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". .
. There may yet be hope." Lamentations 3:29b
NEWS
1) Denomination shows loss of 984 members in 2002.
2) ABC board discusses denominational structure, benevolent
care.
3) Nigerian church elects new leaders at annual "majalisa."
4) Bridgewater peace conference draws strong attendance.
5) CPT delegation members expelled from Iraq; others arrive.
6) Millard Fuller highlights Roundtable regional youth conference.
7) Ministry Summer Service will have record group for 2003.
8) New Life Ministries announces leadership, structure changes.
9) BVS older-adult unit meets for orientation in New Windsor.
10) "Organizing for Peace" event explores creative
opportunities.
11) The church mourns the death of J. Benton Rhoades.
12) Brethren home executives evaluate Shared Services program.
13) Brethren bits: Web feature, disaster relief, colleges, more.
PERSONNEL
14) John and Janet Tubbs to retire as Nigeria mission coordinators.
15) Pacific Southwest calls Bryan Boyer as new executive minister.
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1) Membership
in the Church of the Brethren continued a long,
downward trend in 2002, though the rate of decline slowed slightly.
According to year-end figures in the Church of the Brethren
Yearbook, published by Brethren Press, the denomination showed
a
net loss of 984 members last year.
The denomination's
recorded membership now stands at 133,844. The
2002 decline, about 0.73 percent, follows losses of 1,051 in
2001
and 2,425 in 2000. The Church of the Brethren last showed an
annual
net gain in membership in 1974, but the overall decline dates
to
the early 1960s.
Only five of
the denomination's 23 districts reported net
membership gains in 2002. Western Pennsylvania reported the largest
numerical and percentage gain, with a net increase of 129 members.
It jumped past Mid-Atlantic District to become the denomination's
fourth-largest. Others reporting gains were West Marva (a net
gain
of 55 members), Virlina (54), Northern Indiana (19), and
Oregon-Washington (14).
Shenandoah --
which had a gain in 2001 -- reported the largest
numerical net decline in 2002, down 442 members (3 percent).
Atlantic Southeast, with a loss of 97 members, had the largest
percentage decline (4.92 percent). Two other districts reported
net
losses of 3 percent or more, and seven others had a decline of
at
least 1 percent. The four districts in the Area 4 Plains region
were all down at least 2.3 percent.
Atlantic Northeast
District remains the denomination's largest,
with 15,505 members at the end of 2002, followed by Shenandoah
(which has the most congregations), and Virlina. Idaho is the
smallest, with 703 members in six congregations.
The number of
Church of the Brethren congregations in the US and
Puerto Rico also continued a downward slide, off three to 1,032
at
the end of 2002. There are also 32 fellowships and five projects;
each of these categories had a net increase of one in 2002. Total
reported worship attendance was slightly over half of reported
membership, at 72,746 per week.
Total per-capita
giving was down nearly 13 percent last year, at
$41 per person. Giving was down in all categories except gifts
to
the Association of Brethren Caregivers.
Yearbook figures
are based on data provided by congregations that
turn in updated statistical reports; about 71 percent did so
for
2002. The totals do not count overseas membership in the Dominican
Republic, Brazil, and the large Ekklesiyar Yan'uwa a Nigeria
(Church of the Brethren in Nigeria).
The Church of
the Brethren Yearbook will be sent before Annual
Conference to all who have placed a standing order. To order,
call
800-441-3712. It also will be sold at the Brethren Press bookstore
at Annual Conference.
2) At its spring
meetings March 21-23, the Association of Brethren
Caregivers (ABC) board discussed the present denominational
structure in light of ongoing concerns about the structure's
ability to meet the needs of the denomination. The board
acknowledged that this matter transcends its own agency's scope
of
authority, but it affirmed an openness to consider new ways of
working with others in service to the Church of the Brethren.
"Although
the Association of Brethren Caregivers is positioned to
serve the caring ministries of the Church of the Brethren in
the
coming years, we understand that a more effective framework for
fulfilling the entire mission of the church may be possible,"
said
ABC executive director Steve Mason. "ABC is prepared to
participate
in a process which may create a new framework for serving the
denomination."
ABC board chair
Bentley Peters said the board was of one mind
during the discussion.
