272 / A Conference in Transition

program of Christian education. Sunday schools and summer Bible schools are often the means of reaching new communities and planting new churches. It is not unusual for a summer Bible school of 200 to draw over two thirds of its pupils from homes outside the Mennonite Church and frequently outside any church. The summer camp program and many of the Women's Missionary and Service Auxiliary activities are also supportive of the missionary outreach of the churches in their local communities.

There are many congregations which conduct services in county homes for the aged, in hospitals, and in infirmaries. A number have regular services in jails and penal institutions and homes for alcoholics. Perhaps every congregation supports Mennonite foreign missionaries in some country such as India, Puerto Rico, Argentina, Ghana, or Japan.

Toward More Congregational Responsibility

The trends of the conference reflect an increased tendency to make the congregation more and more responsible for its own program, standards, and discipline. This increase in local responsibility means that the annual conference is becoming more of a forum for discussion of current issues and a counseling body for common problems. The local congregation is then charged with the responsibility of its own decisions as it carries on its program of witness, nurture, and discipline. The sentiment is growing that this is the best direction to take as congregations develop in a wide variety of settings which call for an appropriate application of the gospel to local needs.