Staff: Steve Kriss

Area(s) of Focus: Communication strategies, Emerging leadership, Missional partnerships, Emerging congregations

Residence: Philadelphia

Congregation: Philadelphia Praise Center

English, Spanish, Italian

Read Steve's Blog

Director of Communication and Leadership Cultivation

skriss@franconiaconference.org

Steve’s job has four primary areas: strategic work with communications–more planning rather than doing; working with emerging congregations throughout the northeast corridor; connecting with new international partnerships; and working with emerging leaders, which includes formal and informal education and equipping processes. Steve helps build partnerships across congregations–sometimes international, sometimes local–and works with interns as well as new leaders in congregations.

In 2005, Steve moved to Philly from Pittsburgh, where he worked with PULSE. Steve has pastored congregations in Johnstown, Pa. and New York City, holds a Master’s of Divinity degree from Drew University and is finishing doctoral work at Duquesne. He attends Philadelphia Praise Center.

Steve says his favorite part of the job is watching people learn new things and making new connections, whether between a text and a person’s life, or someone feeling compelled to make a life-altering decision because of an encounter they’ve had.

In his free time, Steve likes to bike, travel and plant stuff. He occasionally makes pilgrimages to New York City to keep himself spiritually centered, and to be reminded that the world is bigger than the work he does.

Centro de Alabanza begins public worship in South Philadelphia

Stephen Kriss, Philadelphia Praise Center I know I am a child of the 1980’s when in the midst of a moving worship event, I am drawn to a line from the A-Team, “I love it when a good plan comes together.” At the time of the first Sunday morning worship of Centro de Alabanza de [...]

Posted on 1 September 2009 | 4:04 pm

Learning to like funny cake and wear batik

Stephen Kriss, Philadelphia Praise Center We still eat Mrs. Benner’s funny cake* from Landis Supermarkets at the Mennonite Conference Center, though some days Claude Good or other staff banter in Spanish and someone could be caught decked out in Indonesian batik. In these pages, you’ll see not only the stories of who we are becoming, but [...]

Posted on 2 March 2009 | 1:04 pm

An ending: Road signs point toward new communication venues

Stephen Kriss, Director of Communication and Leadership Cultivation This is the last issue of Franconia Conference’s Growing Leaders. It’s a tough time for print publications, from the weeklies in my neighborhood of Northwest Philadelphia to the national papers like the Los Angeles Times. Today’s economic turbulence is accelerating the move from paper to web-based communication. With [...]

Posted on 7 February 2009 | 12:22 pm

Global Anabaptism in a neighborhood (or pew) near you . . .

Stephen Kriss skriss@franconiaconference.org About a decade ago, the scales of Anabaptism tipped to what we’ve taken to calling the Global South. This means that there are more Mennonites outside of Canada, Europe and the United States than within the boundaries of European tradition. While we’ve noted this as the relative success of 20th century [...]

Posted on 13 December 2008 | 11:29 pm

A scouting report from Indonesia: The Good News in the midst of the adhan

Stephen Kriss skriss@franconiaconference.org My first Sunday in Indonesia, we attended Jakarta Praise Community Church. It’s a community of about 5,000 worshippers who gather on Sundays in a large auditorium in Jakarta’s Central Business District. It’s a JKI (Jemaat Kristen Indonesia) congregation, part of the global Mennonite family through Mennonite World Conference. We arrived late [...]

Posted on 26 January 2008 | 12:51 pm

Missional possibilities post 9-11: Water to wine on a southbound Moroccan train

Steve Kriss skriss@franconiaconference.org We were sitting in a train, knee to knee with two college students from North Jersey who had taken the summer to trek through Europe, side by side with two Moroccan women in traditional garb who were traveling with a teenage boy with bright and eager eyes. We conversed back and forth [...]

Posted on 11 September 2007 | 9:04 pm

Viva el llamado - Moving into an audacious California dream? Realizing the possibilities of our future

Steve Kriss skriss@franconiaconference.org We had a good time together in California, the 6,000 or so Mennonites who gathered at San Jose 2007. Youth sang hymns late into the night on the city’s efficient light rail. We heard new Mennonites like Phoenix pastor Shane Hipps tell his story of becoming Anabaptist first in the head, then in the [...]

Posted on 1 August 2007 | 3:25 pm

A scouting report: Looking into a mestizo Mennonite present and future

I came to work with Franconia Conference with the understanding that I was going to be scouting into the future and working into it. That role for these last 18 months has included a lot of conversations and travel and has evolved beyond scouting in many ways. However, after listening, engaging, [...]

