New Year Revelations For 2026 And Beyond

"Your elders will dream dreams," writes the prophet Joel, speaking of a time when God's Spirit inspires new visions by both men and women, slave and free, young and old, everywhere.

While the following reflections may not seem like new insights to many of you, here are three dreams I'm praying will transform our lives in the New Year and the years to come. 

1. I'm seeing Spirit-birthed community as essential in re-visioning who we are and motivating us to live purpose-driven and other-centered lives. We cannot become whole persons or effective servants of God without deep relationships with fellow believers, since the Bible is not simply a source of inspiration for personal enrichment but is addressed to members of a God-inspired movement meant to celebrate the shalom of heaven here on earth. 

https://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2013/08/should-bible-be-tethered-to-our-churches.html

2. I'm seeing divine love as the mother of all virtues, and the command to love God passionately and every neighbor compassionately as the sum of everything found in scripture. If love is our greatest mandate, our failure to demonstrate it is our greatest sin. On the other hand, every act of Christ-like love and mercy we show will result in untold blessing.

https://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2025/12/where-there-is-love-there-is-christian.html

3. I'm seeing people around the globe as one God-blessed neighborhood in which each of its 8 billion inhabitants deserves an equitable share and no one is in want anywhere unless all are in want. As wealthy North Americans we dare not "fare sumptuously every day" while masses of impoverished people are denied the equivalence of scraps from our bountiful tables. I see adopting a kind of internationalist mindset as a needed antidote to our individualism and nationalism.

https://harvyoder.blogspot.com/2025/03/an-alternative-to-two-heresies.html

I believe all of this could be revolutionary and life changing, and dream of being a part of a joyfully repentant people who proclaim peace on earth and goodwill toward people everywhere. 

Thanks for your prayers and for taking time to reflect on posts like this recent widely read one:

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

Reforming Virginia’s Criminal Justice System

This was published Friday as the twelfth of the Valley Justice Coalition's monthly Justice Matters columns in the Daily News-Record

So far, over 300 concerned Virginia taxpayers, mostly from our local community, have signed the Valley Justice Coalition petition as introduced in our October Justice Matters column, as follows:

A Petition in Support of Safer and More Just Communities:
To: Public servants in Virginia involved in criminal justice issues
By: Concerned taxpayers of the Commonwealth who favor the creation of an ever more just and effective criminal justice system, one that supports:
• Rehabilitation over mere punishment.
• Restorative justice alternatives that give high priority to victims' needs for reparation and restitution by offenders.
• Supervised release for aging and thoroughly rehabilitated persons behind bars.

To date we have sent copies of the above, accompanied by the entire list of names, to Senator Mark Obenshain, Delegate Tony Wilt, Commonwealth’s Attorney Marsha Garst, County Administrator Corey Armstrong, Harrisonburg Mayor Deanna Reed, Governor-elect Abigail Spanberger, Attorney General-elect Jay Jones, newly appointed Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Stanley Meador, and other public officials across the state.

The Valley Justice Coalition is not just about reaching out to public officials, however, but about engaging with ordinary fellow citizens who support criminal justice reforms. Nor are we about promoting any particular political party or platform, but about lending support to policies that reflect best practices in the field of criminal justice.

For example, in light of the concerns expressed in the petition, we can each let Senator Mark Obenshain and Delegate Tony Wilt know there is grass roots support for legislation in the upcoming General Assembly such as the following:

• Repeal of Mandatory Minimum Sentences. Returns to judges and juries the discretion to make sentences that are fair and in keeping with the law.

• HJ2 Constitutional Amendment: Automatically restores voting right to felons who have completed their sentences.

• Ban Fourth Amendment Plea Waivers. Individuals pressured into taking plea agreements would no longer be forced to forgo all Fourth Amendment search and seizure protections (except in child sex cases). Passed the General Assembly in 2024 but vetoed by the Governor.

• Protect People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and Mental Health Disorders. Allows a judge or jury to charge a person in an assault and battery case with a misdemeanor rather than a felony if a mental health or cognitive disorder has contributed to the assault.

• Counsel at First Appearance. Provides for an attorney to represent an accused person at his or her first court appearance.

• Consistency of Dress Code. Rules and standards regarding attire for prison visits would be the same for all facilities. 

• Objective Set of Criteria for Determining Parole Eligibility. The Parole Board would be required to provide a clear explanation for any denial of a person with a high (good) score.

