Who We Are

Welcoming and Affirming

We are a welcoming and affirming congregation that shares an Anabaptist faith and seeks to witness through word and deed to the truth revealed in Jesus’ life and teaching. 36 In the name of Christ, we welcome into full participation in the life and ministry of the church all people as unique creations in the image of God: persons of every race, immigration status, culture, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, education, economic status, and life situation. All are welcome in this community, as we journey together, discerning how to follow Jesus more faithfully. Due to the age and construction of the Manhattan Mennonite Church meetinghouse located at 1000 Fremont Street, not all areas are easily accessible to persons with mobility issues. We will strive to provide accommodations to individuals with disabilities within these limitations.

Mission-Oriented

“We are a community committed to Jesus Christ in faith and life, each other in worship, nurture, & prayer, and others in peacemaking, service, & witness.”

Through this mission statement, we evoke Jesus as the center of our faith, community as the center of our life, and reconciliation as the center of our work.

Committed through Covenant

We are a covenantal community. This means when people become members, they are invited to sign this covenant as our shared understanding.

MMC Covenant

Guided by Scripture

In 2013 we chose twelve scriptures that have been most formative for our understanding of God and this life of faith.

MMC 12 Scriptures

Meet Pastor Melissa

The results of the career quiz I took in middle school in 1973 said, “camp counselor” and “forester.” I chose to study forestry, because I wanted to live alone in a fire tower in the middle of a wilderness. God’s sense of humor and steadfast loving patience astound me as I glance back and see how this path led me to become pastor at Manhattan Mennonite Church in 2021.

I have a B.S. in Forest Management from the University of Missouri - Columbia (1982), and an MDiv from Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (2020). In between those I married Bob, worked a little while for the U.S. Forest Service, played music for a living for a brief spell, raised four children, and discovered I am a Mennonite. We’ve called Manhattan home since 1995.

Serving at Camp Mennoscah (link) grew my passion for lifelong faith formation - there’s the “camp counselor” in me overlapping with God’s plans. Receiving spiritual direction inspired me to wanna be a spiritual director (link) when I grew up, and that pursuit got me to seminary.