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CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN JANUARY

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^^ From the General Board. At its November gathering the General Board of the denomination acted to join Project Equality, heard a study on equality for women, debated ownership of government bonds.

Q In South Asia - "A World That Wants to Help." The immense proportions of Asia's new dilemma — the plight of Pakistan's refugees in India — are complicated because "a world that wants to help does not really know how." by Ronald E. Keener

10

The Paradoxes of the Moderator. The whole Christian experience raises in Dale W. Brown a concern for the suffering people of the uorld that leads to his parado.x: "Miking my job and being extremely happy with my family, yet passionately unhappy with the injustices of our world." by William H. Kuenning

A Statement Regarding Abortion. In a working paper prepared by the .Annual Conference committee appointed to study the question how the church should regard abortion, biblical, theological, ethical, and medical considerations point to some answers. Reader response is encouraged through a Discussion/Survey Checklist.

<^> Going on Faith in the Ghetto. Fiscal burdens beset a community hospital ministry supported by the Church of the Brethren, by Gregg W. Downey

In Touch profiles Billy Lewis, Navajo pastor; Nathan Miller, legislator; and the Harry Brandts, lifelong communicators (2); "Celebration Is the Name, Joy the Motivation," a review of recent books, by Paul E. Alwine (23); "Events 72," observances to consider in congregational planning (24); and an editorial, "Brethren and the Burgeoning Arts" (28)

EDITOR

Howard E. Royer

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

Ronald E- Keener ' News Wilbur E. Brumbaugh / Design Kenneth I. Morse / Features

ASSISTANT EDITOR

Linda K. Beher

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Richard N. Miller

VOL. 121, NO. 1

JANUARY 1, 1972

PHOTO CRF.niTS: Cover arlwork by Mike Norman: 2 flcfi) Merle Crou.sc: (right) Ron- .iWl E. Keener: 2. 4, 5. II. 12. 18. 21 Don flonick: 8 Heft) courtesy of UNICEF; (right) courtesy of Church World Scr\icc

Messenger is the off]ci.Tl public.ition of the Church of tfie Brethren. Entered as second- class matter .^ug. 20, 1918, under -Act of Congress of Oct. 17. 1917. Filing dale. Oct. 1.

1971. Messenger is a member of the Associ- ated Church Press and a subscriber to Reli- gious News Ser\ice and Eciuncnical Press Ser\ice. Biblical quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are from the Re\ ised .Standard Version.

Subscription rates: $4.20 per year for indi \idual subscriptions: .$.1.60 per year for chiudi group plan: 5.1.00 per year for every hoitie plan: life subscription. .SfiO: husband and wife. S7'i- If \ou mo\e clip old address from Mes- senger and send with tu-w address. \llov\ at least fifteen days for ad- flrcss change. Messenger is owned .111(1 published twice monthly by the f;hurch of the Brethren General Board. 1451 Duniiec .Ave.. Elgin. III. nOi20. Second-class postage paid :u Elgin. 111.. Jan. I, 1972. Cop\right

1972. Church of the Brethren General Board.

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HEALTH CARE AND BROTHERHOOD

The Church of the Brethren should be both humble and proud to be associated with Bethany Brethren and Garfield Park hospitals and the related health care facil- ities. . . . These facilities give the people of their community, who are poor and happen to be black, the opportunity to have the same kind of health services which have long been available to the white and more affluent people.

I have felt a lack of interest on the part of the people of the Brotherhood since the transition from an all-white, middle-class community with an all-white hospital, to a poor, predominantly black community with a hospital having an integrated staff and mostly black patients. . . .

As a graduate of Bethany Hospital School of Nursing, a long-time employee at the hospital, and, after being away for a number of years, becoming a short-term employee there each year for the past several years, I feel that the real meaning of service is being demonstrated in the Bethany Brethren and Garfield Park hospitals community. I find the experiences I have there, including my contacts with patients and personnel, very exciting; and I always have the desire to share this excitement with others. There is a continuous drama taking place with many people, both black and white, playing a part.

One of these people ... is Vernon Show- alter, former administrator of Bethany Brethren Hospital and now executive direc- tor of both hospitals. . . . His dedication and untiring efforts have resulted in i;ood health care for many who perhaps otherwise would have had none, and there is continuously being added means of providing still better and more inclusive health care.

What has resulted from the work of this man, many other dedicated and interested people, and the local church is what, I be- lieve, "real brotherhood" is all about, and those who have not been touched by it, at least in a small way, have really missed something that is very good.

Martha G. Andlregg Kalamazoo, Mich.

NOT DELIBERATELY PATERNALISTIC

You have pulled together in a fine way various people's feelings on the possible re- turn of missionaries to Communist China (Dec. 1). One point leaves me with a bit of a guilty conscience. This point is our comments on former missionary work being paternalistic and imperialistic. This was cer- tainly true, and still is in many parts of the worldwide missionary enterprise.

The early missionaries started with the

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premise that everything Christian was good (inchiding our American cuUure); and ev- erything Confucian or pagan was bad (in- cluding most of the Chinese culture). The net result was to downgrade everything Confucian, and upgrade everything under- stood as Christian. The pattern was set, and the older missionaries did not realize at all how judgmental and paternalistic this made them appear to outsiders. Yet they were entirely sincere, dedicated, and sacri- ficial people.

Perhaps it should be added that they were unaware of this side effect of their work, or unwittingly continued in a pattern long after world events had changed and cul- tural attitudes had developed an openness that many of them did not have. I am simply trying to make it clear that the missionary enterprise did not deliberately set out to be paternalistic or imperialistic; but wound up there more than most of us like to admit.

Wendell Flory Waynesboro, Va.

STRIKING A CHORD

"The Laws of Men and the Law of God" (Oct. 15) is truly the most beautiful article I have ever read on father-son relationships. ... It struck a deep chord within me that I have thought about during the past 22''2 years, but never so seriously as tonight.

As my eighteenth birthday approached in 1949. I was struggling for ninety days with the question of registering for the draft. I somehow felt that those very few at that time who chose prison instead of alternative service were right.

A day or two before my birthday I read an article on how much more could be con- tributed to my fellowmen if one chose to work in an area of need instead of spending those years in prison. It made some sense to me. and it seemed the easy way out. so I registered and four years later volunteered for I-W work in La Plata, P.R., where my wife and I served for two years. Yes, we had opportunities for service in those two years; yes, we did occasionally make some worthwhile contributions; yes, it was worth- while; yes, it did make us e.\tremely aware of human needs.

But ... I wonder . . . even tonight, just 22>/2 years after I made the decision to register. . . . What IF I had chosen the route Ted [Click] has chosen; what if my contemporaries had chosen not to be part of the draft. . . . Would there have been a Vietnam as we know the tragedy today?

You see, I finally recognize tonight that I took the easy road and have passed on to Ted, and maybe to my own sons, a task I

failed to do. It is tnily an example of forcing our children to deal with the prob- lems which we avoided by running, by run- ning backward, and in the years that have followed we have seen thousands suffer and die in Korea and Vietnam ....

0 God, what have I done? Has my omis- sion caused death?

Ted, we love you, we know you are right and truly a messenger of God. Christ will grant you the reckless courage needed in the days ahead.

Ralph W. Lugbill Fairfax, Va.

ON A HIGH LEVEL

1 am always interested in what readers write regarding their approval or disap- proval of Messenger. I decided that I should say my piece.

I read regularly quite a number of reli- gious, educational, business, and news peri- odicals. In my judgment. Messenger stacks up very high among them all, in terms of its journalistic quality, its format, and the content of the material.

I am particularly impressed with three qualities which Messenger exhibits: (1) the broad coverage — from personal news to religious news to exegesis — which you are able to include; (2) the artistic and es- thetic quality of the magazine makeup; and (3) the objective and incisive forward-look- ing nature of the editorial content.

Certainly, among the great varieties of articles, there will be those which appeal more to me, or which parallel my thinking, more than others. There will be those with which I disagree; but that is unimportant. The Gospel needs broad interpretation, ex- tensive "airing," and the kind of readership which elicits challenging discussion. I com- pliment you.

Harold Fasnacht La Verne, Calif.

HE MEANT WHAT HE WROTE

When Murray Wagner says (Nov. 1 ) that I did not mean what I wrote (about the influence of communism in the denomina- tion), he is one hundred percent wrong. . . . I do not belong to that synthetic profession- al group which says one thing and means another, or which says something is a fact, well knowing it to be false. I meant literally and actually what I said, not only as to that portion of my letter you published, but also as to the portion not published. . . . My con- demnations are blunt . . . hoping to get our . . . leadership back on the Christian line. . . .

Ernest A. See Keyser, W. Va.

■ In this issue you have a special op- portunity to make your voice heard as a Messenger reader. A lift-out report deals with one of the more crucial ques- tions Brethren face: arriving at a policy on abortion that is enlightened by the highest values of the Christian faith. After reflecting upon the statement in process, you are invited to respond to the brief checklist on page 17 and to forward your reply with or without comments to the Study Committee on Abortion.

The publishing of this advance draft, followed by a bibliography and a ques- tionnaire, represents a desire to apprise as wide a segment of the church as pos- sible of the issues at stake. The hope is that before some 1 ,000 delegates come to grips with the completed report at

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Annual Conference in June, individuals and groups throughout the Brotherhood will have searched openly and thor- oughly for insight and direction.

The approach points, too, to the in- terest of Messenger editors in estab- lishing a wider dialogue with readers. Toward this end, we invite the sharing of your responses not only with the Study Committee but with the Messen- ger as well. On this and other key topics the magazine earnestly seeks to enlarge its fonmT role.

Writers of other articles in this issue include William H. Kuenning of Lom- bard, 111., whose view of Moderator Dale W. Brown comes as a neighbor and Quaker peace activist; Gregg W. Downey, whose article on Bethany Brethren and Garfield Park Community hospitals appeared originally in Modern Hospital magazine; Paul E. Alwine, pastor. First Church, Roanoke, Va.; James hi. Wall, editor. Christian Ad- vocate, a United Methodist publica- tion; and Edith Mae Afcrkey. on the staff of the Lybrook Navajo Mission, Cuba, New Mexico.

The Editors

1-1-72 messenger 1

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Billy Lewis: Navajo pastor

The new pastor of the Lybrook Chris- tian Fellowship in New Mexico is Billy Lewis. One of his goals is to help his Navajo people overcome the hesitation and fear of involvement they ha\e had both in the church and in the wider community.

Reared in a family of thirteen in the Cuba, N.M.. area. Billy had his child- hood training in the Christian Re- formed Church. He became a member toward the close of his high school days.

In 1964 he graduated from Inter- mountain Trade School in Utah as a draft engineer. He soon discovered, however, that this was not his top in- terest. He pursued other work, includ- ing a stint in the Air Force. From 1967 until this past spring he attended various colleges, among them Arizona State University and Cook Christian Training School.

While in college Billy participated in camp meetings, campus crusades, and gospel teams promoted by Cook School and missions. Three years ago he committed himself to Christian service in behalf of his people. Last spring he accepted the position of lay pastor at Lybrook for he saw in it an opportunity to render such service.

"Lybrook is a great place to work."

he commented after he, his wife Wanda, and son Shawn were several months on the scene. "It has fine goals if only the Navajo can see them and get his feet off the ground. It takes much explaining. But not until people understand can they move forward."

He is pressing for the Indian com- munity to strive for self-determination, beginning within the church fellowship.

"The potential is here," Billy de- clares, "but we have to get over wait- ing for someone else to tell us what to do or to be the first to try. Our people must realize the mission can't do everything — it needs to be fifty-fifty missionaries and natives."

As he aspires for greater coopera- tion, Billy Lewis also advocates can- dor; that is. bringing out into the open old problems that too long have been camouflaged.

On the empowerment of Indians in ■American society in general, he is sup- portive if "self glory" does not get in the way. "The movement is great." the young pastor responded, "as long as it is for all the people and not for just one segment." — Edith Mae Merkey

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Nathan Miller: Legislate

Among delegates to be seated in the General Assembly of \'irginia in Jan- uary is a 28-year-old layman of the Church of the Brethren. Nathan H. Miller.

A lawyer. Nathan became a candi- date for the office only five weeks before the November general elec- tion. He was invited to enter the race after another Republican party candidate withdrew.

In the legislature he will be one of two representatives of the Sixteenth District, comprised of three counties, Rockingham. Shenandoah, and Page, including the city of Harrisonburg. The term is two years, invoking a 60-day session this January and a 30-day session a year later.

Unmarried. Nathan is a member of the Bridgewater Church of the Breth- ren. He is vice-chairman of the church board and has taught post high youth. He also is president- elect of the Alumni Association of Bridgewater College, where he grad- uated w ith a degree in economics in \965.

Beyond church and college, Nathan has sung with the Rocking- ham Male Chorus, worked with Jaycees of Harrisonburg and the Rotary Club of Bridgewater, and par- ticipated in the local Project Concern, which is organized to extend oppor- tunities to underprivileged children

2 MESSENGER 1-1-72

through such programs as day camp, recreation, and a Saturday Adoption project.

For the past two years, since at- taining a law degree from the Univer- sity of Richmond, he has been an as- sociate in a Harrisonburg law firm. An appointive position which he is terminating with the new responsibil- ity is the judgeship of the municipal court in Timberville.

The election campaign itself was virtually nonissue-oriented, Nathan explained, largely because none of the four candidates had records to defend.

When confronted by voters with questions about his youthfulness, Nathan was quick to admit to inex- perience. But while making no prom- ises, he expressed his eagerness to serve the community and state by working hard and striving to assert a positive influence in the legislature.

The Harry Brandts: Lifelong communicators

When Harry A. Brandt "gets tickled" about something, his tanned face creases and his eyes snap mischie- vously underneath their generous lids.

Mr. Brandt got tickled when, on his first visit to the denominational headquarters since 1947. someone inquired if he could "take stairs" one flight down to the historical library. A slow smile and those twinkling eyes accompanied a nudge of my arm. He whispered conspiratorially: "My problem is, Tm eighty-six!"

And with that, the onetime man- aging editor of Gospel Messenger stepped quickly down the stairs to the library where he might inspect the copies of his books stored there, and books written by his wife of two years. Lucile Long Strayer Brandt.

The Brandts had been longtime friends, from the summers twenty-five years ago when Lucile read manu- scripts in the Gospel Messenger of- fice. Their careers diverged, hers to a lifetime of teaching — "my first love" — at Mount Morris. Bridge- water, and La Verne colleges and at Hillcrest School in Nigeria; his to a lively retirement in which he has pursued interests in writing poetry and essays. A student of haiku, the seventeen-syllablc Japanese form, Mr. Brandt devised an entire book, parts in the traditional western mode, parts in haiku, to illustrate some dif- ferences between two ways of com- municating.

The Brandts have strong feelings about communication. The former

editor comments. "The dearth of knowledge about the Bible creates a communication gap between writers today and older persons. Modern writers' allusions are different." More adamantly than her husband, Mrs. Brandt expresses dismay at what she feels is a disregard for the classical writings and languages that were her staples in school and later in teaching.

When the Brandts had left the Elgin headquarters for their home at La Verne. Calif.. I borrowed from the library Mrs. Brandt's Anna Eliza- heih. 17 and Mr. Brandt's The Japanese-American Haiku Tourna- ments. The language of each volume contains a vitality and a craftsman- ship, reflecting well the lively intel- lects of two whose art has long been communication.

M-72 MESSENGER 3

From the General Board

VOTING TO JOIN PROJECT

1 EQUALITY, the Church of the Brethren General Board in I November reversed the posi- tion it had taken in June. Board members asked a review in two years of participa- tion in the national organization.

Possible denominational membership in Project Equality has occupied the board for two years and last summer came before the Annual Conference as a congregational query. At that time the delegate body sustained the board's rec- ommendation that the Brethren refrain from full membership but confront its suppliers with Project Equality guidelines for fair opportunity employment and buying practices.

The matter came under a second re- view when the church's professional staff strongly voted its disappointment at the Conference action and asked the board's executive committee to reconsider the issue. In taking the action, the Brethren join some 400 area and national religious bodies in 23 states in Project Equality.

The staff, in bringing its rational for reconsideration, stated: "The board's rec- ommendation was illogical. It is mathe- matically impossible to add all the posi- tive factors of the board's expressed feel- ing about Project Equality and arrive at the negative conclusion which it did" — the recommendation that was acted upon at the St. Petersburg Conference. The new action comes in light of the Annual Conference directive last year for contin- uing consideration of Project Equality by the board and by congregations, and will appear as part of the board's report to the 1972 Conference.

In stating some reasons for member- ship, the staff called it '"the strongest and most effective program of its type to ap- pear on the horizon." They noted too that "membership commits us to do in deed what we have said in words. It pro- vides a systematic way of making con- crete our good intentions."

.Some concern was raised for belonging to Project Equality and paying the fees when the denominational offices are al- ready striving to meet the guidelines in its purchasing and employment practices. Brethren have always maintained that

their word is as good as their bond, said one staff executive, but now they want to substitute their bond for their word.

There was an uncertainty whether in joining Project Equality the denomina- tion was required, or merely encour- aged, to hire persons of minority races at all levels of its structure. The prevailing "white character" of the denomination might prevent this. The Illinois-Wiscon- sin executive, whose district is allied with Project Equality, assured the board its autonomy is not at stake. One board member. Dr. Jesse Ziegler of Dayton, Ohio, said he was prepared to vote for the employment of non-Brethren profes- sional staff when the need and opportu- nity arises.

Dr. Dale W. Brown, the current church moderator, said that on this issue the church appears more anti-ecumenical than on many other issues in recent years.

The World Ministries Commission ex- ecutive, Joel K. Thompson, saw Project Equality in the role of a consultant and said "we as Brethren need help in this area and Project Equality is one source of help."

At least four of the 22 districts of the church are known to be participating in Project Equality.

EQUALITY FOR WOMEN,

2 under study for nearly two years, will be looked at by

I General Board program units

for recommendations on implementation of the ten requests and thrusts brought forth. Still, the board did affirm that the paper was a "basis of getting ahead with the correction of acknowledged discrimi- nation of women" and asked the commit- tee to refine sections — especially on biblical foundations — in light of the board's discussion.

Aside from the ten implementing rec- ommendations, the paper held numerous suggestions for developing awareness of the issue and the leadership potential of women, for changing the portrayal of women in media, and for changing dis- criminatory practices under law. Of the recommendations referred by the board for examination, those not under its pur-

Noncy Peters: Correcting discrimination

David Rittcnhoiise: Concept of wholeness

Rosa Page Welch: Sorry for white women

4 MESSENGER 1-1-72

view were sent to appropriate church agencies.

The main focus of the recommenda- tions dealt with the creation of a full- time staff post, filled by a woman, for self-realization of women in the church; balanced representation by sex in com- mittees, delegations, and nomination processes; women awareness trainers; women's studies at church-related col- leges and the seminary; additions regard- ing women to the Keysort Card File; and church support of the Equal Rights Amendment bill.

To have accepted the report's recom- mendations outright, some persons felt, would have bypassed consideration of feasibility of implementation within the church's budgeted resources. Some of the recommendations are already being implemented, noted General Secretary S. Loren Bowman, and others will now require recommendations for action from program units.

A few of the board members spoke to the document from their own profession- al disciplines: Dale W. Brown, Lombard, lU., seminary professor, on the weakness of the section on women and the Bible; Wayne B. Zook, Wenatchee, Wash., physician, on the lack of biological and emotional considerations between the sexes; sociologist Leon C. Neher, Quinter, Kan., on what he saw as confusion of dignity of human worth with social roles; and attorney Robert M. Keim, Somerset, Pa., on questions concerning a portion critical of the protection of women under the law.

One perspective came from the only black person and non-Brethren on the board, Mrs. Rosa Page Welch of Chi- cago. "For the first time I feel myself feeling sorry for white women," she said, noting the "extreme protection" given white women by men. Black families have been matriarchal, she said, because the manhood of the black man has been put down and the black woman has had to take the lead in work and family.

Highpointing the different perspec- tives among the board, David B. Ritten- house, pastor of five rural churches in Appalachia, observed that "your prob- lems are really not problems of women Lve known the best."

"I feel sad that there are people who have never captured the concept of

wholeness in their life," he said, noting that he has not found the humanness among liberated women as he has found among the women in West Virginia. "Let's acknowledge that there are some very wholesome and healthy people in the traditional family," he urged.

But Dr. Jesse H. Ziegler, Dayton, Ohio, called the report "winsome, brilliant, in- sistent, nonthreatening, but calling for change." Calling himself to penitence, he said, "I have consistently been a part of what the committee calls attention to."

