Good Friends,

    I have been thinking about the exercise "New Wine/New Wineskins" since last Friday. The process certainly elicited a lot of energy on the part of those of us who were first time participants.  I am reminded of Johoshaphat's prayer in 2 Chronicles 20:12, "We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you."  I am grateful that the process is not hurrying to a conclusion.

    I wonder whether a "process" driven inquiry is adequate for a churchly enterprise?  The church is the oldest continuous movement in the Western world.  Even though individual denominational groups have a shorter life span, their special contributions are rooted in the earlier church and the Biblical experience.  I don't think the church or its institutions will survive with presentist short term thinking.  While all church thinking should have an ecumenical outlook,  I also believe that a particular church (denominational) program has no reason to exist if it does not add a special flavor to ecumenical church activity.

    It was interesting to me that little was said on Friday about "vision."  Perhaps this is because the MCC vision is the Mennonite and BIC vision.  It is the church's vision for practicing mutual aid, binding up the wounds of humanity, peace living and witness that is the reason for MCC. Integral to that vision is the powerful desire to work on this agenda together.  I sometimes wonder whether church organizations should have a vision or mission on their own apart from the sponsoring churches. 

    I also heard little on Friday about the unique character of MCC as an incarnational service program, strong on respectful mutual relationships which does its best works at the grass roots.

    Someone said on Friday that MCC has always been a strong agency.  Hardly.  As I told my conversation partner, my first memory of MCC is 65 years ago when my father accompanied then executive secretary Orie Miller to a meeting with Virginia Mennonite leaders who were opposed to MCC's inter-Mennonite character and activity.  MCC barely survived the 1920s and 1930s.  It took 50 years to fully earn trust commensurate to the initial vision.

    MCC was the first and likely continues to be the strongest institutional expression of inter-Mennonite cooperation.  As an action agency MCC can easily overlook, even ignore, the church's vision.

    It was the vision of inter-Mennonite unity that also inspired the formation of MCC in 1920, of MCC Canada  in 1963 as well as provincial and regional bodies.  They along with MCC US exhibit a high degree of inter-Mennonite consciousness.  Allen Hiebert's report on Holderman participation in meat canning and relief sales could also include Amish, Old Colony, and Old Order Mennonite excitement about MCC projects.

    My apprehension regarding New Wine-New Wineskins is that I have not heard the inter-Mennonite vision expressed very much. It strikes me that perhaps inter-Mennonite practice may be strongest at the regional and provincial levels at MCC and weakest at the bi-national table.  Is this because the representation and energy at the bi-national table comes from constituent MCC bodies rather than directly from conferences?

    Is it because the bi-national staff has less direct church encounter than provincial and regional staffs?  My sense is that denominational members in Canada and the U.S. want a strong voice at all MCC tables.

    There is no doubt that a living organization needs to be renewed and reshaped.  I hope and pray that the vision and practice of inter-Mennonite unity in Canada and the United States and beyond will be strengthened through the New Wine-New Wineskins process.  I anticipate that the governing boards will have a big assignment dealing with the energy and findings of the process.
   
For the cause of God's Kingdom,
John A. Lapp

I think MCC should use churches in different communities as its centers of operation. We should use Mennonite Churches as the bases for regional and local projects in the third world, and should use churches as the recruitment and fund raising institutions that provide MCC's workers and money. MCC should make sure it has a brochure presence in every Mennonite Church and it should encourage pastors to advocate for its work, especially with youth that might enter service opportunities.

My experience is that MCC is especially valuable as a witness TO the church, as a source of information regarding the needs of the broader world and also as an advocate for priorities that come from taking ALL the people of the world into account.

It also is valuable in seeding Mennonite congregations and denominational leadership with people who have international experience in situations of need.

I think one thing that is important is building bridges with those churches who may be somewhat skeptical of MCC. We just had a speaker here from MCC and he did a great job of connecting his call to help the starving with his deeply rooted faith in Jesus Christ. I think more stories like that are important. To hear how the decisions you make are based out of a call of God would be fantastic.

You should create programs for teens or high school grads to go for a month or a summer to help where ever MCC is serving and let them put their faith into action. If you guys do have this, then promote it like crazy. I haven't heard of one. It gets young people involved.

