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Date: Oct. 18, 2002
Contact: Walt Wiltschek
V: 847/742-5100 F: 847/742-6103
E-MAIL: CoBNews@AOL.Com

NEWS
 1) General Board meetings set the table for pivotal 2003.
 2) Church of the Brethren, others mount response to Iraq issue.
 3) D.C.-area sniper attacks claim Church of the Brethren victim.
 4) ABC board continues strategic plan process, address finances.
 5) On Earth Peace board discusses Conference query, war concerns.
 6) Committee on Interchurch Relations looks at mission, plans.
 7) Brethren bits: College and congregational news, workshops.

FEATURES
 8) A storm huffed and puffed, but an Indiana church stood firm.

NOTE: Due to the large volume of board reports in this edition, a
comprehensive roundup on recent district conference activity will
appear in the Nov. 1 issue of Newsline.

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

 1) The Church of the Brethren General Board held its fall meetings
Oct. 12-15 meetings in Elgin, Ill., setting the table for a pivotal
meeting in March. When the board meets in New Windsor, Md., March
8-11 it is expected to approve a new comprehensive plan for the
organization and call a new general secretary. Board members spent
significant time on both of those processes at the October meeting.

Providing an uncertain backdrop for all those discussions was the
General Board's financial picture. Finance and funding staff
reported an operating deficit of nearly $800,000 through September,
due in large part to significant drops in investment and bequest
income. The plunge could eat away nearly a third of the agency's
net asset reserves for General Programs. Giving to all three of the
board's major special-purpose funds is down as well.

Treasurer Judy Keyser termed the financial situation for 2002 and
coming years, when large deficits were already projected due to
rising salary and benefit costs and other expenses, as "not a rosy
picture."

The board did approve, with some abstentions, a $5,655,000 General
Programs budget for 2003, not including self-funded programs. Some
budget reductions and a $81,000 "patch" of one-time funds were
needed to make ends meet, assuming income bounces back next year.

In light of those figures, the board turned to a "Reduced Resources
Program Scenario" in constructing its comprehensive plan.
Originally, the plan was to have scenarios for increased, stable,
and reduced resources, but present realities forced consideration
of just one option. General secretary Judy Mills Reimer told board
members they were "serving in a critical time in the life of our
denomination" with "big decisions" ahead.

The board began to address those decisions, sharing with consultant
Dennis Koehn the General Board ministries they most appreciated and
those they felt could be cut back. While offering some suggestions,
most board members expressed a reluctance to cut any ministries.
They identified a need to work at the problem creatively and
systemically while proceeding in faith. Board members were also
challenged to help personally with increased fund-raising efforts.

In other business, the board--led this year by chair Warren Eshbach
of Thomasville, Pa.--took the following actions:

*The agenda called for reaffirming the General Board's 1998
statement on Iraq, but recent events led board members to request
a rewrite and update specifically addressing current concerns.
Brethren Witness director David Radcliff and Washington Office
coordinator Greg Davidson Laszakovits worked with a team of
interested people to draft a new statement, which was unanimously
approved. It proposes "nonviolent alternatives" that lead to trust
and peace. The full text, in English and Spanish, is at
www.brethren.org/genbd/GBResolutions/2002Iraq.html.

*The board heard an update on the general secretary search process
as it met in closed session for about two hours. Mennonite
consultant Kirk Stiffney is working with the search committee,
chaired by Stafford Frederick. The committee said it hopes to call
a candidate in time for consideration at the March meeting,
allowing a new general secretary to begin in July.

*Board members unanimously approved a request from Elgin Building
& Grounds manager Dave Ingold for a new roof on the General Offices
building, replacing one that had been installed in 1981. The board
approved expenditures of up to $1.4 million, to be paid from the
Land, Buildings, and Equipment Fund. The work will be completed in
summer 2003.

*In light of the Annual Conference call for a prayer emphasis in
2002-2003, board members, staff, and visitors signed up for periods
throughout the meetings when they would hold the proceedings and
the denomination in focused prayer. Staff also reported that a
five-person, inter-agency committee had been formed to provide
resources and ideas in response to the Conference query. Worship
and devotions wove throughout the meetings with the theme "The love
of Christ urges us on . . . " Eshbach, Annual Conference moderator
Harriet Finney, Highland Avenue Church of the Brethren pastor Joel
Kline, and board member J.D. Glick led major worship times.

*Global Mission Partnerships director Merv Keeney said the board
plans to request that its India recommendation to Annual Conference
be taken off the table for 2003 and added to the agenda. A study
packet is being prepared, and a forum will likely be held at Annual
Conference. A board delegation hopes to participate in
reconciliation meetings in India in early 2003.

