— Remembrance: Dr. Joseph Schechter, 99, a retired surgeon who served for some years as medical consultant for Church of the Brethren mission staff, passed away on Aug. 3. He was born on Aug. 7, 1926. Some decades ago, in the 1960s and 1970s, he served as the medical consultant for mission personnel of the Church of the Brethren as well as personnel of the Missionary Board of the Brethren Church. In 1971-72 he served a year with Project Hope in Jamaica, taking his whole family along with him to help out on a ship that was a floating medical center. His wife, Ferne, also volunteered for the project along with their children. In Kingston, Jamaica, Dr. Schechter helped start a residency program in general surgery for medical graduates in a program of the University of West Indies. In retirement, beginning in 1997, he served on the board of the former Association of Brethren Caregivers. He also was a prominent figure in Pacific Southwest District, where he served for at least one term as district moderator. Most recently, he lived at Hillcrest, a retirement community in La Verne, Calif.
— Brethren Volunteer Service has announced BVS Unit 340. Nine new volunteers will join BVS for orientation at Camp Emmaus in Mount Morris, Ill., on Sept. 15-23. “We are so looking forward to meeting our new group of volunteers, 6 of whom will be joining us from Germany, and one of whom will be serving internationally in Ecuador,” said the announcement. “This orientation will be run by BVS Co-Director Virginia Rendler and BVS Office volunteer Aly Heckeroth.” Applications are now being accepted for the 2027-2028 volunteer year. Apply here
— An ecumenical service in Abuja, Nigeria, on Aug. 26 with World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Jerry Pillay included representatives from Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria). EYN president Daniel Mbaya was one of the Nigerian church leaders offering prayers during the service that at All Saints Anglican Church. He was named in the WCC release about the event as a former student of the WCC Ecumenical Institute at Bossey as well as president of the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria.
The service drew church leaders from across the nation. “Pillay addressed those gathered, speaking on justice, peace, and unity, and the importance of Christian witness in Nigeria,” the release said. It quoted Pillay’s remarks that “justice must be at the heart of Nigeria’s democratic life. We must refuse every attempt to turn ethnic or religious differences into sources of hatred.” The prayers offered “particularly emphasized peace, security, justice, and the forthcoming 2027 general elections. Those gathered also prayed for families and all those experiencing suffering, hardship, and affliction.”
The service was followed by a meeting between the WCC general secretary and representatives of the WCC member churches in Nigeria, which includes EYN, with each member church represented by five delegates. Read the full release
— On Earth Peace has announced a “Might from the Margins Book Club” with two online discussions held via Zoom on Sept. 8 and 29 at 8 p.m. (Eastern time). “The gospel shapes our perspectives in many aspects of life and certainly calls us to question our views of injustice. How can we use its influence to rethink the way those who are marginalized are viewed in our society?” said the announcement. “How can white Christians better support their brothers and sisters of color? Dennis R. Edwards’s book, Might from the Margins, explores the affirming power of recognizing marginalized Christians within the church. Through ten chapters of power-based themes, Edwards centers the needs of POC and other marginalized communities to uplift voices often forgotten in the church.” RSVP here
— Also from On Earth Peace is “I Object! Now What? (Opposing War and the Things that Make for War),” a virtual event for adults who are discerning how to broach topics such as peace, conscientious objection, Selective Service registration, and the draft. “Whether or not you’re a parent, grandparent, youth leader, pastor, have a nonreligious connection to a young community, or anyone else concerned for their youth and young adults, you are welcome to join us in broaching the CO topic!” said the announcement. The event takes place online on Tuesday, Sept. 22, at 8 p.m. (Eastern time). RSVP here
— The 19th Annual Ice Cream Social in the Church of the Brethren’s Southern Ohio and Kentucky District on Aug. 1 “was a very successful event with about 320 people in attendance,” said the district newsletter. “About $9,000 was raised to support the work of S. Ohio/KY BDM as we help disaster survivors. The support of our district is wonderful and greatly appreciated!”
