Lausanne World Pulse – News Briefs
ARGENTINA: Largest Faith Celebration Ever in South America
Over 800,000 people recently filled Buenos Aires’ famed Ave. 9 de Julio for global evangelist Luis Palau’s Si A La Vida festival, which lasted two days. It was the largest faith celebration ever seen in South America. The media coverage surpassed any experienced by the Palau ministry in over four decades of outreach. More than twenty-three thousand trained “Friends of the Festival” provided personal counseling to the thousands who responded to Palau’s invitation to follow a life of faith in Christ. More than sixteen thousand decision cards were collected, with officials anticipating thousands more as festival follow-up continues. (ASSIST News Service)
AROUND THE WORLD: Global Prayer for China during the Summer Olympics
In a historic move, key organizations that work with the persecuted Church around the world launched a global campaign calling for prayer for China. In what is called “The Zurich Statement,” the Religious Liberty Partnership (RLP), with member organizations that include Open Doors International, Christian Solidarity Worldwide, Voice of the Martyrs (Canada), and the Religious Liberty Commission of World Evangelical Alliance, have called the worldwide Christian community to pray for China during the summer 2008 Olympics. “The call for prayer is rooted in the fact that the RLP felt it was time to acknowledge some progress in China’s attitude toward religious liberty and also the part Christians play at all levels of Chinese society,” stated Mervyn Thomas, CEO of Christian Solidarity Worldwide, UK, and chair of the RLP leadership team. “There is still a very long way to go and religious freedom is something very alien to many Christians in China.” (World Evangelical Alliance)
AROUND THE WORLD: MTI Offers Lifesaving Antibiotics to Children Worldwide
In recent weeks, Medical Teams International (MTI) has shipped more than 5.5 million USD in donated medical supplies from Abbott Labs and Henry Schein, including basic but lifesaving antibiotics, syringes, and sterilizing equipment to help children in Liberia, Gaza, Lebanon, Jordan, and Mexico. “These medical donations are the difference between life and death for so many children in impoverished countries,” says David Beltz, director of commodity support at MTI. “It’s heartbreaking for our staff and volunteers to know that children suffer needlessly or die because they don’t have a 10USD treatment course of antibiotics.” Last year, MTI surpassed one billion USD in humanitarian aid shipped around the world. (Medical Teams International)
AROUND THE WORLD: Mission Aviation Planes Grounded Due to Lack of Fuel
Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF), which serves more than eight hundred Christian and non-profit agencies in remote areas (as well as thousands of isolated people in Africa, Asia, Eurasia, and Latin America), has been forced to ground missionary pilots due to a shortage of aviation fuel or “av gas.” Because of the shortage, some 150 airstrips are currently without service. In response to the crisis, MAF is embarking on an aggressive 10-year plan to acquire twenty of the new Kodiak 100 aircraft, manufactured by Quest Aircraft. Not only does the Kodiak use jet fuel, which is more readily available and cheaper, the plane is also larger, flies faster, and can still get in and out of small airstrips. The Kodiaks come at a discounted cost to the ministry. When available, av gas can cost up to 12USD a gallon, whereas jet fuel is 3.50USD a gallon. The new Kodiaks will allow MAF to reach more of the isolated peoples in remote places around the world. (ASSIST News Service)
AROUND THE WORLD: Seven New Languages Available on Audio Bible Recordings
The audio Bible ministry Faith Comes By Hearing recently announced the availability of seven audio New Testament recordings. The following languages are now available for ministry efforts: Afrikaans, Chuj San Mateo Ixtatan, Javanese Caribbean, Kirghiz, Kuranko, Otomi Mezquital, and Thai. Individuals can download these new recordings, as well as other MP3 Bibles, for free at: www.faithcomesbyhearing.com. These new offerings, which represent more than 105 million people on four continents, bring the total number of audio scriptures available to 341 recordings in 287 languages. Faith Comes By Hearing’s goal is to record audio Bibles in two thousand languages by the year 2016, reaching ninety-seven percent of the world’s population. (Faith Comes By Hearing)
BHUTAN: Historic Election May Lead to Freedom of Religion
The world’s only Buddhist kingdom conducted its first democratic elections 25 March 2008. Bhutan’s 2.3 million residents cast their votes for parliamentary representation after living under the rule of the Wangchuk hereditary dynasty since 1907. The newly elected officials will form the National Council, which will set in motion the creation of a constitution and the platform for a democratic government. Gospel for Asia president K. P. Yohannan says it is still too early to tell if the yet-to-be created government will allow true freedom of religion. It is illegal to share the gospel in Bhutan, and missionaries are limited to supplying humanitarian aid, as long as they do not talk about their faith. Less than one percent of Bhutan’s population professes to follow Christ. Believers can be expelled from the country and stripped of their citizenship if their new faith is discovered. (Gospel for Asia)
CHAD: Bible Society Provides Scripture in Braille
