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Mennonites support Lutheran aid
ennonites are supporting Lutheran relief efforts in the
Horn of Africa, with a pledge of $369,500 from the New York- based Mennonite Central Com- mittee, a relief and development agency.
The gift includes mosquito nets and educational assistance, said Eberhard Hitzler, director of the Lutheran World Federation Depart- ment for World Service. The LWF runs a U.N. refugee complex in Dadaab, Kenya, that houses about 480,000 people, mostly refugees fleeing war and famine in Somalia.
MCC Kenya representative Ron
Ratzlaff said: “The LWF is doing a good job as the lead agency in Dadaab.”
“[It means] much more than just financial assistance,” Hitzler said. “It is a symbol and an expression of the beauty that grows out of rec- onciliation between Lutherans and Mennonites.”
That reconciliation was cel- ebrated in July 2010 at the LWF Assembly in Stuttgart, Germany, where Lutherans asked for forgive- ness for past wrongs toward the Mennonites’ Anabaptist predeces- sors. Anabaptists were persecuted in 16th and 17th century Europe.
To help: Pray, give at www.elca. org/disaster, call 800-638-3522, or send checks (write “Horn of Africa drought” on the memo line) to ELCA Disaster Response, 39330 Treasury Center, Chicago, IL 60694-9300.
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white Roman Catholics and Jews are more likely to have high lev- els of financial wealth. Evangelical and black Protestants and Hispanic Roman Catholics are generally below the nation’s median net worth, but are more inclined to donate to religious causes. Access to educa- tion, higher paying jobs and marital status all make a difference and vary tremendously across faith groups. “Religion is the key factor” impact- ing financial wealth because it influ- ences life opportunities and deci- sions that impact wealth, said author Lisa A. Keister, a sociologist at Duke University in Durham, N.C.
Metal thieves dent churches With commodity prices on the upswing, thieves are targeting British churches, historic buildings and even railroads for the copper, lead, bronze and iron found in their gutters, gates, bells, statues and more. Each month, Britain sees 7,000 to 10,000 metal thefts. Katri Link, spokesperson for Ecclesiastical Insurance, said the thefts threaten “some churches with bankruptcy” since payouts are capped at around $15,000. In the first eight months of 2011, Link’s com- pany received 1,900 such claims, compared to 10 in 2003.
Go forth and multiply Redeemer Lutheran Church, Waverly, Iowa, from May to September asked
members to multiply their talent—$5 to be precise. Each was given the money with the instruction to “go forth and multiply,” returning their profits from $1,500 by Sept. 30. They raised $4,000, giving half to Turning Point Transitional Housing to help victims of domestic violence and half to Redeemer youth attending the 2012 ELCA Youth Gathering. A matching gift from a member went to ELCA International Disaster Response.
10 The Lutheran •
www.thelutheran.org
Seminary overhaul Andover Newton Theological School, Cambridge, Mass. (affiliated with American Baptist Churches USA and the United Church of Christ) overhauled its curriculum to require seminarians to prove their competency in such 21st century skills as interfaith collaboration and hi-tech communication. “This is not a case for fine-tuning the [educa- tional] model,” Nick Carter, semi- nary president, said at an Oct. 23 regional UCC meeting. “We really have to reinvent it; the profession has totally changed.”
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