“[Jesus] called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it’” (Mark 8:34-35).
NEWS
1) Brethren Disaster Ministries distributes first round of grant money for Ukraine crisis
2) Christian leaders in US send open letter to Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill
3) Church of the Brethren is consolidated in Venezuela
UPCOMING EVENTS
4) Webinar on watershed stewardship to engage intersection of faith and the environment
JESUS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD: STORIES FROM CONGREGATIONS
5) Montesion Church of the Brethren in Lares, P.R., celebrates 44 years
6) Brethren bits: Correction, remembering Jorge Rivera, memorial service for Elaine Sollenberger, Faith Forward event with Brian McLaren, free online presentations on the Russia-Ukraine war, World Council of Churches leader appeals for end to attacks on civilians
Quotes of the week:
“It is a reason for content to reaffirm that, throughout the conference, very special moments were experienced, where the Holy Spirit of God ministered to the hearts of those present, through his word, praise, and discernment, filling with blessing his church, and leaving in all attendees the hope of a promising future, of greater consolidation and expansion for the Church of the Brethren in Venezuela.”
— Excerpted from a report on the Annual Conference of ASIGLEH, the Church of the Brethren in Venezuela, prepared by pastor Rafael González who serves as secretary. Find the full report below in this issue of Newsline.
“Praise God! A little after 5:00 this morning, Alex messaged me with the following: ‘Still holding on. No Power. Pray.’ So we pray with thanks and intercession.”
— A very brief update on the Chernigov Brethren in Ukraine that was received from Quinter (Kan.) pastor Keith Funk on Thursday, March 10, after he had lost communications contact for some days with pastor Alexander Zazhytko.
A note to readers: The Church of the Brethren Mission and Ministry Board is meeting this weekend, March 11-13, at the denomination’s General Offices in Elgin, Ill., in person and via Zoom. Business will be led by chair Carl Fike, assisted by chair-elect Colin Scott and general secretary David Steele. Open sessions take place Saturday, March 12, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Central time) with a break for lunch; and Sunday, March 13, from 9:30 a.m. to 12 noon (Central). Open sessions will be broadcast via Zoom webinar. Preregistration is required, go to https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_R5f1cZEUTkG-yJyX0BQvQg. Fing the agenda and business documents at www.brethren.org/mmb/meeting-info.
1) Brethren Disaster Ministries distributes first round of grant money for Ukraine crisis
By Sharon Billings Franzén
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has caused a massive displacement of people both inside Ukraine and across the borders into neighboring countries. As of March 11, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that more than 1.85 million are displaced within the country, with an additional 12.65 million directly affected by the conflict. It reports that more than 2.5 million refugees have crossed Ukraine’s land borders. That number is increasing daily with an estimate that up to 4 million will eventually flee the country.
Responding to this crisis will be a massive, multi-year effort. Brethren Disaster Ministries is working with partners to determine the best avenues of support, including immediate assistance as well as a longer-term response.
An initial Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) grant of $10,000 has been given to CORUS International–an organization that includes long-time partners IMA World Health and Lutheran World Relief–to provide assistance to refugees and send assistance to Ukraine through partners already on the ground. Additional partners are likely to include organizations such as Church World Service, ACT Alliance, and European Baptist relief agencies.
Thank you for caring and supporting this effort!
Donate to the Church of the Brethren response to the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Ukraine and neighboring countries by giving online at www.brethren.org/give-ukraine-crisis or by sending a check to Emergency Disaster Fund, 1451 Dundee Ave, Elgin, Il 60120, with “Ukraine Crisis” in the memo line.
— Sharon Billings Franzén is the office manager for Brethren Disaster Ministries.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) today (March 11) published an article titled “Churches Respond to Growing Humanitarian Needs in Ukraine and Bordering Countries” about how churches in the area are responding as the war continues. Go to www.oikoumene.org/news/churches-respond-to-growing-humanitarian-needs-in-ukraine-and-bordering-countries.
2) Christian leaders in US send open letter to Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill
Nathan Hosler, director of the Church of the Brethren’s Office of Peacebuilding and Policy, is one of the more than 100 Christian leaders in the United States who have signed an open letter to Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, asking him to speak out against his country’s invasion of Ukraine.
