DH invited us to a Mennonite worship service tomorrow.

Should I wear a cross on my blouse like I usually do in other churches? Do they have crosses in their churches?

I know that men sit on one side and the women on the other.

I have a long skirt and sweater that will look nice. The women at this particular Mennonite church wear long dresses.

Do they serve coffee and doughnuts between services?

They sing acapella or to music?

Any information would be appreciated!

This is a thread I'm really looking forward to reading.

I'm very curious too. Betty Butterfield didn't cover Mennonites. :-)

Hi Danielle. I have attended several Mennonite Brethren churches in Canada. They have ranged from fundamentalist to more what I consider mainstream. If you know the women in the church you're going to wear long dresses and you don't mind doing the same that's great. I'm sure, though, that they would understand a visitor not being fully in tune with their own beliefs. I'd say the most important thing would just be not to stand out as completely different in a negative way, but to be yourself as well as far as possible.

I can't imagine either that wearing a cross would NOT be OK. In my experience, they are Christian believers and certainly the cross is part of their beliefs and worship services.

The strictest Mennonite church I went to for a while used music in their morning services but it was a cappella in the evenings on the Sabbath. Women in this strict sect did not participate as leaders in the service but they were not physically separated from the men (i.e., no "men on one side, women on the other"). Once a month they would serve lunch after the morning service. In the more mainstream MB church, they did serve coffee and other refreshments in the lobby, before and after the service, as well as lunch some Sundays. Women did have some leadership positions there and again, they were not separated from the men as far as seating goes.

I hope my information is somewhat accurate for where you're going tomorrow. At the least, I'm sure you can't go wrong wearing the cross. It's great that you want to try and be respectful and fit in but I hope they can accept that visitors may not share all their beliefs.

I always liked their hymn singing and they sure made a great cup of tea! The sermon was often given on the spur of the moment by a male church member but will undoubtedly be Bible-based.

Enjoy your visit!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/06/2014 10:52PM by Nightingale.

I went to Mennos (Toledo & Seattle) after leaving TSCC;

Hymns were sometimes sung in rounds or in parts;

skits were presented to get a point across.

in Western U.S., mostly the same as liberal Christian mainline churches. In mid-west, more fundy/conservative.

I watched the somwhat fake show "Breaking Amish" and there were some ex mennonite personas on there. They had some long dresses and weren't as strict on technology as the Amish where.

Sunday dress is probably the best bet. Have an interesting experience.