John Jantzi has accepted the call to serve the Church of the Brethren’s Shenandoah District as district executive minister beginning Aug. 1. Since 2003 he has been pastor of Mt. Bethel Church of the Brethren in Dayton, Va.
Previously he worked for Choice Books as a development/marketing consultant 1995-2003 and also as a district manager for Choice Books of Northern Virginia 1981-95. In 2011 he became an adjunct instructor at Eastern Mennonite University, teaching history of the Bible and Old Testament themes. For nine years from 1980-89, he was on the pastoral team at Broad Street Mennonite Church in Harrisonburg, Va.
Since 2004 he has been actively involved in district leadership, having served on the Shenandoah District board, as chair of the nurture commission, as a member of the district Mission Review Committee, and as an instructor of biblical studies for the Christian Growth Institute (ACTS) assuming the role of dean in 2011.
He holds a doctor of ministry degree from Union Theological Seminary and Presbyterian School of Christian Education, a master of divinity from Eastern Mennonite Seminary, and a bachelor of science in sociology from Eastern Mennonite College.
He and his family live in Harrisonburg, Va. The Shenandoah District Office will continue to be located in Weyers Cave, Va.