Registration for the 2018 National Youth Conference of the Church of the Brethren opens in six days on Thursday, Jan. 18, at 6 p.m. (central time). NYC takes place at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo., on July 21-26.
I am amazed at the end of each year when I add up and record all the work that has been done in Nigeria by the Nigeria Crisis Response, a joint effort of the Church of the Brethren with Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria). Last year, 2017, was no different.
New to National Youth Conference in 2018: all service projects will take place on the campus of Colorado State University. NYC will be hosted at CSU in Fort Collins, Colo., on July 21-26, 2018. Registration opens online on Jan. 18, 2018, at 6 p.m. (central time) at www.brethren.org/nyc .
NEWS
1) Puerto Rico churches continue to develop hurricane response
2) Brethren leaders endorse Christmas letter regarding federal budget
3) Global Mission helps fund repairs to school of theology in India
4) Church of the Brethren Yearbook is published on a USB flash drive card
5) EYN disaster team aids sick Chibok girl
UPCOMING EVENTS
6) NYC 2018 service projects to take place on campus
REFLECTION
7) Waiting on the Lord: A reflection from Nigeria
8) Brethren bits
In this issue: Holiday closings, personnel notes, job openings, Annual Conference moderator’s Christmas greeting, update from Children’s Disaster Services, Global Mission prayer requests, Clergy Tax Seminar, plus more news by, for, and about Brethren.
Rev. Yuguda, head of the Disaster Team of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) sent information about their trip to Chibok to take money to one of the Chibok schoolgirls who is sick. The government was not paying her medical bills.
The report of the Nigerian government to the outside world is that Boko Haram have been defeated. But the government is still losing soldiers, losing billions of Naira for security, and also losing lives. The internal situation is clearly different from the government report.
Church of the Brethren Newsline December 21, 2017 A grant of $15,000 has been given by the Church of the Brethren’s Global Mission and Service office to Gujarat United School of Theology (GUST) in India. The grant assists the school with much-needed repairs to classrooms and other facilities. GUST is a seminary of the Church of
Church of the Brethren general secretary David Steele and Office of Public Witness director Nathan Hosler have given endorsement to a Christmas letter to Vice President Mike Pence “to protect the humanitarian, diplomatic, and peacebuilding budget in the FY19 budget” of the federal government.
Hurricane Maria recovery in Puerto Rico is slow, but there is progress. When a whole island has extensive damage to basic services like electricity, running water, and cellular communication, recovery is difficult and long. Power is returning to more areas, but less than half the residents have power. Cellular service is improving, and church leaders are able to communicate better.
