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United Methodists Seek Children's Environmental Protection

May 9, 2003, WASHINGTON - In a pre-Mother's Day letter, the Children's Environmental Health Network has called on President George W. Bush to protect children from environmental health hazards. The nearly 70 organizations that signed the coalition's letter include the United Methodist Board of Church and Society and the United Methodist Appalachian Ministry Network. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.), a United Methodist, declared her intention to reintroduce the Nationwide Health Tracking Act. That legislation would "establish a nationwide network to improve and integrate health and environmental data - including nationwide data on childhood asthma, cancer and birth defects," she said in a statement read at a press conference May 8.

General News

Episcopal Publications Receive Top Awards at Associated Church Press

May 8, 2003 – Publications of the Episcopal Church received many of the top awards at the annual convention of the Associated Church Press (ACP) in Indianapolis, April 27-30 under the theme, "Getting to the heart of our stories." In the category for national and international newspapers, Episcopal Life not only took a total of 11 awards, it claimed more first-place awards, ACP's "Award of Excellence," than any other publication in this year's contest - a total of seven. It also received an honorable mention in the category Best-in-Class.

Episcopal Communicators Meet in Los Angeles - the 'Brownest City in America'

May 7, 2003 – Episcopal Communicators from across the nation met April 23-26 in Los Angeles, described by the keynote speaker as "the brownest city in America," where the program of the conference drew heavily on the city's cultural diversity in exploring the theme of "transformation." The 120 participants were welcomed by Bob Williams, director of communications in the host Diocese of Los Angeles, during an opening dinner at the pueblo where the city was founded in 1781. Quoting a Buddhist teacher who said that "change by choice is transformation," Williams presided at the opening session at the Los Angeles Times the next morning. He introduced keynoter Richard Rodriguez, author and commentator on PBS' News Hour, who described the "browning of America," how old cultural categories are breaking down and new possibilities are emerging. What he described as the historic American "founding palette" of black, red and white, he said, is being muddied into brown. "Brown is irrelevant to Americans but brown gives freedom to wander, to blend," he explained.

Rajashekar to Address Christian Unity Dinner

May 9, 2003, VALLEY FORGE, Pa.. - Rev. Dr. J. Paul Rajashekar, a Lutheran minister, scholar, international lecturer and author, will speak on "Dialogue or Mission: A Christian Response to Religious Pluralism" at the Christian Unity Dinner June 29 during the American Baptist Churches USA Biennial Meeting in Richmond. Rajashekar, the Luther D. Reed Professor of Systematic Theology and dean of The Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, is a well-known expert in inter-religious dialog. In his presentation at the Christian Unity Dinner he will address such issues as how Christians can engage in interfaith dialog without compromising their claims and convictions, the place for conversion in such dialog, and how Christians can navigate their faith in the midst of a rising tide of religious pluralism.

Ecumenical News

WCC General Secretary to Visit Brazil and Meet 'Lula' - Preparations for next WCC Assembly Begin

Rev. Dr Konrad Raiser will visit Brazil to launch local preparations for the next, ninth assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC), to take place there in February 2006. At the beginning of his visit, Raiser will meet the country's new president. From 11-17 May 2003, the WCC general secretary will visit Brasilia and Porto Alegre - the city in which the Council's ninth assembly will be held. Raiser will meet President Luiz Inacio "Lula" da Silva in Brasilia on Monday 12 May. He will be accompanied by leaders of national churches and the board of directors of the National Council of Christian Churches in Brazil (CONIC).

United Methodists, Catholics Meet in Dallas

May 8, 2003 – United Methodists and Roman Catholics continued to explore how each denomination operates, both globally and locally, during a recent dialogue session in Dallas. The April 24-26 meeting was the fifth in a round of dialogue that began in 2001. Officials with the two traditions have been discussing their faiths together since 1966. The focus on "The Church in Each Place and in All Places" is being led by United Methodist Bishop Walter Klaiber of Germany and Roman Catholic Bishop Gerald Barnes of San Bernardino, Calif. The United Methodist Commission on Christian Unity and the National Conference of Catholic Bishops are assisting the dialogue teams.

