Mennonite Churches

The Mennonite Church is heir to a radical Reformation understanding of the Lord's Supper and baptism as ordinances, not sacraments. Mennonites, however, approach these ordinances with serious reverence because of their communal significance. Two dominant styles characterize the Mennonite approach to worship and these ordinances-charismatic and free form. The charismatic style emphasizes freedom of expression by worshipers and leaders. The free-form style emphasizes the use of a prototype of worship adapted for each week's service. When I came to faith in Christ, I asked to be baptized into the Mennonite congregation in which I had grown up. In the preparation for church membership, we, the candidates for baptism, were told, among other things, what baptism and Communion meant. The minister made it clear that baptism does not save you; it is your act of witness to the work of grace in you. Similarly, Communion is not a corporeal eating of Christ, it is a memorial of his death and a ce…