The Standing with People of Color Committee put in place by the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference in 2022 is laying groundwork for the denomination to engage issues of race for a decade into the future.
The Church of the Brethren Nursing Scholarship is available for 2024, providing up to $2,000 for RN and graduate nurse candidates and up to $1,000 for LPN candidates. Scholarships are awarded to a limited number of applicants each year.
Coming up in February, FaithX is hosting an older adult service trip at Camp Ithiel in Gotha, Fla., and you are invited to join us! Registration is open now for this trip and will close on Feb. 1, 2024. To register and for more information, go to www.brethren.org/faithx.
The Brethren Academy for Ministerial Leadership will offer this online course, “Cultivating an Everyday Faith,” from April 17 to June 11, 2024. Joan Daggett, ordained minister and executive director of the Brethren and Mennonite Heritage Center, will be the instructor. The deadline to register is March 13, 2024.
Shana Peachey Boshart has been hired as the new program facilitator for the Shine Curriculum, a partnership between Brethren Press and MennoMedia. This grant-funded, fulltime position was created to facilitate the development of the Everywhere Faith program, a new faith practice resource. Shine was awarded a grant of $1,250,000 in August 2023 from Lilly Endowment Inc.
The Shine curriculum’s Vacation Bible School for 2024 is titled “Seekers in Sneakers: Discover Jesus!” and is available for purchase through Brethren Press. The boxed set includes the basics needed to offer a VBS session this coming summer.
The next Church of the Brethren Christian Citizenship Seminar (CCS), for senior high youth and first-year college students and their adult advisors, will be April 11-16, 2024, in Washington, D.C. The 2024 theme is “And They Fled: Advocating for Just Immigration Policy,” drawing from Matthew 2:13-23.
New Strength for the Journey cohorts are forming for 2024, with different themes but the same format: monthly, virtual gatherings supported by funds for resources and a skilled convener to help hold sacred space for each group of ministers.
The Church of the Brethren Annual Conference has called for a three-year denominational process to move toward more vibrant and effective solidarity with communities of color. You are invited to join the efforts of the Standing with People of Color Study/Action process by attending an online meeting on Saturday, Nov. 18, to get connected and find your role in our efforts.
Two upcoming courses scheduled for early 2024 are being highlighted by the Brethren Academy for Ministerial Leadership, a collaboration of the Church of the Brethren and Bethany Theological Seminary. The courses may be taken for course credit, continuing education, or personal enrichment:
