Samuel Dali, president of the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria (Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria or EYN), sent news today by e-mail of a new attack by Boko Haram in which several EYN members were killed. Boko Haram is an extremist sect in northern Nigeria violently seeking a “pure” Islamic state, and is responsible for last month’s abduction of hundreds of schoolgirls from a school in Chibok, Nigeria.
Peace
EYN Church Leaders Meet with 58 Chibok Schoolgirls’ Parents
The president of EYN (Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria, the Church of the Brethren Nigeria) Samuel D. Dali, met with parents of the Chibok schoolgirls abducted on April 14. EYN, a world known peace church, operates largely in Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe States in Nigeria, where a state of emergency has been in place for over a year.
Brethren and Ecumenical Partners Continue Support for Nigeria and the Abducted Girls
A round up of news tidbits from this past week, demonstrating a variety of ways in which Brethren congregations and districts have been offering prayer and support for Nigerian Brethren and the abducted schoolgirls. Also below: statements of support from ecumenical partners, as well as media interviews and stories with links to find them online:
Walking with the Nigerian Church: An Interview with Church of the Brethren General Secretary Stan Noffsinger and Mission Executive Jay Wittmeyer
In this interview conducted last month, shortly after they returned from a trip to Nigeria, Church of the Brethren general secretary Stan Noffsinger and Global Mission and Service executive Jay Wittmeyer spoke with Newsline editor Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford about the trip and the situation of the church in Nigeria. They attended the Majalisa or annual conference at the headquarters of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria), met with EYN leaders and the Brethren mission staff in Nigeria–Carol Smith and Carl and Roxane Hill–and visited the capital city Abuja.
Congregations Invited to Pray for Girls Abducted from School in Chibok, Nigeria
In a letter being mailed this week, each Church of the Brethren is invited to pray for one of the girls abducted from Chibok, Nigeria, by name. The majority of the more than 200 abducted schoolgirls, ages 16 to 18, were from EYN (Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) although the group included both Muslim and Christian girls.
Ecumenical Advocacy Days Resist Violence, Build Peace
The vision of “peace in the community, peace among the peoples, peace in the marketplace, and peace with the earth” was explored at the 12th annual Ecumenical Advocacy Days (EAD) in Washington, D.C. This conference took place March 21-24, and brought together nearly 1,000 Christians from Sri-Lanka to Alaska to learn about the call to peace in our world.
A Prayer Request from Maiduguri, Nigeria
The following prayer request from a member of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN–the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) living in the city of Maiduguri. It was received this weekend by an Annual Conference officer and shared with the Mission and Ministry Board on Sunday during worship. The city of Maiduguri was attacked this past weekend by the terrorist group Boko Haram:
Brethren Disaster Ministries Directs Grant Aid to Nigerian Brethren Affected by Violence
Brethren Disaster Ministries is directing $25,000 from the church’s Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) to aid Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN–the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) during a time of escalating violence in northeastern Nigeria. The money will be contributed through EYN’s Compassion Fund.
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month
The Church of the Brethren Family Life Ministry is providing resources and ideas for congregations to observe Child Abuse Prevention Month during April. Find more information at www.brethren.org/childprotection/month.html .
The Building of a Shared Society: The Work of One BVS Project Site in Northern Ireland
East Belfast Mission, one of the project sites in Northern Ireland where Brethren Volunteer Service workers are placed, was in the news early this year when a peacebuilding event it hosted was met with violent protests. Here, BVS volunteer Megan Miller explains the groundbreaking work of the mission.