GOVERNMENT BOND owner-

3 ship by the church, like the war that bonds are said to support,

I may be winding down, but not

wmdmg up — as some persons are urg- ing. Replying to the 1971 National Youth Conference resolution calling on the church to dispose of all government bonds, the General Board rejected a pro- posed reply from its investment commit- tee and asked the Administrative Council to bring further options in March for handling fiscal operations without the use of bonds. Board members also called for the investment committee to consider selling any stocks held with the dozen top corporations supplying war materials.

The rejected proposal would have put the board on record as reconfirming its opposition to war, not purchasing addi- tional bonds as long as the national bud- get is so heavily military oriented, per- mitting the sale of bonds held as cash needs arise, and opposing immediate liq- uidation of the remaining bonds held.

Board views ranged from those who sought to dispose of the $617,933 in bonds held by the church "as a witness to the nation" for peace, to those who saw the bonds supporting many good things of government. Other arguments against disposal included the cash liquidity on short notice of the bonds, the loss that would be suffered in the sale of the bonds, and the fact that $259,880 of the total is pledged for a Bethany Seminary loan.

One staff member challenged the as- sumption that the bonds are a means of financing the war, but rather lend sta- bility to the government. Another indi- cated that the cash put into a savings ac- count could be invested by the bank in bonds anyway, and that the church owed

a fiscal responsibility to donors of the money in not risking a financial loss in any premature sale of the bonds.

"The government bonds in the invest- ment portfolio are not considered war bonds," noted the board's investment committee, "but are issues which were put out from time to time for general government operations, including pro- grams that we enthusiastically support."

Many of the bonds held by the Breth- ren were purchased in the 1950s, and no further purchases have been made since 1965. During the past fiscal year the church sold half a million dollars in gov- ernment bonds.

Likely to come before the Cincinnati Conference next year is a query from Southern Ohio that the church investi- gate payment of the telephone tax and the holding of U.S. government securities which are believed to support war.

'i^uilM'x

Nigeria Committee. 1 to r: C. Bieber. D. Stent. M. Croiise. H. Rover. J. Grimlev

FIFTY YEARS IN NIGERIA

4 will be observed in 1973 by the Church of the Brethren, a cele- I bration which may take various torms. Suggestions placed with General Board program units for possible imple- mentation include special highlights in Messenger and Agenda, special Sunday bulletins during the year, a commemora- tive pictorial book on the culture and traditions of the peoples of the North- Eastern State, a tour of Nigeria, a film- strip, and receiving Nigerians in the U.S. for deputation. Annual Conference lead- ership, and fellowship.

The primary' focus of the celebration should be on the development of the Ni- gerian church, decided a committee of Charles M. Bieber, Merle Crouse, John

1-1-72 MESSENGER 5

B. Grimley, Howard E. Royer, and Donald L. Stern.

"This is an opportunity to become bet- ter acquainted with the Nigerian people and nation of today and to see the Church of Christ in the Sudan, Lardin Gabas, as a responsible church living and witnessing in that context."

The committee saw the anniversary as an occasion for "expressing our joy for these relationships and for what God has wrought during 50 years of working together."

THE NEED FOR NEW RELA- TIONSHIPS between the

A ■ Church of the Brethren and the Lardin Gabas (Eastern District ) of the Church of Christ in the Sudan was illustrated in discussion by the General Board's World Ministries Com- mission in light of a constitution adopted in 1970 by the Lardin Gabas Church giv- ing it an independent, indigenous status.

While the change in status little affects the work of the Brethren with Lardin Gabas, it is now clear that the latter's organizational relationship with the de- nomination is no longer that of a district. The stance of continuing relationships between the Brethren and the Nigerians are being worked out by field staff.

"I do not sense any desire to break bonds of fellowship," said Joel K. Thompson, World Ministries executive. "I experienced only the joy and enthusi- asm of persons who felt that they have now come of age and who wish to work and serve the church in ministrv' togeth- er." Mr. Thompson recently made an administrative visit to Nigeria.

He stressed the continuing goals and involvements which the U.S. church will have in Nigeria, the current new medical program — Lafiya — being one ex- ample. The Lardin Gabas action follows the 1955 Annual Conference action that Brethren missions become independent, national, and indigenous churches.

"The challenge for us in the years ahead is to now accept the fulfillment of the mandate of Conference 1 6 years ago and to rejoice with our brethren around the world as we accept their desire for and realization of belonging to their own church which is a part of the total body of Christ," Mr. TTiompson said.

THEOLOGICAL EDUCATION

6 will engage the General Board at its March meeting, when the I Brotherhood and Bethany The- ological Seminary staffs will bring recom- mendations for interim and long-range financing of theological education in the denomination. The suggestions will aim at dealing concretely with the financial responsibility assigned the board by the

1971 Annual Conference for the semi- nary's fiscal solvency for the 1971-72 and 1972-73 budget years. An interchange of discussion and models for financing the- ological education in the church has been occurring between the Bethany and Elgin staffs.

The study committee appointed by An- nual Conference plans to make its pro- posals in February to the seminary board of directors to be recommended to the

1972 Annual Conference. In March the General Board and the Study Committee will evaluate the proposals.

SEVEN NEW PERSONS sat on

7 General Board for the first time since their election in June at

I the St. Petersburg conference:

Ilia Ridlt Addiniitou ■ 58, manager for 22 years and, since August, director of member relations of Mason-Dixon Em- ployees Credit Union operating at 49 lo- cations in 15 states, Kingsport, Tenn. Kingsport congregation. General Serv- ices Commission.

Robert A. Bycrly ■ 56, executive direc- tor. University Center at Harrisburg, Pa. Former pastor at Big Creek, Okla., and

Kokomo, Ind., and Bible professor at Elizabethtown College. Resident of Camp Hill, Pa.; member, Harrisburg First church. Trustee, Elizabethtown College and Camp Swatara. Parish Min- istries Commission.

Samuel H. Flora, Jr. ■ 48, pastor, Waynesboro, Pa.; formerly at North Bal- timore, Md., Morgantown, W. Va., Pleasant Valley, Va.; was Second Vir- ginia district executive from 1958-63. 1971 chairman of Waynesboro Ministe- rium. General Services Commission.

Dean L. Frantz ■ 52, church relations director, Manchester College, North Manchester, Ind, since 1964. Former pastor at Pleasant Hill, Ohio, and Mount Morris, III. On Bethany Seminary faculty for seven years. North Manchester con- gregation. World Ministries Commission.

David B. Ritteuhoiise ■ 40, pastor. Five Houses of Pocahontas congregation. Resides in Dunmore, W. Va. Served three years in Ecuador, and in Germany and Turkey with Brethren Volunteer Service. Shenandoah District board member. World Ministries Commission.

Robert L. Strickler ■ 56, pastor, West- ernport, Md. Former pastorate at Gaith- ersburg, Md., 1959-68. Current West Marva district moderator. Parish Min- istries Commision.

Wayne B. Zook ■ 44, general practice physician, Wenatchec, Wash. Former flight surgeon, U.S. Air Force. We- natchee Valley congregation. Former General Board member, 1963-68; district moderator, 1968-69. On United Min- istries district study committee. General Services Commission.

New board members scanning; at^enda jor November gathering: back row, I to r, Robert Byerly. Dean Frantz, David Ritten- house, Robert Strickler. Front, I to r, Wayne Zook, Ina Ruth Addington, Samuel Flora

6 MESSENGER 1-1-72

IN A RESOLUTION ON PAK- ISTAN, the General Board ex- pressed "its deep conipassioQ and sympathy for those mil- lions ot Its fellow human beings who are the victims of this massive human tragedy."

The resolution, affirming one earlier adopted by the General Board of the Na- tional Council of Churches, urged the "U.S. government to increase substantial- ly its support for the work of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees in East Pakistan, its contribution to relief etiorts among the growing millions of refugees in India, and its effort through diplomatic channels to end the conflict and achieve a peaceful and equitable political settle- ment." Suspension of economic and mil- itary aid to Pakistan was also asked.

Emergency disaster funds of $39,500 were voted for use in Pakistan Refugee Relief, of which $5,000 may be used domestically for diplomatic steps aimed at carrying out the intent of the resolu- tion. With previous disaster funds given for the East Pakistan cyclone disaster and for the Pakistan Refugee Relief in India, the Brotherhood's total commitment to date comes to $50,000.

An additional $5,000 in disaster funds was voted for aiding through Church World Service India's Orissa State struck on Oct. 29-30 by a cyclone and tidal wave.

I REJECTION OF THE FOREIGN

mM AID authorization bill by the ^^ U.S. Senate on Oct. 29 directly

I affected agencies with which

the Church of the Brethren works in ma- terial aid efforts, specifically Church World Service, Heifer Project, Inc., and International Voluntary Services, Inc.

Kenneth I. McDowell told the World Ministries Commission that the four Brethren material aid centers are almost completely dependent on continuing ocean freight reimbursement to ship relief materials since the other agencies would not have budgeted funds. "Likewise, we would not have funds to ship the quan- tities of medical supplies which we re- ceive from Intcrchurch Medical As- sistance for medical program in India and Nigeria," said the community devel- opment consultant.

[LQDIldlSD^DDDl]^

PEOPLE you KNOW

Continuing education and business

achievements were criteria for the naming of Louise Woods of Ankeny, Iowa, as American Businesswoman of the Year. Mrs. Woods is a member of the Ankeny congregation.

F. Willard Powers, Mount Morris, 111., has been ap- pointed to the new U.S. Postal Service Advisory Council, generally regarded as among the most important appointive positions in government.

Becky Swick Day at Pleasant Hill, Pa., honored adult volunteer Rebecca Swi ck , reported to be "riding on a cloud" after tJie presentation to her of a Jeep and other gifts by her home congregation. She has served five years in parish work at Midway, Tenn.

Placed in Kentucky by the Mennonite Central Committee for a two-year assignment are Paul and Mary Esh, members of Trinity Church of lihe Brethren, Detroit, Mich.

Cited by World Ministries Commission for fourteen years' service in Nigeria were Dr_. and Mrs . Beryl McCann , whose new address is 816 N. Ninth St., Durant, Okla. 74701.

Former BVSer John Jehnsen, the son of Nappanee, Ind. , Service Center director Ernest Jehnsen, was killed in an automobile accident in mid-November.

AFTER FIFTY YEARS

anniversaries :

Mr.

. Celebrants of fiftieth wedding and Mrs. John Metz, Ambler, Pa.; the

George W_. Geibs , Manheim, Pa. ; the Robert L_. Byrds , Bridgewater, Va.; and Mr_. and Mrs . Vernon Brubaker, Adel, Iowa.

We salute other couples who are observing anniver- saries: the Ralph G. Ra ricks , Elkhart, Ind., fifty-four; the Ervin Weavers , North Manchester, Ind., sixty; Mr_. and Mrs . Edward Schwass , Ambler, Pa., sixty; the Clarence Weber s , Dallas Center, Iowa, sixty-two; and Mr_. and Mrs . Clarence B. Rhodes , Martinsburg , Pa., sixty-six.

WE GOOFED'. And our faces are red. Apologies are due Maynard Shelly , whose article "The Superstar Who Was Jesus Christ" (Oct. 15) was incorrectly attributed to another author. Maynard, former editor of The Mennonite, is with the Mennonite Central Committee in Pakistan.

And while we're at it, we discovered that the address of Barbara Bechtel , listed in the same October issue as one Manchester College student attending Brethren Colleges Abroad, is not Boise, Idaho, but is Linthicum Heights, Md.

CONGREGATIONAL COLLAGE . . . Two congregations of Breth- ren recently celebrated anniversaries of founding: North- view church at Indianapolis, Ind., marked a seventieth year Nov. 21, and First Central church in Kansas City, Kans., inaugurated a year-long observance of its seventy- fifth birthday with a Thanksgiving celebration.

Twelve persons at Trinity Church of the Brethren , De- troit, Mich., have made a commitment to fast as a religious discipline, challenged by young people who attended Nation- al Youth Conference. Funds from the fasting will be divided between community needs and national or interna- tional needs as determined by the youth.

1-1-72 MESSENGER 7

psoDaD [rsp(Q)[rt^

In South Asia— 'A world that wants to help'

bv RONALD E. KEENER

Ihe horror that has swept East Pakistan and the human burden placed upon northern India can be communicated by imagining the total evacuation of New York City.

Since last March, when a dispute en- sued beween East Pakistani leaders, the newly elected majority party Awami League, and the Pakistani government. 10 million East Pakistanis have crossed the border to India in the wake of army policies that Sen. Edward M. Kennedy and others have called genocide. More than 200.000 social, civil, and political leaders of East Pakistan have been killed since March.

American journalist Leon Howell has observed in East Pakistan that with the immense proportions of the conflict, "a world that wants to help does not really know how."

His eyewitness report caused him to

reflect too that "even humanitarian relief has political content. Concerned individ- uals and groups have been confronted once again with the futility of bringing sustenance to people in need when the political ramifications destroy the human charity."

Not that past natural and man-made disasters haven't had their political impli- cations. The Nigerian civil conflict is a classic and most recent example.

One supporter of the East Pakistan lib- eration forces observed: "There is no way foreign agencies can bring in food here that will not give the martial law author- ity greater control. By feeding us you undercut the revolution that is the only solution here."

Revolution. Not a comfortable word or concept for many Brethren and other churchmen. But for the more perceptive readers of what is occurring in that part of the world, revolution in the form of an independent Bangladesh ("the country of Bengal") is becoming the goal of freedom

fighters in East Pakistan.

Had West Pakistan, having 40 percent of the population of the geographically split country but dominating the political and economic life of the nation since it was formed in 1947, allowed the Awami League to govern the country, something short of independence might have occurred.

Church of the Brethren refugee relief efforts have been channeled largely through India, where the politics of the situation are less intense but nonethe- less present as India finds her economy pushed to its limit by the spiraling costs of aiding the refugees. Per capita each refugee in India is receiving in food, clothing, and medicines more than the "average" Indian citizen's daily income. On top of this lies the fact that the ref- ugees are concentrated in one of the most volatile areas of India with high unem- ployment and a low political flashpoint.

Yet while the primary thrust of the Brethren is in direct relief — totaling $39,500 thus far in disaster funds — the diplomatic and political aspects of the situation are being approached, too, with the appropriation of $5,000 to be used in connection with efforts to end the conflict and achieve a peaceful and equitable settlement.

The needs are apparent on both sides of the India-East Pakistan border, but more difficult when Pakistan won't officially recognize its own internal strife.

As one person has observed, the gov- ernment of Pakistan has warned that any international organization that attempts to intervene in East Pakistan under the guise of humanitarian assistance will be in effect supporting "Indian aggressive designs and interference in Pakistan's internal affairs." The conclusion: Plainly, no agency will, or at least should, be willing to get into the position where their action can be used as an excuse for a worsening of relations between India and Pakistan.

Sen. Edward M. Kennedy of the Sen- ate Subcommittee on Refugees and Es- capees in early November told a group of officials from church, relief, and politi- cally concerned agencies that by the close of the year 200,000 children below eight years will have died.

The gathering was an informal con- sultation on the American response to East Pakistani events, attended for the Church of the Brethren by H. Lamar Gibble, peace and international affairs consultant, and Ronald E. Keener, Messenger associate editor. Among the reports they heard:

Dr. •Lincoln Chen, famine and nutri- tion specialist: Famine in East Pakistan has not developed, but pockets of starva- tion do exist now.

Bruce Laingen, Department of State country director for Pakistan and Afghanistan: TTie U.S. has not been the major supplier in arms to Pakistan since

1965 and since then has contributed only a small part to equipping Pakistan mili- tarily.

Edward C. Dimock Jr.. University of Chicago: The Pakistan we've known since 1947 is in fact dead. There is no way in which Bengal can return to the state of edgy coexistence with West Pakistan.

Maharajakrislma Rasgotra, Indian Em- bassy political affairs minister: It is di- versionary to transform the situation into an Indian-Pakistan question and ask United Nations intervention. The prob- lem has arisen from the suppression by the military government of the expression of open elections.

S.A.M.S. Kihria, Bangladesh Mission chief political officer: In eight months, a point of no return has been reached in now seeking anything short of inde- pendence.

Peter Frelinghiiysen. New Jersey Con- gressman: The East Pakistan crisis is "the sleeper crisis of the 70s," drifting deeper into chaos.

(A Pakistani Embassy representative refused to appear at the consultation on the same program as the Bangladesh Mission "conspirators.")

From the consultation will come a con- tinuing group working at providing in- formation regarding the humanitarian needs of the crisis, promoting a debate concerning possible political solutions to the problems, and encouraging coopera- tion and information exchanges between those in humanitarian and political work.

Despite the declaration of the Indian Embassy official that all of the refugees must one day return to East Pakistan, the facts of the situation make that develop- ment improbable.

Many might return to an independent Bangladesh, but many more will never return — especially the 75 percent of them who as Hindus fear extermination by the Muslim troops of the Punjab.

"As I hid in the paddy," one man is said to have observed, "they came to my village and tore off the loungis (sarongs) from the men. If they were uncircum- cized (meaning they were not Muslim or perhaps Christian, but Hindu) they were shot on the spot."

Dr. J. Harry Haines of New York, executive secretary of the United Meth- odist Committee for Overseas Relief, likens the conflict to a civil war and

discounts any interpretation of it as a religious war. Still, one speaker at the consultation finds it more akin to the American revolution than to War Between the Slates.

Christians form a relatively small minority of the Pakistani population, and fully one third of them are now in Indian refugee camps.

Dr. Haines believes that if the refugees keep coming into India, and if there is no way for them to return to Pakistan, war with Pakistan may become India's only way to solve its dilemma. This is indeed the ever growing concern.

The refugees are not India's responsi- bility, but there is no escape. The vic- tims of West Pakistan's repression of the eastern wing of the country are now India's burden — perhaps for years.

Life in the refugee camps remains in- tolerable. One report puts it graphically: "People sit like automatons. The chil- dren, even the youngest, are deprived of childishness, infants are skull faces on skeleton bodies, the adults paralyzed in resignation, bodies defeated by the physi- cal ordeal, minds and hearts by terror." And in the more settled, healthful camps, where the death rate is less of a worry, the concern grows for the birth rate.

Should international relief agencies make the effort in East Pakistan as they have in India with the refugees?

"Probably so," concludes journalist Leon Howell, "but only if this does not lull the world into thinking that the real solution is not political.

"An experienced Catholic priest work- ing in the Khulna area most destroyed by the military barked in an emotion-filled voice:

" "The ones who are clearly starving to death, the ones who will continue to starve, are those who are being hunted, who can not come out to claim their morsel even from the relief agencies. And the only way to save them is to stop the himting.' "

One World Council of Churches writer reflected that "the situation in Pakistan raises many of the tensions between justice and service in a very dramatic way but perhaps most of all it points to a very humbling insight. Could it be that sometimes Christian obedience must in- volve suffering in not being able to do very much?" n

1-1-72 MESSENGER 9

M\(n)d(B\rm^(Q)\r

A profile of Dale Brown

^^alc BrowTi's jutting jaw. which he thrusts almost in your face, is aggres- sively friendly. He approaches you to let you in on the story of his latest en- counter: On a recent trip he had a chance to become acquainted with a young Brethren.

"And then I discovered." Dale says, '"that his two heroes are .-^rt Gish and Ronald Reagan!"

Dale chuckles as you exclaim over the obvious contradiction of a young nonconformist Brethren itinerant preacher and the highly conservative governor of California. Then he inter- rupts.

"But when you listen to the man's philosophy, it makes perfect sense!" Dale is obviously delighted at discov- ering someone who'd put things to- gether in such an unexpected way, not a way that Dale would choose, but one that he could savor.

"You see, he's a conservative Breth- ren," Dale says, "and he identifies con- servatism with practices like the anoint- ing service, the plain costume, and the love feast. He's also a political con- servative — I think he's in Young Americans for Freedom — so he likes Ronald Reagan. He likes Art Gish" — Dale's deep laughter interrupts him here — "because of his hat and beard."

Dale W. Brown, 1971-72 moderator of the Church of the Brethren, is him- self a person who has things put to- gether in an unexpected way — a blend of the old and the new, the radical and the conservative. His strong concern for the personal, for the here and now, draw old, young, radicals, and con-

10 MESSENGER 1-1-72

servatives into easy identification with him. And when you get to know him, the way he puts things together makes perfect sense.

