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Date: Dec. 3, 2004
Contact: Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
V: 847/742-5100 F: 847/742-6103
E-MAIL: CoBNews@AOL.Com

Newsline       Dec. 3, 2004

"All who believed were together and had all things in common...."
Acts 2:44

NEWS
1) BBT makes new requirement in effort to save Brethren Medical
Plan.
2) Welcome Home Project for soldiers begun by church agencies.
3) Emergency Disaster Fund gives more than $50,000 in grants.
4) First group of pastors completes Advance Foundations program.
5) Brethren join annual rally against the School of the Americas.
6) Middle Pennsylvania District meets on theme, `An Obedient Life.'
7) Brethren bits: Correction, job openings, and more.

PERSONNEL
8) David Steele to lead Middle Pennsylvania District.

FEATURE
9) `Hiroshima is an old story.'

***********************************************************

1) BBT makes new requirement in effort to save Brethren Medical
Plan.

A financial crisis in the Brethren Medical Plan has prompted
Brethren Benefit Trust (BBT) to initiate a new requirement for the
denomination's 23 districts. The Brethren Medical Plan is a
denominational health insurance plan for pastors and employees of
congregations, districts, and Annual Conference agencies. The plan
was put into place more than 50 years ago and is administered by
BBT.

BBT has instituted a requirement that each district must have at
least 75 percent of its congregations committed to participating in
the plan by Aug. 31, 2006. The requirement makes church employees
in each district eligible as a group. A district that does not meet
the requirement, and its pastors and church employees, will not be
eligible for the plan after Dec. 31, 2006. The requirement will not
be applied to retirees, congregations whose employees work less
than 20 hours per week, or congregations whose employees are
insured through spouses' employer group plans. By committing to
working toward the requirement, all of the districts ensured that
their congregations received a reduction of the increase in the
2005 rates for the plan, which BBT recently reported to plan
members through its "Insurance Update" newsletter. The new
requirement was communicated to the districts by BBT in late
August.

The new requirement, the result of a decision made by the BBT board
in July, was at the top of the Board's agenda again in November.
Board members engaged in an extended conversation about the
Brethren Medical Plan with about 30 pastors and church board chairs
from Northern Indiana and South/Central Indiana Districts at Nov.
19-20 meetings in Middlebury, Ind. Two members of the Pastoral
Compensation and Benefits Advisory Committee also were present.

The Brethren Medical Plan is in a "death spiral" created by greater
numbers of high-risk participants, BBT president Wil Nolen said in
October when he updated the General Board about the status of the
plan. Pastors and other church employees have not been signing on
in great enough numbers to maintain a good spread of risk, he said.
A high number of pastors in the plan are considered high risk and
"aren't insurable anywhere else," Nolen added.

In addition to the continuing loss of participants, claims have
exceeded premiums in 2003 and 2004. As a result, cost of premiums
has risen. With more claims than premiums, in 2003 and 2004 BBT
spent $1.3 million from its insurance reserves to subsidize the
plan. Seeking a solution to the crisis, BBT also found out that no
commercial insurance carriers will fully insure the plan because of
its aging membership and poor claims history.

Six years ago BBT ended its longterm practice of self-insuring the
plan, deeming it not fiscally responsible to retain all liability
for claims, the BBT newsletter report said. BBT then offered
coverage through for-profit medical insurance companies MAMSI and
Blue Cross/Blue Shield. Two years ago BBT moved back to a
self-funded model through the Congregational Employee Plan
administered by Mennonite Mutual Aid.

BBT hopes that the new requirement for districts will revitalize
the Brethren Medical Plan, as pastors and church employees and
their families return to the plan and help stabilize risk, the BBT
newsletter said. Mennonite Church USA stabilized its denominational
medical plan through a similar 75-percent participation requirement
for districts, BBT reported. Benefits of the Brethren Medical Plan
emphasized by BBT hinge on key components of mutuality and
"guaranteed issue": employees of Church of the Brethren
congregations, districts, and agencies, and their spouses and
children, are automatically eligible for coverage without having to
pass risk assessment or screening for pre-existing medical
conditions.

