Jan. 14, 2010
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it” (John 1:5).
NEWS
1) General secretary calls Brethren to a time of prayer for Haiti; Brethren Disaster Ministries prepares for relief efforts.
2) BBT Board approves five new investment options, expands SRI guidelines.
PERSONNEL
3) Bridgewater College names new president.
UPCOMING EVENTS
4) Brethren Volunteer Service 287th orientation unit is announced.
5) New online seminars announced by Congregational Life Ministries.
FEATURES
6) An interview with Nigerian church leader Toma H. Ragnjiya.
7) A reflection on peace and the Gospel.
Brethren bits: Remembrances, job openings, CDS volunteer workshop, and more (see column at right).
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1) General secretary calls Brethren to a time of prayer for Haiti; Brethren Disaster Ministries prepares for relief efforts.
“In the darkest times, we can turn toward the Creator God and admit our frailty as part of this creation,” said Church of the Brethren general secretary Stan Noffsinger in a call for the entire denomination to enter into a time of prayer for Haiti.
“It is an interim step until the way is clear for us to individually take action. The call of the whole church to prayer is traditional Church of the Brethren, where together we discern what it is that God would have us do,” he said.
Noffsinger emphasized that prayer for Haiti in the current disaster situation “has a new element for us…. We have members of our church family we have not heard from and we don’t know their wellbeing and safety. And so a part of us is at risk.”
He called church members who are eager to personally take part in a relief effort to be patient and wait “until the right pathway to be involved emerges,” emphasizing that the Church of the Brethren is committed to a longterm relief effort in Haiti. “We’ll be in Haiti for the long haul.” Brethren Disaster Ministries executive director Roy Winter also stated that at this time volunteers are not yet needed.
Brethren Disaster Ministries plans relief effort
Brethren Disaster Ministries staff are continuing to monitor the situation in Haiti and consulting with ecumenical colleagues and groups including Church World Service (CWS).
In the initial phase of response, “we can be much more efficient working with CWS and other partners,” Winter said. Brethren Disaster Ministries is to participate in the relief work of ecumenical organizations such as CWS and local partners such as SSID (Servicio Social de Iglesias Dominicanas), a church organization in the Dominican Republic.
“It may be quite awhile before rebuilding begins to respond to the earthquake,” Winter reported in a conference call with several denominational staff yesterday morning. At this time volunteers are not yet needed. “We will wait until we have plans in place and until understandings about travel are much clearer. At some time (in the future) we expect to need volunteer groups working. That will come.”
Plans for a longterm Church of the Brethren response to the earthquake in Haiti include support for Haitian Brethren and the most vulnerable in the Port-au-Prince area, Winter said. It also may include the involvement of Children’s Disaster Services in helping children affected by the earthquake learn resiliency and become comfortable with the new situation in Port-au-Prince, he added.
Brethren Disaster Ministries will continue its ongoing project in Haiti to finish rebuilding homes damaged by the hurricanes that hit the island in 2008, Winter announced. Jeff Boshart, who is coordinating the project, concurred, saying, “There are still people living in terrible conditions in Gonaives.” That city suffered severe flooding in the storms of 2008.
An additional allocation of $60,000 from the Church of the Brethren’s Emergency Disaster Fund for the current rebuilding project in Haiti was given today. The grant is expected to be the final allocation for the project, to support “phase three” of construction of homes in Gonaives. Previous grants to this project have totaled $445,000.
Updates from the situation in Haiti
Church of the Brethren staff and Brethren Disaster Ministries have received a number of updates from Brethren and others related to the church who have been affected by the situation in Haiti since an earthquake hit near the capital city of Port-au-Prince.
However, as of yesterday evening staff have been unable to contact leaders of Eglise des Freres Haitiens (Church of the Brethren in Haiti), and have received reports that many Haitian members of Brethren congregations in New York and Florida have been unable to contact family in Haiti.
Brethren congregations in New York who have a number of members of Haitian background–including Haitian First Church of New York and Brooklyn First Church of the Brethren–have been in prayer for family members living in Haiti. “They’re kind of sitting on pins and needles right now,” said Brooklyn First pastor Jonathan Bream, who called to check in with denominational staff this morning. “They just don’t know because of the lack of communication.”
