Three online denominational events last week have brought a new level of virtual experience to the Church of the Brethren: a children’s worship and a denominational worship service on the evening of Wednesday, July 1, and a Church of the Brethren concert on the evening of Thursday, July 2, with both worship experiences available in Spanish as well as English. These virtual events were timed to happen on what would have been the first two evenings of the now-canceled 2020 Annual Conference. Recordings of all three events including the worship experiences in Spanish are available at www.brethren.org/ac/virtual .
Annual Conference
Standing Committee holds elections for Nominating Committee and Appeals Committee
The 2020 Standing Committee of district delegates to the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference met by Zoom on the evening of Sunday, June 28. The meeting took place at the time when the committee would have gathered in Grand Rapids, Mich., to begin an in-person meeting in advance of the now-canceled 2020 Annual Conference.
Denomination invited to gather online for worship and music on July 1 and 2
The Church of the Brethren is holding online celebrations for the whole denomination on July 1 and 2, the days when the now-canceled 2020 Annual Conference would have begun. These events are planned and sponsored by the Annual Conference Program and Arrangements Committee.
Newsline for June 19, 2020
NEWS
1) Brethren Volunteer Service makes statement supporting Black Lives Matter
2) Celebrating Juneteenth with news of Brethren actions, statements, and opportunities
3) Brethren Faith in Action Fund issues grants
4) Fellowship of Brethren Homes member communities share gratitude for grant
5) Fall reopening plans announced by Bethany Theological Seminary
6) Church World Service kit depots to re-open in mid-August
PERSONNEL
7) Jocelyn Siakula resigns as orientation coordinator for Brethren Volunteer Service
UPCOMING EVENTS
8) Denomination invited to gather online for worship and music on July 1 and 2
9) Bethany Seminary announces new courses
10) July Ventures course is on ‘Brethren in the Age of Pandemic’
11) Brethren bits: Personnel, Peacebuilding and Policy director signs letter to Congress calling for police reforms, BVS holds virtual celebration of volunteer houses, children’s video from Children’s Disaster Services, Elizabethtown’s “Drop the Needle” sermon series, Soybean Innovation Lab features article on EYN, and more
Denominational Worship Gathering will center on the theme ‘New World Coming!’
On July 1, a Denominational Worship Gathering for the Church of the Brethren, planned by the Annual Conference Program and Arrangements Committee, will take place virtually starting at 8 p.m. (Eastern time). It will center around the theme, “New World Coming!”
Denominational Concert is planned for July 2 as an online event
An hour-long music celebration featuring Church of the Brethren musicians from across the denomination will be presented online on July 2, the evening after the Denominational Worship Gathering and Children’s Worship Service. The concert will start at 8 p.m. (Eastern time).
Children of all ages are welcome to a denominational children’s worship experience
Children of all ages, welcome to worship! Mark your family calendar for a 25-minute children’s worship experience on Wednesday, July 1, at 7:30 p.m. (Eastern time). You will meet Louise Boid, a colorfully opinionated bird from Brooklyn, N.Y., as she moves to central Pennsylvania to get away from those noisy New York City ducks and pigeons! Louise Boid is brought to us by the Puppet and Story Works founded by Dotti and Steve Seitz of Manheim, Pa.
Denominational children’s worship time, worship gathering, and concert scheduled as virtual events
The Program and Arrangements Committee of the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference has announced plans for a series of denominational virtual events on July 1 and 2. Although the 2020 Annual Conference that would have taken place in Grand Rapids, Mich., has been cancelled, the committee decided it is important for the denomination to
Continued engagement around the compelling vision is planned
By Rhonda Pittman Gingrich With the news that Annual Conference has been cancelled this summer, the Compelling Vision Working Group has outlined a plan for continued engagement around the compelling vision even as affirmation by the Conference body has been delayed. We recognize that the context in which we live has changed dramatically since release
Church of the Brethren Leadership Team statement in response to On Earth Peace’s decision to join the Supportive Communities Network
The recent announcement from On Earth Peace to become a member of the Supportive Communities Network (1) has raised polity questions for the Leadership Team of the denomination, which is responsible for interpreting Annual Conference decisions and denominational polity (2). Although On Earth Peace is a separately incorporated agency and can therefore make decisions apart