Adventist News Network

Four Adventists among dead in Chile earthquake

2010-03-09T11:54:11Z

Four Seventh-day Adventist church members in Chile are confirmed dead in the wake of the magnitude 8.8 earthquake that struck the southern part of the South American nation on February 27, church officials have confirmed.

Chile's President-elect Sebastian Piñera and United States Secretary of State Hilary Clinton spoke with ADRA volunteers during a visit to the Santiago Airport Tuesday, March 2. ADRA is currently working to distribute food and clean water to earthquake survivors. [photo: ADRA Chile]

Two church headquarters have been severely damaged, while more than 10 places of worship have \"been almost completely destroyed,\" according to Pastor Erton Köhler, president of the church in South America.

At the same time, the division reports United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with ADRA volunteers at Santiago's airport on March 2 and commended the group's relief efforts.

\"Thanks to those who prayed and continue praying for our brothers and all who have suffered from the earthquake that happened last Saturday in Chile,\" Köhler wrote in an e-mail message March 5. \"We remain united in intercession and supporting our fellow Chileans.\"

Köhler added, \"Until now we have news of four killed Adventists and some still missing. We're still waiting for more news. Furthermore, we have two headquarters, the South Chile Conference in Temuco and Central Mission in Talca, Chile, [that are] highly compromised. More than 10 churches have been almost completely destroyed and some [church-related] academies and schools suffered significant damage. Many of our brothers are homeless, struggling to find food, water and a place to stay.\"

According to Köhler, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is continuing its assistance in the region. \"ADRA is supporting the delivery of food, blankets and tents, as well as having a Canadian team working with water purification and a group of nearly 100 volunteers helping in Santiago to arrange the food to be sent to needy regions,\" he reported.

According to Karen Cordovez writing for the region, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with the outgoing Chilean President Michelle Bachelet and spoke with President-elect Sebastian Piñera while at the Santiago airport.

During the state visit, Project Coordinator for ADRA Chile Cristián Pincheira spoke with Clinton about the work that ADRA is doing in the country to help the earthquake survivors after Clinton approached the volunteers at the airport, Cordovez reported.

\"Clinton expressed her appreciation for the work of the volunteers and related her own awareness of ADRA's work in the United States,\" Cordovez said.

-- With information from the Adventist Church in South America

Why will some Adventist teens remain in church as adults?

2010-03-04T18:21:00Z

A study of active Seventh-day Adventist youth in Europe offers a snapshot of what factors could be associated with young Adventists who foresee themselves in the church in 20 years.

Key preliminary indicators include a congregation that offers a \"thinking climate.\" The study suggests that youth who felt they could develop an original position in their faith by asking questions and challenging church leaders said they are more likely to remain in church compared to youth in congregations that just emphasize conformity.

Other preliminary results from the research involving 6,000 respondents suggest that personal sharing and interaction with a father on issues of faith greatly increases the possibility of young people foreseeing themselves as Adventists in adulthood.

Manuela Casti is the chief researcher for Valuegenesis Europe. Results will be published in a book scheduled for release this autumn. [photos courtesy Euro-Africa Division]

The Valuegenesis Europe study is the first of its kind for the Adventist Church on the continent. Researchers hope the new data can serve as a tool for church leaders shaping management of Adventist ministry in Europe.

Researchers used a 335-question survey in 17 languages to study Adventists between the ages of 14 to 25. About 42 percent of respondents said they were unsure about their future in the church, while another 6 percent said were against the idea of being in church in 20 years.

Results from the 2006-2007 study are now being analyzed by a team of Adventist scholars from Newbold College in England, Friedensau Adventist University in Germany, and Saleve Adventist University in France.

Conclusions are due out in a book this autumn.

Manuela Casti, the study's chief researcher, said high exit rates among youth in Europe motivated her involvement in the study. \"Where I was raised in Italy, probably 70 percent have left the church,\" said Casti, who also lectures at the church's Newbold College in Berkshire, England.

The new data could highlight a need for increased administrative support for the church's Family ministries, said Corrado Cozzi, Youth director for the church's Euro-Africa region, who also serves on the study's research committee. He said a young person's decision to become an Adventist was found to be more influenced in the long run by family, a church pastor and other adults at church than by a youth pastor or peers.

And while researchers said that mothers are usually the \"bedrock\" of faith in the home, it's fathers who might actually determine a positive decision for church. Survey respondents who discussed faith issues with their father were 70 percent more likely to foresee themselves remaining in the church than those who said their father didn't discuss religion with them.

Research committee member Paul Tompkins, who serves as Youth director for the church's Trans-European region, said data \"showed very clearly that as men, some of us are not so good at talking about our faith to our kids. We can talk about cars or sport, but even if we discuss religion, it's often with other men.\"

The European study builds on studies of Adventist youth in the United States. Two studies, in 1990 and in 2000, also named Valuegenesis, lead to an increased support for youth ministry, said Bailey Gillespie, chief researcher of the U.S. studies. A third Valuegenesis study in the U.S. is scheduled to launch in October.

