On 04 July 2025, during the Mennonite Church Canada Gathering held in Kitchener, Ontario, I had the privilege of presenting a reflection entitled Creating Spaces as Companions: Redeeming Koinonia in the Life of Mennonite Church Canada. This presentation was part of MCCanada Priorities in the Gathering 2025 theme—deepening our commitment to relationships across congregations, cultures, and communities. I shared how koinonia, as envisioned in Scripture and global theological discourse, calls us beyond transactional partnerships and institutional habits inherited from colonial and industrial legacies. Instead, I invited our church to reimagine partnership as covenantal, relational, and Spirit-led companionship—a sacred journey of walking together in justice, mutuality, and love.
Header Photo: Ruth Bergen Braun, Mennonite Church Alberta Communications
A. TWO INFLUENCING SOURCES OF THIS PRESENTATION
1. In Koinonia: The Gift We Hold Together, Thomas Yoder Neufeld (2012) reflects on the New Testament’s vision of koinonia not merely as fellowship but as deep, active participation in the life of Christ and one another. He stresses that koinonia involves mutual sharing of burdens, gifts, and resources in a Spirit-empowered community, where vulnerability and interdependence mark relationships rooted in grace and mission.
2. In Towards an Ecumenical Theology of Companionship (2022), the World Council of Churches articulate companionship as an act of sharing life—walking together, listening deeply, and discerning God’s will in community. This theology emerges from lived experiences of churches especially in the Global South, seeking justice, mutuality, and dignity in relationships often shaped by colonial and economic inequities.
B. THE IDEAL APPLICATION OF BIBLICAL PARTNERSHIP-COMPANIONSHIP: With Emphases on Mennonite Church Canada and Local Congregational Life
1. Covenantal Bonds
Biblical companionship is rooted in covenant—the solemn promise of fidelity and mutual support seen throughout Scripture. God’s covenant with Abraham (Genesis 17), Ruth’s vow to Naomi (Ruth 1:16–17), and Paul’s commitment to the Philippian church (Philippians 1:3–5) all reflect relationships of enduring solidarity. In the life of Mennonite Church Canada (MC Canada), local congregations can build covenantal ties through long-term relationships that transcend leadership changes or funding cycles. These bonds create sacred trust and a sense of being called together by God—not merely aligned by common goals.
2. Relational Depth
Jesus’ ministry embodied relational depth—He wept with friends (John 11:35), listened to the marginalized (Luke 8:43–48), and restored broken dignity (John 4). Paul urged believers to “bear one another’s burdens” (Galatians 6:2) and to “regard others as better than yourselves” (Philippians 2:3). Within MC Canada, this implies that inter-congregational and inter-family partnerships must prioritize listening and discernment. Programs and joint projects should arise from trust-filled conversations, not just strategic planning. Walking with Indigenous, newcomer, or rural congregations means honoring their voice, culture, and tempo.
3. Organic Growth
The early church grew organically (Acts 2:42–47), guided by the Spirit rather than imposed plans. Paul’s work in local assemblies like Corinth, Philippi, and Ephesus shows how contextual, ground-up communities emerged. In MC Canada, companioning congregations can empower one another by encouraging local leadership, learning from contextual theological reflection, and co-developing initiatives rooted in local strengths and dreams. Resources can flow in response to Spirit-led vision from below—not as pre-packaged solutions from above.
C. THE MARRED APPLICATION OF PARTNERSHIP: Reflections from the Industrial Revolution to Contemporary Missions
1. Covenantal Bonds Became Mere Contractual Agreements
During the Industrial Revolution, factory systems formalized labor relationships through contracts. Similarly, modern mission partnerships often mirror these legalistic structures. While accountability is vital, contract-heavy partnerships can lead to rigid arrangements, where adaptation to local change becomes difficult. Churches in the Global North may unintentionally treat Global South partners as service providers to predetermined objectives, rather than covenant companions in mutual discernment.
2. Relational Depth Became Mere Transactional Interactions
The colonial and post-colonial missionary models operated largely through resource exchange—funds and knowledge from the West, evangelistic labor from the South. This transactional model, while efficient, created dependence and reinforced inequalities. In today’s global church, this continues when congregations or conferences expect measurable outputs in exchange for funding, reducing local partners to implementers rather than equal visionaries. This can happen even within MC Canada when congregations with more resources “help” those with fewer without developing reciprocal, empathetic relationships.
3. Organic Growth Became Mere Organizational Structures
Colonial missions introduced Western ecclesiastical structures—parish systems, governance boards, standard liturgies—into very different cultural contexts. These structures often undermined indigenous or organic expressions of faith. Today, organizational frameworks from Northern institutions are still exported globally, creating tensions. Within MC Canada, national standards or theological education models may unintentionally marginalize voices from culturally distinct or newly-forming congregations, unless these structures remain open to adaptation and mutual influence.
D. REDEEMING PARTNERSHIP-COMPANIONSHIP IN THE 21ST CENTURY CHURCH: Bridging the Biblical Vision and Contemporary Realities in Mennonite Church Canada
1. Contractual Agreements Transformed by Covenantal Bonds
Formal agreements can serve covenantal relationships if grounded in trust and spiritual discernment. Just as Paul used letters (a form of covenantal record) to strengthen relational bonds (Romans 16), agreements today should include mutual commitments to presence, prayer, accountability, and open-ended accompaniment. In MC Canada, memoranda of understanding between congregations or area churches can explicitly name the shared journey of faith, not merely deliverables.
2. Transactional Interactions Transformed by Relational Depth
Transactional engagements—such as fund sharing or technical assistance—can be lifegiving when rooted in friendship and mutual respect. Jesus accepted the anointing of perfume from Mary (John 12:1–8)—a gift beyond utility—and reciprocated with affirmation and honor. Similarly, MC Canada congregations might enrich transactions by practicing mutual storytelling, praying for one another, and hosting intercultural visits, so that each “exchange” becomes relational rather than merely functional.
3. Organizational Structures Transformed by Organic Growth
Structures serve the church when they enable Spirit-led emergence. The Jerusalem Council (Acts 15) created space for Gentile believers to thrive without adopting all Jewish customs—a model of flexible structure respecting diverse contexts. In MC Canada, denominational bodies can support organic growth by adapting polity and programming to Indigenous cultural frameworks, rural rhythms, or urban innovations, trusting that the Spirit speaks through the local. Area churches can be facilitators rather than gatekeepers of local innovation.
CONCLUSION: TOWARDS COMPANIONSHIP-IN-MISSION
To create spaces as companions in MC Canada, we must move from hierarchical and transactional models to partnerships shaped by covenant, depth, and organicity. This requires reimagining relationships through the lens of koinonia—a gift we hold together—and companionship as life-sharing rooted in justice and love.
As congregations walk together, they embody the heart of the Gospel: Christ’s self-giving love that calls us not merely to serve or be served, but to be with one another—across cultures, traditions, and geographies—as friends, siblings, and companions on the Way.
REFERENCES
Neufeld, T. Y. (2012). Koinonia: The Gift We Hold Together. Mennonite World Conference.
World Council of Churches (2022). Towards an Ecumenical Theology of Companionship. Geneva: WCC Publications.
Holy Bible, New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVue).
Pachuau, L. (2011). World Christianity: A Historical and Theological Introduction. Nashville: Abingdon Press.
Walls, A. (1996). The Missionary Movement in Christian History. Maryknoll: Orbis Books.
