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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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Nation's Largest Gathering of Faith-Based Advocates Focuses on Women March 7, 2011, WASHINGTON – Development, Security and Economic Justice: What's Gender Got to Do with It? That is the question raised in the theme for the ninth annual Ecumenical Advocacy Days conference, Mar. 25 – 28, in Arlington, Va. The answer, judging by the workshop lineup at the nation's largest annual gathering of faith-based activists is, "Just about everything." This week, as people the world over commemorate International Women's Day (Mar. 8), with its theme of equal access for women, it is fitting that grassroots activists and experts from around the nation and the world will delve into issues ranging from women and poverty to women and the global economy and women and migration. In homes and communities, in fields and marketplaces, along borders and in areas of conflict, violence, poverty, and other social evils disproportionately affect women and girls, preventing them from attaining their full potential and impacting the wholeness and vibrancy of the full community. Scholars Study WCC in 1960s and ‘70s March 9, 2011 – Greek Orthodox Archbishop Iakovos, Bishop Lakdasa de Mel of the Church of India, Pakistan, Burma and Ceylon,and Bishop Ralph S. Dean of the Anglican Church of Canada at the WCC Assembly in Uppsala, 1968. Dr Katharina Kunter came upon the World Council of Churches (WCC) as an object of research through the discipline of Cold War studies, analyzing the encounter of Christian bodies in East and West from the end of the second world war to the fall of the Berlin Wall. She soon came to realize that the interplay of "northern" churches with the global South was equally influential in transforming attitudes and practices of the WCC and its member churches during those decades. Episcopal Leaders Dismayed at Israel's Denial of Jerusalem Bishop's Residency Permit March 10, 2011 – The Episcopal bishops of Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., have in separate statements decried the decision by Israel's Ministry of the Interior to deny a residency permit for Anglican Bishop in Jerusalem Suheil Dawani and his family to live in Jerusalem. Dawani's episcopal ministry requires him to travel throughout the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, which includes parishes and institutions in Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and the Palestinian Territories. Dawani, a Palestinian Christian, has held a residency permit for Jerusalem since 2007. "The seizure of Bishop Dawani's travel documents means not only that he cannot visit the Christian communities of Lebanon, Jordan and Syria. It also means he cannot minister to the Christian communities located minutes from St. George's Cathedral: the brewmasters of Taybeh, the schoolchildren of Bethlehem, the unemployed and elderly of Jericho," said Los Angeles Bishop Jon Bruno, whose diocese has shared a companion relationship with the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem for six years. "The Anglican Communion Is One Family" Ghanaian Bishop Tells Theologians March 8, 2011 – Ghanaian bishop Festus Yeboah-Asuamah told a recent meeting of Ghanaian theologians that while the challenges facing the Communion were "complex," and that the answers may yet be "far away" there was hope in unity. Speaking at the latest Continuing Indaba ‘hub' meeting, Bishop Festus said, "There is hope! We should try as much as possible to keep the Anglican Communion together – we are one family." He was one of ten theologians who met on March 4-5 to consider how Ghanaian culture and theology could shape the Continuing Indaba1 initiative taking place across the Anglican Communion. Facilitated by Dr Victor Atta-Baffoe, Dean of St Nicholas Seminary in Ghana's Cape Coast, the group considered a number of models of conversation from their cultural perspectives that resonate with the Scriptures and the traditions of the church. UCC Related Eden Theological Seminary Adds Florida Campus March 4, 2011 – UCC-related Eden Theological Seminary has announced plans to add two campus locations in Florida to meet the growing need for degree and non-degree seminary education in the state while filling the void left when the last progressive Protestant seminary transitioned last year. Eden, with its main campus in the St. Louis area, is one of the seven affiliated seminaries of the United Church of Christ and has been educating women and men for church leadership since it began over 160 years ago. The Florida campuses of Eden will be located at Coral Gables Congregational UCC and in the Sarasota/Bradenton area. Eden will begin offering courses in the fall in Coral Gables, taught by Eden faculty and adjunct faculty. UCC – New Lenten Practices Redefine Tradition March 8, 2011 – While today is being celebrated worldwide by many as Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday – a day of decadence prior to Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Christian season of Lent – some are taking a new approach to the traditional 40 days of self-denial, prayer and personal reflection in the post-modern era. The Lenten season, which a recent Religion News Service article article notes "hasn't always drawn strong interest" among some Protestant denominations, has taken on new meaning by linking fasting, abstention and prayer to social causes. The article, "Age-old Lent gets a 21st-century makeover," highlights various ways the concept of "fasting" is being lived out among Christians in the new millennium. United Church of Christ Launches Online Comprehensive HIV Curriculum March 7, 2011, CLEVELAND, OH – The United Church of Christ, in conjunction with the National Week of Prayer for the Healing of AIDS (March 6-12, 2011), is holding a press conference to announce the online release of "Affirming Persons, Saving Lives," its faith-based comprehensive HIV prevention curriculum, as a free digital download. Scheduled for 2:00pm in the Amistad Chapel of the UCC's national headquarters at 700 Prospect Ave E in Cleveland, the press conference will feature Pernessa Seele, founder and CEO of the Balm In Gilead, Inc. – a Richmond, Va.