Overall though, people really need to know that you find the church and faith in Jesus as important. I am sorry if that sounds ridiculous, but there are churches out there who are a little unsure of MCC in relation to faith. I believe in what you guys do but i am just offering input from what i hear and see. Keeping Jesus and His Good News central in your language and what you do is very helpful to churches.

Thanks for what you all do. I hope you found my input constructive. I am just trying to find ways to build bridges between churches like mine and MCC. God Bless.

It is recognized that the supporting conferences and congregations should have the greatest weight and leadership responsibility within the MCC, but a more effective way should be found to encourage individual participation and representation within the organization for those who exist outside the traditional congregational framework.

The question of the relationship between the MCC and the church can be taken in many different ways. Recognizing the intent of this topic, I think it would be brilliant to broaden it to include consideration of that wider Mennonite/Anabaptist diaspora composed of individuals who do not attend services in a MB or GC congregation, yet belong to the wider Mennonite/Anabaptist faith family. As long as we identify as Mennonite or Anabaptist, or even as Christian individuals who have created their own relationship to MCC outside of a traditional conference, we also constitute "the Church".

Many of us choose to worship at a different church, often due to socio-politico divisions within a local congregation. Many of us live in areas that are no longer able to sustain independent congregations (the MB in Bismarck or Minneapolis, for instance), have moved to areas without active Anabaptist congregations, or belong(ed) to conferences that no longer exist or no longer identify as Mennonite (the EMB/FEBC). I have experienced many of these circumstances, and yet still identify as Mennonite and am supportive of the MCC, as are my siblings and many of my friends. We could also add experiences in congregations such as my childhood church in Montana where the political leanings of a vocal minority prevented any official relationship with the MCC which they felt did not support those personal political agendas.

As such, it seems virtually impossible to interact with the MCC unless one is a member of an identified Mennonite congregation that chooses to maintain a connection with the MCC. This leaves too many of us outside of the support circle. In many areas, the future MCC will have to depend on individuals moved by the spirit and their own consciences to self-identify with the MCC work, tradition, and spiritual calling, rather than on formal congregations. A couple of future trends would also indicate a need to be able to deal more effectively with "individuals" as well as "congregations". First, the term "Mennonite" is increasingly used to refer to a genetic/cultural/historic group separated from a specific set of religious beliefs meaning that traditional understandings of the term and organizations based on those understandings will have to evolve. Secondly, while the traditional Anabaptist concept of missions, service, Internationalism, and moral imperative is less and less applicable to labeled Mennonites, God has never stopped calling people to live according to those ideals, meaning that there are many "Anabaptist" Christians who have never heard of Mennonites or the MCC, but would in conscience be unified in spirit and purpose to the work and goals of the MCC. It would seem wise to find ways to bring those faith-based (as opposed to genetic) Anabaptists into the greater support network. Obviously, they do not belong to or identify with churches currently represented. It is also possible that individual members of that diaspora including other Anabaptist, perhaps even "Evangelical", traditions, might be attracted to the MCC support network. This assumes that the MCC has retained its original pan-Anabaptist perspective and is larger than the two remaining dominant conferences.

Thanks.
Steven Wall

I grew up on the southern-most border of Mexico and Texas and was drawn to a bilingual Mennonite Church in the Rio Grande Valley through an MCC event!

Members of my church seemed to be very concerned and convicted about issues around the treatment of humans who cross the border (our border included!), treatment of animals and the environment as well. They were moved to act locally with other grassroots organizations on many of these issues.

MCC provided resources to do this work locally and I was able to participate as a Summer Service Worker for MCC last summer. I focused on my church's children's ministry as well as the local involvement in the Coalition of Immokalee Workers' (CIW) "Campaign for Fair Food", which is led by a grassroots community-based group in Florida who directly address the mistreatment of farmworkers in Florida (mostly Latino and Haitian) who pick 90% of the country's tomatoes in the winter and are holding large corporations accountable to the human rights abuses there. I spent time in Florida living and working in this community on this campaign after my MCC Summer Service term was over (after months of unemployment because of the high poverty level in my community!).

It was easy for me to share this work in my local community but have yet to make a connection with the national MCC network. Most of the human rights work of MCC seemed to be out of the country. It was MCC that allowed for me to get the resources I needed to work on the Campaign for Fair Food that summer and has become my full time work now with Just Harvest USA.