Mason also reported
on ABC's positive financial results for 2002.
He said several factors contributed to ending the year in the
black, including an increase in donations from both congregations
and individuals, and cost containment in program areas. The board
approved the 2003 budget, which reflects a $58,890 deficit. Despite
the planned deficit, Mason told the board he was optimistic about
ABC's financial position. "ABC really is on a two-year funding
cycle when you consider that the Caring Ministries Assembly and
National Older Adult Conference are held biennially," Mason
said.
Board members
received a preliminary report from the Benevolent
Care Committee, a study committee formed to explore how Brethren
retirement centers assist residents who have run out of financial
resources to pay for their care and other issues related to
"uncompensated" care. The report summarized the amount
of
uncompensated care being provided in Brethren-affiliated
facilities, difficulties in receiving reimbursements from state
and
federal agencies, and the amount of benevolent funds available
to
assist people whose funds are depleted.
The preliminary
report also raised ethical issues such as an
individual's responsibility to prepare for his or her long-term
care, should that be required. The committee will continue to
study
the issue and report its findings to the Fellowship of Brethren
Homes, one of ABC's nine ministry areas.
The board authorized
forming closer relationships with Friends
Services for the Aging and Mennonite Health Services, similar
agencies that share a common background and program focus. During
an October meeting between leaders from the three groups, a vision
statement was created to describe the group as "peace church
colleagues in health and human services." The relationship
between
the three organizations has deepened as the groups have formed
similar programs for board leadership.
The board took
the next step in its vision and planning process,
which began in March 2001, by approving five strategic goals
and
objectives. At its next meeting, the board will receive an action
plan outlining how staff intend to carry out these goals.
In other business,
the board approved the creation of a new
caregiving award beginning in 2004; participated in an education
session on the agency's endowment and investment strategies;
and
heard reports from its nine ministry areas, including the Older
Adult Ministry Cabinet's availability to provide "Age Wave"
workshops for congregations and agencies. Staff for the Brethren
Chaplains Network reported on the creation of a training track
for
chaplains at Caring Ministries Assembly this summer. Prior to
the
meeting, the board received the resignation of Gene Yeazell of
Arden, N.C.
3) The 56th
"majalisa," or annual assembly, of Ekklesiyar Yan'uwa
a Nigeria-EYN (Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) met March 26-29
at Kulp Bible College, Kwarhi, Adamawa State. The topic was "The
Role of the Church in Nigeria Today" with guest speaker
James
Zoaka, pastor at the Jalingo #1 congregation in Taraba State.
Zoaka also oversaw
the start of the Jalingo #3 new church plant,
which is being supported by the Moscow Church of the Brethren
in
Mount Solon, Va. Moscow pastor David Whitten previously served
in
Nigeria.
General Board
Nigeria mission coordinators John and Janet Tubbs
represented the US church at the majalisa, which brings together
delegates from each congregation across Nigeria once each year
for
several days of worship, hearing reports of the church's ministries
throughout Nigeria, and acting on the business of the church.
Along with discussions
about key concerns like evangelism and the
financial status of the church, a highlight of this majalisa
was
the election of the president of EYN. In Nigeria, the pastors
nominate candidates for president. Pastors were seated by
districts, and each pastor wrote one name on a piece of paper.
The
names were counted, and the three with the most votes -- Toma
Ragnjiya, Filibus Gwama, and Bitrus Bdlia -- made up the ballot.
After the 667
majalisa delegates were seated by districts, a vote
was taken. Gwama was elected president, and Ragnjiya, who received
the second-highest number of votes, was named vice president.
The
new officers will assume their roles May 1. The general secretary
is named by the Executive Committee (parallel to the General
Board
of the US church) rather than being elected by the majalisa.
Yohanna Y. Balami was named to this post.
At the closing
of the majalisa, the Executive Committee was asked
to come forward and stand around Gwama for prayer. Ragnjiya asked
John Tubbs to pray for the newly-called leadership of the church.
4) About 100
people gathered at Bridgewater (Va.) College March
27-29 for a conference titled "At the Crossroads: A Historic
Peace
Church in the 21st Century." Bridgewater chaplain Robbie
Miller
said it was the best attendance ever for an event sponsored by
the
school's Forum for Religious Studies.