-based health advocacy group, the press conference will demonstrate Cleveland's participation in the 2011 National Week of Prayer for the Healing of AIDS and launch "Affirming Persons, Saving Lives" as a digital resource. CHICAGO: Ash Wednesday Rites Will Be Taken to the Streets, Railway Stations March 8, 2011 – Ash Wednesday services will not be confined to church interiors in the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago this week. More than two dozen congregations, stretching from Chicago to Dixon, will be taking the Ash Wednesday rite of imposition of ashes to the streets, coffee houses and transit stations of their communities on Ash Wednesday, March 9. The diocesan-wide initiative, known as Ashes to Go, was conceived by the Rev. Emily Mellot, rector of Calvary Episcopal Church in Lombard in response to church members regrets about not being able to attend Ash Wednesday services at the church. Few had shown up at her daybreak Ash Wednesday service or the others at noon and early evening, citing work or other commitments. Amanece Sobre Haití, Una Exposición En Homenaje a Las Mujeres Haitianas 9 marzo 2011, LA HABANA, Cuba – Un título prometedor y sugerente como ese, Amanece sobre Haití, es la ventana visual a través de la cual usted llega a una exposición de pintura que quedó inaugurada, este 8 de marzo en esta capital, como homenaje a la efeméride que enmarca a la mujer como protagonista de su propia historia. La muestra quedó inaugurada en el Museo de la biblioteca Servando Cabrera como parte de la amplia gama de actividades que se realizó a lo largo de todo el país, este 8 de marzo, en reconocimiento a la compañera del hombre en los andares de esta vida. Anuncian Las Fechas De Concilio Teológico Sobre Ordenación De Mujeres 9 marzo 2010, CIUDAD DE MÉXICO – Uno de los acuerdos emanados de la reunión extraordinaria de la asamblea general de la Iglesia Nacional Presbiteriana de México (INPM), celebrada del 23 al 25 de febrero pasados en Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo (sureste del país), es el relacionado con la celebración del Concilio Teológico sobre la ordenación de las mujeres. Esta reunión de estudio, análisis y resolución sobre dicho asunto se llevará a cabo en la iglesia "El Divino Salvador," de Xonacatlán, Estado de México (centro del país, al poniente de la capital) del 18 al 20 del próximo agosto. Grupos De Luteranos Piden Al Papa 10 marzo 2010, CIUDAD DEL VATICANO – El Director de la Oficina de Doctrina de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe, P. Hermann Geissler, ha confirmado que tras la autorización de las conversiones de grupos de anglicanos al catolicismo, ahora el Papa Benedicto XVI está recibiendo la solicitud de grupos de luteranos que quieren volver al seno de la Iglesia de Roma. El sacerdote hizo esas revelaciones a la revista The Portal. Israel Niega Permiso De Residencia a Obispo Anglicano 10 marzo 2011, JERUSALÉN, Israel – Después de seis meses el gobierno de Tel Aviv continúa negando la renovación de los permisos de residencia temporal en Jerusalén al obispo anglicano Suheil Dawani y su familia, lo qu ha obligado al prelado a llevar su caso a las cortes israelíes. Los permisos A-5 les fueron revocados al obispo Dawani, su esposa y la más joven de sus hijas el pasado 24 de septiembre. Desde entonces, las autoridades israelitas han denegado la renovación de dichos permisos, basándose en acusaciones no fundamentadas de supuestas transacciones ilegales de terrenos realizadas por el obispo. Human Rights Groups Renew Support for Iran's Seven Imprisoned Baha'i Leaders March 9, 2011, NEW YORK – The global support for Iran's seven jailed Baha'i leaders is continuing as one of the prisoners begins her fourth year in detention. Mahvash Sabet – a schoolteacher and mother of two – has been incarcerated since 5 March 2008. For the first 175 days of her imprisonment, she was detained in solitary confinement. On 14 May 2008, six other prominent Iranian Baha'is were also arrested. After 20 months held without charge in Tehran's Evin prison, all seven were accused in court of espionage and the establishment of an illegal administration, among other allegations. All the charges were denied. They are now serving 10 year jail terms at the notorious Gohardasht prison. March 7, 2011 – In the history of some countries there comes a period when political and factional murder becomes almost routine – Russia at the beginning of the 20th century, Germany and its neighbours in the early 1930s. It has invariably been the precursor of a breakdown of legal and political order and of long-term suffering for a whole population. And last week, with the killing of Shahbaz Bhatti, the Minister for Minorities, Pakistan has taken a further step down this catastrophic road. To those who actually support such atrocities, there is little to say. They inhabit a world of fantasy, shot through with paranoid anxiety. Rethinking Education for Girls and Women Explored at UN March 7, 2011, UNITED NATIONS – The education of women and girls, which is critical to the advancement of society, should include elements that acknowledge the importance of spiritual and moral development. That was among the main points of a statement and program of events offered by the Baha'i International Community (BIC) at the annual UN Commission on the Status of Women. Participants from Belize, Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Vietnam, made up the BIC delegation to the Commission, held from 22 February until 4 March. Church Leaders Urge Obama to Step up Diplomacy for Israeli-Palestinian Peace March 9, 2011 – Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori is one of 20 ecumenical leaders who wrote to President Barack Obama on March 7 urging him to "open up broad new channels of diplomatic effort" to encourage successful peace talks between Israeli and Palestinian leaders. The church leaders have expressed regret that the United States vetoed a resolution in the United Nations Security Council on Feb. 18 that would have reaffirmed the illegality of Israeli settlement building in the Palestinian territories. "While we appreciate statements affirming continuing U.S. strong opposition to the expansion of Israeli settlements, these must be followed by concrete measures to halt this activity," the letter said. |
