Brethren Staff Visit Nigeria, Assess Crisis Response with EYN and Mission Partners

Church of the Brethren staff have been visiting in Nigeria to meet with Nigerian Brethren leadership and mission partners, and to assess the Nigeria Crisis Response. Global Mission and Service executive director Jay Wittmeyer and associate executive Roy Winter, who heads up Brethren Disaster Ministries, attended meetings and traveled with Nigerian Brethren leaders to visit, among other sites, the EYN headquarters near Mubi which were evacuated last October when the Boko Haram Islamist insurgents took over the area.

Ventures Course at McPherson College Will Explore Congregational Ethics

The next Ventures course at McPherson (Kan.) College titled “Congregational Ethics: Patterns of Healthy Communities” will be led by Joshua Brockway, director of Spiritual Life and Discipleship for the Church of the Brethren and a member of the staff of Congregational Life Ministries. Brockway has provided leadership for a new emphasis on congregational ethics in the Church of the Brethren. This online webinar is offered on Nov. 21 from 9 a.m. to 12 noon (central time).

Newsline for Nov. 6, 2015

1) Presidential Forum at Bethany Seminary explores the intersections of Just Peace. 2) New unit of Brethren Volunteer Service completes orientation. 3) Office of Public Witness issues action alert on refugee crisis. 4) Heifer partners with the Brethren and Ted & Co. for new creative funding initiative. 5) Material Resources program logs a busy October. 6) BBT announces Medicare Supplement open enrollment through November. 7) EYN Disaster Team brings relief for Maiduguri’s displaced. 8) EYN offers seminar on trauma healing for displaced pastors. 9) At UN, anti-nuclear majorities challenge nuclear-dependent minority. 10) Advent Offering supports Church of the Brethren ministries, focuses on the Magnificat. 11) Advent devotional, winter quarter of Guide for Biblical Studies provide seasonal focus on gifts. 12) Brethren bits

Brethren Bits for Nov. 6, 2015

In this issue: Personnel notes, volunteer positions open with Youth Peace Travel Team and Heifer Farm, experiential learning trip to South Sudan, Congregational Life leader attends ethical evangelism event, BDM leader visits Syria refugee camps, Shoulder to Shoulder campaign issues pledge challenge, Congregational Outreach Forms due soon, and more news from congregations, districts, colleges, and ecumenical partners–plus a sermon award contest.

Presidential Forum at Bethany Seminary Explores the Intersections of Just Peace

An array of speakers addressed many intersections of Just Peace at the 2015 Presidential Forum at Bethany Theological Seminary in Richmond, Ind., on Oct. 29-31. With a focus on “Rejecting Cruelty, Creating Community, Rediscovering Divinity” the event juxtaposed a variety of ways to address and understand the concept of Just Peace. It was the seventh Presidential Forum held by the seminary and the first hosted by Bethany’s president Jeff Carter.

EYN Offers Seminar on Trauma Healing for Displaced Pastors

A seminar on trauma healing for displaced pastors of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria), was offered at Yola from Sept. 7-12. This seminar was organized by the office of the Ministers Council in conjunction with the EYN Disaster Relief Management financed by the Church of the Brethren. It was offered for 100 displaced pastors.

Heifer Partners with the Brethren and Ted & Co. for New Creative Funding Initiative

A new original play by Ted and Co. Theaterworks, titled “12 Baskets and a Goat,” will begin a campaign in partnership with the Church of the Brethren to support Heifer International. The campaign begins in Harrisonburg, Va., on Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. when “12 Baskets and a Goat” will be performed at the restored old Sale Barn on Sunny Slope Farm. All proceeds from the production, including an auction of home-made breads, will support Heifer’s work to bring families and communities out of poverty.

Material Resources Program Logs a Busy October

“October was just crazy (in a wonderful way),” said an update on the work of the Material Resources program of the Church of the Brethren, provided by office coordinator Terry Goodger. Material Resources processes, warehouses, and ships disaster relief goods and other humanitarian aid on behalf of a number of ecumenical partners, based at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md.

New Unit of Brethren Volunteer Service Completes Orientation

Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) Unit 311 has completed orientation, and the volunteers in the unit have begun work at their project sites. Following are the names, congregations or hometowns, and project sites of the new BVS volunteers:

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