Verel Montauban in Brooklyn has yet to hear from family members in Haiti, he told Jeff Boshart, coordinator of the Brethren Disaster Ministries’ current rebuilding project in Haiti. But one of his church members, a deacon, has lost two family members as a house collapsed on them.
At least one licensed minister in Atlantic Southeast District has received word of the death of a close family member in the earthquake.
Brethren Disaster Ministries reports that the US State Department Operations Center has set up the following number for Americans seeking information about family members in Haiti: 888-407-4747.
Mission groups in Haiti
There have been at least three mission groups from US Church of the Brethren congregations either in Haiti currently, or there earlier this week or planning to travel later this week. A group of young adults from Lititz (Pa.) Church of the Brethren are in Haiti currently on a mission trip. The group has reported that they are okay.
In Shenandoah District, one church group returned from Haiti Tuesday morning before the earthquake happened, and one was planning to arrive in Haiti later this week, according to a prayer request from district executive Jim Miller and associate executive Joan Daggett.
Their e-mail reported that Doug Southers of Rileyville (Va.) Church of the Brethren is in Haiti but has called home by cell phone and is safe. He had traveled to Haiti last weekend to make preparations for a group from the Rileyville church that was to travel to Haiti later this week.
“We are glad for the safe return of Henry and Janet Elsea and volunteers from the Mount Pleasant Church (in Harrisonburg, Va.) who arrived home early Tuesday morning,” the Shenandoah District leaders wrote.
They also wrote that at least one Brethren-related church building has been destroyed; this has yet to be confirmed by denominational staff.
Prayer requests from ecumenical partners
IMA World Health has requested prayer for three staff who work out of the organization’s headquarters at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md.–Rick Santos, Sarla Chand, Ann Varghese–and IMA’s five local national staff in Haiti–Abdel Direny, Giannie Jean Baptiste, Execkiel Milar, Ambroise Sylvain, and Franck Monestime. As of yesterday evening all were unaccounted for in Port-au-Prince.
“Our staff were involved in partner meetings connected with our Neglected Tropical Disease Program and working from our offices in Port-au-Prince,” said the prayer request from Carol Hulver, assistant to the president of IMA World Health. “IMA has been actively reaching out for additional information on our staff’s well-being and safety through various channels but have received no confirmation as yet. We would appreciate the prayers of our Church of the Brethren community for the safety of our staff members and for comfort, healing, and restoration for the city of Port-au-Prince and the entire nation of Haiti.”
SERRV president and CEO Bob Chase has passed along word from Gisele Fleurant, a former member of the SERRV Board whose CAH artisan enterprise in Port-au-Prince has been a long-time producer for SERRV. SERRV is a nonprofit alternative trade and development organization originally begun by the Church of the Brethren with warehouses and a store at the Brethren Service Center.
Fleurant spoke last September at the 60th anniversary celebration of SERRV at the Brethren Service Center. A work group of Brethren visited her operation in Port-au-Prince in November.
She wrote from Haiti: “It is total chaos! CAH has only fence walls that are down! My house same thing with a lot of crackling which makes it impossible to live in unless major repairs! …So far most of cell phones are working but with a lot of difficulties. I know only of two CAH employees that lost their houses completely and are with their families in public places…. In my neighborhood we had a lot of deaths, mostly children trapped when the houses were falling. Please pass the news to all as I do not know how long that Internet will work. I will try to keep in touch! Thanks for caring and keeping us in your prayers!”
UMCOR (the United Methodist Committee on Relief) is expressing concern for Sam Dixon, its top executive, who has been in Haiti along with Clinton Rabb, head of the United Methodist denomination’s Mission Volunteers; and James Gulley, an UMCOR consultant.”No one has been able to reach the three men since the earthquake occurred and communications with Haiti have been difficult,” said the United Methodist release today.
In news from other denominations, the Roman Catholic Church has reported to CNN that Joseph Serge Miot, the archbishop of Port-au-Prince, died in the earthquake.
