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Church Leaders Make Response to ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail'

January 14, 2011 – Participants at the annual meeting of Christian Churches Together (CCT) have issued a response to Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail." The CCT church leaders, who were in Birmingham, Ala., on Jan. 11-14 to examine the issue of domestic poverty through the lens of racism, noted that apparently no one has ever issued a clergy response to Dr. King's famous letter. King's letter was an answer to a message from a group of clergy in Birmingham in 1963. In their "Call for Unity," the clergy appealed for restraint and "common sense," and a withdrawal of support for the civil rights demonstrations.

NCC General Secretary Calls for Prayer Vigils in Response to Gun Violence

January 14, 2011 – A letter sent today from National Council of Churches (NCC) general secretary Michael Kinnamon to leaders of member denominations calls on congregations to hold Vigils Against Violence in response to last weekend's shootings in Tucson, Ariz. He also asked Christian leaders to press for laws aimed at reducing gun violence in the nation. A Church of the Brethren resolution in support of the NCC's work on ending gun violence was adopted last July by the Mission and Ministry Board.

Church Leader Joins in National Call to Civility Following Arizona Shooting

January 13, 2011, ELGIN, IL – Church of the Brethren general secretary Stan Noffsinger has added his signature to a letter to members of Congress following the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and a member of her staff, federal district judge John Roll, and 17 others this past Saturday in Tucson, Ariz. Six people were killed in the attack and 14 people were wounded. The letter, pulled together by the organization "Faith in Public Life" and signed by national religious leaders, thanks elected representatives for their service and expresses support as they cope with the trauma. It also encourages reflection on the often heated political rhetoric in the nation, and continued commitment to robust dialogue and democracy. It is to be published today as a full-page advertisement in "Roll Call."

National Council of Churches Renews its Calls
for Control of Guns and for Non-Violent Discourse

January 10, 2011 NEW YORK – Less than eight months after the National Council of Churches governing board called for action to end gun violence, a U.S. Congresswoman lay in critical condition after a 9 mm bullet passed through her brain, six people lay dead and 14 were recovering from wounds. But the January 9 attack on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and innocent bystanders in Tucson was only the most visible eruption of gun violence in the new year, said the Rev. Dr. Michael Kinnamon, NCC general secretary. "Death and suffering from guns – legally and illegally attained – is virtually a daily occurrence in the cities and villages of this country," Kinnamon said.

Bishop's Letter to King Finds Surge in Racism

January 17, 2011 – Dear Martin: I write on the anniversary of your birth with continued gratitude for your efforts to challenge the nation to live out its creed of equality and justice for all its citizens. I miss your voice of moral clarity and your ability to inspire others to this noble cause. During my lifetime, gigantic gains have been made in race relations. I remember them law by law. It was not all that long ago, surprisingly. America has been changed dramatically and fundamentally by legislative actions that included an anti-lynching bill, a Fair Employment bill, a Supreme Court decision declaring segregation in public education unconstitutional, a Voting Rights Act and a Civil Rights bill.

Tucson Services Call All to Be ‘Agents of Hope'

January 13, 2011 – Children can lead adults to become agents of hope, Bishop Minerva G. Carcaño told those who had gathered to remember the dead and pray for the living in Tucson, Ariz. "While we adults have been shocked and stunned into numbness because of what has occurred," Carcaño said, "I have seen hope through the children among us." The Jan. 11 vigil in Tucson was among many interfaith gatherings held in response to the shooting rampage three days earlier, which left six dead and more than a dozen wounded. President Barack Obama also sounded a note of hope in the face of violence when he addressed an overflow crowd during an emotional memorial service Jan. 12 at the University of Arizona.

General News

Intercultural Consultation 2011 to Unite under the Cross of Peace

January 13, 2011, ELGIN, IL – The Church of the Brethren's annual Intercultural Consultation and Celebration meets this year under the theme "United by the Cross of Peace" (Ephesians 2:11-14). The event on April 28-30 in Mills River, N.C., will explore the issues related to diversity and peace, reported Intercultural Ministry director Rubén Deoleo. Hosts are His Way Church of the Brethren and Southeastern District. On Earth Peace will help provide training sessions. Preachers will include David C. Jehnsen of the Institute for Human Rights and Responsibilities, Inc., and Bob Hunter of Earlham School of Religion in Richmond Ind.

