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Mennonite Central Committee is asking churches and Bible study groups to set aside one Sunday in April to pray for the people in war-torn Yugoslavia. Specific requests for prayer are:
* For the men being forcibly conscripted into the military, and for the fearful women and children left behind.
* For Christians who are ministering to neighbours, including one woman in Pancevo, a city across the Danube River from Belgrade. She has become a "trauma counsellor" for panicky residents of her apartment building.
* That a large chemical refinery near Pancevo not be hit by bombs. Those living nearby fear toxic chemicals could spew out.
* For the 100,000 refugees near Belgrade. Unconfirmed reports on Mar. 26 indicated that some refugee housing may have been hit by bombs. As well, some people still remember the horrors from the last bombing raid in World War II.
MCC also has produced a 5-minute video featuring refugee children Sladjana and Bozho Todonc. Narrated by Bozho, "Serbia: Sladjana's Journey" tells how the family fled Croatia because of war and now live in Serbia. The video includes a study guide with learning activities about refugees and an explanation of how to guide a group in forgiveness exercise, based on a bread-breaking tradition in Serbia. The video is available from provincial MCC offices.
Due to personnel transitions, MCC currently has no volunteers in Serbia. However, five volunteers remain in the region. Amy Gopp of Kent, Ohio, is in Sarajevo. John Wall and Karin Kaufman Wall, at the request of the organization they work with, moved from Banja Luka to Bihoc, Bosnia. The couple is from North Newton, Kan., and Parker, S.D. Gerhard and Katharina Neufeld of Winnipeg are in Croatia.--MCC release
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