\"Churches are going to need to step it up a bit and recognize the importance of this ministry for church growth,\" said Gillespie, director of the John Hancock Center for Youth and Family Ministry at the church's La Sierra University in Riverside, California, United States.

In one longitudinal study over 10 years, nearly 50 percent of Adventist youth surveyed had left the church or were inactive members by their mid-20s.

\"It became increasingly evident that the congregational climate was a big factor, not what leaders do at the [Adventist Church world headquarters]\" said Roger Dudley, author of the book Why Our Teenagers Leave the Church, based on the 10-year study.

\"Many people said they loved their church,\" Dudley said. \"Their congregation accepted them, gave them important jobs, they made it feel like a wonderful, safe place. On the other hand many people didn't like [their particular congregation] because they didn't feel part of it. It was easy for them to drop out and stop going.\"

Part of the ad campaign promoting the youth study in Europe.

European researchers said they hope the new study will offer insight on a specifically European viewpoint of a young person's faith. Respondents were older than those in the U.S. and were surveyed at churches, unlike in the U.S., where surveys were mainly conducted at schools. There are far fewer Adventist schools in Europe than in the United States.

Casti, the chief researcher for Valuegenesis Europe, said new data pointed to a need for intergenerational contact both at home and at church. Interactions with peers in person or through social media aren't enough to keep young people in the church, she said.

\"When we give responsibility to a young person, it's usually in the youth department, or music,\" she said. \"But an involvement in other areas would allow for more contact with older generations.\"

Not that youth ministry involvement is a bad thing, Casti said. It can help young people mature and contribute to generational diversity; however, when youth lead other youth, a pattern of generational segregation might emerge. The trend is seen in the Adventist Church and in other denominations, she said.

Many times a young person graduates from youth ministry and ends up also graduating from church, Casti said.

In addition to the importance of family and other adults, researchers found relevance in church programming itself. Respondents who heard preaching that was \"helpful to their daily lives\" at church were 450 times more likely to want to remain active in their faith than those who didn't identify with weekly sermons.

Whether a young person has supportive parents or church congregation, the key is to provide an environment of \"frank, open and transparent exchanges,\" Casti said. She said she is grateful to adults who allowed her to grow up in such an environment.

\"That's why I'm still here.\"

--Helen Pearson contributed to this story

In Ghana, German grants fund conservation projects at Adventist university

2010-03-03T16:28:48Z

Sherry Ayitey, left, Ghana's Minister of Environment, visits with Helge Wendenburg of Germany's Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety following the inauguration of the Baobab Centre for Ecological Studies at Valley View University, Tuesday, February 23. [photo courtesy VVU]

Grants from the German government and universities are helping a Seventh-day Adventist University in Ghana become one of the most conservation-conscious universities in West Africa, school officials said.

Valley View University, home to some 3,000 students, has received 1.3 million Euros (US$1.78 million) for campus conservation projects, including a wastewater recycling to fuel conversion system, rainwater harvesting and storage, tree planting and a new study center for environmental science.

\"This center will create opportunities for interaction between local as well as international experts in the field of ecology,\" said Seth A. Laryea, president of Valley View, during a February 23 ceremony to dedicate the Baobab Centre for Ecological Studies. On hand were project partners from Germany, Ghanaian ministers of state, students and faculty.

Helge Wendenburg of Germany's Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, said he hoped \"to illustrate that not only here at Valley View University but also as a whole, German-Ghanaian cooperation in the field of climate protection is on a good track.\"

The university's conservation efforts were given a boost some six years ago when the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research provided a grant for the development of the university's plan to become an \"eco-friendly\" campus.

The Baobab Center for Ecological Studies was built with a grant from conservation proponents in Germany.

The Justus-Liebig University in Giessen, German is collaborating with the university to plant 10,000 trees on campus and in the surrounding community, as well as the preservation of existing tree species native to the area.

The Ecological Engineering Society is undertaking rainwater harvesting and storage while the University of Natural Resources and Applied Sciences in Vienna, Austria is responsible for the water treatment.

In another project, dry toilets are reducing water usage and human waste is used to produce bio gas to supplement the liquid petroleum gas used for cooking in the university's cafeteria.

Sherry Ayitey, Ghana's Minister of Environment, praised Valley View University for its determination to showcase and disseminate conservation initiatives and promised to work with the university in replicating initiatives for other institutions.

Valley View became Ghana's first accredited private university in 1995 and the country's first charted private university in 2006. The university is located in a rural setting some 20 miles northeast of Accra, Ghana's capital city.