Weak Commitment to Human Rights Factors into Decision to Divest from Cisco Systems

January 13, 2011, ELGIN, IL – Boston Common Asset Management, LLC, has divested of its holdings in Cisco Systems, Inc., stock due in part to the company's weak human rights risk management and poor response to investor concerns. Cisco's deceptive announcement of vote results on proxy items at the 2010 annual shareholder meeting has raised further alarm about the company's commitment to transparency. Boston Common is one of the investment managers for Brethren Benefit Trust (BBT) and the Brethren Foundation. Since 2005 Boston Common has led a growing coalition of investors, representing over 20 million Cisco shares, in asking Cisco management to ensure its products and services do not stifle human rights.

Sioux Falls Church Receives Lily Clergy Renewal Grant

January 10, 2011 – First Congregational UCC in Sioux, Falls, S.D., has received a grant of $41,808 to enable its minister, Rev. Kathryn J. Timpany, to participate in the 2010 National Clergy Renewal Program funded by the Indianapolis-based Lilly Endowment Inc. The church is one of 149 congregations nationwide to support their ministers in the program, which allows pastors to step back from their busy lives and renew their spirits for the benefit of their ongoing ministries. This year's grants total $6.4 million. Since 2000, more than 1,430 congregations have received clergy renewal grants. "We ask these congregations and ministers to consider the question, ‘What will make your heart sing?,' as they devise their plans," says Craig Dykstra, senior vice president for religion at the Endowment.

SAN DIEGO: A Beacon of Hope, Healing and Welcome Relit

January 10, 2011 – More than 100 people from throughout the Diocese of San Diego celebrated the resumption of Episcopal worship and ministry at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Ocean Beach with a joyful "Service of Hope and Healing" Jan. 9. In 2006 the majority of Trinity's then-congregation voted to leave the Episcopal Church. After several years of legal proceedings the California Supreme Court ordered the parish's property returned to the diocese, which it was on December 31. Bishop James R. Mathes preached and presided at the service, which included the celebration of the Eucharist, renewal of baptismal vows, and prayers and anointing for healing.

Episcopal City Mission Grants Fuel Social Justice Work in Massachusetts

January 13, 2011 – Episcopal City Mission in the Diocese of Massachusetts on Jan. 11 gathered a roomful of community organizers representing some of the state's most ethnically diverse and economically hardest-hit cities – Lawrence, Lowell, Lynn, Fall River, Brockton – and gave out 17 checks totaling $200,000 to fuel their efforts against social injustices this year. "Because of this support we are able to accomplish so much," Delia Vega of grant-recipient EPOCA said as the event got underway. EPOCA – Ex-Prisoners Organizing for Community Advancement – is a Worcester-based group that Episcopal City Mission (ECM) has supported through its Burgess Urban Fund for several years.

ELCA, Board of Pensions Respond to Lawsuit on Annuity Payment Reductions

January 14, 2011, CHICAGO – The churchwide organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the ELCA Board of Pensions responded publicly to a Dec. 3 lawsuit filed against them in a Minnesota state court by four plaintiffs. The plaintiffs claim the ELCA Board of Pensions acted improperly to reduce annuity payments to retirees participating in an annuity retirement fund. The suit was filed in a district court in Hennepin County, Minn., by the Rev. Arthur F. Haimerl, the Rev. Benjamin A. Johnson and two former pastors, Larry D. Cartford and Dr. Ronald A. Lundeen.

Spanish News

Arzobispo Pide Consulta Para Reformar Constitución

10 enero 2011, CIUDAD DE PANAMÁ – Luego que el Ejecutivo reconociera la existencia de un movimiento en pro de un paquete de reformas a la Constitución, el tema ha acaparado la atención de los debates públicos, incluso de la Iglesia a través del arzobispo metropolitano José Domingo Ulloa, quien enfatizó, esta semana que concluye, la importancia que tiene una amplia consulta al respecto. Ulloa reconoció la necesidad de reformas a la Constitución, sin embargo dijo que el éxito que tendrán las mismas dependerá de la amplia consulta que se le den, lo que fortalecerá la democracia en el país.

Iglesia Anglicana Tiene Nuevo Secretario General

11 enero 2010, SAO PAULO, Brasil – El rector de la Parroquia de la Santísima Trinidad de San Pablo, reverendo Arthur Cavalcante, de 37 años, fue escogido como nuevo secretario general de la Iglesia Episcopal Anglicana del Brasil (IEAB). Esto fue anunciado el viernes 7, por el obispo primado, Maurício Andrade. Cavalcante substituye al reverendo Francisco de Assis, que estuvo al frente de la Secretaria General de la IEAB por cuatro años y que fue electo obispo coadjutor de la diócesis Sur Occidental.