Dale Brown's parents provided him with the kind of Christian home that made him feel secure in their love, and later in the love of God. The church community in Kansas where he grew up provided him with the strong sense of support that is needed by a sepa- rated and peculiar people maintaining their witness in wartime. A freewill Brethren preacher with whom he worked in Nebraska gave him a feeling for anti-institutionalism in the church. The church itself provided him the op- portunity to study theology and to preach; he still can't quite believe that he gets paid for doing what he likes to do best.

finally, the whole Christian experi- ence raised in him the concern for the suffering people of the world that leads to what he calls his paradox: "Liking my job and extremely happy with my family, yet passionately un- happy with the militarism and in- justices of our world — meantime in both my happiness and unhappiness experiencing a strong identification with that company of people who through the centuries have been called Christians, especially the sectarians, and their chief Leader."

When Dale found that he had been elected moderator, the highest non- staff position in the denomination, his first thought was, "The world has

come into the church." I asked him what he meant.

"Recognition in the church has be- come much like recognition in the world." he said. "Circumstances get people recognized. . . . But someone who's very faithful — like some of the real saints of the church whom I see in my travels — never has a chance to be elected to any office. Because it's just like the Bible says, 'The greatest shall be the servants," and the servants are not necessarily those who become recognized by the church bodies. If I had a list of saints — 1 don't — they would not be people the church would be seeking to ser\'e as moderator."

He mentioned to me two or three of his classmates who have purposely stayed in churches of only fifty or sixty people, and a farmer-preacher who serves five or six congregations, living on an income below the taxable level.

"In church life, and the Church of the Brethren is no exception to that, the scale of values and the ways that we evaluate each other are not identical to the kingdom and the way God evalu- ates people. That's just very obvious to me."

"My slow realization of the basic sicknesses of A merican society has brought me to a mood of noncon- formity, and drawn me into radical protest. This has not come easily. Consequently, I have recently found myself in more basic conflict with more of my daily associates than in all my previous life."

As a student and as a pastor he had

I

by William H. Kuenning

Grandson of two free Brethren ministers. Dale W. Brown was the fourth child in a family of five boys. He was brought up in a lower middle-class neighborhood, in a family then considered wealthy by neighborhood standards, though this would not be true today. His father was a grocer and small businessman in Wichita, Kansas, whose principles prevented him from renting out some store property for two years lest it be used by a restaurant that would sell beer. His mother was tenderhearted , and she readily identified with all her neighbors. Dale thinks he has been fortunate to "gef these qualities from his parents.

He attended a Brethren congregation across town, where sixty to eighty percent of the young men were conscientious objectors. On his side of town there were no Brethren in the high school which he attended dur- ing World War //, and he made common cause with three young Quakers and got to know their families. Church camps and the local pastor became unexpect- edly strong influences in his life. He decided to forego his strong interests and aptitudes in mathematics and chemistry because he "felt there might be many people pursuing these, but few to serve mankind," and he chose McPherson College instead of the University of Wichita.

A summer pastorate in western Nebraska brought him into association with Elder D. G. Wine, an eighty- year-old free minister, physically and spiritually a giant of a man who had brought Brethren witness to a "pagan" west 45 years before, and who had a tremen- dous influence on Dale's life.

He studied three years at Bethany Seminary. Dur- ing this time he was married to Lois Kauffman, whom he had known at McPherson, and he and Lois subse- quently served seven years in a relatively new pastorate in Des Moines, Iowa, which they found hard to leave when Dale was called to Bethany to teach while pur- suing a doctoral program at Northwestern University. He then returned to McPherson to serve as chaplain and professor. He has been a professor at Bethany Seminary since J 962.

The Browns have three children, high school age Deanna and Dennis, and fifth-grader Kevin.

1-1-72 MESSENGER 11

'I was tired of always having to go outside the church to make my Christian witness'

been easygoing, had usually kept his cool, and was known in college as a guy who just didn't have a temper. As a professor, his pacifism had led him to support students from McPherson College who had demonstrated against the Omaha missile base. This had led to some conflict, but it was the kind of conflict he expected.

The war in Vietnam has emphasized to him even more his differences with America's penchant for war-making and his differences with those who are not alienated by this war-making. And those in the church who are trying to implement their concern for racial justice, an end to poverty, and aid to the oppressed and imprisoned, have made a deep impression on him.

Several years ago one young man came to him for advice about resisting the draft. Dale tried to persuade him to accept alternative service, as Dale had done with dozens of others con- sidering whether to choose alternative service or the army. But this young man kept raising questions that led Dale to think through some of the limi- tations with which alternative service burdens their Christian witness. He be- gan to understand the real frustrations that young men were feeling about ac- cepting it. Before long he had become a conscientious supporter of con- scientious draft resisters.

This new orientation leads to the sadness he often feels nowadays in finding himself "in more basic con- flict with more of my daily associates than in all my previous life," but a sadness he cannot avoid.

This mood of sadness, of compas- sion for those people throughout the world whom we are preparing to in- jure, and of anger at our complacency, has led him to a number of actions that many might consider radical. He has, for example, participated in the 1966 open housing marches in Oak Park, Illinois, been an observer for the American Friends Service Committee of the demonstrations at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, and participated in the march on the Pentagon in 1967.

He refuses to pay his telephone tax because it was levied specifically for war. He participates in the Brethren Action Movement (BAM), which has sent aid to both North and South Viet- nam, and which has been of help to Brethren draft resisters. He became a founder of BAM because, he said, "I was tired of always having to go oiil- side the church to make my Christian witness."

"/ had this experience with this eighty-year-old man, and I can't shake him off."

Two moderators in conference: Dale W. Brown, left, and Harold Z. Bombcrger

12 MESSENGER \-\-12

His early encounter with Elder D. G. Wine firmed up something in his trust in the biblical teachings and his un- easiness with calling an authoritative institution the church. This elderly farmer-preacher-scholar, father of thirteen and foster parent to others, who had never finished the eighth grade, sat up nights one summer talk- ing with Dale as long as Dale could keep his eyes open. The free ministry came to have great meaning for Dale, and he began to question hierarchical authority.

"I have always felt uncomfortable with professional fund-raising cam- paigns," Dale told me. His first sermon was against being called "Reverend," and he's always "had this thing against professionalism, especially where it connotes a priestly caste."

"/ have been nncomjortahle at times that I have been accepted so well."

At the St. Petersburg conference last summer he found himself in a vig- orous, emotional debate with some conservatives following a committee meeting they had attended together. The argument, on resistance, continued an hour and a half. At the end Dale told them, "You know I wouldn't be spending this long if I didn't like you and take you seriously — I wouldn't be caring this much."

His adversaries answered, "We like you, because you don't just treat us nice. You take us seriously enough to argue with us."

In relating the story Dale com- mented, "Now the t3rpe of treatment they've often received has been, 'We'll meet with you, and we'll listen to you. . . . Now we've heard you; you should be happy.' It is not enough to treat people as though all they need is ca- tharsis, fearing that if one argues with them it will turn them off. People don't only want to get things out of their system. They want you to ac- cept their proposals and act, or else More on 26

AN ANNUAL CONFERENCE WORKING PAPER

AStatement Regarding

Abortion

The following statement is presented to

■ readers of Messenger by the Annual Conference committee appointed to an- swer two separate queries calling for "guidance on the question of abortion." This statement has been revised since

■ its referral back to the committee by the 1971 Annual Confereitce. The Con- ference further suggested that materials on the question be made available for the church to study and discuss.

What follows is a working document. Since it may be revised further prior to the 1972 Annual Conference, responses from individuals and groups are sought by the committee. Concerns may be conveyed by letter, or noted on the dis- cussion survey checklist on page 17.

BiblicalTeaehing

A Christian ethic regarding abortion begins with the biblical teaching about hfe and about love, two of the central themes of scripture. It is well to re- member that there are not many scrip- tural passages directly related to the question of abortion and that the direc- tion of scripture is not so clear that

anyone can be dogmatic in his inter- pretation. No biblical passage con- demns or approves abortion as such. Nevertheless the Bible shows God to be very much concerned about both the presence and quality of human life. Therefore, we turn to passages about life and about love. ...

The Bible teaches us that human life is a sacred gift of God. This does not mean that human beings have no part in the creation of new life, for God has clearly entrusted the cultivation and propogation of human life into the hands of persons (Genesis 1- — 2). Nevertheless, it remains a sacred gift of God and is at center a mystery be- yond definition. Science can describe the development of' the fetus, but it cannot penetrate the mystery and uniqueness of the person who is brought into being by the hand of God.

It goes beyond scripture to insist that conception is clearly the beginning of personal human life. The birth an- nouncements of scripture suggest that a person may be chosen by God before conception (Isaac) or during fetal de- velopment (Jeremiah). God's promise

and blessing is critical in the creation of persons, and that does not seem to be identical with conception. Reference to "conception" in scripture is nearly always accompanied by reference to "bringing forth," as in the phrase "con- ceive and bear." Conception in itself .is not indicative of personal life, since only as that life is "brought forth" does it become fully personal.

On the other hand many scriptural passages seem to suggest that personal life is deeper than viability, the time at which a fetus may be born and live. Heart, blood, mind, and breath are signs of personal life. Biblically the "heart" refers to the center of personal being. "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might" (Deut. 6:5). Blood is the presence of life and the sign of the covenant between God and man (Deut. 12:23). The mind and the strength, thinking and moving are evidence of life. Soul and breathing are closely associated, suggesting that full personhood comes with breath. Thus

1-1-72 MESSENGER 13

ANNUAL CONFERENCE WORKING PAPER

the Bible seems to suggest multiple signs of personal human life, not just one. The body and the person are in- separably joined in biblical teaching so that the latter does not exist without • the former. ■ - • ■ • ., ■

The Bible also places, much emphasis upon the promise of a loving God and the response of a caring community as decisive in calling forth personal hu- man life. The announcement of a child to be bom is normally a time of joy and thankfulness. Signs of quickening

. and movement within the womb height- en expectancy for the coming child. Sensitive persons are moved with rever- ence in the' presence of a growing fetus (Psalm 139). The Bible teaches us that the earliest fetal life is precious, but that its value increases as it takes on more of the qualities of personal life

■ that are present at birth.

The Bible seems, then, to suggest that the termination of fetal life is seri- ously wrong, but not as wrong as the taking of fully personal life. Such a view- is implicit in E.xodus 21:22-25, w^Jere the causing of a miscarriage may be rectified by a payment to the injured party. Should the expectant mother ■die, the guilty party may be required to make compensation by giving his own life'. It is therefore ordinarily wrong to terminate the life of a human fetus because the fetus is potentially a . person, and because personal human life is sacred. On the other hand, it is not murder or manslaughter because the fetus is not yet a person. Nothing we find in the New Testament would seem to alter this view. ■ >

The compassion we learn from Jesus Christ leads us to give of ourselves for the well-being of others. This means that an expectant mother will consider the well-being of the potential life she carries as well as the well-being of oth- er children she may have to be more importiant than her own convenience.

At the same time it means that every Christian is moved with compassion for those who undergo an unwanted preg- nancy. We are brought to confess those attitudes that condemn and control oth- er persons. We are motivated to work for those institutions arid services that fulfill life and that contribute to a com- munitv wherein all children are wanted.

Social Considerations

We began with the biblical affirmation that human life is sacred. This affirma- tion does not, however, resolve the eth- ical dilemma concerning the quality as well as the fact of human life. Such a dilemma is obvious when the life of a mother is threatened by a pregnancy. Most Brethren have been willing to al- low that a fetus may be aborted to save the life of the pregnant woman. This seems well within the direction of bibli- cal teaching, although we should mar- vel at the love of a mother who would voluntarily lay down her life in order that her child might be born. Surely no one should be required to do so. . ■ ■■

The dilemma is much more difficult when the threat of world overpopula- tion is considered.' Various population estimates indicate that the world will be intolerably overpopulated within two or three generations if present popula- tion trends continue. Is the threat of overpopulation with attendant starva- tion and death sufficient reason to re- sort to abortion? Reverence for human life should lead Christians to use con- traceptive methods that are effective prior to or during the earliest days of pregnancy. The church should encour- age everyone to become well ac- quainted with the safe medical use of such methods. Only with the failure of such contraceptive methods might one consider abortion, which in itself is never desirable, and only then when overpopulation poses a serious danger and personal threat to those already

born as well as those about to be born. Surely such may be the case in many places in the world today.

The moral- dilemma of abortion is complicated by the fact that abortion is not nearly so available to the poor as it is to those who are not poor. It is hardly just or compassionate to en- force strict abortion laws against those who cannot afford to do anything but comply. The dilemma is also compli- cated by the fact that many hundreds of women have lost their lives in recent years ■ because of attempts at self-in- duced abortion, or because of illegally obtained abortions. An indirect impli- cation of Exodus 21:22-25 is that legal and hygienic facilities ought to be avail- able so that such women do not lose their lives.

There are many instances in which a woman may find the birth of a child wholly unbearable. The family may al- ready be so poor that they are starving or otherwise deprived. The child may be defective and require care and ex- pense that the pregnant woman with her husband is wholly unable to give. One cannot move from the sacredness of human life to the principle that a woman and her husband must undergo the extreme sacrifices required by an- other birth. On the other hand when fetal life is so reverenced and potential human life is so loved that a woman and her husband do voluntarily and wholeheartedly make such sacrifices, then the church can give thanks and celebrate God's compassionate Spirit among us. Fetal life may never lightly be sacrificed to our own convenience or whim.

If young women and men are to have a real choice regarding pregnancy, then they must have instruction about the sacredness of human sexuality, ac- curate information about methods of contraception, and persons to whom they can turn for counsel. Further- more, a woman who carries an un- wanted pregnancy will have a real choice only if counsel about adoption and other options is available. If the church is really concerned about hu- man life, it must provide facilities for the care of such women and their chil- dren, counseling services, as well as a climate of support within the con- gregation.

14 MESSENGER 1-1-72

Medical and Counseling Considerations

Medical science views human life in . various ways. Human life has been seen by some simply in the potential of ovum or sperm, by others as begin- ning with fertilization (conception), ..; and by yet others as the capacity for ' ,;• personal interaction. Prior to interac- tive functioning, human life is not eas- ily distinguished from animal life ^- yet, when can we say interaction be- gins? The distinction between mere ex- istence and a distinctly personal quality in life is universal. Neither in terms - of any one point in time of develop- ment nor in any other measurable qual- •, ity can science provide the definition of this discrimination. Scientifically as well as biblically, it seems most mean- ingful to view human life as a sacred gift that appears within a continuum or developmental process.

Modern contraception has made pregnancy a relatively deliberate and free option for many persons in our society. The risk to life and physical ■ health of the mother as a consequence • ■v.- of pregnancy and delivery is now small; the physical risk accompanying medi- cally ethical abortion procedures in the first trimester of pregnancy is much smaller. This risk increases, however, as pregnancy progresses. In contrast, the risk to health and life due to clah- '■ destine, unhygienic, often desperate „:' abortion procedures at the present time ;;.. is exceedingly high, and there are many :'■' hundreds of needless deaths yearly. Further technological advances in the ■ utilization of intrauterin devices '.'" '(lUDs), the "morning-after" pill, and . : the seemingly imminent appearance of _. effective oral medication that will abort . . by chemical means in the earliest stages

■ ■; of pregnancy, promise to make it in-

• creasingly difficult to delineate contra- i.. ception from abortion. Existing public

laws with respect to abortion, therefore, ■• may well become increasingly irrelevant

• and unenforceable.

Technical discoveries about the ge-

,,~. netic and congenital abnormalities of

human development have increased the

■ ^' possibility of detecting carrier states of

• defective genes and chromosomal de- ..; fects and of predicting such disease in

/ potential offspring. Such conditions

may sometimes be diagnosed in mid- pregnancy, but not before. Genetic counseling considers the degree of risk involved, the seriousness of the possible defect, the parents' willingness to risk having a defective child in the hope of having a healthy one, the possibility that a defective child might be helped by medical or surgical procedures to achieve a more nearly normal life, the possible result of the defect on the life of the child, on other members of the family, and on society.

Recent psychological studies of women who undergo therapeutic (med- ically ethical) abortion have not sup- ported generally held beliefs regarding the emotional stress of such an experi- ence. In the majority of cases, general relief or a brief and mild guilt reaction is reported. More severe disturbances appear rarely. The psychiatrically dis- turbed woman who undergoes abortion seems to experience no loss of stability and, sometimes, even improves. Fre- quently expressed beliefs regarding the occurrence of - involuntary infertility, difficulty in sexual functioning, as well as depression, are not substantiated by the presently available evidence. There is, however, continued expression of concern by psychiatrists and psycholo- gists about adverse effects, short-term or long-term, individually or collective- ly, of repeated resort to abortion.

Effective research has yet to be done to clarify the real psychological and social effects of changing social codes regarding abortion and the response that large numbers of persons are mak- ing to these changes. Clinical experi- ence with persons who have sought il- legal abortion, usually in a context fraught with tension, secrecy, fear, and real risk to life and health, reveals fre-

quent important emotional trauma and suffering about the experience. It ap- pears that the condemnatory attitudes, compassionlessness, and profound in- sensitivity and lack of understanding in ourselves and those around us lie at the heart of this distress. Many of the existing criminal' codes give sanc- tion to these same attitudes and thereby contribute to the tragic human suffer- ing that often accompanies abortion.

Psychological studies of children and of family life have brought a new and increasing concern by behavioral scien- tists about the problems of the "un- wanted child.'-' Nearly everyone agrees that being unwanted in early childhood is devastating to the development of personality and is the cause of many behavioral and emotional problems.

Regarding these paradoxical, com- plex, and sometimes conflicting values, physicians and counselors are called upon to relate to the person first of all. They are asked to care, and to care enough that they "would not want to control, dominate, or manipulate per- sons, but rather to set them free to grow and to seek out their own highest purposes. This requires a highly per- sonalized view of every issue and every moral choice. It also requires that counselors and physicians must be able to function in a setting that can reflect and preserve their freedom of moral choice and that is consonant with their values and highest purposes.

Many people, including those in the church, have tended to respond distant- ly, impersonally, and judgmentally to those who struggle personally with these issues. Even when no longer ex- pressed in legal prohibitions, these at- titudes tend to be preserved by requir- ing them of the medical profession.

l-i-72 MESSENGER 15

ANNUAL CONFERENCE WORKING PAPER

Professional people, as well as their patients, have need for persons of great compassion and insight who will under- take to share the burden of moral de- cision and thereby bring a fuller hu- manity into the lives of all.

A Position Statement

Brethren strongly believe that all hu- man life is sacred and that personal life is the fullest expression of human life. The question of abortion should therefore be discussed within the con- text of renewed sensitivity to the won- der of personal human life and of hu- man sexuality. We believe that abor- tion should be considered an option only when all other possible alterna- tives lead to greater destruction of per- sonal human life and spirit. We rejoice with those who voluntarily give birth at great personal sacrifice. Yet we also support those who after prayer and consultation find abortion to be the least undesirable alternative available to them and those they love. We believe that such persons should be able to make their decisions openly, honestly, and without the burden and suffering imposed by an uncompromising com- munity. Furthermore we advocate that all who seek abortions should be granted sympathetic counsel about var- ious alternatives as well as the health and safety of publically available physi- cians and hospital care.

Some Implications .

It is vital to the church that it educate its members about the sacred spiritual quality of human life and human sexu- ality, so that the question of abortion may be considered in proper context. The church should provide study pack- ets, current reading, study groups, church school classes, workshops, and personal acquaintance with the experi-

ence of those involved in abortion de- cisions. Much further education re- garding sexual relations, family plan- ning, the meaning and practice of re- sponsible parenthood, and the value of persons is crucial to' the spiritual and social well being of the Brotherhood. This effort should be both an individual and collective responsibility. The Brotherhood should support other or- ganizations such as Planned Parenthood and Clergy Consultation Service in their educational efforts. . . ..

Responsible parents should seriously consider limiting family size, since over- population poses a very real threat to the whole of human life. However, contraception and voluntary preventa- tive measures such as vasectomy are always preferable to abortion as a form of birth control. , .\ ;._■ -, .:.

The Brotherhood should do every- thing it can to make it possible for a mother to want and care for all her children. We can best show our con- cern and compassion by providing homes for women who do not want their unborn child and for children who are unwanted. We need to. foster a fel- lowship of families and counselors who would welcome and care for such wom- en and their children.