"My hope is that no districts and no pastors are cut off," Nolen
told the General Board, emphasizing that he was confident that
districts will be able to meet the requirement even as he faced
sharp questions about the move. He expressed understanding for
small congregations that feel unable to pay for health insurance
for pastors, as well as pastors in districts that are not well
represented and therefore in danger of losing insurance. Defending
the requirement as "not an unrealistic objective," he reported that
three districts already have met it and several others are close.
"This is the church plan," Nolen said. "Each district has to own it
as its plan. All the entities of the church have to own it to make
it successful."

More information about BBT and the Brethren Medical Plan is
available at www.brethren.org, click on Brethren Benefit Trust.

2) Welcome Home Project for soldiers begun by church agencies.

A Welcome Home Project for soldiers is being coordinated by On
Earth Peace and the Association of Brethren Caregivers (ABC). The
Welcome Home Project began when it was recognized that military
personnel returning home from combat zones "should experience a
loving, compassionate response from the church to help them
re-acclimate and heal from their experiences," reported Mary
Dulabaum, communication director for ABC. As part of the project an
insight session for "Receiving People Returning from Military
Service" will be held at the 2005 Annual Conference in Peoria, Ill.

Family members of the military also need care and support, Dulabaum
said. "Participants of the Welcome Home Project believe that as a
peace church, the Church of the Brethren is called to respond with
care, compassion, and service to their neighbors who are
experiencing hardship, fear, and possibly grief while their loved
ones are gone."

The Welcome Home Project is seeking stories from people or church
communities providing support to military personnel returning from
combat zones, and to their families. Stories can be e-mailed to
Darlene Johnson at On Earth Peace, djohnson_oepa@brethren.org.

3) Emergency Disaster Fund gives more than $50,000 in grants.

The General Board's Emergency Disaster Fund has given a total of
$56,535.11 for work in Florida, Virginia, West Virginia, and the
African country of Angola.

A grant of $20,000 was given for SHARECircle's work with displaced
people and returning refugees in Angola. The funds will provide
seeds, hand tools, and education for planting and growing food.

Another $20,000 helps continue work on the Hurricane Isabel
Longterm Recovery Project of the General Board's Emergency Response
ministry. The money will go to an ongoing repair and building
project in Poquoson, Va., which was begun in February.

An allocation of $15,000 went for continued support of Emergency
Response work following hurricanes in Florida. The funds will help
begin a longterm rebuilding process in Orlando, and eventually in
Charlotte County.

A grant of $1,535.11 finalized flood recovery work in Greenbrier
County, W.Va. Work on the project ended in August. The money pays
for outstanding expenses that exceeded the original grant.

4) First group of pastors completes Advance Foundations program.

On Nov. 12, eight Church of the Brethren pastors became the first
group to complete the Advanced Foundations of Church Leadership
program of the Brethren Academy for Ministerial Leadership. The
program is one of two continuing education programs for pastors
supported by the academy's Sustaining Pastoral Excellence
initiative.

The eight pastors--Dan Poole of Covington (Ohio) Church of the
Brethren; David W. Miller of West Richmond (Va.) Church of the
Brethren; Kelly Burk of Richmond (Ind.) Church of the Brethren;
Jerry Lee Miller of Spring Run Church of the Brethren in McVeytown,
Pa.; James Davis of North Winona Church of the Brethren in Warsaw,
Ind.; Kenneth Gresh of Salem Church of the Brethren in Englewood,
Ohio; Lisa Lynn Hazen of Beavercreek (Ohio) Church of the Brethren;
and Thomas Hanks of Bethlehem Church of the Brethren in Boones
Mill, Va.--were recognized by family, friends, congregational
leaders, faculty of Bethany Theological Seminary, and academy staff
at a banquet in Hagerstown, Ind.

The Advanced Foundations program is designed to deepen the
leadership capacity of pastors by addressing personal qualities and
enhancing ministry skills, academy staff reported. Eight four-day
retreats over two years offer safe environments for pastors to
nurture spiritual, physical, emotional, intellectual, and
relational foundations for ministry and further equip pastors to
shape congregations of vision, passion, and mission. The program is
led by a variety of instructors including Jonathan Shively,
director of the academy, and Lowell Flory, executive director of
Institutional Advancement for Bethany.

The academy is a ministry training partnership of Bethany and the
General Board. Sustaining Pastoral Excellence initiatives are
supported by a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. The next group of
Advanced Foundations pastors will begin work in January 2005.

5) Brethren join annual rally against the School of the Americas.