For example, right now we're calling on the Governor of Florida, Charlie Crist, who publicly apologized for slavery in Florida in centuries past but has remained absolutely silent on the 7 federally prosecuted cases of slavery(forced farm labor) just in this last decade! (Even though it's involved over 1,000 farmworkers!) Visit http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/Governor_Crist_stand_against_slavery for more on this.

Now that I'm on the East Coast, I'd like to be able to connect with other churches and congregations who align with MCC's values and challenge others to take a stand for human rights domestically (as opposed to just internationally) by doing something as simple as sending an e-mail/fax.

I think the role of the church to bring reconciliation and justice among the oppressed is important and receiving news and updates of human rights movements in the U.S. (as well as beyond) should come from MCC publications through the growing MCC network.

This is exciting! I will surely participate in this discussion.

We're trying to carry on with some of the work MCC Philippines left here 3 years ago. We're seeking to water and nurture the seeds that MCC planted in the Philippines for the past 25+ years.

At the same time, we're trying to be a presence of the Body of Jesus Christ in the context of our socio-political realities here.

I guess we're seeking to be both an MCC-like organization and a Mennonite local church at once?

Daniel Pantoja, President
Peacebuilders Community, Inc.
Mindanao, Philippines

Hello Friends,

One of the things I really respect about MCC is the outstanding spirit of stewardship and service. I think in that way, MCC is an "extra appendage" to the Church. My home church is quite small and doesn't have the money to really support missions. I know, though, that contributing and being part of MCC - I can still be a part of reaching people worldwide.

This is a very important topic and what intrigues me about it is our definition of "the church".  I think too often we speak of the church as an institution or an organized body.  I would rather think of "the church" as those actively involved in building the Community of God within the chaos of our conflicted world.  This "church" may be scattered, but is deeply involved with the "least of these" as Christ commanded, risking their own personal safety to build the Community of God among the poor and oppressed.  What is MCC's relationship with this church?

I know that a number in our church are concerned about MCCs involvement with what appears to be tolerance regarding Iran's Ahmadinejad (didn't confront him on areas of concern), moral issues, sexual orientation, and religious pluralism.

Keep Jesus central. Everything else is fluff. Thank you for your commitment to help those in need--we have to maintain that biblical directive. Be wary and cognizant of cultural influences that intend to alter convictions based on the Scriptures; seek to show and demonstrate love in a way that leads people to faithful discipleship. Stand firm against the temptation to "accept all" without teaching and modeling a transformed life.

My comments re: How MCC relates to the Church?

First, they are inseparable. It is like a mother and a child before a natural birth. The mother nourishes the child in the womb to give it strength. It is only after the mother feels that the child has become strong enough that she releases the child into the world, knowing and trusting that the child can function on its own. However, even after birth, mother continues to support the child through a foundational relationship based on godly discipline and teachings.

When I think of scripture I think of 1 Timothy 3 beginning at verse 13 "those who serve well as officers (workers) will earn a good reputation and will be highly respected for their faith in Jesus Christ. Verse 14 and 15, "I hope to visit you soon, but if I am delayed you will know how everyone who belongs to God's family ought to behave. After all, the church of the living God is the strong foundation of truth."

When I look at the work of MCC, I think of the good reputation and respect that the officers (workers) have earned around the world. But I also think, that without the church body, the mother of all, our officers (workers) of MCC would weaken to the point of being ineffective. In other words, their foundation would crumble. So if we want to keep our family of MCC workers strong, we must keep the the church pillars under them healthy and strong.

Submitted by Norman Meade, Co-Pastor of the Manigotagan Community Chapel

I attend Plain's Mennonite Church in Pennsylvania and I think our relationship with MCC is a great model of how the church should interact with MCC as a whole. Every month, we hold a collection for a specific resource MCC is in need of. Every year we have a group volunteer at the resource center in Ephrata, PA. The church stays informed of MCC initiatives via MCC magazines and our bulletins. MCC occasionally has speakers come to the church and inform our members on MCC happenings. A few of our members have come to us from around the world through MCC. Many of our members have either volunteered or worked for MCC at one time.

Could you (John Lapp) please explain what you mean by: "inter-Mennonite unity" as you mention in your response above?

