Front Page

Primate of All Ireland Speaks of Building a New World

April 11, 2003, LONDON - The Church of Ireland Primate, Archbishop Robin Eames, tonight called for a new world order where compassion compels prosperous nations to strive for higher standards of living for those denied the basics of life. Speaking this evening at the Annual Dinner of the British Institution of Civil Engineers in the Grosvenor House Hotel, London, Dr Eames said: "A new world order is emerging as a result of much more than the conflict in Iraq. That world order is asking questions of humanity about power, world institutions, justice and compassion as never before..."

Orthodox Christians Worldwide to Observe Easter April 27

April 16, 2003, NEW YORK - Easter will be celebrated this year on April 27 by over 300 million Orthodox Christians throughout the world. This great feast of the Church, known as Holy Pascha, celebrates the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead following His Crucifixion and Burial.

Veteran Newswoman Champions Personal Freedom

April 16, 2003, DAYTON, Ohio - Don't give up personal freedoms for a temporary sense of security, Helen Thomas told a symposium at Dayton's First United Methodist Church April 12. The diminutive but feisty newswoman, famed for probing questions from the front row of the White House newsroom during nine presidential administrations, spoke as the congregation's New City Church Project publicly launched its "SpiritQuest" outreach program for young people in Dayton. "We in the press are often accused of pre-empting the Bill of Rights, making it our private preserve," she said. "We are its strongest defenders, make no mistake about that. Whenever there is a question of freedom of the press, we're there, we fight, we battle, but we know it isn't just about freedom of the press. The Bill of Rights is absolutely essential to democracy." The document, part of the Constitution, guarantees freedom of assembly, speech and worship.

Food for Thought: Farm Subsidies Worsen Hunger, Deepen Poverty, Study Finds

April 15, 2003, LOUISVILLE - Farm subsidies actually harm rural Americans and worsen hunger in developing nations, according to a report issued this month by the Bread for the World Institute. In its 13th annual report on world hunger, Agriculture in the Global Economy, the institute says the current system of agricultural subsidies benefits only a small percentage of farmers, but produces windfall profits for a few big producers and corporations. "The current system ... depresses prices for poor farmers in developing countries and is not the best way to help struggling farmers in our own country," said David Beckmann, the institute's president. "There's a direct connection between the current system of subsidies and the persistence of world hunger."

General News

Controversy Marks Church Elections As Officials Disagree

April 14, 2003, LUSSIGGETTI, Kenya - Controversy emerged in an independent church here, as officials disagreed over elections of new office bearers. The Soul Saving Ministry Church of Kenya was set to hold its annual general meeting on the April 5, at Lussiggetti in Kiambu district (approximately 30 km from Nairobi), to vote for fresh officials. However, the event which was planned to start at 10.00 a.m, was delayed for three hours following disturbances by a faction of members.

Commission Renews Central Jurisdiction Recovery Project

April 15, 2003, WASHINGTON - The United Methodist agency charged with monitoring racial and ethnic relations within the church has issued a call for materials related to the denomination's Central Jurisdiction. The Central Jurisdiction was a segregated unit of the former Methodist Church, instituted in 1939 during a merger of three Methodist denominations. It was abolished in 1968, when the Methodists merged with the Evangelical United Brethren to create the United Methodist Church. The African-American bishops, members and churches became part of the mainstream church.

Video Shows Churchgoers How the Collection Is Spent

April 11, 2003, DIOCESE OF RIPON AND LEEDS - An innovative video showing churchgoers what happens to the money they put on the collection plate will be launched on Saturday 12 April by the Church of England in Ripon and Leeds. Delegates to the Synod (or 'parliament') of the Diocese of Ripon and Leeds, meeting in Harrogate, will be given the first public showing of the film Shareholders in Mission', an in-house production which aims to encourage giving and dispel misunderstandings about the 'Parish Share' paid by churches to the diocese.