*A new committee will identify needs in board representation and
propose a nominee(s) to the full board as the General Board begins
periodically calling its own at-large members under new Annual
Conference guidelines. Conference will be asked to affirm the
person called.

*The Human Resources office reported the change to a new employee
medical plan for 2003 will result in a savings of tens of thousands
of dollars by shifting some costs to employees, eliminating fears
of a major increase in premiums.

*The board participated in the annual Elgin employee recognition
reception for those who had reached tenure milestones. Archivist
Ken Shaffer was recognized for 15 years of service to the General
Board, and seven others received honors for 5 or 10 years.
Citations were also given to departing staff Sue Grubb, Julie
Garber, and Lester Boleyn.

 2) As the United States moves closer to a possible confrontation
with Iraq, activity continues on many fronts within the Church of
the Brethren and beyond. In addition to the recent updated
statement passed by the Church of the Brethren General Board (see
story #1), several other bodies within the church have made formal
resolutions and statements or taken other action:

*Fifty-one faculty members of Juniata College (Huntingdon, Pa.)
signed a "Resolution Regarding War in Iraq" urging the US to
"oppose any pre-emptive war." The group, acting on their own, sent
copies to the White House and Pennsylvania's congressional
delegation. 

*The South/Central Indiana District board sent a call to its
congregations, asking them to live out Jesus' admonition to "love
your enemies" by engaging in spiritual disciplines, supporting one
another in faith, and being bold in their witness.

*General secretary Judy Mills Reimer was among church leaders
signing a statement initiated by Sojourners executive director Jim
Wallis, calling a pre-emptive war against Iraq "illegal, unwise,
and immoral." The full text is at www.sojo.net/action. Reimer will
also attend and give the closing remarks at the US Conference of
Religions for Peace meeting Oct. 23 in Chicago. She and Imam Warith
Deen Mohammed, president of the Muslim American Society in Chicago,
will be co-hosts for the event, which will feature several keynote
speakers and a panel.

*The West Richmond (Va.) congregation on Oct. 10 held a prayer
service for peace, praying for peace in Iraq and seeking to raise
awareness of issues surrounding the call to war.

*Church of the Brethren member Cliff Kindy of North Manchester,
Ind., will join a 16-member Christian Peacemaker Teams (CPT)
delegation to Iraq Oct. 23-Nov. 5. The group, also co-sponsored by
Iraq advocacy group Voices in the Wildnerness, plans to witness
against attacks that target civilians. Kindy will stay on after the
group leaves to facilitate other CPT delegations to Iraq. "Killing
not only destroys another," Kindy said in the release, "but also
destroys our own soul. There are much better ways to resolve our
disputes."

*An Oct. 11 Chicago Tribune article featured the peace stance of
the Church of the Brethren in the context of the growing tension
with Iraq. Chicago First Church of the Brethren pastor Orlando
Redekopp was pictured, and several Brethren were quoted.

In larger interfaith circles, the World Council of Churches this
week convened an international consultation on "Christians and
Muslims in dialogue and beyond" at the WCC headquarters in Geneva,
Switzerland. WCC general secretary Konrad Raiser also called on the
Bush administration to reconsider a pre-emptive attack against
Iraq, saying it would only be "breeding further global instability
and insecurity."

Likewise, the US National Council of Churches executive board asked
Bush to "move, even now, away from war and toward peace with
compassion" as it met Oct. 7-8 in New York. The NCC was among those
sponsoring a series of witness and educational events in
Washington, D.C., in late September and again Oct. 9-11. NCC
general secretary Robert Edgar appeared in a "NOW with Bill Moyers"
special on opposition to war in Iraq. Episodes were broadcast Oct.
4 and 11.

 3) Dean Meyers, a member of the Manassas (Va.) Church of the
Brethren, was shot and killed Oct. 9 at a Manassas gas station.
Police later linked the murder with a series of sniper attacks in
the Washington, D.C., metro area, according to CNN.

Meyers, 53, worked for an engineering firm in Manassas. Originally
from Pennsylvania, he was baptized in the Manassas congregation in
1977. He was later transferred and worked in Gaithersburg, Md.,
then was transferred back to Manassas three years ago but continued
to live in Gaithersburg.

He continued to periodically attend worship at Manassas, however,
and was there recently, according to pastor Fred Swartz. Meyers
also played on the church softball team.

"He was as nice a guy as you'd want to meet," Swartz said. He said
that the church community there had been "deeply affected" by the
shooting.

Meyers, who was single and had no children, had finished several
hours of overtime at his job before stopping for gas Wednesday. The
attack occured at about 8:15 p.m.

Funeral services were scheduled to be held Oct. 19 at the Coventry
Church of the Brethren in Pottstown, Pa., where Meyers' brother
Larry and sister-in-law Donna, a member of the Atlantic Northeast
District board, attend.

