“7 Prompts” facilitator training is now being offered as part of the process leading to church-wide conversations around the themes of standing with people of color and working for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. The committee invites the entire denomination to participate in conversations
The 7th Brethren World Assembly on July 26-29 in Pennsylvania gathered a variety of people from denominations that are part of the Brethren movement that began in Germany in 1708. On the theme “Brethren Faithfulness: Priorities in Perspective,” the event was held at Elizabethtown (Pa.) College with a culminating day at Germantown Church of the Brethren in Philadelphia.
The World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee concluded a week of meetings in Geneva, Switzerland, June 21-27, with a call for Christians to turn to God as a worshipful, thankful, and hopeful people.
The Brethren Academy for Ministerial Leadership is offering a Directed Independent Study Unit (DISU) in conjunction with the Ministers’ Association pre-Annual Conference event titled “Healing Racial Trauma: The Road to Resilience” with Sheila Wise Rowe.
On July 3-4, all ministers of the Church of the Brethren denomination will have an opportunity to reconnect with one another at the annual pre-Annual Conference continuing education event. Some ministers haven’t seen each other in person since before COVID.
Church of the Brethren general secretary David Steele is one of the American faith leaders who have signed a letter to President Biden urging that the president “issue an executive order to establish a Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans.”
A “Standing with People of Color Welcome Session” is announced for March 14 at 7-8:30 p.m. (Eastern time).
Who is already called to the work of racial justice, or is already active in any way? The committee is hoping to start with an accurate picture of what is already happening. It wants to connect with initiatives or individuals at any level in the Church of the Brethren (community, congregation, district, denomination) who are working on racial justice issues in any way (education, activism, healing, spiritual renewal, etc.), whether they are doing their work inside or outside of the church. The committee also is interested in getting to know people who have a passion for this topic but may not yet be publicly active.
A newly-formed Standing with People of Color Committee met via Zoom on Sept. 13 and 21 to begin work delegated by the 2022 Annual Conference.
Our spiritual, cultural, and traditional belief systems speak of creation as a garden. Humankind, it is said, is the receptacle and caretaker of the garden. After more than two years of pandemic crisis, ongoing wars and conflicts, and a heating planet, the nations of the world have resumed in-person meetings to discuss their mandates and treaty bodies regarding life in the garden called earth.