{"id":4585,"date":"2018-04-20T17:48:20","date_gmt":"2018-04-20T17:48:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/new.brethren.org\/news\/?p=4585"},"modified":"2018-09-26T17:54:51","modified_gmt":"2018-09-26T17:54:51","slug":"brethren-bits-for-april-20","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/2018\/brethren-bits-for-april-20\/","title":{"rendered":"Brethren bits for April 20, 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

Church of the Brethren Newsline
\nApril\u00a020,\u00a02018<\/b><\/p>\n

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A news piece on the visit of the US religious leaders to Cuba in Jan. 2017, from Radio Florida of Cuba.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A news piece on the visit of the US religious leaders to Cuba in Jan. 2017, from Radio Florida of Cuba.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0\u201cI hope that relations between the Cuban churches and the new president will be very good,<\/strong>\u00a0given how he welcomed the CWS group last year,\u201d says Jay Wittmeyer, executive director of Global Mission and Service for the Church of the Brethren. Wittmeyer was part of a Jan. 2017 delegation to Cuba with \u201cheads of mission\u201d of US churches and representatives from Church World Service (CWS). The visit was made in partnership with the Council of Churches in Cuba. The American church leaders met with newly named Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel, who was at the time serving as vice president. Wittmeyer remembers a warm welcome from Diaz-Canel. The delegation presented him with a Bible, and engaged in good conversation.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0Children\u2019s Disaster Services (CDS) is deploying a small team<\/strong>\u00a0of volunteers to set up childcare in a Multi-Agency Resource Center (MARC) in Taloga, Okla., on Monday and Tuesday. This is a response to wildfires in the area. Reports Kathleen Fry-Miller, CDS associate director, \u201cThe MARC coordinator said, \u2018We don’t anticipate a large number of families on any given day, but rather a few coming in each day. Red Cross has been doing casework and has seen 61 families so far over the course of about a week. Clients have been bringing their children with them.\u2019\u201d CDS is a ministry within Brethren Disaster Ministries and the Church of the Brethren’s Global Mission and Service. For more information go to\u00a0www.brethren.org\/cds<\/a>.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0The Church of the Brethren General Offices<\/strong>\u00a0has been hosting lots of meetings over the past couple of weeks.<\/p>\n

The National Youth Conference office<\/strong>\u00a0hosted meetings of the NYC Worship and Music Coordinators including Rhonda Pittman Gingrich, Cindy Lattimer, David Meadows, Virginia Meadows, Brian Messler, and Shawn Flory Replogle; and meetings of the National Youth Cabinet including Hannah Buck, Erika Clary, Emilie Deffenbaugh, Haley Dulabaum, Carol Elmore, Trevor Haren, Nathan Hollenberg, and Connor Ladd.<\/p>\n

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The BVS Think Tank meeting at the denomination’s General Offices.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Brethren Volunteer Service<\/strong>\u00a0held meetings of the BVS Think Tank. \u201cIt is always a highlight for the team to welcome the BVS Think Tank to the building,\u201d said a Facebook post. \u201cSo much wisdom and innovative thinking around this table. Thank you to each Think Tank member for your energy and time!\u201d Those in attendance from out of town were Alison Burchett of the Center for Faith and Service in Chicago; Bonnie Kline-Smeltzer, former BVSer and pastor of University Baptist and Brethren Church in State College, Pa.; Jim Lehman of Highland Ave. Church of the Brethren in Elgin, Ill.; Marie Schuster, former BVSer working with refugee resettlement in Rochester, N.Y.; and Jim Stokes-Buckles, former BVSer and a social worker in Florence, Mass.<\/p>\n

The new Compelling Vision Process Team<\/strong>\u00a0held meetings this week. The members include Michaela Alphonse of Miami, Fla.; Kevin Daggett of Bridgewater, Va.; Rhonda Pittman Gingrich of Minneapolis, Minn.; Donita Keister, moderator-elect of Annual Conference, from Mifflinburg, Pa.; Brian Messler of Lititz, Pa.; Samuel Sarpiya, moderator of Annual Conference, from Rockford, Ill.; Alan Stucky of Wichita, Kan.; and Kay Weaver of Strasburg, Pa.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0Bethany Seminary hosted the Council of District Executives<\/strong>\u00a0for professional growth opportunities and meetings on the school\u2019s campus in Richmond, Ind., during the week of April 9. Faculty members Nate Inglis, Dawn Ottoni-Wilhelm, and Dan Ulrich held classes for the district executives, and Bethany president Jeff Carter led a class on strategic planning. The council was able to attend the weekly chapel service, heard master of divinity student Tim Heishman preach his senior sermon, and attended master of arts student Charlotte Loewen’s thesis presentation, \u201cFrom the Reflecting Pool: Exploring Brethren and Mennonite Attitudes toward One Another.\u201d Students had the opportunity to meet with the district executives for conversation over a lunch, and faculty and staff also had opportunities to interact with them over shared meals. On April 11, the Church of the Brethren Leadership Team and general secretary David Steele arrived on campus to meet with the group, and students had the opportunity to meet with Annual Conference moderator Samuel Sarpiya.<\/p>\n

