Roughly 70 people met together at St. Mary’s Parish in Lancaster, Pennsylvania on 11 April to initiate a new dialogue between Roman Catholics and Anabaptist-related groups. The number was far more than expected and included not only Mennonites but Brethren, Bruderhof, and Old-Order Amish as well.

Organized by Sean Domencic, a Catholic Worker and lay Franciscan, along with Luke Haldeman, who found inspiration in the Catholic tradition even as he moved from evangelicalism to Anabaptism, the event took place with the encouragement of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Harrisburg. Domencic and Halderman took inspiration from the coincidence of the current Jubilee Year in the Catholic Church and the 500th anniversary of Anabaptism.

The evening began with a light potluck meal and a service of evening prayer that modified a Catholic Vespers liturgy by incorporating a hymn popular with Mennonites, a commentary on nonviolence from Menno Simons, and appropriate antiphons and intercessions. Talks from six different speakers, both Mennonite, Catholic, and “Mennonite Catholic” were limited to five minutes in order to allow for small-group discussion at 11 different tables.

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