Over 200 Church of the Brethren individuals from across the US
gathered in Columbus, Ga., Nov. 20-21 to join more than 15,000
people at an annual rally against the Western Hemisphere Institute
for Security Cooperation--formerly the US Army School of the
Americas. The school trains international military personnel, many
of whom have committed documented atrocities against their own
people. "Brethren came as individuals, college peace studies
groups, as families, and as congregations, giving witness to their
heritage and their faith," reported Amy Adkins of the General
Board's Brethren Witness/Washington Office.

The Brethren Witness/Washington Office is only one of many groups
that encourage their membership to seek political pressure to
eliminate funding of the program. Phil Jones, Brethren
Witness/Washington Office director "sees this event as an
opportunity to give public witness to the statements and beliefs of
Brethren in regards to the training of persons for violent military
or guerrilla operations," Adkins reported. "Just last month a
delegation of Brethren traveled to Guatemala and saw first hand the
destruction and violence that was brought upon citizens of
Guatemala by the hands of individuals trained at this school,"
Jones said. "One immediate step at ending this violence is the
closing of this school that trains individuals to kill others."

With On Earth Peace, the office co-sponsored a Brethren Gathering
at the rally where over 300 people met for fellowship, pizza, and
music by the Brethren band Mutual Kumquat. The Brethren contingent
also sponsored a booth, held a short worship service led by Matt
Guynn from On Earth Peace, and joined a procession of mourning in
symbolic remembrance of those whose lives have been lost at the
hands of military personnel trained by the school.

Witnesses against the school began in 1990 following the killing of
six Jesuit priests, their co-worker, and her teenage daughter in El
Salvador. A US Congressional Task Force reported that those
responsible for the killings were trained at the school. In 1997 a
General Board resolution called for the closing of the school.

6) Middle Pennsylvania District meets on theme, `An Obedient Life.'

The Middle Pennsylvania District Conference was held Oct. 22-23 at
Dunnings Creek Church of the Brethren in New Paris, Pa., with Sarah
Malone as moderator. Fifty churches were represented with 168
delegates and 79 non-delegates. 

Malone spoke on the theme, "An Obedient Life...of Transforming
Love," and the Dunnings Creek choir presented a medley of several
musical numbers at the opening worship. Rodney Ritchey created the
logo for the worship center. Saturday's worship was led by the
District Youth Ministry Team and included a consecration of new
team members. A Pennies for Congregational Ministries offering
totaled $6,357.09 and $1,445 was collected for Ministry Education. 

In business sessions, delegates approved a revised constitution
that reflected changes in the district structure. Break-out
sessions featured the Living Peace Church with On Earth Peace, and
the District Gifts Assessment Team. A slate for district leadership
was affirmed, including Barbara Rowe as moderator-designate. She
will assist moderator Linda Banaszak at the Oct. 7-8, 2005,
district conference at Stone Church of the Brethren in Huntingdon,
Pa. James Ake was affirmed for another year as treasurer. District
minister Randy Yoder, who is retiring at the end of the year, was
honored for his nearly 20 years of service to the district.

Many conference-goers took advantage of the opportunity to visit
the Mock Church located  "just down the road." The small, one-room
log building was the original meeting place for the Dunnings Creek
congregation. Clair Mock, 99 years old and a member of the
congregation, was recognized for building handmade models of the
Old Mock Church, one of which is located in the District Center in
Huntingdon and one at the General Offices in Elgin, Ill.

7) Brethren bits: Correction, job openings, and more.

*In a correction to "Two Brethren Volunteer Service units complete
orientation" in the Nov. 19 Newsline, Rob Raker is serving at the
Brethren Mission House in the Dominican Republic.

*Publishers of the forthcoming "Gather 'Round" Sunday school
curriculum seek a fulltime managing editor, and a half-time
associate editor to fill a contract position. The managing editor
will manage the receipt, scheduling, and production of curriculum
materials; edit and proofread copy; and assist the project director
with overall development and administration. Applicants should have
excellent editorial and communication skills, high ability to
manage detail, and be well grounded in Mennonite or Church of the
Brethren beliefs and practices. Location: Elgin, Ill., preferred.
Start date is end of Feb. 2005 or sooner. The associate editor will
oversee writing and design of student resources. Applicants should
have excellent writing and editorial skills, communicate well, and
be well-grounded in Mennonite or Church of the Brethren beliefs and
practices. Location: open. Start date is end of Feb. 2005 or
sooner. Denominational balance on project staff will be a
significant factor in selection. Contact Anna Speicher, project
director, 1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120; 800-323-8039 ext. 209;
or e-mail gatherround@brethren.org. Deadline for inquiries is Jan.
15, 2005.

