Preparing the way for future faith leaders is part of what the newly established Lee and Jacquelin Brummel ISEDET Education Fund hopes to accomplish. The Brummels served in Argentina for more than 15 years with Global Ministries at the Superior Evangelical Institute of Theological Studies (ISEDET) in Buenos Aires and the Disciples of Christ Church of Argentina. An ecumenical institution with involvement from many Protestant churches, ISEDET provides training in theology to prepare students as pastors, teachers and researchers. Drawing upon the diverse traditions, values and beliefs in Latin America, ISEDET is better able to respond to the needs of a community rich in faith. All donations to the Brummel ISEDET Education Fund will be sent annually and used for the most pressing needs, with priority given to scholarship programs at the seminary.

When the earthquake in Haiti hit, a five-year-old girl from First United Protestant Church UCC in Hilo, Hawaii, asked her congregation to save its change and help buy shoes for the children in Haiti. The Sunday School children collected the money and were amazed at how much they received. When an earthquake hit Chile the little girl did the same thing again and showed her congregation that one person can start something.

This winter, food pantries and homeless shelters in many parts of the country are serving increased numbers of people. Homelessness and hunger are crises any time of year, but in winter the situation is acute—especially for families. UCC churches across the country are mobilizing and focusing on what they can do in these uncertain financial times. Certainly many churches are cutting back expenses, but they are also looking deeper at what they are able and equipped to do for others—and it’s a lot. Congregations are offering all kinds of assistance, to community members and church members alike. At St. Mathews UCC in Wheaton, IL, the youth group volunteers at the People’s Resource Center, a local food pantry. The youth work hard to get their jobs done, but it isn’t until they see the people coming in that they realize just how important food pantries are. That’s when they realize that not everyone gets to wake up from a warm bed and eat a hot breakfast before leaving the house to spend a short time in the cold. Some people may be in the cold all the time, and without the sustenance of three meals a day. It’s humbling to see the many people in need, but also good to know that the food pantry has a good stockpile of food at the moment. Projects like this provide defining moments in fellowship and service for church members. This winter, UCC congregations are stepping up to the plate and seeking opportunities to serve the vulnerable among us.

When the local food bank was asked to relocate, it had no place to go and was going to have to close its door if a new location could not be found. First Congregational Church UCC in Madison, Conn., realized that with a little rearranging it could give the food bank space to continue helping others. In just two years the food bank has tripled the number of families it serves and is now in need of a bigger space. The church has also helped a refugee family from Iraq, providing the empty parsonage as their home for a year. The youth of the church also have been helping others. On a mission trip to the Dominican Republic they experienced first hand what the homeless go through - sleeping where they sleep, eating common food, and loving the families they served. The church is continuing to help others in their community and all over the world.

First Congregational Church of Buxton, Maine, had two options: Deep Change or Slow Death. It chose the former and made drastic changes to the small congregation. After rearranging committee members, reducing the number of council meetings, moving Sunday School to the church and adding activities for the youth group, First Congregational Church found it is discovering new life, not heading for a slow death.

There is room enough for all at God’s table. Members of the Disciples of Christ and the United Church of Christ, along with leaders of the Disciples and Congregational Churches of Mexico, gathered in San Diego in February 2011 to participate in a conference called, “Turning Walls into Tables”. If we turn walls on their sides that’s just what they become – tables at which to gather instead of barriers to keep us apart. Part of the group’s commitment is “identifying the walls that exist in our communities—from language, education, residency and economic disparity, to other political, religious and social boundaries. These walls impede the creation of God’s Realm on earth.” The commitment further states, “We commit ourselves to respond to the Gospel call to welcome the stranger, for we have become even more aware that we are “no longer strangers and aliens, but citizens with the saints, and also members of the household of God” (Ephesians 2:19).”

Within a few months of the pastor of Zion UCC in Lenoir, N.C., starting, she walked to the neighboring elementary school and asked if the church could help them in any way. The principal said they needed tutors and “A Homework Ministry” was born. Once a week children walk next door to Zion after school for an hour tutoring session with active and retired schoolteachers and administrators. Children have the opportunity to get help with homework and a safe space to gather, talk, laugh and pray.

