Worship in the Woods is the summer vespers series of the Brethren & Mennonite Heritage Center, held Sunday evenings in the natural amphitheater on the Heritage Center campus. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the 2020 season is held online, with many of the participants filmed in the amphitheater setting.

This week we are joined by Elwood Yoder, who has lived in the Linville Creek watershed, Rockingham County, Virginia, for over thirty years. In this meditation, Elwood will reflect on going to church in a congregation and the Northern District of the Virginia Mennonite Conference in the Linville Creek region. Elwood teaches history and Bible at Eastern Mennonite High School, and ten years ago, he began to pay attention to the contours of Linville Creek. He has become passionate about watching the wildlife along the Linville Creek, studying its tributaries, and learning the history of the Linville Creek region. This meditation is about how, for Elwood, the Linville Creek has become a spiritual and geographic home.

Harpine Highway was formed in 2016 by Aaron and Maria Billings, Kevin Eby, and Mike Stoltzfus.  The four members attend Lindale Mennonite Church in Linville, Virginia, and participate in leading music there.  Kevin and Maria attended high school together at Eastern Mennonite High School, and sang in the touring choir together.  Aaron and Kevin began performing together at Hesston College, and the three sang together while at Eastern Mennonite University.  The trio began performing at local events and, soon thereafter, asked Mike to join.  They perform a mix of secular and sacred music, with influences in folk and an emphasis on harmonies.

This week's worship leader is retired Church of the Brethren minister and BMHC board member Paul Roth.

Please donate to support the work of the Heritage Center and its Worship in the Woods program.