*The General Board seeks an intern for the Brethren Historical
Library and Archives (BHLA) in Elgin, Ill., to serve a one-year
term with preferred start date of July 2005. The Archival
Internship Program develops interest in vocations related to
archives, libraries, and Brethren history. The intern will process
archival materials, write descriptive inventories, prepare books
for cataloging, respond to reference requests, and assist
researchers. Compensation includes housing, stipend, and health and
life insurance. A graduate student is preferred, or an
undergraduate with at least two years of college. Willingness to
work with detail, accurate word processing, and ability to lift
30-pound boxes are required. Send applications with resume, college
transcript, and three letters of reference by Feb. 28, 2005, to
Director of Human Resources, Church of the Brethren General Board,
1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120. For more information call
800-323-8039 ext. 294 or e-mail kshaffer_gb@brethren.org.

*Year-end donations to the Association of Brethren Caregivers,
Bethany Theological Seminary, the General Board, and On Earth Peace
must be dated and postmarked by Dec. 31 in order to be counted as
a 2004 charitable gift for tax purposes.

*Three Brethren Volunteer Service workers are serving as assistant
disaster project directors with the General Board's Emergency
Response/Service Ministries. Larry and Sandee Kitzel of Monitor
Church of the Brethren, Conway, Kan., have been assigned to the
Poquoson, Va., hurricane recovery project. Kevin Dibert of
Chambersburg (Pa.) Church of the Brethren, is serving at the
Hallam, Neb., tornado recovery project. The assistants help
disaster project directors with volunteer management, daily
devotions, construction work flow, meal preparation, as well as
other tasks.

*Registration for the 2005 youth and young adult workcamps
sponsored by the General Board took off in the first half-hour
after it opened online, at midnight on Nov. 30, reported
coordinators Cindy Laprade and Beth Rhodes. In the first 30 minutes
of registration 118 people signed up, and by the next morning at 8
a.m. a total of 203 people had registered. "We were quite
overwhelmed," Laprade said. Already four of the workcamps are
completely full. For more information on the workcamps see
www.brethren.org, click on "General Board," go to keyword
"Youth/young adults."

*Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) is having a potluck supper
Saturday Jan. 29, 2005, at 6:30 p.m. for former BVS workers,
Civilian Public Service (CPS) workers, and anyone who has a special
connection to BVS or CPS. The potluck will be at Camp Ithiel in
Gotha, Fla. "We see this potluck as a wonderful opportunity for the
volunteers in training from Unit 263 to be able to connect with
people that have done similar service. We hope to see you there,"
said Sam Bowman of the BVS office. Bring a covered dish to share,
or any other type of food.

*"Manna in the Wilderness: Coming to God in Daily Life" will be
held at Camp Ithiel in Gotha, Fla., Feb. 24-27, 2005. The retreat
for pastors, lay leaders, TRIM students, and others seeking to
enrich their spiritual lives and discern God's will, is sponsored
by New Covenant Church of the Brethren, the Brethren Academy for
Ministerial Leadership, and the camp. Glenn Mitchell and Jonathan
Shively are the leaders. The registration fee of $88 includes all
sessions and meals. Lodging at the camp costs $12 a night and motel
accommodations are also available. Registration and a $25 deposit
are due by Jan. 24. TRIM students who attend will receive credit.
For a brochure call 407-892-6678 or e-mail crousejm@mpinet.net.

*Pasadena (Calif.) Church of the Brethren hosted a "Dry Bones
Consortium" Oct. 31. The meeting of pastors, academics, students,
and others from California and Arizona was organized to further,
deepen, and extend the Anabaptist legacy, reported pastor Tom Leard
Longenecker, of Glendale (Calif.) Church of the Brethren. Attendees
from faith backgrounds including Church of the Brethren, Mennonite,
and Seventh Day Adventist explored "the directions modern Western
philosophy has pushed how we think about Christian faith," and "the
overwhelming influence technology and consumerism have on the life
of the American church today," Longenecker said. Presenters were
Gloria Newton, artist-in-residence with the Center for Anabaptist
Leadership and a member of the Jubilee Troupe; Nancey Murphy,
professor of Christian philosophy at Fuller Theological Seminary;
and Shane Hipps, author of "Media Mayhem and the Church: Helping
Emerging Communities Navigate the Technological Storm," to be
published by Zondervan in 2006.

