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Date:      Dec. 18, 1998

News
1) The World Council of Churches Eighth Assembly is held in Harare,
     Zimbabwe.
1a) The assembly convenes under the theme, "Turn to God -- Rejoice
     in Hope."
1b) The WCC establishes a 10-year emphasis at overcoming violence.
2) Emergency Response/Service Ministries announces its Castaner,
     Puerto Rico, project directors, and reports on recent
     shipments to the Caribbean.
3) A $3,000 grant is allocated from the General Board's Emergency
     Response/Service Ministries for assistance in western Ukraine.
4) The 1999 youth and young adult workcamp schedule is released.
5) Sandy Summers of Ephrata (Pa.) Church of the Brethren in
     November left for a year of service in Guatemala as an
     accompanier.
6) The Church of the Brethren Washington Office is urging Brethren
     to write to President Clinton in support of the Peace Tax Fund
     bill.
7) The December and January Source resource packets have been
     mailed.
8) The First Church of the Brethren of Chicago and its Bethany
     Brethren Community Center in November received the 1998 Caleb
     Foote Gates Award.
9) Tim McElwee is named Manchester College's vice president of
     institutional advancement.
10) Manchester College receives three Lilly Endowment grants
     totaling $6.5 million.
11) On Jan. 1, CPT will challenge a Toys R Us to become a
     "violence-free zone."
12) The fifth annual "Dancing" conference is scheduled for 
     June 25-27 in Milwaukee.
13) Manny Diaz resigns as part-time Area 4 Congregational Life Team
     member. 

Feature
14) Brethren know that two wrongs don't make a right, but Brethren
     Lorine Hyer knows that two Wrights do indeed make an airplane.
15) Dealing with Iraq -- Christians must call for a nonviolent way,
     states David Radcliff.

1) The World Council of Churches' Eighth Assembly concluded on
Monday following 12 days of meetings in Harare, Zimbabwe. Wendy
McFadden, director/publisher of the General Board's Brethren Press,
served on the assembly's press team and filed two reports before
departing Harare. The first is a general report of the assembly;
the second describes the creation of a focus that is sure to please
churches of peace. Complete coverage of the event and the Women's
Decade festival, which preceded the assembly, will appear in an
upcoming issue of Messenger magazine.

1a) An appearance by Nelson Mandela highlighted a moving
celebration of the World Council of Churches' jubilee anniversary.
The event came on the next to the last day of the WCC's 12-day
Eighth Assembly, held Dec. 3-14.

"Your choice to celebrate your 50th anniversary here in Africa
bears witness to your solidarity with our struggle," he said. He
described the council's work as "50 years of activating the
conscience of the world for peace and on behalf of the poor, the
disadvantaged, and the dispossessed."

Mandela thanked the WCC for its support of the freedom struggles of
the people in southern Africa, some of the council's most
controversial work  "Today the WCC is called upon to show that same
engagement in the new and more difficult struggle for development
and the entrenchment of democracy," he said.

Mandela's speech was one part of a three-hour celebration that used
a variety of media to recount the work and witness of the WCC.
Through video, narration, an African choir, and the appearance of
various people, the crowd was reminded of the major themes,
challenges, personalities, and accomplishments of the council.

The South African president's electrifying presence underscored the
importance the African context gave to the assembly, which met
under the theme "Turn to God -- Rejoice in Hope." The biblical
concept of jubilee was invoked frequently, with repeated calls for
debt relief for countries in Africa and elsewhere struggling with
unpayable debt.

Another African leader who addressed the assembly was Bishop Paride
Taban of Torit, in southern Sudan, a Catholic leader well-known to
Brethren missionaries who have worked in that area. In a message
delivered near the beginning of the assembly, he described the
civil strife and appealed to the Christian community to give voice
to the people he represents. Less than a week later, the town of
Narus, where his office is located, was bombed by the Sudanese
government. Six people were reported killed and 14 more seriously
injured. According to some reports, the attack was in retribution
for his outspoken comments at the assembly. WCC leaders  responded
immediately with a letter to the government in Khartoum.

Joining me from the U.S. Church of the Brethren were delegates Judy
Mills Reimer and Julie Liggett, accredited visitor E. Paul Weaver,
accredited media Ken Miller-Rieman, unofficial visitors George
Reimer and Ed Weaver, and Sara Speicher.

