The two Mennonite churches in St. Louis are at first glance very different from each other. And they’re both very different from what people may think when they hear “Mennonite,” a name which many mistakenly associate with rural farmers or furniture makers who wear plain clothes and may not drive cars or have electricity in their homes.
In urban St. Louis, Mennonites look like pretty much like the other people in their neighborhoods. And like many neighborhoods and institutions in St. Louis, these two churches are racially segregated.
Like many St. Louisans, in the months since violence and protests erupted in response to the shooting of a young black man by a white police officer in Ferguson, these two churches are beginning to wake up from their slumber of indifference and silent witness to systemic racism.
Founded in 1957 in the Pruitt-Igoe housing complex, Bethesda Mennonite Church is an enduring witness for Christ in North City, and since its founding has been a predominantly African-American congregation.
Now based in South City, St. Louis Mennonite Fellowship was founded in 1975 by Caucasian families and individuals who had moved to St. Louis from more traditional – often rural – Mennonite communities around the country.
While both churches have over the years become home to many people of other faith traditions, attracted to the churches’ focus on peace, justice and community, Bethesda’s attendees remain almost entirely black and the people of St. Louis Mennonite Fellowship are nearly all white.
These two congregations have formed a partnership called City on a Hill, a biblical reference calling Christians to be the “light of the world.” They feel a responsibility to build bridges between their two racially segregated congregations and work together to address the sin of racism within and among them.
They have become more intentional about gathering together, planning joint worship services, youth activities, singing events, meals, and a day of community service on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The high school students from both congregations made plans to attend the Mennonite Church USA denominational conference in Kansas City, traveling and participating as one united youth group.
Last year, the churches participated in intensive conversations, allowing their members to better understand each other and directly address issues of race between them. Following the workshop, serious issues were set aside as those in attendance stayed around for a trivia night, trading the earlier tears for smiles and laughter while munching on snacks and deliberating over trivia answers.
Inspired by the strength and hope that has been stirred between these congregations as a result of these efforts, the Mennonites are inviting other pastors and community leaders to take an in-depth look at the history of racism in Christian churches, as well as the critical analysis and spiritual initiative necessary to be engaged in the work of racial justice at this historic moment.