The conference
focused on the presentation of academic papers by a
variety of experts in the field, along with panel discussions
and
responses. The speakers represented a wide swath of viewpoints,
including a retired military colonel, professors from Brethren
colleges and Bethany Theological Seminary, a Virginia
Commonwealth's Attorney, and some independent scholars.
Presentations
covered topics including the historical and biblical
roots of Brethren pacifism, peace in daily life and in
congregational life, advice to peacemakers from a panel of
"consultants," and the nature of peacemaking in the
21st century.
Bethany faculty member Scott Holland wrapped up the conference
with
a "State of Brethren Peacemaking" address on the final
morning.
Participants
also engaged in a time of spirited conversation with
Annual Conference moderator Harriet Finney, who expressed optimism
despite the many challenges to peace. "Peacemaking in the
21st
century will not be simple, as it often has not been in the past,"
she said. "But I am hopeful. I am hopeful because I believe
in the
power of prayer."
Other highlights
included an evening love feast at nearby Montezuma
Church of the Brethren, led by Jim Beckwith and Dale Brown; a
banquet for participants; and a meditation on peacemaker John
Kline. The college presented the Sappington Award, named after
long-time Brethren scholar Roger E. Sappington, to Brown for
"distinguished scholarship in the field of Anabaptist and
Pietist
studies."
Organizers plan
to publish results of the conference on a CD-ROM
available later this year.
5) Christian
Peacemaker Teams (CPT) continues its presence in
Baghdad, but the representation it has there has shifted in recent
weeks. Seven CPT workers -- including Church of the Brethren
members Cliff Kindy and Peggy Gish -- were expelled by the Iraqi
government on March 29 after they walked through the city
documenting destruction in the streets without official escort.
Kindy said there was an "intense level of anxiety"
in Baghdad.
The group exited
to Jordan, but three of the team members,
including Kindy, were injured when the taxi they were traveling
in
blew a tire. Kindy received 10 stitches for a head wound. None
of
the injuries were life-threatening. Nine other CPT workers remain
in Baghdad, as a new delegation had arrived on March 25. Kindy
has
since returned to the US.
In other Iraq-related
developments:
*The Church of the Brethren Washington Office issued another
Action
Alert last week, noting the massive financial and human costs
of
the war, and urging Brethren to ask their representatives to
speak
out against the special allocation request to finance the war.
See
www.brethren.org/genbd/washofc/alert/CostOfWar.html for details.
The office this week joined 51 other organizations in signing
on to
a letter asking Congress "to take a number of steps to limit
negative civilian impact of war in Iraq, to ensure US adherence
to
international law, and to provide adequate funding and support
for
civilian-led relief and reconstruction."
*Nearly 70 percent
of respondents in a recent non-scientific
www.brethren.org poll expressed disagreement with the US decision
to press ahead with military action in Iraq. More than 400 people
voted in the March 17-26 poll.
*The World Council
of Churches (WCC) is collecting news and
resources related to Iraq at www.wcc-coe.org/wcc/behindthenews/.
*A recent article
in the Pittsburgh (Pa.) Post-Gazette highlighted
a "teach-in" on the war on Iraq held at Juniata College
in
Huntingdon, Pa. More than 60 people attended.
6) About 350
senior high youth and advisors from Maryland to
Florida, a sharp increase from the previous year, participated
in
this year's Roundtable regional youth conference March 27-29
at
Bridgewater (Va.) College
Habitat for Humanity
founder Millard Fuller was the keynote
speaker, addressing the theme "Let Your Life Speak."
Fuller shared
his life journey and spoke about the importance of peace and
service in following Jesus Christ. "Never has there been
a time in
this history of this country when we need the light of peace
to be
shining more brightly," Fuller said, pointing to a peace
candle lit
for each session. The gospel message, he said, "is not for
the
timid."
He said that,
through Habitat, "Houses are going up by the
thousands, and every one of those houses is a sermon about God's
love."
Local comedy
team Ted & Lee provided their unique interpretations
on scripture in an evening presentation as the conference opened
with a Friday night program for the first time. General Board
Youth/Young Adult Ministry director Chris Douglas spoke at the
event's closing worship, leading a time of blessing and
commissioning.