Four people from the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria (EYN)
attended -- delegates Bitrus Bdlia and Karagama Gadzama, and
accredited visitors Kwanye Toma and Rebecca Kwabe, both from the
EYN women's fellowship. 

Delegates spent considerable time discussing the way the council
ought to function in the future, using as a basis a statement
called "Towards a Common Understanding and Vision of the WCC." This
policy document builds on the experience and lessons of the last 50
years and serves as a point of reference for renewed ecumenical
commitment in the future. 

The "common understanding" appeared to be a fragile thing,
particularly in the months leading up to the assembly as the
Orthodox churches voiced unhappiness about their relationship with
the council. The delegates agreed to set up a special commission to
work on the issues, which include women's ordination, inclusive
language, discussion of homosexuality by some Western Protestant
denominations, and what is considered to be Westernized
decision-making process. Two Orthodox churches have withdrawn from
the WCC, and the Russian Orthodox Church announced that it would
suspend its participation while the special commission conducted
its work. Other Orthodox voices, however, rated the Harare assembly
better than expected and one said, "Our voice has been heard." 

Growing out of the new policy statement on common understanding and
vision, the council will implement a new organizational structure
that shifts from four units to four clusters of teams. It also is
exploring other ways to engage in ecumenical work, perhaps through
a "forum" that would allow for collaboration with churches and
Christian organizations that are not WCC members. Citing a need to
be less tied to institutional structure, it is seeking to both
deepen and broaden its engagement with other Christians.

In other business, delegates evaluated the council's work since the
previous assembly and set program guidelines for the next seven
years. They also issued a resolution commemorating the 50th
anniversary of the U.N. Declaration on Human Rights, which
coincided with the assembly, and produced policy statements on
human rights and on the status of Jerusalem. 

Delegates took a special offering that was divided between victims
of Hurricane Mitch in Central America and those suffering from
HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe, which has the highest incidence of AIDS in
the world.

With new members admitted at this assembly, the WCC now numbers 339
denominations. In contrast to 50 years ago, the weight of its
membership has shifted from Europe and North America to the South.
Despite the differences voiced in business sessions, the people
gathered in Harare recalled the words from Amsterdam that "we
intend to stay together," and affirmed that "we now commit
ourselves to being together."

During the assembly there was much evidence of a festival held just
days before to culminate the Ecumenical Decade for the Churches in
Solidarity with Women. The Church of the Brethren, through its
Annual Conference, was one of many denominations that officially
endorsed this effort, and two Brethren women, Julie Liggett and Pam
Brubaker, attended the festival.

1b) Peace church members were jubilant in the closing moments of
the business sessions at the World Council of Churches Eighth
Assembly when delegates agreed to establish an Ecumenical Decade to
Overcome Violence, to be observed 2000-2010.

There were more than three dozen Church of the Brethren, Mennonite,
and Quaker members in Harare. They gathered informally three times
to discuss matters of common interest, most notably the council's
Programme to Overcome Violence, which began in 1994 with strong
support from the historic peace churches. Church of the Brethren
member Sara Speicher has served two years as POV program assistant.

The proposal to establish an Ecumenical Decade to Overcome Violence
was made by Fernando Enns from the Mennonite Church in Germany, and
was added to the 18-page document that spells out the council's
plans for the next seven years. While North American Mennonites are
not members of the WCC, the Mennonite churches in Germany and the
Netherlands were founding members of the council. At this assembly,
Enns became the first Mennonite to be named to the WCC's Central
Committee.

Those who attended the gatherings of historic peace church members
came from Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Europe, and North
America. In addition to the success of the Program to Overcome
Violence, they were pleased that the delegates acted on an
initiative from the Quaker participants -- a statement condemning
the use of children as soldiers.

2) A new Church of the Brethren disaster response project will
begin in January in Castaner, Puerto Rico. Wilbur and Nancy Morris
will serve as project directors, supervising rebuilding projects,
particularly the replacement of roofs that were blown off by
Hurricane Georges. Although volunteer slots are filled through
March, workers are needed for April, May, and June.

