Faith leaders from around the country are working with the US Conference of Mayors to make Monday, June 1, a National Day of Mourning and Lament as the nation surpassed the grim milestone of 100,000 people lost to COVID-19. Approximately 100 faith leaders signed on to the call for the commemoration, including representatives of Christian
In this issue: Ecumenical statements on the killing of George Floyd and a statement from Central Church of the Brethren in Roanoke, Va.; Annual Conference Moderator’s Town Hall on “Faith, Science, and COVID-19″; first-ever virtual graduation at McPherson College; and more.
By Jenn Dorsch Messler Brethren Disaster Ministries is sharing updates including a schedule change for the Carolinas rebuilding site, news of the opening of a new rebuilding site in Ohio, and an update from Puerto Rico. Carolinas schedule change The Brethren Disaster Ministries Carolinas project has not hosted weekly volunteers since mid March due to
The Global Mission office has received emails from Marcos Inhauser of Igreja da Irmandade (Church of the Brethren in Brazil) with updates about the situation in one of the globe’s “hot spots” for COVID-19. The city of São Paulo has become one of the largest localized outbreaks, according to media reports this week. “We are
By Nancy Sollenberger Heishman, director of Ministry for the Church of the Brethren Leadership teams of several Church of the Brethren districts have issued recommendations recently regarding congregations gathering in buildings. Districts that have begun sharing guidance include, among others, Mid-Atlantic, Middle Pennsylvania, and Southern Ohio and Kentucky. Mid-Atlantic District leadership recommended that congregations not gather
Church of the Brethren Annual Conference moderator Paul Mundey has announced plans for a Moderator’s Town Hall on June 4 at 7 p.m. (Eastern time), held in online webinar format. The topic will be “Faith, Science, and COVID-19” with leadership from Dr. Kathryn Jacobsen, professor in the Department of Global and Community Health at George
New from Messenger magazine: Dr. Kathryn Jacobsen, a member of Oakton Church of the Brethren in Vienna, Va., and a professor of epidemiology and global health at George Mason University, has given an interview to the Church of the Brethren “Messenger” magazine, answering questions about the COVID-19 pandemic with down-to-earth and sensible responses. The interview addresses
By Zakariya Musa, communications staff for Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) Following the lock down measures put in place by the Nigerian government to reduce the spread of COVID-19 infection among its citizens, the preventives measure are considered differently depending on the environment or level of understanding. Some
A grant of $14,000 has been given from the Church of the Brethren’s Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) directed by the Brethren Disaster Ministries staff to COVID-19 response in Nigeria. This allocation supports Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN–the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) for two months of its pandemic response. EYN made a request of
By Stan Dueck COVID-19 has created programming and financial stress on Church of the Brethren camps and congregations. Due to the coronavirus, the Mission and Ministry Board of the denomination made the following changes to the Brethren Faith in Action Fund guidelines. The amendments are in place through Dec. 31, 2020. First, Church of the