Thanks
Andrea Mendes
Mennonite Church in Brazil

I am new to MCC and dont have any historical understanding to work with. I have been a member of a Mennonite church for a little over 5 years.
I first want to say that I am not oppossed to para-church organizations. I believe that they can often perform the Lord's work unhindered by denoninational politics, and do well when guided by a specific focus. However, I do believe that this strength can also create problems of disconnection to an established body of believers. There is stability in denomination affiliations which para-church orgs (in my view) simulate by default, creating their own body. Although this may not be "wrong" or "bad", it can be off balance I believe. I think they can be a bit cliquish, or even elitist. The attitude that denominations are inherantly stale, obsolete, stuck in old ways, etc. is assuming, judgemental, and rooted in pride. it's just as much a "Star-bellied Sneech" thing as any denominational clique might be.
So, having said all that, I want to give my oppinion that the church connection is vital to the life of MCC. I believe that it would be dissonant in every way for MCC to drift from it's church connection.
Ideal relationship? The question itself sounds like too tall an order (but I understand the effort to create dialog). I think I would need more info on how the church constituents affect MCC's operations now. If having 12 boards has become an issue that's one thing. If it is a question of managerial structure there could be all manner of "good" ways to adjust the system to make it more effective. But, if the question has more to do with the church's influence on vision, theology, spiritual emphasis and such - the basic "what we are about" questions - then I feel very strongly about this discussion. I say emphatically that the church must be the source of these things. But even this statement is based on my own convictions on these issues. "In the name of Christ" is the absolute foundation for me. If that was in question my interest in MCC would be lost. If some MCC constituents were pushing to reduce the emphasis on keeping Jesus at the core of all MCC does then I would be in staunch opposition. That is not to say that I dont support work that in primarily humanitarian, I simply believe that as a Christian organization Christ must be at the foundation, whether spoken outright or not. Let's not be unclear on that. So, inasmuch as the church connection maintains the foundational core: Jesus Christ, it is vital.
MCC is also Mennonite and should remain so. I dont have time (sorry) to wax eloquent on that, but there's my humble oppinion.

God Bless!!

It seems to me that the contours of MCC’s relationship to the Mennonite and Brethren in Christ churches in Canada are basically consistent with our ecclesiology and mission. MCC is a shared agency of these churches for a specific set of tasks. But there are three aspects of this relationship which merit close attention: structural, theological and global.

Structural:
One of the structural issues which precipitated the New Wine / New Wineskins process was how to include representation of all the regional and provincial MCCs (through which MCC raises its resources from the constituency) on the MCC Executive Committee while maintaining or even enhancing the representation of the denominational church bodies (which give MCC its mandate and access to their member congregations). I hope that the process will yet produce some possible solutions to this aspect of the relationships between MCC and the churches in US and Canada.

Theological
Whereas there seems to be widespread consensus about MCC’s purpose, there are questions and concerns by some constituents about MCC’s theology. To strengthen the relationship between the churches and MCC we need a conversation within MCC as well as between MCC and the churches to affirm and clarify MCC's core theological convictions. For instance, we should explicate and re-affirm together the theology within our motto: “In the Name of Christ.” The Shared Convictions articulated at the Mennonite World Conference level could serve as MCC’s statement of faith. These are the basic theological tenets articulated through after consultation by Anabaptist churches around the world and could serve MCC well, both to guide its policies, positions and activities and to explain itself to constituents and outsiders.

Global
The perception that MCC needs to be more accountable to churches at the global level was another prompt for the New Wine/New Wineskins process. And this call has been expressed in most meetings and summits.

MCC’s discernment of its relationship to the global Anabaptist communion should be subordinated to a conversation and discernment by and of the global Anabaptist communion about cooperation on relief, development and peace-building on the global level. Many Anabaptist churches already have structures and agencies for their work in relief, development, and peace-building. In some countries evangelism and church planting are included within these agencies whereas in US and Canada these have been separated between the denominational mission agencies and MCC.

Projecting a global MCC structure and/or creating MCCs in countries around the world in ignorance and disregard of existing Anabaptist-related relief, development and peace organizations in other countries risks imposing the ethos/organizational culture and assumptions of a US/Canadian organization on the global Anabaptist family. It also presumes the exportation of the division of evangelism (to be done by denominational mission agencies) and relief, development and peace-building (to be done by an inter-denominational agency, i.e MCC) from Canada/US (where it has worked well) to other countries though Anabaptists in other countries may want to and/or have combined these.

