Brethren bits: Correction, personnel, RYC, and more.

• Correction: Newsline gave incorrect e-mail addresses for the Annual Conference moderator-elect and secretary, in the March 28 issue. The correct e-mail address for moderator-elect Jim Beckwith is moderatorelect_ac@brethren.org; the correct address for secretary Fred Swartz is acsecretary@brethren.org. The editor apologizes for this error.
  
  
• Jacqueline Azimi has resigned as network operations specialist for the Church of the Brethren General Board, located in Elgin, Ill., effective April 11. Her last day of work was April 10. She has worked for the General Board for almost 18 years, beginning on Sept. 18, 1989. While with the board she served as systems coordinator/secretary, and in 1997 was promoted to personal computer specialist. During her time with the board she participated in certification training for the GWAVA e-mail spam filter software, enabling her to fine tune the filter and help control the amount of spam the staff receives. When the General Board relocated the IBM I5 mainframe from the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md., to the Church of the Brethren General Offices in Elgin, she became the networking specialist.
  
  
• Marin (Marni) O'Brien of Newton, Mass., a Global Mission Partnerships worker serving through Brethren Volunteer Service, returned home from her placement site in Totonicapon, Guatemala, on Feb. 16 for family reasons.
  
  
• The theme for the Regional Youth Conference (RYC) on April 28-29 at Manchester College in North Manchester, Ind., is "'Now Follow Me'--Jesus" (Luke 9:23). Three worship celebrations will be held, along with workshops, and opportunities for service projects. Seth Hendricks will lead music. Keynote speaker is Walt Wiltschek, editor of the "Messenger,"and a district youth advisor for Illinois and Wisconsin. District youth cabinets are invited to arrive early for a leadership development workshop on Friday evening, April 27. Registration is due April 12. For more go to www.manchester.edu/OCA/Church/RegionalYouthConference.htm.
  
  
• Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) is announcing the start of an older adult orientation April 23-May 4 at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md. This will be the 274th unit for BVS and will consist of 11 individuals and couples. The volunteers will spend two weeks exploring project possibilities and topics of community building, faith sharing, diversity training, and more. They will have the opportunity for two work days at SERRV International and the Washington (D.C.) Soup Kitchen. Guest staff and speakers will include Larry and Alice Petry, Susanna Farrahat, Joyce Nolen, Phil Jones, Grace LaFever, and Rebekah Carswell. For more information contact the BVS office at 800-323-8039.
  
  
• Registration cost for the National Junior High Conference will go up after April 15. The National Junior High Conference will be held June 15-17 at Elizabethtown (Pa.) College, for junior high youth in the Church of the Brethren and their adult advisors. Registration cost is currently $99 per person (for youth or adult). After April 15, the cost increases to $125 per person. Register at www.brethren.org/genbd/yya/NatJrHighConf.htm.
  
  
• The Church of the Brethren's annual Cross-Cultural Consultation and Celebration will be held April 19-22 at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md., on the scriptural theme John 14:27. Along with the signature worship services filled with music and prayer in many different languages, led by Brethren from a variety of ethnic backgrounds, participants will discuss questions related to peacemaking, and enjoy free time for informal fellowship. An overnight youth event at Union Bridge Church of the Brethren will be led by On Earth Peace. Youth also will lead worship and sharing on Saturday morning, April 21. The Intercultural Study Committee will report. For more information go to www.brethren.org/genbd/clm/clt/CrossCultural.html.
  
  
• "Creating Peacemaking Congregations" is the theme of a New Church Development Retreat on May 18-19 at Natural Bridge, Va. Leadership will be provided by Jack L. Eades, director of the Outreach Commission of the West Virginia Baptist Convention (ABC-USA). The purpose of the retreat is to inspire, motivate, and encourage church planters and those interested in developing congregations for the Church of the Brethren from Maine to Florida. Time will be given for each new church project or fellowship to share about its experiences and vision for church planting. Although it began as an annual gathering for fellowship and sharing among new church core groups in Virginia and North Carolina, the retreat is currently sponsored by the Church Extension Committee of Virlina District. Contact nuchurch@aol.com.
  
  
• Beacon Heights Church of the Brethren in Fort Wayne, Ind., put together an event on March 24 to raise awareness of the situation in Afghanistan. Some members have had longstanding connections with that part of the world, according to a release from On Earth Peace. The event centered around a presentation by Nelofer Pazira at the Andorfer Commons at Indiana Tech in Fort Wayne, on March 24. Pazira, an author and filmmaker, fled Afghanistan when she was a teenager and immigrated to Canada. She wrote the book, "Bed of Red Flowers," starred in the movie, "Kandahar," and co-produced and co-directed the documentary, "Return to Kandahar." The event included a showing of the two films, a reception and book signing, Afghan food, and an evening event with Pazira at which she spoke about her stories of Afghanistan. The program was coordinated by the church, and sponsors contributed to cover expenses.
  
  
• The Way of the Cross on Good Friday in Hagerstown, Md., visited seven different locations to connect the passion of Christ to the ongoing suffering in the world. The "Herald-Mail" reported that stops included, for example, the "Public Square ... for religious tolerance; a slave auction site ... for racial harmony; Hagerstown Refugee Resettlement Center ... for hope, care and justice for immigrants." The walk began and ended at Hagerstown Church of the Brethren, which also provided its sanctuary as a place for prayer and meditation for those who were not able to walk.
  
  
• Youth who participated in the Agape-Satyagraha training offered by Brethren Community Ministries in Harrisburg, Pa., will be recognized at a banquet at 6 p.m. April 13 at First Church of the Brethren in Harrisburg. Agape-Satyagraha is a year-round weekly conflict resolution training designed to help youths resolve family, neighborhood, and peer conflicts without violence, according to a report in the "Patriot-News." Tickets are $6 for one, or $10 for two people. Proceeds will be used by Brethren Community Ministries to serve residents of the South Allison Hill neighborhoods. For more visit www.bcmcob.org.
  
