The Christian Citizenship Seminar (CCS) planned for Washington, D.C., on April 11-16 will bring senior youth and their adult advisors together in the nation’s capital to engage the theme “And They Fled: Advocating for Just Immigration Policy” (Matthew 2:13-23).
The Shine curriculum of Brethren Press and MennoMedia is introducing a new initiative called Shine Everywhere. Shine Everywhere will provide new avenues of communication between those who create Shine curriculum and the congregations and families who use it. The purpose of the new initiative is to listen attentively to congregations and families and then incorporate their input into new Shine resources.
We did it! We have named our new initiative “Shine Everywhere.” We love the fact that it builds on Shine and extends the light metaphor of living in God’s light!
The Susquehanna Valley Ministry Center is offering a robust schedule of continuing education for clergy and interested laity in 2024. Ranging from “Christian ID in the Age of AI,” “Worship Models,” “Grief Literacy,” “Suicide and Your Congregation,” “Luke and Acts,” “Autism and the Church,” to “Why Leadership Matters,” everyone will find a topic of interest.
President Jeff Carter, academic dean Steve Schweitzer, and coordinator of Seminary Computing Services Paul Shaver returned in mid-January from a visit to Jos, Nigeria. They met with Bethany employees Sharon Flaten and Joshua Sati, as well as students, and local religious and educational leaders.
Through Thick and Thin: Devotions for Ash Wednesday Through Easter, written by Beth Sollenberger, is the 2024 Lenten devotional from Brethren Press. This year, the season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday on Feb. 14. The daily devotions continue through Easter Sunday, March 31.
The February online offering from the Ventures in Christian Discipleship program at McPherson (Kan.) College will be “Divine Creativity and Holy Imagination: Cultivating a Creative Church” to be presented by Liz Ullery Swenson. The course will be held online in two Tuesday evening sessions, Feb. 13 and 20, both at 7:30 to 9 p.m. (central time).
As part of Bethany Theological Seminary’s initiative to “Build Bridges Across Ideological Divides,” the Brethren Academy for Ministerial Leadership is offering a series of TRIM-level courses to help clergy recognize and meaningfully address division in their congregations and communities. First up is “Polarization as an Opportunity for Ministry,” a course with Russell Haitch, professor of Theology and Human Science at Bethany.
The Church of the Brethren’s Discipleship and Leadership Formation department is sponsoring a webinar to be held Feb. 8 with Stuart Murray Williams and colleagues Alexandra Ellish, Judith Kilpin, and Karen Sethuraman centered around the forthcoming book The New Anabaptists: Practices for Emerging Communities. The book is to be released in late January.
The Part-Time Pastor; Full-Time Church program of the Church of the Brethren’s Office of Ministry is planning events for the next few months. Multi-vocational pastors are invited to a study of the book Flourishing in Ministry by Matt Bloom. Multi-vocational clergywomen are particularly invited to join Erin Matteson for “Soul Sisters…Connecting and Deepening Together.”