Lausanne World Pulse – News Briefs
AROUND THE WORLD: World Vision International President to Retire in 2010
World Vision International (WVI) president, Dean Hirsch, announced he will retire in September 2010. Hirsch has served as chief executive since 1996. WVI board chair Denis St. Amour noted that the organization has seen its revenue grow from 550 million USD to 2.4 billion USD under Hirsch. Hirsch has also made public advocacy an integral part of WVI’s work and mounted major campaigns responding to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the Asian tsunami, child mortality and malnutrition, and the recent food crisis. St. Amour added that Hirsch returned WVI’s focus to children in need. (World Vision International)
AROUND THE WORLD: NIV Bible Version Available for Download to Cell Phone
First published in 1979, the New International Version (NIV) is currently the most popular English Bible translation in the world. Now the NIV will be downloadable to cell phones, thanks to a partnership between Ecumen, a company that provides downloadable Christian content, and United Kingdom Christian publisher, Hodder and Stoughton. Cost to download is approximately 15USD. For more information, go to: www.ecumen.com or www.hodderchristianbooks.co.uk. (ASSIST News)
AZERBAIJAN: Global Advance Conference Well Received
Global Advance (GA) recently held a well-received Frontline Shepherds Conference in Azerbaijan. This is the second conference GA has held in the country. It carried a lively atmosphere not present during the first conference, which was held two weeks after 11 September 2001. Enthusiastic church leaders have asked the GA team to return in the future, saying the training received accurately addressed their needs. Outside of the Russian Orthodox Church, there are approximately ten thousand active Christians in this country of over eight million people. (Global Advance)
BELARUS: Belarusians Seek Help from EU in Struggle for Religious Freedom
On 27 May 2008, Belarusians presented a petition, which calls for the revision of a 2002 law restricting religious freedom, to European Parliament president Hans-Gert Pöttering. The Belarusian government had rejected the petition, which was signed by 50,400 people, saying it was not carried out properly. An additional petition was also filed by Belarusians asking the European Union to take action on the issue of religious freedom in their country. Stuart Windsor, national director of Christian Solidarity Worldwide, remarked that little has changed in Belarus since the days of the Soviet Union; however, Christians there are gathering across denominational lines to demand their right to worship freely. (Christian Solidarity Worldwide)
COLOMBIA: Christians Meet with Left-Wing Rebels over Church Closures
Netherlands-based Open Doors International recently met with Colombian left-wing rebels to discuss the closure of more than 130 churches in the country as well as death threats against Colombian Christians. Both left-wing rebels and right-wing paramilitaries have forced church closures, according to Open Doors, an organization devoted to helping persecuted Christians. Commanders of the left-wing Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) can order Christians put to death for violating rebel orders. FARC rules prohibit preaching against violence. Ongoing conflict in Colombia has killed an estimated forty thousand people in the last decade alone. FARC founder Manuel Marulanda recently died of a heart attack; however, it is unclear how his death will affect the situation of Christians as well as scores of hostages held by rebels. Under Marulanda, FARC grew to seventeen thousand members, controlling large parts of the country. Some believe rebel forces have weakened with several top leaders killed and one commander deserting in the past year. (Bos News Life)
INDIA: Five Thousand Tribal People Attend Rural Convention
Five thousand people from various tribes gathered in rural Maharashtra, India, recently for Christian fellowship and worship. The 2-day conference, which was organized by native missionaries from Gospel for Asia (GFA), witnessed attendees traveling by foot and other simple means in order to reach its location about thirty kilometers from the nearest town. Along with mealtime fellowship, worship songs in different tribal languages were shared during an evening meeting that continued late into the night. The conference ended with a pledge to share the gospel with many more of the area’s people in the coming days. (Gospel for Asia)
LATIN AMERICA: WEA Theological Commission Deepens Latin American Connections
In April, the World Evangelical Alliance Theological Commission (TC) furthered connections with Latin America during an extensive tour by its executive director, Dr. David Parker. The tour covered five countries: Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Peru, and Guatemala, and included visits to seminaries and universities, and meetings with theological groups. Planning to hold its annual meeting in Latin America in 2009, the TC also hopes to appoint a Spanish-speaking theologian to its top board to represent the area’s fast-growing Christian community. Next year’s meeting will also involve a consultation to address important issues facing the Church in Latin America. This year’s TC meeting will be in Bangkok, Thailand. (World Evangelical Alliance)
MYANMAR: GFA Aid Received in Yangon
