Most Of Us Enjoy An Amazingly Royal Ride

This Portuguese royal carriage is on display at the Luray Caverns Car and Carriage Caravan Museum.

While only 18% of the world's people have access to a car for transportation, we have more licensed vehicles in the US than we have licensed drivers. 

From the internet I get the following list of some of the kinds of amazing features in today's automobiles that we've come to feel entitled to.

Comfort & Convenience
Heated & Ventilated Seats: For year-round comfort.
Massaging Seats: Reduces fatigue on long trips.
Multi-Zone Climate Control: Different temperatures for different areas.
Head-Up Displays (HUD): Projects info onto the windshield.
Automatic Parking Assist: Helps steer the car into a parking spot. 

Infotainment & Connectivity
Large Touchscreens: Central control for navigation, media, settings.
Smartphone Integration: Apple CarPlay, Android Auto.
Voice Assistants & Controls: Hands-free operation.
Over-the-Air (OTA) Updates: Software updates delivered wirelessly.
Wi-Fi Hotspots: Onboard internet for passengers.
Digital Key: Use your phone as a car key. 

Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS)
Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC): Maintains distance from the car ahead, even stopping and starting.
Lane Departure Warning/Lane Keep Assist: Alerts or actively steers to keep you in your lane.
Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB): Detects obstacles (pedestrians, vehicles) and brakes automatically.
Blind Spot Monitoring: Warns of vehicles in our blind spots.
Surround-View Cameras: Offers a 360° bird's-eye view for parking.
Traffic Sign Recognition: Displays recognized signs on the dash.
Driver Drowsiness/Attention Monitoring: Detects signs of fatigue. 

Electric Vehicle (EV) Features
Regenerative Braking: Recaptures energy when slowing down.
Quiet Operation & Instant Torque: Smooth, fast acceleration.
Plug-In Powertrains: For extended electric driving. 

Lighting & Safety
Adaptive Headlights: Turn with the steering wheel for better cornering visibility.
Automatic High Beams: Dims high beams for oncoming traffic.
Rear Cross-Traffic Alert: Warns of vehicles approaching when backing up

For some context: https://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2025/12/a-heresy-too-many-of-us-embrace.html

A Heresy Too Many Mennonites Embrace

The unprecedented wealth of North
American Christians should be seen as
an elephant-in-the-room issue, but is
getting scant attention.

"The whole scriptures speak of mercifulness and love, and it is the only sign whereby a true Christian may be known… All those who are born of God, who are gifted with the Spirit of the Lord, take to heart the needs of the saints. They entertain those in distress. They take the stranger into their houses. They comfort the afflicted; assist the needy; clothe the naked; feed the hungry; do not turn their face from the poor, and do not despise their own flesh…” 

- Menno Simons CW 558 

In my 60 years as a Virginia Mennonite Conference pastor, I have witnessed over a dozen church divisions in my community. Issues that created conflicts ranged from plain dress, television, and women in ministry to divorce and remarriage and how or whether to welcome LGBT+ members. In each case Anabaptist-minded congregations appealed to the authority of scripture as a basis for their decisions.

But strangely enough, not one of these divisions has been over an issue the Bible has far more to say about, the pursuit of ever more wealth and possessions. Even among the most conservative of my Anabaptist kin there has been general agreement that it's OK to become wealthier every year of our working lives. And today's Anabaptists have largely been silent about whether it's acceptable for households, congregations and church institutions to invest in increasingly expansive and upscale building and remodeling projects, or for believers to feel entitled to a lifestyle of unimaginable privilege when compared to our world neighbors.

All of this seems to be met with the tacit approval of the church and at the advice of our trusted financial advisors, including our Mennonite ones. 

In a recent address at a workshop sponsored by the VMC Congregational Life Council, "Rebirth of Anabaptism: Just, Joyful and Sustainable Living," Sam Funkhouser, a Princeton graduate and a member of the Old German Baptist Brethren, said, "We live like royalty, enjoy a level of prosperity that is unjust and unsustainable, and that is predicated on the poverty of others...  Nothing could be more clear in the teachings of Jesus and the prophets than a condemnation of this kind of wealth."

If that is true, what might a radical rebirth of Anabaptism look like?