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The Compelling Vision Process Team: (from left) Annual Conference moderator-elect Donita Keister, Alan Stucky, Annual Conference director Chris Douglas, Brian Messler, Kay Weaver, Annual Conference moderator Samuel Sarpiya, Rhonda Pittman Gingrich (chair), Kevin Daggett, and Kayla Alphonse. Photo by Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

—\u00a0In news from the Brethren Academy for Ministerial Leadership,<\/strong>\u00a0the denomination\u2019s Spanish-language ministry training is emerging from a time of transition. In early November, former coordinator Nancy Sollenberger Heishman left to become director of the Church of the Brethren Office of Ministry. In mid-January, Roxanne Aguirre began as coordinator. In the interim, other academy staff kept things going. \u201cAs we look back on those months between coordinators, the academy staff is deeply grateful to all the students, supervisors, instructors, and colleagues who helped to keep SeBAH-COB and EPMC moving forward,\u201d said the academy newsletter. \u201cThrough open and ongoing communication, assistance with technology, acceptance of less-than-perfect translation, unending patience, and enduring prayer, we have reached the other side. God is good. Special gratitude is expressed for the two new instructors who joined us mid-transition, Marcos Inhauser and Otto Kladensky Jr.\u201d Each of the new instructors created a first-of-its-kind course for SeBAH: Inhauser, a leader of the Church of the Brethren in Brazil, taught \u201cLa Historia, Teologia de la COB, y el Pietismo\u201d; Kladensky, an educator in the field of global evangelism, is teaching \u201cVitalidad de la Igelsia y Evangelismo\u201d from his home in Costa Rica. For more about the Brethren Academy, a partnership of the Church of the Brethren and Bethany Seminary, go to\u00a0https:\/\/bethanyseminary.edu\/brethren-academy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0A Nigeria briefing for legislators in Washington, D.C.,<\/strong>\u00a0is being offered by the Church of the Brethren Office of Peacebuilding and Policy (formerly the Office of Public Witness). \u201cBoko Haram violence and farmer-herder conflicts continue to pose challenges for our Nigerian brothers and sisters,\u201d says an action alert that will be distributed Monday. \u201cDisplaced people are being encouraged to return to liberated areas that may not be safe, social trust between communities has eroded, and a lack of governmental transparency has compounded problems for those living in IDP camps. There is a great need for an improved response to these challenges from the Nigerian government, and the United States government has the ability to encourage constructive responses.\u201d The congressional briefing will be held on Friday, April 27, 9-10:30 a.m. in the Rayburn House Office Building Gold Room. The event is intended for policy makers and their staff members, to give them the tools and knowledge they need to enable constructive responses to conflict in Nigeria from the Nigerian government. \u201cPlease urge your representative, senators, and their staff members to attend the briefing,\u201d says the action alert, which includes a sample email to inform legislators about the event.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0\u201cOpen Elgin\u201d on this Saturday, April 21,<\/strong>\u00a0will again feature the Church of the Brethren General Offices as one of the showcase buildings open to the community as an \u201carchitectural gems\u201d This second annual Open Elgin event is sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce, and the buildings on the self-guided tour will be open to the public from 1-5 p.m. Visitors to the General Offices will view the unique stone-walled chapel, the front lobby, and the cafeteria, and will be welcome to make a circuit of hallways around the building\u2019s two courtyards. Find out more at\u00a0www.openelgin.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0In related news, the City of Elgin\u2019s Heritage Commission<\/strong>\u00a0has chosen the Church of the Brethren General offices to be a recipient of the 2018 Mayor\u2019s Award for preserving an excellent example of mid-century modern architecture and furniture. The award also recognizes the General Offices\u2019 part in a National Trust tour of Elgin architecture last November. A public awards ceremony takes place the evening of Monday, May 1.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0A stark report about the post-hurricane situation in Casta\u00f1er,<\/strong>\u00a0Puerto Rico, has been published by National Public Radio this week. The report includes input from leaders at the Casta\u00f1er hospital that was started by the Church of the Brethren. \u201cMany of the town’s people continue to experience acute stress and anxiety attacks,\u201d Dr. Javier Portalatin, a clinical psychologist and director general for mental health at the hospital, told NPR. \u201cMore than six months after Hurricane Maria, daily life in Casta\u00f1er isn’t close to normal,\u201d the report says. \u201cChildren attend school half the day. A nearby school is closed for at least two years, and families who lost their homes have set up beds and couches in its classrooms…. With no harvest this spring, idle men spend hours on the plaza or in the town bar. In the months since the storm, the hospital has become the town’s organizing center….\u201d Read the NPR piece at\u00a0www.npr.org\/sections\/health-shots\/2018\/04\/18\/600913104\/in-a-puerto-rican-mountain-town-hope-ebbs-as-the-hardship-continues<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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At Clement Park next door to Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., 60-plus students from Parkland, Fla., attend a gun violence event marking the 19th anniversary of the Columbine school shooting. The students joined with the Columbine community \u201cto ask why the laws did not get changed after Columbine shooting,\u201d reported Gail Erisman Valeta, pastor of Prince of Peace Church of the Brethren in Littleton, one of the organizing group for the event. Photo courtesy of Gail Erisman Valeta.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

