On Aug. 9-13 the young Church of the Brethren denomination in Burundi, in East Africa, celebrated the 315th anniversary of the Brethren movement that began with baptisms in the Eder River in Schwarzenau, Germany, in 1708.
Talatu Ali has been reunited with her family, along with three of the four children she gave birth to during her 10 years of captivity. She was rescued by the Nigerian military, from the Gavva area of Gwoza Local Government, Borno State, during an operation in which 21 people were rescued including women and children who were mostly trapped in the area by Boko Haram.
The Church of the Brethren’s Part-Time Pastor, Full-Time Church Program has announced the next online book discussion led by “circuit rider” John Fillmore. The conversation will begin on Tuesday, Oct. 3, centered on Gil Rendle’s book Quietly Courageous: Leading the Church in a Changing World.
The Ventures in Christian Discipleship program at McPherson (Kan.) College begins its 2023-2024 season with a two-part course on “Supporting Those with Mental Illness in Your Congregation and Community” presented by Intersect director David Eckert and held online on Sept. 18 and 25 at 6 to 8 p.m. (central time).
The Office of Peacebuilding and Policy encourages congregational study of the situation of farmworkers, with new resources provided by its long-standing partner the National Farm Worker Ministry (NFWM).
Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) has deployed another team to Hawaii in partnership with the Red Cross. The volunteers traveled to Maui on Sept. 4-5.
A new webinar, “Leading in Alignment and Wholeness,” sponsored by the Church of the Brethren’s Discipleship and Leadership Formation program, takes place Thursday, Sept. 28, at 2 p.m. (Eastern time).
I joined members of my congregation, Agape Church of the Brethren, in one of our many outreach projects on a recent Sunday evening. We put on dinner for the families staying at the Ronald McDonald House at the Parkview Regional Medical Center in Fort Wayne, Ind.
The NOAC Planning Team took great pains not only to create opportunities for service projects, but to check back and make sure everything would be prepared. However, as can be the case, real life happened. The person at the Haywood Street church who had been in contact with NOAC planners had suddenly taken sick, and those filling in for them had no idea that 15 people were scheduled to arrive for a service project.
Today at NOAC 2023 – Friday, Sept. 8 – “God Is Doing a New Thing”