Accreditation guidelines for proposed Adventist medical schools set for vote

2010-03-02T11:31:16Z

Seventh-day Adventist Church education leaders are establishing formal guidelines for new medical, dental and pharmacy schools, requiring institutions to demonstrate the ability to support a program before earning accreditation.

New guidelines will set accreditation standards for Seventh-day Adventist Church-run institutions wishing to add medical, dental or pharmacy schools. Loma Linda University is the Adventist Church's medical school in Loma Linda, California, United States. [photo: Rajmund Dabrowski]

The accreditation guidelines, which could go into effect April 1, were created partly in response to an increase in requests for new medical, dental and pharmacy schools from institutions around the world, said Ella Simmons, the world church vice president overseeing the church's Education department.

Simmons said there is a growing need for medical and health care around the world, and the Adventist Church has a unique responsibility to respond to such needs.

\"However, along with this call to service and ministry comes the responsibility to provide care and healing that are of the highest quality,\" Simmons said.

According to the guidelines, institutions must show their ability to support, house and maintain a new school before they are granted conditional accreditation. The conditional accreditation is subject to a mid-year and final review during the trial school year.

The previous guidelines used by the Adventist Accrediting Association addressed general accreditation standards and didn't specifically target medical, dental and pharmacy schools, said Lisa Beardsley, associate secretary for the church's department of education.

Major contributors to the new guidelines included members of the Education department of the Adventist world church. The Adventist International Board of Education (IBE) and the Adventist Accrediting Association (AAA) oversaw the creation of the guidelines and will vote on the document at the end of the month.

If the two boards feel more work must be done on the document, the guidelines will be revised and voted on again during Annual Council, October 8 to 13, Beardsley said.

For more information and to see the complete guidelines, visit education.gc.adventist.org.

Church infrastructure severely damaged in major Chile quake

2010-02-28T21:06:20Z

An 8.8-magnitude earthquake, one of the most powerful in recorded history, shook the South American country of Chile early Saturday morning, taking hundreds of lives and damaging public and Seventh-day Adventist Church infrastructure around the quake's epicenter, some 200 miles south of the capital, Santiago.

The church's Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is coordinating with federal emergency officials to provide aid and a small crew is assisting with urban rescue efforts among collapsed buildings.

An 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck Chile Saturday morning, damaging infrastructure and collapsing numerous buildings near its epicenter, about 200 miles south of the capital city of Santiago. Above, neighbors assess damage over the weekend. [photo courtesy South American Division]

The Adventist radio station in Chile, La Radio Nuevo Tiempo, is announcing that fellowship halls at Adventist churches are available to the public in need of assistance, said Magdiel Perez, executive secretary of the church's South American Division, based in Brasilia, Brazil.

More than 700 people have died in the disaster, an estimated 500,000 homes have been destroyed and 1.5 million others have suffered damage, according to Chile's National Office of Emergencies and Information (ONEMI).

Several Adventist Church buildings were destroyed in the city of Talca, including the Central Chile Mission administration office, an ADRA warehouse and the Talca Central Adventist Church, officials for the church in South America reported.

Church officials also reported structural damage to sanctuaries in Los Angeles, the Chile Union Mission office, located in Santiago, the South Chile Conference office, located in Temuco, and Chile Adventist University in Chillán.

\"The ground was moving like ocean waves,\" said Nancy Roa Vidal, a resident of Santiago. \"[The earthquake] lasted approximately two minutes. We're in a state of catastrophe.\"

Residents near the epicenter remain jittery as aftershocks continue. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has recorded more than 105 aftershocks stronger than 5.0-magnitude since the quake struck Saturday at 3:34 a.m. local time.

\"People are out of their homes, and many are thinking of sleeping outside for fear of the aftershocks,\" said Jorge Alé, country director for ADRA in Chile.

ADRA dispatched a truckload of water, which left Saturday afternoon from Santiago to the cities of Talca and Concepción. Mattresses, blankets, and other basic necessities are also being procured for distribution.

ADRA's urban rescue team is also coordinating aid to the city of Villa Alemana, near Valparaiso.

ADRA International and ADRA of South America have pledged an initial $105,000 to help in relief efforts Chile.

ADRA is accepting donations for the Chile Earthquake Response Fund at its Web site, adra.org, by phone at 1-800-424-ADRA, or via mobile phone in the U.S. -- text \"CHILE\" followed by a space and the donation amount to the number 27138.

Chile is no stranger to earthquakes. According to the USGS, Chile endured in 1960 a 9.5-magnitude quake, the most powerful earthquake ever recorded.

The long, narrow nation lies near a fault line between the Nazca tectonic plate in the Pacific Ocean and the South American plate. While building codes in the past few decades were designed to withstand earthquake damage, Saturday's quake was nearly unprecedented.

There are some 120,000 Adventist Church members in Chile, worshiping in about 600 churches and 260 organized groups.

More information will be provided when confirmed reports are available.

