Health During the first week in June, Pastor Doug Sider, Jr. will make a repeat whirlwind tour of the U.S. conferences, carrying with him the latest word on plans for a denomination-sponsored health insurance plan for pastors and other persons employed by BIC churches. All delegates, whether or not their church is eligible to participate in the initial offering of the health insurance plan, will vote on the recommendation when it comes before General Conference, and so all churches are encouraged to send representatives to an information session in their regions. In addition, churches that complete a Proposal Request Form in advance of the meeting will be presented with rate quotes. Read more »

Big issues dominate General
Conference agenda

A statement on marriage, changing guidelines for selecting members of the General Conference Board, and recalibrating credentialing guidelines are some of the big issues which delegates to the 2008 General Conference will consider as they gather in Toronto, June 27 to 30. Read more »

Speaking of Peace: a Muslim/Christian dialogue

Which book is really about peace: the Bible or the Qur’an? Jay Smith, BICWM’s resident expert on Islam, and Shabir Ally, a Muslim scholar from Toronto, will explore this question during a 2-hour session on Saturday afternoon of General Conference. Billed as a dialogue, not a debate, the Muslim/Christian exchange promises to be a thought-provoking experience as the two men discuss the issue of peace from the perspective of their respective scriptures. Read more »

Catch General Conference online

Thanks to technology, everyone with a computer can participate in the 2008 General Conference. Our communications team will coordinate daily blog entries by delegates and others at the conference. We are also hoping to be able to provide video broadcasts of the evening worship services and the afternoon dialogue between Jay Smith and Shabir Ally. The video broadcasts will be accessed via a link on the denomination website. So even if you are not able to make the trip to Toronto, you are encouraged to take advantage of opportunities to experience General Conference via the internet and be part of Jesus worshipped in the nations.

Disaster response to Myanmar and China

Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), the international relief agency of Brethren in Christ and Mennonite churches in North America, is appealing for financial contributions to support relief and recovery efforts in Myanmar, also known as Burma, following a catastrophic cyclone in the southeast Asian nation. MCC is committing an initial $100,000 to cyclone relief and recovery efforts. While MCC does not currently have workers or programs in Myanmar, MCC will support the work of partner organizations that are already active in the country.

Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) is also accepting financial contributions to help people affected by the May 12 earthquake in central China.

Gifts for disaster relief can be made online at mcc.org or through the BIC World Hunger Fund at bic-church.org, noting the designation of the gift for Myanmar and/or China.

BIC Church in India growing in the face of persecution

India attacks on Christians Bijoy Roul, the BICWM Regional Administrator for Southeast Asia, reports that despite continuing persecution of Christians by Hindu extremists, people are coming to Christ through the ministry of BIC churches in India. At an April 18 gathering of church planters and pastors, there were many testimonies of God’s blessing and protection. Read more »

Zimbabwean BIC churches praying for change

It has been more than a month since the presidential election in Zimbabwe, and still there is no resolution or hope for change within sight. Jake Shenk, BICWM regional administrator for Southern Africa , writes that many people in Zimbabwe “have come to the point of saying that only God can bring order out of this chaos.” Read more »

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