Oct. 12, 2009 issue
MC USA appoints former EB member as minister for intercultural relations
By Laurie Oswald Robinson For Mennonite Church USAPage:
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HAMPTON, Va. — Glen Guyton is not afraid of change.
Guyton
“I’m a Gen X baby, so I’ve always lived with flux, change, innovation and having to find new ways of doing things,” said Guyton, denominational minister for intercultural relations for Mennonite Church USA Executive Leadership.
Guyton, a former member of MC USA’s Executive Board and its antiracism team, has served for 11 years as director of student ministries for the 1,000-member Calvary Community Church, which is largely African-American.
“As I approached 40, I dreamt about what it might mean to make a change and to perhaps work for the denomination,” he said.
“Anytime there are significant changes in executive leadership, it can be a challenging time. It is also a time to look at the church with fresh eyes and vision while holding fast to what has always remained the same — our commitment to following Christ and his ways.”
Guyton’s role within the intercultural relations ministry is to help the denomination to be more antiracist. He will strive to help racial-ethnic congregations and individuals more freely offer their gifts to the wider church, and for the wider church to embrace more mutual exchange.
“Conrad Kanagy’s study tells us a growing edge of our church is the emerging racial-ethnic groups,” Guyton said of the 2006 profile of MC USA. “I look forward to helping those groups work together and having all parts of the church working in unison.”
Guyton is planning the next churchwide gathering of racial- ethnic people in August 2010 in Phoenix.
“As I plan this event, I feel the weight of addressing all the needs and issues,” he said. “They vary so much from group to group and even within each group.”
Yet all groups need better access to denominational resources and avenues to resources, he said.
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