El Papa Shenouda III Recibe Las Condolencias De Una Delegación Del CMI

10 enero 2010 – Tveit expresó al papa Shenouda la condolencia y de las iglesias miembros del CMI y habló de la cruz como símbolo de solidaridad. Visitantes procedentes de las oficinas de Ginebra del Consejo Mundial de Iglesias (CMI) tuvieron el honor de ser recibidos en El Cairo, Egipto, el 8 de enero de 2011, por el papa Shenouda III de la Iglesia Ortodoxa Copta. El Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit, secretario general del CMI, presidió el grupo enviado a El Cairo para ofrecer personalmente las condolencias por el mortal ataque de bomba perpetrado el día de Año Nuevo en una iglesia de Alejandría.

National News

CWS's Mccullough Hails U.S. Shift to Local Farmers and Nutrition as Solution to Global Hunger

January 5, 2011, WASHINGTON – John L. McCullough, executive director and CEO of humanitarian agency Church World Service, today hailed the new United States commitment to a long-term focus on smallholder farmers, the leadership of women, and connections at community levels as the foundation for President Obama's new "Feed the Future" initiative. The U.S. now has the resources to reverse two decades of "disinvestment in food and agriculture." That was the message from USAID Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah at a Tuesday (1/4) USAID consultation with executives from faith-based U.S.-headquartered development organizations. The United States Agency for International Development has been named lead agency for the initiative.

UCC Collegium Offers Prayer for Tucson Shooting Victims

January 10, 2011 – The UCC's five-member Collegium of Officers has issued the following prayer in the wake of the fatal shooting in Tucson, Ariz., Jan. 9, that killed six and wounded 14. God of justice and peace, we come with heavy hearts to lift up those involved in the shooting in Tucson this past weekend. We pray especially for those recovering from their wounds and for the families of those killed and injured. Grant them healing and strength, and sustain them in the days and weeks to come. We cry out for a spirit of forgiveness. We cry out for mercy for the innocent. We cry out for understanding. Help us find ways to disagree without resorting to violence.

Episcopalians Pray for Victims of Arizona Massacre

January 10, 2011 – Episcopalians have joined much of the rest of the United States in prayer and remembrance following the Jan. 8 killing of six people and wounding of 14 others outside a Tucson, Arizona-area grocery store where U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was holding a "Congress on Your Corner" gathering. Among those killed was student council president Christina Taylor Green, 9 (who was born on Sept. 11, 2001); Arizona chief federal Judge John M. Roll, 63; Giffords' aide Gabriel Zimmerman, 30; Church of Christ pastor Dorwin Stoddard, 76 and retirees Dorothy Murray, 76, and Phyllis Scheck, 79. Giffords remained in critical condition early Jan. 10 after surviving a single gunshot wound to her brain at point-blank range.

International News

Brethren Pray for Haiti on One-year Anniversary of 2010 Earthquake

January 13, 2011, ELGIN, IL – Brethren Disaster Ministries staff and volunteers yesterday called for prayer for Haiti as Brethren help rebuild there. Jan. 12 was the one-year anniversary of the earthquake that struck Haiti's capital city Port-au-Prince, killing hundreds of thousands of people and making millions homeless. "As we approach the anniversary of the earthquake in Haiti let us all pause for prayer. Thousands of Haitians still live in tarp shelters, hungry and exposed to the weather," began the message from Brethren Disaster Ministries executive director Roy Winter, his staff, and volunteers.

Pope Shenouda III Receives Condolences from WCC Delegation

January 9, 2011 – WCC general secretary Tveit expressed the sympathy and support of the WCC member churches to Pope Shenouda and spoke of the cross as a symbol of solidarity. Visitors from the Geneva offices of the World Council of Churches (WCC) were honoured to be received in Cairo, Egypt on Saturday 8 January 2011 by Pope Shenouda III of the Coptic Orthodox Church. The Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC, led the group to Cairo in order to offer personal condolences in the aftermath of the lethal bomb attack at the New Year on a church in Alexandria. Tveit expressed the sympathy and support of the WCC member churches to Pope Shenouda at this difficult time for Egypt.

