CONGREGATIONAL/LOCAL NEWS
Chicago First recently became the 400th congregation in the US to join the American Friends Service Committee “Apartheid-Free Congregation” pledge, as a witness to the current suffering in Gaza and to show solidarity with the Palestinian community. It’s reported to be the first Church of the Brethren congregation to join. For more information, visit https://apartheid-free.org. The congregation also recently began a new relationship with the Wellington UCC church, which is renting space in Chicago First’s Garfield Park building.
Dixon held a special Clergy Appreciation Month event for pastor Michael Cole on Oct. 20, with several speakers, storytelling, good food, and fellowship. Dixon’s community partner congregation, The Worship Center—which Michael also serves—joined in the celebration. Tributes were also given for retired Church of the Brethren pastor Joyce Person and other leaders of The Worship Center.
Dutchtown (Milledgeville) will hold its all-church Thanksgiving meal on Nov. 24 and take part in a community Thanksgiving service and pie social on Nov. 27, meeting at the Free Church in Chadwick.
Highland Avenue (Elgin) continues its food distribution and “soup kettle” ministry that now serves thousands of people in the community each year, with thousands of pounds of food processed each week. Members of the congregation also took part in last month’s CROP Hunger Walk, raising more than $7,000.
The Little Prairie Mennonite church, which had been renting space at Mount Morris the past few years, moved to its new building in the area on Sept. 1.
Peoria First made its annual fall trip to its long-running “Mountain Mission” project in Kentucky over the Nov. 8-10 weekend. The congregation also makes a trip each spring to assist with ministries in the Appalachian region. This fall’s run included a large donation of materials from Dixon.
Polo’s Halloween event provided treats and hot dogs to more than 125 kids in its community.
Springfield First is hosting a community after-school program on Tuesdays that currently involves about 20 students and nine volunteers.
Woodland (Astoria) hosted and took part in the community’s annual trivia night on Oct. 26, with eight teams totaling 54 people participating. The event raised $800 toward scholarships for the community’s summer day camp held at Camp Emmanuel. It included a meal of hot dogs and pulled pork, lots of dessert, and a competitive trivia game. The church’s décor this fall includes an autumn-themed “Christmas” tree in the narthex.
Parts of season 4 of the HBO streaming series “Somebody Somewhere” were filmed at the York Center church in Lombard earlier this year and have begun airing this fall. Look for an article about the story behind it in the December issue of Messenger magazine.
Churches are encouraged to apply for funds from the denomination’s Brethren Faith In Action (BFIA) Grant Committee to support their work in putting faith into action. This can be through a variety of means, but often involves support of ministries that help the church join with Jesus in the neighborhood, publicity and food costs around events churches are trying, and/or for outreach assistance with instruments, signage, and streaming technology. The guidelines and application process are found at https://www.brethren.org/faith-in-action/. The amount of funds available each year is determined by the earnings of the prior year, and currently funds are still available in 2024. The maximum grant to a church is $5,000, and churches may only receive one grant every 12 months.
Congregations looking for resources and ideas for community connections can find some on the denomination’s website: https://www.brethren.org/neighborhoodtools/demographics/.
Mutual Aid Agency (MAA), which is related to the Church of the Brethren, and its partner agency Brotherhood Mutual are offering a set of resources free to congregations and their leadership. The following may be downloaded from online links: “Child Protection in a Ministry Environment–Guidelines for Ministry Workers,” “Protect Your Ministry’s Directors and Officers,” “Protect Your Roof from Early Failure,” and “Three Payroll Problems to Avoid.” Find out more about MAA at https://maabrethren.com.
Do you have congregational news: celebrations, milestones, “Jesus in the Neighborhood” stories or other things to share with our district family? Please send those to the district office: andreag.iwdcob@gmail.com.
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