The new edition of Weltweit verbunden has been published. It focuses on the anniversary of 300 years of educational work in the Moravian Church. The first school was established in Herrnhut in 1724, even before the church was actually founded. As the missionary work spread, so did the educational work. There were schools for children at the mission stations, as well as kindergartens, women's groups and vocational training centres. Today, a wide network of educational institutions has developed. Many schools and children are supported by HMH. The magazine presents some of the schools and educational institutions. We hope you enjoy reading.

At the beginning of the year, the construction of the new kindergarten of the Moravian Mission Province on the island of Pemba was completed. A playground, materials and furniture were gradually added. At the beginning of February, the time had finally come: 20 overjoyed children entered the project rooms for the first time. There are now 25 children, who are looked after by an educator. A cook has also been employed to prepare a daily meal for the children. A special focus is also placed here on children in need. These are supported and encouraged with the help of scholarships. Herrnhuter Missionshilfe would like to thank all donors who have made this project possible.

The Board of HMH presented the 2023/2024 annual report just in time for the annual conference and general meeting of Herrnhuter Missionshilfe. It provides an overview of the projects at home and abroad that took place during the reporting period. The focus is on the Walani women's project in Malwi and the expansion of the Herrnhut Academy in Zanzibar, but the 300th anniversary of education is not forgotten either. Of course, there is also an overview of all programmes and key data from the 2023 budget. The annual report can be downloaded under Service/Downloads or directly here.

The first women's project of the Moravian Church in Mzuzu, Malawi has now officially started. There is an active Moravian Congregation in Lumbadzi, 20 kilometres north of Mzuzu. Under the name "Our hope, our business", 18 women started a sewing and handicraft group with great support from the congregation. They were equipped with sewing machines and have been trained in business management for over a year. In addition, numerous meetings and creative sessions were held to discuss topics such as customer acquisition and goals. Rev Juliana Miamba and Kristin Hentschel see the project as a great opportunity for the women to generate their own income in the near future and thus take a first step out of poverty. Good luck!

On 22/23 May 2024, representatives of Moravian mission organisations from eight countries came together in Christiansfeld near Kolding (Jutland) in Denmark: Germany (Herrnhuter Missionshilfe), the Netherlands (Zeister Zendingsgenootschap), Switzerland (Herrnhuter Mission Schweiz in Mission 21), the USA and Canada (Board of World Mission), the United Kingdom (British Mission Board), Sweden (Evangeliska Brödraförsamlingen) and Denmark (Brødremenighedens Danske Mission). This annual meeting helps the missionary organisations to cooperate with each other and ensure that the projects of the individual organisations complement each other. This year's debate focussed on theological training and support for new mission areas. Some photos from the annual meeting here.

The two provinces of the Moravian Church in Honduras (Unity Province and Mission Province) have been working together for several years in an informal group called Yamnika Laya (Blessings Flow).  They have coordinated a water filtration project with the long-term goal of reaching around 100,000 households in La Mosquitia. On 22 April, we distributed 220 filters in the village of Kuhrpa. Yamnika Laya has set its sights on the north-east coast of the Caratasca Lagoon as the next area to distribute water filters. The funds donated by the Sturgeon Bay Moravian Church will cover the cost of repairing a well drilling rig owned by the Clínica Evangélica Morava in Ahuas. A work team from Sturgeon Bay painted the main building of the clinic in April and repaired one of the houses for the inpatients.  A dental team treated 125 patients in two villages and extracted 175 teeth. A work team from North Carolina sent additional funds to complete work started in February on a student house.  The bean harvest has been severely affected by the drought, while rice seeds purchased with funds from Samaritan's Purse will be distributed before the heavy rains in early June. Three Mískito students received scholarships to take part in a one-month cocoa training programme at the university in La Ceiba.  They will use the knowledge they acquire to support cocoa projects in Wisplini and Kihpani.  We hope to find funds to purchase Mískito Bibles, which are currently not available in Honduras.  Yamnika Laya and the North American Moravian Board of World Mission BWM hope to continue working with organisations such as Feed the Hungry, Convoy of Hope, One Atta Time and Samaritan's Purse to provide food, water filters, medicine and seeds to the often overlooked region of La Mosquitia. The entire report in English here.

Bishop Joachim Kreusel, Ockbrook/GB, writes from Mbeya, the headquarters of the Southwest Province of the Moravian Church in Tanzania. "The consecration of Robert Pangani as a Bishop of the Moravian Church took place on Sunday, 2 June 2024, on the grounds of the Moravian Church's Teofilo Kisanji University in Mbeya. Robert Pangani and his wife Bahati as well as Demetria, Amani, Haruni and Placseda, the couple's children, send you their warmest greetings and thank you for all your love and faithful intercession. Here are some impressions of the six-hour service in Mbeya. See here (please scroll down!). Bishop Ezekiel Yona, another Moravian bishop in Tanzania, preached about Joshua, the successor of Moses, and God's word to him: 'As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will never leave you nor forsake you' (Joshua 1:5). The Deputy Prime Minister of Tanzania, Dr Doto Biteko, conveyed the government's greetings and called on Tanzanians to maintain peace, unity and love and never be divided for any reason. In one photo, the new bishop is wearing a Rongmei Naga Scarf, a gift from the Moravian Church of Binnakandi in the Indian state of Assam, as a sign of unity across continents."

