Covenant News

Pastoral Letter on War Added to Resources

CHICAGO, IL (March 28, 2003) - A pastoral letter designed to provide a sense of context and perspective for Christians as they ponder the war in Iraq has been added to the package of new resources that are now available online at this Evangelical Covenant Church website.

The letter was written by Covenant pastor Stephen Bilynskyj for use with his own congregation at Valley Covenant Church in Eugene, Oregon. It joins five other categories of material to be found under a special link on the Covenant home page called: Prayers & Liturgies for Times of War, a package of material assembled by Art Greco, director of prayer and evangelism in the Department of Church Growth and Evangelism. An earlier story detailing the material contained in this new resource package will be found elsewhere in the full Covenant news report.

"I wanted to share a pastoral letter I read to my congregation Sunday morning (March 23) before we prayed together," Bilynskyj stated in a note to Don Meyer, executive minister of the Department of Communication. "It addresses tension and conflict we've experienced among us regarding the war. At least one other church has found the letter on our web site and is using it in their congregation. So, I thought it might be helpful to others."

"We've received a number of requests asking for some kind of statement suitable for use in local church settings," Meyer said. "Although this letter is not a denominational document, it does provide an excellent model for churches to consider."

To obtain a copy of the letter, visit Pastoral Letter on War

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