Choir Member Becomes 'American Idol' Finalist

April 15, 2003, NASHVILLE - When Kimberley Locke was 5 and singing in her church choir, she dreamed of becoming a professional performer. Today, the member of Key-Stewart United Methodist Church in Gallatin, Tenn., is one of seven finalists in "American Idol II," a nationally televised vocal competition on the FOX network. She will compete again April 15, with the results show following on the next night.

Commission Will Promote Diversity in Legislative Sessions

April 14, 2003, WASHINGTON - The United Methodist Commission on Religion and Race plans to promote diversity at the denomination's business sessions and legislative gatherings beginning this spring and continuing through July 2004. The commission has created an initiative called "Inclusiveness Counts!" to address issues related to racism. Annual (regional) conferences this year will be electing delegates to the General Conference to be held in Pittsburgh April 27-May 7, 2004. The commission's campaign will focus on monitoring and encouraging diversity in the election of these delegates.

'Wise' Guy Honored for Innovative Teaching

April 16, 2003, BEREA, Ohio - Students of Ronald Wise never know when Superman or Sherlock Holmes will pop up in one of their classes. Wise uses nearly three dozen costumes, along with a wealth of music, magic tricks and jokes, to engage his students and teach them about being teachers. A professor at United Methodist-related Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio, he teaches graduate and undergraduate students in education. "My belief is that learning doesn't have to be all work," says Wise, a member of Berea United Methodist Church. "There should be some fun."

Mary Holmes Loses Accreditation Appeal:
Loss of U.S. Funds Could Be Fatal to Beleaguered Racial-Ethnic School

April 9, 2003, LOUISVILLE - The future of troubled Mary Holmes College, a historic Presbyterian-related institution in West Point, MS, grew murkier this week when an appeals committee upheld a previous ruling stripping the small school of its accreditation. The committee's action, announced on April 7, affirmed a December decision from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). It could be a fatal blow to the financially strapped racial-ethnic college. Officials of the primarily African-American school appealed the SACS decision in January.

Lutheran Laity Movement to Cease Operations May 31

April 17, 2003, CHICAGO - Lutheran Laity Movement for Stewardship (LLM), a self-supporting membership organization within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), will cease operations immediately and officially dissolve May 31. LLM, based at the ELCA churchwide offices here, has been an advocate and leader in stewardship ministry for nearly a century. It is currently best known for providing professionally led capital stewardship campaigns in congregations. The LLM board of directors took the action March 31, when it met by conference call. Reasons for LLM's closure include declining membership in the organization, increasing operational costs and fewer congregational fund-raising campaigns since the terrorist attacks on the United States of Sept. 11, 2001, said Joyce B. Cain, LLM executive director.

King's Dream, 40 Years Later: Has it Been Lost?

April 14, 2003 – Forty years after the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I have a dream" speech, African Americans have achieved success on many levels - professional, social and political. Those were aspirations that King held out in his speech, along with a vision for society as a place of social and economic justice, equity and equality. The speech, delivered Aug. 28, 1963, was a defining moment in the life of the civil rights leader - a life cut short when King was assassinated April 4, 1968. King's call was rooted in the American ideal of equity and justice for all. The cornerstone laid through years of struggle in the 1950s and 1960s supported the success that African Americans have enjoyed since then. But what does King's dream mean for today's generations? Does it mean the same thing to Generation X'ers and millennials as it did to their parents, or has it been lost, deferred or reinterpreted?

Praying Together for Racial Justice

April 11, 2003 – Sunday 14 September has been designated by the Churches in Britain and Ireland as a national day of prayer for racial justice. While some fear that the conflict in Iraq may lead to increased tension between communities here, Churches are encouraged to take this chance to celebrate human diversity as something desirable and willed by God instead of something to be feared and hated. The Churches' Commission for Racial Justice (a Commission of Churches Together in Britain and Ireland) has produced worship resources to enable Churches to celebrate cultural and ethnic diversity and to commit themselves to prayer and action for racial justice.