"It's really a severe blow to the family, really startling,"
Coventry pastor Sandford Christophel said. "It's quite a challenge
as far as trying to do a funeral."

The shooting came just days before the Mid-Atlantic District
conference, held at Manassas Oct. 11-12. The church received some
calls asking about safety, but the conference went on as scheduled.

 4) The Association of Brethren Caregivers board completed the next
phase in its vision and planning process by approving an
interpretation of four areas of strategic focus during its fall
meetings, held Sept. 27-29 at the General Offices in Elgin, Ill.
 
The ABC board had approved the four areas of strategic
focus--advocacy, empowerment, relationship, and stewardship--in
March, but asked staff to interpret the terms and their
relationship to each other. Staff set the four areas of strategic
focus in the context of fostering community, and interpreted the
interconnected nature of the four areas.

"Having the board's approval of this step helps the staff focus as
it proceeds with the next steps of the strategic plan, which I hope
will be presented to the board at its March 2003 meeting," ABC
executive director Steve Mason said.
 
The board received the 2003 operating budget of $592,560, which
includes a deficit of $98,720. The board instructed ABC staff to
present a revised budget to the Finance Committee and Executive
Committee for consideration and adoption before year's end.

The board also heard a report on the agency's year-to-date budget,
which shows gift income from all sources similar to that of 2001.
The board took action allowing ABC to use its resources in
providing adequate cash flow for 2003. The board also authorized
Mason to borrow from the agency's quasi-endowment funds, which are
unrestricted funds functioning as endowment by board action, as a
means of continuing programs in 2003.
 
At an evening dinner, Phil Flory of Bridgewater, Va., Margaret
Yoder Fultz of Lemoyne, Pa., Heidi Loomis of Boalsburg, Pa., and
Paul Ullom-Minnich of Moundridge, Kan., were recognized for serving
two three-year terms on the ABC Board, ending Dec. 31.

In other business, the ABC board:
*Noted that the 2002 Annual Conference "Call to Prayer" paper
establishes a priority for programs the agency will develop in the
coming year. Responses include plans for Health Promotion Sunday
materials; the focus of silence and prayer in the next Caring
Ministries Assembly's theme, "Healing Out of Silence"; and the
Denominational Deacon Cabinet's emphasis on prayer in training
events for deacons.

*Elected Heather Neff of Huntington, Pa., and Gene Yeazell of
Arden, N.C., to serve on the board beginning Jan. 1. Neff is vice
president of The Village at Morrison's Cove. Yeazell is a retired
hospital administrator and now operates a spiritual retreat center
in North Carolina.

*Revisited an action item from 1998, which called for the board to
re-evaluate the agency's name. The board considered the item but
decided against a name change at this time.

*Restructured its leadership and committees. The board appointed
James Tomlonson of Warrensburg, Mo., to serve as treasurer
effective Jan. 1 and elected committee members for service
beginning in 2003. New members of the Executive Committee in
addition to Tomlonson are Joe Schechter of La Verne, Calif., and
Connie Burk Davis of Westminster, Md., as at-large members. New
members of the Finance Committee will be Tomlonson as chair and
John Wenger of Anderson, Ind., and Eddie Edmonds of Martinsburg,
W.Va., as at-large members. Neff was elected for a three-year term
on the Awards Committee. Margaret Yoder Fultz and Phil Flory were
elected to two-year terms on the Nominating Committee.

  
 5) The On Earth Peace board of directors and staff met Sept. 20-21
in New Windsor, Md., led by chair Bev Weaver. With images drawn
from the book of Ruth, the theme "Strength for the Journey"
provided a focus as each session opened with worship.

Highlights from the meeting included the following:
*The 2002-2003 Executive Committee was organized with Bev Weaver as
chair; David Jehnsen, vice-chair; Lauree Hersch Meyer, secretary;
Charles Kwon, treasurer; and Ken Frantz and Tom Leard Longenecker,
at-large.

*The financial update indicated that both income and expenses were
below budget. However, the agency finished the fiscal year--which
ended Sept. 30--with a positive balance. The board approved a
$345,000 budget for 2002-2003. As fund-raising efforts were
discussed, the staff and board set a challenge goal for personal
donations totaling $25,000 in fiscal 2003.

*A document prepared by co-director Bob Gross and advancement
committee member Jim Replogle, "Policies Regarding Use of Endowment
and Funds," was approved.

*A possible Annual Conference query was discussed, regarding a call
to faithfulness as a peace church and the question of what it means
to be a "living peace church" in this day. A working group of
board, non-board, and staff was proposed to carry out this effort.