Other highlights
of the weekend included a wide range of workshops,
energetic group-singing times led by a band of Bridgewater
students, small-group sessions and Bible studies, a vesper service
focusing on peace, a variety show, performances by the Bridgewater
College Chorale and a theater group, and a coffeehouse featuring
the Bridgewater Jazz Band.
7) Ministry
Summer Service, in its eighth year, will have a record
number of interns participating this summer. Eighteen young adults
are expected to be part of the program, which emphasizes leadership
development and the exploration of possible calls to ministry.
General Board
Youth/Young Adult Ministry director Chris Douglas,
who coordinates the MSS program along with Ministry office director
Mary Jo Flory-Steury, said the previous high was 16, set last
summer. The 2003 group will hold orientation May 31 to June 6
at
Bethany Theological Seminary in Richmond, Ind. Interns follow
orientation by serving for nine weeks in a ministry setting,
working alongside a mentor.
This year's group
-- about two-thirds female -- will be placed at
a variety of sites. Two will serve as youth workcamp assistants;
two on the Youth Peace Travel Team; one each in the Church of
the
Brethren Washington Office, Illinois-Wisconsin District, and
Camp
Blue Diamond; one in a joint project between the Brethren Service
Center in New Windsor, Md., and the Union Bridge (Md.) Church
of
the Brethren; and the others in congregations in six states and
Washington, D.C.
8) S. Joan Hershey,
director of New Life Ministries since its
inception in 1997, has announced her resignation. The
evangelism-focused organization came about as an outgrowth of
The
Andrew Center, a former ministry of the Church of the Brethren.
It
also works closely with the Brethren Church, Mennonite Church
USA,
and Mennonite Church Canada.
Succeeding Hershey
as director effective April 1 is Kristen
Leverton Helbert. Helbert is a staff member of Christian Community,
a long-standing New Life Ministries program partner that has
been
responsible for many NLM resources. With Helbert's appointment,
operations and management for NLM will be transferred to
Indiana-based Christian Community.
This new, closer
partnership will expand New Life Ministries'
ability to develop new resources and do needed research on church
growth and decline, according to a release from NLM board chair
Paul Mundey. Two new resources, "Worship and Hospitality"
and "100
Ways to Reach Young Adults," will be released this spring.
The New Life
Ministries phone will continue to be 800-774-3360, and
the website will remain at www.newlifeministries-nlm.org. Mail
should now be sent to New Life Ministries, 6404 S. Calhoun Street,
Fort Wayne, IN 46807.
Hershey will
continue her relationship with NLM by joining the
organization's board. Other board members include Fred Bernhard,
Ed
Bontrager, Steve Clapp, Jeff Johnson, Bob Kettering, Dan Lawson,
Craig Smith, David Young, and Earl Ziegler.
9) Brethren
Volunteer Service orientation Unit 253 is being held
at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md., Mar. 31 to
Apr.
11. Seven participants were expected for this annual spring
older-adult unit.
Larry and Alice
Petry of Lakemore, Ohio, are providing guest
leadership for the orientation. Schedule highlights include a
trip
to Elizabethtown (Pa.) College and the Ephrata Cloister to study
Brethren history, and a day in Washington, D.C., working in the
soup kitchen, meeting with staff in the Church of the Brethren
Washington Office, and visiting Capitol Hill.
Five participants
are from the Church of the Brethren: Paul Minnich
from the Codorus congregation, Loganville, Pa.; Thelma Keeling
from
Bakersfield (Calif.); Joel and Bev Eikenberry from Manchester,
North Manchester, Ind.; and David Webster from Monte Vista,
Callaway, Va.
10) Amid threats
of war and high terrorism alerts, 125 people
gathered for the "Organizing for Peace: Arts, Activism,
and
Spirituality" event March 13-16 in Richmond, Ind. Music,
dance,
poetry, and visual art were explored as modes of spirituality
and
activism.
Students from
five Brethren colleges and church members from as far
as the Pacific Southwest, Middle Pennsylvania, and Mid-Atlantic
districts came together at Bethany Theological Seminary and Earlham
School of Religion for skill-building in active nonviolence,
creating art, and sharing. Participants ranged in age from 2
months
to 80 years, and backgrounds included Quaker, Mennonite, Brethren,
and Buddhist.