Johnson also reported this week that the need for "Gifts of the
Heart" kits and quilts in Central America continues to be great --
two 40-foot containers were sent to Honduras recently from the
Brethren Service Center in New Windsor, Md. Together they weighed
30 tons and were filled with 18,750 health kits, nearly 12,000
quilts, and medical supplies. 

3) A $3,000 allocation from the Church of the Brethren General
Board's Emergency Disaster Fund was granted this week for work in
western Ukraine. Through Church World Service, this money will
assist victims of flooding caused by heavy rains.

Over 24,000 people have been evacuated from their homes, 46
settlements have been without electricity, 487 bridges have been
severely damaged or destroyed, and 230 miles of roads have been
under water. Support will include food assistance and health kits,
reconstruction and rehabilitation of six community buildings as
temporary shelters, educational support for 500 evacuated children,
water purification projects, medical assistance, and some relief
assistance for flood-affected areas downstream in Hungary.

4) The 1999 schedule for junior high, senior high, young adult,
young adult/older adults, and Brethren Revival Fellowship workcamps
has been announced; a brochure is available.

Twenty-four workcamps have been scheduled in six countries and 17
states--

Junior High:
     * Harrisburg, Pa., June 23-27 
     * Lake Geneva, Wis., July 4-8
     * New Windsor, Md., July 14-18 
     * Washington, D.C., July 28 - Aug. 1
     * Indianapolis, Ind., Aug. 4-8
     * Richmond, Va., Aug. 11-15

Senior High: 
     * Perryville, Ark., June 14-20
     * Puerto Rico, June 14-20 
     * Tijuana, Mexico, June 21-27
     * Germantown, Pa., June 21-27
     * Broken Bow, Okla., July 5-11
     * Jamaica, July 7-13
     * Kentucky, July 11-17
     * Orangeburg, S.C., July 12-18
     * Denver, Colo., July 19-25
     * Putney, Vt., July 19-25
     * Americus, Ga., July 26 - Aug. 1
     * St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, July 28 - Aug. 3
     * Mendenhall, Miss., Aug. 2-8
     * Chicago, Ill, Aug. 9-15
     * Monterey, Mass., Aug. 9-15 
       
Young Adult:
     * Coleraine, Northern Ireland, June 5-13
     
Intergenerational (young adults and older adults):
      * Harrisburg, Pa., July 21-25 

Brethren Revival Fellowship:
     *Brooklyn, N.Y., June 20-27

Registrations will be accepted on a first-come basis. Registrations
must be mailed with a $50 nonrefundable check. Total cost depends
on workcamp selected, but the range is from $170 to $400.
Registration forms and other workcamp-related information are
available at www.brethren.org/genbd in the Youth and Young Adult
Ministry section. 

For more information, cobyouth_gb@brethren.org or call 800
323-8039, ext. 289.

5) Sandy Summers of the Ephrata (Pa.) Church of the Brethren
completed Guatemala Accompaniment Project training in mid-November
and left for Guatemala. She is living in the village Nueva Union
Maya, a community of returned refugees, as a human rights observer.
She will serve there for one year.

Her presence as an accompanier provides a vital link to the outside
world for recently resettled villages as these families rebuild
their communities after years of living as refugees, having fled
Guatemala's brutal civil war, according to David Radcliff, director
of the Church of the Brethren General Board's Brethren Witness.

Church of the Brethren members and congregations, through the
Brethren Witness office, can become accompaniers or partners in the
accompaniment project. Congregations are linked with communities
through the accompaniers and respond to urgent actions and provide
some financial support. Representatives from congregations may also
join annual delegations that travel to Guatemala to visit partner
communities.

For more information, contact Radcliff at dradcliff_gb@brethren.org
or at 800 323-8039.

6) Should conscientious objectors be able to pay federal taxes with
the assurance that their money is being used to fund
nonmilitary-related programs? The Church of the Brethren Washington
Office believes so, and it is urging Brethren to write to President
Clinton in support of proposed legislation that would give COs such
a guarantee.

The main opposition to the Peace Tax Fund Bill, which the
Washington Office supports, is the Treasury Department. In a
historic meeting with Treasury representatives last January, the
Peace Tax Fund Campaign asked Treasury official to remove their
opposition to the proposed legislation, stating that the bill does
not present an undue administrative burden. Although Treasury
officials promised to review the bill and respond, they have not
despite repeated urging by the Peace Tax Fund Campaign and
Congressional co-sponsors. 

