wfn.org | Newsline: New resources celebrate Brethren anniversary

["COBNews Newsline" <cobnews@brethren.org>]

Newsline: Church of the Brethren News Service -- Aug. 29, 2008
Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford, News Director
800-323-8039 ext. 260 -- cobnews@brethren.org

>NEW RESOURCES CELEBRATE BRETHREN ANNIVERSARY

(Aug. 29, 2008) Elgin, IL -- The following new resources have been
published as part of the celebration of the 300th Anniversary of the
Brethren movement. The first group of eight Brethren were baptized in
the Eder River in Schwarzenau, Germany, in 1708.

"Back to Schwarzenau: Celebrating 300 Years of the Brethren
Movement:

This video wrap up of the international celebration of the 300th
Anniversary, which was held on Aug. 2-3 in Schwarzenau, Germany,
has been produced for the Brethren Encyclopedia Board by David
Sollenberger. The video is available in DVD format and offers highlights
of events as members of the six major Brethren bodies returned to their
roots on the banks of the Eder River. The DVD contains a narrated 12-
minute overview of the gathering, a three-minute collage of images from
the weekend, the sermons from the Anniversary worship service, the
McPherson (Kan.) College choir singing the anthem commissioned for
the 300th Anniversary, a presentation by Larry Glick in the role of
Brethren founder Alexander Mack Sr., and a video tour of the Alexander
Mack Museum. Order for $29.95 from Brethren Encyclopedia, Inc., 313
Fairview Ave., Ambler, PA 19002.

>"Origin of the Schwarzenau Brethren":

This new book by Marcus Meier has been published in English as part of
the Brethren Encyclopedia's Monograph Series. The book was translated
from German by Dennis Slabaugh. Meier was the keynote speaker for
the international celebration of the 300th Anniversary. He is a research
fellow at the Institute for European History in Mainz, and a German
academic authority on the early Brethren. The book represents a
continuing development in Brethren historical studies to seek original
European sources of information, according to an announcement by the
series editor William R. Eberly. "Brethren historiography has gone
through several phases," Eberly said. "First, M.G. Brumbaugh and other
authors reconstructed Brethren history primarily from collected
documents available in America.... Donald and Hedda Durnbaugh did
extensive research in archives in Germany and uncovered much new
information. The first Source Book, 'European Origins of the Brethren,'
was ready for the 250th Anniversary in 1958. Now, 50 years later,
Marcus Meier has written about still new information on the
Schwarzenau Brethren.... It is a very important book for a new era of
Brethren historiography." Order the 236-page volume through Brethren
Press for $40 plus shipping and handling, call 800-441-3712.

>"Schwarzenau 1708-2008":

A new book about the relationship between the village of Schwarzenau
and the Brethren has been released in German and English. The book has
been edited by Otto Marburger, who served as a co-coordinator of the
Schwarzenau Committee for the international celebration of the
Anniversary. Identifying the village as the birthplace of the Brethren,
authors from Schwarzenau and the Bad Berleburg region as well as from
different Brethren bodies contributed to the book. Proceeds will support
the Alexander Mack Museum in Schwarzenau. Price to order through
Brethren Press is still being determined, for more information call 800-
323-8039.

"The Old Brethren: People of Wisdom and Simplicity Speak to Our
Time":

Brethren Press is offering a second edition of this book by James H.
Lehman. "The Old Brethren" reviews the history, life, and faith of the
Brethren in the United States in the 19th century. It is a vivid portrait  of
a courageous community that dared to be different. Living entirely by
the Bible "as it reads," and dressing and acting in ways that often made
them seem peculiar to their more sophisticated countrymen, the Brethren
cultivated a faith that was simple but not simplistic. For people of the
21st century, "the old Brethren offer welcome words that speak of a
deeper wisdom in the art of living," said a review from Brethren Press.
Lehman is a writer and publisher and an active member of Highland
Avenue Church of the Brethren in Elgin, Ill. Order from Brethren Press
for $18.95 plus shipping and handling, call 800-441-3712.

The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination committed to
continuing the work of Jesus peacefully and simply, and to living out its
faith in community. The denomination is based in the Anabaptist and
Pietist faith traditions and is one of the three Historic Peace Churches.  It
celebrates its 300th anniversary in 2008. It counts more than 125,000
members across the United States and Puerto Rico, and has missions and
sister churches in Nigeria, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and
India.

># # #

>For more information contact:

>Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
>Director of News Services
>Church of the Brethren
>1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120
>800-323-8039 ext. 260
>cobnews@brethren.org

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