Church of the Brethren

More than 70 clergywomen from 16 church districts attended a denominational retreat traditionally offered every five years by the Ministry Office of the Church of the Brethren.

Here is an update on the lawsuit filed on Feb. 11, 2025, on behalf of the Church of the Brethren and more than two dozen other Christian and Jewish religious denominations and associations, in response to the Trump Administration’s rescission of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) “sensitive locations” policy that had restricted Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from conducting immigration raids, arrests, and other enforcement actions at houses of worship.

New resources from Brethren Press, the Church of the Brethren publishing house, include the 2025 Lenten devotional titled Take Up Your Cross written by Tim Harvey; two new Covenant Bible Studies including God’s Earth Our Home written by David Radcliff and Sabbath: God’s Call to Peace written by Angela Finet; and the 2024 edition of the Church of the Brethren Yearbook

Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) is preparing to hold three new volunteer training events in March, April, and May 2025. Upcoming CDS Volunteer Training events are as follows:

Recently, Creekside Church of the Brethren near Goshen, Ind., challenged the other congregations of Northern Indiana District to participate in the Souper Bowl of Caring. The aim was to see which congregation could gather the most ounces of soup to feed the hungry in our local communities by Super Bowl Sunday.

On Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, Jim Bridgeman was ordained at Lancaster (Pa.) Church of the Brethren. We always celebrate when someone accepts the call of God to serve the church as a minister, and Jim is no exception. That is, for one important detail: Jim is 93 years of age.

Seven Church of the Brethren districts in the midwest and plains regions partnered to hold an online workshop titled "Changing Mindsets for Ministry" on Feb. 22, with about 80 people participating. The event featured Jeff MacDonald, a journalist and pastor from the Boston area, as keynote speaker.

In this issue: Prayers concerns from Global Mission, Annual Conference registration opens March 5, disabilities leader to present Ministers' Association pre-Conference event, BVS "Visionary Voices" speaker series, job openings, National Council of Churches prayer webinar, Green Lectionary podcast for Lent, Seven Weeks for Water Campaign from the World Council of Churches.

The March offering from the Ventures in Christian Discipleship program at McPherson (Kan.) College will be “Acknowledging Grief, Claiming Hope: Reflections from Around the Church of the Brethren” to be presented by Dava Hensley, Church of the Brethren ordained minister and 2025 Annual Conference moderator.

Tim Button-Harrison has announced his retirement from leadership of the Church of the Brethren’s Northern Plains District. At the Feb. 7-8 meeting of the district board, it was announced that he will retire on Dec. 31, 2025, after having served the district for more than 19 years.

The Susquehanna Valley Ministry Center (SVMC) has hired Audrey Hollenberg-Duffey as the new director, beginning May 1. Prior to May, Hollenberg-Duffey will be working with retiring executive director Donna M. Rhodes to provide a good transition.

Más de dos docenas de denominaciones y asociaciones cristianas y judías demandan para proteger las libertades religiosas (lea más en español a continuación) Reversal of the Department of Homeland Security’s ‘Sensitive Locations’ Policy interferes with central religious beliefs, violates both the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act Today, the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy

The 2025 Church of the Brethren Annual Conference takes place in Greensboro, N.C., on July 2-6. Annual Conference provides an opportunity for the body of Christ known as the Church of the Brethren to come together to hear the voice of God as revealed by the Holy Spirit within and among us.

In January, Children's Disaster Services (CDS) sent four volunteer teams to care for children in the Los Angeles area in response to the wildfires that engulfed the city and surrounding area.

The Church of the Brethren Intercultural Ministries is offering a special webpage for prayer requests to be shared from across the country and denomination. With the mission statement, “We are called to enrich and strengthen the Church of the Brethren by our unity as people across cultures, modeling for the larger church the blessings of being one as God’s people,” the opportunity to request prayer is offered in three languages: English, Haitian Creole, and Spanish.

The 2025 National Older Adult Conference (NOAC) Planning Team is hard at work preparing for the conference to be held at Lake Junaluska, N.C., on Sept. 1-5. NOAC online registration will open May 1 at www.brethren.org/noac.

The Church of the Brethren Council of District Executives (CODE), representing the denomination's 23 districts, met Jan. 25-29 in Melbourne, Fla., with some members coming early to do a well-received professional education training event with facilitator Lon Swartzentruber.

In this issue: Prayer requests, registration for New & Renew opens on Monday, openings for employment and volunteer positions, BVS Alumni Spotlight, Monte Vista Church helps out after fire, events at the Young Center, CWS kit changes, ecumenical partners express concerns about recent presidential directives, and more.

Claire Flowers concluded her work with the Church of the Brethren on Jan. 27.

Randi Rowan has announced her retirement from Discipleship and Leadership Formation, effective June 20. She has served as a program assistant for more than 13 years, since Jan. 2, 2012.