Brazilian Brethren leader presents a peace church hermeneutic based in community

[CoBNews <CoBNews@brethren.org>]

Brazilian Brethren leader presents a peace church hermeneutic based 
in comm unity

(Dec. 2, 2010) Santo Domingo, the Dominican Republic -- A 
presentation from  a leader of Igreja da Irmandade (the Church of the 
Brethren in Brazil) ope ned the fourth full day of the Historic Peace 
Church conference in Latin Am erica. Representatives of Friends 
(Quaker), Mennonite, and Church of the Br ethren groups in Latin 
America and the Caribbean are holding the conference  at a retreat 
center just outside Santo Domingo, the DR.

A peace church hermeneutic based in community experience was 
presented by A lexandre Gonçalves, president of Igreja da Irmandade.

"Christianity and violence are not compatible," he said forcefully, 
adding  that it is impossible to think about an active nonviolence 
without starting  to think about the manipulation of power within 
ourselves and with each ot her in our churches and societies.

Describing differences between the Brethren and the many 
pentecostal-type c hurches that are growing quickly in Brazil, he 
gave a forceful critique of  pastoral leaders and church hierarchies 
that are domineering and even abusi ve. In Brazil, the leadership of 
pentecostal-type churches are "every day m ore oppressive," he said, 
and are strongly influenced by messianism, and th e narcissistic 
individualism of secular society. "We are looking at a huge  
phenomenon of power concentration in the clergy."

On top of that, he added, Brazil is inundated with the prosperity 
gospel, w hich he described as "a pragmatic relationship with God 
influenced by consu merism."

By contrast, he explained the peace church community hermeneutic that 
he sa id is based in the tradition of the "priesthood of all 
believers." He defin ed "hermeneutic" as the interpretation of 
scripture and its practical appli cation. The Brazilian Brethren talk 
about and interpret scripture within th e church as the community of 
God, and with a community perspective, he said . They also seek 
practical application of the Bible texts as a community. T his 
includes prayer and reflection, directed by the Holy Spirit, and 
requir es participation by all members of the church.

"What we’re interested in is how the Spirit can talk in diversity," 
he sa id, "...without forgetting our critical capacity and caring." 
In their wors hip services, the Brazilian Brethren do not preach 
sermons but share about  the experiences that they have lived, he 
explained. "It’s a simultaneous  process of construction and 
deconstruction. We want to reflect and live out  a life full of 
significance."

During a question and answer session, in which Gonçalves fielded 
several  supportive but also skeptical questions, he was asked if 
such a hermeneutic  community can ever really exist in practice. He 
answered in the affirmativ e: yes, he said, this is being done by 
Brethren in Brazil. He also acknowle dged its difficulties, saying 
the Brazilian Brethren have not stopped talki ng about hard issues. 
But, he maintained that diversity of opinion should n ot be a problem 
in the church.

For the rest of the day Dec. 1, the conference received a preliminary 
repor t from a three-person committee working on a final document 
from the event,  spent time in a creative activity aimed at narrowing 
down the conference p resentations to key concepts, and took a 
walking tour of the colonial zone  of Santo Domingo.

The afternoon tour followed a guidebook telling an alternative 
history of S anto Domingo--the first European city in the Americas. 
Titled "Five Hundred  Years of Domination and Resistance," the 
guidebook was created for the 13t h International Summit of Justicia 
Global held in May this year, with an in troduction by Irvin 
Heishman, a coordinator of the Church of the Brethren m ission in the 
DR.

The tour visited sites where Christians can contemplate Columbus’ 
arrival  on the island as "an encounter of two cultures," and invited 
the conferenc e to remember the genocide of the original population 
and the exploitation  of slaves imported from Africa, as well as acts 
of faithful resistance to t his oppression by Catholic Dominican 
friars such as Fray Anton de Montesino s. In 1511, Montesinos 
preached what is considered the first sermon for hum an rights in the 
Americas.

The day closed with an evening of presentations, worship, and 
fellowship at  a Mennonite Church in Santo Domingo.

Webcasts from the conference are being offered at 
www.bethanyseminary.edu/w 
ebcasts/PeaceConf2010<http://www.bethanyseminary.edu/webcasts/PeaceConf2010

. An online photo album has been started at 
www.brethren.org/site/PhotoAlbu 
mUser?AlbumID=13041&view=UserAlbum<http://www.brethren.org/site/PhotoAl
 bumUser?AlbumID=13041&view=UserAlbum>.

Se puede ver la trasmisión en vivo - 
www.bethanyseminary.edu/webcasts/Pea 
ceConf2010<http://www.bethanyseminary.edu/webcasts/PeaceConf2010

. Fotos: 
www.brethren.org/site/PhotoAlbumUser?AlbumID=13041&view=UserAl 
bum<http://www.brethren.org/site/PhotoAlbumUser?AlbumID=13041&view=User
 Album>.

-- Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford is director of news services for the 
Church of  the Brethren. Spanish translation to come. Traducción al 
español - Mari ana Barriga

Contact Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford, 1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120; 
800-32 3-8039 ext. 260; 
cobnews@brethren.org<mailto:cobnews@brethren.org