{"id":24854,"date":"2025-02-06T03:44:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-06T03:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/?p=24854"},"modified":"2025-02-07T03:59:12","modified_gmt":"2025-02-07T03:59:12","slug":"brethren-bits-65","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/2025\/brethren-bits-65\/","title":{"rendered":"Brethren bits"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Prayer requests:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Prayer is requested for the at least three Church of the Brethren families who lost their homes to the Eaton Fire<\/strong> in the Los Angeles area, as well as the other church members who were affected. Pacific Southwest District executive minister Russ Matteson reported that there were several Church of the Brethren families who needed to evacuate the area and will have costs from lodging, lost food while power was out, and costs for cleanup. At least three or four church families also have been experiencing loss of employment or reductions because of the fires. \u201cThe Brethren impacted are only a small portion of those that have experienced the crisis,\u201d he noted, adding that the Pasadena Mennonite congregation, which worships in the Pasadena Church of the Brethren building, also had about three families lose their homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Prayer requests from international Church of the Brethren come from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Rwanda, and Venezuela:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pray for members of l\u2019Eglise des Fr\u00e8res au Congo (the Church of the Brethren in the DRC) in Goma, <\/strong>where much of the city is under the control of the Rebal Group M23 according to reports from church leaders. As of late January, members of the Goma Center and Mugunga Church of the Brethren congregations were reportedly sheltering in their homes while shelling and gunfire continued, with pastor Aluta Celestin reporting that a bomb from M23 killed people in the camp for displaced Congolese near the church. The pastor and his family live only 300 meters from the camp. The Congolese church, with funding and support from Brethren Disaster Ministries, has developed an initial relief plan that will be implemented when conditions in Goma allow. Currently the power and water are off in Goma and relief supplies are not allowed into the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The border with Rwanda and the Rwanda Church of the Brethren congregations is near Goma. <\/strong>American mission volunteers Chris Elliott and his daughter Grace evacuated the Gisenyi area along with others including leaders of the Great Lakes Bible School. \u201cWe ask you to pray for the safety and well being for all and for peace in Rwanda,\u201d said a prayer request.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A “War Relief and Recovery\u201d fund<\/strong> has been created within the Church of the Brethren\u2019s Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) for donations toward the relief effort in the Goma area and across the border in Rwanda. Go to www.brethren.org\/giveEDF-WarRelief<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Church of the Brethren in Venezuela requests prayer \u201cfor our brothers and sisters in Colombia and Venezuela in the face of the conflict <\/strong>between the irregular revolutionary paramilitary groups of the FARC (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia) and the ELN (Ej\u00e9rcito de Liberaci\u00f3n Nacional) in the Catatumbo area, a conflict that has caused deaths and crimes against humanity and kidnappings on the border of both countries, as well as generated massive displacement of refugees to the Department of Norte Santander, C\u00facuta, Colombia. These armed groups fight for territorial control, to control drug trafficking, etc.\u201d The pastors in C\u00facuta, Wreyned Sarmiento and his wife, Valeria Meza de Sarmiento, and Fabi\u00e1n Fetecu\u00e1 and his wife, Nora, are active social workers and evangelists who are working with their churches to give aid and help to displaced migrants, including Bibles in Spanish for the refugees. Said the prayer request: \u201cLet us pray that their faith and commitment be sustained, the refugees be upheld, and the conflict will stop!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Registration for the Church of the Brethren New & Renew Conference opens Monday, Feb. 10. For further information and to register, go to www.brethren.org\/newandrenew<\/a>.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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Job\/volunteer openings:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

— The FaithX\/Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) office seeks candidates for a volunteer position opening.<\/strong> \u201cCome work with us in the FaithX\/BVS Office as a year-long volunteer!\u201d said an invitation. \u201cJoin our team to plan and lead service project trips for youth, assist in leading volunteer trainings, and use your skills and ideas to creatively promote service opportunities. What does this entail? Leading FaithX trips in summer of 2026. Helping to plan and run BVS orientations. Traveling to a lot of cool places. Developing skills to boost your resume (i.e. event planning, office skills, communication). Working with a forward thinking team. A chance to put your words in to actions and live out your faith in a whole new way. You\u2019ll be provided housing, food money, insurance, and a $3,000 stipend over the year. Participating in a BVS orientation is required before starting. Your start day would be the day orientation ends. Upcoming BVS orientations are: July 25-August 4, 2025, Camp Colorado in Sedalia, Colo.; September 8-18, 2025, Camp Mardela in Denton, Md.