Gospel for Asia’s (GFA) first shipment of relief supplies reached Myanmar in May 2008 and was received by the GFA/Believers Church. GFA’s local churches and its national leader have a good relationship with government leaders as a result of previous service during the country’s times of need. Despite media reports of aid supplies being diverted, GFA has assurances that shipments will reach the victims. The Myanmar government has also granted permission for GFA to open medical clinics in its four hundred churches within the country. In Rangoon, GFA’s Bible college is serving as a shelter, although its buildings are badly damaged. Storm toll estimates vary from 78,000 to 127,000 dead and as many as 2.5 million people left homeless. GFA’s five hundred native missionaries in Myanmar will continue to serve victims long term. In addition to GFA’s efforts, World Vision International (WVI) and Samaritan’s Purse (SP) also continue to send aid, with WVI raising more than ten million USD and SP sending sixty tons of supplies from Thailand into Myanmar. (Gospel for Asia)
PHILIPPINES: Fast-Growing Church Ministers to Filipinos at Home and Abroad
Founded in 1981, the Free Believers in Christ Fellowship (FBCF) is one of the fastest-growing evangelical churches in the Philippines, a predominantly Roman Catholic nation. With its beginnings in Bible studies done in a small business office, the FBCF now reaches into China, Hong Kong, North America, Europe, and the Middle East. FBCF’s founder, Bishop Moses Chungalao, and assistant senior pastor William Guzman, say that rather than proselytizing, the church’s growth can be attributed to the working of the Holy Spirit, responding to invitations people make to hear the gospel and passionate examples of service to God. Guzman oversees 263 established churches in the Philippines, with registered members numbering about ten thousand. Meanwhile Chungalao, now in London, concentrates on the fellowship’s overseas mission work, which encompasses fifty-seven churches and outreaches catering to Filipino migrant workers in Asia, Europe, North America, and the Middle East. (Ecumenical News International)
SUDAN: Border Area Taken by Northern Forces
International Christian Concern (ICC), a Washington, D.C.-based human rights group, reports Northern Sudanese troops have taken control of Abeyi, an oil-rich border area of conflict between Khartoum government forces (SAF) and the Southern Sudanese Peoples Liberation Army. This takeover is in direct violation of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the North and South. Indications are that ninety percent of homes in the area were burned down and thousands of people have been displaced. ICC says the SAF has begun ethnic cleansing in Abeyi, displacing the South Sudanese and moving in North Sudanese. A referendum is slated to be voted on in 2011, whereby the people of Abeyi will decide whether to be part of North or South Sudan. (International Christian Concern)
UNITED KINGDOM: UK Celebrates Global Day of Prayer
As one of at least 201 nations participating, the UK marked the fourth annual Global Day of Prayer on Pentecost Sunday with events in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Under the theme “Your Kingdom Come, on Earth as in Heaven,” thousands of Christians of all denominations and traditions gathered in London’s Millwall Stadium, praying particularly for communities plagued by violent crime. Inspired by 2 Chronicles 7:14, South African businessman Graham Power founded the Global Day of Prayer movement almost ten years ago. London organizers hope to hold their event at Wembley Stadium in 2010. (ASSIST News)
UNITED STATES: World Mission Centre Launches Arabic Translation of Live School
In March 2008, the World Mission Centre (WMC) introduced the Arabic translation of its Live School curriculum, a practical training tool used to equip indigenous people for the task of spreading the gospel. After a presentation with three hundred Arab church leaders attending, WMC was inundated with requests for Live School course sets. However, presenters had only ten sets to pass out. WMC is appealing to individuals and churches to help fund production of more sets. The next scheduled Live School translation will be into Swahili. (Live School)
UNITED STATES: Leaders of Homeless Missions Gather Together
The Association of Gospel Rescue Missions (AGRM) held its 95th annual convention in Dallas, Texas, 23-28 May 2008, with approximately 650 rescue mission leaders attending. The conference addressed the latest methods in providing care for hungry, homeless, abused, and addicted individuals. Founded in 1913, AGRM represents about three hundred rescue missions, collectively working in areas of rehabilitation, education, job training, and life-skills programming. Often working without government funding, these missions serve forty-two million meals and provide fifteen million nights of lodging each year. In addition, more than eighteen thousand people graduated from addiction-recovery programs run by the missions. (Association of Gospel Rescue Missions)
ZIMBABWE: Open-air Prayer Meetings Banned
As Zimbabwe faces waves of politically-motivated violence, police have imposed a ban on open-air prayer meetings in parts of the country. Churches in Bulawayo, a coalition of churches in the nation’s second largest city, reports open prayer meetings may take place only on church premises. Churches in Bulawayo has been openly critical of President Robert Mugabe, as have other religious groups, such as the Christian Alliance. Groups such as Churches in Bulawayo and the YWCA are providing shelter for families displaced by violence. (Ecumenical News International)
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AROUND THE WORLD: World Food Crisis Leads to Scaling Back Assistance