"We need your help to obtain assistance from the Clinton
Administration," said Loyce Borgmann, Washington Office
coordinator. "The Peace Tax Fund Campaign is urging people to write
to the White House to encourage the President to help solve the
impasse."

Letter writers are urged to state that the Peace Tax Fund Campaign
is eager to find a solution that is the least burdensome for the
government, but that still resolves the ongoing violation of the
religious liberty of conscientious objectors. Clinton should also
be reminded that the campaign has still not received a response
from the Treasury Department, Borgmann added.

Letters should be sent to The White House, c/o Maureen Shea, Office
of Public Liaison for Religious Affairs, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW,
Washington, DC 20500.

7) Two recent Source resource packets have been mailed to each
Church of the Brethren congregation. The December packet included:
     * a flier containing six articles on hunger, for use in church
          bulletins and newsletters.
     * a flier on the Older Adult Brethren Volunteer Service Unit,
          to be held May 4-14.
     * a current address list of Brethren Volunteer Service
          workers, so that Brethren can send these volunteers
          Christmas cards.
     * a brochure on the Church of the Brethren Death Row Support
          Project.
     * the Spring 1998 Newsletter of Global Women's Project.
     * the 1999 youth and young adult workcamp flier.
     * a flier for a five-session Bible study for junior high
          youth, which focuses on five people who took up Christ's
          call to be peacemakers; it is offered by Brethren Press.
     * a copy of a 1999 Stewardship Calendar.

The January 1999 packet included --
     * a special bulletin from the General Board's Emergency
          Response/Service Ministries.
     * a special report by Don Parker (which was featured in the
          Dec. 9 Newsline).
     * a feature focusing on famine in North Korea.
     * a report by the Church of the Brethren Committee on
          Interchurch Relations.
     * a flier seeking young adults to serve on the 1999 JOYA team.
     * a Brethren Press flier offering merchandise related to last
          summer's National Youth Conference.
     * a poster describing the 1999 Youth Ministry theme, 
          "Spirit, Lead the Way!"
     * a flier on the Jubilee 2000 campaign.
     * a copy of SERRV International's "Partnerships" newsletter.
     * a copy of Bethany Theological Seminary's Fall 1998
          "Seminarian."

For more information on Source, contact Howard Royer at
hroyer_gb@brethren.org.

8) The First Church of the Brethren of Chicago and its Bethany
Brethren Community Center received the Caleb Foote Gates Award in
November from the Community Renewal Society, which each year
bestows this honor on a church in metropolitan Chicago that
"through its ministry among the poor and dispossessed, best
exemplifies the spirit of the Society's founder and first
president." Caleb Foote Gates founded the society (then the Chicago
Missionary Society) in 1882 "to work in a Christian framework to
alleviate the poverty of the city."

According to Renewal Society, "First Church has been committed to
ministry with the poor for over 16 years and created Bethany
Brethren Community Center seven years ago to enhance its ministry
within the neighborhood and community. Prior to the creation of the
Bethany Brethren Community Center, the church engaged in a two-year
Community Visitation Program to deepen and strengthen relationships
with community residents.

The Center and church provide monthly community meals and meals for
seniors in the Senior Ministry Project. The Center has boy's and
girl's after-school programs, and the church has a Youth Club in
the evenings, which includes a tutoring program.

Both the Center and the church are members of the Community Renewal
Society's Senior Ministry Network "in order to be in ministry with
community residents."

9) Tim McElwee, director of development at Manchester College,
North Manchester, Ind., has been named vice president of
institutional advancement. Effective Jan. 1, McElwee will oversee
development, the Alumni Association, public relations, and church
relations.

Prior to joining the Manchester staff in 1996, McElwee served as
the Church of the Brethren General Board's Washington Office
director for five years. From 1983 to 1987, McElwee served as
Manchester's campus pastor.

10) A $6.5 million grant for three programs was awarded to
Manchester College of North Manchester, Ind., in November from
Lilly Endowment.

