘. These were sort of the responses I received after recovering from my heart attack in 2007. Well, we are going on a five week trip, two weeks to Europe and then on to Amman, Jordan to visit Hannah and Alaa. We return to Elmira in early May. As a good Type B personality, I am only delaying my decision. Ha ha. Thanks for the question.

The cartoon character ” Pinky ” asks his friend ” Brain ” what are we going to do today ? ” Brain ” responds by saying, ” The same thing we do every night Pinky. Try to take over the world “. Oh, I wish I had such high aspirations. My dad just tried to make it to another day. I guess I am somewhere in-between. I do not have a bucket list of things I need to do. I am not a good planner, but I do want to go to Winnipeg more in the future. I want to get back to my cross-stitch work. I want to advocate more for more justice for all people in the world. I want to get closer to God through prayer and silence. These are not new things, but are old things done in a new time of my life.

The Philosopher says in Ecclesiastes :

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:

     a time to be born and a time to die,
  a time to plant and a time to uproot,
     a time to kill and a time to heal,
  a time to tear down and a time to build,
     a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
     a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
     a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
   a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
   a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.   Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Pray for the peace of Gaza in the twinkling of an eye. AMEN

Fred Redekop

Dirk Willems

March 18, 2025

Good afternoon

Anabaptist Tuesday

The Martyrs Mirror book of the 1660’s, documents the deaths of Anabaptist believers of the 1500’s. It tells about 800 or more of the people that were killed. It is a gruesome book about man’s inhumanity to each other. It does not document the violence done by Anabaptists that occured in a few places in the Netherlands and Germany. And it does not tell about the people who renounced their faith in Anabaptism, so they could live. It is a complex history.

Vision magazine ( from CMU ) had a whole issue devoted to the world of Anabaptism of the 16th century in 2024. Jennifer Otto writes the following:

” [ the stories of martyrs ] were copied by Anabaptists for the purpose of inspiring other Anabaptists . That is not to suggest that they are not authentic

, but it is to remind us that they are not disinterested . Martyrs Mirror aims to depict the early Anabaptists in the best possilbe light ” ( page 33 )

She invites us to think about how we remember these stories. The best of the martyrs is Dirk Willems. He is a selfless person who is chased by a police officer. The officer falls through the ice, and Dirk stops, and rescues him. Dirk is re-arrested, and is put in jail and eventually executed. We honour the courage and faith of Dirk. Other stories are not so uplifting, and Catholics are vilified in many of the stories. Not all early Anabaptists were nice people. This should be no surprise . We are all a part of a complex church history. It took over 400 years for churches that killed Mennonites to ask for forgiveness, and it took that long for Mennonites to offer forgiveness. That is a long time to hold onto being martyrs.

Who are your faith people who guide your daily lives ? Today, we have a complex history with leaders who have done sexual harm to people. We have people who have changed the lives of people for the better through the church and MCC. My most challenging person is John Howrad Yoder. His writings changed the way I read the Bible, and what I thought of peacemaking ( in 1981 ). Then in the 1990’s it came out that he had abused over 30 women, while teaching at the Mennonite Seminary. How do I hold both things in my faith journey ?

We should all try to be like Dirk Willems .

Seen on a Pennsylvania highway last week. Our hero, Dirk Willems.

Fred

black and white shadows

crush humanity’s freedom

am I complicit ? MPL 2025

i am greedy

March 12, 2025

Good afternoon/morning,

( We return from the US today )

Luke 11: 37-41

” When Jesus had finished speaking, a Pharisee invited him to eat with him; so he went in and reclined at the table. But the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not first wash before the meal.

Then the Lord said to him, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? But now as for what is inside you—be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you.“

Jesus says a lot of things that are written in the New Testament. Here he has declared that he is on his way to Jerusalem. He has met a Pharisee. a Jewish leader, along the way and has lunch. Jesus does not follow the rules of the day. He is always challenging the leadership. Would you have followed Jesus, or would you have been afraid to draw outside of the lines of faith and life ? We tend to want to conserve the tradition. Jesus invites his disciples to change their attitude.

Jesus challenges the attitudes of the Pharisees about greed. I feel it. I have more than enough things and resources. Am I greedy ? How can this be part of my 40 day Lent journey ? Where is the tipping point of when I move over to being greedy or not ? A very fine line ? And the remedy for the greedy virus in the world is to ” be generous to the poor ” . Do not ask why people are poor, but be generous. There are many reasons that people do not have enough, but we are to be generous. Am I complicit in why people are poor ? Jesus, help me in my 40 days/years of Lent.

Jesus remember me, when you come into your kingdom.

Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom. Taize song.

fred

black and white shadows

crush humanity’s freedom

am I complicit ?

MPL 2025

Vernon

March 11, 2025

Good afternoon,

I met Vernon Schroeder today. From 1987-1991, I served as pastor at Bethel Mennonite Church in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It was a small church with many former Russia refugees, and volunteers working at the head offices of MCC in Akron, PA. It was my first pastorate where I made many mistakes, and learned many things that have helped me since then. I did my first funeral, first wedding and first child dedication at this congregation. The church closed about ten years after I left, and it is now part of a different denomination.

