Front Page

Funeral Homily Extols Pope's Evangelical Zeal

April 8, 2005, VATICAN – In his homily at the funeral Mass for John Paul II, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger said that the key to understanding the life and pontificate of the beloved Pope can be found in Christ's last words to St. Peter: "Follow me." Although the funeral Mass was celebrated mostly in Latin (with Scripture readings in Spanish and English), the dean of the College of Cardinals delivered his homily in Italian. In it he spoke of the Pope's burial as "a seed of immortality." He remarked that while the world mourns the Pontiff, his funeral is also an occasion for "joyful hope and profound gratitude." Cardinal Ratzinger began his homily by acknowledging the hundreds of dignitaries who had traveled to Rome to attend the funeral at St. Peter's Basilica, the hundreds of thousands gathered outside on the streets of Rome, and the countless millions watching the ceremony on television.

Ecumenical Tributes on the Death of Pope John Paul II

A Collection of Statements from world and national religious leaders.

Cardinals Agree to Avoid Interviews

April 9, 2005, VATICAN – At the daily congregation meeting on Saturday, April 9, the cardinals "unanimously decided to avoid interviews and encounters with the media," the Vatican has reported. In a public statement announcing that decision, the Vatican press office added: "Journalists are therefore courteously invited to abstain from asking the cardinals for interviews or any other comments." The statement went on to say that the cardinals did not intend to show discourtesy for the media, but merely to preserve the confidentiality of their discussions and to avoid unwanted public speculation. In the few public disclosures that were authorized by the congregation, the cardinals thanked the officials who organized the funeral for Pope John Paul II, and the faithful who attended or prayerfully followed the ceremony. They also expressed their sincere thanks to Italian officials who helped to maintain public order during the event, which drew an unprecedented crowd to Rome.

Asian Churches to Deepen Their Commitment to Overcoming Violence in 2005

April 5, 2005 – Asia has the potential to become economically prosperous in the near future, but it is also likely to see increasing disparities of health and wealth. These injustices are themselves a form of violence that may in turn lead to yet more expressions of violence in the region. This potential scenario makes the focus on the Asian region in 2005 by the Decade to Overcome Violence (DOV) all the more relevant. This assessment was voiced by Rev. Rothangliani R. Chhangte from the American Baptist Churches in the USA during the formal launch of the DOV Asia focus at the 12th general assembly of the Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) on Saturday 2 April in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

General News

Call for Comment: End-of-Life Issues

April 1, 2005 – End-of-Life issues continue as a matter of public discourse and personal reflection following the March 31 death of Terri Schiavo – the 41-year-old Florida woman who suffered severe brain damage in 1990 and for 15 years lived in what doctors called a persistent vegetative state. Her death came two weeks after the controversial removal of the feeding tube that kept her alive and thrust her husband and legal guardian Michael Schiavo and her parents into a seven-year legal battle that is now causing the U.S. Congress to re-visit end-of-life issues. Recent polls show that a majority of Americans oppose lawmakers' intervention in the Schiavo case..

ELCA Synod Councils Offer Spectrum of Advice on Homosexuality

April 7, 2005, CHICAGO – As of April 6 the councils of 52 of the 65 synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) offered advice on how the ELCA Church Council should deal with recommendations prepared by a task force for ELCA Studies on Sexuality. At its April 9-11 meeting the Church Council will prepare resolutions for the ELCA Churchwide Assembly this summer on two questions regarding homosexuality. Forty-one synod councils adopted and forwarded 42 resolutions and another 11 synod councils provided narrative information to the Church Council on two questions the Churchwide Assembly will answer in Orlando, Fla., Aug. 8-14: Should the church bless same-gender relationships? Should the church allow people in such relationships to serve the church as professional lay and ordained ministers?

Hispanic Leaders Attack Iliff Advertisement

April 5, 2005 – Hispanic leaders are incensed by a United Methodist seminary's newspaper ad, in which the school extols its accomplishments following the controversial departure of its Hispanic president. The advertisement, in the form of an open letter to United Methodists from Iliff School of Theology, appeared in the March 25 issue of the United Methodist Reporter. In it, the Denver seminary said it was resolved to address the findings of an investigative team that examined leadership and cultural sensitivity issues related to the retirement of the Rev. David Maldonado, former president of Iliff School of Theology. The ad stated that the school was addressing the report's recommendations "with efficacy and diligence."

