Aug. 17, 2009 issue
Magazine editor faced issues with courage
Shelly guided ‘The Mennonite’ through the ’60s
By Mennonite Weekly Review staffPage:
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NORTH NEWTON, Kan. — Maynard Shelly, who confronted contentious issues with firm conviction as editor of The Mennonite during the 1960s, died Aug. 7. He was 84.
Shelly
Shelly edited the General Conference Mennonite Church’s weekly denominational magazine from 1961 to 1971.
By addressing the controversies of that turbulent era, Shelly changed the way church members perceived the publication, said Robert Regier of North Newton, who did layout and artwork for The Mennonite from 1959 to 1963.
“Maynard was very interested in social issues and worked very hard at trying to fuse faith and action,” said Regier, a longtime art professor at Bethel College. “He saw this as a very important dimension of his understanding of the Anabaptist faith.”
Two key issues for Shelly while editor were the Vietnam War and racial injustice, Regier said.
“He tried to engage those two issues and bring them before the readership in a variety of ways.” Regier said. “Maynard’s vision took the magazine in a direction that created a little more conflict than had been experienced.”
The Mennonite’s content had been more devotional for a readership with a broad range of theological perspectives, he said.
“Maynard moved it a little bit more into a prophetic role,” Regier said. “His editorials became more of a commentary on social-political types of issues, rather than a more personal piety.”
Vern Preheim of Newton, GC Peace and Social Concerns secretary from 1962 to 1965, recalls Shelly’s courage in the midst of conflict.
“He did a good job, but caught a lot of fire for his strong anti-Vietnam War stance,” said Preheim, who later served as the denomination’s general secretary. “He was very courageous and followed his convictions.”’
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