Editor’s Note: Stephanie Krehbiel wrote the following to Ervin Stutzman (ervins@mennoniteusa.org) and the rest of the board in response to the statement released by MC USA’s executive board meeting this past weekend. She draws correlation between sexualized violence and the violence of excluding from fellowship an entire population of God’s people for their God-given sexual preference. We invite you to share your own responses in public forums like this one or directly with Mennonite Church leaders. Krehbiel is a PhD Candidate in the Department of American Studies at the University of Kansas. Her dissertation research is on conflicts over sexual diversity among Mennonites in the U.S. Dear Ervin & MCUSA Executive Board, My heart hurts today. Every time I think I’ve put it out of my mind, I get another message from someone who has been devastated by what came out of the Executive Board this week. I’ve tried so hard not to care about this church that you lead, even as I study it and write about it. In spite of how it may appear, I’ve tried to stay emotionally detached, because I fear the pain of caring. I fear being drawn into the spiritual abuse that you leaders perpetuate through your language […]
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