South African Report Urges Church Not to Avoid Same-Sex Blessing Issue

April 16, 2003 – A report prepared for the Church of the Province of South Africa (CPSA), released this month, cites examples of same-sex unions in traditional indigenous African societies and the South African constitution's sexual orientation non-discrimination clause in arguing for a new approach by the church to the blessing of same-sex relationships. The Archbishop's Committee on Same-Sex Unions, chaired by Professor Joan Church of the Diocese of Pretoria and consisting of senior lay and clerical members of the church, produced the report in response to a Provincial Synod resolution requiring the CPSA to clarify its position with regard to same sex unions. The committee directed its findings to the South African Anglican Theological Commission. "The issue of same sex unions strikes at the heart of the Anglican church, which has fought long and hard for justice and inclusivity, but a definitive stand is likely to lead to polarization rather than unity unless all debaters are treated with respect and dignity," said Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane, in summarizing the report for a press release.

Study Guide Helps Church Groups Consider Faith in Wartime

April 15, 2003, NASHVILLE - The United Methodist Church is offering a free, online study guide to help congregations and groups "consider God's Word" in this time of war. Interpreter magazine, UMC.org and United Methodist News Service have teamed up to offer the four-part study guide, "Can We Talk? Seeking God's Heart in Time of War." Ray Waddle, a seminary-trained journalist and former religion editor of The Tennessean newspaper, wrote the guide, in consultation with M. Garlinda Burton, Interpreter editor and director of UMNS. The magazine, news service and Web site are operated by United Methodist Communications.

215th Presbyterian General Assembly - "A House of Prayer for All Peoples"
Will Be Accessible to Readers, Viewers, Listeners & Clickers

April 14, 2003, LOUISVILLE - The Office of Communication and the Office of the General Assembly will maintain an "open house" before, during and after the 215th General Assembly in Denver - which runs from May 24 through May 31under the theme A House of Prayer for All Peoples - with a broad array of communication services.

Ecumenical News

Aboriginal Pastor in Taiwan Sues the Government

April 20, 2003 – The Rev. Sakinu, a member of the Paiwan Tribe and moderator of the East Paiwan Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (PCT) filed suit against Taiwan's government over land rights issues. Sakinu says that land titles are unclear in aboriginal areas. The greatest threat comes not from one's neighbor, but from the central government, which has a history of appropriating Aboriginal lands for its own political and infrastructure purposes.

Archbishop of Canterbury Spends Palm Sunday with Church in Jerusalem

April 14, 2003, JERUSALEM - Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams spent Palm Sunday with the Christians in Jerusalem, issuing a pastoral letter to Christians in the Middle East and preaching at the Anglican Cathedral of St. George the Martyr in Jerusalem. Click here for the text of his sermon. In his letter, presented to Bishop Riah Abu El-Assal, the Anglican bishop in Jerusalem, during a dinner with church leaders, Williams said that "for the last few months, with all the suffering and fear they have brought, it has been so painfully clear that without peace and justice for all the peoples of the Holy Land there is small hope of lasting reconciliation in the wider world."

Cuban Episcopalians Reverse Decision on Rejoining ECUSA

April 10, 2003 – Anglicans in Cuba have decided against seeking to rejoin the Episcopal Church of the United States (ECUSA). The decision, made at the regular annual synod of the Episcopal Church of Cuba in Matanzas this February, reverses a strong vote the previous February to seek reunion with ECUSA. In a vote by orders, 11 clergy voted against and eight voted in favour of the move, while in the lay order, 31 voted in favour and 17 voted against. A majority in both houses was required to pass the measure. The decision means the Cuban church will continue to operate as an "extra-Provincial" Anglican Church, with oversight provided by a Metropolitan Council, chaired by Canada's Archbishop Michael Peers.

Young People's Ministries Get 12 Grants from Agency

April 14, 2003, NASHVILLE - Twelve projects addressing concerns of young people will receive grants through programs related to the United Methodist Board of Higher Education and Ministry. The diverse projects include a ministry supporting military personnel and their families in Fayetteville, N.C., and a program addressing the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Liberian refugee camps. Eight new projects and four renewing projects will share more than $120,000. The grants were awarded from the board's portion of the denomination's Shared Mission Focus on Young People initiative.