National News

Maine Suicide Tied to Arsenic Poisonings at Lutheran Church

May 8, 2003, CHICAGO - Public health and law enforcement officials in Maine ruled the death of Daniel Bondeson, 53, to be a suicide and indicated that a note found in Bondeson's Woodland, Maine, home linked him and possibly others to an arsenic poisoning that killed one and sickened more than a dozen other members of Gustaf Adolph Lutheran Church, New Sweden, Maine, a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). Members of the congregation in northeast Maine became nauseated Sunday afternoon, April 27, shortly after drinking coffee and eating sandwiches and sweets at the church. Walter Reid Morrill, 78, died the next day from what Maine health officials identified as arsenic poisoning.

West Tennessee Parish Emerges from Rubble Left by Powerful Storms

May 8, 2003 – Powerful storms ripped across West Tennessee late Sunday, May 4, killing at least 15 people, injuring 77, and causing more than $5 million in damage - including the destruction of one of Tennessee's oldest churches, St. Luke's in downtown Jackson. The National Weather Service rated the storms at F4 on the Fujita scale, packing winds at over 205 mph. With hail hitting all around, St. Luke's rector, the Rev. Chuck Filiatreau, rushed to the church. His wife Gretchen made some phone calls and St. Luke's members began to travel the darkened streets to gather at their place of worship, which dates from 1844 and is one of the oldest buildings in the city.

United Methodists Rush to Help in Wake of Storms

May 9, 2003 – United Methodists are helping pick up the pieces, clean up debris and cope with devastating losses that occurred in a weeklong series of tornadoes and severe storms that began May 4. Tom Hazelwood of the United Methodist Committee on Relief emergency services office in Washington visited affected areas of Missouri and Kansas May 8 and 9. UMCOR volunteers Bob and Cherri Baer are working with the Kansas East Conference disaster response coordinator, Julie Pohl, and Missouri disaster response coordinator, Joe Bartlesmeyer. The tornadoes killed at least 18 people in Missouri, 13 in Tennessee and seven in Kansas. Two people were killed and at least seven injured May 6 in southern Illinois in a second round of severe storms. Flooding took at least two lives in Tennessee.

Lutherans Provide Disaster Response after Spring Storms

May 7, 2003, CHICAGO - Changes of seasons are accompanied by devastating storms, according to the Rev. Gilbert B. Furst, director of Lutheran Disaster Response, a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. Lutheran Disaster Response continues to help survivors recover from hurricanes, tornadoes, tropical storms and other disasters across the country. Response to a disaster is often carried out by a local team providing emergency supplies, offering pastoral care and counseling, coordinating volunteer efforts in relief and rebuilding, and providing grants to victims. This response is coordinated with other interfaith and community efforts.

International News

Evangelical Churches Call on Faithful to Vote Sunday with Common Good in Mind

April 23, 2003, BUENOS AIRES - Ten Argentina Evangelical Churches called on citizens to vote next Sunday in presidential elections with common good in mind as opposed to just individual or sector interests. On April 27 25 million Argentines will elect President Eduardo Duhalde's successor from 19 candidates. Duhalde was named by Congress in December 2001 to replace Fernando de la Rua, who resigned when he was unable to face Argentina's social and economic crisis. Duhalde was to complete de la Rua's mandate, which was up in December 2003, but decided to hold presidential elections early.

CLAI Expresses Concern about Repression of Opposition Members in Cuba

April 23, 2003, QUITO - In an open letter to the government of Cuba, he Latin American Council of Churches (CLAI) Board of Directors expressed concern about the use of force and repression against those who politically oppose the Fidel Castro regime. The document, disseminated Tuesday, said that CLAI "feels legitimately satisfied for raising the flag of human rights where these rights have been violated, both within and outside of Latin America." "This position is coherent with the values that we consider essential in the Biblical message: dignity, solidarity, mercy and our conviction that human beings are made in the image and likeness of God," it added.

Evangelicals Reject Tax Reform

April 24, 2003, MANAGUA - Evangelical Churches, non-government rganizations and grassroots sectors raised a voice of alarm about a tax reform project under which even medicine and used clothing donations will apparently be subject to taxation. The Pro-Denominational Alliance Council of Evangelical Churches (CEPAD) called on its pastoral committees and member Churches to protest and to demand a clarification about the negative impact of this tax reform. CEPAD invited the second vice president of the National Assembly Orlando Tardencilla to a meeting Tuesday and former Congresswoman Dora Maria Tillez in order to analyze the socio-political crisis in Nicaragua.

