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Rev. N. J. L'Heureux, Jr., Publisher & Editor
Rev. Pedro Bravo-Guzman, Editor-in-Chief
An Ecumenical Report
of Local and Global News in God's Household
Published by the Queens Federation of Churches
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December 22, 2006 – A special pilgrimage of religious leaders for these last days of Advent to Bethlehem has been welcomed by local Christians as a "sign of hope" in the midst of a devastating situation. As Christians dwindle in numbers in Bethlehem, it is becoming an increasing concern for the future of what one bishop calls "the living stones" as well as the great shrines that one Christian from Beit Jala told the Archbishop of Canterbury, "must not become museums." The streets, shops and hotels are "virtually empty" said one civic leader. United Methodist Leaders Demonstrate Support of Global Health Initiative December 20, 2006, WASHINGTON – Singing "nza mu ranza" from an African praise song, an advisory council of United Methodist bishops, pastors, agency executives and lay leaders demonsrated their support for a global health iniative by spontaneously placing $868 on a conference podium. With hands raised and singing in unison, they responded to a challenge to save lives issued by Bishop Thomas Bickerton during the Global Health Initiative Dialogue Dec. 18-19 at the National Press Club. December 17, 2006 – Bishop Peter Lee of the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia said December 17 that he was saddened by the fact that, as of that afternoon, Nigerian and Ugandan congregations were "occupying Episcopal churches." Lee's statement came as eight of Virginia's 195 congregations announced that their members had voted to sever ties with the Episcopal Church and affiliate with the Anglican Church of Uganda or the Anglican Church of Nigeria by way of the Anglican District of Virginia, part of the Convocation of Anglicans in North America (CANA). The members of the eight congregations amount to about 8,000 of the diocese's roughly 90,000 Episcopalians. The Episcopal Church includes some 7,200 congregations in its 100 domestic dioceses, and about 150 in its 10 overseas dioceses and one convocation. Text of Archbishop of Canterbury's, Pause for Thought on BBC Radio 2's, Wogan December 19, 2006 – Just to complicate Christmas preparations a bit more this year, I'll be off to Bethlehem on Wednesday with some of my colleagues. We're planning to be there for a few days just before Christmas, and with luck – we'll be back in time for Christmas Eve. Like most people, I guess, when I hear the name ‘Bethlehem' I think warm and comforting thoughts. It's somehow a warm and comforting word. And most people of my generation anyway think of ‘O little town of Bethlehem, How still we see thee lie...' And what will we see when we get there this week? December 22, 2006, GENEVA – In his New Year Message, the General Secretary of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko expresses his hope and prayer that 2007 would be dedicated to working for a peaceful world and better future. In his message addressed to the LWF member churches, National Committees and related and supporting agencies, Noko points out that the path towards peace is a risky one. He underscores the need to overcome pretense and seek to find one another as human beings and as equals "within and beyond our usual comfort zones." December 22, 2006, UPPSALA, Sweden/GENEVA – Funerals are a major focus of the latest episcopal letter from the (Lutheran) Church of Sweden to all its parishes. The letter by the church's 14 bishops is titled, "The Funeral – A Letter from the Bishops of the Church of Sweden, 2006." The letter aimed at contributing to the overall thinking about funerals contains a strategy for meeting mourners – one of the most important encounters between the church and its members. "It is a tremendous responsibility to be in charge of the shaping of so many people's farewell departure from life," Swedish Archbishop Anders Wejryd writes in introductory remarks to the letter. ‘Last Minute Toy Store' Blesses Families December 20, 2006, NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Sandra Schmitt waited 16 hours on the doorstep of Sixty-First Avenue United Methodist Church to be the first in line for its annual "Last Minute Toy Store." "Without this, the kids wouldn't have anything," Schmitt said. A single mother of four, Schmitt filed into the church's fellowship hall, which had been converted into a bulging storehouse containing 14,000 donated toys and clothes for needy children. Former Hostage Visits Upper Room December 18, 2006 – "While I was kidnapped, you were in captivity here praying for me until my release. Because of your tears and prayers, the Lord has brought me back," the