The Southern Oho and Kentucky District will offer an opportunity to meet and greet the leadership of Ekklesiyar Yan’uwa a Nigeria (EYN), the Church of the Brethren of Nigeria, this Sunday, July 9, from 2:15 to 3:45 p.m. at the Brethren Heritage Center.
Madtown Church of the Brethren, East Dayton Fellowship, and Gordonsville Chapel were recognized as new projects, fellowships, and congregations respectively, during the July 5 business session at Annual Conference 2023.
Leaders at Lower Miami Church of the Brethren in Dayton, Ohio, have reached out for prayer support from the wider church following an incident directed at the congregation and its pastor. A special service will be held at the church tomorrow, Wednesday, March 1, at 5 p.m. (Eastern time), in response.
A “Standing with People of Color Welcome Session” is announced for March 14 at 7-8:30 p.m. (Eastern time).
The theme was “Celebrate God’s Abundant Goodness” from Psalm 145:3-7 (NIV). Over the preceding year, the district was encouraged to focus on celebrating God’s goodness in the life of the district and each congregation. What would happen if we really celebrated how God has abundantly blessed our ministries?
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.
These past few weeks have provided several opportunities for CDS volunteers to put their compassion, training, and servant leadership into practice.
During the week of July 25, a single storm system moved across multiple states causing flash flooding from Missouri to parts of Virginia and West Virginia. The flooding resulted in damaged homes and buildings, loss of life, and whole towns left underwater, especially in the greater St. Louis, Mo., area and a large area of southeastern Kentucky. Brethren Disaster Ministries and the Material Resources program have been responding as possible and requested.
The delegate body on Tuesday, July 12, took action on “Query: Standing with People of Color” (new business item 2) from Southern Ohio and Kentucky District, which asks, “How can the Church of the Brethren stand with People of Color to offer sanctuary from violence and dismantle systems of oppression and racial inequity in our congregations, neighborhoods, and throughout the nation?”
The Standing Committee of district delegates from the 24 Church of the Brethren districts began meeting in Omaha, Neb., on the evening of July 7, through this morning. It was presided over by Conference moderator David Sollenberger, moderator-elect Tim McElwee, and secretary James M. Beckwith. One of its primary functions is to make recommendations on the new business items and queries coming to Annual Conference.