Erika Thorne
(Future Now) and Matt Guynn (On Earth Peace) led
large-group sessions focusing on Martin Luther King Jr.'s six
steps
of nonviolence, how to lead small discussion meetings on issues
of
controversy, the dynamics of diversity, and "dancing for
change."
Paul Grout, who served as artist-in-residence, spent many of
the
group sessions lying on the floor of Bethany's chapel, creating
a
huge ink drawing of Mary crying out to God with her words from
Luke
2, "He has brought down the powerful from their thrones."
Father Roy Bourgeois,
founder of School of the Americas Watch,
spoke on the role of the arts in the movement to close the US
Army-run School of the Americas. Melissa Bennett provided overall
spiritual coordination for the event, giving pastoral support
and
worship leadership.
Workshops included
Grout's "Prophets of Contemporary Culture,"
Joseph Helfrich's "Song and Worship-Leading for the Complete
Klutz," and the popular "Playing for Change,"
led by Anna Lisa
Gross and other students from Earlham. Other topics addressed
in
the workshops included creativity and legislative advocacy, justice
in the Bible, theater that awakens social conscience, and poetry
as
a means of peacemaking. Participants were also encouraged to
form
their own workshops.
A Friday evening worship time focused on expressing a sense of
repentance for the sins of the world. On Saturday evening, worship
ended with a procession of drums and dancing. Grout, watching
the
dancing figures and hearing the beating of drums in time with
the
human heart, extended his arms and said, "This is what heaven's
going to be like."
11) The church
is mourning the death of J. Benton Rhoades, a
former Church of the Brethren missionary to Ecuador and a long-time
leader in advocacy for agricultural workers. Rhoades, who was
82,
died on March 19 in California, where he was a member of La Verne
Church of the Brethren. A memorial service was held at the church
on March 23.
Rhoades was a
graduate of Manchester College and Bethany
Theological Seminary and did later studies in anthropology and
organizational development. He went to Ecuador in 1946 and helped
to found the Church of the Brethren's rural development program.
After 10 years of service with the denomination, he continued
to
work with development issues in Ecuador for other agencies.
After returning
to the US, he worked with mission education and
leadership development for the Church of the Brethren before
joining Agricultural Missions Inc., eventually becoming the
ecumenical organization's executive director. He also served
many
years on the board of National Farm Worker Ministry.
In a letter written
just after his death, Rhoades' children said
that he "spent his final weeks much the way he spent his
entire
life: interested in the well-being of others, eternally grateful
for anything anyone did for him, and troubled nearly to grief
about
the state of this world. Yet he was undiminished in his yearning
for both peace and justice. He has enriched the lives of each
of
us, and the labors of his hands and his heart can be found on
every
continent."
12) Eleven chief executive officers of Brethren retirement centers
participated in a consultation held Feb. 27-28 at the Church
of the
Brethren General Offices in Elgin, Ill., to review, evaluate,
and
plan for the Shared Services Program of the Fellowship of Brethren
Homes. The program is a four-year-old ministry of the Association
of Brethren Caregivers (ABC).
"A hoped-for
outcome over the past few years has been that more of
the Brethren homes would be significantly involved financially
and
mutually in the Fellowship of Brethren Homes," said Ralph
McFadden,
coordinator of Shared Services for ABC. "However, given
the strain
on the budgets of the homes due to the floundering economy, more
support financially may be out of the question."
Participants
of the consultation and members of the Partner Council
-- the governing body for the Fellowship of Brethren Homes --agreed
to take a threefold approach in providing services. The group
will
continue with much of the current program, aggressively market
for
deeper involvement of Brethren homes in Fellowship of Brethren
Homes' programs, and continue to explore collaboration with
Mennonite Health Services and the Friends Services for the Aging.
Programs offered
by the Fellowship of Brethren Homes include
awareness-raising and promotion at Church of the Brethren
conferences, education events such as an annual Brethren Homes
Forum, and faith-based supportive services for board and staff
development.
13) Brethren
bits: Other brief news notes from around the
denomination and elsewhere.