As part of Lilly's 1998 Capital Improvements Program, which
allocated nearly $91 million to 18 private Indiana colleges,
Manchester will receive $5 million for a new science center and
more than $722,000 for an improved academic computing system. It
also will receive $866,319 to work in collaboration with several
South Bend and Fort Wayne social service agencies to assist African
American and Hispanic sixth, seventh, and eighth graders who are at
risk and have limited economic resources. This initiative, dubbed
"The Hawthorne Program," will help 40 students in 1999 and up to 80
students by 2001. The college will work child-by-child, providing
a half-time outreach worker at the three sites.

"We are very excited about the possibilities of this program
because it will enable young students to consider college as a real
option," said Parker Marden, Manchester president. "It is not a
Manchester program as much as it is one that increases ambitions
and possibilities."

This latter grant is part of Lilly's Indiana College Preparatory
Program.

11) On Jan. 1, Christian Peacemaker Teams representatives will go
to a Chicago-area "Toys R Us" and challenge the store to become a
violence-free zone by the year 2000. Bearing bells and singing
adapted carols, the protesters will ring in the New year and "Ring
Out Rambo," an annual demonstration CPT has organized over the past
few years.

In preparation for the New Year's witness, three CPTers visited the
store on Dec. 3 and documented selected items within the large
inventory of violent toys. The personality profile of one of the
"X-MEN" reads "Battle Blaster Wolverine slashes his way into making
the world a better place. ... His transforming claw blaster and its
secret weapons are more than able to finish the job for him." The
package of a "Small Soldiers" item explains that "The Commando
Elite do not understand the meaning of the words quit -- or mercy.
Experts in combat strategy and weaponry, these guys will stop at
nothing to rid the universe of their mortal enemy, the Gorgonites."

According to CPT's Lisa Martens, a voluntary industry-wide rating
system for video games was established several years ago, but the
fact-finding team noted a young child playing "Metal Gear Solid" on
the store's sampler screen. The game's rating reads, "Mature
[inappropriate for minors]; Animated blood and gore; Animated
violence; Mature sexual themes." 

"Eleven," replied the boy when asked his age, Martens said. 

"There are no control mechanisms that sanction retail outlets and
marketing systems when they  allow 'Metal Gear' and similar
materials to fall into the hands of children and minors," Martens
added. "Consumers can change this by challenging toy outlets in
their communities."

CPT is an independent initiative among Church of the Brethren and
Mennonite congregations and Friends meetings. For more information,
call 312 455-1199.

12) "Leading the Dance: Living the Church Re-imagined," will be the
theme of the fifth annual "Dancing" conference of the Church of the
Brethren Womaen's Caucus and Brethren Mennonite Council for Lesbian
and Gay Concerns' Supportive Congregations Network. This event is
scheduled for June 25-27 in Milwaukee, Wis., at Plymouth United
Church of Christ.

According to the release, "Dancing" conferences are places for
supporters of an inclusive church to gather to celebrate the
re-imagined church, to gain tools for the work ahead, and to gain
strength for the journey."

Serving on the conference's planning committee are Ralph McFadden,
coordinator; Lee Krahenbuhl; Debbie Eisenbise; Karen Lease; Carissa
Fralin; and Jan Lugibihl. Co-sponsoring the conference are the
Church of the Brethren Global Women's Project and the
interdenominational Christian Peacemaker Teams.

The Supportive Congregations Network is a network of Church of the
Brethren and Mennonite congregations and individuals that welcome
gay, lesbian, and bisexual members. Womaen's Caucus is a network of
feminist women and men who identify with the Church of the
Brethren.

13) Manny Diaz has resigned as part-time Area 4 Congregational Life
Team member, effective Jan. 31, to become campus minister at
McPherson (Kan.) College.  

Diaz, who joined the General Board staff in March, worked with
other CLT members in developing a new and more direct General Board
approach to congregations.

14) Brethren know that two wrongs don't make a right, but Lorine
Hyer of Mack Memorial Church of the Brethren (Dayton, Ohio) knows
that two Wrights do indeed make an airplane.

Lorine and her family grew up two houses from Loren Wright, the
lesser-known Wright brother, on Second Street in Dayton. Wilbur and
Orville and the others would come by from time to time, and the two
families grew to knew each other quite well.