Call to Make Sacramental Life Divine Source of Church Unity: Lutherans Say Pope's Encyclical on the Eucharist Does Not Give Sufficient Consideration to Ecumenical Dialogue Achievements

April 17, 2003, GENEVA - The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has expressed concern that although the encyclical on the Eucharist published by Pope John Paul II today acknowledges significant achievements of ecumenical dialogues involving the Roman Catholic Church, it "shows that the many years" of such discussions have not resulted in new considerations concerning the Eucharist. In a statement today, LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko notes the encyclical's mention of significant achievements of ecumenical dialogues with the Roman Catholic Church in recent years, but criticizes the document's emphasis on "a lack of sacramental order of the ministry" in the Reformation churches, as a result of which "the full reality of the Eucharist is not maintained in these churches." The issue then, says Noko, is how bilateral dialogues involving the Roman Catholics, may indeed have an effect on the rules and regulations of eucharistic administration.

Spanish News

El CMI pide clemencia para un menor estadounidense sentenciado a prisisn de por vida

16 de abril de 2003 – El secretario general del CMI, Rev. Dr. Konrad Raiser, apels al gobernador de Florida (Estados Unidos), Jeb Bush, para que indulte a Lionel Tate, quien el 9 de marzo de 2001 fue sentenciado a prisisn de por vida sin posibilidad de excarcelacisn, por un crimen que cometis cuando tenma 12 aqos de edad. Raiser adhiris a un pedido similar de los obispos anglicanos de la Iglesia Episcopal de Florida, y seqals que el castigo "no sslo es muy severo sino que no tiene en consideracisn su corta edad."

El Consejo Mundial de Iglesias deplora denegacisn de justicia a disidentes cubanos

16 de abril de 2003 – En una carta dirigida al presidente cubano Fidel Castro, el secretario general del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI), Konrad Raiser, deplors la denegacisn de justicia incurrida en el modo sumario en que disidentes polmticos cubanos fueron recientemente juzgados y condenados a severas penas. Ademas pidis la revisisn de las sentencias y la liberacisn de los condenados.

Religious & Civil Liberty

Rightists, Government Officials Seek To Put End To Political Violence

April 14, 2003, LILONGWE - Top government officials met with human rights activists in Lilongwe recently to try and come up with a national plan of action that would promote human rights in Malawi. The meeting, which brought together principal secretaries, heads of government departments as well as human rights activists, examined how to integrate into government policy, a plan that had been drawn up by Malawi Human Rights Commission.

Senate Scales Down, Passes Faith-based Initiative

April 16, 2003, WASHINGTON - A bill providing tax breaks for charitable giving and more than $1 billion for social service grants to states has passed the Senate. Bearing almost no resemblance to President Bush's "faith-based initiative" proposal, the stripped-down piece of legislation encourages giving to charities by granting non-itemizing taxpayers a tax deduction of up to $250 for their gifts. The Senate passed the bill in a 95-5 vote April 9.

Episcopal Presiding Bishop Raises Question of Human Rights in Sudan

April 11, 2003 – Presiding Bishop Frank T. Griswold wrote to Ambassador John Negroponte, United States representative at the United Nations, expressing his "deep concern about the situation in Sudan." The UN Human Rights Commission, meeting in Geneva through April 25, is considering a resolution that would reclassify Sudan's human rights status, an action that would revoke the mandate for the presence of a UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights. "The presence of the Rapporteur and his human rights monitoring functions are among the elements helping to keep the Sudan peace process on track," according to Jere Skipper, international policy analyst at the Episcopal Church's Office of Government Relations in Washington, DC.