In some situations abortion is per- haps the least undesirable alternative available. Decisions in such situations are most nearly genuine when made with consideration for all persons in-. volved. Such situations include serious threat to the lives and emotional well- being of the mother and her family. The precise definition of circumstances must be left to the mother, the father, the physician, the pastor, and other sig- nificant persons in whom the mother has confidence. (Situations such as rape, incest, and malformation of the fetus need not necessarily lead to abor- tion if they do not seriously threaten the emotional well-being of the mother and the family.)

Any person who considers an abor- tion should receive the best counsel about options available, including adop- tion and foster care. Such counsel

should encourage her and those close to her to work through the decision in view of the value of human life, the consequences of the various options available, and the well-being of those most directly affected. We strongly op- pose any action, direct or indirect, by parents, physicians, the state, or anyone else that would compel a woman to seek an abortion against her will. When abortion is performed, it should always be done under acceptable medi- cal care, and as early in the pregnancy as possible.

Physicians are urged not only to con- sult with their medical colleagues, but also to seek other ways to share the burden of moral responsibility so fre- quently thrust upon them. They are encouraged to resist the inclination to shoulder the weight of decision in isola- tion from others who are involved and concerned. The meeting of minds, whenever possible, of caring persons most involved and most to be affected by decisions that are made, gives dig- nity, moral sensitivity, emotional sup- port, and personal security to all con- cerned. Any physician or attendant who, because of personal moral con- viction, chooses not to perform or par- ticipate in an abortion, however legal, should be free to do so jn good con- science, and should receive the full sup- port of the church. We urge a physi- cian with such convictions to refer pa- tients who may desire an abortion to another competent certified doctor.

Brethren may in good faith work for changes in laws regulating abortion practice. Many existing laws add to the guilt and degradation of life. We support those who conscientiously act for the repeal or alteration of such laws.

(Members o-f the Study Committee on Abortion are Laurcc Hersch Meyer, Taipei, Taiwan; Nancy Rosenberger Faus, Wichita, Kansas; Sonja Griffith, Clearwater. Fla.: Donald E. Miller, Oak Brook, III.; Terry Murray, Huntingdon, P<i.; Marianne Pittman, Champaign, III.; and Dr. Dennis F. Rupel, River- side, Calif.)

16 MESSENGER 1-1-72

FOR FURTHER STUDY

Pamphlets

Eternity. Evangelical Foundation, Inc., 1716 Spruce St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19103. Feb. 1971. SOt"' per copy.

Abortion: A Human Choice. Board of Christian Social Concerns, The United Methodist Church, 100 Maryland Ave. NE, Washington, D.C. 20002. Order ;P 11 50. May 1971. 1-9 copies 5Q(- each. 10-24 copies AZi each. 25 or more copies AOi each.

Let's Look at Abortion. Council for Christian Social Action, 289 Park Ave. South, New York, N.Y. 10010. March 1971. 50(;' single copy. 10-99 copies 40c. 100 or more copies ?!5<^ each.

The Right to Abortion: A Psychiatric View. Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, 419 Park Ave. South, New York, N.Y. 10016. Vol. VII, No. 75, Oct. 1969.

Books

Who Shall Live? Man's Control Over Birth and Death. Prepared for the American Friends Service Committee. Hill and Wang, New York. 1970. $1.75 paper.

Birth Control and the Christian. A Prot- estant Symposium on the Control of Human Reproduction. Edited by Walter O. Spitzer and Carlyle L. Saylor. Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, 111. 60187. 1969.

The Terrible Choice: The Abortion Dilemma. Bantam Books, 1968. Pa- per.

Articles

Clare Boothe Luce, Two Books on Abor- tion and the Questions They Raise. National Review, Jan. 12, 1971, pp. 27-33.

E. Spencer Parsons, Abortion: A Private and Public Concern. "Criterion," a publication of the Divinity School of the University of Chicago, Winter 1971, pp. 13-16.

Paul Ramsey, Feticide/ Infanticide Upon Request. "Religion In Life," Summer 1970, pp. 170-186.

Study Packet A packet of study resources, including selected items from above, is available at moderate cost and in quantities from the Annual Conference Offlce, Church of the Brethren General Board, 1451 Dundee Avenue, Elgin, Illinois 60120. Several of the individual items above also may be obtained from the Annual Conference office at the prices indicated.

Record your personal response

Discussion/Survey Checklist on Abortion

The following checklist may serve either as a guide for personal study, a starter for group discussion, or a form for responding to the Study Committee on Abortion. In looking ahead to final revisions of the report appearing on pages 13-16, the committee earnestly welcomes the reactions and com- ments of Messenger readers.

1 Abortion is a question appropriate for the church to consider:

n Yes D No

2 Human life should be considered fully personal at the time of (Check one):

D conception n quickening' n viability' D birth n some other time

3 The following is sufficient reason for abortion (Check any number):

D threat to the mother's life

□ threat to the physical health of the mother D rape

D incest

n fetal deformity

□ possibility of fetal deformity, e.g. rubella D threat to the well-being of the family

n threat to the mother's emotional health

D threat of over-population

n the desire not to have a child

D other:

4 Civil law should continue heavily to restrict the practice of abortion, as it now does in most states: D Yes D No

5 A woman has the sole right to decide what happens to a growing fetus within her body: n Yes 'Z No

6 Every woman who seeks an abortion has the right to full medical care: nYes n No

7 The church should provide more teaching, counsel- ing, and other services regarding attitudes toward sex, family planning, and abortion than it now does: D Yes n No

(Place in envelope and return to the Study Committee on Abortion, Annual Conference Office, 1451 Dundee Avenue, Elgin, Illinois 60120. Comments may be included on separate sheets.)

1 W lien moiioii is first felt. -Capable of sin"vi\ing after birth.

1-1-72 MESSENGER 17

Going on Faith

in in© (jnSttO Looking at Bethany Brethren

and Garfield Park Connmunity

hospitals with Gregg W Downey

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n many respects Bethany Brethren and Garfield Park Community hos- pitals are models of what health care providers in a ghetto should be. There is a good rapport between hos- pital management and the community; care for the indigent, particularly out- patient and emergency care, is provid- ed before questions are asked about money; the major administrators live in the area and thus arc intimately aware of their neighbors' problems.

Unfortunately, these two Chicago institutions have one characteristic in common with many other poverty-area hospitals: a continuous state of near- bankruptcy. "Unless present re- imbursement methods are improved," said Vernon Showalter, executive di- rector of the two institutions, "it's possible that these hospitals won't be here five years from now." Eighty percent of their populations are pub- licly supported, he explained.

In 1968, the two hospitals began to unite under the control of partially combined boards of directors. Mr. Showalter recently acknowledged that the move has not been financially ad- vantageous. However, he said, finan- cial health was not a primary reason for the decision. When the members of Bethany's board voted to take over Garfield Park, he said, they had recon- ciled themselves to taking over the mortgage and troubles of an institution that had failed in a long and debilitat- ing struggle to serve white patients with white doctors in an almost totally black neighborhood.

The conditions which prevail there, he continued, compelled the board to flirt with ruin: "The board feels that for as long as we're here, we'll do what needs to be done."

Doing what needs to be done means

providing primary inpatient care, methadone maintenance for heroin addicts, jobs and training for unskilled community residents, day care for children of working mothers, and housing. Because such a wide range of services is necessary, and because Bethany Brethren is an institution with only 67 beds, it was obvious to the board members that they could not allow the 165 beds and the facilities of Garfield Park Hospital to be lost to the community. Thus when the possi- bility of consolidation arose, they agreed to do it.

Although it is frequently used, merger is not precisely the word that describes what happened between the institutions. At a joint meeting, the members of Garfield Park's board re- signed one after another until a major- ity of positions had been vacated. Those slots were filled by the Bethany board members. The turnover took about ten minutes.

I

I he boards are now composed of members from both affluent areas and the immediate community. The white members are primarily business execu- tives, although some are professionals. Most of the black members are clergy- men and social activists, but some are executives and one is a circuit court judge. Among the total of thirty mem- bers are eleven persons who serve on both boards. Six of the eleven are black. In addition, two special com- mittees of the boards are made up al- most entirely of community residents from all walks of life. Although mem- bers of these committees are not on the boards, they have the power to set policy.

Before the change. Garfield Park had served ten percent black patients and had accepted no public aid recip- ients. Presently, almost all the patients cared for at both hospitals are black.

Mr. Showalter explained that Gar- field Park, prior to the turnover, had been mortgaged to finance the con- struction of new elevators and the re- modeling of the building's facade. These improvements, he said, were a last desperate effort to hold its white physicians and their patients. The ef- fort failed. At the June board of direc- tors meeting, there was still a $400,000 long-term liability, the result of out- standing, first-mortgage serial bonds.

This was the heaviest and most lin- gering burden that resulted from the turnover, but there were also personnel problems and grave breakdowns in community relations that had to be overcome after the new board assumed control.

The medical staff, composed pri- marily of aging white physicians, fer- vently desired to transfer to other hos- pitals, Mr. Showalter said. Many were temporarily thwarted, however, be- cause their ages impeded their migra- tion to the staffs of suburban hospitals. Eventually they did leave, but the in- terim was long enough to allow Gar- field Park to restaff with black physi- cians and young white doctors.

Along with doctors of the old guard, veteran paramedical and nonprofes- sional employees began an exodus. Their positions, too, had to be refilled. Sometimes vacancies were filled by able, energetic persons who lacked nothing but the experience that Mr. Showalter said is nonessential, but gen- erally required.

Apart from the staff problems, black militant groups within the community

1-1-72 MESSENGER 19

had grown increasingly resentful of Garfield Park's patient policies. Nu- merous confrontations occurred before word spread through the neighbor- hoods that the hospital had a new mis- sion and was now directed by residents of the community.

Not directly related to the joining of the two hospitals, but a problem none- theless, is the $1 16,000 net operating loss for the first half of 1971. Outpa- tient services accounted for much of that deficit, though perhaps more wor- risome than the loss itself is the alarm- ing increase of bad debts.

"There are always opportunists," said Mr. Showalter. "The word got around that we gave care first and asked about money later. People were giving fictitious addresses." The dam- age being done by the nonpayment for outpatient services was apparent to the board members. Even though they wanted no one turned away for lack of funds, they were realistic enough to see that their entire operation was be- jeopardized by people who had the means to pay but weren't payine;."

"Here's where the beauty of a com- munity-controlled board becomes ob- vious," Mr. Showalter went on. "If I had decided on my own that our out- patient policies needed revision, a great hue and cry would have arisen in the neighborhoods. As it is, the board members who live in the community can explain the reasons for the chang- es. There will still be grumbling, but the people will accept the necessity."

The 5,850 patients who are able to pay would be required to do so, how- ever. "A great majority of these patients are not emergency cases," Mr. Showalter explained. All patients whose conditions do not involve trauma, hemorrhage, or shock are now referred to the credit and collection de- partment before they receive medical services: "A concerted effort is being made to explain to these patients that the hospital needs payment for its services," said Mr. Showalter.

Another fiscal problem faced by the

ghetto hospitals is a chronic one — slow reimbursement by government agencies. This has plagued Bethany Brethren since 1966 and now affects Garfield Park as well. The Illinois De- partment of Public Aid uses the same reimbursement formula, based on cost, that Medicare does. "You have to beg your vendors to hold off for four months until you can pay the bills," said Mr. Showalter. The penalties awarded the two hospitals come in the form of interest on unpaid balances and the loss of early-payment dis- counts.

Neither these difficulties nor the re- lated problem of less than full pay- ment for services rendered under Medicare have dissuaded the board from accepting government-supported patients. "By the time the plaster has fallen off the walls," reflected Mr. Showalter, "somebody will come up with a program to replace Medicare and Medicaid. It's a question of whether we're going to sit here half full or whether we're going to do some- thing. Right now, we're going on faith."

I

his trust, universally exhibited at both institutions, that God, the govern- ment, or somebody eventually will provide has enabled Bethany Brethren and Garfield Park hospitals to render exemplary service to their commu- nities. One of the most notable of these services is the Bethany Community Health Center.

The neighborhood health center was opened on a shoestring in December 1968. With a grant from the Sears Roebuck Foundation and no govern- ment money at all, the Bethany Com- munity Health Council — a special committee of the board of directors — found and remodeled a grocery store about half a block from the hospital.

Three primary physicians and a dentist from Bethany's medical staff see approximately 150 patients a day

at the health center. Other staff mem- bers there include one registered nurse, one visiting community health aide, two nurses' aides, one dental assistant, and one receptionist. All the medical, paramedical, and nonprofessional per- sonnel receive salaries.

Just as both hospitals benefit from the existence of the health center, the joining of the two hospitals has proved economical in other ways. Most sig- nificant are the savings realized by higher-volume, consolidated purchas- es. Although no precise figures are available which compare previous sep- arate costs with present joint costs, Mr. Showalter said the savings have been noticeable. One of the more obvious economy measures is the practice of using a single staff member to perform departmental duties at both hospitals.

When a staff member who was in charge of one department takes on ad- ditional responsibilities at the other hospital, his salary is not doubled. In- stead of raising the salary of a $10,000 a year department head to $20,000, the staff member's annual pay goes up to, say, $15,000, Mr. Showalter ex- plained.

The caliber of the individual em- ployee has more to do with the suc- cessful execution of dual assignments than does the nature of the jobs, he added. The nine positions filled by the same persons at both hospitals are: executive director, director of in-serv- ice education, chief pharmacist, thera- peutic dietition, laundry manager, se- curity chief, public relations director, volunteer services director, and pur- chasing agent.

Holding one job but serving patients from both hospitals and the commu- nity at large is Thomas Eversley, direc- tor of the Bethany Drug Awareness Clinic. Methadone maintenance is the central element of the program. "One of the requirements for acceptance in the program is that a person must have used heroin for at least one year," he said. This stipulation, it was ex- plained, is meant to dispel the oc-

20 MESSENGER 1-1-72

V. Sliowalter: Coinmimily control works

casional criticism that people not tlior- oughly addicted to heroin will develop a methodone habit as a result of their therapy. "We want to reach hard-core addicts," said Mr. Eversley. "In the treatment, we take urine tests three times a week to see if they are adher- ing to the program or reverting to heroin." Decisions about what to do with backsliders are made on an indi- vidual basis. Sometimes they are talked to and warned, and sometimes they are expelled from the program. The participants themselves have a lot to say about which course of action is taken.

Of all the services provided by the hospitals, the drug awareness clinic has garnered the most attention. Not long ago. President Nixon sent a note to "wholeheartedly commend the prompt and positive effort" the hospitals "have launched to turn the tide in an area that poses an unparalleled threat to our society." Secretary of Health, Educa- tion, and Welfare Elliot Richardson sent a letter in which he, too, saluted the "community-based efforts in this area." As of last month, those words of encouragement were all the support Bethany's drug program had received from the federal government.

It costs approximately $50 per ad- dict per week to operate the sixty-par- ticipant drug program, according to Clarence Turner, director of public re- lations. So far, about $10,000 has

been obtained from the Church of the Brethren, which nominally sponsors the Bethany-Garfield hospitals; from the Illinois Drug Abuse Program, and from private enterprise. The IDAP provides only $ 1 5 per addict per week, but Mr. Showalter said that because there are hundreds on the waiting list, the hospitals plan to double the num- ber of patients in the program. He pointed out that heroin addiction is one of his community's gravest con- cerns, because it has a direct effect on the area's crime rate. It was estimated that there are 3.000 addicts in the two square-mile area served by the hos- pitals. The problem is not safely tucked away in the ghetto, however, said Mr. Turner: "White businessmen, repairmen, and journalists have to come into these neighborhoods, and there's nothing to stop the addicts from going into the white community to get money for dope."

Mr. Eversley explained that along with methodone treatment, addicts re- ceive emotional counseling and train- ing in marketable job skills. The job training of these and other unskilled patients is administered by Meteor, a private firm with headquarters in Washington, D.C. A grant from the Department of Labor is used to finance the Meteor office at Garfield Park Hospital. The hospitals themselves have been successful in providing jobs for former addicts and other "unem- ployable" patients.

Accepting responsibility for educat- ing and employing patients is not a common practice among hospitals to- day, but George Bruno, Garfield Park's administrator, said that such functions increasingly must be as- sumed: "All of us are becoming aware, I think, that a patient's economic and social conditions markedly affect his health. It's not much different from how we learned that his psychological, not just his physical, condition is im- portant."

The immediate future promises an even tighter mesh between the two in-

stitutions. It is anticipated that by drawing the operations of the hospitals nearer and nearer, additional econ- omies will be accomplished, said Mr. Bruno. Eventually, the institutions wiU have a single board of directors and one medical staff. Today, there is a staff for each hospital with a combined membership of fifty physicians. Twenty of those doctors, however, serve on both staffs. Another impor- tant factor, for which details have yet to be resolved, is the affiliation with Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's. It is hoped that this larger medical complex can provide higher-echelon medical care and education to the smaller hos- pitals, said Mr. Showalter.

I

Ihere is also a plan to construct a 3()0-bed community hospital. Federal officials have indicated that Hill- Burton funds could be made available, but definite plans depend on whether the hospitals can raise the percentage of the building cost that is required under the federal program.

Although the hospital project prob- ably won't come to fruition for several years, said Mr. Showalter, the board is already at work on a long-range blue- print for a comprehensive health care delivery system for the community. A second neighborhood health center, to be located at the Garfield Park Hos- pital, is in the planning stage. The third and fourth floors of Bethany Brethren are to become a fifty-bed ex- tended care facility, and a sLxty-bed skilled nursing home unit is to be built on the fifth, sixth, and seventh floors of Garfield Park. A ten-bed detoxifica- tion unit for alcoholics and drug ad- dicts as well as a twenty-five-bed inpa- tient mental health unit, which will en- large and alter the unit now leased by the Illinois Department of Mental Health, are also being planned for Garfield Park.

Mr. Showalter said that state and federal officials have acknowledged

1-1-72 MESSENGER 21

^

Seek and you will find the fifth gospel by Jesus: word pictures from his toiling years. His seminary was the carpenter shop, which gave him illustra- tions for teaching.

See him split logs into beams for compassion- ately fitted yokes. In ox cart days carpenters often lived with farmers for whom they built. Follow Him, sometimes sloshing over hills in storm drenched darkness, as he helps seek stray sheep.

Will you find illustrations from making spear shafts or parts for war chariots or catapults? He built for, not death, but life, munitions of peace.

The book's introduction was written by the late Bethanv \'ice-president Warren W. Slabaugh, au- thor of THE ROLE OF THE SERVANT. " 750

the urgent need for more diversified and better care facilities in Chicago's west side ghetto. Despite the hospitals' current bleak circumstances, there are indications that funds may be forth- coming for all or several of these proj- ects, he said. The unofficial attitude among the executives is: "Demon- strate that it can be done, and the mon- ey to pay for it will turn up."

Officials at both hospitals agree that the single factor most responsible for the continuing survival of their institu- tions has been total community control and avid community support. Unlike many hospitals, Bethany Brethren and Garfield Park experience little em- ployee dissatisfaction, and there is no union. The picture is so much in con- trast to the rule, in fact, that recently an employee group collected $500 among themselves and donated it to the hospitals. Neither are these institu- tions surrounded by a hostile, destruc- tive population. There is a working rapport with the same militant black groups that have put other health facilities, such as Chicago's Jewish Home for .Aged, out of business.

Mr. Showalter revealed his secret for reaching accord during confronta- tions: "Get the most foul-mouthed one with the headband and the zip gun, and invite him to join the board of trustees. He won't come on, of course. He's too smart for that, because once he's on, you've got him. You'd start showing him budgets. He'd have to shut up and help, and he won't do that."

The hospital executive said the day is gone when health experts could make all the decisions, establish all the programs, and confer them on the peo- ple: "No suburban community would put up with that kind of missionary activity, and 30U can be sure that the new awareness in the inner city ghettos is going to bring it to a screeching halt there, too." D

rop\TiRht 1971 In' McOriiw-Hill. Inc. Rcpriulcfl bv pcrnii*;sinn from Mniirrn Hnsfntal. .^^gnst 1971. All rights rcscl\C(I.

Ib)©©k [fO'^DS^^g

CREATE AND CELEBRATE, by Jay C. Rochelle. Fortress Press, 1971. 124 pages, $2.95 paper

CONTEMPORARY WORSHIP SERVICES: A SOURCEBOOK, by James L. Christensen. Revell, 1971. 256 pages, $5.95

VENTURES IN WORSHIP and VENTURES IN

WORSHIP 2, edited by David James Randolph. Abingdon, 1969, 1970. $1.50 paper

One of the new centers of attention and experimentation in the church is in the area of worship. Booi^s on the mean- ing and mode of worship, books on sug- gested patterns for worship, books of worship resources are springing up hke lovely crocuses through the brown earth of a long and barren winter. Life is beginning to enter a most unlikely arena, the sanctuary. Celebration is its name and joy is its motivation.