Rev. Tongkhojang Lunkim told worshipers in the Upper Room Chapel Dec. 13. Lunkim, publications coordinator for four editions of the Upper Room Daily Devotional Guide in northeast India, was captured Jan. 16 by a group of rebels called the Kuki Liberation Army. Held in solitary confinement for 61 days, he was released in mid-March. "I am alive. It is me," Lunkim, 87, told the staff of the United Methodist Board of Discipleship during the weekly chapel service. Set Free – ELCA Candidate for Ordination Lives with Faith and HIV December 21, 2006, CHICAGO/GENEVA – Preparing for ordained ministry in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is filled with uncertainties – about seminary classes, God's direction, church structures, congregational acceptance and more. A 40-something, African American, single mother of three can anticipate even more uncertainties in a 4.85 million-member church that is about 97 percent white. Andrena Ingram faces those uncertainties and others related to her being tested HIV-positive. Yet, she matches those uncertainties with an overwhelming faith in Jesus Christ, who healed a "bent over" woman with whom she relates. December 19, 2006 – The 30 or so members of St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Heathsville, Virginia, who opposed a recent vote by the majority of the congregation and the rector to join the Anglican Church of Nigeria say they want to continue as the Episcopal presence in their community. "We are prepared to continue to operate St. Stephen's as an Episcopal Church, and I think we have people who will agree to accept leadership positions and to continue to carry on the work of St. Stephen's Episcopal Church," said Dawn Mahaffey, one of the people who voted against what some members are calling "the secession." Sandra Kirkpatrick referred to that slowly organizing group as a "large, viable remnant." The Inter-Anglican Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations December 19, 2006, MAHÉ ISLAND, the Seychelles – The Inter-Anglican Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations (IASCER) met in Beau Vallon, the Seychelles, from Sunday, 3rd to Saturday, 9th December 2006. The Right Reverend Santosh Marray, Bishop of the Seychelles welcomed members, together with a warm welcome from other members of his diocesan team. Several Commission members worshipped or preached in local Anglican Churches on the Sunday. December 22, 2006, UPPSALA, Sweden/GENEVA – The majority (Lutheran) Church of Sweden and the Mission Covenant Church of Sweden have signed an ecumenical agreement recognizing "each other as apostolic churches, participating in the Church of Christ ... holding the same confession of the apostolic faith" and "the same understanding of the sacraments," the Church of Sweden said in a statement. According to the statement, the churches "aim to be open for a common worship at the local level and to work towards joint responsibility in the society and in the world." December 19, 2006 – He even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak (Mk 7:37) – the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 2007 calls Christians to express their growing unity both by "breaking the silence" and by joining together in responding to human suffering. Jointly prepared since 1968 by Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Roman Catholic Church, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is traditionally celebrated from 18-25 January or, in the Southern hemisphere, at other dates (for example around Pentecost). 19 diciembre 2006, LA HABANA, Cuba – Un despacho de la Agencia AFP señala que el diario del Vaticano, L'Osservatore Romano, expresó en una nota el domingo su preocupación por la "guerra contra la Navidad." En ella se plasma el desmedido afán con que se intenta borrar el verdadero espíritu de las tradiciones y convertirlo en una fiesta de placeres y despreocupación, mientras hace referencia al país de Inglaterra donde el diario The Sun hizo una denuncia al respecto de cómo las fiestas adquieren, cada día, un sentido más profano. Horrendo Crimen De Misionera Evangélica 20 diciembre 2006, BARRANQUILLA, Colombia – A un robo atribuyen las autoridades el crimen de Gladis Pérez, pastora evangélica de aproximadamente 60 años de edad, quien el día de ayer fue apuñalada 26 veces por hombres que llegaron a la miscelánea que atendía en Palermo (Magdalena) al norte del país, informó el diario El Tiempo. La mujer, estaba con una de sus nietas, de 3 años, que fue ahogada por los malhechores en un tanque de agua, añadió el periódico, el mismo que calificó el magnicidio como de tragedia nacional. Sacerdote Anglicano Asumirá Secretaria Ejecutiva Del CONIC 18 diciembre 2006, BRASILIA, Brasil – El Consejo Nacional de Iglesias Cristianas del Brasil (CONIC) tiene un nuevo secretario