The letter, sent to Kirill today, March 11, laments the “tragic and terrible loss of innocent civilian life” and includes an “earnest plea that you use your voice and profound influence to call for an end to the hostilities and war in Ukraine and intervene with authorities in your nation to do so.”
His Holiness Kirill is Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia and Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, the country’s dominant religious group.
The full text of the letter follows (not including the list of signatories):
His Holiness Kirill
Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia
Russian Orthodox Church
Your Holiness,
We write you as brothers and sisters in Christ. Some of us have worked with you in fellowship in ecumenical settings. All of us serve in various positions of leadership and service in churches and Christian organizations. We know well the heavy responsibilities and challenges which rest on you, and all those called by God to be shepherds and servants of God’s people.
With broken hearts, we are making an earnest plea that you use your voice and profound influence to call for an end to the hostilities and war in Ukraine and intervene with authorities in your nation to do so. We all are witnessing the tragic and terrible loss of innocent civilian life and the grave dangers of escalation posing the deepest threats to peace in the world. Moreover, we grieve for the ways the body of Christ is being torn asunder by warring factions. The peace desired by our common Lord demands that this immoral warfare end, halting the bombing, shelling, and killing, and withdrawing armed forces to their previous boundaries.
We make this appeal with no political agenda. Before God, we bear witness that there is no religious justification from any side for the destruction and terror the world is witnessing daily. Our first allegiance is always to our Lord Jesus Christ. This transcends the narrow claims of all nations and ideologies.
We are in the season of Lent. In that Lenten spirit, we ask you to prayerfully reconsider the support you have given to this war because of the horrendous human suffering it has unleashed.
In this moment, as the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, you have the holy opportunity to play an historic role in helping to bring a cessation of senseless violence and a restoration of peace. We pray you will do so, and our prayers will accompany you.
Respectfully Yours in our Lord Jesus Christ
3) Church of the Brethren is consolidated in Venezuela
A report from ASIGLEH, the Church of the Brethren in Venezuela, prepared by Rafael González
The city of Cúcuta in the sister Republic of Colombia was the place chosen and prepared by God for the first Annual Conference of the Association “Church of the Brethren Venezuela” (ASIGLEH) from Feb. 21 to Feb. 28, 2022, and with the theme “Expansión” (a call to consolidate identity).
This beautiful and generous land opened its arms to receive a large Venezuelan delegation (pastors and delegates) and pastors from the USA: Joel Peña (CAT Venezuela), Jeff Boshart (director of the Global Food Initiative), and Eric Miller (co-executive director of Global Mission for the Church of the Brethren).
It is of vital importance to point out that this celebration is done after two years of many difficulties due to the Venezuela situation, of the pandemic and other adversities that have occurred in these six years of struggles to establish the Church of the Brethren in this South American country.
Brothers Eric and Jeff were able to see first-hand the effort and encouragement of pastors and delegates to attend this conference, and continue to consolidate the Brethren church in Venezuela, as well as the existing spirit of fraternity during the whole conference, especially in the celebration of the Agape Feast: supper, communion and washing of feet, practices that have been rooted in the spiritual life of the congregations, as a seal of identity and sense of belonging to the Church of the Brethren.
Also, Brother Jeff exhibited the historical work of social and spiritual service that has been done by the Global Food Initiative, emphasizing that the practice of love through service is the most important element in the preaching of the gospel of Jesus, and Brother Miller also spoke about the origins and expansion of the Church of the Brethren in the world.
It should be noted that among the attendance were pastors and delegates from seven Venezuelan indigenous ethnic groups (Piapoco, Jibi, Yekuana, Wayuu, Sanema, Yavinapi, and Carinna) who with great enthusiasm left their habitat (natural environments) which are far from the cities, in order to attend this conference. They participated with praises in their vernacular (original) languages and in Spanish; and like all the assistants, they stated their commitment to continue doing God’s work in Venezuela simply, together and peacefully, assuming the identity of the Church of the Brethren.
