World Council of Churches staff Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary, and Natasha Klukach, program executive for church and ecumenical relations, were hosted by the Church of the Brethren for three days in mid-August. Their visit came as the WCC prepares for its 2013 assembly, a worldwide gathering of Christians that takes place every seven years and considered the most significant time when Christians get together. During their time in Illinois, the WCC leaders met with Brethren communicators. General secretary Stan Noffsinger also sat in on the conversation. Here is an excerpt.
Peace
Christian Ecumenical Organizations Call Attention to Egypt
The World Council of Churches, Christian Churches Together in the USA, and the Patriarchs and Heads of Churches in Jerusalem have issued statements in the last few days calling attention to the crisis of political unrest and violence in Egypt. The three documents follow in full.
The Time Is Now: An Annual Conference Statement from the Summer of 1963
The following statement was adopted by the 1963 Annual Conference of the Church of the Brethren, which met in Champaign-Urbana, Ill., that June. The statement is reprinted here as published in the “Gospel Messenger” magazine of July 20, 1963, pp. 11 and 13: “The time is now to heal our racial brokenness…”
43rd Annual Dunker Church Service Planned at Antietam Battlefield
The 43rd annual worship service in the restored Dunker Church at the Antietam National Battlefield, a Civil War battlefield in Sharpsburg, Md., will be held on Sunday, Sept. 15, at 3 p.m. The service will be similar to an 1862 Dunker worship service, with Gene Hagenberger preaching on “Words Around Antietam.” Scripture texts will be James 1:19 and 26, and 3:1-12.
Churches Plan Creative Events for Peace Day 2013
Sept. 21 is international Peace Day, and On Earth Peace and the Church of the Brethren Office of Public Witness are teaming up to invite congregations to plan Peace Day events on this year’s theme “Who Will You Make Peace With?” Here are some creative examples of what congregations around the globe are planning.
Peace Day 2013: With Whom Will You Make Peace?
Peace Day is coming up soon on Sept. 21, and this year’s theme asks one simple question: With whom will you make peace?
August Issue of ‘Basin and Towel’ to Focus on Peace
The August issue of “Basin and Towel,” a magazine produced by the Congregational Life Ministries of the Church of the Brethren, focuses on “The Issue of Peace.” The staff hope to encourage a new congregational focus on “something that often is overlooked as a basic tenet of the Church of the Brethren,” said editor and Deacon Ministry director Donna Kline.
Annual Conference Adopts a Resolution Against Drone Warfare
The 2013 Annual Conference has adopted a Resolution Against Drone Warfare. Developed by the Office of Public Witness, the document was passed on to the Conference by the Mission and Ministry Board, which had adopted the resolution at a meeting earlier this year.
Fort Wayne Mayor Speaks out on Guns at Beacon Heights Church
Fort Wayne mayor Tom Henry recently spoke to an adult education class at Beacon Heights Church of the Brethren in Fort Wayne, Ind. The class, led by Nancy Eikenberry and Kyla Zehr, has been studying the book “America and Its Guns, a Theological Exposé” by James E. Atwood.
Hearing Reveals Human and Moral Costs of Drone Warfare
On April 23, the US Senate held its first official hearing on drone warfare entitled “Drone Wars: The Constitutional and Counterterrorism Implications of Targeted Killing.” The United States has been using drones to conduct missile strikes in various places since 2002, but recently, more scrutiny has been given to the targeted killing program as President Obama has expanded its scope and has even used drones to target and kill three American citizens.