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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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Church Representatives Pleased with Global Forum on Migration and Development July 10, 2007 – Representatives of African, European and Middle Eastern churches, church-related organisations and ecumenical bodies working on migration issues and associated with the World Council of Churches (WCC) said they are "pleased to contribute to the Global Forum on Migration and Development" that will meet for the first time today and tomorrow in Brussels, Belgium. According to the church representatives who met in Brussels from 6-9 July 2007 the Global Forum on International Migration and Development (GFMD) "signals an end to overall restrictive migration policies in the North" while "replacing them by a debate on the positive impact of migration." Districts Show ‘Overwhelming' Response to Church-Planting Idea July 11, 2007 – Mission executives from 29 of the Synod's 35 districts already have taken the orientation training for the Ablaze! "Covenant Congregations" church-planting initiative – an "overwhelming" response, says Rev. Yohannes Mengsteab, national director for new mission fields development with LCMS World Mission. In fact, what impressed Mengsteab most at the two-day training event, held May 9-10 in St. Louis, were the questions the district representatives posed: "How can we do it?" and "What do we need to do?," not "Why should we do it?" July 13, 2007 – Few would deny that the Anglican Communion is in crisis. The nature of that crisis, however, remains a question. Is it about sexuality? Is it a crisis of authority – who has it and who doesn't? Have Anglicans lost their commitment to the via media, epitomized by the Elizabethan Settlement, which somehow declared a truce between Puritan and Catholic sentiments in the Church of England? Is it a crisis of globalization? A crisis of identity? July 10, 2007, ST PAUL, MINNESOTA, USA/GENEVA – An international group of mostly Lutheran theologians met recently at Luther Seminary, St Paul, Minnesota USA, to develop theological responses to ‘empire.' "Confessing and Living Out Faith in the Triune God: Being the Church in the Midst of Empire," was the title of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) seminar that brought together 20 theologians from Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America. They discussed papers they had written for the subject, which is part of the "Theology in the Life of the Church" initiative of the LWF Department for Theology and Studies (DTS). Second National Pastors Sabbath Draws Hundreds to the Mountains July 11, 2007, LOUISVILLE-The Stated Clerk of the General Assembly dreamed it. The six agencies of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) funded it. A planning team built it. And they came. Hundreds of pastors and their spouses from across the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) gathered at Snowbird Resort in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah for the National Pastors Sabbath, June 28-July 2. The event, the second of its biennial kind since the General Assembly adopted its every-other-year format in 2004, centered on the theme, "Lift Up Your Eyes on High and See," from Isaiah 40. July 13, 2007, SANTIAGO DE CHILE, Chile/GENEVA – "Our relations have matured, as has our cooperation with each other. The development in the spirit of ‘communio' has changed us and now we have to see where the path we have embarked upon will lead us." The moderator of the Latin American Church Leadership Conference (Conferencia de Liderazgo – COL), Rev. Dr Gloria Rojas, used these words to describe the plan to evaluate the process of regional cooperation among the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) member churches in Latin America over the last ten years. Resolution Against Depleted Uranium Weapons Is Issued by Church of the Brethren General Board July 13, 2007, ELGIN, IL – A resolution against the use of depleted uranium weapons has been approved by the Church of the Brethren General Board. The action came at a meeting on June 30, held in conjunction with the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference in Cleveland, Ohio. Declaring the use of depleted uranium weapons to be "a specific and compelling example of the sinfulness of war," the resolution appeals for a halt to their manufacture, lifts up the work of Christian Peacemaker Teams and the World Council of Churches, and directs the Brethren Witness/Washington Office to advocate for elimination of the weapons, among other actions. Phil Jones, director of the Brethren Witness/Washington Office, introduced the resolution as a partnership with Christian Peacemaker Teams and the World Council of Churches, which have worked against depleted uranium weapons and/or have made statements regarding use of the weapons. UMCOR Issues Urgent Call for Disaster Relief Donations July 12, 2007, NEW YORK – The United Methodist Committee on Relief is asking for financial donations to replenish its U.S. disaster relief fund after record-breaking rains, fires and winds have drained the account during the spring and summer. "Although we are not reading or hearing about these disasters every day in the news, there are hundreds of people in dire need in Texas, Kansas, California and many other places in the U.S.," said the Rev. Sam Dixon, interim chief executive of UMCOR, which is part of the denomination's Board of Global Ministries. United Methodists already have assisted recent flood and tornado victims in Texas, for example, and are assessing flood damage in Kansas and Oklahoma. July 10, 2007 – The diverse and sometimes contentious nature of all Christianity and the Episcopal tradition was the subject of a recent gathering sponsored by Remain Episcopal in the Diocese of San Joaquin. "Common Prayer, Uncommon People: The Episcopal Church," held June 23 at Holy Family Episcopal Church in Fresno, California, explored the 400-year history of Anglicanism in North America from Jamestown to California. About 90 people attended the second large event Remain Episcopal has offered this year. In February, the group sponsored a day-long gathering with House of Deputies President Bonnie Anderson. July 11, 2007, GENEVA – The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has expressed dismay and disappointment that a document released this week by the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, reasserts again for Roman Catholic theologians that the title "church" is not properly to be extended to Christian communities such as the LWF and its member bodies. In a statement issued today in response to the Vatican document, "Responses to Some Questions Regarding Certain Aspects of the Doctrine on the Church," LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko affirms that "Lutheran churches do not accept