This conference resulted in the appointment of a new executive board, which was composed as follows: Roger Moreno (chairman), Oswaldo Lezama (vice chairman), Rafael González (secretary), Alexander Mota (treasurer), and Jorge Martínez (vocal member). Thirty-three churches reaffirmed their commitment to ASIGLEH, among them 13 churches of the Venezuelan ethnic indigenous groups, and 7 new affiliated churches showing an average of 1,548 congregant members.
Finally, it is a reason for content to reaffirm that, throughout the conference, very special moments were experienced, where the Holy Spirit of God ministered to the hearts of those present, through his word, praise, and discernment, filling with blessing his church, and leaving in all attendees the hope of a promising future, of greater consolidation and expansion for the Church of the Brethren in Venezuela.
–– Pastor Rafael González is secretary for ASIGLEH, the Church of the Brethren in Venezuela.
UPCOMING EVENTS
4) Webinar on watershed stewardship to engage intersection of faith and the environment
By Galen Fitzkee
The Church of the Brethren’s Office of Peacebuilding and Policy along with the Brethren Creation Care Network will be hosting a webinar about watershed stewardship on March 30 at 7 p.m. (Eastern time). We will be featuring special guest David Warners from Calvin University and also inviting interactive participation by Church of the Brethren attendees.
Webinar description:
An interactive webinar about watershed stewardship in your community! Come hear David Warners, biology professor at Calvin University and director of Plaster Creek Stewards, present about faith-based reconciliation ecology and the work Calvin University has been doing in watershed restoration.
Also be ready to engage in dialogue about the intersection of Brethren faith and the environment, which will be led by members of the Brethren Creation Care Network!
In the meantime, we encourage you to think about how your own congregation cares for its local waters and how to share those stories with us during the event. This webinar will be an opportunity for reflection, idea sharing, and forming partnerships to take action now and in the future.
Zoom registration link: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_C6fP52V8SQy0PVVevOY8AA
Facebook event link: https://fb.me/e/1XYfnPvCd
Find out more about the Brethren Creation Care Network at www.brethren.org/creationcare.
— Galen Fitzkee is a Brethren Volunteer Service worker serving with the Church of the Brethren’s Office of Peacebuilding and Policy in Washington, D.C.
JESUS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD: STORIES FROM CONGREGATIONS
5) Montesion Church of the Brethren in Lares, P.R., celebrates 44 years
By Jose Acevedo, DDC
In a joyful spirit, pastor Carmen Mercado, Puerto Rico District executive minister José Callejas, and pioneer leaders of Montesion Church of the Brethren of Rio Prieto in Puerto Rico, celebrated a glorious service in gratitude to our God for walking with us for the past 44 years.
Thanks to the Glory of God we have been able to project God’s love into our community of Rio Prieto, a very rural area, through evangelistic activities that have extended our hands to the needy, to the one who has been forgotten. We have tried to be “the hands and feet of Jesus,” says pastor Mercado.
The 44 years have been challenging to us, but we have been able to embrace our brothers and sisters by demonstrating the mercy and love of Jesus in their neighborhood. All the glory to HIM. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
6) Brethren bits
— Remembrance: Jorge Rivera, a retired pastor and a leader in the Church of the Brethren in Puerto Rico for more than 30 years, passed away on March 5. He served Atlantic Southeast District as associate district executive minister in Castañer, P.R., from 1999 to 2011. Prior to that he was a member of the former Church of the Brethren General Board (predecessor body to the current Mission and Ministry Board), serving from 1982 to 1987. Services were held in Puerto Rico on March 8 at Yahuecas Church of the Brethren and Funeraria González in Arecibo, and on March 9 with the burial at the National Veterans Cemetery in Morovis.
— A memorial service for Elaine Sollenberger will be held tomorrow, Saturday, March 12, at 10 a.m. (Eastern time) at Everett (Pa.) Church of the Brethren. Sollenberger was the first woman to be elected moderator of the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference–find her remembrance in the Feb. 18 issue of Newsline at www.brethren.org/news/2022/brethren-bits-for-feb-18-2022.