How to contribute to the relief effort in Haiti
The Emergency Disaster Fund is now receiving donations toward earthquake relief work in Haiti. Find the online donation page at www.brethren.org/HaitiDonations
A special web page “Prayers for Haiti” has been created for church members, congregations, and others concerned about the people of Haiti to express their prayers following the earthquake, go to www.brethren.org/HaitiPrayers
An online updates page offers updates on the Haiti earthquake relief effort, find it at www.brethren.org/HaitiEarthquake .
Donations of relief supplies also are needed. Brethren Disaster Ministries is requesting donations of Gift of the Heart Hygiene Kits and School Kits, which will be in large demand in the area affected by the earthquake. The kits should be sent to the Brethren Service Center, P.O. Box 188, New Windsor, MD 21776. For instructions to make the kits, go to www.churchworldservice.org/site/PageServer?pagename=kits_main .
2) BBT Board approves five new investment options, expands SRI guidelines.
In order to provide its members and clients with a wider array of investment options, the Board of Directors of Brethren Benefit Trust (BBT) has approved the addition of five additional fund choices for both Brethren Pension Plan and Brethren Foundation.
At its annual fall meeting, held Nov. 19-21 in Greenville, Ohio, the board approved the addition of a Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities Fund, a High-Yield Bond Fund, an Emerging Markets Stock Fund, a Public Real Estate Fund, and a Commodities-Based Fund to the investment guidelines of both entities. In the next few months, staff will be working with investment consultants to determine which funds are appropriate to offer to members and clients at this time, and the implementation of these funds will be completed as quickly as possible in 2010.
The board also approved staff recommendation that the Brethren Pension Plan’s Common Stock Fund be unbundled, which means staff may now consider also offering one or more of the five investment components of the Common Stock Fund as individual investment options. These include Value, Growth, Core, Small-Cap, and International investments.
“Our members and clients have been asking for additional investment options, and we are committed to developing new investment choices that complement those already offered by Brethren Pension Plan and Brethren Foundation,” said Nevin Dulabaum, BBT president. “We do believe that the increased selection will bring an increased demand for asset allocation assistance, and so we are working to develop such a service that we anticipate providing in some form.”
The board also accepted a significant revision of its socially responsible investing guidelines, as prompted by statements of the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference. These include prohibitions against companies generating 10 percent or more of their income from firearms and weapons of mass destruction (“Violence and the Use of Firearms,” 1978 Annual Conference, and “Children and Violence,” 1999 Annual Conference); and abortion procedures or the manufacture or sale of products used primarily to complete abortion procedures (“Statement on Abortion,” 1984 Annual Conference).
Additionally, restrictions now apply to both domestic and international companies with a history of child labor (“Statement on Child Exploitation,” 1997 Annual Conference); slavery (“Resolution on Slavery in the 21st Century,” 2008 Annual Conference); violations of human rights; and violations of environmental regulations.
Brethren Pension Plan and BFI’s SRI guidelines continue to restrict investments in companies that generate 10 percent or more of their income from the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages and tobacco; the production, sale, or distribution of pornography; the manufacture or operation of gambling devices; or through contracts with the US Department of Defense. Publicly traded companies holding the 25 largest Defense contracts are also excluded from BBT’s investment portfolios.
“The previous guidelines served us well, but we wanted to be certain that they are seated in the positions of the Church of the Brethren as defined by Annual Conference statements,” said Steve Mason, director of Brethren Foundation and coordinator of socially responsible investing activities for BBT. “We discovered a few gaps in our SRI policies, and we have now filled them.”
One of BBT’s strongest allies in its socially responsible investing program has been Boston Common Asset Management, one of BBT’s eight investment management firms. Geeta Aiyer, Boston Common’s president and chief investment officer of US Equities, and Matt Zalosh, CIO of International Equities, reported on the firm’s management of BBT and BFI’s US large-cap core equity and international equity funds over the last three years. Because it continues to meet BBT’s performance standards–staying in the top quartile among its peers and meeting or exceeding relevant benchmarks–the board voted to keep Boston Common as the manager of these funds.
In other business, the BBT board worked on improving insurance and pension services. As BBT’s Brethren Medical Plan becomes a stand-alone provider starting Jan. 1, 2010, the board recognized the need for an additional management position in that department and moved to create a manager of sales for health and welfare benefits position. Similarly, the board approved a BBT staff recommendation to create a manager of Pension Operations position, so that Brethren Pension Plan director Scott Douglas can spend more time meeting with members and addressing increased regulatory requirements. This latter move will return Pension Plan staffing to the level it had for most of this decade.