\u201d Applications are due May 1. Apply online at https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/e\/1FAIpQLSd7n0onXmWz4cec7ATd0lNsXlrezuImxn6c_y3WHsQfY-BAtg\/viewform<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Eder Financial is seeking a retirement planner <\/strong>to provide financial education and appropriate resources to members in the Retirement Plan and Insurance Plans, aiding them in their goals to get them to and through retirement. This position requires an individual who can appropriately solve for the spoken and unspoken needs of external and internal customers. While some tasks and meetings require an onsite presence, most of the work is done remotely. Eder Financial provides a fair compensation structure with a strong benefits package that includes organizational contributions for retirement, medical, life, and longterm disability, as well as options to add dental, vision, and short-term disability coverage, and offers 22 days of vacation, accrued at the start of the year, along with flexible work hours within a basic workday structure. Eder Financial provides retirement, insurance, and organizational investing to more than 5,000 individuals and client organizations nationwide. It is an agency of the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference. This is a fulltime, exempt position working for a nonprofit, faith-based organization that aligns with peace church traditions. Employees practice their faith in a diverse array of worldviews and denominations. The ideal candidate will have an undergraduate degree and a strong working knowledge of financial planning\/investments. Additional designations are required or must be obtained during the initial months of employment (i.e. CRPC or CFP). This position requires a person who enjoys working with people; is detail oriented, has strong written and verbal communication skills, and has the ability to prioritize workloads; proficient with computer systems and applications; and exceptional organizational skills. Working knowledge of CRM software is a plus. Impeccable follow-up abilities are a must. To learn more about Eder Financial visit www.ederfinancial.org<\/a>. To apply, submit a cover letter, resume, and three professional references to Tammy Chudy at tchudy@eder.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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BVS also has announced an online \u201cInfo Session\u201d on Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. (Eastern time). <\/strong>The session will answer questions about volunteering, orientation, the placement process, etc. \u201cIf you or someone you know wants to learn more about BVS, we encourage you to join!\u201d said the announcement. Register here to receive the Zoom link: https:\/\/us06web.zoom.us\/meeting\/register\/Ki1CynjDTjC6R8up4xssUA#\/registration<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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— Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) has announced an Alumni Spotlight: <\/strong>\u201cNominate a BVS Alum!\u201d said the announcement. \u201cDo you know a BVS alum who is doing great things in the world or in their career? We’d love to highlight them on our BVS social media. Nominate someone by emailing bvs@brethren.org<\/a> with their name and contact info (if you have it). The BVS team will do the rest. How can this help BVS? We are finding that many younger folks, in this next generation of potential BVSers, are focused on advancing their careers and often don\u2019t see volunteering as a step in that direction. We all know that BVS can have a tremendous impact on someone\u2019s life, and we want to share these inspirational stories with those thinking about service with BVS. If you want to nominate yourself \u2013 you can do that too!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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— Monte Vista Church of the Brethren in Callaway, Va., <\/strong>recently served as an \u201cemergency hub\u201d during fire response efforts for first responders at the Wades Gap Road fire. The church \u201cbecame a command center for emergency responders,\u201d reported WSET News, \u201cproviding crucial support to the firefighting efforts. Pastor Gina Wright-Hawkins of Monte Vista Church said the church’s location, just down the road from the fire, and its Wi-Fi capabilities made it an ideal spot for a makeshift headquarters. The church offered a place for firefighters to rest and eat before returning to battle the flames.\u201d The pastor told the newspaper, “We were just honored. It wasn’t even a question of are we going to do this, it was like, well of course\u2014and we’ll be there, what do you need?” Read the full story at https:\/\/wset.com\/news\/local\/monte-vista-church-becomes-emergency-hub-during-wades-gap-road-fire-response-efforts-franklin-county-january-2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In related news, Virlina District announced a special offering<\/strong> for a family connected with the Monte Vista congregation who lost their home in the fire that burned approximately 500 acres near the church. \u201cDue to good response from local firefighters, many homes were spared,\u201d the district reported. The district offering will be distributed in consultation with the Monte Vista congregation, and the district has requested each of its congregations to lift up the Monte Vista congregation in prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