New York Metropolitan Area

Pastor Takes up Fast for Peace

April 15, 2003 – When bombs started falling on Iraq, the Rev. Dick Capron, a United Methodist pastor in Delanson, N.Y., decided to embody his prayers for peace by beginning a spiritual fast. The 54-year-old pastor and pastoral counselor has maintained his fast since March 19, when U.S.-led forces began the military action to topple Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. "I couldn't see life going on as usual while people are being killed in an unnecessary action," Capron explains. Though his concerns continue, he has chosen Easter Sunday, April 20, as an ending date for his witness. His fast will have lasted 32 days. "The day of resurrection is a good time to move forward with life," he says.

National News

WCC Requests Clemency for a Us Minor Sentenced to Life in Prison

April 16, 2003, GENEVA - The WCC general secretary, Rev. Dr Konrad Raiser, appealed to the governor of Florida (USA), Jeb Bush, to exercise clemency in the case of Lionel Tate, who on March 9th, 2001, was sentenced to life in prison without parole for a crime committed when he was 12 years old. Raiser endorsed a similar request from Anglican bishops of the Episcopal Church in Florida, and pointed out that the punishment "is not only harsh but also fails to take into consideration his tender age."

Episcopalians Advocate for Better Health-care System

April 16, 2003 – The inadequacy of the nation's health-care system will be the domestic issue upon which the next federal election will hinge, Henry E. Simmons, president of the National Coalition on Health Care, predicted to about 80 Episcopal health-care professionals at a conference in Washington, D.C., April 8-9. Simmons, head of a broadly representative alliance of 93 organizations working to improve health care, likened the current situation to the "Perfect Storm" that occurred in the North Atlantic in 1991 that caused millions in damage and the loss of many lives. "Such a storm has now formed in our health care system; but unlike nature's storm, this one will not abate in short order," the physician warned. "In fact, there is no end in sight, and there is reason to expect ever-increasing intensity and damage.'

International News

NCC/CWS Consultation Takes Steps to Address Korea Crisis

April 14, 2003, CHICAGO - U.S. and Korean churches are building on their longstanding relationship to launch a new effort to address the burgeoning political and humanitarian crisis on the Korean peninsula, related to the recent breakdown in dialogue between the United States and North Korea and the escalation in war rhetoric. Friday (April 11) in Chicago, the top executives of the National Council of Churches (NCC) and Church World Service (CWS) convened an urgent meeting with representatives of member churches to outline a common advocacy strategy on U.S. Korea policy.

Building Bridges Seminar in Qatar

April 9, 2003 – "Building Bridges" was the title of a significant Christian-Muslim Dialogue Seminar that has just ended in Doha in the State of Qatar. Fifteen Christian scholars, led by Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, joined with fifteen Muslim Theologians to explore the use of Scripture in the two faiths.

Child Soldiers: Easy to Make, Hard to Break

April 14, 2003 – The use of minors in armed conflict has been a case for concern for years. Despite ratification of international conventions and protocols to contain the practice, the number of children in active combat around the world is as frightening as the experiences of those forcefully abducted to fight. Efforts to re-integrate former child soldiers into society hardly bear fruits, reports Geoffrey H. Kaiza. With new lightweight weapons that are easy to fire, children are today more easily armed and recruited in active combat.

Cross-Border Cattle Raids That Perplex Authorities

April 14, 2003 – For years, Pokot, Marakwet, Turkana, Karamojong, and Sebei communities living along Kenya-Uganda border, have engaged each other in cattle rustling wars. The practice, which presently involves use of sophisticated weapons, has led to deaths of thousands of people and destruction of property. AANA Correspondent Herman Kasili, who recently interviewed a Kenyan Member of Parliament from the region, reports that cattle rustling may not end soon, unless Kenyan and Ugandan authorities empower the communities economically. The Pokots are a pastoralist ethnic group living about 600 kilometres north-west of Nairobi.