What if it meant seeing needy persons everywhere, worldwide, as a part of God's beloved neighborhood, as loved ones worthy of the same blessings and benefits as ourselves? Our alternative to the heresy of Christian nationalism or of individualism would be an inspiring kind of internationalism.

What if this kind of world view would result in a Zacchaeus kind of redistribution of our wealth and a willingness to live at or near the level of income that would be equitable and sustainable for all of God's beloved children?

What if our retirement plans involved investing in Community Investment Fund loans to organizations devoted to clean energy, agricultural development and micro-lending programs in support of small businesses around the world rather than investing in the Mammon-driven U.S. stock market?

What if Mennonites everywhere would again be seen as "plain" people, not necessarily in simply preserving dress styles from their European peasant past, but as people who are content with simply having enough, a people who joyfully deny themselves of the excess baggage and ornamentation our American culture insists we need, a people who would live on half as much, give multiple times as much and who lived by a policy of "Use it up, make it do, wear it out or do without"?

Were we to become radically non-conformed to the world in this way, we would be honoring the legacy of Anabaptist martyr Anna Janzs, who wrote, "Honor the Lord in the works of your hands, and let the light of the Gospel shine through you. Love your neighbor. Deal with an open, warm heart your bread to the hungry, clothe the naked, and do not tolerate having two of anything, because there are always those who are in need. " 

Likewise, we would be celebrating the revolutionary lifestyle changes launched by Doris Janzen Longacre's More With Less Cookbook in 1976, and be following the lead of people like Ruth Brunk Stoltzfus, who several years later objected to her church's purchase of a $35,000 pipe organ "when 12,000 to 15,000 people were starving to death daily."

As an "old man dreaming dreams" I envision a time when we might combine Mennonite Central Committee, Mennonite Missions, Mennonite Disaster Service and similar ministries into one magnanimous "Mennonite World Outreach," administering billions of our wealth into meeting the needs of both the Mennonite world and the world at large that "God so loves."

All of the above may seem impossible and implausible, but we face a choice. Will Anabaptism become a mere footnote in history or will it make a significant impact on the world, inspire millions of young people to join the movement, and be remembered 500 years hence? 

To Send Christmas Cards To The Incarcerated

Forever Christmas. I like that.

I heard from a record number of people who sent cards to incarcerated persons last Christmas, and am again encouraging individuals, families and congregational groups to do so this season. 

The names below are of some folks with whom I have had some correspondence, and who I know would appreciate some good tidings from the outside.

One suggestion for selecting names would to put yourself alphabetically where you would appear on the list, then write to those whose names are next to yours. This way those at the top of the list won't get a disproportionate share of holiday cards.

Unfortunately, I only have addresses here for men. There are also two state prisons for women in Virginia, and the number of women behind bars in our prisons and jails is growing.

With each card you can include things like a copy of an inspirational piece or your family's Christmas newsletter. Regrettably, the Department of Corrections now makes photocopies of the envelope and its contents to be given to the prisoner, but getting any kind of mail is always appreciated, and for all too many, an all too rare an occurrence. 

Note: What you send may weigh no more than one ounce, and include no more than a total  of three items. Do not include cash, checks, postage stamps or prepaid envelopes. 

Mr. David J. Annarelli 1853639
Haynesville Correctional Center
421 Bergenfield Road
Haynesville, VA 22472

Mr James Bender, 1010837     
Lunenburg Correctional Center 
690 Falls Rd 
Victoria, VA. 23974-2213
 
Mr. Brian E. Brubaker 1315055        
Dillwyn Correctional Center
P.O. Box 670
Dillwyn, VA 23936
 
Mr. Brian Cable 1198947    
River North Correctional Center
329 Dell Brook Lane,
Independence, VA 24348

Mr. Kenneth Creamer 1398090
PSCC
P. O. Box 518
Pocahontas, VA 24635
 
Mr. Lawrence Davis, 1443841      
Keen Mountain
3402 Kennel Gap Road
Oakwood, VA 24631

Franklin A Debrot, 1950673
Dillwyn Correctional Center
P.O. Box 670
Dillwyn, VA 23936

Mr. Stephano Colosi, 1037581     
Buckingham Correctional Center
P. O. Box 430
Dillwyn, VA 23936-0430

