For me, the highlight was meeting people. Having grown up in Germany and also spending time in Switzerland and in Paraguay, I knew a lot of the people I spontaneously met at the conference in Germany or on the streets of Zürich.
But I not only enjoyed meeting old friends. In these kinds of events, one meets fascinating people from all around the world. At mealtimes, we would find ourselves sitting next to a missionary couple from Mexico whose ministry involved evangelizing, among other people, members of the Mexican drug cartels who attended their church (without becoming members). Fascinating and challenging.
We met young men from Burkina Faso who not only loved Jesus but also loved to explain their national foods as they learned to eat and enjoy southern German cuisine. We met friends of friends, people who didn’t know us but could bring us news about our common friends or relatives. And we met people who had read Tim’s books and were eager to get to know us.
Mennonite World Conference is truly a family. Collegial relationships are important; hierarchies are not. So, we could converse comfortably with anyone and everyone. It’s a great context for getting out of our comfort zone and simply asking anyone we’d meet: “Hi, what’s your name and your home country? What do you love about being here?”
Such a very rich time. And beyond all these “unplanned connections” were all those that were planned—special celebrations, choir concerts, city tours and, of course, the amazing 500-year anniversary of Anabaptism that we celebrated together in the very building where it all began. Enough memories to last a lifetime.
It was a privilege to represent U.S. Mennonite Brethren at these events. I hope that those of us who attended can incite enthusiasm among us for continued participation. Why not plan on attending the next Mennonite World Conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in January 2028?
Gertrud Geddert and her husband, Tim, serve as USMB delegates to Mennonite World Conference. They attended the MWC General Council meetings in Germany and The Courage to Love: Anabaptism@500 events in Switzerland in May 2025.
Mennonite World Conference is a communion of Anabaptist-related churches linked to one another in a worldwide community of faith for fellowship, worship, service, and witness. USMB is a member conference of this global ministry.