—\u00a0Prince of Peace Church of the Brethren in Littleton, Colo.,<\/strong>\u00a0was part of the organizing group for a gun violence event at Clement Park next to Columbine High School on April 19, a day before the 19th anniversary of the mass shooting at the school on April 20, 1999. The organizing group included students, teachers, faith leaders, and Columbine families, reported pastor Gail Erisman Valeta. \u201cAnd people are being flown in from Parkland and Sandyhook,\u201d she wrote to Newsline, mentioning two of the schools that have suffered mass shootings in the years since. Find out more about the event at\u00a0www.vote4ourlives2018.com<\/a>\u00a0and on the Facebook event page at\u00a0www.facebook.com\/events\/617004708638409<\/a>.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0A note about the latest Dunker Punks podcast:<\/strong>\u00a0Brethren have incorporated themselves into society while still maintaining their beliefs for centuries. In this modern era, publications like \u201cBrethren Life and Thought\u201d provide a platform for an ever-globalizing denomination to stay connected and in community with each other. Explore this concept and more as Jonathan Stauffer interviews the social media editor for the Brethren Journal Association, Chibuzo Petty, on this episode of the Dunker Punks Podcast. Listen at\u00a0http:\/\/bit.ly\/DPP_Episode55<\/a>\u00a0or subscribe on iTunes at\u00a0http:\/\/bit.ly\/DPP_iTunes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

—\u00a0A resource for churches to use around Earth Day<\/strong>\u00a0is provided by Creation Justice Ministries, an ecumenical organization that offers Christian education materials to equip faith communities to protect, restore, and more rightly share God\u2019s creation. This year\u2019s resource is intended to be useful year-round, on Earth Day Sunday April 22, or later in the year for the \u201cSeason of Creation\u201d from Sept. 1-Oct. 10. The theme is \u201cSense of Place: Surely the Lord Is in This Place,\u201d and the resource \u201coffers insights about living in harmony with local ecosystems and watersheds, rightly sharing places with a diversity of peoples, and respecting the history of your place,\u201d said an announcement. The resource is free to download, but sign in is required. Go to\u00a0http:\/\/action.creationjustice.org\/p\/salsa\/web\/common\/public\/signup?signup_page_KEY=11166<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Go to\u00a0www.brethren.org\/Newsline<\/a>\u00a0to subscribe to the Church of the Brethren Newsline free e-mail news service and receive church news every week.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In this issue: Global Mission executive remembers a warm welcome from new Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel, Children\u2019s Disaster Services (CDS) deploys a team to aid families affected by wildfires in Oklahoma, recent meetings at the Church of the Brethren General Offices, Bethany Seminary hosts the Council of District Executives, and more new by, for, and about Brethren.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":4588,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"wf_post_folders":[],"class_list":["post-4585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4585"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4585\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4590,"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4585\/revisions\/4590"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4588"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4585"},{"taxonomy":"wf_post_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.brethren.org\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_post_folders?post=4585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}