A Saturday evening worship service at Eaton featured the Inspirational Choir of First Church of the Brethren and the Brethren in Christ in Harrisburg, Pa.

Sonja Griffith, center, steering committee member, caught the spirit of the event.

The 2005 Cross-Cultural Consultation and Celebration on April 21-24 drew as many as 250 African-American, Mexican, Dominican, Haitian, Indian, Puerto Rican, and Anglo Brethren participants over four days of events. The gathering was by far the largest since annual cross-cultural consultations began in 1999.

The consultation theme from Colossians 3:12-17—"Woven Together with Love"—was just "a sophisticated way of saying, we are having a dress rehearsal for heaven," said Dennis Webb, pastor of Naperville (Ill.) Church of the Brethren, as he led participants in one of the many worship experiences.

Consultation participants seemed to have no doubt of God's will for the Church of the Brethren—that it is to become multicultural. Some said the very survival of the denomination depends on it becoming multicultural.

The event was planned by the Cross-Cultural Steering Committee, aided by the General Board's Congregational Life Ministries. Committee members are Barbara Date, Ruben Deoleo, Sonja Griffith, Robert Jackson, Belita Mitchell, and Gilbert Romero.

Sermons were given by invited speakers, but worship leaders also facilitated open times of sharing in which participants were encouraged to bring "offerings" of music or testimonies. Prayers were said in Haitian Creole, Spanish, French, and English. Spanish-English translation was available.

Text by Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
Photos by Janis Pyle, except where indicated

"This great denomination that has drawn this soul (referring to himself), will draw many more," said Joseph Craddock, lay minister at Germantown (Pa.) Church of the Brethren.

Verdena Lee holds the microphone for Marisel Olivencia.

Photo by Walt Wiltschek

Each Scripture was read in a number of languages.

Puerto Rican Brethren formed a
choir during the consultation.

Nadine L. Monn translates for Bethany Professor Scott Holland during a listening session with seminary faculty.

First Harrisburg's pastor, Belita D. Mitchell, spoke about being "well dressed in Christ." Love adds "marvelous beauty" to woven cloth, she said. "When we put on love as our outer garment and our shield, we put on Christ. With the love of God through Christ Jesus, we can become a multicultural church."

Woven Together With Love

Participants in the Cross Cultural Consultation made ribbons with their hopes for the Church to become multicultural. All of the ribbons were woven together into a single large banner.

Photo by Walt Wiltschek

A keynote address on the peace of Christ in an American cultural setting of differences between people, values, and even scriptural interpretation, was given by Fumitaka Matsuoka, a former dean of Bethany who is teaching at Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, Calif. He called on Brethren to learn a "second language" of caring and compassion taught by scripture.

Praising God!

Molly Wall

Nan Erbaugh and Nancy Kurtz

The intercultural study committee members from left to right are: Nadine L. Monn, Darla Kay Bowman Deardorff, Ruben Deoleo, Gilbert Romero, Glenn Hatfield, ex-officio from the American Baptist Churches USA, Thomas Dowdy, and chair Asha Solanky.