Jay C. Rochelle's book. Create and Celebrate, states clearly some reasons for the needed change in worship patterns. He then presents some guidelines for making changes and offers some helpful resources.

Chapter headings include "Why Both- er?", "Kicking and Screaming Our Way Into Now," and "Putting Your Thing Together." These three chapters deal with the need for change, the struggle with change, the way to change worship patterns. He does so with sensitivity to the need of some persons for the familiar as well as the need of others for creative celebration. He offers specific sugges- tions for the implementation of new wor- ship formats.

Celebration is t/ie name,

joy thie motivation

Reading this book written by a Luther- an and remembering my wife's reaction to a course in "Worship and Liturgy" taught by a Lutheran makes me want to caution the Brethren that this book is written from a Lutheran worship tradi- tion. This does not necessarily limit its value to us. It might actually enhance its worth.

Create and Celebrate is a useful book for those who ha\e the courage to chal- lenge familiar patterns of worship and put in their place more creative ways of celebrating our li''e in Christ. The author comes down hard on the need to understand what worship is before any change is made. He outlines and evaluates the five essentials of worship: awareness, confrontation, commitment, celebration, new awareness.

"Worship," he says, "continually frees us from the past to live in the present in expectant hope for the future."

I like that and am encouraged by this, "Probably the most we can expect from our worship life is that we will hit 'highs' sometimes."

This book would be particularly help- ful to persons with worship responsi- bilities who are trying to understand how this new surge to celebrate fits into where they are or ought to be.

Christensen's Contemporary Worship

Services and Ventures in Worship and Ventures in Worsliip 2 both edited by Da\id James Randolph for the Commis- sion on Worship of the United Method- ist Church are excellent resources for worship leaders who want to experiment but are at a loss for "handles." All three of these compilations have suggestions for every segment of worship from the "Call to Worship" to the "Benediction." They also include worship services for all kinds of special occasions, such as communions, weddings, funerals, and numerous special days and emphases. And the beauty of it is that all these resources are so adaptable and yet fresh. They become the spark which ignites the fire of one's own creativity.

While Contemporary Worsliip Services is in book form, the Ventures in Worship series are loose leaf on standard 8'/2 x 1 1 paper to fit a three-ringed notebook. Pastors receiving "Agenda" material can put worship material found there under the proper headings in the Ventures series.

All of these books and compilations of resource materials would be a valuable addition to any pastor's library as well as to the church library where other persons responsible for worship experi- ences could find ready assistance. — P.^UL E. Alwine

We're Going Computer . . .

Messenger is in process of shifting to the computer method of printing sub- scription labels. Over the coming weeks it would be helpful if you would check to see if the label on your issues is ad- dressed correctly. If it is not, we would appreciate your advising us by clipping the label and returning it with correc- tions noted.

If you do not receive your copy of Messenger, please send the label from a recent issue. If multiple copies arrive, please clip and return the label from each copy.

The staff appreciates your assistance and your patience as the new system goes into operation.

HIS FINEST WEEK

By James Roy Smith

Revealing the abiding lessons of Holy Week, this new book projects a day-by- day look at Jesus' last week on earth, and shows by His life and death and resurrection that nothing — neither life nor death — can separate us from God. $1.25 each; 10 or more, $1.00 each.

Order NOW for Pre-Easter reading.

The Upper Room

1908 Grand Ave. Nashville, Tenn. 37203 ,

1-1-72 MrSSENGER 23

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

Utl

Fund for the Americas Offering

m

Ash Wednesday

First Sunday of Lent

Brotherhood Week

World Day of Prayer

One Great Hour of Sharing

Easter

Palm Sunday

3©

Maundy

Thursday

National Christian College Day

May Fel-	Children's
lowship Day	Day
7	m
Rural Life	Father's
Sunday	Day
7°M	27
National	Annual
Family	Conference
Week	begins
M
Mother's
Day

	Good Friday	Pentecost Annual Con- ference Offering Emphasis 1 Memorial Day
24 MESSENGER 1-1-72

JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

Annual

Conference

ends

Christian

Citizenship

Sunday

Pastoral Year begins

Labor Sunday

Worldwide Communion

Worldwide Mission Offering Emphasis

Church

Year

begins

Layman's Sunday

Peace

Emphasis

Sunday

World

Community

Day

World

Temperance

Day

m

Universal

Bible

Sunday

iK

Thanks- giving Day

First Sunday in Advent

2^

Christmas/

Achievement

Offering

Emphasis

Christmas Day

&i

Fiscal Year ends

Reformation Sunday

(Q)[b@®[rws][rii(g@@ 'S© ©©iniSDdloir

1-1-72 MESSENGER 25

'\ have a clannish feeling and real love for the Church of the Brethren'

DALE BROWN, MODERATOR From 12

tell them why you don't agree.

"I think that part of my rapport with conservatives has been that I'm willing to take them seriously."

Part of it has been also that on some church matters, such as his opposition to connecting changes in baptism and the love feast with home mission strat- egy and his serious questioning of the validity of union with other Prot- estant denominations, he has found himself in agreement with many con- servatives on what should be done — though perhaps his reasons have been different from theirs. He opposed open- ing up baptism and the love feast, not because he considered every last ele- ment of detail to be so sacred, but be- cause he thought it a poor principle to try to attract members simply by trying to become like everyone else.

The result is that Dale thinks he has some friends he may not deserve, and deserves some other friends he doesn't have. "Many people who liked mc be- cause of the issue of church union would not like me so well if they really knew me," he said. "I feel that pretty strongly. Other people — some lib- erals — who really despise me. I think would like me better if they really knew me." he laughed. "So it works both ways."

"One of the notes that needs to he sounded is a revival of tlie liililical command, 'Release the captives and visit those who are in prison.' "

Dale told how he had tried to get permission to visit young Brethren who are in prison for opposing the war and the draft. Permission has not been easy to obtain, but he expects to get in to visit both Brethren and non- Brethren prisoners.

"It is really strange." Dale said, "how even those who are fundamental- ists overlook some of the commands — and this is one that both the liberals and the fundamentalists really have all neglected.

"We all ha\e a tendency to take lit- erally some things and not so literally others. I feel personally hurt some- times when Brethren fundamentalists will reject some of us because of our heresies in thought, but then turn around and embrace someone who doesn't believe in many of the things the Brethren believe in — like the anointing service and the love feast. Carl VIcIntyre, and some people like him, baptize infants. And though some of the conservative Brethren wouldn't think of doing that, they would still take his word over the word of some other Brethren."

Having grown up in a large city, where his contacts as a boy were largely outside the church. Dale did not experience the narrow legalisms and provincialisms that he thinks oppress young people in some of the churches. Such young people often find their lives broadened as they begin to establish broader contacts beyond the church. The opposite was true for Dale; the best thing that happened was to come into the intimate life of "camps, insti- tutes, and other Brethren gatherings."

"I've been at that long enough so that I have tremendous clannish rela- tionships. When I go to a place where I've never been before. I think, 'Now whom do I know here?' and I won't be able to think of anybody. But after I get there I will discover I know fifteen or twenty people, from some church or gathering where we've been together before.

"I do have a real love for the Church of the Brethren. This feeling has been contagious. People have sensed this — that I do love the church — because when I get in a local gathering I really do have a genuine appreciation for the people. And I've had this from the very beginning."

Among local groups Dale accepts the hospitality offered, and can make himself as comfortable in a bed on the floor as anywhere. He credits his par-

ents for this; they could always go into anybody's home to eat or sleep, no matter what the conditions. As he talks, his voice conveys the affection in which he holds his many hosts.

On the other hand he often assails the church, "not because I dislike it, but because I like it so much I want it to get back to its roots."

Dale said that recently a young man had buttonholed him and said. "My father, a conservative and member of the Brethren Revival Fellowship, comes home from Conference, and he tells me how much he likes you — but I know some Bethany Seminary stu- dents, and they tell me how much they like you. I can't put these things to- gether."

"And then he said." Dale chuckled, "then he said, 'Something's phoney!'

"Because, you see. he got the radical side of me from the seminary stu- dents." Dale explained, "but his fath- er's enthusiasm seemed to him to be recognizing just the opposite.

"I told him the only way you could fit them together is that I talk about the biblical faith, and his father likes that, but the college students like the implications of that faith."

Thus is the paradox of Dale Brown as seen by others. The first paradox was Dale as he sees himself — a man blessed beyond his deserving, happy with his lot. yet feeling in confiict over world issues with many people whom he basically likes. The second para- dox, of Dale Brown as others see him. is a man whose strict interpretation of the Bible brings him into sympathy with conservatives and into action with radicals. Starting from a strict biblical base, and trying to be true to it, he often discovers both his support and opposition in strange quarters.

If Dale savors the unexpected ways that others have got things put to- gether, I can admire the more unusual way that he has put his thing together. His warm-hearted allegiance to the old teachings is an inspiration to me — and others. D

J6 MESSENGER 11 -72

Deaths

Abey. Hermbcrt, Ambler. Pa., on July 26.

1971, aged 09 Argabright, Virginia R.. Lccton. Mo., on Julv

15. 1971. aged 90 Benton. Laura. Eden. N.C.. on Sept. 13. 1971.

aged 93 Brandt. Martha O.. Mc.Misler\ iUe. Pa., on

June 8. 1971, aged 71 Brindle, Kathr\n. Leinastcrs, Pa., on June 6,

1971. aged 87 Brown. Mrs. Charles. Eden. N.C.. on Sept. 5.

1971. aged 90 Brown. >rarv. Martinsburg. Pa., on Jinie 6.

1971. aged 82 Burns. Paul. Flora. Ind.. on -^ug. 4. 1971.

aged 72 Casslcr. Ida M.. Goshen. Ind.. on .^ug. 16.

1971. aged 104 Clapper. John F.. Hollidavsbiirg, Pa., on .Aug.

5. 1971. aged 87 Connaughty. Irene Lewis. Lewiston. Minn., on

July 12. 1971. aged 85 Conway. Cora. Mount Morris. 111., on June

30, 1971. aged 79 Cottle. Charles A.. E\eretl. Pa., on Jidy 22.

1971. aged 42 Cripps. Jacob A., Salem. III., on June 15. 1971.

aged 83 Crouse. Larrv L.. M\crstown. Pa., on .Aug. 16.

1971. aged 21 Crull. Sarah. Huntington. Ind.. on June 27,

1971, aged 75 Da\is. AUie. Bellefontaine. Ohio, on June 7,

1971, aged 82 Da\is. Mar\. Mount Mortis. 111., on Jiuie 14.

1971. aged 90 De\ier. Lelia Click. Bridgewatcr. \'a.. on Jtd\

22. 1971, aged 86 Diehl. Lillie. Penn Laird. \'a.. on ]uU 18.

1971. Frev. Clarence C. York. Pa., on Jul\ 12. 1971.

aged 83 Garvick. Haltie. Spring (hoxc. Pa., on |une

21. 1971, aged 72 Gingrich. Lucy. Bethel. Pa., on Aug. 22. 1971.

aged 70 Gripe. Charles E.. Battle Creek. Mich., on

Sept. 27, 1971. aged 63 Hackbarth, Marzatta, Dixon, III., on Jidv Ifi.

1971. aged 47 Heaston. Mary. Dearborn, Mich., on June 5,

1971. aged 79 Henning. Ruth, .Anibler, Pa., on jiih 26. 1971.

aged 69 Idle. Clarence. Lafayette, Ind,. on Julv 22.

1971. aged 77 Jones. Robert E., Polo. 111., on Jidv 9, 1971.

aged 55 Kessler. Alfred C. Mount Morris. III., on Juh

9. 1971. aged 104

Lealhcrinan. Clarence \\'.. Gettvsburg. Pa., on

June 3. 1971. aged 73 Lintz. Earl. Reading. Pa., on June 18. 1971.

aged 68 Linsenmaier. Ernest. Roversford. Pa., on July

7. 1971. aged 80 Li\engood, Fannie. Goshen, Ind.. on June 18.

1971. aged 84 Miller. .Alice. Piciua. Ohio, on .Aug. 15. 1971.

aged 81 Miller. .Amos R.. Bridgewater. \'a., on June

10. 1971, aged 79

Mummert. Lewis. Hano\'er. Pa., on July 10.

1971. aged 81 Myers. Norma P.. Brooklyn. Iowa, on .Aug. 10.

1971. aged 65 Neighbors. .May. Cabool. Mo., on Jime 30.

1971. aged 83 Peters. Nellie, Rocky Mount. Va.. on Aug. 17.

1971. aged 77 Pctrc. Clara Horst. Hagcrstown. Md.. on |ul\

9. 1971. aged 90 Raincr. Leason. Shelocta. Pa., on Aug. 30,

1971

I nGV ShSr© ^® begin to complain if we have to wait an hour

. to see our well-trained doctor in his clean and

^lIQIf efficient office. In northern Nigeria a woman may carry a sick

, child for fifty miles and then wait in line outside the hos-

QOCXOr pital a full day. As little children we learn about

. , germs and sanitation. But in Nigerian villages some still

WITM blame disease on evil spirits. Not that they want to be

^r\f\ r\r\Q superstitious or ignorant. Far from it. But how can

l«7«7,^^0 they learn about bacteria if they have no teacher? _^i Through Lafiya — a new medical program to train

0X1161 S> medical personnel — the Church of the Brethren can assist in bringing education and health to millions of people in the North-Eastern State of Nigeria where we have had mission work for nearly fifty years. We need your response, your help, your caring. There is a deep need for this new medical program and it can be done only with your help. Consider what you can do and fill in the coupon below. Your check may be made payable to: Lafiya, Church of the Brethren General Board.

1 j 1 am interested in	LAFIYA!
1 U Here is my special gift to be applied toward the $300,000 needed beyond 1 Fund budget for Lafiya/Nigeria Medical Program.	the	Brotherhood 1
1 . ' I'm interested in the med	cal program but	desire further information.
1 Name 1 1 1
1 Street/RFD |
1 City		State, Zip Code
1 Congregation		District
1 Please clip and mail to: Lafiyc 1 1451 Dundee Avenue, Elgin,	/Nigeria Medicc Illinois 60120	1 Program, Church	of the Brethren Ge	neral Board, i 9:1-72

Brethren and the burgeoning arts

With the proliferation of special causes in the Church of the Brethren, as in most religious bodies today, the last thing some observers may feel is needed is another interest group. I demur. For in my estimation one special cause now aborning is long overdue: a fellowship centered on the arts.

Over the past decade there have been evi- dences that art is budding and maybe even blos- soming among the Brethren. Such evidence is noted in myriad ways: a communion chalice by Rufus Jacoby on the .-Xnnual Conference altar . . . woodcuts by I. J. Sanger . . . one-artist shows by Joyce Miller, Jon Strom, Gini Hoover ... an art school and art festivals conducted by Mar}' Ann Hylton . . . sculpture, banners, oratorios at Breth- ren gatherings . . . the architectural statements of a few church structures . . . the graphics of Wilbur Brumbaugh and Linda Beher . . . the vol- ume Watermarks by five young poets . . . the classroom and church school instruction of Iowa Kuehl and others. The list is only begun.

The point of such activity is not that Brethren are becoming sophisticated or cultured. It is that instead they are becoming alive and articulate to that which is within them and which surrounds them. "The good life," social critic Marya Mannes has stated, "exists only when you stop wanting a better one. It is the condition of savor- ing what is, rather than longing for what might be."

From that perspective, I do not view the creative spurt of Brethren as something altogether new or different. Consider the impressive detail in an authentic Dunker meetinghouse, or the craftmanship and maybe even deft touch of whimsey in a patchwork quilt, or the profound partnership with nature demonstrated in a family farmstead: Were these not ways of savoring what was, of orchestrating life, of wedding the utilitar- ian and the esthetic, of being sensitive to scale, timing, proportion, tone — some of the ingredi- ents of art?

"God is in the details" was an admonition the late master architect Mies van der Rohe passed on to clients, students, and colleagues. It was his reminder of the moral obligation to shun medioc- rity, to pursue excellence, to enhance meaning. It is a dictum that applies far beyond the prov- inces of architecture; we in the church would do well not to forget it.

A turn to art forms old and new, on a wide participatory basis and not merely for a talented elite, could release vital and explosive energies into the lifestream of the church. I have seen it happen with grown-ups who. through the use of varied forms of creative expression, came to supplant a restrictive, stifling notion about church school with a freeing, enabling view. I have seen it happen with children who, invited to share intimate feelings about life and growth and dreams, revealed some candid and profound in- sights into faith. I have seen it happen among worshipers who, engaging not only sight and sound but all their senses, their whole being in simple but tactile ways, glimpsed afresh the mean- ing of unity, joy, transcendence.

Ihe crux is, the church — local, denomi- national, ecumenical, assembled, dispersed — is where creativity should come alive. It is where the Creator and the created, who are also partners in creation, should meet. For where, more than in the context of the community of faith, can those forms appropriately be used which convey feeling, foster imagination, connote style, renew kindship, and celebrate the life of the Spirit?

To the burgeoning Association for the Arts in the Church of the Brethren, Messenger bids a hearty welcome. Whatever the movement or its individual members can do to make us all more sentitive, more sensible, more proportion- ate, more alive, more aware of beauty, more re- sponsive to life, and more open to truth — this will be contribution indeed. — h,e.r.

28 MESSEKOER 1-1-72

by Ervin Seale

Thousands of New Yorkers converge on Philharmonic Hall each Sunday to listen to Dr. Ervin Seale. He is a specialist in wisdom, and his ministry is centered in teach- ing the religious insight which will strengthen one for the rigors of city life. In the stories and suggestions of these chapters the reader will find an unshakable con- viction that we can determine our lives by shaping our minds. We can be new masters of ourselves, mentally tougher, morally stronger. $3.95

by H. Richard Neff

Deals in a sane and constructive way with a number of subjects (survival after death, prayer, and healing) and with psychic phenomena (ESP, faith healing, prayer, clairvoyance, and the like) that are attracting the curiosity and interest of church people and the general public. Dr.

Neff's insights — gained from careful experimentation, contacts with other authorities, much reading, and person- al psychic experiences — are doubly interesting because he is an ordained minister. $2.95 paper

I'm OK -You're OK

by Thomas A. Harris, M.D.

Here is a fresh, sensible, increasingly fXJpular approach to the problems that every human being, including the person in need of psychiatric help, faces every day in his relations with himself and others. Transactional analysis is a new breakthrough, one that confronts the individual with the fact that he is responsible for what happens in the future, no matter what has happened in the past. It is both a teaching and a learning device. It distinguish- es three active elements in each person's make-up: the Parent, the Adult, and the Child. $5.95

Postage: 20< first dollar; 5< per dollar thereafter The Brethren Press, 1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, III. 60120

Meetingplace.

In a seemingly simpler era, the high point of the week for many B was to come to the house of worship, to pray and to praise, to ren of kinship, and to discern what faithfulness to the gospel meant ■

workaday lives.

For many the congregation still is the locus of the community < And for the few thousand who attend Annual Conference, the par comes Brotherhood-wide.

There is, however, another place of meeting for Brethren, o spans even a wider circle. It is found in the pages of Messeng magazine devoted to lively interchange within and beyond the fa Brethren.

Early in 1972, for example, you will meet Dennis Metzger, Johansen, Robert McFadden, Inez Long, Alan Jennings, Rosalita Li M. R. Zigler, Robert McAfee Brown, Shantilal Bhagat, Edgar Slater, F. Menninger, and Glenn R. Bucher, to list but a few.

You will learn to know friends old and new and the ideas and that concern them. You will be invited to respond with your own qu and comments.

Messenger is the meetingplace that brings you, your family ar congregation in touch with individuals, families and congregations W out the Church of the Brethren.

It's your window, and your forum, on faith and the world.

messenger/

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^^ Churches on Stage. The Vernard Eller family, travelers during the summer months, discovered that churches across the country are using drama to convey messages of heritage and theology, by Vernard Eller

Love ... As I Have Loved You. The Week of Prayer for Chris- tian Unity, celebrated this year Jan. 18-25, picks up on Jesus' "new commandment." Bible readings and a meditation treat the theme.

1^ "Why I've Been Putting on the Brakes." A teacher and church- woman who sees the Church of the Brethren pursuing a dizzying, un- balanced course proposes some different directions, by Inez Long

f Q A Coed Answers: Involvement? Yes! Linda Keim, McPherson College senior, works for changes and improvements within the sys- tem — by her involvement in politics, world travel, and college studies, bv Susan Krehbiel Taylor

Reviews. .-X current film, Billy Jack, comes under scrutiny of James M. Wall. On another theme, William Kidwell reviews a new book on "Those Whose Sexual Orientation Differs."