Let me suggest the following steps for addressing the relationship of MCC to the global Anabaptist communion:
1. Request MWC to convene a global conversation of Anabaptists about what and how Anabaptists should be engaged and cooperate in relief, peace-building and development.
2. Participate with transparency and openness and humility
3. Share New Wineskins finding in an MWC- (rather than an MCC-) managed global conversation.
4. Regard MCC's structures and patterns – whether current ones or those emerging from NWS - as secondary, transitory, subject to alteration, even abandonment, as discerned in consultation with the global partners.
5. Offer MCC's international infrastructure for facilitating the conversation and the implementation of its outcome.

Finally, as we reflect on the relationship of MCC to the churches for the long-term, we should not assume the long-term continuation of denominational loyalties on the part of its present constituents. Already MCC is benefiting from the readiness of Christians from other denominations to serve with and donate to and give counsel to MCC. Furthermore, denominations are surely pen-ultimate structures in God’s plan for the church.

Peter Rempel

I have just read John Lapp's comment on the New Wine/New Wineskins process. I must confess that it is the first time I have 'touched' this process although as a 'lifetime' MCCer, the future of MCC is of great interest to me.
I believe that we are at a critical junction, not only MCC and the Mennonite Church, but all of us. The decisions that we take (or don't take) over the next four years will have profound consequences for all of Creation. This IS a short term context ... but the consequences are definitely long term. I believe that God must be 'shouting' at us .. but our ears are plugged. Mennonite World Assembly will offer a kairos moment for us to unstopper our ears together and try to discern how to respond. An international team of five of us are working to create a workshop process which may allow the member churches of Mennonite World Conference to hear God's call. If so, it may also provide some important church vision to assist the MCC New Wine/New Wineskins process.

With you in Hope,

Stu Clark

I would like to see serious consideration given to modification of the
name. I think that the same acronym could be used for something like:
Mennonite Charitable Community or Mennonite Caring Community or Mennonite
Concerned Charity or Mennonite Christian Charity - MCC really doesn't
identify who we are or what we do. Mennonite Central Committee does a
little to identify us, but not what we represent or do. MCC almost sounds
like "KGB" or some other sinister unknown group of less than desirable
people. There are creative people in the Mennonite umbrella who could come
up with a name that clarifies who we are what what our goals are.
 
Dave Gerbrandt

To me, MCC is related to the church in many ways like the mission statement says: "sharing experiences, resources and faith in Jesus".  MCC has helped in building churches and solving some conflicts in the churches.
 
God bless MCC,
Birungi Susan
IVEP Uganda

MCC and the Church in the Philippines can be partners in building peace!

This is a kairos-moment for the Church in the Philippines. We sense that the Spirit of God is prompting the Body of Christ to be a mediator among various conflicting groups in our land.

In July 05, 2008, we arranged a meeting between the Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches (PCEC) and the Peace Panel of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). It was the first time that a Muslim revolutionary front had a face-to-face dialogue with a group of conservative Evangelical Christian leaders. Since then, we have observed indicators of prejudice reduction among them.

In August 07, 2008, an international Mennonite delegation helped us in our conflict transformation activities. Jack Suderman (General Secretary, MC Canada) and his wife Irene, Janet Plenert (Executive Secretary, MC Canada Witness), Naomi Unger (Mennonite World Conference General Council Committee Member), Markus Rediger (Executive Director, MC Switzerland), and Peter Stucky (Executive Director, MCC Columbia) met to dialogue with leaders of the MILF in the morning and with Major General Raymundo Ferrer of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in the afternoon. We were warmly met by both the MILF and the AFP, who have been participating in a protracted conflict for over 30 years and are currently at arms against each other in Mindanao.

