A very special day at Atsikana Walani College and a highlight of the Herrnhuter Missionshilfe (HM) project trip to Malawi: in addition to the German ambassador Ute König, important representatives from UNHCR, TEVETA, the Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST) and the police were also present in mid-October. Everyone was enthusiastic about the work that is done here every day to enable young women to have a better future through education. For the girls, but also for the HMH staff, it was an unforgettable highlight that once again emphasized the importance of education and training. The local project partner, MoHDevS, was also highly praised for its commitment. A day full of inspiration and appreciation for everyone! Here is a brief overview of the people present: HE. Ute Konig - German Ambassador, Roberline Flore Tozwen Teunkwa - UNHCR Senior Protection Officer/Deputy, Priscilla Kalumo - UNHCR Education Associate, Gloria Nyang'iye - UNHCR Public Relations, Elwin Sichiola - TEVETA Executive Director, Dr. Duncane Batizani - MUST Deputy Registrar - Academics, Dr. Bonet Kamwana - MUST Senior Lecturer, Dr. Petros Chigwechokha - MUST Senior Lecturer, Superintendent Mwakasyaya - Station Officer Lumbadzi Police.

On October 19, 2024, the Palestinian TV station Wattan Media Network aired a half-hour interview with Abeer Hamad, head of the rehabilitation department at the Star Mountain Rehabilitation Center (SMRC) near Ramallah (Palestine/West Bank). See here. The topic of the discussion was “Access to protection and services for women with disabilities in times of war”. The long-standing special education teacher emphasized that in times of war and crisis, the violence and challenges faced by women, especially women with disabilities, multiply. Women with disabilities who are subjected to violence are not admitted to emergency shelters. Even the supply of medication to people with disabilities is not guaranteed due to roadblocks set up by the Israeli military. In times of war, no one can hope to have their national and international rights respected.

Jørgen Bøytler (Christiansfeld/DK), the Unity Board Administrator, has published a two-page Message to the Unity on behalf of the body he manages. See here. It begins: “The Moravian Church is constantly growing. It maintains its identity and is dedicated to new and established tasks despite persecution and changing conditions. In particular, it should be noted that Christians in new mission areas want to found a Moravian Church in various countries. In some parts of the world, Christian churches, including the Moravian Church, face problems due to difficult political and religious restrictions. The world is changing and the Moravian Church is dealing with new circumstances, unrest, economic crises and, in some cases, a lack of religious freedom and unjust economic conditions. Nevertheless, we give thanks to our “General Elder!” (the General Elder is the highest leadership position in the Moravian Church, which Jesus Christ has held since 1742).

Justin Rabbach, CEO of the Board of World Mission (BWM) of the Moravian Church in North America, visited Zambia in October 2024 to negotiate the conclusion of a new partnership agreement. Highlights of the trip included a tour of the solar system in the Moravian Church's kindergarten and vocational training center in Lusaka, which was jointly financed by the BWM and Herrnhuter Missionshilfe. This project provides important educational institutions of the local Moravian Church with sustainably generated energy in the face of persistent, nationwide power shortages. Justin Rabbach also had the opportunity to meet with the church leadership of the still young Unity Province of Zambia. The relationships are to be intensified in the future and social-diaconal activities are to be coordinated in advance. The guest from the USA was impressed by the generous hospitality he received throughout the country during his visit. Some pictures here.

Members of the Moravian Church from the two Unity Provinces in North America have completed a course on immigration of foreigners. Judy Ganz, the head of the Unity Women's Board, reported on this on Facebook on October 15, 2024. See here. Her post stated: “The immigration dilemma is one of the most complex issues facing society in North America today. It is not limited to the United States; millions of people are forced to leave their homes for a variety A seven-person group from the Moravian Church recently learned about six training modules on migration issues over a period of six months and is now working to define what role, if any, our church can play in addressing migration issues in our context. It is important to recognize that migration has been a central part of human identity since the beginning of time.”

The Moravian Congregation in Nyange (Burundi, Kirundo Province) is currently building a large church. An encouraging service was held in the half-finished building on October 6, 2024, with a sermon based on Nehemiah 2:18: “Let us go and build this house, and so we pledged ourselves to this good work.” During the service, thanks were expressed to all those who had eagerly participated in the construction of the church, and a large amount of money was collected in donations, even though most of the parishioners live in very simple houses themselves. The poor did not just want to build the house of God, they wanted to be the house of God. Zacharie Hakizimana, the General Secretary of the Moravian Church in Burundi, promised that the church leadership would stand by the new congregation in all development-related activities and help it solve problems. Damascène Rurangwa, the pastor of the congregation, bid farewell to those in attendance and gave the blessing. To the news item and many pictures here.

In the first half of October 2024, the International Kindergarten & Shristi Academy of the Moravian Church in Kathmandu-Baneshwor, Nepal, drew attention to itself and its various educational offers with several advertisements on Facebook. See here and here and here and here. At the end of September 2024, there was already a Happy Grandparents Day. See here. The special profile of the kindergarten and the school, which is still being developed, was highlighted: the Montessori approach, the many educational opportunities outside of the school premises, the experimental and research-based approach to teaching (Turning The Class Room Into a Discovery Zone), on learning through play, on the importance of art, movement and music, on foreign language teaching, on the effort to provide emotional care for children (Emotional Regulation) and on promoting children's social skills from the first day of school.

After more than ten years in Canada, the injustice done to the children at the residential schools for Inuit on the way of their forced assimilation has been recognized by the state and also by the churches, and appropriate efforts for reconciliation, healing and financial restitution have begun. This process is now finally also getting underway in the United States and in distant Alaska. A bill to establish a Truth and Healing Commission under the leadership of the Yup'ik is about to be passed (Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act). An article by the Alasca Beacon news agency reported on this as early as August 2024, which can be read here in German. The article, which cites the number of 1,000 Yup'ik boarding school children in Alaska who have died or been raped and murdered, also mentions in passing the Moravian Children's Home near Bethel, AK, which was operated by the Moravian Church on behalf of the state.

On October 23, 2024, the Surinam newspaper De ware Tijd reported on the release of a new card game with educational value to be used in schools across the country. See here in Dutch. The public presentation of the game was attended by Henry Ori, the Minister of Education, Science and Culture, and Sandra Panka-Bijlhout, the director of the Moravian Church School Foundation in Suriname, who supported the project. The Surinamese version of the game (Kunstkwartet Suriname) is based on a successful Dutch quartet game (Kunstkwartet Curaçao). The game consists of twelve quartets on various forms of visual art: four Surinamese artists and their work are presented in this way. “The game offers children the opportunity to come into contact with Surinamese art in a playful way. It also helps children to find their identity,” said the minister. It is being distributed free of charge to 500 primary and secondary schools in Suriname. The teaching package consists of the quartet game, a teacher's manual, instructions for the game and an information booklet. It can be downloaded from www.KunstKwartet.org nd even played digitally.

Twenty-four pictures from the Christian David School in Barkava, Latvia, show a golden and varied autumn of 2024. See here. Guests from Germany were welcomed at the school twice. The first were Johannes Welschen and Martin Theile, who were on a pastoral visit to Latvia on behalf of the Provincial Board of PEC. Photo here. On the other hand, a large truck with relief supplies from the Lettlandhilfe e. V. association, based in Schönebeck (Elbe), had arrived and had to be unloaded. Then the nearby Teiču dabas rezervāts with its many natural treasures was explored. Further activities in the fall of 2024: We will learn how to behave with a dog and how to train it; a school sports festival; a course in tree planting and tree care; several harvesting activities for the school's self-sufficiency and corresponding harvesting fun.