July 23rdThe U30 Experience at Gathering 2025
As a person in their twenties, one thing I hear constantly is how bad young people are today. Much like every generation before mine, it seems like the older generations don’t have much good to say about us. It’s always complaints about our work ethic, intelligence, or even our culture, with rarely anything positive being said. And within Christian circles, there’s usually one additional complaint. “The Church is dying, and it’s all because young people aren’t committing themselves to the Church!” It can be pretty discouraging to be on the receiving end of this criticism, but instead of trying to refute these claims, I want to tell a bit of a story.
At the start of July, I had the privilege of attending the Mennonite Church Canada Gathering in Waterloo. In addition to participating in all the usual conference events, I was a part of the U30 track. These were activities which aimed to form connections between young adults from across the country. I’m someone who doesn’t have any blood relation to other Mennonites and who never attended a Mennonite school or university, so this was a bit of a first for me. And let me be perfectly clear here, every single one of those young adults was incredible. All of them were carving out their place in the world in fascinating and unique ways. Additionally, many of them were prominent members of their congregations with positions ranging from youth ministers and music leaders to even some full-time preachers. It would have been a struggle to find a single person in that room which fit into the mainstream generational discourse.
But perhaps the best example of this divide between fiction and reality was our lunch on Friday. Not only was the food great, but we got the chance to share the meal with all the Regional Executive Ministers and members of the MC Canada Joint Council. The meal was followed by a group discussion on the role of young people in MC Canada as well as the Church more generally. Why was this such a memorable experience? Well for one, it made it clear that these young adults care about the future of the Church. Every single issue that was discussed at the conference, from climate justice to LGBTQ+ inclusion, was brought up with a level of nuance that doesn’t emerge without some serious self-reflection. These weren’t brash young idealists spouting out dogma, but rather the well-reasoned positions of people who are deeply passionate about the continued existence of Mennonite communities. Additionally, I’ve got to commend the leaders for actually showing up. In a week that was already jammed pack with meetings and discussions, they decided that sacrificing one of their few breaks was worth it to hear from us young folk. As far as rejecting the mainstream discourse and inviting us into the governance of the Church, this action spoke louder than any official statement ever could.
I’ll finish by answering the following question: am I worried about the future of the Church? On some level, yes. There are many existential problems that need to be addressed imminently. And yet, when I look at how people my age are acting in the Church, I am filled with hope. I see the Holy Spirit working in them, energizing them to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God. The Church will be just fine so long as they are invited to sit at the table.