The Board of World Mission offers regular updates in The Moravian to share news from around the Moravian Unity. We hope that this will give each of you a more up-to-date picture of what is happening in the Moravian world so that together we can be at prayer, provide support, and be in partnership to help build up the kingdom of God.
In addition to what you will read here we invite you to visit our website regularly at www.moravianmission.org where you will find more information.
New Year’s Resolutions
In the early days of a new year, many of us are looking to make and stick to resolutions. We take the opportunity for a fresh start to renew a commitment, or to start something new. The challenge is always…how long will we stay “resolved”?
At the BWM, we look to the drawing of our yearly watchword as a spiritual grounding of our work to help us meet our purpose of building relationships through mission outreach and engagement, to be faithful to the Great Commission and the Great Commandment.
With that in mind, we wanted to share with you the BWM Watchword drawn for 2022:
“Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also.” John 12:26
As we look ahead to the new year, we will seek to follow, even as we look to lead several important initiatives. In this year, the BWM invites your prayerful support and participation in upcoming ministries. Just a few of the plans we are “resolved” to complete this year include:
- A conference for Spanish-speaking Moravian partners to all come together to share and fellowship.
- Sponsoring/hosting several mission and service retreats at our Moravian Camps
- Continued coordination of disaster response efforts in many communities
- Implementation of pastoral and lay leader training with Mission Area and Mission Province partners
Resolutions are often ambitious, and most likely completed when shared with others for support and accountability. So, come, follow along with us this year!
Moravian Disaster Response
The Moravian Disaster Response has been very busy since the beginning of the Covid pandemic. Since then, Moravians from around North America have donated $458,785 to the fund, and the Board of World Mission has distributed $435,195. This is an amazing amount of money and represents overwhelming generosity, as well as incredible need. A significant chunk of this funding supported relief efforts in Nicaragua and Honduras after twin hurricanes struck in November of 2020. We have also sent aid to many of our global partners as needs arose from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Most recently, we sent $24,500 to Haiti following the August 14, 2021, 7.2 magnitude earthquake. Our Haitian Moravian Church leaders are now using this money to support food distribution, assemble emergency shelters for those who lost their homes and assist the two Moravian congregations most directly impacted by the earthquake. We thank the Armando Rusindo Mission Foundation for their generous gift to this relief effort.
This fall, we also sent $13,600 to the Moravian Institute in Rajpur, India, to help with various needs resulting from Covid-19. These funds are being used to mitigate the spread of the virus by ensuring that students and staff can receive Covid vaccines.
The Moravian Disaster Response Fund is the most effective tool to respond quickly to natural disasters that strike around our Moravian world. Moravians in the U.S. can donate online at http://moravianmission.org/give/ or mail donations to Board of World Mission, 1021 Center Street, Bethlehem, PA 18018. Please indicate that your gift is for “MDR.” Moravians in Canada can mail donations to Moravian Church in Canada, 600 Acadia Drive SE, Calgary, AB T2J 0B8. Interac e-Transfer donations may be sent to [email protected]. In the comments section, mark the donations as “MDR” and include your name and address to receive a tax receipt.
The Moravian Church in Newfoundland and Labrador holds 2021 Synod
The Moravian Church in Newfoundland and Labrador (MCNL) held their Synod in November in Happy Valley – Goose Bay. The four congregations of the Province were each represented in the 11 delegates that were present along with Bishops Paul Graf and Chris Giesler, who joined by phone.
Sister Sarah Jensen was re-elected and will continue her leadership as chairperson of the Mission Province. Moving into the future, a goal in the church is to support lay leaders across the four congregations as well as to encourage the three church members who are currently on the path to ordination. The Synod also affirmed the energy present in the Hopedale Congregation, which has a successful Bible study, youth group, and Sunday school. The Board of World Mission looks forward to supporting the MCNL as they look to the future.
Labrador’s new provincial board members include Sarah Jensen from Hopedale, who serves as provincial board chairperson; Joan Dicker from Nain; Liz Evans-Mitchell from Makkovik; Judy Dicker from Hopedale; and Bertha Holeite from Happy Valley. MCNL is the only Moravian Province that has a provincial board made up entirely of women.