• Protect Family Connections. This would walk back COVID era rules, and get rid of Enhanced Sanctions that take away all communications/visits for certain violations.

• Expand Earned Sentence Credits. Time served in jails would count as well as time spent in prison.

• End Mass Surveillance. Ban the use of Automatic License Plate Readers by law enforcement agencies.

Meanwhile, we thank our community for its support, and the Daily News-Record for publishing our monthly Justice Matters columns. 

May all have a blessed New Year!

Harvey Yoder

One Of My Neighbor's Daily Appeals For Peace

Here's the link to the daily updates: https://www.epaxoc.org/stay-updated

One of our friends and neighbors, Kathleen Temple, sends a daily email prompt, without fail, to everyone on her growing list, with a suggested topic to use in contacting their legislators to urge them to end their support for war-making. Here is a sample reminder, one that arrived today:  

Hello advocates,

Today, I want to draw my legislators’ attention to an article about France. And Algeria. Your legislators might need to see the article too. It shows a basic fact, that the Algerian people, formerly brutalized by France, are not going to “let bygones be bygones”. The dead may, in a way, be rising again.

It must’ve been exhilarating to be in that legislative chamber in Algiers when they voted unanimously for their bill!

I want my legislators to read the little article as a “heads up”. Because the persons holding our public purse strings —our legislators!— seem not to realize fully that the victims of their wars could, in fact, rise again.

The story can give hope to current victims of colonial brutality (e.g. Palestinian, Venezuelan, indigenous communities everywhere) but it also WARNS legislators that they had better never enable colonial brutality. (i.e. stop handing our money over to the war machine!)

Could you help me to distribute the warning by sending the article to your legislators?

Suggested wording follows. Convey the gist in any way that works for you. Me, I’m going to print out the image (above), write the “To” and “From” names and addresses along the top of the page, and add at the bottom this message:

[Legislator],

You may not be fully aware that you put yourself in grave jeopardy every time you fail to protest state violence. The victims of state violence may not get justice right away, but they surely never do just roll over and give up.

Please check out the story from Algeria: https://thecradle.co/articles/algerian-parliament-declares-french-colonial-rule-a-crime-seeks-reparations 

Algerians are far from vanquished. French colonial elites would have done well to avoid exploitative murderous violence back in the day. The bill for all of that evil is coming due.

You would do well to protest colonial violence now. Get our money OUT of the war machine.

"Where There Is Love, There Is A Christian"

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 

I John 4:7-8 New King James Version

Really? Everyone who genuinely loves? 

The Bible is a big book, an inspired collection of wisdom covering a multitude of subjects. But can its entire message be summed up in one simple word as the apostle John appears to be saying? Is this divine love (Greek: agape) the essence of who God is and the one great sign of who God's people are? 

We find a similar distillation of the Bible's message in the familiar words, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your mind and with all your strength" the first and greatest commandment. And according to Jesus the second command, "You must love your neighbor as your very self," is equal to it. The two mandates are inseparable.

The apostle Paul claims that this love sums up the entire Law and the Prophets, that is, the entire Hebrew Bible. He lists love as the first of the nine-fold "fruit of the Spirit, and ends the so-called "love chapter" (I Corinthians 13) with "And now these three things remain, faith, hope and love, but the greatest of these is love.  The writer of the book of James calls the "love your neighbor as yourself" command the "perfect law"and the "royal law," and thus the queen of all the commandments.

We could debate whether love is a natural human trait or whether it is a truly supernatural one. As infants we are totally ego-centric. The whole world is perceived as being all about us, as revolving around us, existing for us. 

Love, on the contrary, is the ability to recognize ourselves as being a part of the Other, with God as the One to whom we owe our life and breath, and to see ourselves as a beloved part of all others with whom we share the precious gift of life. Is this natural, or does it call for a profound transformation, a radical rebirth that enables us to love all others in the extravagant and sacrificial way God does?

According to Jesus, in the end we will all be judged by whether we have cared for the hungry, thirty, homeless and imprisoned, as we would care for ourselves and our own. But being able to consistently live that way depends on whether God's gracious love has truly transformed us to love unselfishly as God does.

As the 16th century reformer Menno Simons wrote,“Without this love, it is all vain, whatever we may know, judge, speak, do or write. The property and fruit of love is meekness, kindness, not envious, not crafty, not deceitful, not puffed up, nor selfish. In short, where there is love, there is a Christian.”

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 Of Us 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/