Former Adventist world church associate secretary dies at 82

2010-02-24T18:43:39Z

Maurice T. Battle, retired longtime Seventh-day Adventist Church administrator and a former associate secretary at world church headquarters, died at his home in Ellicott City, Maryland, last evening. He was 82.

During denominational service spanning more than 50 years, Battle served as a pastor and administrator. Beginning in 1948 with pastoral work in the church's South Atlantic Conference, his career later led to posts in West Africa and England before beginning service at world church headquarters in 1970.

Maurice T. Battle's decades of denominational service led to his election in 1978 as the world church's associate secretary. [photo courtesy Archives and Statistics]

Colleagues remember Battle as a skilled bridge builder among people, supplying a voice of reason amid conflict and fostering positive relationships despite previous distrust.

\"Promoting friendly, stable relations among groups of people is probably one of his biggest contributions to the church,\" said Bert B. Beach, former director of the Adventist world church's department of Public Affairs and Religious Liberty.

Battle was instrumental in the Adventist Church's efforts to dismantle Apartheid in South Africa, said Beach, who first met Battle when the two were serving the church in West Africa.

Born in 1927 in Oberlin, Ohio, Battle developed a love of reading -- especially biographies -- travel, gardening and stamp collecting. In 1948, he married Esther R. Coleman and earned a bachelor's degree in theology from then Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama.

Battle later received an honorary doctoral degree from Union Theological Seminary, an independent graduate school of theology in New York, in recognition of his \"outstanding contribution\" to both his denomination and the community.

Battle spent a decade helping to strengthen the church in West Africa. He served as Adventist Church president first in Liberia and later in Sierra Leone. During his years in Ghana, Battle acted as regional secretary and also oversaw several departments, including Sabbath School, Lay Activities and Public Relations.

Battle first served the world church as associate secretary for the Lay Activities -- now Personal Ministries -- department, beginning in 1970. He was elected as an associate secretary of the Adventist world church in 1978.

Adventist World church President Jan Paulsen said he was \"saddened\" to learn of Battle's death today. \"[Maurice] was a friend and a highly valued colleague of mine for many years, going back to Africa,\" said Paulsen, who served as a missionary in Ghana while Battle was employed there. Paulsen also recalled that Battle acted as one of the officiating ministers at his ordination service.

Battle is survived by his wife, Esther, and four children.

Singleton, one of first Regional conference presidents, dies at 101

2010-02-24T18:05:01Z

Harold Singleton was the first president of the Adventist Church's South Atlantic Conference, based in Atlanta. [file photo courtesy GC Archives]

Harold D. Singleton, who served as president of one of the first Seventh-day Adventist conferences established to serve African American congregations in the United States, died February 6 at a care facility in Maryland. He was 101.

Singleton was the sole surviving member of the first presidents of the nine Regional conferences in the Eastern United States in the 1940s. He was the first president of the South Atlantic Conference, formed in 1945, with headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. He also served as president of the Northeastern Conference, then based in New York City, from 1953 to 1962. He was then elected to serve at the church's world headquarters as secretary of the Regional Department, a department discontinued in 1979.

\"We are very grateful to Elder Singleton for his pioneering work in the South Atlantic and Northeastern Conferences,\" Adventist world church President Jan Paulsen said in a statement. \"His leadership at the church's world headquarters as Regional Department Secretary was highly effective and very much appreciated.\"

Calvin Rock, a former vice president of the world church, described Singleton's calm leadership style as \"thoughtful\" and \"careful.\"

\"He wasn't flamboyant, but his leadership showed by his impeccable record for picking pastors, like E.E. Cleveland and Maurice Battle,\" Rock said. \"He was always on target for selecting brethren to join the ministry.\" Several of his ministerial candidates went on to become conference presidents.

Harold Douglas Singleton was born in 1908 in Brunswick, Georgia, and graduated from then Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama, during the Great Depression. He later continued his education at Union College in Lincoln, Nebraska and at the Adventist Theological Seminary, then located in Washington, D.C.

Upon entering the ministry, Singleton gained a reputation as a church planter, pastoring churches in Tennessee, Florida, and the Carolinas.

Later he served the Southern Union Conference as Regional Department secretary, overseeing the church's work among African Americans in the South. In 1962, he was elected to serve at the church's world headquarters, then in Takoma Park, Maryland, where he stayed until his retirement in 1975. Later, he was often called into active service to pastor churches.

Singleton is survived by Mary, his wife of 71 years, six children, five grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.

--Reporting by Ansel Oliver and Adventist Review staff

Founder of Adventist Deaf ministry dies at 89

2010-02-23T17:28:06Z

Arthur Griffith, who lost his hearing during a childhood illness, was a pioneering leader of the Adventist Church's Deaf ministries. Some church leaders hope to increase outreach to the Deaf community, an often ignored and misunderstood subculture. [photos courtesy ADM]

Arthur Griffith once created Bible study movies for Deaf people by setting up a movie camera he could operate with a makeshift foot pedal.

