The ecumenical organization Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP), of which the Church of the Brethren is a member denomination, is offering a variety of resources for acting and praying for peace in Israel and Palestine, and for gaining a better understanding of the conflict there.
The Office of Peacebuilding and Policy encourages congregational study of the situation of farmworkers, with new resources provided by its long-standing partner the National Farm Worker Ministry (NFWM).
New resources offered through Brethren Press, the Church of the Brethren publishing house, include several new Bible study resources for children and adults, as well as a new Vacation Bible School curriculum for this summer, and the Lenten devotional for 2023.
Increasingly, mental health has become a critical topic with congregational leadership as churches deal with mental illness and addictions. COVID-19 has highlighted the challenges and needs of congregations to minister effectively to people combating health and wellness problems.
New resources from Brethren Press include the 2021 Advent devotional booklet, this year titled Do Not Be Afraid and written by Angela Finet. Also new from the Church of the Brethren publishing house is Hoosier Prophet: Selected Writings of Dan West, a collection of the writings of the founder of Heifer Project, now Heifer International. Now available to pre-order is a new children’s book about the ministry of Children’s Disaster Services, titled Maria’s Kit of Comfort.
The complete 13-session Compelling Vision Bible Study Series is now available in English with a Spanish translation to be available in coming days. The series is a project of the Compelling Vision Working Group and is intended to help church members study the compelling vision statement that will be brought for approval to the 2021 Annual Conference of the Church of the Brethren.
The Program and Arrangements Committee has determined that the 2021 Annual Conference will be entirely online. The committee hoped to have a hybrid (both in-person and online) Conference as announced last fall. However, due to the continuing challenges of COVID-19, the committee deemed that it is not wise to have an in-person component for Annual Conference this summer. As Program and Arrangements Committee has consistently stressed, the health and safety of Annual Conference participants is the highest priority.
Brethren Press is highlighting a round dozen resources for use by individuals and churches in this fourth quarter of 2020. On the list are new resources published by Brethren Press for education and enjoyment of young and old. Also recommended are new books by Brethren authors, from other publishers but available to purchase through Brethren Press.
New from Brethren Press are the Shine curriculum’s All of Us: God’s Story for You and Me, a Bible storybook for children, and the 2020 Advent devotional Give Light, written by James Benedict. Brethren Press resources may be ordered from www.brethrenpress.com or call 800-441-3712. All of Us The new Bible storybook from Shine, a curriculum