When Peter Jennings and Todd Brewster -- authors of a new book
called "The Century," which recapps highlights of the past 100
years -- wanted to do a chapter on the Wright brothers, their path
led them to Dayton and to Lorine's sister, Mabel Griep.

The book is a series of reminiscences by people who witnessed or
participated in historical events, and the Griep section talks
about living in pre-electricity Ohio and her father always having
a lot of faith in the Wrights, calling them "our boys." Their test
flights were at nearby Huffman Prairie around Dayton, according to
the article. The book, including Griep's section, was featured in
a November edition of Parade magazine. A photo of Mabel, Lorine,
and the Wrights appeared with the article.

Mabel, also a Mack Memorial member (she and Lorine were "born in
the congregation," according to pastor Mark Flory-Steury), died
shortly after doing the interview for "The Century" three years ago
at age 95. Lorine, a Juniata College graduate who will turn 97 in
February, recalled the episode, however. The two shared an
apartment in Centerville at the time.

"They wanted to interview someone who knew the Wright brothers and
remembered them," Lorine said. "I don't know who, but someone
suggested they interview Mabel. We knew the Wrights pretty well."

"Two or three people from New York came to see her. They asked for
any pictures she had, and she found eight to 10 pictures from that
time." Lorine said she was only about five years old when the
photos were taken, but she has fond memories of the Wrights. Her
parents, she said, were good friends of the Wright family.

"My father knew them real well," Lorine said. "He had a lot of
faith in (the brothers). We all did. Mrs. Wright came and talked to
Mama sometimes, and she was pretty upset because people didn't
believe in the Wrights. I remember that." 

Flory-Steury said that the Mack Memorial congregation began in 1889
on the west side of Dayton, close to the Wright brothers' shop.
Faith was an additional connection for the families, he added, as
the Wrights' father was a United Brethren bishop.

And even long after Kitty Hawk proved the Wrights right, the ties
between the families have remained. "The Wright family has always
kept in touch with us," Lorine said. "They're wonderful people."

"The Century" is "an independent companion volume" to a 27-hour TV
series that will appear on the ABC television network and The
History Channel in early '99. 

15) Enough about President Clinton's motive for bombing Iraq,
states Brethren Witness director David Radcliff. There's another
more troubling aspect that's being ignored, he reports --

While many raise questions about the timing and efficacy of the
curreny military campaign against Iraq, there is another more
troubling question. Our nation seems unable to find more creative
-- and ultimately more successful -- approaches to resolving
long-standing conflicts with nations like Iraq. It seems that we
often limit ourselves to "solutions" that are short on carrots and
long on sticks, and lack an ability to create options that move
both parties to a different kind of relationship. Why can't we find
a new and better way?"

Relations betweem the United States and Cuba are another case in
point of this limited approach. The U.S. embargo has failed to
achieve its stated goals and is roundly criticised by the rest of
the world. Yet we seem unable or unwilling to conceive of a
different approach. In the mean time, the people of Cuba continue
to suffer enormous hardships. This is disturbingly similar to our
ongoing conflict with Iraq. 

We now find ourselves boxed into a military response in Iraq that
will doubtless cause even more suffering to the Iraqi people. We
already know that some 5,000 children die each month due to
sanction-related shortages and the destruction left in the wake of
the 1991 war. In the meantime, U.S. objectives related to Iraq
remain unmet, and the current round of bombing may make them even
more difficult to achieve. There has to be a better way.

The Church of the Brethren's historic rejection of war as a way of
resolving conflict rings true in this current situation. "In its
nearly two and a half centuries of its history, the Church of the
Brethren has come to understand more clearly the tremendous evil
which war brings upon human beings and their society" (Annual
Conference Statement on War, 1970). 

To keep this "tremendous evil" from being imposed on the human
community, Christians must continue to call for new and more
compassionate approaches to resolving the inevitable conflicts
within the human family.

Newsline is produced by Nevin Dulabaum, manager of the Church of
the Brethren General Board's News Services. Wendy McFadden and Walt
Wiltschek contributed to this report. 

Newsline stories may be reprinted provided that Newsline is cited
as the source and the publication date is included. To receive
Newsline by e-mail or fax, call 800 323-8039, ext. 263, or write
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