–– \u201cEarly Anabaptism in Global Perspective: Past, Present, and Future at 500 Years\u201d<\/strong> is the topic for a conference at the Young Center at Elizabethtown (Pa.) College on July 22-24. \u201cJoin us for a stimulating discussion of early Anabaptism and its ongoing relevance,\u201d said an announcement. \u201cThis conference marking the 500th anniversary of the birth of the Anabaptist movement will revisit early Anabaptism and give special attention to the global context in which it emerged and spread. Speakers will also consider how Anabaptist history has been received by churches and academics in more recent times and in varying contexts around the world. With more than three dozen plenary sessions, papers, seminars, and roundtables by presenters from ten countries, the conference will examine such varied themes as migration, diplomacy, the arts, colonialism, peacemaking, and theological identity. Explorations of the connections between Anabaptism and Baptist, Hutterite, Liberation Theology, Quaker, Mennonite, and Radical Pietist traditions are also on the program. Roundtable sessions and seminars include a discussion of approaches to teaching early Anabaptism and a workshop on reading early Anabaptist sources in community. Optional pre- and post-conference field trips will visit area libraries and archives and the 1719 Museum.\u201d Find out more at register at www.etown.edu\/centers\/young-center\/anabaptism-conference-2025.aspx<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also at the Young Center, a lecture titled \u201cWelcome to \u2018America\u2019s Refugee Capital\u2019: An Exploration of the Role of Brethren Identity in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania\u201d by Naomi Kraenbring<\/strong> is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 18, at 7 p.m. (Eastern time) in the Bucher Meetinghouse. Kraenbring pastors Elizabethtown Church of the Brethren and teaches religious studies and peace studies courses as adjunct faculty at Elizabethtown College. She \u201cwill share early thoughts on themes, interpretation, analysis, and conclusions from her dissertation work, still in progress,\u201d said an announcement. \u201cImportant theological tenets of Anabaptist and Radical Pietist theology have emerged, and she will discuss the influence of religious identity on refugee welcome and resettlement activity as well as the influence of this activity on identity.\u201d Find out more at www.etown.edu\/centers\/young-center\/events.aspx<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Church World Service (CWS) has announced changes to kit contents.<\/strong> \u201cThose changes have been rolled out and we would ask your help in getting the new information into the hands of your congregants that put kits together,\u201d said an announcement shared by Brethren Disaster Ministries. \u201cThe information on the website is the best and most up to date information available.\u201d Find the new content lists for each of the kits at https:\/\/cwskits.org\/assemble-kits<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— The National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT) has issued a statement expressing concern about the presidential directive to prepare Guant\u00e1namo to hold up to 30,000 immigrants. <\/strong>\u201cGuant\u00e1namo remains a symbol of torture the world over,\u201d the statement said, in part. \u201cThe Trump Administration\u2019s characterization of migrants in the U.S. as a threat so severe it warrants such extreme measures comes from the same playbook we\u2019ve seen used in the past to justify torture. Whether a scare tactic directed at current or future immigrants or an attempt to allow the indefinite detention of tens of thousands of people, this directive aims to carry out a form of large-scale cruelty rooted in racism and xenophobia that degrades the soul of this nation.\u201d The statement noted that using Guant\u00e1namo to expand immigration detention \u201craises the specter of indefinite detention and miserable conditions in a tent city. It places detained immigrants far from any legal and social supports.\u201d Find out more at www.nrcat.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

— Ecumenical partner organizations of the Church of the Brethren<\/strong> including the World Council of Churches (WCC) and Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP), among others, have spoken out regarding recent presidential comments advocating for US takeover of Gaza and the removal of the Palestinian people from the territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CMEP released a statement \u201cvehemently\u201d opposing the proposal \u201cfor the forced removal of the Palestinian population from Gaza.<\/strong> This is an open call for ethnic cleansing and a blatant violation of international and humanitarian law, as well as a fundamental affront to the sanctity of human life,\u201d the statement said, in part. \u201cAdditionally, such language further undermines the current ceasefire\u2026. The implementation of such forced expulsion would not bring stability or peace to the region. Instead, such actions would further disenfranchise Palestinians, deepen their suffering, and strengthen ideologies that support armed resistance. Such an ongoing cycle of displacement and violence, if implemented, would only perpetuate instability, not resolve it. Such instability has ramifications beyond Israel-Palestine and risks further radicalization in the region.\u201d Find the full statement at https:\/\/cmep.salsalabs.org\/pr-feb062025<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The WCC statement on the future of Gaza said, in part, that the proposal is \u201ctantamount to proposing full-scale ethnic cleansing and neo-colonization of the homeland of the 2 million Palestinians of Gaza.<\/strong> It violates every applicable principle of international humanitarian and human rights law, flouts decades of efforts by the international community \u2013 including by the USA \u2013 for a just and sustainable peace for the peoples of the region, and would if implemented constitute multiple international crimes of the most serious kind. The standing of the United States of America as a responsible member of the international community has been gravely diminished by the proposal itself, not to speak of any actual implementation thereof.\u201d Read the full statement at https:\/\/oikoumene.org\/resources\/documents\/wcc-statement-on-the-future-of-gaza<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#MissionAndMinistryBoard #StrategicPlan #RacialJustice #LoveOurNeighbors #Discipleship #NewTestamentGiving<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Find more Church of the Brethren news:<\/p>\n\n\n