*The annual Church of the Brethren Outdoor Ministries Association
gathering of camp directors, managers, and others involved with
camp ministry took place Nov. 14-18 at Camp Bethel near Fincastle,
Va. More than 30 people representing 9 of the denomination's 31
camps and outdoor ministry centers attended. David Radcliff of New
Community Project was keynote speaker for the event, on the theme
"Intentional Practices, Intentional Ministries." Several other
workshops and discussion sessions were also offered, along with
recreational outings to sites in the area.

*Manchester College, a Church of the Brethren school in North
Manchester, Ind., is among the "Best Midwestern Colleges," says the
"Princeton Review." Rankings released by the review put the college
in the company of 170 colleges and universities recognized as
outstanding in the region, the college reported in a press release.
The review ranks colleges and universities nationwide and offers
school selection advice on its website, along with comments from
students and college officials. Learn more about the rankings at
www.princetonreview.com. For more information about the college
visit www.manchester.edu.

*Jo Young Switzer, who was selected in August as the new president
of Manchester College, has taken the position earlier than
expected. She began in her new role Dec. 1, succeeding Parker G.
Marden in the position. The Board of Trustees held a reception to
welcome Switzer, who is a 1969 graduate of the college.
Celebrations of Marden's leadership are planned for the remainder
of the school year. Switzer's inauguration will take place next
fall.

*A panel of Bridgewater (Va.) College graduates shared their
experiences of segregation during a program commemorating the 50th
anniversary of Brown vs. Board of Education, the landmark case that
desegregated America's public schools, on Nov. 30. The panelists
were Donald Banks, director of Counseling and Assessment Services
at the University of Massachusetts; Pasco Bowman II, a judge for
the 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals and a member of the college's
Board of Trustees; Karen Weaver Scott, a retired high school
English and French teacher; and Carlyle Whitelow, assistant
professor of physical education emeritus at Bridgewater and a
professor at the college for 28 years. Banks, Scott, and Whitelow
were among the first African American students who attended the
college. See www.bridgewater.edu for more information about the
college.

*A children's candlelight vigil and procession preceded a talk by
Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT) member Peggy Gish in London,
England, on Nov. 18, according to a release from CPT. Gish, a
member of the Church of the Brethren who has spent much of the last
two years with CPT in Iraq, is on a speaking tour. A British group,
Children Against the War, processed to Downing Street to remember
the suffering of Iraqi children before Gish spoke at London's
Friends House. "In Iraq this summer, it was obvious to our team
that not only had the violence increased, but that the US had
maintained its control over Iraqi society and Iraq's government,"
Gish said. "What has been happening in Fallujah is tragic:
excessive violence, collective punishment, and killing of many
innocent people, to try to flush out a few." Gish's book, "Iraq: A
Journey of Hope and Peace," has recently been published by Herald
Press. Her speaking tour is continuing in the US. This week she
spoke at Stover Memorial Church of the Brethren in Des Moines,
Iowa, and she is scheduled to speak at Bridgewater (Va.) College on
Dec. 9 at 7:30 p.m.

*Jubilee Troupe, an Anabaptist-based improvisational performance
group sponsored by On Earth Peace, is offering a Jubilee Retreat
Weekend Jan. 7-9, 2005, in New Windsor, Md. Participants will
explore spiritual enrichment, community renewal, and peacemaking
action through interactive drama, movement, and other creative
arts. The retreat is part of a larger training of the troupe to
lead performances, workshops, and worship services at churches,
colleges, and church events across the country in 2005. Cost is
$35-60 including simple accommodations and meals. For more
information or to register, see www.jubileetroupe.org.

8) David Steele to lead Middle Pennsylvania District.

David A. Steele has accepted the call to become executive minister
of Middle Pennsylvania District, effective March 1, 2005.

Steele has served as co-pastor of Memorial Church of the Brethren
in Martinsburg, Pa., since 1996. Previously he served Bakersfield
(Calif.) Church of the Brethren. He also has been active in youth
ministry at both the district and denominational levels. Steele is
a graduate of McPherson (Kan.) College and has a Master of Divinity
degree from Bethany Theological Seminary.

