Newsline: Call for civility in Christian-Muslim relations; worship resources for 9/11

[CoBNews <CoBNews@brethren.org>]

Newsline: Church of the Brethren News Service, News Director Cheryl

Brumbaugh-Cayford, 800-323-8039 ext. 260, cobnews@brethren.org

CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN LEADERS CALL FOR CIVILITY IN

CHRISTIAN-MUSLIM RELATIONS; CHURCH OFFERS WORSHIP

>RESOURCES FOR 9/11

(Sept. 10, 2010) Elgin, IL -- As the ninth anniversary of the attacks 
of

Sept. 11, 2001, approaches, Church of the Brethren staff have 
expressed

concern for interfaith relationships and have called for Brethren to 
reach

>out as peacemakers.

"The Church of the Brethren call is for all followers of Jesus to be

peacemakers as we approach the anniversary of the Sept. 11 events, and

the rising rhetoric and threat of violence against people of differing

belief," said general secretary Stan Noffsinger.

Noffsinger joined his voice with that of other Christian leaders 
around the

world, responding to the worldwide controversy unleashed by plans of 
one

small church in Florida--the Dove World Outreach Center in 
Gainesville--

to burn copies of the Quran on the 9/11 anniversary. Also, plans to 
build a

Muslim community center near Ground Zero in Manhattan increased

>tensions as well.

A letter to the Dove Center was sent by Jay Wittmeyer, executive 
director

of Global Mission Partnerships for the Church of the Brethren, at the

request of the youth chairman of Ekklesiyar Yan'uwa a Nigeria 
(EYN--the

Church of the Brethren in Nigeria). The Nigerian youth leader attends 
an

EYN church in the city of Maiduguri that was destroyed by bombing 
during

religious violence in July 2009. Wittmeyer's letter expressed the 
concern of

Nigerian Christians about suffering retaliatory violence if a Quran 
was

>burned by Christians in the US.

"What we say and do on the anniversary of Sept. 11 matters," said Josh

Brockway, the Church of the Brethren's director of Spiritual Life and

Discipleship. "It gets to the heart of Christian discipleship. 
Scripture, from

cover to cover, is clear that welcome of the stranger, love for our 
neighbor,

and prayers for our enemies are central practices of the Christian 
way of life.

Followers of the Prince of Peace cannot raise one hand in lament and 
hold

>a match in another."

Noffsinger said he supports public comments by NCC general secretary

Michael Kinnamon at an interfaith press conference held Sept. 7 at the

National Press Club. Kinnamon and other religious leaders addressed an

atmosphere of fear and intolerance toward Muslims and condemned the

>plans to burn the Quran.

"The Church of the Brethren agreement on civility extends to our 
interfaith

relationships with our neighbors," Noffsinger said, referring to the

"Resolution Urging Forbearance" adopted by the Church of the Brethren

Annual Conference in 2008 
(www.cobannualconference.org/ac_statements/resolution_urging_forbearance.pdf<http://www.cobannualconference.org/ac_statements/resolution_urging_forbearance.pdf>).

He also cited a paper from the Committee on Interchurch Relations 
adopted

by the 1982 Annual Conference, calling Brethren to "study ways that 
interfaith

dialog may lead to a visible expression of God's plan of unity for 
all of

>humanity."

This week the denomination's Peace and Witness Ministry issued an 
Action

Alert offering ideas for congregations and individuals to "seek to 
make

manifest the reign of God in this world" as the 9/11 anniversary 
approaches.

Go to 
www.brethren.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=7801.0&dlv_id=0<http://www.brethren.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=7801.0&dlv_id=0>
  for

the alert, including links to the International Day of Prayer for 
Peace website

of On Earth Peace, an online petition to cut military spending, and 
helpful

>background from Annual Conference statements.

A blog site has been set up by the Peace and Witness Ministry with an

invitation for Church of the Brethren congregations to share their 
plans for

marking the anniversary of Sept. 11 this year. Go to 
http://blog.brethren.org/?p=147m

>to share "Another Way of Living on 9/11."

Worship resources for the anniversary of Sept. 11:

The following worship resources are offered for use this weekend in

congregations marking the anniversary of the attacks of Sept. 11, 
2001. The

resources are written by Josh Brockway, the Church of the Brethren's 
director

>of Spiritual Life and Discipleship.

>Litany of Mourning and Commitment

Leader: Lord of Hope, as we gather we remember.

People: We remember the fear descending from the blue sky.

>Leader: We remember,

People: The selfless acts of all who needlessly perished that 
September day.

>Leader: We mourn.

People: We mourn those who died then, and those who continue to face

>violence every day.

>Leader: We mourn,

People: The loss of innocence and grace in this fallen world.

>Leader: We confess,

People: That we, as your followers, have too often reacted in fear 
rather than

>hope.

>Leader: We confess,

People: That we have too often been silent in the face of violence 
throughout

>the world.

>Leader: We commit,

People: To living as people of your peace, providing a witness to 
this world.

>Leader: We commit,

People: To speaking truth in love, trusting in the nonviolent witness 
of the

>Cross.

>Prayer

God of Abraham, you have created all peoples from dust, even still we 
seek

to violently return your creation to that same dust in your name. 
Forgive us,

we pray, for the violence we commit in both word and deed and 
embolden us

as your people secure in the hope of your Kingdom of Peace, that we 
may

seek and witness to ways which make for peace and life. In the name 
of the

One who witnessed to your way, even to death, Jesus the Risen Christ, 
AMEN.

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 
celebrated its

300th anniversary in 2008. It counts some 123,000 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