Union of Evangelical Christian Churches Created in Peru

April 24, 2003, LIMA - Leaders from several Evangelical Churches and communities legally constituted an entity called the Union of Evangelical Christian Churches of Peru (UNICEP) last Tuesday. UNICEP, according to the approved statutes, is a religious, fraternal association, representing Evangelical Churches, missions and para-Church ministries in Peru. The new organization seeks to represent its members before the State and to Promote Evangelism, culture and values; to offer its opinion about ethical and moral aspects that affect the nation and to contribute to upholding the testimony of the Churches and their ministers before society.

Young Methodist Prepare Pre-continental Assembly

April 23, 2003, SAO PAULO - Under the theme "The Kingdom of God and His Justice, our celebration and commitment" more than 40 young people from Latin America and the Caribbean will meet May 13 - 16 in the Methodist Youth Pre-Assembly. The meeting on the Taquaral Campus of the Methodist University of Piracicaba (Unimep) constitutes the pre-youth assembly prior to the VIII General Assembly of the Evangelical Methodist Churches of Latin America and the Caribbean Council (CIEMAL) that will meet on the same site from May 17-22.

Major AIDS Initiative Launched in Southern Africa

May 8, 2003, CAPA - The significance of the Church in the fight against HIV/AIDS has once again been brought to the fore after the Church of the Province of Southern Africa (CPSA) recently partnered with Christian Aid (UK) and the British Government, through DFID, to embark on a major R222 million (US$30.5 million) AIDS programme. The programme dubbed 'Isiseko Sokomoleza' (Building the Foundation) was launched at a colourful ceremony at St Mary's Cathedral, in Johannesburg, South Africa, on April 23. This is perhaps the largest funded AIDS programme in the world to be undertaken by a single faith-based community (FBO). CPSA contribution in human capital has been calculated at R177 million while Christian Aid and DFID will provide the further R45 million to create the combined value of R222 million.

Middle East News

Message from the Anglican Bishop of Jerusalem

Dear Friends: Salaam and grace in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and greetings from Jerusalem. By now, most of you probably have heard about the "Road Map" that proposes to create a Palestinian state by 2005. As you can well imagine, this is an issue that lies very near to our hearts, as the people here have suffered more than 50 years under Israeli occupation. But is this Road Map really the solution to our problems? Israeli journalist, Uri Avnery, answered the question with a resounding "no" in an article he recently wrote about the proposal, entitled "Much Ado About Nothing." In the article, he notes that political realities, such as Israel's refusal to cease building settlements, the United States' reluctance to exert serious pressure on Israel, and the lack of power in Europe and the United Nations, already make the plan dead in the water.

War Against Disease, Hunger Continues for Iraqis, Especially Children, Church World Service Representative Reports Following Baghdad Visit

May 9, 2003, BAGHDAD, IRAQ - Following a week-long assessment visit to Baghdad, the global humanitarian agency Church World Service (CWS) is reporting that while "major combat operations" in Iraq have ended, the war against disease and hunger continues for the Iraqi people - especially Iraq's children. Amman, Jordan-based CWS Emergency Response Consultant Steve Weaver reported a high incidence of diarrhea among children, overcrowding in hospitals and clinics, and a general lack of sources of protein. "According to UNICEF," Weaver said, "ninety percent of children coming to Baghdad's Central Child Hospital have diarrhea. " Weaver spent April 23-May 5 in Baghdad.

Church Relief Convoy Delivers Items to Iraq

May 8, 2003, BAGHDAD - The threat of being hijacked along the highway to Baghdad is a concern shared by many people and one of the dangers the Middle East Council of Churches convoy faced as it traveled from Jordan to Iraq's capital in early May to deliver much needed relief items. The convoy of six trucks, driven by local Iraqis, was loaded with 250 winter tents, 19,200 cans of meat, 1,000 food packets consisting of oil, tea, beans, sugar, rice and detergents, 6,380 blankets, 2.2 tons of BP5 high-protein biscuits and a 40-foot container of medicines.