Front Page

Immigrant's Case Shows Need for Policy Changes, Say Her Supporters

August 18, 2008, NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Jailed on minor traffic violations at nine months pregnant, Juana Villegas had to deliver her baby after being shackled to a hospital bed and without her husband present. On Aug. 15, as Villegas continued the ordeal that may end with her deportation, United Methodists in Middle Tennessee crowded into a small Nashville-area courtroom to protest her treatment by local authorities. The judge later dismissed one of two misdemeanor charges against her. "I'm here to show my support for Juana specifically and immigrants overall," said the Rev. Pat Smith, chairperson of the Committee on Church and Society of the United Methodist Tennessee Annual (regional) Conference.

Ceremonies, Books and Broadcasts Mark the WCC 60th Anniversary

August 20, 2008 – "Stating that in seeking Christ they found each other, the 147 churches that sixty years ago came together in Amsterdam, Netherlands committed themselves afresh to Christ and covenanted with one another in constituting the World Council of Churches (WCC)," said the Council's general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia as he prepared to leave for a commemorative event to be held at the location where the WCC was officially founded 60 years ago, 23 August 1948 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. "It is significant that as we gather sixty years later at the same venue we note that the churches have been faithful to their commitment. Not only have they stayed together, but they have deepened and broadened the Fellowship," Kobia added.

General News

Commentary: Why Should I Be a Christian?

August 21, 2008 – If someone were to ask you "Why should I be a Christian?" what would you say? I cannot think of a more challenging question for a Christian. It makes us wonder if we have anything to say to a person who is not a Christian that would at least encourage him or her to consider becoming one. It also makes us think about why we ourselves are Christians. Whenever we talk with a non-Christian, it is more important to witness than to convince. We should listen to his or her story and, when we hear some question that comes from that person's experience, then we may share how the Gospel of Jesus Christ has enabled us to respond to that question in our own lives. We cannot argue anyone into faith in Jesus Christ.

Engage the Powers of Destruction, Churches Urged by International Feminist Theologians

August 18, 2008 – An international group of feminist theologians has issued a dramatic call to churches to engage the world's destructive powers, stating it is crucial to hear feminist thinking in the debate on theological issues raised by empire. The "Feminist Discourse on Economy, Ecology and Empire" was organized by the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) in collaboration with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and hosted by the United Theological College from 12 to 17 August at Bangalore, India. "We envision the transformation of economic and political structures in ways that enable the â*˜fullness of life for all,' " the theologians said in a statement, titled, "Exploring the Reality and Theological Challenges of Ecology, Economy and Empire from Feminist Perspectives."

Sock Monkey Ministry Brings Comfort to Thousands

August 20, 2008, CHELSEA, Ala. – Beth VanSickle still remembers the comfort she felt as a child when her grandmother gave her a sock monkey. "It always brought me joy, no matter what I was going through in my life," she says of the stuffed, handcrafted doll. Now, struggling with cancer, VanSickle is spreading that same comfort to thousands of others, including children with cancer and troops and children in Iraq.

Virginia Seminary Welcomes First Muslim Exchange Student

August 22, 2008 – Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS) welcomed its first Muslim exchange student, Salih Sayilgan, on August 20 as part of its continuing effort to encourage deeper cross-cultural conversations within the VTS community and equip students to envision new and creative ways to undertake ministry in the world. Sayilgan's arrival marks a new relationship between the Seminary and the Istanbul Foundation for Science and Culture (IFSC), a Muslim organization committed to dialogue and constructive relationships with Christians. Sayilgan, who has been a volunteer at the IFSC for the past five years, is currently working toward a master's degree in the Sociology of Religion at the University of Sakarya, Turkey.

Ecumenical News

Worship and Mission Are Church's Central Tasks
Common Forms of Expression Strengthen Christian Unity

August 20, 2008, BOSSEY, Switzerland/GENEVA – "Church is first and foremost worship," and every understanding of the Church has worship as its point of departure. This emphasis on the central role of worship for the Church was made at a recent international ecumenical conference of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), which ushered a new LWF study program that seeks to interpret, from a Lutheran perspective, the ecclesiological formulation of the Nicene Creed. Theologians from different Christian traditions attending the conference affirmed that all other church activities and social services, as well as organizational structures and staffing were subordinated to the celebration of worship.