In mid-June 2024, the Danish online magazine Sennepskornet (Mustard Seed) published an interview with a Moravian pastor from Tanzania's Western Province: Benjamin Kamagi, who is the district pastor in Sikonge and, together with several evangelists, responsible for 15,000 Christians in twelve congregations. See in Danish here. Benjamin Kamagi had a good job in the civil service, but then decided to become a pastor. After four years of study at Lusangi Bible School in Sikonge, he realised his dream of becoming a pastor. As a child he sang in the children's choir of the Moravian Church, he was confirmed in the 7th grade and two years later he joined the army, where he also joined the CCM (Chama cha Mapinduzi = Party of the Revolution) and received training to become a leader in agriculture. But he did not want to be a party soldier; in a dream, God called him to be a pastor. He now primarily looks after the Christians, but not exclusively for them - and is happy doing so.

In Suriname, an important day of celebration, Keti-Koti Day, approaches every year on 1 July: the day commemorating the liberation of slaves in 1863. The Moravian Church Youth Centre in Paramaribo is also taking part in the celebrations under the motto Celebrating freedom - sharing faith. There will be a colourful programme from 9 am to 5 pm. See here: a church service in the Great City Church, a concert by a house band, delicious Surinamese food, exciting games for children and young people, an indoor football tournament with a pastor's team. A koto and designer show is sure to be very popular again. Participation with your own clothing designs is expressly encouraged. Registrations until 22 June 2024, see here. The Koto, a wide skirt of Surinamese-African origin, is a garment made of a lot of fabric that was worn during the time of slavery to cover the female body as much as possible.

Almost every calendar day throughout the year is dedicated to commemorating a historical event, a special need or an important issue. In 2024, the United Nations called for the first time for 11 June 2024 to be celebrated every year as World Play Day. See here. The School Foundation of the Moravian Church in Suriname complied with the United Nations' request. Five pictures here.The 11th of June is therefore dedicated to children's right to a carefree and happy life. For millions of children, everyday life is so tedious that they hardly get to play, if at all. Surveys have shown that 59 percent of children worldwide would like to have more time to play than they currently have. More information and lots of suggestions here. The United Nations is calling: "Tell your families, your friends, your network about the power of play."

On the island of Barbados and elsewhere in the Caribbean, female scouts have been called brownies for decades - not without controversy. These groups compete with each other for special achievements. The best Brownies are honoured every month. On Saturday, 15 June 2024, the Brownie Month Service was held at the Calvary Moravian Church in Bridgetown, Barbados, with the presentation of the flags of the Girl Scout groups. Pictures here and here. Rosemary Lynch, Chair of the Board of Elders at Calvary Moravian Church, received the flags carried into the church by the Brownies and placed them next to the liturgy table during the honouring ceremony. + A few days earlier, Cheryl Clarke had been honoured in the church by many people and groups as she retired from her ministry at Grace Hill Moravian Pre-School. Lots of pictures here.

The Moravian Church in Burundi recently presented certificates to numerous participants in an ecumenical workshop. They wrote on Facebook: "The certification took place on Sunday 2 June 2024 at the Moravian Church Bujumbura. 26 participants had completed a training organised by an association called Transformation Christian Studies under the leadership of Pastor Daniel from Tanzania, who also acted as a teacher at the training. Also present at the ceremony was Bishop Pascal Benimana, the president of the Moravian Church in Burundi, as well as Pastor Irene, who represented the above-mentioned Tanzanian association, and a pastor from Sweden. This workshop will be followed by another workshop in about a month's time, during which the participants will have to put into practice what they have learnt in the first training session. The participants in the workshop came from various churches." Some pictures here.

Home Moravian Church in Winston-Salem, NC hosted a large Mission Awareness Dinner for the Southern Province Mission Society of the Moravian Church in North America on 2 June 2024, a fundraising event to share a meal and learn about mission issues. Five pictures here. Sylvie Hauser, the Moravian Church's Board of World Mission's Director of Communications and Development, spoke in particular about the provision of clean drinking water to indigenous people in the Honduran Mosquitia, i.e. the very successful Blessings Flow project. Bishop Samuel Gray asked some of the eleven-year-olds present what they thought of this project. They were asked to respond to the question: "Water, what are you doing for Jesus?" In keeping with the theme, a music group from the host congregation played pieces of music that had something to do with water. The dinner participants were served delicious Jamaican Jerk Chicken.

Following the recent elective synod of the Moravian Church in Labrador, a mission province of the worldwide Moravian Church, Bishop Chris Giesler (Bethlehem/PA) of the Board of World Mission of the Moravian Church in North America was able to stay in the Arctic region for quite some time to meet with leaders of the province and to hold workshops on the history and theology of the Moravian Church and the direction of its biblical proclamation. Chris Giesler also preached at the Sunday service of the Happy Valley congregation. The Board of World Mission is grateful to the members of the Moravian Church in Labrador for inviting it to the Synod and for being involved in the province's ongoing projects. Two pictures from one of the workshops with Chris Giesler here. Most of the church work of the Moravian Church in Labrador is done by lay people, but recently some of the lay people have managed to qualify theologically.

The International Kindergarten & Shristi Academy of the Moravian Church in Kathmanu-Baneshwor, Nepal, reports on three recent events on Facebook. Firstly, it says: "Our 7th and 9th grade children heard old stories and timeless melodies at the Music Museum of Nepal. They visited the heart of Nepalese folk music and saw fascinating instruments." See here. Elections for the new student representatives were then held at the academy. It was reported: "It is important for the children to experience democracy in action. It is important for them to have a person they trust on the student council." See here. Finally, an excursion to the Ekadeshma Agrocultural Centre was organised with children from the 4th and 5th grade, "a wonderful opportunity for the children to get to know village life and learn about traditional agricultural technologies." See here.