Erich Ferguson 1179348
Lunenberg Correctional Center
690 Falls Road
Victoria, VA 23974
 
Mr. Branson Fink, 1011319 3
Bland Correctional Center   
256 Bland Farm Rd
Bland, VA. 24315

 Mr. Robert Davis Fitchett, 1035660       
Buckingham Correctional Center
P. O. Box 430
Dillwyn, VA 23936-0430

Lloyd Lamont Kip Gaither 1168875
Greensville Correctional Center
901 Corrections Way
Jarrett Va 23870

Mr. M. Steven W. Goodman 1028377     
Lawrenceville CC
1607 Planters Road
Lawrenceville, VA 23868
 
Mr. Robert Vernon Hostetter, 1054419       
Nottoway CC
2892 Schutt Road
Burkeville, VA 23922

Mr. Pernell Jefferson 1016207      
Buckingham Correctional Center
P. O. Box 430
Dillwyn, VA 23936

Mr. Preston King 1485660
Coffeewood CC
12352 Coffeewood Dr
Mitchells, VA. 22729

Mr. John Lafon 1151231
Greensville Correctional Center
901 Corrections Way
Jarratt, VA 23870-6914

Mr. Daniel Leneave 1084415
Lawrenceville CC
1607 Planters Road
Lawrenceville, VA 23868

Mr. John Livesay, 1108120 
Baskerville CC
4150 Hayes Mill Road
Baskerville, VA 23915 

Mr. Chander Matta, 1171204
Buckingham Correctional Center
P.O. Box 430
Dillwyn, VA 23936

Mr. Thomas Melnyczyn, 1007916       
Lunenberg Correctional Center
690 Falls Road
Victoria, VA 23974

Mr. Ronald Miles, 1067348    
Haynesville CC
421 Barnfield Road
Haynesville, VA 22472 

Mr. John Nissley, 1148222      
Buckingham Correctional Center
P.O. Box 430
Dillwyn, VA 23936
 
Mr. Kenneth R. Pack 1063808     
Buckingham Correctional Center 
P. O. Box 430
Dillwyn, VA 23936

Mr. Larry Patterson 1116462
Deerfield Correctional Center
21360 Deerfield Drive
Capron, VA 23829

Mr. Brandon Poff 1188921
River North Correctional Center
329 Dell Brook Lane,
Independence, VA 24348
 
Mr. Timothy Rankin 1208262     
Lawrenceville CC
1607 Planters Road
Lawrenceville, VA 23868

Thomas Reed-Bey 1112804
LVCC
1607 Planters Road
Lawrenceville, VA 23868

Mr. Thomas Roberts #1180343
Greensville Correctional Center
901 Corrections Way
Jarratt, VA 23870-6914

Mr. Khalid A. Shabazz 1157998
Keen Mountain
3402 Kennel Gap Road
Oakwood, VA 24631

Mr. Minor Junior Smith, 1158588 (blind)
Deerfield Correctional Center
21360 Deerfield Drive
Capron, VA 23829

 Mr. William Thorpe 2261982
Texas Department of Criminal Justice
P.O. Box 660400
Dallas, Texas 75266-0400

 Mr. Jerry Treadway 1021558
Lunenberg Correctional Center
690 Falls Road
Victoria, VA 23974
 
Mr. Jonathan D. Turner 1941213      
Coffeewood CC
12352 Coffeewood Drive
Mitchells, VA. 22729-2046

Mr. Daryl Van Donk, 1681547
Dillwyn Correctional Center
1522 Prison Road
Dillwyn, VA 23936

Mr. Michael Wallace 2105386
Lawrenceville CC
1607 Planters Road
Lawrenceville, VA 23868

Mr. Richard Webb 1174188       
Buckingham Correctional Center 
P. O. Box 430
Dillwyn, VA 23936

Mr. Jonathan D. White 1161021
Lawrenceville CC
1607 Planters Road
Lawrenceville, VA 23868

Mr. John Bennie Williams 1091323 (blind)     
Deerfield Correctional Center
21360 Deerfield Drive
Capron, VA 23829
 
Mr. Charles E. Zellers, Sr. 1036758      
Deerfield Correctional Center
21360 Deerfield Drive
Capron, VA 23829

If you prefer not to include your home address with your letter, and don't have a post office box, you could have the person respond to your place of worship or work, or to P.O. Box 434, Harrisonburg, VA 22803 and I'll relay their message to you (assuming I have your phone, email or other contact information). In my many years of corresponding with incarcerated individuals I have never had any problems resulting from disclosing my home address, but some do recommend against it.

