Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Brethren bits: Remembrance, job, Asia peace conference, more.
  • Edward "Ned" W. Stowe passed away on Nov. 4 at his home in York Center-Lombard, Ill. He was a former volunteer staff member of the Church of the Brethren General Board, serving as interim controller from July to September, 1998, at the Church of the Brethren General Offices in Elgin, Ill. He and his wife, Mary, also served as directors of program volunteers for the General Board for two years, in 1991-92, and prior to that were longterm volunteers at the Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md. He was an active leader in York Center Church of the Brethren. Stowe was born on July 18, 1926, in Chicago, and was a 42-year resident of York Center-Lombard. He retired in 1985 from George Williams College as director of Student Financial Aid, and also had served as an officer of the York Center Community Cooperative. He is survived by his wife, Mary, and his children David (Phyllis), Ned (Amy), Scott (Ann) Stowe and Ruth (Mark) Karasek, and 10 grandchildren. Family and friends will gather for a memorial service on Saturday, Nov. 24, at 11 a.m. at York Center Church of the Brethren.

  • Timbercrest Senior Living Community in North Manchester, Ind., seeks to fill a vacant chaplain position. Two part-time chaplains maintain a program of visitation with residents, make hospital visits in a 50-mile radius, conduct public worship, and support the work of several committees. Energetic candidates with a caring heart, strong counseling skills, experience in ministry with older adults, and denominational credentials can send a resume to Ted Neidlinger, Timbercrest Senior Living Community, P.O. Box 501, North Manchester, IN 46962.

  • Representatives of the Church of the Brethren are traveling to the Historic Peace Churches of Asia Conference in early December. The group includes Stan Noffsinger, general secretary of the Church of the Brethren General Board; Merv Keeney, executive director of Global Mission Partnerships for the General Board; Donald Miller, a former general secretary of the board and professor emeritus of Bethany Theological Seminary; Scott Holland, associate professor of theology and culture and director of peace studies for Bethany Seminary; and Brethren videographer David Sollenberger. Prior to the peace conference, Noffsinger, Keeney, and Sollenberger will visit with Brethren in India.

  • Registration for the Church of the Brethren’s 2008 Cross Cultural Consultation and Celebration will be available online as of Dec. 1. The consultation will be April 24-27, 2008, in Elgin, Ill. "This is a wonderful opportunity see the Church of the Brethren General Offices in Elgin, and worship at three area churches," said an invitation from Ruben Deoleo, newly appointed as the Cross Cultural Consultation coordinator. Go to www.brethren.org and use the keyword box to highlight "Cross Cultural Ministries" to find the registration form and schedule information in English and Spanish. Send registrations to jwillrett_gb@brethren.org or mail paper copies to Joy Willrett, Church of the Brethren General Board, 1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120. For more information, contact Deoleo at 717-669-9781.

  • On Earth Peace has announced its next counter-recruitment networking call for those working against military recruitment, on Dec. 13 at 10 a.m. Pacific time/1 p.m. eastern time. The networking calls are for both new and experienced peacemakers to share experiences and receive support for their work resisting military recruitment and generating alternatives for youth. Each call offers opportunities for sharing, as well as a "strategy session," and spiritual and theological reflections on counter-recruitment. Find more information about the calls at www.brethren.org/oepa/programs/peace-witness/counter-recruitment/NetworkingCalls.html. Reserve a place in the Dec. 13 call by e-mailing mattguynn@earthlink.net.

