Five members of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) were killed in a recent Boko Haram attack in Adamawa State. Reporting the incident happened in a no-network area of Adamawa State, EYN district church secretary Mildlu Rev. Bitrus Kabu said Wakara Village was attacked from 7-9 p.m. on Thursday, June 8.
Nigeria
Nigeria Crisis Response shares updates on its relief work
Nigeria Crisis Response coordinator Roxane Hill has shared updates on the relief work ongoing in northeast Nigeria. The Nigeria Crisis Response is a joint effort of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria and the Global Mission and Service and Brethren Disaster Ministries of the Church of the Brethren, working with several partner organizations in Nigeria. (Learn more at www.brethren.org/nigeriacrisis .)
Most of the Chibok girls released in May were prayed for by Church of the Brethren congregations
Sixty of the Chibok girls who were released in a prisoner swap in early May were among those who have been held in prayer by Church of the Brethren congregations since 2014. Each of those congregations has received a letter from the Church of the Brethren.
EYN president warns pastors of bowing to material things, at KBC graduation
Joel S. Billi, president of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria), warned pastors of bowing to material things and called them to be different in society, at the 52nd graduation ceremony of EYN’s Kulp Bible College in Kwarhi. The president, who expressed his joy in this occasion at EYN’s highest theological institution, was represented by vice-president Anthony A. Ndamsai.
Christian groups begin global prayer and fasting ‘For Such a Time’
In a concerted effort identifying the need to work on hunger and famine relief, a number of Christian groups in the US and internationally have announced a season of prayer and fasting that began on Sunday, May 21. According to the United Nations and other experts, 20 million people are at risk of starvation in four regions–northeastern Nigeria, South Sudan, Somalia, and Yemen–and millions more are suffering from drought and food shortages.
Prayer requested for the millions of people facing famine
More people face famine today than at any time in modern history, with 20 million people at risk of starvation and millions more suffering drought and food shortages. In light of this, the All Africa Conference of Churches and the World Council of Churches invite us to take part in a Global Day of Prayer to End Famine on May 21.
EYN confirms release of 82 Chibok schoolgirls in prisoner swap
President Joel S. Billi of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) has confirmed news reports of the release of 82 of the Chibok schoolgirls who were abducted by Boko Haram in April 2014. Media are reporting that the girls were released to the Nigerian government by Boko Haram on Saturday, in exchange for five Boko Haram suspects.
Group receives training in ‘Farming God’s Way’ in Africa
Brethren Disaster Ministries and the Global Food Initiative recently worked together to send representatives from Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria), representatives from South Sudan, and a Church of the Brethren representative from the United States to Kenya to receive training in a program called Farming God’s Way with an organization called Care of Creation, Kenya.
Newsline Special for Good Friday 2017
1) Action Alert for the third anniversary of the Chibok kidnappings
2) Global Mission and Service executive visits Chibok during recent trip to Nigeria
3) Church of the Brethren gives grants to rebuild Nigerian churches
4) Remembering Chibok at Mt. Vernon Nazarene University
5) Carrying the cross without fear: How the Coptic Church in Egypt deals with the constant threat
6) Love feast at Princeton
Remembering Chibok at Mt. Vernon Nazarene University
For the third year in a row, Kristie Hammond of Olivet Church of the Brethren in Ohio–now a senior at Mt. Vernon Nazarene University (MVNU)–arranged for a social justice speaker to commemorate each passing year of the Chibok abductions. She says she was personally affected by this horrific event because the girls were her age, or younger, and were kidnapped for trying to get a post-secondary education just as she is doing.