These positions are reflected in the approved 2010 BBT budget, which reflects total expenses of $3,730,195.
The Church Workers’ Assistance Plan was the subject of much discernment at the two-day meeting. The plan provides financial assistance to any active or retired Church of the Brethren pastor or church worker through grants; $147,567.59 was distributed through this program in 2009. Congregations that participate in the Pension Plan contribute one percent of their total employee compensation to the plan; an Annual Conference resolution mandates that congregations not in the Pension Plan contribute a similar amount.
The board approved a resolution declaring that 100 percent of Church Workers’ Assistance Plan grants and Pension Plan income can be considered housing allowance. This resolution includes a statement indicating that, because the Internal Revenue Service has not declared the eligibility of this grant as housing allowance, to do so could be treated as a violation of code; grant recipients are directed to consult with a tax adviser before designating a grant as housing allowance.
BBT staff members will further examine the Church Workers’ Assistance Plan, including issues related to eligibility, the intended use of the plan, and funding, with the Council of District Executives and the Pastoral Compensation and Benefits Advisory Committee in 2010. Proposed changes to the plan are expected to be presented to the board at its July meeting in Pittsburgh, Pa.
In an effort to increase communication between BBT and its constituents, the staff and board met with 40 local members at a luncheon at the Brethren Retirement Community in Greenville, Ohio, on Nov. 20.
— Brian Solem is publications coordinator for Brethren Benefit Trust.
3) Bridgewater College names new president.
The Board of Trustees of Bridgewater (Va.) College announced in a special on-campus meeting earlier this week that it has unanimously selected George Cornelius as the 8th president of the college. The announcement was distributed as a press release from the college.
Described as “a seasoned leader in the private, public, and nonprofit sectors,” Cornelius will assume the presidency of Bridgewater College on July 1. He currently is secretary of Community and Economic Development for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, where he oversees a department of approximately 350 employees and 90 state and federal programs and works closely with many of Pennsylvania’s universities, colleges, and communities.
A native and lifelong resident of Pennsylvania, Cornelius has been a member of Church of the Brethren congregations at Knobsville, Mechanicsburg, and Ridgeway in Pennsylvania, and Wilmington (Del.) Church of the Brethren. For some years he was a licensed minister in Southern Pennsylvania District and Atlantic Northeast District.
“Our national search has led us to an individual of extraordinary experience, achievement, and commitment to excellence,” said G. Steven Agee, Bridgewater trustee and chair of the search committee. “We are confident that the vision, enthusiasm, and leadership George Cornelius brings to the presidency will foster the values and mission of the college and continue to build a bright future.”
“Bridgewater College is very fortunate to attract a person of George Cornelius’s experience and ability as its eighth president,” said President Phillip C. Stone in the press release. “I am certain that George will provide great leadership to the College in the years ahead.”
Cornelius is a graduate of Pennsylvania State University with a juris doctor degree, magna cum laude, from Penn State Dickinson School of Law. In previous positions he has been president and CEO of Arkema Inc., a chemical company based in Philadelphia with operations throughout the Americas; and has been vice president and general counsel of Atofina (predecessor to Arkema Inc.). Earlier he was a partner at Eckert Seamans Cherin and Mellott, a national law firm headquartered in Pittsburgh. His civic and community service has included leadership fundraising roles with United Way, Penn State, and various church-related teaching and leadership roles.
“The Bridgewater opportunity was attractive because it combines my passion for education and my interest and abilities in organizational leadership and development. The Church of the Brethren has played a major role in my life, so the fact that the college is grounded in the tradition and values of the church makes the opportunity even more special,” commented Cornelius in the release from the college.
(This report is taken from a Bridgewater College press release by Mary K. Heatwole. Photos are available at www.bridgewater.edu/files/bc_galleries.php?g=16 .)
4) Brethren Volunteer Service 287th orientation unit is announced.
Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) has announced the start of the 2010 Winter Orientation, to be held Jan. 24-Feb. 12 at Camp Ithiel in Gotha, Fla. This will be the 287th orientation unit for BVS and will consist of 15 volunteers from across the US and Germany. Several Church of the Brethren members will attend, and the remaining volunteers come from varied faith backgrounds.
A highlight of the three weeks will be a weekend trip to southern Florida. During orientation, the group will have the opportunity to work at area food banks, a rehabilitation facility, and other various non-profits.
A BVS potluck is open to all those who are alumni, friends, and supporters of BVS on Tuesday, Feb. 2, at 6 p.m. at Camp Ithiel. “Please feel free to come and welcome the new BVS volunteers and share your own experiences,” said an invitation from the BVS Office. “As always your thoughts and prayers are welcome and needed. Please remember this new unit and the people they will touch during their year of service through BVS.” For more information contact the BVS Office at 800-323-8039 ext. 423.
5) New online seminars announced by Congregational Life Ministries.
Two new “webinars” have been announced by the Transforming Practices office of the Church of the Brethren’s Congregational Life Ministries: an online seminar on Feb. 2 and 4 led by Chip Arn, president of the Church Growth Institute; and an online seminar on Feb. 16 and 18 led by Celia Cook-Huffman, professor of Peace and Conflict Studies at Juniata College in Huntingdon, Pa., where she also is associate director of the Baker Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies and director of Baker Mediation Services.
The webinars are a collaborative resource offered by Congregational Life Ministries, Bethany Theological Seminary, and the Brethren Academy for Ministerial Leadership. No pre-registration is required and there is no fee for participating. Participants are requested to connect 10 minutes before the start of each webcast. Link to www.bethanyseminary.edu/webcast/transformation2010 .
Arn will lead a webinar titled, “Building Bridges: Connecting with New People” as Part Two of an “Effective Evangelism” series of workshops that began last year. The event is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 2, at 12:30-1:30 p.m. Pacific standard time (or 3:30-4:30 p.m. Eastern); and Thursday, Feb. 4, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Pacific (8:30-9:30 p.m. Eastern). A continuing education credit of .1 is offered for those who attend the one-hour session either Tuesday or Thursday.
Cook-Huffman will lead a webinar titled, “Developing Conflict Healthy Congregations, Part 1: Understanding Patterns of Congregational Conflict.” The seminar will be offered on Tuesday, Feb. 16, at 12:30-1:30 p.m. Pacific time (3:30-4:30 p.m. Eastern), and on Thursday, Feb. 18, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. Pacific (8:30-9:30 p.m. Eastern). A continuing education credit of .1 is offered for those who attend the one-hour session either Tuesday or Thursday.
Go to www.bethanyseminary.edu/webcast/transformation2010 to participate in webcasts. For more information contact Stan Dueck, director for Transforming Practices, at 717-335-3226 or sdueck@brethren.org .
6) An interview with Nigerian church leader Toma H. Ragnjiya.
Toma H. Ragnjiya is a leader in Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN–the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) serving in a dual position as principal of Kulp Bible College (KBC) and director of the EYN Peace Program. In the following interview by mission workers Nathan and Jennifer Hosler, he talks about the EYN Peace Program and the sectarian and inter-religious violence that has broken out repeatedly in areas of northeastern and central Nigeria:
Q: What are your hopes for the peace and reconciliation curriculum at Kulp Bible College?
A: My hope and my vision are to have students know the basics of peace when they graduate and go to their communities. Throughout Nigeria, it is obvious that Muslims and Christians live side-by-side. We want students to have the basic concept of peace so that they can participate in the community as peacemakers at their own level.
I was so glad to have Nathan and Jennifer to be the supporting staff here at KBC. Being young and new, you are well-received by students. [Peace and Reconciliation] is a new thing that we do not have in our curriculum and so we want to develop it. This way, it will be a continuous thing that can be shared with other Bible schools and other church schools. Gradually it will expand further; we have to start at the base which is the center of leadership training for EYN. If [students] have it, then soon the whole church will have it gradually.
Q: What do you see the role of the EYN Peace Program is in equipping the church as a whole?
