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EMS alum Jon Carlson suing to protect immigrants in places of worship

What does Anabaptist faith look like in the public square? Sometimes it looks like Rev. Jon Carlson. The EMS alumnus was recently featured in The Guardian in a story about individuals challenging presidential actions in court. Jon serves as lead pastor of Forest Hills Mennonite Church and moderator of Mennonite Church USA, roles that place him at the intersection of pastoral leadership, denominational life, and public witness. His participation in this moment reflects a long-standing Anabaptist commitment to justice, conscience, and faithful engagement in the public square.

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Building connections in times of division at Hope for the Future

At Hope for the Future 2026 in San Antonio, two dozen BIPOC leaders gathered for deep discernment, rest and strategic visioning asking what faithful leadership looks like in a divided world.
Among them was EMS Doctor of Ministry student Jonny Rashid, pastor of West Philadelphia Mennonite Fellowship, who reflected: “To be united, we need to work toward collective liberation. We need to ally with all minorities because our liberation is linked.” The gathering, led by Sue Park-Hur, Director of Racial/Ethnic Engagement for Mennonite Church USA and friend of EMS, centered listening, renewal, and a vision of interdependent ministry rooted in 1 Corinthians 12.

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Bridge-builder Brittany Caine-Conley (MDiv ’14) selected for Outstanding Young Alum Award

As one of the lead organizers for Congregate Charlottesville, Brittany Caine-Conley, MDiv ’14, (aka “Smash”) called for 1,000 clergy and faith leaders of all denominations to counter-protest a gathering of white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017. Her efforts denied white supremacists key locations that would have made their Unite the Right rally more visible, and later that year, she was honored by the National Council of Churches as a co-recipient of the President’s Award for Excellence in Faithful Leadership.

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‘It’s more than a language class, but a launchpad for opportunity’: WHSV shines light on EMU’s Intensive English Program

EMU’s Intensive English Program (IEP) continues to help English language learners from all around the world find their voice and build a better life for themselves, despite federal funding shortages affecting many similar programs around the country. Hear from IEP students and grads (including an EMS student) about how the transformative program is positively shaping their lives in this video segment from WHSV-TV3.

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A practical seminar on embodied spiritual practices with AMBS and EMU professors

On the afternoon of July 10, during a seminar entitled “Restitutio Divina: Embodied Biblical Reflection”, Leah Thomas, Ph.D., a theologian and associate professor of Pastoral Care, director of Contextual Education at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, and biblical scholar Stephanie Day Powell, assistant professor of Hebrew Bible at Eastern Mennonite University, led participants through a guided, meditative exercise called restitutio divina.

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Learning to pause, restore and resist at the MC USA Women’s Summit 2025

“Sisters, we’ve been brainwashed,” said Rev. Dr. Shannon Dycus, interim president of Eastern Mennonite University, in her keynote address to 185 attendees at MC USA’s Women’s Summit, July 8, in Greensboro, North Carolina. She explained that women carry the weight of systems of oppression that measure their worth by labor and productivity. “There is a binary that tells us that we either need to be working like a machine, or we can rest and fear that we aren’t doing enough,” she said.

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Climate advocates speak to power

A small group of Ana­baptists celebrated Earth Month on April 10 in Washington, D.C., by urging U.S. legislators to protect federal clean energy tax credits and urban community forestry grants. Many of these grants benefit churches and low-income communities and are at risk of being cut in an upcoming budget bill. Among this number were EMS alums John Stoltzfus and Steven Pardini and CJP alum Kirstin De Mello.

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Celebration of Blessings features reflections from CJP grads

The Center for Justice and Peacebuilding (CJP) at EMU sent 13 graduates off into the world with words of affirmation and reflection at its annual Celebration of Blessings on Sunday, May 4, in Martin Chapel. In the heartfelt ceremony, CJP faculty and staff members Dr. Gloria Rhodes, Amy Knorr, Dr. Joe Cole, and Dr. Catherine Barnes provided words of tribute for each graduate, expressing their feelings of love, pride, and honor. Among the graduates was Susan Hochstedler, who began taking electives at CJP for her seminary degree program.

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Commencement speaker calls on graduates to pursue justice, mercy, and humility beyond EMU

The Rev. Dr. Lesley Francisco McClendon, senior pastor of C3 Hampton and adjunct instructor at Eastern Mennonite Seminary, delivered the Commencement address on Sunday, May 4. Speaking to the 316 graduates of the Class of 2025, she encouraged them to live into the instruction of Micah 6:8, the guiding verse foundational to EMU’s mission: “What does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God?” As they leave campus, McClendon urged graduates to carry that call into a lifelong journey of discovery in the world.

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