A Community That Has Nothing To Count

April 14, 2003 – Despite the free education policy, pastoral nomads in north-western Kenya find it hard to enrol their children in schools as hunger continues to bite. A 12-year-old girl could as well fetch a few cows for the starving community, writes Susan Mwangi. As Kenyans mark 100 days of a new government and the free education that came with it, patoralists of Kapenguria in West Pokot district in north-western Kenya have nothing to count. The region that last had mild rains last November is currently experiencing the worst drought, as far as they can remember.

Anti-AIDS Crusaders Launch Clampdown On Brothels

April 14, 2003, BLANTYRE - Alarmed by increasing HIV-prevalence, campaigners against AIDS have embarked on an aggressive exercise to shut down brothels sprouting in major cities and urban centres in Malawi. The country is among others in southern Africa hard-hit by the disease. Two million of the 10 million population are carrying the virus, according to recent figures from the National AIDS Commission (NAC).

Government Plan To Fight Illegal Arms Gets Church Support

April 14, 2003, NAIROBI - The Church in Kenya is in support of government's plan to stamp out illegal arms among pastoral communities of Turkana, Samburu, Pokot and Marakwet in north-western Kenya, saying the weapons have caused increase in cattle rustling in the region. A source within National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK), who opted for anonymity while reacting to a recent announcement by Minister in-charge of National Security on the issue, remarked: "This is in line with our concern for peace-building initiatives in the affected areas."

Lutherans Collect More than $17 Million for World Hunger

April 15, 2003, CHICAGO (ELCA) - The World Hunger Appeal of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) collected more than $16 million in 2002 - surpassing 2001 general World Hunger contributions by $400,000 - plus $1 million in "Stand With Africa" giving. The revised income goal for the 2002 appeal was $16 million. "We were in shock when the ELCA Office of the Treasurer reported that, on the very last night that income was posted for 2002, $1.2 million was recorded for the World Hunger Appeal," said Lita Brusick Johnson, director, World Hunger Appeal, ELCA Division for Congregational Ministries.

United Methodist Bishop Leads Hearings in Sierra Leone

April 16, 2003 – The Sierra Leone Truth and Reconciliation Commission, led by a United Methodist bishop, began public hearings April 14 in Freetown to address the wounds of that West African country's civil war. Created by the 1999 Lome Peace Agreement and established by an act of parliament in February 2000, the commission's mandate is to create an impartial historical record of human rights violations and abuses during the 1991-99 armed conflict in Sierra Leone.

Taiwan's Presbyterians Establish Society for "This Land" Theology

April 20, 2003 – Clergy and laypersons have established a "This Land Theology Society" led by Dr. Ong Chong-giau of Tainan Theological College and Seminary in Tainan City, Taiwan. A formal meeting to recognize the founding of the society will be held on April 25th. It is intended to bring together contemporary theological currents with the distinct tone of Taiwan's social life and provide churches with resources for facing current challenges. The society initially hopes to focus on two projects. Archived materials from the Taiwan Church News (which was published in Romanized Taiwanese before 1969) will be translated into Chinese characters.

Peace Talks, Ceasefire, Humanitarian Aid Crucial for Liberia, CWS Says

April 16, 2003, NEW YORK CITY - Liberian church leaders are pleading for urgent world attention to the worsening military and humanitarian crisis in their country as renewed intensive fighting in Liberia's 13-year-old civil war displaces tens of thousands of civilians every week. "The world must not watch the death of the rest of us," said the Rev. Kortu K. Brown, among advocates for the immediate scheduling of negotiations for a ceasefire and an end to all hostilities, then a political process leading to lasting peace. "The crisis right now is very serious and is challenging our limits," said the Rev. Brown, who directs Concerned Christian Community, a Liberian faith-based humanitarian service organization. "We need immediate food aid - rice, salt, oil, etc. - to avert any starvation that may result from thousands of people running from fighting."