the understandings of church or the description of our lived reality of faith," found in the document. WARC Questions Vatican Statement on Status of Reformed Churches July 10, 2007 – The World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) wrote to the Vatican 10 July, questioning Rome's clarification on the status of non-Catholic churches, saying the statement "takes us back to the kind of thinking and atmosphere that was prevalent prior to the Second Vatican Council." Kieschnick Responds to Vatican Statement July 12, 2007 – In response to a document approved by Pope Benedict XVI and released by the Vatican July 10 that says, in part, " ... other Christian communities are either defective or not true churches and that only Roman Catholicism provides the true path to salvation," Dr. Gerald B. Kieschnick, president of The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod, today responded that this declaration, with which Lutherans and other Christian church bodies obviously disagree, is nothing new. Faith and Order Standing Commission Calls for Full Commission Meeting in 2008 July 9, 2007 – The Faith and Order standing commission has called for a meeting of the plenary commission to take place in October, 2008. The plenary commission – noted as the most diverse church-based theological forum in the world – will bring a wealth of confessional and regional perspectives to Faith and Order's work for the unity of the church. The call for a full commission meeting was voiced as the standing commission met at the Villa Notre Dame, Crans-Montana, Switzerland, from 12 – 18 June 2007 under the leadership of its moderator, Metropolitan Vassilios of Constantia. ELCA Presiding Bishop Responds to Vatican Statement on Nature of the Church July 11, 2007, CHICAGO – In response to a document released by the Vatican July 10, the Rev. Mark S. Hanson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), said the statement does not appear to change the Vatican's previously stated positions, and it will not alter the ELCA's commitment to ecumenism, including ongoing discussions in the U.S. Lutheran-Roman Catholic bilateral dialogue. The Vatican statement, "Responses to Some Questions Regarding Certain Aspects of the Doctrine of the Church," was prepared by the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and approved by Pope Benedict XVI. ¿Es Machismo Llamar a Una Mujer, "Gorda Horrorosa"? 12 julio 2007, QUITO, Ecuador – Quienes se han tenido que chocar una y otra vez con el machismo y sus múltiples expresiones, saben que su andar no respeta jerarquías, clases sociales, niveles de estudio ni países. Su influencia nefasta, muchas veces tomada a risa, se filtra por todos los sectores, dando lugar a rechazos, discriminaciones, abusos y violencia. ¿Pero qué pasa cuando el machismo y la discriminación que conlleva se inviste de más poder del habitual? ¿Cuándo su voz sale nada menos de quienes tienen la obligación de ser servidores de todos y todas sin discriminación? Los Obispos Católicos De Cuba Aspiran a Nuevos Encuentros Con Autoridades De La Isla 13 julio 2007, LA HABANA, Cuba – Los obispos católicos de Cuba, estimulados por el apoyo recibido por la celebración en la capital cubana de la 31 Asamblea General del Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano (CELAM) del 10 al 13 de julio y por la reunión mantenida por la nueva directiva con autoridades del gobierno, esperan que en un futuro no muy lejano se produzcan nuevos encuentros para analizar los problemas que afectan a la Iglesia Católica en Cuba, reveló a la prensa monseñor Emilio Aranguren, Obispo de la diócesis de Holquin, recién electo presidente del Comité Económico del CELAM. 11 julio 2007, GINEBRA, Suiza – "Cada iglesia es la Iglesia Católica y no simplemente una parte de ella. Cada iglesia es la Iglesia Católica, pero no la totalidad de ella. Cada iglesia realiza su catolicidad cuando está en comunión con las demás iglesias," afirma Georges Lemopoulos, Secretario General Adjunto del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) en una nota emitida hoy por esa entidad ecuménica mundial. El Tema Migratorio Es Ecuménico, Afirma Coordinador De Pastoral De Migrantes Susana Barrera 11 julio 2007, SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador –"El fenómeno migratorio es ecuménico," declaró recientemente Alejandro Solalinde, sacerdote católico romano reconocido por defender los derechos de los migrantes en el sur de México. Para el religioso, el tema migratorio no es exclusivo de una religión o de una raza sino que "es ecuménico y por tanto nos involucra a todos." Surgeon General Nominee Testifies Before Senate Panel July 13, 2007 – The United Methodist nominee for U.S. surgeon general says his 1991 paper on homosexuality was written for a denominational committee and does not reflect his position today. Testifying on July 12 in Washington before the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Dr. James W. Holsinger Jr. said the paper – which focused on physical and medical aspects of homosexual practice – "does not represent where I am today. It does not represent who I am today." The two-hour hearing was available live over the Internet. A committee vote on his nomination will come at a later date. Overcoming Poverty in Africa as Big a Task as Fighting Colonialism, Kobia Says in Tanzania July 12, 2007 – "Today, in order to fight poverty, Africa needs to mobilize similar efforts to those rallied against colonialism," World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia told Tanzanian church leaders. Kobia met leaders of Tanzanian churches during a 1-3 July visit to the country, which brought him to the capital Dar es Salaam and to Arusha. He praised the churches advocacy work in the area of debt relief for poor countries as well as their efforts in fighting corruption. "Tanzanian churches have much to offer to other African countries given their experience in overcoming the problem of ethnicity and tribal rivalry, as well as in dealing with interreligious issues, notably through the Christian-Muslim Commission for Peace, Development and Conflict Resolution," Kobia told the church leaders. Mitchell Is First African-American Woman to Lead the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference July 13, 2007, ELGIN, IL – Belita D. Mitchell, pastor of First Church of the Brethren in Harrisburg, Pa., has broken ground as the first African- American woman to lead the Church of the Brethren Annual Conference. She served as moderator of the conference held in Cleveland, Ohio, from June 30-July 4. The Annual Conference moderator serves in the highest elected position in the Church of the Brethren. Mitchell presided over a delegate body of more than 800 representatives of congregations and districts across the US and Puerto Rico, and led the conference through a lengthy and complex business agenda.
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