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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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Hartford Seminary Seminar Attracts Interfaith Leaders Nationwide June 1, 2011, HARTFORD, CT – More than 30 experts in interfaith dialogue will participate in a new, innovative seminar offered by Hartford Seminary in June, titled "Religious Leadership in an Interfaith World." Made possible by a generous grant from the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, the seminar will provide religious leaders of all faiths – clergy, educators, administrators, chaplains, and others – an introduction to religious diversity in the American context, methodologies for interfaith engagement, and resources for further exploration. The seminar will run from June 6 through June 10. King James Bible Endures for 400 Years May 31, 2011 – It has been called one of the two greatest works of the English language, rivaled only by Shakespeare. For many, it is the only Bible they consider "authentic." It was seven years in the making, the work of a 54-member committee, but within 90 years it had come to be known simply as "the Bible." This year marks the 400th anniversary of the printing of the King James Bible, a work of religious, political and linguistic force that continues to shape the thinking and vocabulary of much of the English-speaking world. Two copies of first editions of the Authorized Version, as it was known when printed in 1611, are in the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas at the Quayle Bible Collection at Baker University in Baldwin City, Kansas, along with first or early editions of works that led up to the creation of the Bible authorized by King James I of England. Caribbeanbible Study Book Receives Enthusiastic Response May 18, 2011 – A book of Bible studies written by church women from the Caribbean has received an enthusiastic welcome at a book launch event in Jamaica. Righting Her-Story: Caribbean Women Encounter the Biblewas launched on Tuesday at the United Theological College of the West Indies (UTCWI) in the Jamaican capital, Kingston. Over 200 people gathered for the launch of the book that had received considerable advance publicity in Caribbean media. Faith Webster, a Jamaican government official, told the crowd that the book is "poised to contribute much to the consciousness of critical reality given the patriarchal context that exists in the religious world." Webster, who is Executive Director of the Bureau of Women's Affairs, hailed the book as the "first ecumenical book of Caribbean feminist and ‘womanist' post-colonial Bible studies." June 1, 2011 Congregations, individuals and dioceses can gain much from the extensive global and domestic mission work of the Episcopal Church at the special four-day conference, Everyone Everywhere 2011. Everyone Everywhere 2011 will be held October 13-16 at the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park, CO. Lenin's Jewish Roots Displayed in Moscow Museum May 26, 2011 – For the first time ever, ordinary Russians can now see documents that appear to confirm long-standing rumors that Vladimir Lenin had Jewish heritage. In a country long plagued by anti-Semitism, such heritage can be a significant taint, especially for the founder of the Soviet Union who is still revered by many elderly Russians. Among dozens of newly released documents on display at the State History Museum is a letter written by Lenin's eldest sister, Anna Ulyanova, saying that their maternal grandfather was a Ukrainian Jew who converted to Christianity to escape the Pale of Settlement and gain access to higher education. Ordination of Hispanic UCC Pastors Lifts up ONA, ‘New Understanding' May 24, 2011 – ONA relevance and the culmination of a personal theological transformation took bold steps forward May 22 as the UCC ordained two Hispanic pastors to serve primarily Spanish-speaking congregations. A staunch advocate for social-justice issues – including the UCC's Open and Affirming (ONA) position – the Rev. Jose Claudio was ordained as pastor of Iglesia Unide De Cristo El Nuevo Camino in Buffalo, N.Y. Meanwhile, at United Church of Chapel Hill (N.C.) UCC, the Rev. David Mateo's ordination and installation marked a major personal reshaping of his once-Southern Baptist perspective. Claudio's ordination, held in El Nuevo Camino's mother church, Pilgrim-St. Luke's UCC, was attended by 130 people and helped set in motion El Nuevo Camino's intention to become ONA. ELCA Council Sends Report on Church's Future Possibilities to 2011 Assembly June 3, 2011, CHICAGO – The Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) approved revisions to recommendations and implementing resolutions in a comprehensive report about the ELCA's structure and interrelationships, and possibilities for its future. The council commended the report to the 2011 ELCA Churchwide Assembly and requested that it act to implement the recommendations of the report. The council met by conference