  
• New Beginnings Fellowship Church of the Brethren (formerly Faith Church of the Brethren) in Batavia, Ill., is holding an event titled "Sudan--Trail of Tears" on April 14 at 7 p.m. Area churches have been invited. "We're praying for a good turnout," said an invitation in the Illinois and Wisconsin District newsletter.
  
  
• On April 21 Green Hill Church of the Brethren in Salem, Va., will hold a "Jesus Jam" from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Ten bands will play a variety of music including bluegrass, gospel, contemporary, and heavy metal. Ten speakers will bring messages. The event also includes workshops and a tent for prayer and meditation. All youth in the Roanoke Valley are invited to attend. For information call the Green Hill church at 540-389-5109.
  
  
• Sponsored by the Atlantic Northeast District Spiritual Renewal Team, the annual Ministry Conference for Church Leadership is designed to be a day apart for ministers, church leaders, and other interested people. It will be held April 25, 8:15 a.m.-4 p.m., at Elizabethtown (Pa.) College. Guest speaker is Lou George, executive minister of the American Baptist Churches, USA. Assisting with leadership is David Young. The registration fee of $30 includes a "heart-healthy" lunch. Participants may receive .6 continuing education units for an extra fee of $10. Scholarship assistance is available, contact David Young at 717-738-1887 or davidyoung@churchrenewalservant.org. Registration deadline is April 16, contact the Atlantic Northeast District office for more information, 717-367-4730.
  
  
• The 6th Annual Sounds of the Mountains Festival at Camp Bethel near Fincastle, Va., is scheduled for April 20-21. The event will feature Donald Davis, Sheila Kay Adams, Andy Offutt Irwin, Joseph Helfrich, and the Celtibillies. The festival "for families, hipsters, and everyone in between" according to the camp e-mail newsletter, is a fundraiser for the ministries of the camp. For schedule and ticket information go to www.soundsofthemountains.org.
  
  
• The McPherson (Kan.) College Choir presents its Spring Concert on Sunday, April 15, at McPherson Church of the Brethren. The program centers on the theme "The Greatest of These Is Love," and begins at 7:30 p.m. The choir and the McPherson College Singers, the college's select vocal ensemble, will perform a program of religious and secular music. A free will offering will help support the expenses of the vocal music program.
  
  
• A Great Strides 10K walk to raise money for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation will be held on Sunday, April 15, at Bridgewater (Va.) College, beginning at 2 p.m. in front of Nininger Hall. Great Strides walks are held across the country to raise money for research, the cost of which continues to escalate because of the expense of new technology. Sara Wagner, a senior biology and allied health science double major from Powhatan, Va., is coordinating the event in honor of her cousin, who has the disease. For more information contact smw004@bridgewater.edu or 804-366-5341.
  
  
• Muma Mambula, the 2007 Fellow at Elizabethtown (Pa.) College's Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies, will discuss relations between Christians and Muslims in Nigeria at 7:30 p.m. on April 19, in the Susquehanna Room of Myer Hall. His talk is open to the public free of charge and will be presented following the Young Center's annual banquet. A reception for Mambula begins at 5:30 p.m., followed by the banquet at 6 p.m. (reservations for the banquet were required by April 6). Provost of the Theological College of Northern Nigeria, Mambula earned a doctorate in education from the University of Maiduguri and a master's degree in theology from Bethany Theological Seminary.
  
  
• The Lilly Endowment has announced the eighth year of its National Clergy Renewal Program, in which congregations have the opportunity to design and carry out periods of renewal for their pastors. In 2007 up to 120 congregations will be selected to participate. Each grant proposal may request up to $45,000, up to $15,000 of that may be used for congregational activities during a pastor's absence. Ministers must be ordained and have earned a master of divinity degree from an accredited theological seminary or divinity school. A brochure and application form are available at www.lillyendowment.org or contact 317-916-7350 or clergyrenewal@yahoo.com. Creating a proposal requires a joint effort of pastor and congregation; applicants are encouraged not to put off applying until the last minute. The deadline for proposals is May 15.
  
  
• Women Touched by Grace grants are available, through a program recommended by pastor Erin Matteson of Modesto (Calif.) Church of the Brethren, a recent participant. This Sustaining Pastoral Excellence program funded by the Lily Endowment, Inc., is a spiritual renewal program for women clergy in congregations. It includes five ten-day sessions over three years, beginning April 2008. It takes place at the Benedict Inn Retreat and Conference Center, a ministry of the Sisters of St. Benedict in Beech Grove, Ind. The group of 20 chosen to participate is intentionally diverse denominationally and geographically. Requirements, details, and an application form can be found at www.benedictinn.org. Or contact Matteson at erin@modcob.org or 209-523-1438. Application deadline is June 1.
  
  
• Three people were arrested during an event protesting the war in Iraq at the federal building in Fort Wayne, Ind., including two members of the Church of the Brethren--Cliff Kindy, who has worked with Christian Peacemaker Teams, and Nicolas Kauffman, a student at Manchester College. On March 30 the Fort Wayne "Journal-Gazette" reported that the men were arrested after a demonstration that called for Senators Evan Bayh and Richard Lugar to stop supporting funding for the war. Previously, a group of about 30 people had gathered outside the building in a peaceful protest, and some had met with Lugar's staff. Another Church of the Brethren member, Rachel Gross, and another Manchester College student, Joshua Archer, were also at the event and were interviewed by the paper.

Source: 4/11/2007 Newsline