In the 1960s, a sheet covering the window turned a room in his Portland, Oregon home into a movie set where Griffith would stand in front of projected slides to minister to other members of his often-neglected subculture and language group -- the Deaf.

Griffith, who died last month at age 89, was ordained as the Adventist Church's first Deaf minister in 1969, following a request for him to serve as the leader of a Deaf Bible study group. A former machinist lacking formal theology training, he founded much of the church's Deaf outreach and served as a minister to Deaf church members around the country.

He studied with, converted and mentored most of the Deaf Adventist leaders currently serving the church.

\"Many people's lives have been touched by this great man of God,\" said David Trexler, speaker/director of the Arizona-based Adventist Deaf Ministries, a supporting ministry of the Adventist Church.

In North America there are some 300 Deaf Adventist Church members and five all-Deaf congregations, said Esther Doss, a spokesperson for the ministry. Only 2 percent to 4 percent of the 2 million Deaf population in the United States attend a church of any kind, she said.

\"Deaf people are a subculture and isolated in some ways,\" said Griffith's son Alfred, a pastor to two Deaf groups in Central California. He laments that other denominations are ahead of the Adventist Church in reaching out to that community.

Some denominations feature multiple Deaf congregations in one city, while others offer DVDs for the Deaf in multiple sign languages. One even has plans for a Deaf seminary. The church in North America has two full-time ministers and one part-time minister to the Deaf, as well as five Deaf campmeetings throughout the United States.

Though some Adventist congregations offer sign language interpreters, it can be difficult for the Deaf to follow proceedings and many phrases are lost in translation. In North America, speakers of American Sign Language must learn English grammar to read.

Some rituals at all-Deaf congregations are noticeably different -- heads are not bowed during prayer, hymns aren't sung but signed, and applause is replaced by a waving of hands.

Adventist world church undersecretary, Larry Evans, and a church vice president in North America, Debra Brill, have formed a task force to coordinate Deaf outreach, which has limited work globally. Evans first met Griffith while serving as a ministries coordinator for the church in Oregon.

Griffith was born in 1920 to Minnesota farmers, who soon moved to Alberta, Canada. Still a child, he and his brother contracted spinal meningitis. His brother did not live, and Griffith lost his hearing.

After seeing Griffith's homemade Bible study movies for the Deaf, Adventist Church leadership sponsored a set of 12 professionally produced programs. Here he sits at center during the taping of one of the productions.

In 1944, Griffith married Alyce Grove, whom he met at a Deaf campmeeting in Portland. In 1956, their seven-year old daughter Linda died after being struck by a car. From then on, his desire to see her again at the Second Coming drove him to passionately share the message of the gospel and the resurrection, his son said.

His simple films were seen by North American church leaders, who sponsored a set of 12 professionally produced films to share the church's message with the Deaf.

Griffith later published a newsletter, drawing 500 subscribers, which allowed the Deaf community to better network with each other. He served as Deaf ministry leader throughout the country, and retired near Manteca, California. He is survived by his wife and four children.

Paulsen encourages Adventist youth to seek involvement in church

2010-02-23T10:04:48Z

Young Seventh-day Adventists should continue reaching out to peers and seek more active roles in church, the president of the Seventh-day Adventist world church said to church members during a live television broadcast earlier this month.

Seventh-day Adventist world church President Jan Paulsen talks with young people from Inter-America about their importance in the church. The discussion took place on the 20th episode of Let's Talk, an impromptu question and answer television series. [photo: IAD]

Jan Paulsen also told the group of young adults from the church's Inter-American region, to embrace peers who are considering leaving the church or acting out in rebellion.

\"Let's love them back,\" said Paulsen, referring to Jesus' example of the Prodigal Son. \"God is in the business of saving people.\"

The broadcast was the most recent installment of the Let's Talk series, in which Paulsen fields impromptu questions from youth. The series has run more than 20 times in locations worldwide. The February 6 broadcast included interpreters for the Spanish-speaking studio audience of 18.

During the unscripted broadcast at San Salvador's Channel 33 television studio, Paulsen reiterated themes from previous episodes. Again he encouraged youth to actively participate in church, and for church leaders to bring youth into positions of church leadership.

\"To my colleagues ... trust them enough to give them responsibility,\" Paulsen said. \"Many [young people] have said, if the church doesn't need me today, I'm gone tomorrow.\"

Paulsen also encouraged youth to share biblical principles with peers instead of feeing they need to adapt to other lifestyles to share the gospel.

\"You don't have to change any biblical values. You just have to talk about them as values which can enrich their life ... both for a secure future and to shape the way we live now,\" he said.