call May 23 to discuss the report and recommendations of the "Living into the Future Together: Renewing the Ecology of the ELCA" task force. "As the work of the task force began, we wanted to start a conversation that would involve and engage people across the ELCA in the … process. We knew that our final recommendations would need to take seriously what we heard and learned in those conversations," said the Rev. Diane H. "Dee" Pederson, St. Cloud, Minn., task force chair, in an April report to the council. Thirty Years Later, AIDS Stigma Remains June 3, 2011 – A 17-year-old African-American man recently told his mother he was gay. Her first reaction was judgment, shame and revulsion. Her next response was to lecture him about the evils of his ways and to say, "You'd better not get AIDS and die." Sadly, the Rev. Gregory Gross was meeting with the teen because he had just tested HIV positive. "It was now, not just having to face this new news, but also the shame and embarrassment of letting his own mother down," Gross said. "I can't help but wonder how things might have been different if she could have supported her gay son rather than condemn him." Jewish-Catholic Dialogue Discusses Sources of Authority June 3, 2011 – The National Council of Synagogues and the USCCB Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs have met to discuss "Sources of Authority in Catholicism and Judaism." The semi-annual consultation took place in New York City on May 17, the USCCB says. Archbishop Wilton Gregory of Atlanta, Chairman of the Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, and Rabbi Alvin Berkun of Pittsburgh, Chairman of the National Council of Synagogues, presided. Father James Massa, executive director of the USCCB Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, spoke on the "sources of authority" in the Catholic theological tradition. He noted both similarities and differences between Catholic and Jewish ways to interpret sacred texts and pass on religious beliefs and practices. Noveno Día De Ayuno Para Monseñor Lopez Marañón: 1 junio 2011, QUITO, Ecuador – Monseñor Gonzalo López Marañón, Obispo Emérito de Sucumbíos, cumple su noveno día de ayuno y oración por la reconciliación de la provincia. Con el lema "Para curar heridas y reconciliar Sucumbíos," Monseñor López Marañón, de 77 años de edad, retirado del Obispado de la provincia amazónica desde el pasado mes de octubre, está en el patio de la Capilla del Belén, en la ciudad de Quito, de forma indefinida hasta que haya señales claras de reconciliación entre la población. La decisión de Monseñor llega tras la agudización del conflicto social y religioso que vive Sucumbíos desde hace meses con la llegada al Vicariato Apostólico de la Congregación de los Heraldos del Evangelio. Metodistas Se Comprometen Con La Reforma De La Nación Y De La Iglesia 3 junio 2011, SAO PAULO, BRASIL – La Iglesia Metodista del Brasil, basada en el mandato dejado por su fundador, John Wesley, de "reformar la nación, de modo particular la Iglesia, de esparcir la santidad bíblica sobre toda la tierra," presentó, el sábado, 21 de mayo, un documento a la Asamblea Legislativa paulista en el cual refuerza su compromiso con la nación brasileña. En el documento, los metodistas afirman que respetan la libertad de expresión y la separación entre Estado e Iglesia, pero se muestran preocupados con la tramitación en el Senado Federal del Proyecto de Ley 122/2006, que "criminaliza toda y cualquiera manifestación contraria a orientación sexual de la homosexualidad," pues ella hiere la Constitución del país y favorece una minoría en detrimento de la gran mayoría del pueblo brasileño. "Baha'i Question" Cited at European Parliament Human Rights Hearing May 31, 2011, BRUSSELS, Belgium – Victims of religious intolerance are not just people deprived of the right to practice their faith – they suffer abuses in every aspect of their daily lives. This observation was made at a hearing held before the European Parliament's Subcommittee on Human Rights. Penelope Faulkner – a member of the European Platform on Religious Discrimination and Intolerance (EPRID) – highlighted the degree to which freedom of religion or belief is threatened around the world. It is a "massive problem," said Ms. Faulkner. "Especially in countries where the state...incites hatred, religious minorities are defenceless. ELCA Disaster Response Sends Grants for Tornado, Flood Response June 3, 2011, CHICAGO – Thanks to the generosity of members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), ELCA Disaster Response distributed emergency grants totaling $20,000 in the wake of devastating spring storms and floods. The grants went to assist communities recovering from tornado damage in Massachusetts and floods in Montana, and preparing for possible flooding in South Dakota. The Rev. Kevin A. Massey, director, ELCA Disaster response, said a $10,000 emergency grant was sent to Lutheran Social Services of New England for response to tornadoes that struck in the Springfield, Mass., area. At