Vernon is 97 years old, and has a sharp mind. His wife died two years ago after a struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. Vernon had a heart attack in late 1989, and he read my recent article in the Rejoice! magazine, where I talked about my own heart attack. As we visited today he recounted the event around his heart. He had the balloon procedure that attempted to open up his arteries, and the eventual stents that the surgeon inserted into his arteries. It was the first time that I provided pastoral care in the ICU and heart unit. I felt so inadequate, as I walked into the room where Vernon was hooked up to all kinds of machines and IVs. He survived and thrived, and I survived and thrived as a pastor.Vernon had the same smile that I remembered from 34 years ago. We thanked God for the life God has given to each of us. We talked about our children, and talked about faith. We did not talk about Trump, Trudeau or Carney. There are many people that I have met that have mentored me in the right direction. Vernon is a humble, faithful and positive guy that is one of the many of these people who have been influencers in my life.

Gaza is out of the news, but continue to lift prayers to God for peace to come, and the guns can be silenced. AMEN.

.Fred

black and white shadows

crush humanity’s freedom

am I complicit ? MPL 2025

Anabaptist Tuesday

March 4, 2025

Good afternoon,( Anabaptist Tuesday )

The Amish church began with a schism in Switzerland within a group of Swiss and Alsatian Mennonite Anabaptists in 1693 led by Jakob Ammann. Those who followed Ammann became known as Amish. The issue was over the ban or ex-communication. Ammann wanted to not allow people to take communion and not have meals together when they had sinned, while the main group wanted to allow the excommunicated members to have meals together but not communion. When people refer to the Amish today, they normally refer to the Old Order Amish, though there are other subgroups of Amish. There are differences today with buggies, beards, bonnets, buttons, phones, and skid steers. They break apart over issues of obedience and not thology… from the Wikipedia files

The breaking up of various groups of Amish and Mennonites is part of our Christian tradition. We have always thought that we were right, on the issues that we could not agree on. In Floradale, at the north end of town, we had seven different Mennonite congregations represented , and two other houses where the people left to go to other denominations. We were civil to one another, but we couldn’t celebrate the Lord’s supper together.

This history of separating comes from our beginnings. Some believed in ‘ sola scriptura ‘ only Scripture. The group interpreted the literal meaning of the various passages from the Bible. While others saw the Spirit behind the text. This was more important than the actual letter of the Law or Bible. You can see where the different groups could, and did, run into problems. Since most of these people, both men and women, were strong leaders, they tended not to give into the other’s point of view. Therefore, today we have hundreds of different Mennonite groups. Mostly we all believe in the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, but is it our obedience to other rules, not biblical , that brings us into disagreement.
Mennonite World Conference has tried to bring the various groups together, but there are still issues that they cannot even bring up for discussion . They have seven core beliefs that they agree upon, but it does not solve all the issues of faith and life. In his life, death and resurrection Jesus tried to bring everything and everybody into the right relationship with each other. We must continue to try to repair the damage among Mennonites, Amish, Hutterites as we live into the Kingdom of God. AMEN
Fred

black and white shadows

crush humanity’s freedom

am I complicit ?

MPL 2025

Fear of LENT

February 26, 2025

Good afternoon.

Lent begins in a week. In the tradition, it is time to repent of our sins and failings. We invite God to forgive it all with God’s grace. I think it is all about letting go of our fears. It is not the fear of the Lord or reverence for God. That is a good thing that invites the worship of the grace of God. It is the other fear that we all experience at different levels that we will find in Lent.

We fear the future in many different ways. There are different tiers of fear. Some fear does not allow us to function in our lives. Most fear is somewhat irrational. And fear usually does not change things well. Action is better. Guilt or shame are also places that do not lead to good decisions or results. We fear war, climate change , our health or our age or the economy. We have the ability to act on all of these things in some way. But sometimes fear takes over, and we are lost.

Jesus says in John 14:1, ” Do not let your hearts be troubled . You believe in God “. This is part of the Last Supper. My mind goes to ‘ what am I not supposed to be troubled about ? ‘. Jesus’ words bring a level of fear. Some of the things that bring fear into my thoughts and prayers, I know where they come from in earlier experiences in my life. I cannot seem to tamp or stomp them down. They began a long time ago.

I have brought them to God during Lent, to release me from them. But as I name the fear, they seem to arrive with fury. I am invited to lay them at the foot of the cross, or in the wilderness of the desert. Some have told me that the fear might be a gift to keep me on the straight and narrow road of faith. Maybe. ‘ Believe in God ‘ despite my fears. This will be with me beginning on Ash Wednesday next week.

God of the 40 days of Lent, I will offer my fears to you, so I may experience your love and grace, in explosive ways, Calm me, and bring your peace to my heart, soul and mind. AMEN

Fred

black and white shadows

crush humanity’s freedom

am I complicit ? MPL 2025