Church of the Brethren general
secretary Stan Noffsinger today made an announcement concerning the BMC
Kaleidoscope Coordinator as a Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) project.
The decision was shared in a letter addressed to Carol Wise, executive
of BMC--the Brethren Mennonite Council for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and
Transgender Interests.
“After conversations with the Church of the Brethren Mission and
Ministry Board Executive Committee and a conference call with members of
the board, I have withdrawn the BMC Kaleidoscope Coordinator as a BVS
project as it is currently defined,” the letter said.
“As General Secretary, I will hold in trusting tension the
possibility for a BMC project until such time as delegations from the
MMB and the BMC board can meet face-to-face in the spirit of Matthew
18.”
In January, BMC had been accepted as a placement site for BVS
volunteers after applying on a regular basis for some years (find a
report of the original decision at www.brethren.org/news/2012/bmc-is-bvs-project-site.html).
The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination committed to
continuing the work of Jesus peacefully and simply, and to living out
its faith in community. It is based in the Anabaptist and Pietist faith
traditions and is one of the three Historic Peace Churches. It
celebrated its 300th anniversary in 2008. It counts about 125,000
members across the US and Puerto Rico, and has missions and sister
churches in Nigeria, the DR, Brazil, Haiti, and India.
Source: 6/1/2012 Newsline