Earth Day Focus Set on ‘Sacred Oceans and Seas'
National Council of Churches Offers Resources for April 24 Earth Day Sunday;
April 22 Is 35th Annual Earth Day

April 4, 2005 – With a weekend of environmental awareness and advocacy nearing for Episcopalians and the wider world community April 22-24, the National Council of Churches (NCC) is providing congregations with study resources exploring "Sacred Oceans and Seas." The 35th anniversary observance of Earth Day is Friday, April 22 – and year-round care for God's creation is the mission of the Environmental Stewardship ministries based at the Episcopal Church Center, New York. Among these efforts is on-going participation in the NCC Eco-justice Programs, outlined online at http://www.nccecojustice.org/. Through the NCC Eco-justice website, resources are offered for the use of congregations and individuals on Earth Day Sunday, April 24, or on another designated day.

Ecumenical News

Christian Unity Workshop Explores Theme of Belonging to Christ

April 7, 2005 – "The broken arm (of the Church, the Body of Christ) is healing, even though it is not yet time to remove the cast," said Bishop Richard J. Sklba, auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee, as he addressed some 350 participants at the 2005 National Workshop on Christian Unity meeting in New Orleans, April 4-7. Sklba commended the gathering of local ecumenical officers, staff persons, and other interested clergy and laity as those who have, over the years, carried the ecumenical vision forward. Dedicating his keynote address to the memory of the late Pope John Paul II, Sklba began by soberly reminding his audience of the context in which they were meeting – that of a bitterly divided church, nation, and world. The churches are facing conflict not only between themselves, but within their own ranks. The nation is divided over the results of the last presidential election and also over the continuing war in Iraq. And the world is divided around the effects of globalization, between the so-called developed north and the global south.

Athens World Mission Conference: a Safe Place to Explore Deep Differences

April 6, 2005 – Ruth Bottoms will miss milking cows and feeding chickens when she sits in the moderator's chair at the 9-16 May Athens Conference on World Mission and Evangelism, where she will try to ensure a balanced and representative exchange of views among nearly 500 participants from almost every slice of Christendom. In May, the British Baptist will leave her rural Pilsdon Community in remote Dorset, three hours "by fast train" to London, for the Mediterranean atmosphere of the Agios Andreas Centre, 30 km north-east of the crowded urban sprawl of Athens, the Greek capital.

ELCA, LCMS Discussions Note Surge of "Mission Spirit"

April 6, 2005 – Stronger interest in starting new congregations and mission outreach was a dominant topic in discussions among leaders of the two largest U.S. Lutheran church bodies meeting March 30 in St. Louis. Twice a year, representatives of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod meet as the Committee on Lutheran Cooperation (CLC). The two denominations work together in disaster response, world relief, military chaplaincy, and various social-ministry capacities. Reporting on priorities for missions and higher education set by the Synod at its convention last July, LCMS President Gerald B. Kieschnick referred to "Ablaze!" – the convention-approved movement to tell 100 million people worldwide about Jesus Christ by 2017, the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. He said the Synod's colleges and seminaries have been asked to help the effort by offering special courses equipping pastors and other professional church workers to provide mission leadership.

CEC Presidium Meets in Västerås, Sweden

April 6, 2005 – The Presidium of the Conference of European Churches (CEC) is meeting today until Sunday 10 April in Västerås, Sweden, upon invitation of the CEC Deputy Vice-President, the Very Rev. Margarethe Isberg, Lutheran Dean of Västerås. The 10-member Presidium serves as the executive committee of the Central Committee of CEC. The major task of this session will be to review the implementation of the decisions made by Central Committee last September in the different areas of CEC's work, and to prepare for the next Central Committee meeting which is scheduled for 4-10 June in Crete, Greece. Among other items, the Presidium will receive reports on the reconfiguration of CEC offices and commissions and on the preparations for the third European Ecumenical Assembly.

Spanish News

Luteranos Latinoamericanos Crean Fondo Editorial

7 abr 2005, BOGOTA, Columbia – La Conferencia de Obispos, Obispas, Presidentes y Presidentas (COP) de las Iglesias miembros de la Federación Luterana Mundial (FLM) en América Latina acordaron el miércoles 7 crear un Fondo Rotativo de Publicaciones. El acuerdo se tomó luego de dos días de reunión en esta capital. La publicación del libro "Para que puedan Resistir," recopilación de la lectura que hacen las iglesias del proceso globalizador neoliberal y en particular de la deuda externa, se tomó como base para hacer de esta iniciativa puntual un proceso constante.

Filman Ritual De Iniciación Xavante

5 abr 2005, SAO PAULO, Brasil – Un filme sobre el ritual de iniciación de los niños en el pueblo indígena xavante, que se celebra cada 15 años, fue producido por dos cineastas indígenas. El documental, que recoge el ritual llamado darini, será presentado el 18 del presente mes, en el Museo Afro-Brasil, en el Parque Ibirapuera de Sao Paulo. La filmación fue posible gracias a un acuerdo entre la Organización No Gubernamental Nuestra Tribu y la Facultad de Comunicación Multimedia de la Universidad Metodista de Sao Paulo.