A: You see, EYN does not have the real basis as a peace church because when the missionaries came they [taught peace] but not directly as we have now. They had a lot of problems, conflicts in the communities, so their main emphasis was preaching the gospel. It was really a holistic approach because [the missionaries brought] not just the gospel but they also brought education, medical care, and a new method of agriculture. These things touched lives. While there was no specific subject of peace as we are doing now, we are building on [their] foundation.
When we started [the EYN Peace Program], we had the District Church Council, chairmen, and secretaries attend Peace Seminars because they are the ones closer to the grassroots. They have gone through the basic concept of peace, introducing to them or reminding them that our church was founded on peace. It is one of the pillars of the church’s teaching. We have tried that with the aim that gradually the members will all come to appreciate peacemaking and be peacemakers at their own level in the society.
Q: I know the US church is interested in what has happened since [the violence in] Maiduguri and Jos. Can you tell me about what you’ve seen in those communities since you’ve done some research in the aftermath?
A: You know the Middle Belt, the Plateau, has been the center of Christianity [in Nigeria]. Also, those who have been opposing Christianity have had their eyes on Jos [in Plateau State]. There have been crises between Muslims and Christians, not necessarily based on religion as such but a question of indigene-ship, a question of economy, who controls what. It happens that [the ethnic indigenes of the Jos plateau] are not Muslims, they are Christians. And then the Hausas–as a people, as a tribe, as an ethnic group–happen to be Muslims. So religion had to come in [to the conflict]. It is not that there is no freedom of worship. Nobody stops you from preaching Christ. Nobody stops you from preaching Islam.
I and my colleagues have gone around and seen the destruction that happened especially on Nov. 28, 2008. It was a really terrible thing that happened when Christians and Muslims clashed and destroyed lives and properties. What I suggest is the government and the community leaders–both Muslims and Christians–have to come together to address this issue of indigene-ship because when the Muslims say they want to control [the government], it is going to be impossible.
Q: Ethnic Hausas, Muslims by religion, have lived in the central Nigerian city of Jos for generations but are not permitted to take part in government.
A: The government should give [the Hausas] their own share [in governing] because they have been there for a long time. It is a sin like it was in South Africa, really. The Hausas settled there a long time ago but [there were existing residents], indigenes there. It is a question of politics really, rather than religion.
Many have been traumatized. I have interviewed, personally, pastors and their spouses and you see how terrifying it was. There is a need for trauma healing workshops, seminars, especially in the northeastern zone around the Maiduguri area, even [with] Muslims and Christians–because trauma is all around. It’s not just one side. The effect, it’s terrible.
7) A reflection on peace and the Gospel.
Does focusing on peace undermine preaching about the work of God through Jesus? Does preaching Jesus without discussing peace truly articulate the full meaning of the Gospel? For members of a Historic Peace Church and ones employed as “Teachers and Workers of Peace and Reconciliation,” these are important questions that we have had to consider in our spiritual life and our vocation. These are also issues that we have heard brothers and sisters struggle with in a variety of churches and theological backgrounds in the United States.
Jesus came to bring peace between humanity and God. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, we are reconciled to our Creator. This established peace also enables us–by the Holy Spirit–to establish peace within humanity. Enmity in the human family has existed since the first few chapters of the Bible, but the many following pages illustrate that Yahweh’s final goal is that of shalom (peace), of harmony and reconciliation.
Through Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, neither male nor female, but one body. Wealth disparities, racial and gender inequalities–these are all to be made void and null within the body of Christ.
The Kingdom of God is one of righteousness, justice, and wellbeing for all humanity. We believe that Jesus has called us to demonstrate what his Kingdom looks like (“Your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven”) by working for justice for all people, by working for peace and reconciliation between warring communities and ethnic groups.
Working for peace is essentially living out one’s love for God and neighbor. Working for peace is seeing that violent conflict has underlying roots of injustice and hatred. It is attempting to address root problems. Working for peace is understanding that traumatic events wound communities. It is attempting to bring healing and forgiveness, a slow and arduous process that requires much grace.
Peace–articulated through the biblical definitions of wholeness, wellbeing, righteousness, and justice–is not contrary to the Gospel. Rather, it is the fruit of receiving reconciliation with God.
— Nathan and Jennifer Hosler are Church of the Brethren mission workers serving with Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN–the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria). |