Spanish News

Comunicado De Prensa De La Federación Argentina De Iglesias Evangélicas (FAIE)

19 agosto 2008, BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – Queremos poner en conocimiento de las y los ciudadanos de la República Argentina que la Federación Argentina de Iglesias Evangélicas (FAIE) no forma parte ni participa de las actividades de la nueva Federación Argentina de Instituciones e Iglesias Cristianas Evangélicas (FAIICE). Nos lleva a realizar esta aclaración la similitud de nombre y para evitar cualquier confusión o mal entendido entre las iglesias y organizaciones miembro de nuestra Federación y entre sus fieles.

Ceremonias, Libros Y Transmisiones Celebran El 60º Aniversario Del CMI

21 agosto 2008 – "Declarando que, al buscar a Cristo se encontraban unas a otras, las 147 iglesias que hace sesenta años se reunieron en Ámsterdam, Países Bajos, se entregaron de nuevo a Cristo y acordaron entre sí constituir el Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI)," dijo el secretario general del Consejo, Rev. Dr. Samuel Kobia, cuando se disponía a salir para asistir al acto conmemorativo que se iba a celebrar en Ámsterdam, Países Bajos, lugar dónde se fundó oficialmente el CMI hace 60 años, el 23 de agosto de 1948.

Conflicto En El Cáucaso Ahondaría Controversia Ortodoxa

22 agosto 2008, GINEBRA, Suiza – Aunque los patriarcas ortodoxos de Rusia y Georgia han llamado a la paz y la reconciliación entre "pueblos hermanos," la guerra que enfrentó a los dos países este mes de agosto probablemente profundizará la controversia entre las dos iglesias. No podía ser menos en países donde la Iglesia Ortodoxa es la religión oficial de facto y donde la afiliación religiosa desempeña un papel tan importante en la definición de la identidad nacional.

Iglesias Y Organizaciones Ecuménicas Mesoamericanas
Y Caribeñas Reafirman El Proceso Alianza Act

19 agosto 2008, GINEBRA, Suiza – En el Campamento Monte Carmelo, Tegucigalpa, Honduras, se celebró durante los días 14 y 15 de agosto una consulta regional para Mesoamérica y el Caribe sobre una propuesta de unificación de ACT Internacional y ACT Desarrollo. Las siglas ACT provienen del inglés y significan "Acción Conjunta de las Iglesias."

Líderes Religiosos Critican Carta Pastoral De La Iglesia Católica

20 agosto 2008, MANAGUA – Dos líderes evangélicos criticaron la carta pastoral de los Obispos de la iglesia católica distribuida en las parroquias el domingo 17 de agosto, donde critican duramente al gobierno del Presidente Daniel Ortega, aunque también reconocen avances en los servicios de salud, educación y créditos para los pequeños productores. Sixto Ulloa, de tendencia sandinista y líder de la iglesia bautista, dijo que los obispos de la Conferencia Episcopal de Nicaragua también atraviesan una crisis, "y en su carta pastoral creo que no fueron objetivos."

Iglesias Y Organizaciones Ecuménicas Lanzan En Brasil El Foro Ecuménico Sudamericano (FE-SUD)

22 agosto 2008, GINEBRA, Suiza – Convocados por el Foro Ecuménico (FE) Brasil Ampliado y la Acción Conjunta de las Iglesias para el Desarrollo (ACT-D), se celebró durante los días del 18 al 20 de agosto del 2008 una consulta regional para América del Sur, en Sao Paulo, Brasil. Las personas participantes, unas cuarenta en total, representando iglesias, tres consejos de iglesias (el Consejo Nacional de Iglesias Cristianas de Brasil – CONIC, el Consejo Latinoamericano de Iglesias – CLAI y el Consejo Mundial de Iglesias – CMI), organizaciones ecuménicas y agencias de Alemania, Argentina, Brasil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Ginebra, Paraguay y Perú, fueron convocadas para discutir entre otros temas, la posibilidad de una sola alianza unificada para asistencia humanitaria, desarrollo e incidencia política, conocida como la Alianza ACT.

