From the Editor: May 2022

IN OUR COVER article, Mennonite pastor Isaac Villegas looks at communities of people taking care of one another in examples of “mutual aid.” As Villegas explains, Anabaptists—the ethnic and spiritual forebears of several Christian denominations, including Mennonites—have a long history of such mutual care, tracing back not only to the Radical Reformation of the 16th century but to the earliest Christian communities, as portrayed in the New Testament book of Acts.

All three feature articles in this issue deal with aspects of such communities of care and concern. Olivia Paschal tells the story of a credit union born in the Deep South with a vision of building economic justice and enabling a path toward financial freedom for many people in the throes of generational poverty. And Olivia Diaz looks at how people of faith are helping to fill the gap for those lacking access to adequate food in Detroit. All of these are examples of people following one of Jesus’ central commands—Love one another as I have loved you—and help us see concrete ways we can do likewise.