Posted on 4 March 2007 | 7:18 pm

Ministering with, to, and as a young adult: Honest questions of nuture, angst, and hope

Stephen Kriss, skriss@franconiaconference.org Director of Communication and Leadership Cultivation German wanderlust poet Rainer Maria Rilke advocates in Letters to a Young Poet to live life’s questions so that in living them we might find both ourselves and potential answers. This has been an important assertion for me as I have ministered with, among and to young adults. [...]

Posted on 14 February 2007 | 1:34 pm

When immigrants (whether legal or not) become our sisters, brothers and friends

I’m working with the fourth immigration case that has taken me to an office in a building overlooking the mall between the National Constitution Museum and Independence Hall. On my last visit, the receptionist remembered that I had been in the office on my birthday. We went back to the counsel office and I listened [...]

Posted on 6 February 2007 | 3:10 pm

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Education:

  • ABD, Rhetoric & Communication, Duquesne University Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2001-present
  • Master of Divinity, Drew University Theological School Madison, New Jersey, 2005
  • Master of Arts, Communication, Duquesne University Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2000
  • Bachelor of Arts, Psychology & English, Eastern Mennonite University Harrisonburg, Virginia, 1994

Language abilities: Speak Spanish, Italian and limited Indonesian

Organizational Leadership:

  • Director of Communication & Leadership Cultivation, Franconia Mennonite Conference Souderton, Pennsylvania, 2005-current
    • Coordinate publications, public relations and web-based projects
    • Develop partnerships and initiatives toward leadership development
    • Working toward integration of intercultural and formational activity
  • Executive Director 2004-2005, Program Director 2001-2004
    Mennonite Urban Corps/PULSE Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
    • Coordinated young adult workplace assignments toward community-building, peacemaking, stewardship, justice and the arts
    • Lead weekly seminars on urban life, community and faith for post-undergraduate leadership/service initiative
    • Developed grant proposals and funding opportunities
    • Coached emerging projects nationally for service and learning
  • Urban Ministry Director, Allegheny Mennonite Conference Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2003-2005
    • Coordinated church-initiation efforts in Greater Pittsburgh
    • Facilitated monthly gathering of project leaders in the city
  • Pastoral Team, Carpenter Park Mennonite Church Davidsville, Pennsylvania, 1996-2002
    • Served in various roles in congregational life to guide through transition
    • Assisted in development of mission ideals/initiatives and leadership gifts
    • Lead, developed and coordinated numerous service/learning initiatives
  • Interim Pastor, Redeeming Grace Fellowship Staten Island, New York, 2000-2001
    • Served as transitional leadership in a multiethnic Mennonite congregation
    • Coordinated lay leadership and preachers
    • Developed opportunities for youth service/learning experiences

Editorial/Public Relations Experience:

  • Editor/Publication Coordinator, Drew University Theological School Madison, New Jersey, 1999-2001
    • Initiated new academic publication, coordinated articles and production
    • Edited book projects for Dr. Leonard Sweet, Dr. N. Lynne Westfield
  • Editorial Team, Mennonite Publishing House/Herald Press Scottdale, Pennsylvania, 1994-1998
    • Edited Christian Living magazine (circulation 5,000)
    • Refined internal communication publication
    • Worked to develop diverse contacts for marketing and public relations
  • Communication Assistant, Eastern Mennonite University Harrisonburg, Virginia, 1993-1994
    • Edited admissions materials
    • Assisted in design work for display and print projects

Teaching Experience:

  • Adjunct Professor, Palmer Theological Seminary, Eastern University Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 2008
    • Teaching Learning, Leading and Nonviolence with nontraditional students
    • Helping to develop a platform for Urban and Anabaptist studies
  • Instructor, Eastern Mennonite Seminary Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 2008
    • Taught Contemporary Anabaptist Theology and Ethics
    • Helping to develop coursework for satellite campus in Philadelphia region
  • Instructor, Ursinus College Collegeville, Pennsylvania, 2005
    • Taught Intercultural Communication for undergraduate students
  • Associate Instructor, Duquesne University, Italian Campus Rome, Italy, 2004
    • Taught Intercultural Communication
    • Developed onsite service and learning opportunities in the city
  • Associate Instructor, Duquesne University Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2001-2003
  • Assistant Director of Public Speaking Program, Duquesne University Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 2002-2003
    • Taught undergraduate courses in the Dept. of Communication/Rhetoric
    • Coordinated and assisted in orienting/mentoring associate instructors
  • Saturday College Teaching Assistant, Duquesne University Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1999
    • Assisted in the instruction of adult learners for marketing and advertising
  • Adjunct Instructor, Penn Highlands College Johnstown, Pennsylvania, 1997-1998
    • Taught Introduction to Composition with diverse community college students