Moderador Del CMI Llama a Las Iglesias a Dialogar Y Vencer Prejuicios

19 agosto 2008, RÍO DE JANEIRO, Brasil – El moderador del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) y presidente de la Iglesia Evangélica de Confesión Luterana en el Brasil (IECLB), pastor Walter Altmann, convidó a las denominaciones brasileñas que presentan reservas al ecumenismo a buscar informaciones lo más amplias posibles al respecto del organismo internacional y abrir el diálogo con hermanos y hermanas en la fe sin juícios previos, con la intención de conocerse mutuamente.

Los Medios Están Reestructurando El Mundo Religioso Contemporáneo,
Sostiene El Profesor Stewart Hoover

19 agosto 2008, SAO PAULO, Brasil – Stewart Hoover, Coordinador de la 6ta Conferencia sobre Medios, Religión y Cultural, realizado en Sao Paulo, Brasil, y profesor de la Universidad de Colorado, Estados Unidos, sostuvo que la religión mediatizada está generando no sólo un mayor nivel de visibilidad de las diversas expresiones religiosas, sino que además esta propiciando profundas reestructuraciones en los modos de administrar el poder, de vivir la espiritualidad y de posicionarse en la esfera pública.

International News

Beijing Bishop Hopes for Benedict Visit

August 21, 2008 – State appointed Bishop Joseph Li Shan said yesterday that there are "big developments" in relations between China and the Holy See and that he is hoping for a visit by Pope Benedict. "We strongly hope that Benedict XVI will make a trip to China," Joseph Li Shan told Italy's RAI state TV according to an International Herald Tribune report. "Relations with the Vatican are constantly improving. We can say that there are big developments." Li is well regarded by the Vatican, and his installation last year was seen as a positive sign in the long standing dispute between China and the Holy See over who should appoint bishops, the paper says. China's Communist Party forced Chinese Catholics to cut ties with the Vatican in 1951, and the two sides have not restored formal relations.

ELCA Synod Bishop Joins Minnesota Governor in ONE Campaign Declaration

August 21, 2008, CHICAGO – Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) declared Minnesota a "ONE State," joining the ONE campaign against global poverty and disease by signing a pledge in a ceremony Aug. 20 in St. Paul. The Rev. Peter Rogness, bishop, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) Saint Paul Area Synod, joined Pawlenty, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and other Minnesota leaders at the ceremony. The ONE Campaign is a grassroots effort to motivate people to fight HIV and AIDs and extreme poverty. The campaign seeks an additional 1 percent of the U.S. budget to address global poverty, debt relief for the world's most impoverished countries and fair international trade rules.

Templars Prayer Published

August 22, 2008 – The Holy See has published a prayer composed by jailed medieval Knights Templar in which they lament being "unjustly imprisoned" and appeal to the Virgin Mary to persuade their enemies to abandon "calumnies and lies." L'Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper, said the prayer was further proof that the order, which was dissolved in the fourteenth century, was not heretical, Times Online reports. The knights were innocent of the charges against them, which included the accusation that they worshipped idols such as a "monstrous statue, half man and half goat," the paper says.

Missouri Methodists Surpass Building Goal in Mozambique

August 22, 2008 – United Methodists in Missouri built 16 houses in Africa during eight days in July to surpass their goal of building 75 houses in three years through Habitat for Humanity Mozambique. When all the dust had settled, the church's Missouri Annual (regional) Conference and its Volunteers in Mission program had completed 82 houses in the southeastern Africa nation since 2006. An eight-member team from First United Methodist Church in Jefferson City and Kingsway United Methodist Church in Springfield dedicated the final houses July 24 in the community of Massaca, a former refugee camp near the capital city of Maputo.