The Super Bowl is just a few weeks away and, like every year, there will be variables – the teams, the players, the play book, the venue. Unfortunately, one thing will remain constant – the shame of child trafficking. Change.org, an online organization that raises awareness about important social causes, says that children as young as 11 are trafficked in hosting Super Bowl cities every year. If you’ve never heard of this travesty, you’re not alone. Child trafficking at the Super Bowl is not something host cities want to advertise. At the 2011 Super Bowl in Texas, a local organization called Traffick911 created the "I'm Not Buying It" campaign in Dallas. According to change.org’s website, Traffick911 “offered The Host Committee free PSAs, posters, banners and informational cards to educate the public and protect children from being abused and raped.” The Host Committee refused to display the information. Get involved in protecting children this year at the Super Bowl.

Even when every door is closed to us, God will make a way for us to become who we are meant to be. And so, when Teresinha, a young girl from Brazil, heard that a rural school would be opening near her small town, her heart sang with joy. At last she would be able to learn to read and write—a privilege her mother never had. But her father refused to give his permission, insisting that there was no reason for his daughter to learn such things. Schools were rare in rural Brazil many years ago, and girls were not allowed to attend. The only place that Teresinha and her sisters were allowed to go outside the home was to church. Teresinha made her decision on one of the three-mile walks to church. After Mass, Teresinha told the priest she wanted to become a nun. The priest secured her father’s permission to take Teresinha to the convent in the city, where she learned to read and write. While still a novice, she became an assistant teacher in a local grammar school and after four years, met her future husband, married, and had a family. Today, Teresinha has but one paper diploma, from the Course for the Training of Community Health Educators, a program sponsored by Global Ministries of the United Church of Christ. Teresinha’s self-esteem as a woman, able to be an active member of the community besides being a wife, mother and now grandmother, is a victory example for women. We can be proud of the role Our Church’s Wider Mission played in Teresinha’s story.

The Zimbabwe Synod is one of five synods comprising the United Congregational Church of Southern Africa. The UCCZ has been affiliated with Global Ministries since 1893. The Ukama (family) relationship of ‘critical presence’ continues today. The UCCZ has 47 congregations with 30,000 members. The synod supports various schools, hospitals and orphanages. The Mt Selinda Hospital is located in the area of one of the first UCCZ congregations. It is a 175 bed hospital. There is currently not enough water to use the second holding tank available. This means there is not sufficient water for crop irrigation in the drought affected area. There is also a children’s home named Chirinda Orphanage- sometimes called Daisy Dube Children’s home. The home cares for children living with the extreme challenges of being abandoned, or without parents. About 50 children reside in the home, and the Global Ministries Child Sponsorship Program matches sponsors and children at the orphanage.

- Between 1991 and 2002, the Conference Minister of New Hampshire was responsible for the development of a global (Ukama) Partnership between the New Hampshire Conference and the United Church of Christ in Zimbabwe. Many congregations in New Hampshire were brought into relationships of sharing, serving, and praying together as delegations traveled in both directions. Conference Minister, Rev Ben Crosby helped to bear witness to and promote the relationship, and to celebrate that One God has used this relationship for the up-building of the global church. This conference sets a good example of how to be a Global Mission Conference. This conference chose to establish the Crosby Scholarship Fund as a way to honor Rev. Crosby, and to recognize the importance of the Ukama gift from the UCC in Zimbabwe (UCCZ). One hundred percent of the distributions from the principal investments are used to provide support for UCCZ students studying at the United Theological College in Zimbabwe and in other theological institutions in Africa. This has become a significant means of support in the development of new ministers now and for years to come.

- In the group of young seminary students, William Almodovar was the only guy on the trip. In Chikore, Zimbabwe, William shared how the people to people group visited a primary school. Most of the teachers and hospital personnel graduated from the schools. He commented that “the kids might not have a lot, but something they have is a strong desire to learn and give their best at school, even with all the limitations they might have.” As their group was shown hospitality by these new ‘family’ friends in local homes, there were gifts of fellowship and food. William realized that “the hosts had probably shared all the food which the hosts had left to eat for the next few weeks. For these generous children of God, sharing what they have materially, spiritually and emotionally was an important thing.” William was deeply touched when thoughts hit him that “these people are doing incredible things in incredible places with an incredible lack of resources. It is clear they are not depending on the outside or local help, but rather they are depending on God, understanding that is where God wants them and where their ministry will develop.”

- Embraced by Global Ministries, seminary student interns are sometimes assigned to serve in various Global Mission program offices. Four Disciple interns, serving in the summer of 2010, had the opportunity to visit Global Ministries sites in southern Africa as part of their internship. In a journal, seminary student, Chelsia Nickelson, spoke of the first word she learned in Zimbabwe. It was “mashuma” meaning ‘thank you.’ But later in journal entries she recognized that the word “ukama” resonated even more as an overarching theme of her journey to the other side of the world, which also became a journey inward. Chelsia explains, “The word partnership cannot adequately express relationship that the United Church of Christ in Zimbabwe has with churches in the US. ‘Ukama’ which means family, is the more appropriate word to describe the relations because it denotes that as Christians we are bound not by a contract, not by a covenant, and not by some benevolent idea or service. We work together because our destiny is the same and because we are family, one body in Christ.”