Scholarship:

Academic and Conference Presentations:

  • Seeking undogmatic and unconventional dialogue: Communicating spiritual, mystical and critical encounters
    • National Communication Association @ San Diego, November 2008
  • Let it Begin with Me: Global Ethics and Peace-Building in the Classroom: Nonviolence and education: Toward rooted compassion
    • National Communication Association @ San Diego, November 2008
  • Missional, Multicultural and the Real: Next Challenges in Theology and Praxis for the Missional Church
    • Biblical Seminary, Hatfield, PA, October 2008
  • Stumbling toward and glimpsing a real future in the present moment
    • Bluffton College Forum, Bluffton, OH, September 2008
  • Incarnating Shalom in the Desert of the Real: On Being a Peace Church in a Constantinian World
    • Messiah College, Grantham, PA, August 2008
  • Making a Difference among the Existentially Homeless: Exploring Simone Weil’s Need for Roots
    • Top paper, Philosophy of Communication Interest Group
    • Eastern Communication Association @ Pittsburgh, May 2008
  • Mennonites and Globalization: Identity and Directions for Nonviolent Community: Multiculturalism, Pluralism and Globalization
    • University of Wisconsin, LaCrosse, October 2007
  • Emerging Virtual Missional Faith Communities
    • Regional Area Conference Leadership (Mennonite Church USA), May 2007
  • Community Images of the Church
    • Ministry Inquiry Conference sponsored by Lilly Foundation, March 2007
    • Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, VA
  • Confessional, Missional and Pastoral
    • Holding Fast to the Confession of our Hope, June 2006
    • Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Eklhart, IN
  • What is to be remembered at Shanksville? The Story of Flight 93. November 2005
    • National Communication Association @ Boston
  • Mennonites and Globalization: Faith, Communication and Praxis
    • Council on Church and Media @ Pittsburgh, May 2005
  • Mennonites and Globalization: Faith, Communication and Praxis
    • National Communication Association @ Chicago, November 2004
  • Mennonites and Globalization: Faith, Communication and Praxis
    • Religious Communication Association @ Chicago, November 2004
  • Who put the “Study” in Study Abroad?
    • Association for General and Liberal Studies @ Kansas City, October 2004
  • Hospitality as Christian Interpersonal Communication Ethic
    • Religious Communication Association @ Miami, November 2003
  • Raising Mary: Resurrecting the work of Mary Parker Follett for Organizations
    • Pennsylvania Communication Association @ State College, October 2003
  • Raising Mary: Resurrecting Mary Parker Follett for Organizational Communication
    • Duquesne University Dept. of Communication/Rhetoric, September 2003
  • Hospitality as Interpersonal Communication Ethic
    • Duquesne University Dept. of Communication/Rhetoric, March 2003
  • Understanding Exiles: Mennonite Identity in US American Urban Contexts
    • James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA, October 2002
  • Spiritual Transformation, Social Justice and Short-Term Mission
    • Messiah College, Grantham, PA, May 2002

Publications:

  • See franconiaconference.org for recent web-based articles
  • Regular columnist, On the Way, Mennonite Weekly Review mennoweekly.org, Sept 07-present
  • Editor Growing Leaders, Jan. 06-present
  • “May I wash your feet?” Leader, Summer 2008
  • “Honest questions of nurture, angst and hope.” Growing Leaders, Winter 2007
  • “Another day in Paradise or Philadelphia?” DreamSeeker, Winter 2007
  • “Seeing fear and beauty under bright but empty skies.” DreamSeeker, Fall 2006
  • “A hope for community” Christian Living, December 2002
  • “Holy and Hallowed: Life After New York, After September 11" DreamSeeker, Winter 2002
  • “Making the Man, Shaping the Faith” DreamSeeker, Summer 2001
  • Review, Tasting the Dust by Jean Janzen The Banner, November 2000
  • Other articles have appeared from 1993-2000:
    • Purpose, Missionary Messenger, Gospel Herald, Christian Living, The Mennonite, Mennonite Weekly Review, Reconcilers, The Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown Republic

Academic Honors and Awards:

