Church of the Brethren

An invitation to join us in celebrating our 150th birthday with an Open House Weekend, March 29 and 30, at Holmesville Church of the Brethren, 30748 S 66 Rd., Holmesville, NE 68310.

The Church of the Brethren Mission and Ministry Board expresses grave concern for those across the country who are of migrant, immigrant, or refugee status who may be under threat of deportation following recent presidential executive orders. These renewed threats of deportation are already affecting the lives of many in our denomination’s congregations.

Greetings as we enter this year of 2025. With these new beginnings, our thoughts bring memories of the past, evaluating our present, and looking forward to the newness of life where God is leading us as individuals and as the church. It is not an easy time, and loss and grief are a part of this process.

The temperature on the thermometer read two degrees below zero as hundreds of Anabaptists of all persuasions (and garb) gathered for worship the evening of Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, at College Mennonite Church in Goshen, Ind. It was 500 years to the day after a small group of believers met in a private home in Zurich to study scripture together and perform baptisms, an event considered the beginning of the Anabaptist movement.

El programa de Pastor a Medio-Tiempo; Iglesia a Tiempo Completo ofrecerá un nuevo estudio en formación espiritual con la acompañante del camino (Circuit Rider) Mayra Calix a fines de febrero 2025.

Marcia Sowles has joined the Church of the Brethren’s Office of Peacebuilding and Policy in Washington, D.C., volunteering as a Policy and Governmental Affairs associate. She will primarily focus on immigration policy by also providing legal expertise on related issues.

Dr. Emerson Pierre, a family physician visiting from Haiti, spoke at Elizabethtown (Pa.) Church of the Brethren on Jan. 12. He works with the mobile medical clinics sponsored by the Church of the Brethren’s Haiti Medical Project.

In this issue: Webpage of "Know Your Rights" resources, prayer request for the DR Congo, job opening at the Brethren and Mennonite Heritage Center, Shepherd's Spring 35th anniversary, regional youth conferences, 2025 Song and Story Fest, CWS statement on executive order suspending refugee admissions, and more

Registration for the Church of the Brethren’s FaithX older adult (55-plus) service trip closes on Feb. 1. Please help us spread the word!

The Intercultural Ministries office and Intercultural Ministries Advisory Committee (IMAC) are encouraging our congregations and districts to help members to know their constitutional rights. As a denomination, we are striving to be a resource and referral space providing tangible information.

“Give now to support California wildfire response through Brethren Disaster Ministries,” said an appeal shared by denominational staff this week. “Children’s Disaster Services is already responding to the needs of children and families. Working with the Pacific Southwest District and partner organizations, Brethren Disaster Ministries is planning to address short- and long-term needs of vulnerable people impacted by the fires.”

In this issue: La Verne Church of the Brethren offers space to Pasadena Chorale, Intercultural Ministries “Café Cohort," save the date for New and Renew 2025, Children’s Disaster Services spring 2025 volunteer trainings, On Earth Peace's Agape magazine for children, job opening for chaplain at Bridgewater College, 2025 Roundtable regional youth conference, a thank you from CWS, news from congregations and districts, and much more.

Children’s Disaster Services (CDS) has been requested by the Red Cross to send two volunteer teams of seven to serve in shelters in the Los Angeles, Calif., area.

The Church of the Brethren’s Mission and Ministry Board has declared Thursday, Jan. 16, a day of prayer and fasting for the denomination, at the request of the board of the church’s Atlantic Southeast District. The declaration invites all Church of the Brethren congregations, projects, fellowships, the board, and the denominational staff to participate.

The February offering from the Ventures in Christian Discipleship program at McPherson (Kan.) College will be “Luke and Acts: Turning the World Upside Down” presented by Chris Bucher and Bob Neff. The course will be held online in two Tuesday sessions on Feb. 11 and 18 at 6:30-8:30 p.m. (central time).

This Spring, as part of the series “Build Bridges Across Ideological Divides,” the Brethren Academy for Ministerial Leadership is offering the course “Ministering Across Cultures: Building Bridges Through Intercultural Competencies.”

What does justice look like to an elementary child? If a first grader is cold on the playground, justice may look like a warm coat if the rest of his class has them. Or to a fourth-grade girl, justice may look like clothes that fit if Mom and Dad can’t afford to replace the ones she’s outgrown. Justice may look like a new toy at Christmas for a third-grade child for whom, unlike his friends, Santa never comes.

Pacific Southwest District executive minister Russ Matteson today (Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025) shared the following prayer request for the Conexion Pasadena congregation of the Church of the Brethren, which has been directly affected by the Eaton fire in the Los Angeles area, as well as other church members and congregations across the area.

The Church of the Brethren’s Discipleship and Leadership Formation is offering a free one-hour webinar on Wednesday, Jan. 29, at 2 p.m. (Eastern time), as the first of a series of three online events offered in partnership with Fresh Expressions. Credentialed ministers may receive 0.1 continuing education credit.

The Brethren Faith in Action Fund (BFIA) in its latest round of grants, approved in late 2024 through early 2025, has given grants to eight Church of the Brethren congregations. The fund provides grants using money generated by the sale of the upper campus of the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md.