And here's a link to a local citizen's group, the Valley Justice Coalition, if you are interested in becoming involved in criminal justice advocacy https://www.vjcharrisonburg.org/

Local Citizens Can Do Court Observation

This is the monthly Daily News-Record 'Justice Matters'
column for November, written by Melissa Svigelj and
Jenni Holsinger

Do you ever wonder what goes on in our local General District and  Circuit Courts? As with many of the 150 lower courts in Virginia’s judicial system, these courts handle a high volume of routine criminal cases, as well as civil cases and traffic infractions. In 2024, more than 36,000 cases were processed in the Rockingham/Harrisonburg General District Court alone.

Except in certain circumstances, courtrooms are open to the public, so community members often attend court sessions to show support for neighbors, friends, and loved ones, as part of their job, or to engage in civic life. The right of Americans to observe the functioning of their justice systems is enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. As residents, we are invited to take part in this democratic tradition in order to ensure that our courts reflect our community values and aspirations, for example, around ideas such as fairness, accountability, public safety, and individual freedoms.

According to data from a 2019 national survey, 15% of counties across the U.S. were making efforts to encourage public observation of proceedings in their local courts. Courts and communities recognize that this type of civic engagement builds trust between residents and their courts, leading to a more responsive, community-centered judicial system. Previous issues of this column have highlighted some challenges in the local legal system and how engaged residents and citizen groups like the Valley Justice Coalition have contributed to improvements.

In 2024, the Valley Justice Coalition identified the need to learn more about what happens in Harrisonburg’s General District and Circuit Courts. An informal planning committee was formed to determine the scope and goals of such a program and to investigate similar projects in other communities. During additional meetings in late 2024 and early 2025, Dr. Melissa Svigelj, an Assistant Professor at James Madison University (JMU), and Dr. Jenni Holsinger, an Associate Professor at Eastern Mennonite University (EMU), agreed to collaborate as organizers of a Community-Court Connection (C3) project in Harrisonburg.

The lower courts in Rockingham/Harrisonburg make some case information available to the public. One way to supplement public information from the courts is to engage local citizens, organizations, and stakeholders in collecting information about their local courts. In other cities that have adopted court observation programs, these efforts have contributed to more equitable and accountable legal systems and a more informed citizenry. These programs are successful largely because of community volunteers who attend court sessions and gather data that is collated and shared with the public online. A court observation program and local schools can also mutually benefit from the opportunities provided to students and future professionals working in the community.

Having students explore what meaningful citizenship entails and investigate how concepts of justice are developed and enacted in different areas of society are integral components of courses in the Department of Justice Studies at JMU. In Sociology and Criminology courses at EMU, students examine how institutional processes reproduce broader patterns of inequality and develop research skills that prepare them for professional careers. Both C3 organizers embrace the notion that students learn ethical civic engagement best when it is incorporated into the learning experience.

Through the newly designed Communities and Courts course at JMU, seventeen students with majors and minors in the Department of Justice Studies were trained alongside community volunteers by local attorneys on August 28th to become court observers. Since then, students and volunteers have been attending General District and Circuit Court sessions in downtown Harrisonburg for one hour each week and completing observation forms. Students at EMU also contribute by collecting data for the project.

Every few months, students and organizers will publish the information gathered from court observations on the publicly available Community-Court Connection website: https://sites.lib.jmu.edu/cccharrisonburg/. Court observers never record or publish names or personal identifying information of court attendees in their data collection. The website also explains how to become a court observer volunteer and provides access to training, the court observer agreement form, a volunteer manual, and the necessary documents and forms for observing courts.

The Community-Court Connection (C3) invites everyone interested in learning more about the project and how to become involved to visit the website and email organizers at cccharrisonburg@community-court-connection.org. No legal experience is required to help us connect our community with what happens in local courts. We hope you’ll join us!

The authors are active members of the Valley Justice Coalition.