least three people died and nearly 100 people were injured. Twenty-two refugee families served by Lutheran Social Services of New England lost their homes. ELCA Rebuilds Lives, Restores Hope after Storms, Says Presiding Bishop June 2, 2011, CHICAGO – In the wake of a series of storms and floods throughout the United States this spring, the presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) reminded members who may feel overwhelmed and anxious that they are not alone. "God's promise is clear: Nothing in all creation will separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus," the Rev. Mark S. Hanson wrote in a June 2 pastoral letter to members. "Trusting in God's promise and the power of the Holy Spirit, we respond by joining together in God's work of restoring community." Floods and torrential rains have washed out communities and crop land, and tornadoes have leveled neighborhoods and businesses in several locations this spring. ELCA church buildings in Cullman, Ala., and Joplin, Mo., were destroyed by tornadoes. Members of Peace Lutheran Church, Joplin, met May 29 in the parking lot for worship "in the strong name of the risen Christ," Hanson wrote. 16 Arrested as Persecution of Anglicans in Zimbabwe Continues June 2, 2011 – Sixteen church-goers have been arrested and priests have been turned out of their homes in Zimbabwe's Diocese of Harare – where the Anglican Church is facing persecution at the hands of an ex-communicated bishop. The Rt Revd Chad Gandiya, Bishop of Harare, said the arrests were illegal and that those detained – including a elderly woman – were traumatised. The diocese is now trying to arrange bail and has asked for prayers for those in prison and their families. Bishop Chad, a USPG Regional Manager until 2010, said: ‘I am really concerned about this. We shall be running around to try and bail the whole group out today, if the police will listen.' NEW ZEALAND: Church Leaders Call for Review of Criminal Justice System May 31, 2011 – Anglican church leaders in New Zealand are urging politicians to set up a special commission to investigate the country's criminal justice system. The move follows a remark by the Deputy Prime Minister Bill English that "prisons are a fiscal and moral failure." Archbishops David Moxon and Brown Turei – along with the Anglican Social Justice Commissioner, the Rev. Anthony Dancer – fully agree with English's view. They suggest politicians can build on English's remarks by: setting up a criminal justice commission to provide independent advice to the government; taking a non-political, bi-partisan approach to those issues; and systematically investigating alternatives to jail, such as restorative justice. ZIMBABWE: Anglicans Released on Bail as Bishop Laments Illegal Arrests June 3, 2011 – The 16 Anglicans who were illegally arrested in Zimbabwe this week for resisting eviction and protecting their homes from intruders associated with a rival church have been released on bail following a failed attempt by local police to embellish the details and augment the charges brought against them. "The trumped-up charges were amended several times as they could not come up with charges that could stick," Bishop Chad Gandiya of the Diocese of Harare wrote in a June 3 e-mail to ENS. "First they were charged with unlawful entry, then that was changed to theft, and finally public nuisance. It's very sad indeed." Gandiya, who was elected to lead the Harare diocese in May 2009, also bemoaned the treatment of some of the Anglicans detained, two of whom are diabetic and were refused medication. UNESCO Chief Inaugurates Square for Tolerance and Peace in Haifa May 30, 2011, HAIFA, Israel – In the Middle East, Haifa is known as one of the region's most ethnically and religiously diverse cities, including Jews, Christians, Muslims, Druze and Baha'is among its residents. And so it was fitting that on her first visit to the Baha'i gardens here, the Director General of UNESCO spoke of the challenges facing multi-cultural societies. "Managing diversity raises some of the most difficult questions of this 21st century – inside our societies and outside, with our neighbours and globally," said Irina Bokova, formerly the Foreign Affairs Minister for Bulgaria. Ms. Bokova was speaking at a special ceremony held in the Baha'i gardens to inaugurate the UNESCO for Tolerance and Peace Square, situated at the point where Haifa's historic German Templer colony meets the terraced gardens of the Shrine of the Bab. June 3, 2011 – The title of this fine book about women in the Church of Rome is very deceiving. What it's about is the ordination of women as priests and deacons. Jokingly conservative Catholic chauvanistic clergy are reputed to say that ordaining a women is like ordaining a lamppost! The first part of the book is a review of just what is and where is the magisterium in the Church of Rome. It is with the Bishop of Rome. And Benedict XVI doesn't want women clergy in his church.
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