Regarding teens in the church who act rebelliously, Paulsen said, \"Teenagers are very sensitive and can feel guilty very easily. Support your young people, show that you care for them.\"

\"Everyone makes mistakes,\" Paulsen said, including himself in the statement.

Regarding local ministry and education resources, Paulsen said regional leaders were the ones to make decisions for their own areas. Responding to a question about the possibility of each country in Central America establishing its own Adventist university, Paulsen said there is no limit to the number of institutions that could be built, but the needs of the community and the nation need to be considered.

\"We want it to be top quality with whatever we establish,\" Paulsen said. The church now operates universities in the region in Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico and Venezuela.

Paulsen answered a question about sexual abuse, calling it a \"huge challenge\" for the victim, but saying that person should \"not have any doubt that God loves them.\"

\"That person should find a trusted person to talk to ... or some therapy. No one should have to carry that burden alone,\" Paulsen said. He said sexual abuse should be reported to the authorities. \"Even if it happened in the church,\" Paulsen said, referring to the church's written policy requiring such charges to be reported to the police.

The next Let's Talk is scheduled for March 7 in the Netherlands.

Let's Talk El Salvador from GC Communication on Vimeo.

Adventist media center in Middle East launches television channel

2010-02-22T16:44:47Z

A new Seventh-day Adventist television channel in Beirut is expected to help spread the church's message of hope among Arabic-speaking communities in the Middle East, a region \"rich in Biblical history,\" its director said last week.

(From left) Bertil Wiklander, Adventist Church president for Trans-Europe; Kjell Aune, church president in the Middle East; Amir Ghali, Al Waad director; and Brad Thorp, president of Hope Channel, unveil the church's new media center in Beirut. [photo: courtesy Al Waad Media Center]

Church leaders said the Al Waad Channel, launched along with the Al Waad Media Center February 13 at a packed Middle East Adventist University Church, will potentially reach an audience of more than 300 million Arabic speakers in the region.

The channel will \"[share] hope with the Arab world and build bridges of understanding,\" said Kjell Aune, Adventist Church president for the Middle East.

The Al Waad Channel is the newest member of the global Hope Channel, the Adventist Church's official television network.

While the media center plans to include a radio and Internet presence as well, television is the team's current priority -- some 90 percent of the local community members watch television daily, while only 30 percent listen to the radio and just over 2 percent regularly use the Internet, church leaders said.

The Al Waad Channel, which derives its name from the Arabic word for \"promise,\" offers \"the promise of hope\" to the region, said Director Amir Ghali, who brings to the job a decade of experience producing radio programs for the Adventist World Radio's Cyprus studio.

Salim Sahyouni, head of the Protestant Church in Syria and Lebanon, also spoke at the launch, applauding the new media center as part of a broader effort in the region to work toward not only physical peace, but also \"everlasting\" spiritual peace in Jesus.

Spring rains threaten displaced Haitians, Adventist aid group says

2010-02-16T12:52:33Z

Hundreds of thousands of Haitians still living under makeshift shelters face an increased risk of disease and poor sanitation in the coming rainy season, Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) workers said.

Suzete Edmond (front) and her sister Magalie Lapaix have been living in a makeshift shelter at a Port-au-Prince camp for displaced persons since January 13, the day after the quake struck Haiti. [photo: Hearly Mayr/ADRA International]

The rains usually begin in May but could affect the region as early as March, the agency reported.

ADRA workers in Haiti said an early morning rainstorm last week soaked through bedding and clothing and collapsed cardboard shacks in some camps, giving a taste of what days of rain could bring.

\"The humanitarian situation could become exponentially worse if the issue of shelter is not resolved quickly,\" said Frank Teeuwen, bureau chief for emergency management at ADRA International.

Between 1.1 million and 1.5 million Haitians are living without basic shelter, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) said. Out of that number, roughly 272,000 people have already received emergency shelter support, the United Nations reported.

ADRA plans to distribute thousands of tarps and plastic sheeting and nearly 1,000 six-person tents over the next few days. The organization is also assisting a camp of more than 15,000 people on the campus of the Haiti Adventist University in near-by Carrefour.

Adventist Church leaders in Inter-America said they are also planning for the foreseeable future -- while members currently worship outside under tarps, leaders said they hope to begin repairs on the church buildings left standing.

\"We want to make sure that our temples are functioning as soon as possible,\" said Israel Leito, president for the Adventist Church in Inter-America. \"Plans must be ... in place to repair the churches that were damaged first. Then we can concentrate on rebuilding.\"

Church leaders said Adventist Risk Management employees have already made an initial visit to assess some of the damage to denominational properties insured before the quake hit, which will aid in reconstruction.

Inter-American church leaders said they have asked Maranatha Volunteers International, a supporting organization of the Adventist Church, to help with the recovery process. Maranatha will construct 185 churches in Haiti with their One-Day Church program, using prefabricated steel frameworks that can be assembled in about eight hours.