World Council of Churches Regrets Miscarriage of Justice in Trial of Cuban Dissidents

April 16, 2003 – In a letter addressed to the Cuban President, Fidel Castro, the general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), Konrad Raiser, expresses regret at the miscarriage of justice in the recent trial in which Cuban political dissidents were found guilty and received heavy sentences. He further urges that their sentences be reviewed and that they be released. "In view of the summary nature of the proceedings, the gravity of the charges, and the severity of the punishment" in the recent trials of "members of human rights groups, scholars and political dissidents" in Cuba, "the World Council of Churches is of the considered view that there has been a miscarriage of justice," states the letter from Geneva dated 15 April. According to the WCC general secretary, in order to have had a "fair trial," the accused "should have been tried according to due process of law rather than under Articles 479 and 480 of the Criminal Procedure Code," which he considers to be "applicable in exceptional cases only and should not have been applied to the case in hand."

Middle East News

ELCA Presiding Bishop Gives Thanks for Apparent End to War

April 17, 2003, CHICAGO - The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), said in an April 16 statement that he is thankful the most intense phase of the military conflict in Iraq has ceased. Hanson said he is grateful for sacrifices made in the war with Iraq, remains concerned about support for all affected by the war and is committed to moral deliberation "about pressing issues of our country."

Archbishops Call for Urgent Humanitarian Aid

April 14, 2003, DUBLIN - The Archbishop of Armagh, the Most Revd Dr Robin Eames, and the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd John Neill, have urged the international community to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Iraq. In a joint statement the Archbishops said: "The consequences of the war in Iraq have still to unfold, but already the desperate humanitarian situation is apparent. Millions of people young and old alike are facing loss of adequate housing, food, water and medical care, to say nothing of the trauma caused through injury and the loss of loved ones.

Churches Take Iraq War Concerns to Kofi Annan

April 9, 2003 – An ecumenical delegation has met with United Nations General Secretary, Kofi Annan, to stress the importance of getting humanitarian aid to Iraqi civilians trapped inside the expanding war zone. The Revd Marian McClure, director of the Worldwide Ministries Division (WMD) of the Presbyterian Church (USA), was the spokesperson for the delegation that included representatives from Church World Service (the relief arm of the National Council of Churches), the Quakers, the Anglicans, the Lutheran World Federation and the Presbyterian Church (USA). The seven-member delegation said it also spoke on behalf of the United Methodist Church and the Mennonites.

Taiwan's Christians Participate in Humanitarian Aid to Iraq

April 20, 2003 – Though the end of major warfare in Iraq presents a ray of hope, the processes of relief and reconstruction are not going to be easy. Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently invited several Christian agencies: The Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (PCT), the Taiwan Catholic Mission Foundation, the Eden Social Welfare Foundation and World Vision/Taiwan; along with 12 other NGO's to coordinate its "Love from Taiwan / United Aid To Iraq" action. The plan is to involve the people of this nation (not just the government) in the provision of pure water, milk powder, salt, sugar and other staples to alleviate shortages in war torn areas. Chang Hwa Christian Hospital, a PCT agency, made the first monetary donation, 30 million Taiwan Yuan (810,810 Euros) to get the ball rolling.

First Copies of Revised Devotional Reach Troops

April 14, 2003, NASHVILLE - United Methodists may hold different opinions about the war with Iraq, but they are united in offering prayers and expressing concern for men and women risking their lives there. The Commission on United Methodist Men is engaged in a national effort to provide all U.S. service men and women with an updated book of daily devotions - a book first sent to U.S. troops in World War II and again during the Korean conflict. To date, some 25,000 copies of the book Strength for Service to God and Country have been sent to troops stationed in Afghanistan and neighboring nations. The most recent shipment of the 400-page book was sent to the 101st Airborne, based at Fort Campbell, Ky.

Church Leaders Urge Initiatives for Israeli-Palestinian Peace

April 11, 2003, WASHINGTON - As the world's political leaders continued to promise the release of a "Road Map" for Middle East peace, U.S. church leaders in Washington urged the Bush Administration to move swiftly and resolutely toward reviving Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. At the same time, they offered elements considered essential if the road map is to compel both Israelis and Palestinians to take effective steps for establishing two peaceful and secure states side-by-side. Commenting through Churches for Middle East Peace, a coalition of 17 Catholic and Protestant organizations and denominations, the church leaders declared that the Israeli-Palestinian crisis remains the most critical matter to resolve in the Middle East.