A simple ceremony was held recently at the resource center for visually impaired young people in N’Djamena, the capital of Chad. Approximately sixty blind and partially sighted young people between ten and twenty years old live at the center. During the ceremony, Pastor Jérôme Altana, general secretary of the Bible Society of Chad, and his team contributed ninety-six scripture volumes in Braille. A blind law student read a speech he had written in Braille, saying, “We are delighted to accept these special gifts you have brought us. Please be assured that these Bibles have arrived at just the right time; we are eager to read the good news as well as listen to it.” (United Bible Societies)
NETHERLANDS: Country with Second-Largest Number of Christian Denominations and Religious Movements
The reputation of the Netherlands as being a country with many Christian denominations has been boosted by the publication of a new reference book detailing church information. The authors tallied a list of 648 churches, congregations, and meetings, making the Netherlands the country with the second-largest number of Christian denominations and religious movements in the world, after the United States. (Ecumenical News International)
NORTH KOREA: College Students Arrested for Reading the Bible
Ten college students in Ham Kyung Book Do Chung, North Korea, were recently investigated and arrested for reading a Bible and watching a video CD about the Bible. According to Free North Korea Broadcasting, Mr. Jung, former vice president of GumRung Company of the Rodong Dang Labor Organization Department, reported the case and has since escaped to China to avoid arrest by the National Security Agency (Bowiboo). According to Jung, in March 2006, two hundred Life Bibles and several hundred CDs were purchased in China and secretly placed in flour bags before being smuggled into North Korea. This Bible smuggling was headed by GumRung Company employees who were influenced by Christianity in China and underground Christians in Nasun City. All the leaders except Jung have been arrested and are being severely tortured. In the Free North Korea Broadcasting report, Jung added that most of the arrested students attended Chung Jin College. “These students shared the Bible and video CD with their friends. They also distributed the Bibles and video CDs to the other college towns,” he said. (Voice of the Martyrs)
RWANDA: Rural Pastors Commit to Planting Churches and Sharing the Gospel
Kiramuruzi, a small town with little electricity and running water, served as host to a recent Global Advance Frontline Shepherds conference, which drew over six hundred rural pastors and church leaders. The conference focused on strengthening the family, answering God’s call to ministry, the marks of a true shepherd, God’s desire for church growth, and the call of a missionary. Almost every pastor in attendance committed to plant a new church within the next twelve months and approximately seventy dedicated their lives for missionary service. (Global Advance)
UNITED KINGDOM: Muslims to Outnumber Traditional Churchgoers by 2020
Research shows that the number of Muslims worshipping at mosques in England and Wales will outstrip the numbers of Roman Catholics going to church in little more than a decade. The figures (based on government and academic sources and the latest edition of Christian Research’s Religious Trends) show that if current trends continue, the number of Catholic worshippers at Sunday Mass will fall to 679,000 by 2020. By that time, statisticians predict, the number of Muslims praying in mosques on Fridays will have increased to 683,000. The Christian Research figures also suggest that, over the same period, the number of Muslims at mosques will overtake Church of England members at Sunday services. Church spokespersons point out, however, that a growing number of Anglicans worship at other times of the week. (Telegraph)
UNITED STATES: Paul Tokunaga Named VP of Strategic Ministries for InterVarsity USA
Paul Tokunaga was recently appointed vice president and director for strategic ministries for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA. In his new role, effective 1 July 2008, Tokunaga will provide vision and leadership to expand the impact of current strategic ministries and initiate the creation of new strategic ministries. For the past fourteen years, Tokunaga has served as InterVarsity’s national Asian American ministries coordinator. In that position, he has overseen significant growth of both Asian American students and staff. In addition, he has created and implemented the Daniel Project, a leadership development program that identifies and nurtures promising staff of color. Tokunaga succeeds Barney Ford, who was appointed vice president and director of advancement in September 2007. (InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA)
UZBEKISTAN: Christians under Increasing Pressure
Practicing their faith is becoming increasingly difficult and dangerous for Christians in Uzbekistan. The government, who fears the increasing influence of Islamic extremism throughout the country (eighty-eight percent of the country’s population of twenty-seven million people is Sunni Muslim), continues to implement even stricter laws against religious activities, both Muslim and Christian. Christian converts from Muslim backgrounds face particular pressure not only from the authorities but also suffer persecution from their own families and communities. Many new young Christians in rural areas have been beaten severely and told to recite the shahada, the Islamic creed, to renounce their Christian faith and return to Islam. Older converts are being isolated and ostracized in their communities. (Barnabas Aid)