World Vision (WV), which provides nearly 450,000 metric tons of food to some thirty countries, says soaring food costs and unmet donor-nation aid commitments may result in a twenty-three percent decrease in the number of people it can feed this year. The crisis will also prevent the launch of new food aid projects. WV is calling on donor governments to help with the World Food Program’s 755 million USD shortfall. It also hopes the upcoming G8 conference will address the crisis. WV director of advocacy and government relations Robert Kachritz asserts both short and long-term solutions are needed, involving long-range agricultural development, improved credit access for farmers, and enactment of fair trade policies. (World Vision)
AROUND THE WORLD: Food for the Hungry Responds to Global Food Crisis
As rapid increases in staple food prices continue, many of the world’s poor are being forced to sell tools, goats, and other livestock in order to survive. Food for the Hungry (FH), which provides emergency relief and development programs to more than twenty-six countries, is responding to the crisis in areas with the greatest need. FH is using their successful voucher system to help families obtain food locally and is providing dried food packets containing rice, soy protein, and vitamins. FH is also intensifying food production in rural areas with the goal of increasing production by twenty percent. (Food for the Hungry)
BRAZIL: Replica Train Stations Trace History of Scripture in Brazil
Three replica train stations have been erected at the Museum of the Bible in Barueri, São Paulo, as part of an exhibition to trace the history of the Holy Scriptures in Brazil. In recent years, the Bible Society of Brazil, which is responsible for the museum, has distributed six million Bibles, New Testaments, and portions of the scriptures throughout Brazil. The three train stations that make up the “Paths of the Bible in Brazil” exhibition are intended to draw attention to the beginnings of Bible work in Brazil, the distribution of the Holy Scriptures, and their influence. The platforms of the stations show the historical sequence of the presence of the Bible in Brazil from 1808 to the present. (Ecumenical News International)
ETHIOPIA: Medical Aid Sent to Ethiopian Jews
Jewish Voice Ministries International (JVMI) reports bringing medical relief to the “poorest Jewish communities on earth.” From 24 March–8 April 2008, a team of ninety volunteers served in Addis Ababa and Gondar, Ethiopia. The group, led by JVMI executive director Jonathan Bernis, included thirty-three healthcare professionals, who provided aid to the Beta Avraham and Beta Israel communities and their neighbors. JVMI visually documented the effort and is compiling its footage. (Jewish Voice Ministries International)
GHANA: President Urges for a Reintroduction of Religious and Moral Education
President John Agyekum Kufuor of Ghana has instructed authorities of basic schools in the country to revisit the teaching of Religious and Moral Education (RME), which hitherto had been removed from the syllabus. The president expressed displeasure about the negative moral impact of globalization on the youth through the mass media. He therefore urged the school children to balance their academic learning with that of their moral duty. While Christians and Muslims embraced the directive of the president to reintroduce the RME into the basic school’s curriculum, a traditional African religious group, the Africanian Mission, did not see the idea as good news. For them, the teaching of RME would promote foreign culture at the expense of African values. (ASSIST News Service)
HAITI: Food Shortage Impacts Church of the Nazarene
The current food crisis in the Republic of Haiti stems from rapidly rising food prices fueled by the worldwide oil crisis. The price of rice and beans, staples in Haiti, has risen dramatically in the past few months. Rice has more than doubled in price in the last 120 days, affecting every one of the more than 100,000 Nazarenes in the country. Six percent of the membership of the Church of the Nazarene live in Haiti. For the past year, Haiti Nazarene Compassionate Ministries (NCM) coordinator Walliere Pierre has helped the Church in Haiti raise money to be used in times of disaster. Haiti field strategy coordinator Bill Dawson has been working with Pierre and NCM to develop a plan to respond to the food shortage. The food crisis has also impacted the Nazarene seminary. The seminary is one of six in the country authorized by the government to offer the bachelor of theology degree. Even before the latest food price increases, approximately fifty percent of the seminary’s annual budget was used to feed the students. Now the seminary is struggling to give three meals a day to the students in residence. Mission employees and pastors have been hit hard by these food prices as well. (Church of the Nazarene)
IRELAND: Largest Evangelistic Event in Nearly Five Decades
Nearly thirty-three thousand people attended Franklin Graham’s first Festival of Northern Ireland, the area’s largest evangelistic event since Billy Graham visited in 1961. More than 385 churches united for the Celebration of Hope at the Odyssey Arena in Belfast. “Not long ago, people thought Belfast was a hopeless city because of the troubles,” said Lord Mayor of Belfast, Jim Rodgers. “Now is the time for the Celebration of Hope, and this visit by Franklin Graham is an opportunity to change lives.” The Belfast Celebration of Hope marked the first Franklin Graham Festival to be streamed live on the Internet on www.billygraham.org. (Billy Graham Evangelistic Association)
ISRAEL: Caspari Center Celebrates Twenty-five Years