  • Lalitta Nash McKaig Foundation Regional Scholarships, 1999-2004
  • Allegheny Mennonite Conference Leadership Training Grants, 1993-2003
  • Henry Lambdin Scholarship; Drew University, 1999-2002
  • Kauffman Center Grant; Eastern Mennonite University, 1993
  • Elmer Ediger Memorial Scholarship, Mennonite Health Services, 1992-93
  • Michael Sattler Academic Scholarship, Eastern Mennonite University, 1990-94

International Study & Research:

  • Spain and Morocco Christian faith formation, June 2008
  • Java & Bali, Indonesia Faith and religious pluralism, December 2007
  • Madrid and Malaga, Spain Emerging Anabaptist communities, October 2005
  • Palermo, Sicily Religious co-cultures in Italy, May 2004
  • Havana, Cuba Political/theological concerns, January 2000
  • Moscow & St. Petersburg, Russia International communication, May 1998
  • Jerusalem & Amman, Jordan Biblical site investigations, December 1997
  • Mindanao & Luzon, the Philippines Ecology/international business, Summer 1993

Service/Learning Project Leadership:

  • Louisville, Kentucky: Louisville Urban Corps, July 2004
  • Wenden, Arizona: Mennonite Disaster Service, March 2002
  • Tlapa de Comonfort, Mexico: Mennonite Central Committee, August 2001
  • New York, New York: Mennonite Churches of NYC, 2000-2001
  • Mulhall, Oklahoma: Mennonite Disaster Service, March 2000
  • Coamo, Puerto Rico: Mennonite Disaster Service, Spring 1999
  • Philippi, West Virginia: Heart & Hand Ministries, August 1992
  • Seattle, Washington: Mennonite Youth Venture, July 1992
  • Raleigh, North Carolina: Virginia Mennonite Conference, March 1992

Leadership Contexts:

Academic Service:

  • Coordinator, Interpersonal and Organizational Communication Interest Group
    • Pennsylvania Communication Association, 2003-2004
  • Learning Community Instructor
    • Duquesne University College of Liberal Arts, 2002-2003
  • Academic Colloquium Assistant Coordinator
    • Duquesne University Communication & Rhetorical Studies, 2002-2003

Board Leadership and Service:

  • Eastern Mennonite Seminary
    • Conference Constituency Council, 2007-current
  • Mennonite Weekly Review
    • Inter-Mennonite communication, 2007-current
  • Spain Support Team
    • Mennonite Mission Network, 2004-2007
  • Allegheny Mennonite Conference
    • Mission & Service Commission, 2000-2004
  • Johnstown (PA) Service Adventure
    • Chair of start-up support team, 1997-99
  • PULSE/Mennocorps
    • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1995-98

Contextual Learning and Service:

  • Center for Anabaptist Leadership Los Angeles, California, Summer 2003
  • Reconcilers Fellowship Jackson, Mississippi, July 1996

Affiliations:

  • Ordained pastor Franconia Mennonite Conference, Mennonite Church USA, 2005-current
  • Johnstown (Pa) District Mennonite Churches, 1996-2002
  • New York City Council of Mennonite Churches, 2000-2001

Memberships:

  • Eastern Communication Association
  • Religious Communication Association
  • National Communication Association
  • Anabaptist Scholars Network

Congregation-based Sermons and Presentations:

  • Ambler Mennonite Church
    • Ambler, PA, August 2008
  • Deep Run East Mennonite Church
    • Doylestown, PA, July 2008
  • Salford Mennonite Church
    • Harleysville, PA, May 2008
  • Garden Chapel
    • Victory Gardens, NJ, March 2008
  • Blooming Glen Mennonite Church
    • Blooming Glen, PA, March 2008
  • Bally Mennonite Church
    • Bally, PA, 2007
  • Nations Worship Center
    • Philadelphia, PA, 2007
  • Philadelphia Praise Center
    • Philadelphia, PA, 2006-2007
  • Salem Mennonite Church
    • Quakertown, PA, 2006-2007
  • Carpenter Park Mennonite Church
    • Davidsville, PA, 1996-2007
  • West Hills Fellowship
    • Moon Twp, PA, 2003-2004
  • Redeeming Grace Fellowship
    • Staten Island, NY, 2000-2001
  • Stahl Mennonite Church
    • Johnstown, PA, 1997
  • Immanuel Mennonite Church
    • Harrisonburg, VA, 1994
  • Calvary United Methodist Church
    • Portage, PA, 1993

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