An Oasis of Caring and Practical Assistance

January 12, 2011 – The shockwaves from the earthquake that ravaged Haiti also swept across the Haitian-American community. It was not unusual to have lost five, 10, even 20 family members in the rubble. Everyone heard story after heart-wrenching story of death, injury, and loss of home and livelihood. Survivors' pleas for help from their U.S.-based kin multiplied. A year later, the Haitian-American community continues to suffer from stress and grief. "We still get 100 calls a day, mostly from people seeking trauma counseling," said Sounedy Amedee, program coordinator for the CWS Haitian Family Services Program in Palm Beach County, Fla.

A Year Later in Haiti ‘We See People Trying to Move on with Their Lives'

January 10, 2011, PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – Media coverage of the first year since the devastating January 12, 2010, earthquake is focused on government inaction, the slow pace of recovery and the seeming inability of Haiti to recover. But the story has another side: Haitians helping Haitians, say Church World Service staff and CWS partners in anticipation of this week's anniversary. "One year after the earthquake, the situation in Haiti remains extremely grave and extremely serious. Overall reconstruction of the country has been much slower than anyone would have liked," said Aaron Tate, Church World Service's Haiti earthquake response coordinator.

Episcopalians Begin to Rebuild Haitian Cathedral One ‘Brick' at a Time
Church-wide Fund-raising Effort Gets Underway

January 12, 2011 – Since the early days after many parts of Haiti were devastated late in the afternoon of Jan. 12, 2010 by a magnitude-7 earthquake, Episcopalians have been giving their prayers, expertise and money to the country. And in the latest of those efforts, the Episcopal Church on the first anniversary of the quake formally inaugurated a church-wide fundraising campaign called Rebuild our Church in Haiti. The first step in that rebuilding effort will be the Episcopal Diocese of Haiti's Holy Trinity Cathedral complex in Port-au-Prince, according to an Episcopal Church Foundation press release.

ELCA Continues Long-Term Relief Effort in Haiti

January 12, 2011, CHICAGO – The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) continues to be actively engaged in Haiti, concentrating its efforts on a multiyear rebuilding effort there one year after a devastating earthquake struck. The church's efforts include meeting human needs by providing food, water, temporary shelter and medical supplies while focusing on longer-term efforts such as responding to housing needs, and providing educational and income-generating opportunities. Members of the ELCA gave more than $12.6 million for relief and recovery in Haiti after the earthquake, said the Rev. Daniel Rift, director of the ELCA World Hunger Appeal.

Millions Take to the Polls in Sudan's Historic Referendum; Clashes in Abyei Claim Lives

January 10, 2011 – Sudan's referendum on independence kicked off on Jan. 9 with reports of peaceful voting in most parts of the country but with news that violence in the disputed Abyei region had erupted, claiming lives and injuring people after militia attacked a polling station. Archbishop Daniel Deng Bul of the Episcopal Church of Sudan joined his Roman Catholic counterpart, Archbishop Paulino Lukudu, and other religious leaders as they cast their ballots at 4 p.m. on Jan. 9 at the Hai Jalaba Junior School polling station in Juba, capital city of southern Sudan. Accompanying the archbishops was a delegation from the All Africa Conference of Churches, which had traveled to Juba as an ecumenical body of referendum observers, according to a Rebecca Coleman, international coordinator in Deng's office.

Some Good News out of Egypt's Bad News

January 11, 2011 – Many Americans have heard of the recent terrorist suicide bombing at a church here in Egypt. In the midst of this tragedy and resulting tensions, there are some hopeful signs that are often not presented in the media's coverage. On New Year's Day, just after midnight, a bomb exploded outside a Coptic church in Alexandria, Egypt, just as worshipers were beginning to leave the church. Twenty-one were instantly killed (four others died later) and more than 90 were seriously wounded. Since last October, al-Qaeda terrorists in Iraq have threatened to attack churches in Egypt. Despite increased security by Egyptian police at the more than 3,000 churches in Egypt, it is humanly impossible to prevent ill-intentioned incidents like that in Alexandria on New Year's Day.

Sudanese Episcopalians Rejoice as Historic Referendum Draws to a Close

January 14, 2011 – People throughout southern Sudan have been "shedding tears and shouting for joy" this week as polls opened to voters in the historic Jan. 9-15 referendum that will determine a likely future of independence for the African nation. Bishop Alapayo Manyang Kuctiel of the Diocese of Rumbek described Jan. 9, 2011 – the first of seven days of voting – as "the second [most] joyous day in my life," the first being his day of baptism in 1972. He also said that Jan. 9 is the day he wiped away his "tears of sorrow" following the 2005 death of John Garang, first president of southern Sudan.