Sínodo De Iglesias Reformadas Envía Mensaje

6 abr 2005, MAR DEL PLATA, Argentina – El 36º Sínodo de las Iglesias Reformadas de Argentina, celebrado en Mar del Plata del 1 al 3 del presente mes, envió a las iglesias miembros un mensaje de aliento y esperanza, inspirado en el lema del encuentro "Espiritualidad y Misión en Unidad." El mensaje dice que, "concientes de la crisis que atraviesan nuestras comunidades de fe, que se manifiesta con desánimo, pérdida de las vocaciones, falta de compromiso y voluntad de trabajo, invitamos a retornar a una espiritualidad en plenitud." Guiados por el Espíritu Santo, podemos cumplir con el mandato que Cristo nos encomendó, de ser parte de su misión en el mundo, que implica anunciar Vida en medio de los huesos secos que muestra la realidad, agrega.

Crece Feligresía En Las Iglesias

6 abr 2005, NUEVA YORK, Estados Unidos – Las principales iglesias protestantes, consideradas históricas en Estados Unidos, están perdiendo adherentes, mientras crecen las pentecostales, algunas con membresía afroestadounidense y la Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Días (mormones). El último Anuario de las Iglesias de Estados Unidos y Canadá, publicado por el Consejo Nacional de Iglesias (NCC) también informa del crecimiento de las iglesias ortodoxas estadounidenses, inclusive la Iglesia Ortodoxa de Estados Unidos, que, con un millón de miembros, ahora figura entre las 25 mayores denominaciones del país.

La Conferencia Misionera Mundial De Atenas: Un Lugar Seguro Para Explorar Diferencias Profundas

6 abr 2005 – Ruth Bottoms echará en falta ordeñar vacas y alimentar gallinas cuando ocupe su puesto de moderadora de la Conferencia Mundial sobre Misión y Evangelización que tendrá lugar en Atenas del 9 al 16 de mayo. Allí tratará de asegurar un equilibrado y representativo intercambio de opiniones entre los más de 500 participantes procedentes de casi todas las veredas del cristianismo. En mayo, esta bautista británica cambiará su comunidad rural en el lejano Dorset, a tres horas de Londres "por tren rápido," por la atmósfera mediterránea del Centro Agios Andreas, situado a 30 kilómetros al nordeste de la abigarrada aglomeración urbana de la capital griega.

Tenemos Que Aprender a Dialogar, Sostiene Obispo Metodista

6 abr 2005, ASUNCION, Paraguay – El desafío para los cristianos de este tiempo es aprender a dialogar en un mundo donde muchas veces los problemas se resuelven por la vía de la violencia, declaró el obispo metodista boliviano Eugenio Poma. Poma intervino el martes en un panel sobre "Vivencias y aprendizajes ecuménicos desde América Latina," que se desarrolla aquí del 4 al 8 del mes en curso en el marco del V Encuentro Anual del Centro Regional Ecuménico de Asesoría y Servicios (CREAS). La exigencia cristiana dentro de nuestra práctica ecuménica es la de salir de nuestra actitud tradicional de clandestinidad para caminar entre la gente, anotó el obispo Poma, también responsable del programa de Pastoral Aborigen del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias.

National News

Lutherans Continue Response to Red Lake Community

April 4, 2005, CHICAGO – Lutheran Disaster Response has provided $25,000 to meet the needs of people in the Red Lake community, where a student killed five other students, a teacher and school security guard, and wounded several others at Red Lake High School, Red Lake, Minn., before killing himself on March 21. Other victims included the student's grandfather and the grandfather's woman friend. Funds were sent to "our disaster response partner" Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota, St. Paul, which is extending professional grief and trauma counseling services in Red Lake, said Heather L. Feltman, director for Lutheran Disaster Response – a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota is coordinating disaster response efforts, she said.

International News

Prime Minister Praises Baha'i Community

April 7, 2005, LONDON, United Kingdom – The prime minister of the United Kingdom, Tony Blair, has praised the work of the nation's Baha'i community in assisting social cohesion and the interfaith movement. "In many ways, Baha'is embody the spirit of community cohesion that is so important to our society," Mr. Blair said in a message on the occasion of the Baha'i Naw-Ruz (New Year). "The Baha'i community, in its outlook on life and in its proactive work in the inter-faith, cohesion and anti-discrimination fields, show how much faith-based bodies can contribute to wider society, and the Government looks forward to continuing our good relationship," Mr. Blair said.