— Elizabethtown (Pa.) College choirs traveled to the Baltics in May to perform at four historic churches as part of an American Celebration of Music in the Baltics Tour, said a release from the school. The three choirs on the tour included the college’s Concert Choir and Fenice Choir as well as Lancaster Voices, a combined choir from Lancaster (Pa.) Church of the Brethren and the college Concert Choir. Conducting the Concert Choir and Lancaster Voices was professor of music Matthew Fritz. Conducting the Fenice Choir was professor Mike McCarthy. “The ensembles performed a diverse selection of pieces to standing-room-only audiences across Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania,” said the release. In their third concert, at Kedainiu Evangelical Church, the group joined local choirs and traditional folk dancers for a reception and lessons in folk dancing following the performance. The 40 participants also had chances to visit historical sites and tourist destinations along the way. Elizabethtown’s international choir tours have taken place biennially since 2011. Read the full release
— “I Care about Peace: Preserving Christian Presence in the Birthplace of Jesus” is the title of a webinar set for Sept. 8 at 11 a.m. to 12 noon (Eastern time) sponsored by Churches for Middle East Peace and Rebuilding Alliance. CMEP is a partner organization of the Church of the Brethren Office of Peacebuilding and Policy. “Christian communities have called the Holy Land home for nearly two millennia, yet today Palestinian Christians face growing pressures that threaten their land, livelihoods, cultural heritage, and continued presence,” said a description. The conversation “on what it means to preserve a vibrant Christian presence in the birthplace of Jesus and how communities in the Holy Land are working to protect their future” will feature Alice Kisiya, Palestinian Christian journalist, activist, and founder of the Save Al-Makhrour Initiative; and Mother Agapia, an Orthodox nun and teacher whose years of ministry in Bethany connected her deeply to the experiences of Palestinian communities. Register here
— The Center on Conscience and War (CCW) has been featured on MS NOW as part of a report on conscientious objectors to the war with Iran. CCW is a longterm partner organization for the Church of the Brethren, which was one of the peace churches that started the CCW when it was formerly known as NISBCO. CCW sent out a release highlighting the MS NOW reporting on the rise of conscientious objection in the US military, with a note that the CCW executive director and several clients who are seeking discharges as conscientious objectors were interviewed. “Yesterday, the story aired every hour on MS Now and was quoted on all its flagship shows. We have already received new CO clients as a result of this increased visibility,” the release said. The MS NOW feature, “Troops fighting against Iran and alleged drug smugglers say they are being asked to violate international law,” noted that the rise in military seeking conscientious objector discharges are because of “increase in concerns over U.S. military strikes against alleged drug boats and targets inside Iran. One service member is concerned the military blew up bridges in Iran that were not military targets. Another thinks Pentagon leaders are not doing enough to prevent civilian deaths during airstrikes inside Iran. Yet another asked questions about how the military knew it was not killing civilians when launching missiles at boats it believed were trafficking drugs.” The article went on to report that the number has “skyrocketed, according to two groups that help them file their applications.” It quoted Mike Prysner, who runs a CCW hotline, who “said his group has seen applications increase by six times their normal rate since the start of Operation Epic Fury against Iran in late February, adding that the rate right now is higher than at any point in the past 25 years. In a typical year, Prysner said CCW works with around 50 conscientious objectors, but the organization has already taken on about 140 applicants since the start of the war with Iran. He said that unlike other times in American history when conscientious objectors were typically junior enlisted service members, many of his clients today have been in the military for more than a decade, represent all enlisted and officer ranks up to major and many have even attended service academies prior to their commissions.” Read the MS NOW report Watch the video
— “A Historic Gathering. A Present Urgency: CCT’s 20th Anniversary Forum” takes place on Oct. 6-9 in Birmingham, Ala. The Church of the Brethren is a member denomination of Christian Churches Together (CCT). “This October, leaders from across the breadth of American Christianity will gather in Birmingham for more than an anniversary,” said the announcement. “Fifteen years after CCT leaders gathered at 16th Street Baptist Church to reflect on Dr. King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail, we will return to that same place to ask what faithfulness requires of us now. We will pray in Kelly Ingram Park, gather at 16th Street Baptist Church, visit the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, worship across our traditions, and listen deeply to one another. Leaders from CCT’s five Church Families will gather around one table: Catholic. Orthodox. Historic Black. Evangelical and Pentecostal. Mainline Protestant. This is more than a celebration of what has been. It is a moment of return—and a moment of renewed commitment. What must we receive from one another? What must we acknowledge and repent? What are we prepared to do together for the sake of a more faithful Christian witness?” For more information about CCT
— World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Jerry Pillay has expressed profound sorrow over the catastrophic flash flood that struck the Nepal-Tibet border region on Aug. 26. “We have followed the reports with shock and sadness,” wrote Pillay in a pastoral letter sent to the Christian Conference of Asia and shared in a WCC release. “Several hundred people have died, with the toll still rising, and close to a thousand more—residents, security personnel, hydropower and border workers, and hundreds of foreign pilgrims and travellers from many nations—remain missing or unaccounted for. Many more have been injured, displaced, or have lost their homes, land, and livelihoods. Our hearts are heavy, and we hold this tragedy before God in lament. We grieve with you. We pray that search and rescue teams may yet bring answers, and that God’s presence may hold you through the anguish of not knowing. To the injured, and to those who have lost their homes, their land, their animals, and their livelihoods in these remote mountain valleys, we assure you that you are not alone and not forgotten, however far from the world’s attention your villages may seem.” He also expressed solidarity with the government and people of Nepal, with the National Council of Churches of Nepal and its member churches, and with the WCC’s ecumenical partners across the region, including the Christian Conference of Asia.
— A reflection by Gimbiya Kettering about Church of the Brethren identity as a Black woman has been published by Anabaptist World. Titled, “I am Sistern” with the subtitle “Brethren, too. Also, Black. It’s complicated, and I can live with that,” the piece explores the confusing and exclusive nature of the denomination’s name, and how Kettering—who was born into the church—navigates those complexities, and more. Kettering also is the author of Washing My Sister’s Feet, a children’s picture book about love feast and feetwashing with illustrations by Gabhor Utomo, published this year by Brethren Press. Read her reflection in Anabaptist World
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Find more Church of the Brethren news:
- FaithX wraps up summer of service
- Health Care Education Scholarships are awarded to nine recipients
- Deportation Defense Response Team provides update as termination of TPS takes effect
- Ancillary insurances available to Brethren church workers in 2027
- Germantown Church hosts new ‘Building and Empowering Lay Leadership’ training program