Outlook focuses on the newly formed Association for the Arts in the Church of the Brethren: on a recently appointed staff member; on a peace witness in Washington, D.C.: on an unexpected court ruling in the case of conscientious objector .^lan Jennings; and on An Ecumenical Witness (beginning on 2); an editorial outlines what it means for Christians "To Take Jesus as the Challenge."

EDITOR

Howard E. Royer

ASSOCIATE EDITORS

Ronald E. Keener / News Wilbur E. Brumbaugh / Design Kenneth I. Morse / Features

ASSISTANT EDITOR

Linda K. Beher

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Richard N. Miller

PHOTO r.RF.niTS: Co^cr World Council of Churches; 2. 4 Don Honick; .1 liob Biicher: 6 (clockwhc from rop) I si. Jrtl. Hih (iood Enterprises, Ltd.: 2nd Del Cook: 4ih, 5ih Mojiesto. Calif.. Church of the Brethren: 6th, 7th Ephratn Cloister ,Associ.Ttcs: 8 (center, right) Del Cook; 9 Ephrata Cloister .Associates: 12 "Christ Washing the Feet of (he Disciples." oil from the school of Rettibranrll. courtesy of The .Art Institute of C;hicagri, Robert \ Waller Fund; 13 woodcut by Rol)crt F, Mc- Gosem: 19 U.S. Senate Republican Policv Commiitee

VOL. 121, NO. 2

JANUARY 15, 1972

Mfssencer is the official publication of the Church of the Brethren. Entered as second- class matter .Aug. 20. 1918. under .Act of Congress of Oct, 17. 1917, Filing date. Oct. 1,

1971, Messenger is a member of the Associ- ated Church Press and a subscriber to Reli- gious News Service and Ecumenical Press .Service, Biblical quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are from the Revised Standard \'crsinn.

Subscription rates: S4,20 per year for indi- vidual subscriptions: S3, 60 per year for church grfnip plan: .S3. 00 per year for c\ery home plan; life subscription. SfiO: husband and wife, sT'*. If \ou move clip old address from Mes SENCER antl send with new address. Allow at least fifteen days for ad- dress change. Messenger is owned ;tnd published twice monthly bv the f;hiirch of the Brethren Cicneral Board, 1451 Dundee Ave.. Elgin, 111. ')0I20. Second-class postage paid a( Elgin, 111.. Jan. 15, 1972. Copyright

1972. Church of the Brethren General Board.

i

LESSON HELPS

I wish to express my gratitude to Craig Bailey and Sara Weaver for their wonderful lesson helps in the Guide for Biblical Studies on the doctrine of God. I've found each lesson a source of spiritual understanding and joy.

However (and this is not a criticism of Sara Weaver), the lesson on the atonement left me unsatisfied. It seems to me that each of the three theories of the atonement given on page 55 contain elements of truth, but are too dogmatic in trying to express in human language that which is too transcen- dent to be thus fully expressed.

I have looked ahead into the introduction and the lessons for Dec. 5 and Ian. 16 of our new guide, and I believe Larry Four- man, Craig Bailey, and Daniel Wade have done just as well in this book.

I do not know any of these writers per- sonally, but to each one I say a heartfelt "Thank you."

I have been associated with healing groups and am eager to see new groups started as suggested on page 49.

Bertha Hedrick Heyuorth, 111.

A WORTHY TRIBUTE

The article by Anne Albright regarding Dr. John Young (Oct. 1 ) was most re- freshing and a very worthy tribute to a tre- mendous person.

It has been my very good fortune to work as a subordinate to Dr. Young and have found him a real inspiration to all those that have had this privilege of know- ing him.

Dr. Young's contributions to his profes- sion are unparalleled. He has always served it with great enthusiasm and vitality. If all educators were as outstanding as this one, we wouldn't find ourselves in the complex situation of the present day.

Thanks for giving the many readers of Messenger the opportunity to learn to know such a great man of God.

Darvl R. Yost New Haven. Ind.

CONFRONTING THE CHURCH

Linda Beher's good reporting of National ■V'outh Conference (Oct. 1) has elicited sev- eral letters from those who were concerned or "appalled" as was Brother Ralph H. Landcs (Nov. 15) in reference to my advice to youth "to live in such a way that you might get kicked out of the church" and "to turn the church upside down."

Without retracting what I said to the youth, I nevertheless would like to clarify what I meant.

pt

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My advice in its larger context was as follows: "Do not go home and tell your parents that Dale Brown told you to leave the church. Rather, go home and tell your parents that you are going to live in such a way that you might get kicked out of the church."

Many youth are disillusioned with the church today and are seriously attempting to deal with their relationship to it. Rather than leaving or getting out of the church, I wanted to strongly urge that youth stay in the church and confront it to make it better. . . .

Though I love the Church of the Breth- ren and the Brethren very much, I do not apologize for calling for radical reformation and renewal in the church. In many ways in our congregations we have not been faithful to the style of discipleship we have espoused. The majority of our young men go off to train to kill. Many of our mem- bers are caught in the trap of earning their livings from the things which make for war. We have forgotten the doctrine of the sim- ple life, and the ideal of temperance is not with us in many of our habits. We vote with the rich, and our sympathies are often not on the side of the poor and the dis- possessed. In this we no longer can claim to be a New Testament people. We have striven for respectability and have forgotten our calling to be a "pilgrim people" for God.

One could name much that has been right about our congregations and our brother- hood, but there are times when it is very much in place to name what is wrong and to call for repentance as John did in some of his strong utterances to the seven church- es of Asia (Rev. 2:4, 5, 14, 20, and 3:2. 15). As we read that the early Christians turned that world upside down. I do hope that in many ways our own youth can turn our churches upside down — or right side up.

Dale W. Brown Lombard, III.

NOT WITHOUT FAULT

Ralph Landes (Nov. 15) said he was "simply appalled" at Dale Brown's advice to the youth at National Youth Conference to "tell your parents that you are going to live in such a way that you might get kicked out of the church" and to "turn the church upside down."

As a youth in attendance at the meeting in which this advice was given, I would like to explain what, in my opinion and inter- pretation, he meant by this.

Certainly the church, founded on the gospels and Jesus Christ, is an effective and

worthwhile organization — and much more. But surely none of us can say it is entirely without fault. And those seeking to make changes to correct these faults often find themselves up against a brick wall — no longer accepted by their own church.

In many churches people who really fol- low the gospel of Christ are not accepted. By "really following the gospel," I mean living it every day of your life, even if it means loving your brother whether he is black, white, yellow, Democrat, Republican, Mexican or Communist; even if it means not conforming to society when you feel it conflicts with the teachings of Christ.

I feel that what Dale Brown meant was that we could be "Christian radicals" — attempting to change what needs to be changed even if it might mean losing our church's acceptance of us, being "kicked out."

If your church is perfect and does not need new ideas to change and improve it. then perhaps Mr. Brown's advice would seem appalling.

But how many of our churches are like that?

Marlene Wine Enders, Neb.

MAGNIFICENT INTERPRETATION

Occasionally, through the medium of Messenger, we members of the Church of the Brethren enjoy the rare privilege of being able to read something truly outstand- ing.

Such was the case with those who availed themselves of the opportunity to read Dr. G. Wayne Click's magnificent interpretation of his son's actions regarding his stand on the war in Southeast Asia (Oct. 15).

Many people who, through the news media, have followed Ted's witness of peace in recent years must certainly have misun- derstood his motives as well as his means, and Dr. Glick in his article has gone far in helping to clarify Ted's stand.

I have known Dr. Glick and Ted for many years and am thoroughly convinced they are among the most sincere and dedicated Christians I have ever met.

Dr. Glick writes out of a sense of urgency and his observations regarding the condi- tions in our prisons, at all levels, should cause each of us to do some serious think- ing.

I pray, as I hope all Christians will, for a speedy end to the Vietnam conflict and for a definite reform in our American prison system.

Edward H. Stauffer Landesville, Pa.

■ A lot is said today about the signs of love, much less about the signs of unity. With the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity fast approaching, Jan- uary 18-25, now is an appropriate time to reflect on the evidences of Christian unity among the churches and individ- ual members in our own communities.

Only a few short years ago many Church of the Brethren congregations were experiencing various ecumenical breakthroughs — in worship, fellowship, and action. During this observance and throughout the year, Messenger is much interested in knowing what the current climate is, what new and creative signs of unity are being discerned across the Brotherhood.

In commemoration of the Annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Messenger shares a poster cover origi- nated by the Cana- dian Council of Churches and Bi- ble readings (page 12) issued by the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches.

Within the congregation, the Faith and Order Commission suggests the ob- servance might include renewal of bap- tismal vows, thanksgiving for ongoing expressions of unity, and commitment to one another in Christ.

Authors of articles in this issue are:

Vernard Eller, author and professor of philosophy and religion. La Verne College, La Verne, Calif.

Inez Long, public school teacher and church worker, Lancaster, Pa.

Susan Krehbiel Taylor, McPherson College graduate teaching at Canton, Kansas.

James M. Wall, editor of Christian Advocate, a United Methodist maga- zine published at Park Ridge, III.

William Kidwell, doing field work in hospital chaplaincy, Charlottesville, Va.

In an entire issue, the February 1 Messenger will treat the theme of non- violence in a violent world, offering as- sessments from differing standpoints including biblical and theological grounds.

115-72 MESSENGER 1

Arts association, new outlets express Brethren creativity

The church is where creativity should come alive, the last issue of Messenger editorialized, and in se\eral ways recently the arts have indeed found new expres- sion in the Church of the Brethren.

Forty charter members have organized the Association for the Arts in the Church of the Brethren, an outgrowth of informal interest of several persons at last year's St. Petersburg Annual Conference.

Initial activities have been the first issue of a quarterh newsletter to members and all pastors and plans for an art ex- hibit at the Cincinnati .Annual Confer- ence.

The association is attempting to bring together and give identitv' to the individu- als in the Brotherhood interested in the creative art forms that are not only ex- pressed in space, as painting, sculpture, banners, and graphics, but in time, as with music, film, dance, and drama.

The first .\.\CB newsletter had articles by Messenger editor Howard E. Rover, welcoming the A.ACB (see Jan. 1, Messenger editorial) ; by Caroline Hufford, .'Mexandria, Va., describing her

experience with sculpturing a cross in steel; by Sue Russell, music therapist in Grand Rapids. Mich., describing her work with mentall)' retarded children; by Joyce Miller, Franklin Grove, III., on what the association means to her as an artist struggling to find other artists in the church: and by LeRoy Kennel, Lombard, III., on art as a bridge in communication.

Newsletters this year will deal with "The Arts for Lent and Easter" in Febru- ary. "The .\rts for Witness" in May, "The .Arts for the Brotherhood" in August, and "The Arts for Worship" in November.

The Annual Conference exhibit will attempt to have many art media repre- sented, with special recognition given in several categories.

Membership fees of $5 a year go toward the newsletter, exhibiting, and prizes. Contributors to the conference exhibit and persons interested in joining the association may contact AACB co- ordinator, Mary Ann Hylton, 201 Fair- view Ave.. Frederick, Md. 21701.

1^ Grants of SSOO have been given to the districts of Atlantic Northeast, Shen- andoah. Illinois-Wisconsin, Southern Ohio, Western Plains, and Pacific South- west by the celebration team of Parish Ministries Commission for leadership training in the arts.

Logo for Association of the Arts in tlic Church of the Brethren: Circle palette, signifying continuing creation, contains two overlapping As with a common cen- ter and the formation of the cross design

Team member Wilfred E. Nolen noted that only a few districts in the Brother- hood are known to include budget money for worship or the arts in their concerns for nurture. The grants are intended to assist pastors and lay leaders in develop-

Ralph G. McFadden

Ralph G. McFadden accepts youth consultant post

Ralph G. McFadden is consultant for youth ministries and coordinator of the Library of Resources for the Church of the Brethren, having assumed his new position in November.

Former Lafayette, Ind., pastor, Con- gressional candidate, and Mid-Atlantic District executive secretary, Mr. Mc- Fadden, 38, during the past year was a corporate vice-president with Meteor, Inc., a Washington, D.C., consulting firm helping agencies secure federal grants in health, education, and welfare programs.

As youth ministries consultant, Mr. McFadden will not serve in the past capa- city known as national youth director. Working at the enabling process, rather than in a program, he will deal with dis- trict and congregational youth cabinets

at their invitation in assisting them in the organizational development of youth ministries.

"Such assistance may take the form of experimental models within the context of the congregational structure or simply revitalization of the current youth min- istry programs," he says.

Thus, the position as seen by Mr. Mc- Fadden and the Parish Ministries Com- mission is to assist youth groups in "pro- cedural handles" that will enable them to accomplish their own goals. Mr. Mc- Fadden will not be seeking speaking en- gagements nor organizing a centralized national youth program.

He will, however, be developing youth ministries resources from sources both inside and outside the church to assist youth groups in programming.

Beyond this, he will relate to campus ministries through United Ministries in Higher Education and campus ministers

2 MESSENGER l-lj-72

ing and becoming more sensitive to skills in the use of arts in corporate church worship, as well as education and fellow- ship.

Planning for the specific event is the responsibility of the district, with cele- bration team members in consultative roles. One of the first events using the grants will be in the Western Plains Dis- trict next October at McPherson College.

Sponsoring districts are encouraged to invite persons from neighboring districts to participate in the events.

l^ Last September the Atlantic North- east District held a Creative Arts Festi- val at Elizabethtown College, attended by 1,000 persons, despite rainy weather.

On the theme '"Celebrate," about 90 exhibitions and a number of demonstra- tions in crafts were shown as examples of the more creative outreach of the church and its individual members.

The day-long event also had sessions on filmmaking, musical presentations, drama, a puppet show, a banner contest, and an expressor center, where individuals could create something through the use of various media.

In these and other ways, being used by individual congregations. Brethren are discovering ways of reaching out to others with their heritage and Christ's message.

at Brethren colleges.

As Library of Resources coordinator he will oversee the selection and place- ment of resources in the Keysort Card File.

An Elgin resident during his teen-age years when his late father, W. Glenn McFadden, was pastor of the Highland Avenue church from 1950-1961, Mr. McFadden is a graduate of Manchester College and Bethany Seminary.

During his Lafayette pastorate, he ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 1965 against the late Charles A. Halleck of Indiana. For four years he was part- time campus minister at Purdue Uni- versity and has been active in scouting and camping in youth work. He also has been pastor at Akron, Ind.

Formerly residing in Ellicott City, Md., Mr. McFadden is married to the former Barbara Peters. They have two children.

Brethren witness to peace in White House feetwashing

While 700 persons gathered in Washing- ton, D.C., for four days in October to "evict Nixon" and use nonviolent civil disobedience in an anti-war stance, 25 Church of the Brethren members acted out their witness in front of the White House in a public service of feetwashing.

The Brethren came from Indiana, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. One of them, Ed Poling of Baltimore, said that as they washed each other's feet, a passage from John 13 was read, leaflets were passed out, and a banner declared "Church of the Brethren for Peace and Justice." Their photo appeared the next day in the W ashington Post.

The service continued for 45 minutes, until police forced it to stop. The group had agreed, in a meeting the previous night at the Arlington Church of the Brethren, to comply rather than risk arrest. Water for the service came from a fountain in Lafayette Park across the street.

The leaflet distributed noted that "in Jesus' washing of his disciples' feet, he challenges each of us and the corporate state to cleanse ourselves of our imperial- ism, murder, and oppression, to seek hu- mility, recognizing our racist, sexist, and manipulative actions, and to serve people rather than master them."

The Brethren action was intended to make clear as well their protest to the Indochina war and to "all barriers that separate us from each other."

Among five participants from Man- chester College were Lois Gish and Tim Kraus. Reflected Lois on the experience: "The footwashing service has always held a special meaning for me. Yet never be- fore did I feel such a sense of community. Never before did I feel I was truly saying that I wanted to serve instead of master."

Tim later noted that "the public wash- ing of another's feet could be viewed as an action of either a lunatic or a publicity hound. I must admit that beforehand, regardless of my initial motivation to go to Washington, I did feel that way, but in the middle of my participation I began to realize again the meaning of the humility and the brotherhood in our action."

^*

Top: Brethren in position near the White HoKsc: below, Charlotte Kuenning. Lom- bard, III., watches toweling of her feet

Philadelphian Art Gish reflected: "Some may question whether a public setting is a proper place for feetwashing and feel that this should be done privately among Christians. But historically for the Brethren, feetwashing has been a public service.

"Baptism is a public demonstration of our commitment to Jesus Christ. Feet- washing may become a means of publicly witnessing to the new life in Jesus Christ. The Brethren may have found a new way to publicly witness to their faith."

I-I5-72 MESSENGER 3

Alan Jennings acquitted

In trial on conscription stance

It was "a decision that transcended all of our expectations" said Alan G. Jennings, acquitted Oct. 27 of a charge of willfully and knowingly violating the Selective Service law in leaving his al- ternative service project before comple- tion of his term.

Mr. Jennings, 25, the son of ordained minister Dr. and Mrs. Joseph R. Jennings of Long Beach, Calif., served 17 months of a 24-month commitment at the Douglas Park Church of the Brethren in Chicago as a community worker in Brethren Volunteer Service.

During this time, he told the court, "I eventually came to the conclusion that my cooperation with the Selective Service System was placing me in violation of a higher law to which I felt obligated. The law to which 1 am ultimately responsible is the gospel of Jesus Christ. . . ."

Mr. Jennings believes that his case was the first time in Selective Service history that a principled noncoopcrator has been acquitted.

After leaving his project and informing the Illinois Selective Service Board us to his reasons, Mr. Jennings spent a year at Bethany Theological Seminary, and since then has been working with emotionally disturbed boys at the Jewish Children's Bureau in Chicago.

The not guilty verdict may have had as much to do with the presiding judge's concern for religious liberty as with Mr. Jennings' position. Later Mr. Jennings reflected on this:

"It was truly the working of the Holy Spirit that enabled us to reach [Judge Lynch] on such a human and personal level. Granted, the mood of the country is different from even a year ago and by signing the stipulation and waiving the right to a jury it was easier for the judge to let me testify to the whole truth. And yet without his human understanding of my position, he would have ruled differ- ently."

Another factor in the surprising ver- dict, he felt, was that the judge "per- ceived rather correctly that I took this action not so much to subvert the govern- ment as to witness to my faith. In obedi- ence to the higher law of Jesus Christ that

A I Jennings at Douglas Park

stands in judgment of all human laws I had to disobey the unjust and immoral conscription law." He believed that the strong religious nature of his defense influenced the judge's verdict.

"We can only hope that in time we will be able to view his decision not so much as a privileged exception but as the spawning of a movement more favorable to 'crimes' of conscience," Mr. Jennings said. Although not legally binding on other courts, the decision is seen by him as "an important moral precedent."

He finds his joy tempered in realizing that any one of several other judges in the district almost certainly would have ruled for some incarceration, and that future defendants may not be as fortunate as he.

"This is not an occasion for renewed faith in the entire judicial system so much as revived hope in the potential for always reaching a person on a human level which transcends his stereotyped role," he said.

Several statements of the Church of the Brethren on war, conscription, and civil disobedience were entered as evidence for Mr. Jennings and Dr. Dale W. Brown of Bethany Seminary and Douglas Park pastor Fabricio P. Guzman gave testi- mony as character witnesses.

When the court adjourned, some 50 of Al Jennings' friends in the courtroom, many from the seminary, stood and sang the Doxology in their own joy.

An Ecumenical Witness calls for look at Indochina War

A nationwide interreligious movement, called "An Ecumenical Witness," con- vened a national conference Jan. 13-16 in Kansas City, Mo., to "stimulate thought and action in America's religious com- munities with regard to the moral issues of the Indochina conflict."

Some 700 Protestant, Orthodox, and Roman Catholic church people and rep- resentatives of the Jewish community are exploring "the resources of our faith and how they may best be applied to the spiritual malaise that currently under- mines the condition of our people and our nation," the planners say. Leaders from the church outside the U.S. were asked to attend as well.

Coordinator of the campaign, which began in November and will continue after the conference, is Dr. Robert S. Bilheimer, executive director of the Na- tional Council of Churches' department of international affairs.

