rain and the rhinoceros

What do you picture when you think of the Mennonites? A horse, buggy, amish-type people, washing clothes by hand?

There is a new breed of Mennonites out there who are attempting to bring the radicalism of their tradition to our contemporary, technologically savvy culture. If you haven’t read it you must look into the new Mennonite magazine Geez. The Mennonite’s radical critique of “progress” has found a creative voice in this Adbusterish awarding winning magazine.

Here is how Geez describes themselves,

Because it’s time we untangle the narrative of faith from the fundamentalists, pious self-helpers and religio-profiteers. And let’s do it with holy mischief rather than ideological firepower.

We’ll explore the point at which word, action and image intersect, and then ignite. So let’s blaspheme the gods of super-powerdom, instigate spiritual action campaigns and revamp that old Picture Bible.

We’ve set up camp in the outback of the spiritual commons. A bustling spot for the over-churched, out-churched, un-churched and maybe even the un-churchable. A location just beyond boring bitterness. A place for wannabe contemplatives, front-line world-changers and restless cranks. A place where the moon shines quiet, instinct runs mythic and belief rides a bike (or at least sits on the couch entertaining the possibility).

Bridgefolk is a movement that seeks ecumenical dialogue between Roman Catholicism and the Mennonite tradition. According to their website,

Bridgefolk is a movement of sacramentally-minded Mennonites and peace-minded Roman Catholics who come together to celebrate each other’s traditions, explore each other’s practices, and honor each other’s contribution to the mission of Christ’s Church. Together we seek better ways to embody a commitment to both traditions. We seek to make Anabaptist-Mennonite practices of discipleship, peaceableness, and lay participation more accessible to Roman Catholics, and to bring the spiritual, liturgical, and sacramental practices of the Catholic tradition to Anabaptists.

I first heard about Bridgefolk as an undergraduate from a theology professor of mine at the University of St. Thomas, Gerald W. Schlabach. Although I was attracted to Dr. Schlabach because I share his theological leanings, we actually met and began to talk when we realized that we shared something in common: we both smoke pipe tobacco. Schlabach and I had many conversations about theology and ethics while smoking a pipe between classes outside the theology wing at St. Thomas. Recently, I have become more interested in Mennonite - Catholic dialogue. Bridgefolk is the center for such dialogue and Schlabach has been quite involved in the movement; he is the Executive Director of the Board of Directors. Schlabach grew up in the Mennonite tradition and attended the University of Nortre Dame; after much prayer and consideration he recently converted to Roman Catholicism. He considers himself a Mennonite Catholic.

Dr. Schlabach is also a prolific theologian. He has written numerous books and articles. He recently edited a volume called Just Policing, Not War: An Alternative Response to World Violence which will be released next month.