In addition, the Adventist Church in Puerto Rico is working with government officials and other organizations on the island to provide about 500 wooden hurricane-resistant two-bedroom homes to both church and community members. The homes can be assembled in one week, said Jose Rodriguez, president for the church in Puerto Rico.

The Adventist world church has pledged more than $2 million in aid to Haiti so far, said Filiberto Verduzco, treasurer for the church in Inter-America.

Adventist-run colleges and universities around the world have also promised additional fundraising and medical assistance, Inter-America church leaders reported.

Inter-America church leaders said they realize the promised aid is just the beginning to the recovery process.

\"[Haiti] will be a long-term project, way beyond 2010,\" Verduzco said.

-- Reporting by Hearly Mayr, Libna Stevens, John Torres

Traveling Bible nearing completion of world tour

2010-02-16T12:37:18Z

A copy of the Bible written in 66 languages -- one for each book, from Genesis to Revelation -- is nearing the completion of its global itinerary.

The Follow the Bible initiative, launched in 2008 at Seventh-day Adventist world church business meetings in Manila, Philippines, toured the Dominican Republic last month in its last stop in the church's Inter-American region.

In each country the Bible has visited, local church leaders report large-scale distributions of Bibles among community members and a renewed interest in regular Bible reading and study among church members.

At the initiative's launch, Follow the Bible project organizers cited a study indicating that less than 50 percent of the Adventist Church's membership regularly studies the Bible, adding that the touring Bible -- serving as a visible reminder of the importance of Scripture -- would ideally reignite a desire among Adventists to prioritize time spent in Bible study.

\"It has been encouraging to witness the enthusiasm behind Follow the Bible around the world,\" said Garrett Caldwell, director of Public Relations for the Adventist world church. \"The uniqueness of this Bible and the journey that it has taken has given the church a wonderful opportunity to talk to the public about the importance of scripture.\"

Follow the Bible will complete its tour of the church's 13 world regions this summer in Atlanta, Georgia, United States where thousands of Adventists will gather for their church's global business session.

Kulakov secretly operated Adventist work in former Soviet Union

2010-02-11T18:26:00Z

Mikhail P. Kulakov Sr., the first president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church's Euro-Asia region, and a pioneering Adventist leader who endured imprisonment in the former Soviet Union for his faith, died of brain cancer February 10 at his home in Highland, California. He was 83.

Mikhail P. Kulakov Sr., the first president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church's Euro-Asia region, died of brain cancer February 10. Kulakov was 83. [graphic: Tanya Holland]

Once exiled as an enemy of the state, Kulakov in the 1980s was able to openly write in leading national Soviet publications on freedom of conscience, winning him respect from fellow believers, dissidents and human rights activists. He later helped to establish the country's first Adventist theological seminary.

\"He taught us to dream big dreams, not to be afraid of trials and challenges,\" said his son Mikhail Kulakov Jr., who in Washington, D.C. coordinates the Russia-based Bible Translation Institute his father founded.

In his condolences to the Kulakov family, Pastor Jan Paulsen, Adventist world church president, referred to Kulakov as \"a highly valued colleague of mine in the service of our church. We are honored to have had Pastor Kulakov serve the church in such an outstanding manner. He will long be remembered for that.\"

Paulsen noted that among the notable aspects of Kulakov's ministry is the fact that he served as the first president of the Euro-Asia Division, a pioneer Adventist leader in the former Soviet Union. \"I am indeed grateful for Pastor Kulakov's influence in establishing the Adventist Theological Seminary in Zaokski. His legacy will be felt for many years to come,\" Paulsen said.

Born in Leningrad in 1927 to the family of an Adventist minister, who was laboring for conscience amidst state-enforced atheism, Kulakov endured persecution, relocation, and the periodic arrest of his father. After becoming the leader of underground worship services he, too, was arrested, and in 1945 sentenced to prison and hard labor. Upon his release in 1951, he was exiled to Kazakhstan.

Following his release in 1953, after the death of Stalin, Kulakov began an underground journal for ministers and established unofficial ministerial training courses. Throughout the next two decades, Kulakov endured several arrests on charges of defying the communist government, his son Peter said.

In 1990, Kulakov became the first president of the newly established Euro-Asia Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, with headquarters in Moscow, a position he held until 1992. The same year, he founded the Russian chapter of the International Religious Liberty Association and as its first secretary advocated for the freedom of conscience.

Kulakov led in establishing the Zaokski Adventist Theological Seminary, near Tula, in 1988. He also established the Bible Translation Institute at Zaokski.

In 2003, the institute published a modern-day Russian translation of the Bible, which is heralded today as the top translation in Russia, his son, Peter Kulakov, an Atlanta-based minister, said by phone. The first five books of the Old Testament rolled off the institute's press on February 10, the day of his death, Peter Kulakov said.