— Faith Forward is hosting a special web event with Brian McLaren on March 17 at 1 p.m. (Eastern time) called “The Advantages of Disadvantages: How Current Struggles in Children’s, Youth, and Family Ministry Can Become Long-Term Opportunities.” Said an invitation: “Join us for an insightful presentation and engaging discussion with forward-thinking ministry leaders. Hosted by Traci Smith.” The webinar is recommended by Jeanne Davies, executive director of the Anabaptist Disabilities Network and a former denominational staff member for the Church of the Brethren, who serves on the board of Faith Forward. Register at https://faith-forward-mclaren.eventzilla.net.
Correction: There was a typo in the email address to send “BVS love stories” to Brethren Volunteer Service staff, as shared in last week’s Newsline. To submit stories for publication on BVS social media, contact mbrewer-berres@brethren.org.
— Religion News Service (RNS) is offering a free webinar on the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on religion and geopolitics on March 17 at 2 p.m. (Eastern time). Said a description of the online event: “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has brought to a head divisions among Orthodox Christians that have intensified since the Maidan Revolution of 2014 and Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Now Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill of Moscow’s support for President Vladimir Putin in pressing his claims in Ukraine promise to further fracture the Russian church and to fragment global Orthodox Christianity.” The panel of speakers includes Elizabeth Prodromou of Tufts University’s Fletcher School, where she directs the Initiative on Religion, Law, and Diplomacy; John Burgess of Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and author of Holy Rus’: The Rebirth of Orthodoxy in the New Russia; Mark Silk, an RNS columnist, director of the Leonard Greenberg Center for the Study of Religion in Public Life, and professor of religion in public life at Trinity University; and moderator Roxanne Stone, managing editor of RNS. Register at www.eventbrite.com/e/putins-war-and-the-fracturing-of-faith-in-ukraine-tickets-295263640497.
–– A Council on Foreign Relations briefing on US-Russia relations helps clarify the issues that led up to and will influence the longterm outcome of the invasion of Ukraine. The 90-minute presentation is online at www.cfr.org/event/home-and-abroad-public-forum-us-russia-relations. The council is a non-partisan think tank that holds periodic meetings intended to provide more in-depth analysis of matters of domestic and global importance.
— World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Ioan Sauca has appealed for an immediate end to indiscriminate attacks with an escalating impact on civilians in Ukraine. “The World Council of Churches is appalled by the escalating impact of the conflict in Ukraine on civilians–the women, men and children of Ukraine–and by what appears to be increasingly indiscriminate attacks,” Sauca said in a release today, March 11. “The airstrike on the Mariupol Hospital No.3 on 9 March, attacks affecting other hospitals, schools, kindergartens and residential areas, and the rising toll of civilian deaths and injuries all indicate that international humanitarian law is being disregarded.” Sauca cited deeply disturbing reports of the use of cluster munitions, including in populated areas, and of area bombardment of towns and villages. “The WCC denounces all such violations of international humanitarian law, particularly concerning the protection of civilians, which may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity,” he said. “Both as a matter of international law and of fundamental moral principles, we appeal for an immediate end to such indiscriminate attacks, for respect for international humanitarian principles and the God-given human dignity and rights of every human being, and for a ceasefire and negotiations to end this tragic conflict.”
Newsline is the email news service of the Church of the Brethren. Inclusion in Newsline does not necessarily convey endorsement by the Church of the Brethren. All submissions are subject to editing. Newsline stories may be reprinted if Newsline is cited as the source. Contributors to this issue include Jose Acevedo, Jeanne Davies, Galen Fitzkee, Sharon Billings Franzén, Keith Funk, Rafael González, Nathan Hosler, Eric Miller, Nancy Miner, José Calleja Otero, Roy Winter, and editor Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford, director of News Services for the Church of the Brethren. Please send news tips and submissions to cobnews@brethren.org . Find the Newsline archive at www.brethren.org/news . Sign up for Newsline and other Church of the Brethren email newsletters and make subscription changes at www.brethren.org/intouch . Unsubscribe by using the link at the top of any Newsline email.
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