Crossing seas, planting seeds

In May 2024, a group of pastors and church leaders from Mennonite churches in Puerto Rico embarked on a journey across the Caribbean Sea to listen, learn and grow through a Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) East Coast learning tour encounter with their faith siblings in Colombia, South America. 

As a worldwide ministry of Anabaptist churches, MCC’s relief, development and peacebuilding mission is often carried out through people-to-people connections across borders.

MCC East Coast works with pastors and church leaders in Puerto Rico to increase their capacity as they support and equip vulnerable people. Jean Carlos Arce serves as Puerto Rico Program Coordinator for MCC East Coast. He works with local congregations and supports other community organizations with their work to address issues like community abandonment, climate change, renewable energy and agroecology. 

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The seed of an idea is planted 

Arce learned of MCC Colombia’s work with its church partners and their impact while attending a 2022 MCC Latin America and Caribbean (LACA) staff gathering in Mexico City.  

Through the local Anabaptist denominations’ church initiatives, MCC Colombia supports local churches by providing supplies and curriculum for their educational programs and placing international young adult volunteers through MCC’s Serving And Learning Together (SALT) and Young Anabaptist Mennonite Exchange Network (YAMEN) programs. MCC Colombia also disburses small stipends for congregations to work with children and youth in different communities around the country. They primarily focus on healthy living, human rights, peacebuilding and abuse and violence prevention. 

The seed begins to sprout

Arce was inspired by the ways that MCC Colombia was working with churches to reach their communities beyond the walls of the church. Hoping to encourage Mennonite churches in Puerto Rico to do the same, Jean Carlos Arce connected with MCC staff Sara Melgarejo Beltran, Project Coordinator, and Erin Daza Sigler, Co-MCC Representative for MCC Colombia-Ecuador. Together, they curated an experience for the Puerto Rican church leaders to learn from the Colombian Mennonite churches’ years of experience in serving their communities. 

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 Daza Sigler says, “Historically MCC Colombia has worked very closely with the local Anabaptist churches, and we have seen first-hand how the church has played a vital role in reconstruction of the social fabric that has been torn apart by violence and natural disasters. As a team, we were thrilled to receive our Puerto Rican brothers and sisters and grow together during the time we shared.”  

Watching the seed grow 

During their eleven days in Colombia, the group visited church programs that work with young people to prevent violence and abuse. They participated in community rallies to protect the land and water from harmful mining and industrial exploitation. They also heard about the local church’s education and discipleship programs that focused on creation care, peace and justice.  

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Leaders of the learning tour recognized that experiences like this can often leave participants feeling overwhelmed with information. An important component of the journey was to provide the group with space each day to reflect. As Jesus himself took time to rest, good learning requires rest and reflection.  

Nourishing the seed, finding common ground 

This ministerial enrichment opportunity was possible thanks to a grant from MCC East Coast and the collaboration of Puerto Rican church conferences, Convención de las Iglesias Evangélicas Menonitas de Puerto Rico and Misión Evangélica Menonita del Caribe, and the contributions of churches, pastors and leaders. MCC Colombia provided local staff knowledge and much-needed logistical support.  

As a worldwide ministry, MCC is one body with many parts. This learning tour was a beautiful example of collaboration across departments—new ideas are born, trust is built, relationships are strengthened, and impact is exponential.  

Participants shared how they were moved by the stories of a congregation’s pastoral approach to their work with migrants in Teusaquillo, Bogotá. They were touched by how Comunidad Cristiana Menonita de Paz, a church in Armenia, Colombia, had responded with material and psychological support for the community after the tragic earthquake in 1999. Sharing and learning with other pastors kindled a special bond between these pastors from both sides of the Caribbean Sea. They shared a deep desire to serve others in the name of Christ.  

Daza Sigler reflects, “We learned that there is a lot that the Colombian and Puerto Rican churches can learn from one another. The local churches expressed profound gratitude for the opportunity to exchange stories and ideas with the participants of the tour and we look forward to finding creative ways to work together toward the future.” 

Planting new seeds for the future 

The encounter is part of Arce and MCC East Coast’s vision to engage Puerto Rican churches in birthing local community development initiatives. To support the ongoing impact of the exchange, Arce continues to meet with church leaders, facilitating a year-long learning experience to build the group’s capacity. He hopes to see new church initiatives launched soon that will serve the congregations’ communities.

We don’t yet fully know the community impact of this beautiful, cross-cultural exchange and what it will mean for the participants. But one thing is clear: the good fruits the Puerto Rican pastors enjoyed during their trip began with Colombian churches planting a seed years before.

Regardless of whether we get to enjoy the harvest, let us work diligently in planting good seeds today.  

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