David and Jeremy,
You’re right, it isn’t an either/or question on its own. But part of the picture for me is that this is one of a dozen Mennonite-related conferences/gatherings I’ve heard about for the rest of 2008.

And that’s not counting the worker’s rights conferences, anti-imperialism conferences, and immersion programs for the movement to end poverty led by the poor.

As for affiliation — I also consider myself affiliated with a number of these other movements/institutions promoting justice and liberation, so it’s not automatic that seeking justice means that these big Mennonite gatherings are the best place to do that.

Tim,
I appreciate your reminder about story-telling as a key to Jesus’ model — and the idea of sharing stories with one another is certainly more appealing to me than an abstract explication of biblical texts that seem to me already pretty clear. And I should remember too that these gatherings are much richer than can be captured by any “conference questions,” no matter how they’re formulated.

As I reflect on this situation more, I wonder if part of my hesitancy to attend arises from my difficulties in finding practices to sustain myself in this work we’re doing.

It’s work I deeply believe in — neighborhood baby showers in the church, grassroots work to address public transit and immigration realities around here, inviting neighborhood kids to our house to plant and learn about veggies — and I worry that if I leave too much, I won’t be grounded or sustainable in doing it. Some days I feel melancholy and lonely and it’s hard to get out of bed — regardless of how much I believe in what we’re doing.

So hopefully I can find ways to be grounded and nurtured here. And maybe hearing some stories at Winnipeg can help in imagining what that might look like.

I also don’t know how much discussion Illinois Mennonite conference has done about immigration issues. I imagine there’d be some differing opinions between conservative rural congregations and congregations like the one I visited.

Regardless, it’d definitely be a good point to discuss further.

So what are the arguments for going? Big Mennonite gatherings are opportunities to meet other Mennonites and learn from them. At San Jose last summer I got to met JasonE and Folknotions for the first time along with lots of other interesting people.

Jason, as you say it’s certainly frustrating to feel like we have to keep on convincing people of basic biblical values and their relevance to our lives. But on the other hand stories are one of the best ways of doing that. And you’ve got a great story to tell. And if we’re following Jesus, we’ve got to admit he spent a lot of time story telling. Maybe even more then he did feeding the poor and turning over tables.

In the end, I think it’s a balance. To much traveling and you lose your connection. It’s really a matter of weighing the costs and benefits of a given trip and cumulative travel as a whole.

I think you should go to the conference because you are part of the broader community of Christ. Why is your household affiliated to the Mennonite Church if the institution is irrelevant to the work that you are doing there?

I understand that you feel the conference is asking the wrong questions — I certainly feel the same frustration at my seminary. The Church moves sooo slow. But it won’t move at all without voices prodding it from inside. This is a moment for you to evangelize the Church and I think you should take it.