Church of the Brethren

The 77th Majalisa of Ekklesiyar Yan'uwa a Nigeria (EYN, the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria) has successfully concluded, marking a significant milestone in the church's history. Held April 16-19 at EYN Headquarters in Kwarhi, Adamawa State, the Majalisa (or annual conference) brought together thousands of members, leaders, and guests from across Nigeria and beyond. On the agenda were elections and appointment of a new top leadership team.

The Church of the Brethren’s Global Food Initiative (GFI) has given its first round of grants for 2024, supporting an aquaculture project in the Dominican Republic, a grain mill project in Burundi, a maize mill project in Uganda, and Syntropic training in Haiti. Two grants made in 2023 have not previously been reported in Newsline, for a school-based organic food production and environmental awareness effort in Ecuador, and to First Church of the Brethren, Eden, N.C., for its community garden.

The Brethren Faith in Action Fund (BFIA) has aided seven congregations with grants in these first weeks of the year. The fund provides grants using money generated by the sale of the upper campus of the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md.

Remembering Gary Dill, Idaho and Western Montana District seeks applicants for the position of district executive minister, EYN holds its 77th Majalisa, WCC welcomes the International Criminal Court policy establishing accountability for environmental crimes

As part of developing our 2024 Earth Day Resource: “Plastic Jesus, Real Faith in a Synthetic World,” we commissioned six artists to gather in retreat and to collaboratively create songs for use in worship that reflect on caring for God's creation in the face of the plastic pollution crisis. Sarah Macias was their host at Sister Grove Farm.

We're looking forward to our special district creation care event next Saturday, April 27, 10 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. at Highland Avenue Church of the Brethren in Elgin, Ill. We hope you can join us! There is no charge for this event, and all are welcome.

“We hope you will join us this summer in Grand Rapids, Michigan, July 3-7, 2024, for the 237th recorded Annual Conference,” said an invitation from the Conference office. This article provides a preview of the Conference including business items, special events, and more.

As part of their final processing of potential business items for the 2024 Church of the Brethren Annual Conference (www.brethren.org/ac2024), the Annual Conference officers (www.brethren.org/ac2024/leadership) have returned the Illinois/Wisconsin District’s query titled “Regarding Greater Congregational Latitude on Matters of Sexuality” back to the district for further revision and potential resubmission in 2025.

The Program and Arrangements Committee is once again holding a silent auction at Annual Conference in Grand Rapids this summer. The idea emerged during a discussion about how we could intentionally contribute to the vitality of and increase traffic in the Exhibit Hall. However, it also offers us an opportunity to raise some additional funds.

The Church of the Brethren Mission and Ministry Board held its spring 2024 meeting on March 15-17 at the denomination’s General Offices in Elgin, Ill. Board chair Colin Scott presided, assisted by chair-elect Kathy Mack and general secretary David Steele.

During their meeting on March 18, 2024, the Church of the Brethren’s Leadership Team issued a clarification around their May 2020 statement related to On Earth Peace (www.onearthpeace.org) joining the Supportive Communities Network.

Ephrata (Pa.) Church of the Brethren invites the whole Ephrata community and beyond to celebrate the 125th anniversary of being a church family in the Ephrata landscape. There will be multiple events on the weekend of April 26-28, all at 201 Crescent Ave, Ephrata.

The collapse of the Key Bridge in Baltimore, Md., was such a shock and very emotional for the staff of the Material Resources program of the Church of the Brethren. The loss of lives and loss of a critical bridge were on our minds. Now, almost three weeks later, alternate plans are being explored for shipments of relief goods from our warehouse facilities at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md.

Church of the Brethren general secretary David Steele was among more than 140 global Christian leaders signing a new letter, released during Holy Week ahead of Easter, calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

The 2023 year-end financial reporting covered both Core Ministries and the Self-Funding Ministries, including Material Resources and the Conference Office. Special purpose funds, including the Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF), which supports Brethren Disaster Ministries, the Global Food Initiative Fund (GFIF) which supports the Global Food Initiative, and the Emerging Global Mission Fund were also reported on.

“The only hope many people have is the light of God in the church,” said Ilexene Alphonse, describing the desperate situation of the Haitian people. Living as the church in Haiti right now is “stressful and it is painful, but the most part is that everybody, they live in a limbo. They are never certain about what will happen,” he said. “There is the constant fear of being kidnapped.”

John Jantzi has announced that he will conclude his service as district executive minister for the Church of the Brethren’s Shenandoah District, as of March 1, 2025. He has served in the position for almost 12 years, since Aug. 1, 2012. During these years, he has given leadership to district ministries during a season of significant change while faithfully guiding district staff and leaders in their work.

ASIGLEH (the Church of the Brethren in Venezuela) held its annual conference in Cucuta, Colombia, on March 12-16 with about 120 church leaders and families in attendance. The conference was led by Roger Moreno, who is president of ASIGLEH.

J. Michael Lausch has been appointed executive director of COBYS Family Services, a non-profit organization based in Lancaster County, Pa., that is related to the Church of the Brethren’s Atlantic Northeast District. Mark Cunningham retired from COBYS in Dec. 2023 after serving as executive director for the last 14 years of his 26-year tenure.

FaithX registration closes April 1, two facilitator trainings for the "7 Prompts" conversations are offered in early April, the Sounds of the Mountains Storytelling Festival line-up, seventh annual Neurodiversity Symposium at the University of La Verne, an Easter Vigil live from Palestine, and more