Five Brethren participate in National Council of Churches assembly.

At the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC) General Assembly meeting in St. Louis, Mo., Nov. 9-11, the Church of the Brethren was represented by delegates Nelda Rhodes Clarke Nelda Rhoades Clark, Jennie Ramirez, and Marianne Miller Speicher, who began a four-year term of service with this meeting; and by Stan Noffsinger, general secretary of the General Board, and Becky Ullom, the board's director of Identity and Relations. The theme, "Weave Anew: Unity, Peace and Justice, Hope" based on Eph.4:15-16 encouraged the 36 member communions to reclaim their collective Christian voice on a national level.

The assembly unanimously adopted a comprehensive policy statement on children. "The Church and Children: Visions and Goals for the 21st Century" represents a holistic view of childhood and the diversity of children's gifts and needs, Ullom reported. The delegates reaffirmed the NCC Executive Board's call for urgent intervention to stop the killing in Darfur, Sudan, and received a new study guide and gave feedback for development of a new policy on human biotechnologies.

The assembly addressed the national elections with an "Action on Dialogue Among US Christians on Christian Values" and a related "Open Letter." In the action, written "in the wake of divisive national elections in which matters of faith played a highly visible role, and during which the discussion of moral values resulted in the widely held perception of opposing Christian camps in the United States," the assembly asked for "a process that attempts to engage the spectrum of Christian churches in our communities in dialogues about Christian values."

The meeting also marked the death of Yasir Arafat with prayers "for his people, colleagues, and families" and a call "for restraint on the part of all parties and respect for the dignity of all peoples and sacred places."

Prior to the assembly, roughly 30 young adults gathered to discuss the role of young adults in the NCC and issues facing young adults as individuals and as a demographic. "It was a blessing to meet young adults from other denominations who are also committed to making Christ's yearnings for humanity a reality," said Ullom. "I felt affirmed of my own Church of the Brethren faith tradition in comparison to other traditions, and also as a part of the larger Christian tradition."

For more information about the NCC including resources, policy documents, and pictures, visit www.ncccusa.org.

Source: 11/19/2004 Newsline