Church of the Brethren General Board June 30 - July 1, 2006, Meeting Report

A statement titled, “Resolution: An End to the War in Iraq,” was made today by the Church of the Brethren General Board, meeting in Des Moines, Iowa. The board passed the resolution on to Annual Conference, requesting its adoption by the delegate body.

The board also accepted in principle a plan for response in the event of a military draft. The plan was created in cooperation with other Anabaptist churches and organizations, and already has been approved by other denominations including the Mennonite Church USA.

The resolution on the Iraq war petitions for troops to be brought home from Iraq, and calls on the global community to implement a nonviolent plan to bring peace and security there. “As disciples of Christ and members of one of the three historic peace churches, we cannot ignore the death, destruction, and violence in the war in Iraq,” it says. The resolution also calls on church members “to pray and give witness to the sin of violence,” and calls on religious leaders from all faiths who preach violence “to consider the things that truly make for peace,” among other points.

The “Contingency Plan in the Event of Military Conscription or Compulsory National Service” was developed by a group of Church of the Brethren and Mennonite staff at the request of the Anabaptist Council of Moderators and Secretaries. The Anabaptist bodies include the Church of the Brethren, Mennonite Church USA, Brethren in Christ, Mennonite Brethren, Conservative Mennonite Conference, and Mennonite Central Committee US.

“Throughout history we have declared our allegiance to God in times of war by devoting the labor of our hands to acts of service and healing, rather than wielding the sword or the gun,” the plan says. It outlines recommendations for alternative service placements under the auspices of church agencies, ways to support conscientious objectors placed under non-church agencies, ways to support draft resisters, ways to stay in relationship with soldiers who are members of the church, recommendations for relationship with the government and Selective Service, and how the historic peace churches may collaborate and communicate in the event of a draft.

The General Board accepted the contingency plan in principle, “understanding that the specific steps recommended are guidelines to work from at such time that the plan is needed. Each denomination or program agency would revise the plan at that time.”

In other business, the board approved a $350,000 grant from the Emergency Disaster Fund for continuing relief efforts following the tsunami in Asia in Dec. 2004. The grant comes from money designated for tsunami relief. Roy Winter, executive director of the Brethren Service Center, told the board that much of the designated money has deliberately been held for the “recovery phase” of the relief effort, when the world’s attention has passed on to other events. The grant will help rebuild lives as well as homes and infrastructure in Indonesia and other affected countries, he said.

The General Board approved a budget parameter for 2007 of $5,705,000, which includes a projected net expense of $62,000 for the year. The board also received financial projections for 2008 and 2009, among other financial reports.

Reports also included a first set of observations from the chair of a new Brethren Service Center Ministry Explorations Committee, which has been appointed by the board as a follow up to its decisions regarding property stewardship in March. The committee is charged with studying possibilities for ministry at the service center in New Windsor, Md. The committee will hold its first meeting Aug. 22-24, and may bring recommendations to the board in March or October 2007. Committee members are Kim Stuckey Hissong, David Miller, Fran Nyce, Janet Ober, Dale Roth, Jim Stokes-Buckles, Jack Tevis, and Dale Minnich as General Board representative and chair.

Other reports included a progress report on the Sudan mission initiative, a report of a new Service Sunday for the denomination, and words of hope for peacemakers from Carol Rose, co-director of Christian Peacemaker Teams and a Church of the Brethren member. The board also continued work on a conflict of interest policy, a strategic plan, and vision, mission, and core values statements.

© 2008 Church of the Brethren General Board