People & events

“Christians responding to HIV/AIDS in Africa” is the focus of a conference planned for Winnipeg Nov. 12–13. Keynote speakers include Jim Cantelon, host of the television interview program “Eye to Eye,” Sam Luboga, associate dean of education and professor of medicine at Makere University in Kampala, Uganda, and Allan Ronald, a member of the Academic Alliance for AIDS Care and Prevention in Kampala and professor emeritus of the University of Manitoba.

—release

A cooperative initiative of 5 Mennonite conferences in Manitoba and 4 Mennonite educational institutions called the Evangelical Anabaptist Seminary Program (EASP) is now offering a Certificate of Christian Ministry. The 30-unit fully-accredited program provides basic training in Bible, theology and pastoral ministry from an evangelical Anabaptist perspective. Information on course offerings available at 204-487-3300 or www.ambs.edu.

—EASP

Canadian Anglicans meeting in their triennial General Synod in St. Catharines in June, deeply divided on their stance toward same-sex relationships, voted to defer a decision on whether gay relationships should be blessed in church, asking that the Theological Commission study whether such blessing is “a matter of doctrine.” An addition to the resolution the next day affirmed “the integrity and sanctity of committed adult same-sex relationships.”

—Anglican Church of Canada

Mennonite and Catholic theologians and historians will meet at Saint John’s Abbey, Collegeville, Minn. July 26–28 to continue a joint study of 16th century martyrdom begun last year. The first conference, held July 2003, focussed on Anabaptist martyrs; this event will expand the scope to incorporate all martyrdom caused by the Reformation. Information at martyrsconference.org.

—release

Twelve women recently graduated from Bridging the Gap, a job-readiness program in Abbotsford and Chilliwack, B.C. sponsored by Mennonite Central Committee. The main criterion for eligibility in the program is experience in an abusive relationship, and the training includes both life and job skills. Each graduate will be followed up individually.

—MCC B.C.

India’s national elections in May, in which the independence-era National Congress Party (NCP) returned to power, has brought relief to Christian and Muslim minorities in the country. The NCP, which ousted the Bharatiya Janta Party led by Hindu nationalists, believes India’s government must be secular. Under BJP rule, Christians were subject to attacks and five states passed anti-conversion laws; Tamil Nadu has already repealed its anti-conversion law.

—Evangelical Press News

Please pray: Nguyen Hong Quang, general secretary of the Mennonite Church in Vietnam, was arrested June 8 by security police in Ho Chi Minh City. They also searched his home, where his church meets, taking away church documents and equipment. Four of Pastor Quang’s associates were arrested 3 months ago and are still being held without formal charges. Families have not been allowed to visit the men.

—Mennonite World Conference

Speaking in signs: the entire New Testament is now translated into American Sign Language. Deaf Missions in Council Bluffs, Iowa say the translation will be available on DVD and videotape this summer. The project, in which all 7,959 verses are signed on camera, took about 60 people 23 years to finish.

—CBC Online

An Egyptian court ordered the return of formal Christian identity status to a Coptic Christian who converted to Islam 11 years ago and then returned to Christian faith. The verdict resolved a 6-month standoff with state security officials and upholds, her legal counsel says, the principle of freedom of belief enshrined in the Egyptian constitution. Under the government’s long-standing interpretation of Islamic law, Muslims have been forbidden to convert to another faith.

—Compass Direct

The obesity rate of the old order Amish of Ontario is 4 percent, less than one-seventh the U.S. norm, yet they eat heartily and their diet includes pancakes, ham, cake and milk, as well as fruits and vegetables. The “secret,” according to research by the University of Tennessee, is their “low-technology lifestyle.” Pedometers on 98 Amish men and women showed they averaged 18,000 and 14,000 steps respectively each day (about 14.5 and 11.3 kilometres).

—Harvard Magazine

Relief and apprehension: Mennonite Central Committee workers in Sudan shared in celebrations of a historic peace agreement May 26 between the government and the country’s major rebel group, the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army/Movement. The agreement raises hopes the decades-old civil war is finally ending. MCC has worked in Sudan to encourage peace, and is exploring options for emergency assistance for refugees. Some 10,000 have been killed in Darfur in recent months and a million more are left homeless.

—MCC News

“I now have hope for my children and for our lives,” said widow Aero Margaret after receiving a Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) package of seeds and hoes at a camp for displaced people in Katakwi district, northern Uganda. The MCC distribution, worth $164,950 Cdn, targeted all residents of two camps, where there are plots for individuals to cultivate. Uganda has been torn by violence for 18 years, with the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army attacking villagers and kidnapping children.

—MCC News