- Again, the Westras report-“Waiting, such as waiting in line or a ‘queue,’ is something North Americans abhor. But it is expected in Africa. Why hurry? Americans never loiter, dawdle or linger around. We are busy. In my former life I was so busy there were never enough hours in a day. When my children were young I often missed their sporting events or dance recitals because I was busy. But here, loitering is a way to chat and connect with friends and family. (And everyone is family.) In Africa, I loiter. I meet a lot of people that way. I learn about their life, their families, and their values. Maybe we in North America have it all wrong. Maybe the joke is on us. Maybe we should loiter more often.” Indeed, we all have a lot to learn from these African partners in Christ and their African friends. Let us live and learn using patience and time for building relationships.

Global Ministries Missionaries Donald and Maryjane Westra, serving in Zimbabwe, have learned the difference between African time and North American time. Being busy in North America is highly valued and the norm. The Westras report that when asking someone in Africa if they are busy, they look at you strangely. Try asking someone what time it is, they do not wear watches. The African culture values spending time with friends and family, and helping each other. The Westras further explain: “In North American culture, I may have had six or seven meetings a day. A typical day in Africa consists of ‘footing’ to my office and waiting until someone walks in and wants to talk to me. Sometimes there is a meeting scheduled although it is rare to have an appointment. No one has a watch, let alone a phone to call ahead…. This culture values discussion or consensus building. This takes time so there is no predicting when a meeting will end.”

A Bible FAQ What is the Bible? There is more than one way to answer this question! A good place to start may be to say that the Bible is a library. A literal meaning of the word “bible” is “book of books.” It is 66 books for Protestants, 73 for Catholics. It divides into the 39 books of the Old Testament, which tell the story of God’s dealings with Israel, and the 27 books of the New Testament, which tell the story of Jesus and the church that followed him. To call the Bible “a library” means that there different types of literature between its two covers. There is drama, history, law code, song, poetry, gospels, parables, letters and more. Key to using the Bible is knowing what part of the library you are in or what type of literature you are hearing or reading. Even more importantly, a library is defined by its owner and their purpose. This library is the library of Israel and the Church. It reminds Jews and Christians who they are and whose they are. Bible FAQ’s are written by Anthony B. Robinson and appear in The Bible and the United Church of Christ, a collection of short essays by UCC writers, to introduce or re-acquaint readers with the Bible.

“I’m not a doctor, a scientist, or an architect with a clear path to volunteer in the recovery effort,” said Sae Shiragami after the tsunami and nuclear disaster in Japan devastated the lives of friends and family. But that didn’t stop her from finding her own path to help. Shiragami, a violinist with the Cleveland Orchestra, put together two benefit concerts with her Cleveland Orchestra colleagues – one at Plymouth Church in Shaker Heights, Ohio and the other at Lakewood Congregational Church in Lakewood, Ohio. The concerts raised nearly $12,000 for relief efforts. Shiragami heard the stories of her friends and family in Japan who said things like, ‘There were only two aftershocks today, but my body is swaying all the time’, and ‘My son is working at Reactor #1 of the plant. I’m prepared for the worst.’ Shiragami said, “It is my hope that my music will serve to bring some comfort to the victims of Japan and all of us.”

When a refugee family from Sierra Leone needed help, St. Peter’s UCC in West Seneca, N.Y., stepped in to give hope to this family in need. The church helped the family find a home, jobs, and schooling for the children. They are now American citizens. The congregation is continuing its mission outreach in Sierra Leone with medical assistance and hope to others.

Getting four UCC churches in the same city to work together sounds like an easy task, but the reality was not so easy when First Congregational Church UCC in Las Vegas, Nev., tried. Every church has their own “comfort zone” and getting the churches to step out took some work but it finally happen and the churches started holding regular get-togethers. All the participating churches are now stronger because of their cooperation with other congregations.

An adjunct pastor at First Congregational Church in Stockbridge, Mass., started an All Are Welcome worship service before the running of the New York Marathon - a “worship service for runners by runners.” Several clergy organize the service that includes song, stories of runners trusting God, communion in many different religious styles and ending with a prayer of dedication for the marathon, the city, our nations and world peace.