9) `Hiroshima is an old story.'

By Bev Eikenberry

"Hiroshima is an old story," I said to my husband as we
contemplated our answer to a call to serve as directors of the
World Friendship Center. "The world's eyes are on places like
Israel and Iraq. No one cares about Hiroshima any more."

We came to Hiroshima in spite of our question about its relevance.
We came because we wanted to support the center's mission of peace.
What we discovered about Hiroshima, however, surprised us. Aug. 6,
2005, will mark 60 years since the atomic bomb was dropped on
Hiroshima. In those 60 years Hiroshima has remembered the
devastation and has cared for those who suffered because of it. Out
of this remembering, the people of Hiroshima live committed to
peace and reconciliation. For 60 years Hiroshima has been talking,
living, working...making peace.

Hiroshima is a relevant place because of a decision made only a
year after experiencing total devastation. Hiroshima decided to
rebuild as an international city of peace. Making that statement
alone is commendable, but the city actually lives out its goal.
Examples are countless. Before a performance of the Messiah last
December, the principal of a school encouraged everyone in the
audience to do what they personally could to make peace. A high
school music teacher organizes small public performances in the
Peace Memorial Park, where peace songs are performed, poetry is
read, and a microphone is passed for individuals to express
thoughts and opinions. The major newspaper supported sending five
delegations around the world to engage people in discussions about
making peace. The mayor is organizing a conference of mayors from
around the world to meet in New York in May 2005, when the
non-proliferation treaty is revisited. Others are interpreting for
British prisoners of war from World War II, who are returning to
their places of internment through a program called "Agape." In one
village, the Japanese raised a monument in their honor, and some of
the POWs have experienced a healing peace for the first time in
their lives.

Survivors of the atomic bomb tell their stories of growing beyond
bitterness and hatred to reconciliation and a goal of "No more
Hiroshimas!" Those who are able to tell their stories do so because
of a passionate desire for others never to experience what they
did. They have traveled a journey deep within themselves that leads
to the understanding that the real wrong is not atomic weapons, nor
any particular nation or people. The real wrong is war itself.

We feel humbled at the sight of an entire city seriously working at
peace and reconciliation. Hiroshima is a voice of reason and
compassion crying in the wilderness of a world at war. The voice is
soothing and full of hope. Hiroshima, we have discovered, is not an
old story. Hiroshima is the story we wish will be our future.

On Aug. 7, 1965, 20 years after the bombing of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki, the World Friendship Center was started by Barbara
Reynolds, an American Quaker whose compassion for those suffering
from radiation spilled over into a passionate desire to help all of
us avoid a similar tragedy. Brethren Volunteer Service trains and
supports the volunteer directors, usually a married couple, who
live at the center and provide hospitality for nearly 125 guests a
month, teach English classes, and visit a nursing home for
survivors of the atomic bomb. The directors also direct the daily
operations of the center with the help of a bilingual staff person.
Joel and Beverly Eikenberry, Church of the Brethren members from
North Manchester, Ind., currently are serving as directors of the
center through BVS. In May, Don and Pauline Hess from Virginia will
begin a two-year term as directors.

The American Committee for the World Friendship Center seeks
volunteers to serve at the center--contact Larry and Alice Petry at
330-733-2879 or e-mail petryvilla@aol.com. The American Committee
also hosts Peace Ambassadors--or PAX teams--who visit Japan and the
US to spread the message of peace. Contact Mary Ann Albert at
574-834-3406 or e-mail cwamaa@maplenet.net.

--Brethren Volunteer Service worker Bev Eikenberry and her husband
Joel serve as directors of the World Friendship Center in
Hiroshima, Japan.

*****************************************************************
Newsline is produced by Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford, director of news
services for the Church of the Brethren General Board, on the
first, third, and fifth Friday of each month, with other editions
as needed. Newsline stories may be reprinted provided that Newsline
is cited as the source. Amy Adkins, Karen Doss Bowman, Sam Bowman,
Nancy F. Cruz, Nevin Dulabaum, Jeri S. Kornegay, Tom Leard
Longenecker, June Peters, Jonathan Shively, Anna Speicher, Glenn
Timmons, Walt Wiltschek, and Jane Yount contributed to this report.
Newsline is a free service sent only to those requesting a
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