ASUNCION, Paraguay -- Two Mennonites were invited in January to join a group of Catholic leaders from the Chaco region in Paraguay for a one-day dialogue about inter-church relations, especially between Mennonites and Catholics.

This year's annual seminar had 40 participants. They dedicated one day (January 22) of their meeting specifically to ecumenism, with the focus on the Mennonites because they are the largest group of evangelicals in the Chaco.

Werner Franz, director of CEMTA, a Mennonite seminary in Asuncion, and Gundolf Niebuhr, a lay minister in the Mennonite church in Filadelfia and the chairperson of the recently formed Historical/Cultural Society in Paraguay, were invited to this meeting of priests and other Catholic leadership people to talk about Anabaptist-Mennonite origins, beliefs and ethical and missionary principles.

One of the participants described the purpose of the dialogue in this way: "We need to dispel prejudices that arise from lack of understanding."

Niebuhr read a paper about some of the characteristics of the Radical Reformation and the later Mennonite traditions as they were influenced by other Evangelical movements. He offered some suggestions as to the issues on which Catholics and Mennonites might begin their dialogue with each other.

Franz reported on the experience within the Commission of Churches, which worked to influence the contents of the new Constitution of Paraguay in 1992. Lively discussion followed both presentations.

Niebuhr, in his observations after the meeting, noted, "We enjoyed a fine day of fellowship and new insights gained on both sides. There was general agreement among the Catholic participants that encounters should be fostered in the local parish, that especially youth groups should meet, that common initiatives must be undertaken for community development and work with the marginalized."

Several persons at the meeting committed themselves to form small groups of prayer that would meet throughout the year 2000, asking God for the grace of greater unity within the body of Christ.

--Larry Kehler, Mennonite World Conference News Editor

Sidebar: The Relationship Between Catholics and Mennonites in the Chaco