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2010-02-01 issue:

News briefs - February, 2010

News from the Mennonite world

by Various authors

Print Article

Ervin Stutzman installation plans made
HARRISONBURG, Va.—The installation service for Ervin R. Stutzman, the new executive director of Mennonite Church USA, is planned. It is scheduled for 4:30 p.m., March 7, at his home congregation, Park View Mennonite Church, in Harrisonburg. The public is invited. Executive Board member Terry Shue of Kidron (Ohio) Mennonite Church is chairing the program committee for the installation service. John 15:1-5 and its reference to the vine and the branches has been chosen to guide the planning. The metaphor of the vine will be woven through the service. For the service, Mennonite Church USA congregations have been invited to write prayers for the church. These will be joined together in a worship  visual at the front of the sanctuary. "The installation of Ervin Stutzman as the new executive director will be an important milestone in the life of Mennonite Church USA," says moderator Ed Diller, Fort Thomas, Ky. "Ervin's great gifts and wonderful experience will help our church follow its vision to be a vehicle for God’s healing and hope to the world. We ask that all members of the church be in prayer for Ervin and Mennonite Church USA at this important time."—Mennonite Church USA


Church rings bell 350 times to call for action
HARRISONBURG, Va.—Some members at Community Mennonite Church, Harrisonburg, Va., gathered in the cold rain at 8:30 a.m. on Dec. 13, 2009, to ring the church bell 350 times as a call to world leaders at the U.N. climate summit in Copenhagen, Denmark. The bell ringing served as a reminder that many scientists say that atmospheric concentration of CO2 needs to be scaled back to 350 parts per million. Nancy Heisey, a member at Community Mennonite who just completed serving as president of Mennonite World Conference, said, "I've heard friends from Bangladesh and Zimbabwe describing the harsh effects of climate change. Ringing the bell is a way of letting U.S. leaders know I'm one of millions around the world crying out for action to protect our planet."—Jim Bishop


Fund for Peoplehood Education awards grants
GOSHEN, Ind.—The Fund for Peoplehood Education Grant Committee has announced its most recent grant recipients. The Peace and Justice Academy of Pasadena, Calif., received a $1,000 grant for a new restorative justice course elective. Goshen (Ind.) College received a $1,000 grant for a book project on the history of Mennonite youth ministry. Mennonite Church USA received a $2,000 grant for an oral history project on interchurch relations. Mennonite Education Agency received a $4,000 grant for initial work on a new Shared Distance Learning System. The Fund for Peoplehood Education is a donor-restricted term endowment. Since 1995, the fund has supported initiatives that promote the distinctive features of church-sponsored education and encourage strong ties between Menno­nite Church USA and its schools.—Mennonite Church USA


MMA fund meets needs
GOSHEN, Ind.—As the recession of 2009 deepened, Mennonite Mutual Aid realized its regularly budgeted Sharing Fund money wasn’t going to meet the needs of financially struggling people this year. For the first time, the Sharing Fund ran out of money last June. Knowing the intensity of the needs families would continue to face during the recession, MMA provided an additional $50,000 in June through a specially created, one-time Faith in the Future Grant. This money was used only for people who had lost their jobs or who were underemployed because of the economy. Through this grant, until all its funds were disbursed in November 2009, more than 300 additional families received assistance. The total grant amount was increased by an additional $10,000 made available when MMA decided to scale down the size of its booth at the Mennonite Church USA convention 2009 in Columbus, Ohio, last summer.—MMA


Israeli soldiers injure shepherds and CPTers
AT-TUWANI, Hebron—On Jan. 7, Israeli soldiers attacked and injured Palestinian shepherds near the village of At-Tuwani in the South Hebron Hills. Christian Peacemaker Team members accompanying the shepherds tried to videotape the violent attack, but the soldiers pushed them. One soldier grabbed and broke one of their video cameras. Before leaving the area, the soldiers arrested one of the shepherds, Musab Musa Raba’i. Israeli police told CPTers there would be a military investigation into the actions of the soldiers.—CPT


Church joins Advent Conspiracy
MILFORD, Neb.—Bellwood Mennonite Church, Milford, Neb., joined the Advent Conspiracy—a movement started in 2006 by pastors hoping to convince Christians to live the true meaning of Christmas. Advent Conspiracy promotes four main ideas: Worship fully, spend less, give more and love more. Bellwood members were encouraged to prioritize worship and spend less money on gift buying. Congregants wore blue silicone bracelets that said "Advent Conspiracy" as reminders. The church contributed to Mennonite Central Committee’s clean water projects in Mozambique. Throughout Advent, a well situated in the back of the worship center pumped water as a reminder. The church's drinking fountain was turned off on the last Sunday of Advent to create solidarity with others around the world. The congregation of 130 worshipers gave $22,036 to MCC—Bellwood Mennonite Church


D.C. Wedel, Bethel’s sixth president, dies at 101
NORTH NEWTON, Kan.—David C. "D.C." Wedel, 101, Bethel College's sixth president, died Jan. 13 at Bethesda Home in Goessel, Kan. He once reminisced that he had "shaken the hand of every Bethel president but the first one" (Cornelius H. Wedel, no relation). D.C. Wedel served as Bethel president from 1952-59. Wedel graduated from Bethel in 1933. He earned a B.D. degree from Colgate Rochester (N.Y.) Divinity School in 1936. From 1936-46, he served as pastor of First Mennonite Church in Halstead, Kan., with a brief hiatus to be director of the Civilian Public Service Camp in Marietta, Ohio, in 1941. In 1946, Bethel president Edmund G. Kaufman invited Wedel to serve as acting dean while the current dean took a sabbatical. Later he got his doctorate in Christian education from Iliff School of Theology in Denver. He was named Bethel Outstanding Alumnus for 1982. Wedel was born March 16, 1908, in Goessel to Cornelius C. Wedel and Kathrina Unrau Wedel. In 1936, he married Martha Quiring, who died in 1998.—Bethel College


MCC responds to Haiti
AKRON, Pa.—Mennonite Central Committee is responding to the earthquake that struck Haiti Jan. 12 and killed thousands of people. MCC has committed $100,000 U.S. for immediate needs. International Program Department director Ron Flaming anticipates a response of at least $1 million over multiple years. MCC has been working in Haiti since 1958. MCC workers in Haiti include nine people from the United States, Colombia and the Netherlands, seven Haitian program staff members and additional support staff. MCC supports efforts in reforestation and environmental education, human rights and advocacy for food security. Donations should be designated Haiti Earthquake and can be made online or by calling or sending a check to an MCC office.—MCC

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