Among the 125 interfaith sponsors are Dale W. Brown, Bethany Seminary pro- fessor and 1972 moderator, and, from the Brotherhood staff, H. Lamar Gibble, peace and international affairs consultant. General Secretary S. Loren Bowman, and Joel K. Thompson, World Ministries executive.

The movement was initiated on Nov. 28 with prayers for peace and justice in front of the White House and in churches across the country. Among several reli- gious leaders officiating at the prayer service was Washington City pastor DLiane H. Ramsey, representing the denomination.

Brethren delegates to the Kansas City convocation include Mrs. Joy Dull, Brookville, Ohio, W. Robert McFadden, Bridgcwater, Va., Thomas Wilson, con- gregational community involvement con- sultant, Elgin, III., Dr. Brown, and Mr. Gibble.

The planners note that the "conference is meeting in a time when fewer and fewer favor continuing the war. The feeling is widespread that there is less and less that anyone can do about it. Our own condi- tion in church and synagogue mirrors that of the larger community."

Much work of the conference focuses

4 MESSENGER 1-15-72

on such small-group discussions as "What obedience, witness, common strategy, community, life-style, network should we envisage? What can be done to create a new, constructive political mood, climate, and will? and how to maintain this and make it effective? What has prevented the communities of church and syna- gogue, in spite of prophetic voices, from rising to the moral and spiritual chal- lenge presented by the Vietnam War?" An Ecumenical Witness will be con- tinued with visits by overseas participants to various population centers. Specially organized national inquiry groups on major topics will continue work begun by the conference.

Brethren, Mennonites confer on social and action programs

Peace churches today have greater politi- cal and social responsibilities than our forefathers could have foreseen. Such was one consensus of the staffs of the Church of the Brethren World Ministries Commission and the Mennonite Central Committee.

Administrators for both groups met last fall at the MCC headquarters in Akron, Pa., to continue discussions be- tween the two peace churches for fellow- ship and mutual sharing of experiences and concerns begun in 1970 at Elgin, 111.

The staffs observed the need to properly balance three basic missions: ( 1 ) the prophetic stance in which the church identifies itself with a clearly known "right side" of a situation; (2) the posi- tion of mediator and reconciler, finding valid concerns on both sides of a conflict; and (3) their mission to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and comfort the sick and imprisoned.

Both staffs saw that the third mission may have been overemphasized at the ex- pense of the first two. Looking ahead, the participants listed concerns deserving high priority in the 70s: penal reform, zoning which excludes the poor and minorities, peace education, welfare reform, and the effects of strip mining on the quality of life in Appalachia.

The voluntary service programs of both churches were considered invaluable sources of experience from which to draw when addressing these problems.

[La[n](dls[rDDDi](

THE PASTORAL SCENE . . . Five pastors were cited recently for t:heir years of service in the pastoral ministry: Vir- gil Weimer, Lena, 111. , forty; Edward K_. Ziegler, Bakers- field, Calif., fifty; I. L. Bennett, Ruckersville , Va. , fifty-four; George L. Detweiler , Greencastle, Pa., forty- four; and Kenneth Hollinger , Lanark, 111., forty.

Beginning a teniire in September at the Greencastle, Pa. , Church of the Brethren was J. Richard Gottshall , for- merly pastor at the Peters Creek church, Roanoke, Va.

Four Northern Ohio men were licensed to the ministry recently: Arlen Longenecker , Zion Hill; John Hand ley , Zion Hill; Robert Kurtz, Kent; and Brent Driver , Pleasant View. . . . Lock Haven College student David Stauffer, Elizabeth- town, Pa., was licensed to the ministry by the Atlantic- Northeast District.

At Detroit, Mich., First Church of the Brethren the F. Robert Rutys participated in ordination services. He has been serving as student pastor there while completing college work at the University of Detroit.

Anticipating retirement in Waterloo, Iowa, are Pastor and Mrs . Paul E_. Winger d, whose pastorate at the Cedar church, Clarence, Iowa, ended a twenty-nine year career.

Entering private employment in the Los Angeles area is Leland Nelson , who resigned his pastorate of eleven years at the Ladera church.

CONGREGATIONAL COLLAGE

Nort±iern Coloradans are

gathering at Windsor for worship and fellowship. The group of twenty invites others , and information may be obtained from Pastor Herbert D. Zeiler, 1901 Diana Dr., Loveland, Colo. 80537.

At Dallas Center, Iowa , Brethren celebrated a har- vest homecoming in November. ... And in Seymour, Ind., the New Hope congregation combined homecoming festivities with rededication of their church building.

Although the Pueblo, Colo. , congregation has voted to sell its property, a fellowship of Brethren will be main- tained in that city.

Reporting on activities for Worldwide Communion Sunday are the Covington , Ohio , church whose members joined the United Church of Christ and the United Presbyterian con- gregations there for an agape meal. ... On the same Sunday, the Waka, Texas, congregation donated camp fees for Navajo children attending the district camp the past summer, not- ing that the offering fulfilled the idea of the Fund for the Americas in tihe United States.

PEOPLE YOU KNOW

One of twelve merabers of Indiana's

new pesticide review board is William R_. Eberly , professor of biology at Manchester College.

Inadvertently omitted from MESSENGER was mention of the dealih last May 3 of Walter E_. Peckover , who in a pas- toral career of fifty years served congregations from Florida to Washington. Included in his ministry were the starting of the church at Portland, Ore., and construction of the church at Salkum, Wash. , where death occurred.

M5-72 MESSENGER S

[Ul

by Vernard Eller

The Ellers were tourists last summer, driving from California to National Youth Conference at Valparaiso, Indiana, and then beyond to Pennsyl- vania. Partly by selection but largely by accident we repeatedly came across churches using the stage — drama, music, pageantry, special effects — as an attractive and effective way of mak- ing a witness and informing the public about themselves. Travel with us.

^Jne of our early stops was Salt Lake City, Utah. Its main tourist attraction, of course, is Temple Square, the Zion of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, commonly known as the Mormons. While doing the regular tour of the beautiful buildings and grounds, we learned that in the evening would be presented a musical, Promised Valley. We decided to stay over.

The brochure claimed that the pro- duction would be of Broadway caliber, and it was. Presumably most, if not all, the talent represented volunteer labor (five or six nights a week all summer), but it was plain that the church has access to top professional talent and has poured considerable money into the theater, staging, equip- ment, costumes, and sets.

Promised Valley differs from a Broadway musical only in its shorter running time, approximately one hour without intermission. It uses a story line, songs, choreography, stage effects, comedy routines much as Oklahoma would. It had a full-sized orchestra, four or five soloists, and a chorus of fifty or more voices.

The story recounts the trials, tribula-

6 MESSENGER I 15-72

tions, and victories of the heroic Mor- mon trek to Salt Lake in the 1 860s and the miracle of the sea gulls that saved a critically needed grain crop from the invading horde of crickets. The show does not go into the niceties of Mormon doctrine (ably communi- cated during the tour of the grounds) but it is distinctly religious in its por- trayal of the faith that motivated these pioneers and in ascribing their accom- plishments explicitly to God in Jesus Christ. The music includes traditional Mormon hymnody as well as Broad- way-type tunes. Promised Valley clearly is Mormon, but the enjoyment and inspiration it transmits is ecu- menical.

The show is housed in an open-air amphitheater constructed expressly for the purpose. Located directly across the street from the architectural won- der of the Mormon Temple, the stage is buUt open at the back, so that the temple itself forms the backdrop. As the audience assembles, just before dark, the temple stands there in the light. By the time the program begins, the temple is a silhouette against a sunset sky. Before the show is over, the background is entirely dark, the temple obliterated. (In Salt Lake, the Mormons have enough clout that even the street lights are not lit on that block. ) Then, at the very end of the play, as the orchestra and chorus reach their final crescendo, all the incan- descence of its entire battery of night- time floodlights is suddenly thrown against the face of that towering, gold- topped temple. At that point, the Mormons not only meet but beat all hollow the best effect that Broadway ever has mustered.

Ihe Tuesday evening program at the Valparaiso conference was Chris- tians Right On!, a two-hour worship service spectacular presented by the youth group of the Modesto, Cali- fornia, Church of the Brethren.

If the strength of the Mormon show was its "professionalism," the strength of this Brethren show was its "ama- teurism" — using both of these terms in the best possible sense of each. From start to finish, the Modesto pro- duction represented the labor, the love, the creativity, the expression of faith of the young pieople who were doing it — and, by extension, that of the con- ferees as weU. The mark of Christians

Right On! is "involvement." A col- lege girl was the major writer of the show, but the total effort was more a case of high school kids doing their thing — or, as the case proved, their things.

The evening's experience was what might be called multimedia potpourri. The story-line continuity was so slim as to be virtually nonexistent. What we got, rather, was a variety including slide shows, both photos and cartoons (Schulz's Peanuts); lights; music col- lected from all over and with some ori- ginal lyrics (instrumental, vocal, and recorded); vaudeville skits and guerril- la theater; readings scriptural, bor-

Proiniscd Valley cast performs against the background of the Salt Lake Temple

1-15-72 MESSENGER 7

rowed, and original; litanies; dance, an\nhing and ever>'thing. One element, strong here, that was entirely absent at Salt Lake, was audience participation. In Christians Right On! the attenders ver>' much get into the act by doing a great deal of singing, reading re- sponses, praying, and whooping it up along with the cast.

The show also involves a potpourri of emotional moods (which today's youth are expert at handling and ex- pressing, with instantaneous transitions from one to another — while older folks are fighting to keep the pace and figure out what under the sun is going on). It must be said too that the show represents a theological potpourri. It included, for instance, a segment built around the many titles ascribed to Jesus in the New Testament and an- other segment which was a humanistic paean of praise for the nobility of man and the goodness of his natural life. No attention was given to the fact that if this second segment represents the truth about the nature of man and his life in this world, it makes the Jesus of the New Testament titles largely super- fluous.

But perhaps this undigested mixture was precisely what the program should have been — a live and vibrant por- trayal of modem youth's struggle for

faith, struggle with the faith, struggle to get a faith of their own rather than simply to receive an inheritance. In this regard, although some mention was made of being Brethren and al- though some Brethren ideals were lifted up, the Modesto show does not constitute as explicit a portrayal of a particular tradition and faith as do the other shows we are considering. In large part the difference is a matter of audience: The other shows are de- signed to present the faith to outsiders; the Modesto show is for internal consumption, an exercise in faith rather than a description of faith ac- complished. Thus, although Chris- tians Right On! is a beautiful thing of its own kind, it is not quite comparable to our other examples.

wwe went to Ephrata, Pennsylvania deliberately to see Vorspiel, the musi- cal drama of the Ephrata Cloister. We had seen it a few summers earlier and were eager for a repeat.

The Ephrata Cloister represents the material remains of the religious com- munity founded by Conrad Beissel. The community itself was alive and dynamic from the 1740s until well up into the nineteenth century. Because Beissel and a large percentage of his followers were converts out of Breth-

renism and carried over many of their earlier beliefs and practices, an Eph- rata visit is particularly meaningful for members of the Church of the Breth- ren.

The buildings and grounds are maintained by the State of Pennsyl- vania as an historical monument, pri- marily as an outstanding example of medieval German architecture and a colonial American way of life. How- ever, what really brings the monument to life is the effort of the Ephrata Cloister Associates. This is a non- profit community organization dedi- cated to the interests of the Cloister. The Beissel church is defunct, so the Associates include people of any and every faith except the Cloister's own. Their interest is primarily in preserving and sharing the culture of the original community; but because that culture was so entirely a religious one, there is no alternative but to witness to the faith of community in the process. The Associates are not shy or apologetic about the religious aspects of their work.

On the Cloister grounds, they oper- ate a gift shop that sells not only the customary line of "Dutch" trinkets but also materials that celebrate and in- form about the faith community. The Vorspiel pageant is presented on week-

I

From left: A highlight of Promised Valley, from Christians Right On! — Abraham asking what love means; the vanquished lion

end evenings during the summer. It is preceded by special tours, during whiich the buildings are occupied by people (mostly high school and college stu- dents) dressed in the authentic habits of the brothers and sisters, busy at the arts, crafts, and activities that were practiced there more than 200 years ago, and prepared to talk knowledge- ably about life in the cloisters.

When it is dark, the crowd assem- bles in a meadow amphitheater on an- other part of the grounds. The back- drop in this case is a flat, painted mockup of the actual cloister build- ings. This may be the best that can be done, but it looks particularly fake when the real thing stands a scant 100 yards away. It would add a great deal if the Associates could take a cue from the Mormons and incorporate the thing itself into their play.

By necessity rather than choice, that did happen the night we saw Vorspiel. Gathered in the amphi- theater, the program opened with the announcer telling us what we would do in case of rain. This was asking for it, and we got it. Before he was done speaking, a brisk downpour headed the assembled company indoors in a state of rout.

"Indoors" turned out to be the great meeting room located in the Saal, the

oldest building of the group (con- structed 1741 ). This year that room was quite different from what we had seen on earlier visits. Then it had been simply a large, low-ceilinged room. But there existed accounts by eigh- teenth-century visitors to Ephrata de- scribing choirs in the hall singing from balconies. Recently a venturesome state architect who decided to solve the mystery of the missing balconies discovered that the ceiling above the center of the room definitely was of different construction than that along the two sides. Ripping out the center ceiling and opening the room a second story, clear to the roof, he found a beautiful, high room with galleries run- ning the length of either side — un- questionably the way the room stood in Beissel's day.

Now that room — a great room in its time — is still large enough today for either the Vorspiel cast or the Vorspiel audience, but hardly both at once. What we got, then, was "inti- mate theater" in which the intimacy went so far that theatricals were simply crowded out. The pageant had to be so pruned and squeezed that it lost much of its effect. But, the story is just an excuse upon which to hang a portrayal of cloister life — worship, beliefs, discipline, love feasts, and

above all, the a capella singing. And the consequence of the move into the Saal was that the pageant's loss became the music's gain.

The music is one of the things that Ephrata is all about. Beissel was a self-taught musician who invented his own strange modes and his own strange notations for transcribing them. Early accounts are unanimous in praise of the unearthly (that is, heavenly) harmonics produced by Beissel's choirs. But although the writ- ten music was preserved, it was not until a few years ago that Dr. RusseU Getz, director of the Associates Chor- us, broke Beissel's code and opened the way for the music to be heard once more. (This music, by the way, shortly will be available to choirs from the G. Schirmer Company.)

In the Saal, the men's chorus (seven or eight men) sang from one gallery and a like number of women sang from the other. For one number, a third chorus was stationed on the main floor. Without doubt, Beissel wrote the music for just such antiphonal ar- rangement and used it that way. And it has now been proved that the eigh- teenth-century visitors were right on the mark in their accolades of Ephrata singing. Everyone ought to make a point of attending Vorspiel at least

At Ephrata: "We shall sing to prove that the angels themselves, when they sang at the birth of Christ, had to use our rules''

If, /

twice — once in clear weather to see the pageant and once in the rain to hear the music.

Even at its best, Vorspiel cannot touch the sHck professionalism and entertainment value of the Mormon Promised Valley. It does, however, have a hymnody and a sanctuary that antedates the Mormon counterparts by considerably more than a century. And to listen to that long lost music sung in a long lost meeting room creates an effect that lifts one beyond even flood- lit temples. Both are authentic pointers to the glory of God.

^Jur final adventure started at Ephrata and in ways proved the most e.xciting and significant of the four. .At the Cloister gift shop I picked up an attractive, slick, professional- looking brochure (no, we're not going back to Salt Lake) advertising a Dutch Family Festival located near Lancaster. Normally, slick brochures tooting "Dutch stuff" around Lancaster are to be regarded with suspicion; that area is full of outfits that have commercial- ized and prostituted the Permsylvania Dutch culture beyond all recognition. (One of their big items is a postcard that gets a hee-haw from the fact that Dutch country includes the town of Intercourse, Pa.)

That our brochure mentioned "a pageant of the Amish and Mennonite way of life" didn't necessarily prove anything. That area boasts scads of "learn about the Amish" places that no God-fearing Amishman would be caught dead in; the proprietors are interested solely in Amish "quaintness" and couldn't care less about the Amish faith.

But our brochure did include some hints that intrigued me. A family festival it was called, and jamily was played up in the text — that's some- thing different. "A festival is people .... People learning from other peo- ple's way of living and giving. . . . It's our story to you with love. ..." There is something quite uncommercial (or else newly super-ingenious com- mercial ) about that pitch. We de- cided to investigate even though it meant upsetting our travel schedule and driving some distance out of our way. We are very glad we did, for we discovered that the Dutch Family Festival is a gang of young Mermonites who are out to beat the commercial- izers at their own game and, in the pro- cess, defend and share the faith instead of corrupting it.

The brochure told us that the festi- val is produced by Good Enterprises, Ltd. That turns out to be Merle Good,

a Mennonite seminarian who must still be well within his twenties, his wife Phyllis, and some better-fixed Men- nonite elders who are his angels (back- ers). As Merle told me. his company marks an effort to operate on three fronts simultaneously: ( 1 ) commer- cial, to provide a means by which some Mennonite artists and craftsmen can support themselves and thus — (2) artistic, to pursue their creative en- deavors to the end of — (3) the faith, making a public witness to Mennonite ways and values.

The festival, which has evolved out of the four seasons of activity, operates during the summer months. During the school year. Merle is a student (communication and the arts) at Union Theological Seminary and Phyllis at New York University. The cast-staff (same people in dual, triple, and quadruple roles) are largely Men- nonite college students, many of them from Eastern Mennonite in Harrison- burg, Virginia, Merle's own alma mater.

The festival proper operates on a continuous cycle during the day, six days a week. It is housed in a large, open, commercial-type building which, I believe, is an auction center during the off (on) season.

The greater part of the front half

At left, Christians Right On! cast members introducing a new song. Right, at Dutch Family Festival, exhibits feature Mennonite life

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of the building is tiie gift shop, at- tempting to specialize in original and authentic Mennonite artworks. Fea- tured are the three-dimensional carved paintings of Mennonite farm life done by Albert Zook, a truly unique and im- pressive art form. Featured even big- ger is a new novel by a first-time novel- ist. Merle Good (Mr. Entrepreneur himself) . Happy as the Crass Was Green is his story of contemporary Mennonite youth, published by Herald Press, the Mennonite press at Scott- dale, Pennsylvania. The shop also has a table of other works by Mennonite writers, most of them from Herald Press. And early in the season, the fes- tival sponsored an autographing party at which quite a number of Mennonite authors were present.

From the gift shop, we walked through a series of exhibits: a mock-up kitchen where is explained the making of sauerkraut, apple butter, soap, and such like; a farm exhibit with a few live animals; a smokehouse. The guides and exhibitors turn out to be the actors and singers at the audi- torium, the back half of the building. One end of the room is devoted to an open, wrap-around stage decorated in a Mennonite farm motif. The other end is semicircled with seven projec- tion screens and a number of low

platforms. The center of the room is filled with ingenious, bidirectional seats, namely, bales of hay. (During empty intervals, the children are en- couraged to play tag, jumping from bale to bale. )

First, at the screen end, comes "This Is Lancaster." a brief multimedia pre- sentation written by Merle Good, mu- sic by David Seitz, recordings of some of the music on sale in the gift shop. Its thrust is toward the family and the beauties of life in the country, com- municated through simultaneous slides, music — live and recorded, skits, jokes by a cast of four.

During the intermission, while the cast is regrouping at the other end of the room, the audience enjoys a brief, informal lecture and question period regarding Mennonite-Amish history and beliefs. In our case the lecturer was a young man who joined the so- ciology faculty at Elizabethtown Col- lege this fall.

Turning on our bales, from the stage came a very brief musical celebrating the Amish-Mennonite faith and Ufe. Book and music by you know who. Cast of four, same as before. All done with impressive verve, sincerity, and dedication by very open, friendly, hos- pitable young people.

Come evening, the festival proper

Gift shop at family festival specializes in Mennonite artwork

closes shop in order to reopen as the company of a full-scale, two-hour musical. The hay has been stacked to one side to form a gallery for children, and folding chairs have been arranged facing the stage. The audience has jumped from twenty or thirty to ten times that; and the number of prayer coverings in evidence (beards don't tell you anything any more) indicate that the Mennonites do a good job of supporting their own. The cast has swelled from four to fourteen, pre- sumably as ten more Mennonite young people got off their workaday jobs.