In October 20-21, 2008, the leaders of the Integrated Mennonite Churches in the Philippines (IMCP) invited Peacebuilders Community (PBC) to meet for prayer and to envision a partnership together to advance Anabaptist theology among our people. Gordon Janzen, the Mennonite Church Canada Witness’ facilitator for Asia, was present. During that two-day consultation, we have agreed to do the following : (a) to formalize the peacebuilding partnership between the IMCP and the PBC; (b) for IMCP to send volunteers to learn and serve with PBC in Mindanao; (c) to design together a new biblical peacebuilding training program and to offer this peacebuilding training to all IMCP pastors; (d) to adopt the Mennonite Church Canada/USA logo as a common graphic image that will help build a common identity for all Mennonites in the Philippines; (e) to find a way to let the whole country know that there are Mennonites in this archipelago; (f) to have coffee shops all over the country where Anabaptist peacebuilding resources can be discussed and distributed; (g) to develop peacebuilding ministries focusing on our relationships within IMCP congregations and families; (h) to appoint a specific committee to lead in building peace and reconciliation among IMCP congregations; (i) to establish connection with other Mennonite churches around the world; (j) to become a global church so that we can impact the world, particularly having relationships with other Mennonite churches in Asia. PBC invited these Filipino Mennonite leaders to Mindanao for a Peace Learning Tour last December 01-07, 2008. They also invited me to meet with their leaders and pastors on a quarterly basis for Anabaptist theological training and leadership development. With the help of Mennonite Church Canada Witness, I, representing PBC, committed to serve them on the basis of their invitation.

In February 04-08, 2009, the PCEC invited all the armed-political fronts in the Philippines to listen to their perspectives on the peace talks with the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP). PBC helped in coordinating with the Muslim rebels and the government authorities to make their mutual participation possible. The Policy Center at the Asian Institute of Management hosted and documented the event called “Conversations on Peace.” The MILF’s assessment of the event seemed very positive and even recognized the role and contribution of PCEC in gathering the various armed fronts.

Because of these challenges and opportunities facing the Body of Christ in this Southeast Asian archipelago, we are asking the other parts of the global Church to pray and walk with us in this exciting journey towards peace and reconciliation. Because we belong to the global Mennonite family, we are appealing to all who embrace Anabaptist tradition to help us to be the presence of Jesus—the Prince of Peace—in our conflicted socio-political context in the Philippines.

:: Help us send people, food and material goods to communities ravaged by war.

:: Help us encourage and support local churches and community groups in their efforts to provide food, health care, education, employment and social services.

:: Help us help people develop skills for creating peace in their families, neighborhoods, villages, towns and nations.

My association with MCC in India as a Mennonite has spanned over four decades and this relationship has enabled me to understand MCC’s relationship to the Church to some extent. This relationship stems from 1 Cor.12:28 wherein it states that those of the body of Christ called to be "apostles, prophets, teachers, workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different tongues". Another reference I get is from John 21:15-17 where we, the Church, are called to "not make converts to our way of thinking but to look after His sheep so that they get nourished in the knowledge of Jesus". Even as Jesus' first obedience was to do the will of His Father, the saving of humans (from spiritual, physical, emotional and social needs) was the natural outcome of His obedience to the Father. Therefore MCC as a service arm of the Church is at its best when it goes to reach out to those in need only in obedience to God in doing His will first which is to glorify Him through maintaining the centrality of Christ in all that it does without compromising as to who we are.
MCC is, therefore a part of the Church (of the body of Christ) called to minister and serve those in need of physical, social, emotional and spiritual healing through holistic development work even as Christ did in His years while on earth. MCC is the Church in action because we, who are involved in this ministry are the body of Christ. However, MCC and the Church have differing roles and yet are synergistic in its mission to further the Kingdom building work. Christ's vision is made a reality for the fulfilment of God's will on earth through restoration and reconciliation in a broken world (Is.25:6-8). Therefore, MCC and the Church cannot be separated. Even though they are different, yet they are inseparable being part of the body of Christ.

Governing bodies and leadership of leadership should be of Anabaptist faith, however, are we not also responsible for witnessing? What better way to do that than to share employment and service opportunities with those outside of Anabaptist faith?

MCC is a part of the Church.

The Church includes all such agencies and bodies that work for the Kingdom of God in the name of Jesus Christ. The conventional 'Church' does not alone qualify for above, so do agencies like MCC (provided that all who work in it profess Christ to be their Lord and Saviur). After all, it is the Church which has been given the responsibility of being the salt and light. So if MCC as a part of the Universal Church does so, it only furthers the Kingdom of God and thus gives opportunity to the people of this world in understanding God the Father and His love, peace and justice for all.