Society Saving Women, Children Living on the Edges

April 6, 2005, MAPUTO, Mozambique – "Witch daughters," orphans, unemployed women and uneducated children all have places to go and resources to seek a better life thanks to the United Methodist Women's Society in Mozambique. The Women's Society is the equivalent of United Methodist Women in the United States. The society is funded through Advance Special projects, the Women's Division of the Board of Global Ministries and other sources such as the Mozambique Initiative in Missouri. The Women's Society oversees projects designed primarily to help women become self-sufficient, such as: Tsalala Training Center and primary school Janene Pennel Primary School Chimedza Training Center Cabo Delgado Training Center Pastor's Wives Training Center Teles Orphanage Hanhane Women's Shelter Public Health Center, Maputo.

Anglican Women Bring Messages from Philippines, Southern Africa

April 7, 2005 – Anglican women, visiting New York in March for the 49th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW), gave a series of interviews with Episcopal News Service, bringing news from their provinces and speaking about their commitment to issues of justice, peace and gender equity. Video streams of these interviews can be found online.

‘Witch Daughters' Cared for by United Methodist Church

April 6, 2005, MASSIGNA, Mozambique – After Joaneta Tomo Come's husband died in 1991, her four children chased her out of her home because they thought she killed him using witchcraft. "They said, ‘You have to go away, you killed our father,' and I haven't heard from any of them since then," she says. Come is one of 26 elderly women living at the United Methodist Hanhane Women's Shelter. All are there because their families accused them of witchcraft and threw them out.

Middle East News

Buyer's Market – Jerusalem Merchants Seem to Outnumber Tourist Customers

April 1, 2005, EAST JERUSALEM – Samir Karam sits stringing beads and talking. He doesn't like Kentucky Fried Chicken, he says; he tried it once, in the United States, and had to spit it out. Fast food, he tells a visitor, is what ensures that overweight Americans will huff and puff their way up the steep streets of the Old City in search of its holy sites. Karam has lots of advice, because he's lived a lifetime already. Survived a few wars. Started over a few times from scratch. After a four-year spell of unemployment, he's trying again. He was a casualty of the collapse of the tourist trade when the Intifada exploded and bombs started going off in Jerusalem. It didn't take long for his hotel-based shop to shut its doors.

People in the News

News Mixed for Lay Committee Chief
PJC Faults Process, Orders Presbytery, Williamson to Try to Reconcile

April 6, 2005, LOUISVILLE – The Rev. Parker T. Williamson, chief executive officer of the Presbyterian Lay Committee and editor in chief of its publications, got some good news and some bad news this week from the General Assembly Permanent Judicial Commission (PJC). The goods news was that the April 4 ruling sustained his argument that Western North Carolina presbytery did not provide adequate written criteria for evaluating validated ministries before it moved last year to withdraw its validation of Williamson's. The bad news was that the commission did not sustain a number of other allegations of error he'd made in his appeal – that the presbytery was wrong to consider the history and past editorial policies of the Lay Committee's publication, The Layman, in reaching its decisions; that presbytery officials refused to read and consider relevant materials he had provided; and that the evidence presented was simply insufficient to warrant the invalidation of his ministry.

Reviews

Augsburg Fortress Launches Groundbreaking
Confirmation Program with Innovative Learner Resource

April 7, 2005, Minneapolis – Augsburg Fortress announces the launch of Here We Stand, its groundbreaking new confirmation program, with the publication of the program's innovative learner resource, The Lutheran Handbook, a humorous approach to confirmation learning. As part of this launch, Augsburg Fortress is also providing a special introductory membership discount that offers pastors 50% off the normal first year cost. Pastors can take advantage of this offer through August 31.

What Do the Dead Sea Scrolls Tell Us about Jesus and the New Testament?

April 11, 2005, Minneapolis – In The Dead Sea Scrolls and the New Testament, preeminent scholar George J. Brooke illuminates the first-century world shared by the Qumran community and the writers of the New Testament. The Dead Sea Scrolls have provided Old Testament scholars with an enormous wealth of data for textual criticism as well as theology. But, as Brooke skillfully demonstrates, New Testament scholars can use the Scrolls to learn more about the linguistic, historical, religious, and social contexts of Palestine in the first century.

New Volume Offers Discipline for Physical and Spiritual Wellness

April 6, 2005, MINNEAPOLIS – While on a pilgrimage trek through Thailand, Murray D. Finck discovered the benefits of daily stretching and quiet prayer. On the physical level, after only one week, the chronic back pain that had plagued him for twenty years disappeared. On a spiritual level, the poses deepened his prayer experiences. In his new book, Stretch and Pray, Finck provides a step-by-step guide to forty stretches to improve physical and spiritual well-being. Individuals can select the postures that work for them and customize a daily routine. In addition, Finck incorporates devotional thoughts and Bible verses to jump-start spiritual reflection and prayer during the movements. Journal pages allow participants to record their physical progress and reflect on their spiritual meditation during the exercises.