*Reports were given by each staff member, celebrating continuity of
the entire staff for one year. The ongoing "War on Terrorism" has
added to workloads. Program highlights included Ministry of
Reconciliation work, resources, and signficant activity at the
various summer conferences. Staff also shared plans for future
programs and initiatives, including support for Christian
Peacemaker Teams/Voices in the Wilderness efforts to send
delegations to Iraq.

*The Personnel Committee discussed options for staff to reduce
their taxable income and/or to live at a non-taxable level, in
light of the levels of military spending in the federal budget; the
Advancement Committee discussed fund-raising issues and considered
options for hiring another staff person to focus on development
work; and the Executive Committee shared positive evaluations of
the co-directors and reviewed changes made to the agency's
strategic goals at the April 2002 board meeting.

*A small group gathered to develop ideas for non-Anglo curricula to
be incorporated into On Earth Peace programs.

*Staff reported progress in seeking an anti-racism initiative to
help On Earth Peace work at racism in the agency's program and
organizational life. The board affirmed this direction with
encouragement for staff to continue this approach.

*The board affirmed the appointment of David Jehnsen as an On Earth
Peace representative to the Christian Peacemaker Teams steering
committee.

*The meeting ended with blessings of scripture for departing board
members Dale Brown, who served two years as chair, and Walt Moyer.
 

 6) The Committee on Interchurch Relations (CIR) held its fall
meetings Sept. 27-29 in Elgin, Ill., bringing together the three
members appointed by the General Board and three appointed by
Annual Conference, along with general secretary Judy Mills Reimer,
who serves as staff. 

The committee updated its mission statement, reviewed its core
areas of responsibility, and made plans for its activities at the
2003 Annual Conference. Manassas (Va.) pastor Jeff Carter, who will
be spending part of his sabbatical at World Council of Churches
headquarters in Switzerland, will lead CIR's insight session at
Conference.

CIR will also again host the Ecumenical Luncheon at Annual
Conference, presenting an Ecumenical Recognition/Award to a
congregation working to overcome violence. Nominations will need to
be received by March 15.

CIR members began work on a statement reflecting the interfaith
dynamics of the current Iraq situation and War on Terrorism and
plans to present a finished statement in the near future. The
committee will next meet in spring 2003, by conference call.

 7) Brethren bits: Other brief news notes from around the
denomination and elsewhere.
 *Jennie Draper, a member of Bridgewater (Va.) Church of the
Brethren, and Joel Ballew, a member of Mount Vernon Church of the
Brethren, Waynesboro, Va., received outstanding service awards from
Bridgewater College on Oct. 11. Both have been active in
organizations on campus and in the community. . . . Bridgewater's
enrollment is up to 1,343 students this year, the school's highest
total ever. Its 5-0 football team is also ranked No. 2 nationally.

 *The Ministry of Reconciliation will offer the workshop
"Personality Styles in Conflict" Nov. 14-16 at Camp Mack, Milford,
Ind. Leadership will be provided by Janice Kulp Long, assisted by
John Long and On Earth Peace co-director Bob Gross. Cost is $95 for
materials and tuition; $65 fee for food and simple lodging. For
more information or to register, contact Matt Guynn, 765-962-6234
or mguynn@myvine.com.

 8) What started as a normal day in Greenwood, Ind., quickly
turned into an adventure on Sept. 20. Christ Our Shepherd Church of
the Brethren was hosting a meeting of the Companeros en Ministerio
board, and pastor Wayne Grumbling was preparing for the weekend.

They knew a storm was coming, but they weren't prepared for a
tornado. As the winds grew, Grumbling peered out a window and, "It
looked you were in a really large leaf-blower," he said. Soon it
looked like a giant car wash as the rains hit, and then the roof
began to vibrate.

A door blew open to relieve some of the pressure, so most of the
damage came in shingles and flashing being pulled off. An adjuster
determined that about $25,000 in damage had been done, enough to
approve replacement of the roof before winter hits.

Grumbling praised God that no one was injured, and that the
structure remained basically intact and can continue to be used. A
building next door to the church lost its metal roof. Most
impressive, he said, was the quick outpouring of support the church
received from the district and area congregations.

"We've been pretty well blessed by the response we've gotten,"
Grumbling said. "We felt well taken care of. . . . We felt very
much a part of a district family."

Nearly 500 homes in Indiana were destroyed by the storm, and
hundreds of others damaged, according to Church of the Brethren
Emergency Response/Service Ministries (ER/SM). Grumbling has been
representing ER/SM in area disaster relief meetings, and ER/SM was
monitoring any needed response.

Newsline is produced by Walt Wiltschek, manager 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. Mary Dulabaum, Barb Sayler, and Karen Roberts
contributed to this report.

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