The Caspari Center, which seeks to train and educate leaders for the Body of Christ in Israel, recently celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary. Caspari offers leadership training and Shabbat School teachers’ seminars, maintains a library, sponsors tours and study trips, and authors books relevant to believers’ daily needs and the history of the Jewish people. It is believed there are nearly seven thousand believers worshipping in one hundred congregations in Israel. (Caspari Center)
KAZAKHSTAN: Kazakhstan Weighs Stricter Religion Law
Kazakhstan’s lower chamber of parliament has passed new laws creating greater restrictions on foreign missionaries and evangelical churches. Among other concerns, the new law: imposes quotas of missionaries allowed in Kazakhstan, strictly limits the distribution of religious material, and prohibits the acceptance of anonymous or foreign donations by religious organizations in the country. Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev must approve the legislation for it to become law. As this is further evidence of ministry doors closing in the former Soviet Union, Slavic Gospel Association president Dr. Robert Provost urges Christians for fervent ongoing prayer. (ASSIST News)
POLAND: Evangelistic Campaign in Poland a Huge Success
Response to the evangelistic campaign ProChrist in Poland overwhelmed organizers, as approximately twenty thousand visitors made decisions for Christ. The campaign, held in April 2008, was a joint venture of Lutheran, Presbyterian, Methodist, and Baptist churches working with the regional Ecumenical Council and the Catholic Fokolar Movement. ProChrist began in 1993, when Billy Graham preached in Essen, Germany. Fifty-two churches in and around the city of Katowice will provide spiritual follow-up. (ASSIST News)
RUSSIA: Competing for the Next Generation
For nearly ten years, the Moscow Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church (MP ROC) has sought to promote its “Foundations of Russian Orthodox Culture” as a compulsory school subject, to try to win children and young people. This divides children by religion and has led to the persecution of “sectarians” (including Protestants), even in schools. The MP ROC also wants to stop children’s ministries in Protestant churches, including Sunday School. A Methodist church in Smolensk was liquidated by a court order after a complaint by a Russian Orthodox Bishop. The church was found guilty of giving religious education without an educational license—in a Sunday school of just four children. (World Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission)
TURKEY: Musical Ministry Tours Turkey
TACO, a creative arts ministry started by OM International, recently toured four cities in Turkey, spreading the gospel with music and audience interaction. The group reported fifty-two requests for biblical literature and thirty-one requests for further conversation about Jesus. “From now on I want to be informed of all your events. I want to meet with someone to talk more about Jesus Christ,” said one attendee. (OM International)
TURKEY: New Testaments Distributed, Companies Established, Christians Trained
Over 500,000 New Testaments have been distributed throughout Turkey, Aslan International (AI) reports. Four New Testament book companies have also been established, and Turkish believers are being trained and sent out to evangelize. In 1987, the first coordinated effort to distribute Turkish New Testaments began. Despite many threats, arrests, and harassments, AI continues its ministry in the country. According to its website, “Praying for the sick, transforming lives, planting churches, training nationals is all a part of Aslan’s vision. Ministry means risk, desperation, new frontiers, and a passion for souls.” (Aslan International)
UNITED KINGDOM: Christians Attempt One Million Hours of Kindness
British Christians are being challenged to donate one million hours of kindness as part of Hope 08, a nationwide grassroots mission. The effort, called “HOPE Where You Live,” is the third of Hope 08’s five initiatives. Believers from all denominations and traditions will engage in practical actions that meet specific needs in their local communities. Hours from the entire year will count toward the one million-hour target; however, May will be the high point of activity, particularly Monday, 26 May, a bank holiday in the UK. Churches can record donated hours on the Hope 08 website. (Hope 08)
UNITED STATES: International Teams USA Elects New President and CEO
On 7 April 2008, International Teams (ITeams) USA elected Rev. Scott R. Olson as its new president and CEO. Dr. Donald Byker, who headed the search and is vice chair of the ITeams USA board, stated, “As we did our diligence and interviews it became clear…that our process was being led by the Lord.” Recently, Olson served as director of operations for Global Partners, an international mission agency, during which he traveled to over forty countries and worked alongside missionaries and international leaders. (International Teams USA)
UNITED STATES: Boyd Installed as President of MAF
John Boyd, a native of Scotland reared in South Africa, was recently installed as the new president of Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF). Boyd and his wife, Tanya, joined MAF in 1993 following a highly successful business career. The couple served as a missionary pilot family in Zaire, Haiti, and Lesotho, supporting the ministry of missionaries, local churches, and medical ministries, as well as that of relief and development organizations. Boyd was appointed CEO of MAF-South Africa in 1998. Four years later, the Boyd family relocated to the United States where Boyd served as vice-president of ministry advancement. In September 2007, the MAF board of directors appointed him as president and CEO of MAF-U.S. (Mission Aviation Fellowship)
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