Innocent Iraqi Children Die at Hands of Those Supposed to Protect Them

April 15, 2003, NEW YORK - "Because of sanctions, a whole generation of children born after the 1991 war have been deprived of the right to adequate food which would allow them to develop normally. Now, the war in Iraq adds to this by seriously affecting and disadvantaging another generation of children." This assessment, expressing deep concern about the impact of international sanctions and of war on Iraqi children and women, was part of an oral intervention made today to the current (59th) session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) by the World Council of Churches (WCC) with other Christian humanitarian organizations. The oral intervention was submitted by the WCC Commission of Churches on International Affairs (CCIA), Dominicans for Justice and Peace, Caritas Internationalis and Franciscans International.

Pakistan's Blasphemy Laws 'A Source of Victimization and Persecution of Minorities'

April 14, 2003, NEW YORK - Religious intolerance and discrimination on the basis of religion, with special emphasis on the situation in Pakistan and that country's blasphemy laws, was highlighted by the World Council of Churches (WCC) at the current (59th) session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) in a joint oral intervention submitted on 11 April with other organizations under Agenda Item 11: Civil and Political rights: Religious intolerance. "In some countries," states the intervention, "religious discrimination is inscribed in laws and imbedded in societal structures." The example given is Pakistan's blasphemy laws 295 B and C, whose violation brings severe punishment, including the death penalty. "This has resulted over the years in religious intolerance and violence against Christians, Hindus and members of the Ahmadiye community, the imposition of discriminatory and repressive laws against religious minorities and extremist attacks against religious minorities, especially Christians," the intervention affirms.

Update on St Philip's Church & Ahli Arab Hospital, Gaza

April 14, 2003, EPISCOPAL DIOCESE OF JERUSALEM - St Philip's Chapel remains in shambles more than two months after Israeli soldiers bombed the church in the Al Ahli Arab Hospital complex, with repairs estimated at some US$25,000. However, hospital officials already have repaired windows of surrounding hospital buildings, and donations for church repairs keep coming. It's all a matter of picking up the pieces - a process that the hospital, a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, knows only too well in this war-torn region. "We are grateful to all our friends who keep praying for us and who also give us a hand of help," said hospital director, Suhaila Tarazi. "Hand in hand, we will continue to do God's work in this area."

Statement from the Anglican Church in South East Asia

April 14, 2003 – The Standing Committee of the Province of the Anglican Church in South East Asia, meeting in Singapore on 19-21 March 2003: is deeply saddened by the outbreak of hostilities in Iraq, recognising that war causes indiscriminate and untold suffering to many ...

People in the News

Matthew Giuffrida, Leader in Refugee Resettlement Ministries, Dies

April 17, 2003, VALLEY FORGE, Pa. - Matthew Giuffrida, a longtime leader in refugee resettlement and interfaith work for American Baptist National Ministries, died yesterday in St. Petersburg, Fla. He was 77. Giuffrida, who served as director of National Ministries' Direct Human Services program and was a commissioned American Baptist home missionary, retired in 1993 after 38 years of service.

Mission Agency Loses 24 Staff to Retirement

April 14, 2003, BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Twenty-four staff from the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries are retiring June 30 because of changes in the denomination's pension plan. The list of retirees was presented during the agency's April 7-10 meeting in Birmingham. During his address to board directors, the Rev. R. Randy Day, chief executive, spoke about his regret that pension changes for lay employees could affect the board's operations. "These persons, all of them laity and most of them women, were more or less given an ultimatum: retire now or lose a big part of your benefits," he said. "We have protested this policy directly to the General Board of Pensions and Health Benefits, to no avail, and we cannot blame persons for acting to protect the benefits they rightfully have earned."