ejecutivo: el sacerdote anglicano Luiz Alberto Barbosa, de 38 años. Él asumirá las nuevas funciones el día 1 de febrero del próximo año, pero tomará posesión del cargo, oficialmente, en una celebración en la catedral de la Iglesia Episcopal Anglicana del Brasil (IEAB) de Brasilia, el día 7 de marzo. Carta Pastoral Metodista Insta a La Unidad Y La Justicia En La Diversidad 18 diciembre 2006 COCHABAMBA, Bolivia – Los delegados y delegadas a la XIX Asamblea General de la Iglesia Evangélica Metodista en Bolivia, realizada los días 15 y 16 de diciembre, en la ciudad de Cochamba, dieron a conocer ayer una Carta Pastoral al pueblo de Bolivia, a raíz de los enfrentamientos y manifestaciones que en las últimas semanas han complicado el panorama político y social, en ese país del altiplano. Empiezan Los Trabajos Para Un Foro Internacional De Las Iglesias Por La Paz En Palestina E Israel 18 diciembre 2006 – Con la urgente necesidad de paz en Palestina e Israel como máxima prioridad, una reunión del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias ha empezado a trabajar para constituir un foro internacional que dé nuevo vigor a la acción mundial de las iglesias a favor del Oriente Medio. El Foro Ecuménico Palestina/Israel que se propone deberá ser un elemento clave en un programa de varios años para la paz en la región, en el que participen las iglesias miembros del CMI y las organizaciones conexas. 19 diciembre 2006 – Hace oír a los sordos y hablar a los mudos (Mc 7:37) – La Semana de oración por la unidad de los cristianos de 2007 invita a los cristianos a expresar su unidad cada vez mayor, y, para ello, a "romper el silencio" y a unir sus fuerzas con objeto de hacer frente a los sufrimientos humanos. Preparada conjuntamente desde 1968 por Fe y Constitución del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) y el Consejo Pontificio para la Promoción de la Unidad de los Cristianos de la Iglesia Católica Romana, la Semana de oración por la unidad de los cristianos se celebra tradicionalmente del 18 al 25 de enero. "I Don't
Know Why We Were Attacked" December 22, 2006 OTASH CAMP, South Darfur, Sudan/GENEVA – The heart sinks as the brain tries to make sense of the scene presented by the eyes. This is a strange field-bamboo canes and sticks covered with an amalgamation of pieces of plastic sheeting, matting, sacks and cloth. These semi-circular and square mounds, just big enough for a few people to shelter inside, are refuge for thousands of people. Over the past two months, more than 10,000 people have arrived in Otash camp, fleeing attacks on their homes in the Tulus and Buram localities in Sudan's South Darfur province. December 22, 2006, ASTANA, Kazakhstan/GENEVA – The President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, has confirmed the construction of a new church building and parish house for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Kazakhstan (ELCRK). The president expressed his approval of the plan in his discussion with the General Secretary of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko, and ELCRK Bishop Yuri Novgorodov at the Second Congress of the Leaders of World and Traditional Religions. During a recording for television, Nazarbayev expressed his understanding for the concerns of the congregation and his support for this endeavor. Summit Recognizes United Methodist Anti-Malaria Work December 15, 2006 – The United Methodist Church's commitment to eradicating malaria was recognized at a Dec. 14 forum hosted by President and Mrs. George W. Bush. The Rev. R. Randy Day, chief executive of the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries, was among those invited to the White House Summit on Malaria in Washington. The New York Times called the gathering "the Who's Who" of the global opponents of malaria. "As I looked around that room, I saw potential for a profound impact on the elimination of malaria and other preventable diseases," Day said. "We are talking about the lives primarily of children, and we can do something about it, and since we can, God requires that we do it." Russian
Church Defines its Position December 22, 2006, MOSCOW, Russia/GENEVA – The 13th Synod of the (ELCER) has rejected a proposal for blessing same-sex couples. According to a report by the ELCER church office in Moscow, Russia, the synod members adopted a resolution to this effect after a "lively discussion." They also approved a statement by ELCER Bishop Siegfried Springer ‘on same-sex relationships and so-called marriages.' Diakonia was the theme of the 5 to 7 November synod meeting in Moscow's Puschkino suburb. The ELCER said it was not reacting to a problem existing in its own congregations. The church, it noted, had wanted to "take a position within the global Lutheran family."
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