*The Church of the Brethren is the "featured denomination"
for
April on the www.FaithandValues.com website. A different
faith
group is chosen each month; with the site's emphasis on the war
in
Iraq and peace issues this spring, the site's administrators
felt
the Brethren were a natural fit. General Board Communications
staff
assembled the content for the feature page.
*Another Annual
Conference agency, On Earth Peace, holds its
spring board meetings today and tomorrow (Apr. 4-5). The group
is
meeting at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md. The
spring board meeting season finishes Apr. 26-27 when the Brethren
Benefit Trust board meets in Elgin, Ill.
*The General
Board is seeking people who are willing to translate
from English to Spanish at the 2003 Annual Conference. Nadine
Monn
is the volunteer coordinator for this project. Anyone with good
bilingual skills who is willing to assist should contact Monn
at
nadine_monn@yahoo.com.
*The Church
of the Brethren General Board's Emergency
Response/Service Ministries office reported that 655 volunteers
gave more than 33,000 hours to disaster response projects in
2002,
assisting 69 families in seven locations. Disaster Child Care
caregivers made 758 child-care contacts.
*A team of four
Bridgewater (Va.) College students won the fourth
annual Virginia statewide Ethics Bowl Competition, held at
Marymount University in Arlington. Bridgewater's team defeated
the
Marymount team in the final match after participating in six
rounds
of debate and facing students from 15 other private Virginia
colleges and universities, including Washington and Lee University,
the University of Richmond, and Roanoke and Randolph-Macon
colleges. Team members were Chris Collins of Staunton, Va., Peter
John Mundey of Frederick, Md., Rachel Manspeaker of Elkton, Md.,
and Mitchell Troup of Millerstown, Pa. The students are coached
by
philosophy and religion professor Steve Watson. Bridgewater
president Phil Stone was one of the emcees for the event.
*Mid-Atlantic District is hosting a pair of conferences in May.
Episcopal priest/professor Barbara Brown Taylor will be the keynote
speaker for "The Art of Preaching," to be held May
12 at Frederick
(Md.) Church of the Brethren and May 13 at the Manassas (Va.)
congregation. Registration fee is $35. A conference titled "New
Churches for a New Century," featuring keynoters Jeff Wright,
Bob
Krouse, and Craig Sider, will be May 8-10 at Frederick.
Registration is $25. Contact the district at mad.cob@mindspring.com
for more details.
*The Tok'ahookaadi
Church of the Brethren and its associated
Lybrook (N.M.) Mission will hold a 50th anniversary celebration
July 24-27. Numerous Brethren have participated in the ongoing
mission efforts at the site. The major celebration event will
be
held July 26, followed by worship Sunday morning the 27th. The
congregation is part of Western Plains District.
*The US National
Council of Churches (NCC) is sponsoring a Young
Adult Stewards program for the NCC's 2003 General Assembly, to
be
held Nov. 4-6 in Jackson, Miss. The program, designed "to
encourage
the involvement and ecumenical formation of young adults ages
18-30," is funded by individual donors so there is no cost
to
participants. More information is available on the NCC website,
at
www.ncccusa.org. Application deadline
is May 30.
14) John and
Janet Tubbs, the General Board's mission coordinators
in Nigeria, have announced their retirement effective in mid-2003.
They have served the Nigeria mission through the General Board's
Global Mission Partnerships office for eight years.
John Tubbs' interest
in Nigeria began through participation in a
workcamp to the country in 1988. He and Janet later served there
through the pastoral exchange program in 1993. They returned
in
1995, when they served at Mason Technical School in Garkida.
In
1999 they shifted to the newly created role of mission
coordinators, consulting with Nigerian leadership and coordinating
staff and joint ministries.
15) The Pacific
Southwest District board has unanimously called
Bryan Boyer as the new executive minister of the district,
effective May 1. Boyer has most recently worked in private practice
as a professional counselor and as a part-time teacher at Azusa
Pacific University.
Previously, he
had 10 years of pastoral experience. He is married
to Susan Boyer, pastor of La Verne (Calif.) Church of the Brethren,
where the district office is located. They and their two children
live in neighboring Claremont.
Boyer is a graduate
of the University of La Verne, Cal
State-Fullerton, Bethany Theological Seminary, and the Illinois
School of Professional Psychology, where he earned his doctorate.
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