  • The Ministry of Reconciliation, a branch of On Earth Peace, welcomes natural peacemakers and those interested in conflict resolution to a two-weekend "Faith-Based Mediation Workshop" on Feb. 16-17 and 23-24, 2008, at Camp Mack, Milford, Ind. A refreshing, faithful approach to interpersonal peacemaking will be taught through a series of interactive and collaborative sessions. The workshop is designed for church leaders, pastors, deacons, members of Shalom Teams and Discipleship and Reconciliation teams, and anyone interested in introductory level mediation. Led by Janet Mitchell, attorney-mediator and Ministry of Reconciliation practitioner, and Angie Briner, executive director of Education for Conflict Resolution, this workshop will introduce the process for mediating between individuals and provide hands-on mediation practice. Learn effective communication skills for all ages, conflict theory, how the Christian faith informs an approach to mediation, how to understand and work with style differences in communication, and mediation skills to assist those in conflict. Cost is $275-$350 on a sliding scale and includes tuition, lodging, meals, and materials. Commuters pay $225-$300 on a sliding scale. Scholarships are available. Continuing education credit is available to Church of the Brethren ministers. To register or for more information, send name, contact information, and number of participants to Annie Clark at annie.clark@verizon.net or 260-982-8595. The registration deadline is Jan. 16, 2008.

  • A dining hall and kitchen remodeling project is beginning at the Church of the Brethren General Offices in Elgin, Ill. Environ Corporation, an environmental consulting firm, is overseeing the project to assure employee safety and compliance with environmental and state regulations, as the project will include the removal of asbestos-containing floor tile. Hard surface flooring will be replaced in the kitchen and hallway and part of the dining hall, the rest of the dining hall will receive new carpet and fresh paint, and some new equipment will be installed in the kitchen. Special provisions are being put in place during the asbestos abatement process to ensure that the kitchen and dining hall area is cut off from the rest of the building in terms of ventilation and accessibility by staff and visitors, and that proper processes are used for the safety of workers who will do the removal, and for appropriate clean up and disposal of waste. The abatement process begins Nov. 26 and is expected to be completed by Dec. 3. The entire remodeling project will be completed by the end of the year.

  • Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) is requesting prayer for the four-member CPT team in northern Iraq including Church of the Brethren members Peggy Gish and Cliff Kindy. The team has been invited by Kurdish nonviolence trainers to lead a training module for regional police officers this week on human rights for detainees. For more go to www.cpt.org.

  • Linville Creek Church of the Brethren in Broadway, Va., hosts the celebration of a new book release from CrossRoads Valley Brethren-Mennonite Heritage Center: Volume IV in the series, "Unionists and the Civil War Experience in the Shenandoah Valley," on Dec. 2 at 4 p.m. Researchers and compilers David Rodes and Norman Wenger and editor Emmert Bittinger will share insights from the 1,090-page volume documenting the testimony submitted to the Southern Claims Commission by 60 families in northwestern Rockingham County who lost cattle, saddles, firewood, animal and human food stores during the Civil War.

  • Students of theology and young theologians are being invited by the World Council of Churches (WCC) to participate in an essay competition to mark the council's 60th anniversary. Participants are invited to address the theme, "Making a Difference Together--Prospects for Ecumenism in the 21st Century." The best six essays will be presented by their authors at an international consultation in Switzerland in late 2008. Other selected essays will be published by the WCC. Essays should be written in English, but will be judged for the quality of their contribution and not their language proficiency. With a length of 5,000-6,000 words, the essays should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere. More details are at www.oikoumene.org/contest. The deadline is Feb. 28, 2008.

  • David A. Leiter, pastor of Green Tree Church of the Brethren in Oaks, Pa., has authored a book recently published by Herald Press. "Neglected Voices: Peace in the Old Testament" identifies five types of peace in the Old Testament as a way of presenting significant "peace passages" of scripture that often are ignored. "Perhaps Leiter’s greatest gift in this book is his contention that the Old Testament contains a systemized typology for peace," writes Jay W. Marshall in the foreword to the book. "In seeking to demonstrate the truth of this conviction, he introduces multiple distinct ideologies of peace that demonstrate where the Old Testament contains nonviolent responses to conflict. The presence of these ideologies of peace recasts the dominant perception that the Old Testament only supports violence." Order from Brethren Press for $16.99 plus shipping and handling, call 800-441-3712.
Source: 11/21/2007 Newsline

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