Merle has written, directed, and produced four of these full-length, what he calls "native" musicals. Two are presented each summer. David Seitz. a former music teacher from Eastern Mennonite who sang in the cast, has done the music for a couple of them. This night the play was Yes- terday, Today, and Forever, the story of a touring group of young Mennonite singers who are struggling to be true to their heritage and yet be open to the modern world. Costumes included a comfortable mix of prayer and mini- skirts. Not all of the long hair was on girls. Drums and an electric guitar made their contribution. As the bro- chure said. "It's ALIVE!"

The music touched all bases: an ancient Mennonite hymn sung in Ger- man; "I Need Thee Every Hour" (which I never would have guessed could make it as a show tune) ; the Lord's Prayer very effectively sung to music reminiscent of the Beatles.

Without apology, the show as a whole was religious. Christian, and Mennonite. Not every viewer would be converted, of course, but no one could come away without feeling good about the experience and having gained in knowledge and respect.

In sum, many churches are effective- ly using the stage to help get their mes- sage to the public "out there." The Church of the Brethren may not have the resources to compete with the Mor- mons. But Brethren do have the per- sons and the creativity to become in- volved in this kind of ministry on a greater scale than has so far been tried. Ought we investigate the myriad pos- sibilities? D

1-15-72 MESSENGER 11

Love^ ^ asl have

loved you.

Jesus requires a new style of life of his disciples. They are to love one another as he himself has loved them (John 13:34). This is to be their distinctive feature, making them recognizable as his disciples (John 13:35).

What love is.

In one form or another, the call to love is found in most religious tra- ditions. Yet it is universal human experience that love cannot arise by command.

But the words of Jesus about love are a new commandment which he alone could issue since it is direct- ly bound up with his person and mission: The new commandment is Jesus' invitation to live as he him- self lived (1 John 2:6), to live in the light of his truth (2 John 4). Jesus requires us to love one another as he himself has loved us (John 13:34).

What was this love of Jesus him- self? The washing of the dis- ciples' feet indicates the answer: "Jesus had always loved his own, who were in the world and now he was to show the full extent of his love" (John 13:1). This symbolic act at the beginning of the last Supper

points to two features of the love of Jesus:

1. The washing of the feet an- nounces and prefigures the sacrifice of the cross. Before he died, Jesus could say: "It is accomplished" (John 19:30). He had given the supreme token of love, for there is no greater love than that a man should lay down his life for his friends (cf. John 15:12-15;

1 John 5:16). Lifted up from the earth, Jesus will draw all men to himself (John 12:32), gathering together into unity the scattered children of God (John 11:52);

2. The washing of the feet is also the pattern of brotherly serv- ice for each Christian. The servant is to follow the ex- VJ ample of his master (John

13:15 H.).

Christ's love for men demon- strates the love of the Father who gave his only son for the salvation of the world (John 3:16). God is love (1 John 4:8-16). To discover God, to know who he is, we must love (1 John 4-7 f.).

What love demands.

The servant truly follows his mas- ter only if he is ready to lay down his life for his brothers (1 John 3:16).

His daily life is to be a life of service. He must always be ready to come to the help of his brothers, especially of those who suffer (1 John 3:17). Only then will the love of the Christian be "genuine and show itself in action" (I John 3:18).

The true Christian loves his ene- mies (Matthew 5:44). Like God and like Christ who have loved all men (John 3:16), he tries to make his love universal in its range.

The Christian who seeks to obey the new commandment (John 15:12- 17) will not be surprised to meet with misunderstanding and hatred (John 15:18-25). His assurance of Christ's victory will enable him to conquer fear and cowardice (John 13:38; 16:33).

The fruits of love.

Love makes the believer a true disciple of Jesus (John 13:35), one who has really assimilated his master's message and who knows the truth (8:31 f.); one who, like the beloved disciple, stands at the foot of the cross (19:15-26) and who looks up in faith to the crucified Christ (19:37).

Love creates fellowship among men (1 John 1:7), strengthens and extends the Christian community, which is a truly fraternal commu-

nity; love is the family likeness of the children of God (1 John 3:10), it demonstrates to the world the life of Christians as God's children and their fellowship with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

Life in truth and love (Ephesians 4:15) is the most effective way of achieving unity in the faith (Ephesians 4:13) and building the kingdom of God. Love builds the church, which grows and increases through the mutual love of its members (Ephesians 6:16).

Sent by Christ into the world (John 17:18), the children of God bear witness to the world as they achieve their unity. In this way men will be led to faith and will realize that the Father has loved them as he loved his son (John 17:21 ff.). Is this love the family likeness which the world sees in Christians? Is this love character- istic of relations between churches? Is this sign of love to be found within each Christian congregation and community?

Suggested Readings

John 13:1-17 and 33-35; 1 Corinthi- ans 13

"I show you the best way of all" Deuteronomy 6:4-15; Luke 10:25-37

The commandment of love is the sum of the law

1 John 4:7-11; Hosea 11:1-9 Only love makes God truly known

Luke 6:27-35; Leviticus 19:17 f. and

33 L

Love of the neighbor cannot dis- criminate between friend and enemy

John 15:12-17; Isaiah 58:6-12 There is no service of the Lord without service of those in need

Matthew 18:21-35; 1 John 2:3-11 In the light of the commandment of love the truth about the inten- tions of our heart is revealed

Matthew 10:34-42; 1 John 3:13-18 Following Christ in the way of love does not lead out of the world of hatred, but leads to ultimate division, exemplified in his cross

Jeremiah 31:1-6; Romans 8:31-39 God's unceasing love for men does not rest until he has drown them all to himself

Helpus tolove.

Jesus says "Love one another" Think of those we love Think of those we ought to love Think of situations of hatred in the

world. Lord, as you have loved us, help

us to love.

'^^^^.

Jesus says "Love one another" Pray to God for our family and

friends Pray to God for our enemies Pray to God for peace.

Lord, as you have loved us, help

us to love.

Jesus says "Love one another"

Commit ourselves to God

Commit ourselves to work for peace

and reconciliation Commit ourselves to each other. Lord, as you have loved us, help

us to love.

ible readings fora Week of Prayer for Christian Unity:

Inez Long tells why

UT5.

IVe Been Putting on the

Inez Long

To be born

on the prairie, riding in a

car on capricious topography up and down, right and left, is a dizzy un-merry-go-round, so that I find myself dragging my feet and braking a hole in the floorboard. For the past five years I've been doing the same in the Church of the Brethren on our dizzy ride of tripping off, spiraling twist after turn, zooming us high and heading us low.

How did we get on this ride? Well, from World War II to the mid-sixties, Brethren laid a speedway that caught the spirit of the times and the tempo of our people and we didn't need zigzag risks to provoke thrills. We were going fast toward goals and we didn't jerk into sudden kinks. We had our thrills from winning conscientious objector status in national law, a victory which will stand as an historic landmark in the rise of the inviolate conscience as supreme over national policy. We thrilled as millions of dollars went into alternative service which, however infirm in World War II. made a miraculous witness in crisis, a witness yet to be recorded in all its drama. We were recognized as leaders in relief, rehabilitation, work camps, volunteer service, and mobile emergency programs.

During our excursions into a widen- ing world, we woke up to the fact that

we. ourselves, had changed. We had transplanted ourselves from the coun- try to the city so that our locations were exactly reversed : we were now eighty-five percent urban and fifteen percent rural. Our new church build- ings, no longer meetinghouses, showed our confidence that, because of our record in the forties, we could win our way in the postwar secular world and gather a strong base in urban, main- stream Protestantism. Today our local churches — their conclusions after long discussions in the fifties openly evident in hardwood and concrete — dot the nation with divided chancels, steeples, parking lots and educational complexes that boast nurseries, multi- media installations, kitchens, and recreational facilities. And, as a parsonage woman. I give a loud cheer for efficient new parsonages.

During this time, our witness to the wider church, as in the National Coun- cil of Churches and World Council of Churches mounted under the leader- ship of our best denominational states- men. Our fellowship with global Christians, as in the Russian exchange, was unique. Our church-related col- leges expanded in phenomenal propor- tions. Our involvement in Mission One and Mission Twelve pushed us into a new sense of relationships, in both church and world.

Despite the grumblings of the youth

14 MESSENGER 1-15-72

Brakes"

cult and the rumblings of the anti- church underground in the late 1960s, both of whom had brilliant reasons for exposing all these achievements as folly, the record of self-sacrifice, of hardheaded planning, and of actual good done for humanity shows a dedi- cation with which we need not be ashamed even when standing alongside our venerable forebears. However, the hardest work of my forty years in an uninterrupted career in church work has been dragging my feet in the past five years, in putting on the brakes.

What caused the imbalance which

gives us a dizzy ride in the late 1960s? It was riding in a passenger section ripped in two because the design of the craft catered to the youth cult, so that the generation gap, breaking the church apart, became an ironic joke to the young, a traumatic tragedy to the old, and a formidable task to the middle-aged who were nearly torn in pieces as they held the rip together by their own two bare hands. It was the falsity of pilots who, while looking straight ahead as if listening with both ears, heard only with the left ear tuned to raucous extremists who grabbed the microphone and announced to the passengers alternate demands for "Power," "Confrontation," and "Con- troversy" between sweet mimics for "Acceptance" "Love," and "Support." It was the presumption of professional, salaried churchmen who fueled the local church with sophisticated materi- als and methods while faithful volun-

teer workers tried feverishly to get the local church aloft as it sputtered and choked on input too rich or ill-matched for its purposes. It was the false prom- ise of an Aimual Conference report of 1 966 to merge "with groups more like our own" which, in the ensuing years, consumed millions of flight hours and confused local flight patterns so that we landed in Baptist, Church of God, and other terminals, only to find that we have been grounded with no "Go" from other ports.

The flights have been more than many of my co-workers have been able to sustain. Many have become sick- ened; some have disembarked; all but a few have shut their eyes so as not to see from the window the dizzy flights we have taken. Of the few who looked, even fewer knew where we were "at" at any given time. I didn't get sick; I didn't shut my eyes; I've known where we were most of the time. I dragged my feet simply be- cause I thought the ride was imbal- anced; it was a waste of fuel; it was an unfair expenditure from conscientious tithers; its false exhilaration was illu- sionary. I disembarked this past year with both feet on the ground to dis- cover, along with many others, that we had, indeed, struck amazing low altitude.

Someone has said that such a posi- tion — both feet on the ground — gets us nowhere. One has to have at least one foot off the ground to walk. But I propose for the Church of the Brethren a period of time in which to keep both feet on the ground and go nowhere: just stop, look and listen. Then, per- haps, we might be able to make a jump forward together, with both feet, right and left, in one strong forward action to one purposeful goal.

Where are we now? I think we are not so much lost as we are in the posi-

tion of having "lost out." In very self- less moves, on the assurance that "he who loses his life shall find it" — though in our generosity we seldom had the same recipient in mind as did the Teacher of this paradox — our programs became mobile. We moved our service projects into the wider church. Church World Service, Heifer Project, CROP, International Youth Exchange, and many others. We based alternative service and BVS in secular agencies. Hospitals went under com- munity control. Our best talent went into secular revolutions. Our peace testimony touched global proportions. Our church colleges moved toward self-perpetuating boards of trustees. Our seminary may soon be teaming in a cluster.

How did we "lose out"? As we became

prophets to the ecumenical world in matters of peace, other groups de- veloped prophets more quickly than we and rose with more sophistication. As we shared our relief programs with others, they promptly bolstered them with more money, more personnel, and won the balance of power. We scat- tered our best leaders in ministries to the world which invited them, often as naive and willing worldlings, into an even more inviting worldliness. I could name all these in specific pro- grams, policies and persons, by title, official action and name, but this reve- lation would be self-castigating. You see, I voted in official action for many

1-15-72 MESSENGER IS

of these shifts with the wild hope that some of our well-proven projects and ideals would get wider use. This has happened. Yet this selflessness has left us with little left of the self we have always known ourselves to be as Brethren.

The Church of the Brethren now has an identity which it feels to be a non- identity because we are unfamiliar with it. Coming from our pietist tradition, as reformers of all reforms, we have little feel for the identity which remains as the revolutions and countermove- ments cool. What, then, is our iden- tity? We are just another neighborhood church on just another busy street corner. Our slogans as a denomination — unique, separatist, peculiar — are gone.

Now this is a challenge in itself. Our local congregations, open toward Protestantism, even Catholicism, will be steadied if we incorporate the weight of these newcomers who will scrutinize the quick turnabouts which our small denomination has maneu- vered in the past. Yet Brethren don't see any thrill in being "just another church," especially at a time when the church is shown as tawdry; when it is ill-used and much abused, even by leaders in the church. We don't think of ourselves as "a traditional, institu- tional church." We have been taught that we were not created "just for that"; our origins were not sprung "just from that."

Furthermore, we don't know how to be a church in a secular city, a secular village or a secular countryside, be- cause we aren't ready to confess that the omnipresent adjective secular de- scribes us all after two decades in front of the television screen. Yet here, too, is challenge, as the veneer of secular hardware and the disposable nature of plastic junk deepens the contrast be- tween the eternal set in the midst of the transitory. And we can be glad that, disencumbered of parochial programs,

we can get on with our central task : the tendering and extending of the sacred in a profane world. This has always been the task of the church, though it is a difficult task for a people recently exposed to the secular world.

Once we recognize a shift in our his- toric position, and once we accept our place in the secular world, we must first define ourselves as a church. When we moved into a hard-core, prophetic stance in the late 1960s, we became more individualistic, like the Quakers. This moved us from an evangelical base and from the kind of corporate unity we had shared with the Mennonites. Yet now we find our- selves neither like the Quakers nor the Mennonites: We are not Quaker, be- cause we have not relinquished a concept of the church; we are not Mennonite because we are no longer internally strong and separatist.

Are we really a church? If so, are we "just another church"? Are we special? I suggest that we assume we are not special in the sense that God plays favorites by speaking through our own kind because of who we are. I suggest that in spite of the mass- media performances and headline per- sonalties we have been able to pro- mote, we confess that sustained per- sonality adulation or denominational prestige in the public eye are hard to sustain by people with little expertise in the camera's lens. Furthermore, I suggest that experiments in one-year ministries in hard-core social causes be exchanged for long-term professional career-personnel rather than hit-and- run, guilt-compensating orators and lamppost ministries. In councils of churches, I suggest that Brethren con- fess openly that is was easier to get our interdenominational friends on the peace bandwagon, when it became popular in both press and youth pro- tests, than to get them off the mari- juana trip, off the consumerism ride with in-group projects, off the political games of one-upmanship, and off ex- cursions to worldwide conferences for whoever has the tough elbows and verbiage to win a first-class ticket. Finally, we do not need more hard- bitten words in which self-appointed crusaders have halted all opposition with gutter language, frisked their opponents, and stripped them down.

tearing out their hearts in cold blood. Certainly we do not need more dia- logue which is banal communication. Such communication is only a pooling of ignorances, or a marathon in which only volubility and accusations are the survivors.

If we can rid ourselves of past use- less cargo, where do we start? We start where Christians have always started: Right where they are, right on, along the Christian pilgrimage, like Christian himself in Pilgrim's Progress. We are a people on pilgrimage. We are not on an ecstatic trip, not on an adventurous odyssey, not in a political race, not on a lost-lover's detour, not on a suicidal dead end. Like Christians before us, we are on a Way. That Way rises from disgrace to glory, from slavery to the self to freedom of the redeemed. The road rises with mir- acles and devils meeting us at every turn as we pursue the Way to a sacred destiny.

What might be that Way for Breth- ren now?

First,we can review the knowledge which the church

has produced and preserved, knowing that it is an exclusive body of knowl- edge in the sense that in our secular age, only the devout in home and church can be trusted to teach it authentically and purposefully. As Christians we have learned that there is Good News which others do not know. That Good News carries values which we do not want lost because they are redemptive values for the hu- man race, which we love and which we hope will prevail. As religious peo- ple, we are consciously alive, because we are conscious every moment that

16 MESSENGER 1- 15-72

God is alive and, in our day. we keep this consciousness brilliantly alive in ourselves because the forthright recog- nition of God is rare, except in pro- fanity. As members of the living Body of Christ, we will gather to sing praise on Sunday morning, as our custom is. We will bring the fruits of our labors in a world that seldom knows or con- fesses Christ, and we will be confident before the throne of grace that God will take the paltriness of our labor and enlarge it from the disregard of the world to the measure of his children's need. As we seek atonement for our own disobedience, we will be bold to believe that life everlasting is a sure gift of God's grace.

Second, we will pray for and be open to the Holy Spirit. We will infuse our experiences of the Spirit into the insti- tutional church. If the church is only a "corpus" — a body — it will be a corpse. If it is body and spirit — corpus and animus, the breath of God — it will have a soul. We will live with the Spirit that cannot be pro- grammed, computerized or mimeo- graphed but whose ways, often stub- born against administrative paper people and our own picayunish connivings. are endless joy within the household of faith. We will extend our church to people nearby who have fallen victim to mass media consumer- ism and secular cults. Pumped into bloated bodies, full of liquor, drugs, speed, skin, thrills, and risks, they have bartered life with a capital L for the touch-and-feel senses minus soul, which is infused only by the breath of God.

Third, we will be perceptive to the ecumenicity that is growing at the grass roots. Many of us, saddened by the lack of evangelism among Breth- ren, and disheartened by the trend of Anabaptism that propagandizes sep- aratism to keep us outside ecumenical mergers, see a ray of hope in our local churches. For here, in our own con-

gregations, people regardless of labels, dress, experiences, or language, come to pray, study, and worship because they know they must "lean on the Everlasting Arms" if they are to be enabled for the hard work of Chris- tians in the world. Here is the close communion — not closed communion, but quite the contrary — of believers in a neighborhood church. We need to keep aware of the differences in these two words because, as Brethren, as we move toward intensive fellowship, we will be tempted to turn inward to closed sectarianism which, however spectacular in broadbrimmed hats, high collars, and prayer veils when we are together at Annual Conference, is a dead end to youth and adults alike who, living with their peers in the secu- lar city, refuse to be encumbered by the flimflams of special gear which carry artificial barriers and are impedi- ments to the sharing of the Good News.

Fourth, we will welcome many lan- guages in the church to infuse it with diversity and harmony, characteristics of God's whole human family. In time, we will feel out the full meanings of others' languages. Paul wrote, "There are doubtless many different languages in the world, and none is without meaning, but if I do not know the meaning of the language. I shall be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me." The new ecumenicity is bringing together words and meanings from Consciousness III, Communes. Jesus People, the Straights, the Intellectual Elite, the Hard Hats, the Eternal Family, the Violent- Nonviolents, the Glossolalia Cults, the Social Action Rabble, the Long Hairs, the Evangelicals. As each in- terprets the meaning of his language, each local church will be forced to raise up balanced, disciplined, com- passionate spokesmen who, able to speak the "language within all lan- guages" because of personal dedication and long years of study, will gather us all into one Body and one Spirit. In this new harmony of the family of God, Brethren will need pastors who know how to realize Christ's hope. "Other sheep I have which are not of this fold ..." and "That they all might be one."

Any person with a sense of steward-

ship, of which Jesus spoke in terms of profit and loss, work and reward, waste and penalty, disobedience and death, would put on the brakes if he knew we were moving to a dead end in our church. The dead end had been fore- shadowed if we had had ears to hear: voices from the pulpit no longer speak- ing as ambassadors for Christ; voices predicting a church school that will grow limp, then fade away; leaders not held accountable for lessening church influence but. instead, contributing to it; professional church leaders promot- ed when they have failed because of threat that they will leave the church; laymen creating designs for church programs that ignore a time for the altar of the spirit in the week's sched- ule; teachers in the church school without training or experience in a learned body of knowledge; productive volunteer workers in the church viewed with less merit than salaried, slipshod personnel.

I Ve dragged my feet as we headed

for this dead end. I pray God that we will arrest ourselves before going farther into this "no exit." Otherwise, we will have to shift into reverse later on. Such a reverse shift is a drastic counter action which often produces an overreaction which, in our history, has been fierce, self-deprecating, and split with personal politicizing and mass accusations and polarizations. The point of view of this article comes perilously close to a call for counter- action but, if viewed as an evaluation of my own mistakes and my awareness of God's judgment, perhaps it will bring a reconsideration of where we have been and where we are, helping to reedeem us before we are forced to see that "whatsoever we have sown, that, indeed, we have reaped." D

1-15-72 MESSENGER 17

A coed answers...

Involvement? Yes!

by SUSAN KREHBIEL TAYLOR

w

hat does a down-to-earth coed who's been around the world think about improving it?

McPherson College student Linda Keim, who's no stranger to senate offices and many world ports, believes changes can occur through involve- ment within the existing structures.

"I'm labeled a conservative by some because I believe in the system," she laughs.

Posters