\"We have no doubt that this legacy will bring many people to salvation,\" Peter Kulakov said. \"He was one to never quit.\"

Kulakov's memoirs were published in the 2008 book Though the Heavens Fall [Review and Herald Publishing Association].

He is survived by his wife, Anna, six children, 15 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Adventist Church working for upswing in local Health Ministries programs

2010-02-04T16:42:52Z

Community and personal health enthusiasts are meeting for the Seventh-day Adventist Church's health training conference, the denomination's largest lay health training event, drawing nearly 500 participants this week to Orlando, Florida.

The annual summit, which continues through February 7, offers tools for local and regional church leadership to deliver community health programs, which are key since the denomination's commitment last year to help implement international health goals in local communities, church leaders said.

Peter Landless, associate Health Ministries director for the Adventist world church, is a leader of the Foundations of Health workshop, one of dozens at the church's health summit this week in Orlando, Florida. Nearly 500 participants are receiving training at the week-long conference. [photo: Wes Renk]

Workshops are designed to train local church leaders to hold seminars on topics from grief recovery and smoking cessation to nutrition and family health classes.

\"We want every church to become a community health training center,\" said DeWitt Williams, Health Ministries director for the Adventist Church in North America.

His goal echoes that of world church health leaders who last July met with officials of the World Health Organization -- a United Nations Agency -- to seek a partnership in implementing its Millennium Health Goals in communities. The denomination of 16 million members has about 130,000 congregations worldwide.

Since its beginnings some 150 years ago, the Adventist Church has advocated education on healthful living and now operates the largest Protestant network of hospitals worldwide. Over the years, Adventists have been shown to live longer and healthier lives compared to others within surrounding populations. The ongoing Adventist Health Study 2 is being conducted at the church's Loma Linda University in partnership with the United States' National Institutes of Health.

For church members who aren't health professionals, the Orlando summit is \"ideal\" training for learning the latest evidence-based practices, said Dr. Peter Landless, associate Health Ministries director for the world church.

\"Obviously we're not training them to do surgery or run an [emergency department], but to understand how to be extensions of Christ's grace and love in a world that is hurting, physically and emotionally,\" Landless said.

Landless is co-teaching a week-long health foundations seminar, which he describes as a crash course for instructors to learn the physiology of disease. Health is addressed in terms of lifestyle -- including rest, exercise, social connectedness and integrity, he said.

\"We feel it's important to train our church members -- not only our health professionals who are already trained, but also our members -- to understand these processes,\" Landless said. \"That helps them then to discern and choose wisely from the myriad of treatments that are peddled out there.\"

Church leaders around the world acknowledged the gap between the denomination's goal of every church functioning as a health education center and current reality. While there are no world church statistics for local congregation community health programs, a seminar attendee offered one example. Dr. Ephraim Palmero, Health Ministries director for the Adventist Church in the U.S. state of Alaska, said only 11 of the 31 churches in the state offer a health program or have designated a Health Ministries director for their congregation.

\"We need to convince local church leadership that it's worth investing and trying to improve the Health Ministry of the church for community outreach,\" Palmero said. \"It will take a lot of leadership mentoring one-by-one to get everyone on board.\"

Some attendees are sponsored by their local church administration or congregation, while others came on their own expense. James Convensky, Health Ministries leader at the Rockville-Tolland Adventist Church in Connecticut, said he paid his own way to attend the summit.

\"I just save and we invest in our own health ministry [at our church],\" Convensky said.

He and his wife have lead health seminars at their church, such as mental health programs and cooking schools. The denomination's commitment to healthful living is meaningful, he said, because 30 years ago he joined the church because of its health message.

\"I look forward to this every year,\" Convensky said.

While most of the summit's participants are from the United States, the event is co-sponsored by the Adventist Church's North American and Inter-American regions, and includes attendees from five continents. For more information, visit www.nadhealthsummit.com.

Adventist health publication in India turns 100

2010-02-01T11:54:36Z

The staff of the oldest health magazine still in print in India celebrated 100 years of publication earlier this month, releasing a centennial issue with the endorsement of the city mayor, Shri Mohansingh.

Mayor Shri Mohansingh of Pune, India, holds a copy of the oldest health magazine in the country. The mayor helped launch the 100th anniversary edition of the Adventist-owned \"Herald of Health\" earlier this month. [photo: SUD]

The \"Herald of Health\" magazine, published by the Seventh-day Adventist-run Oriental Watchman Publishing House (OWPH), was created by missionaries working in Lucknow, India in 1910.

Since then, the magazine has been in continuous print except during World War I. Publication resumed after the printing house moved to its current location in Pune in 1924.

Historically, editors of the magazine were Adventist missionaries from abroad, said current magazine editor Joy Kuttappan. In 1970, John M. Fowler, current associate education director for the Adventist world church, became the first Indian to fill the position.

Additional reporting by Joy Kuttappan