Korea: New Adventist Teenager Seoul, South Korea | 29.06.2005 | International A newly-organized church designed for young people -- the first of its kind in South Korea -- is attracting teenagers to the Toegyewon Seventh-day Adventist Church, 10 kilometers Northeast of Seoul, the nation's capital. The church structure is along the same lines as a church for young adults which opened in 2004 in the same city. "There is not enough suitable culture or programs for the youth or teens in church," says Joshua Dong Hee Shin, youth director for the church in the Northern Asia
Adventist Church In Sweden At 125 Years Commits To Evangelism Ekebyholm, Sweden | 29.06.2005 | International Swedish Seventh-day Adventists celebrated the 125th anniversary of the church's organization in their country with a five-day business meeting and spiritual session. The event was held in Ekebyholm, Sweden, and focused on ways to share the gospel story with yet more people. With a theme of "Come, Lord Jesus," 300 attendees responded positively to the challenge to win someone for the Lord in the next two years. "Throughout the business sessions and other meetings the emphasis has been on evan
Boonstra Takes Helm of the Adventist Television Ministry "It Is Written" Thousand Oaks, California/USA | 29.06.2005 | Media Shawn Boonstra could not have known many years ago as a child when he was watching "It Is Written" (IIW) on an old television set with his brother that one day he would take the helm of the international television ministry, affiliated with the Adventist Church.. The newly-appointed Boonstra is now the third speaker/director in the ministry's 50-year history, taking over from Mark Finley who was appointed director of Global Evangelism for the Seventh-day Adventist world church. The telev
Adventist Development Agency ADRA Assists Uzbek Refugees in Kyrgyzstan Adventist Development Agency ADRA Assists Uzbek Refugees in Kyrgyzstan | 27.06.2005 | ADRA On May 20, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) became one of the first humanitarian agencies to provide emergency supplies to 530 Uzbek refugees in Kyrgyzstan. The relief supplies included clothing, hygiene products, towels, blankets, medical supplies, books, toys, and other necessities valued at more than $20,000. “This assistance was vital for suffering people looking for asylum in the Kyrgyz Republic, and we express our gratitude for the participation of the organizations
Daughter of ADRA Worker Safe After Siege in Cambodia Silver Spring, Maryland/USA | 24.06.2005 | ADRA Kanika Cowled, the daughter of an Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) worker in Cambodia, is safely back home with her family after four masked gunmen attacked her school June 16. Around 9:00 a.m. on last Thursday, four armed men stormed the Siem Reap International School in Siem Reap, Cambodia, taking hostage more than 30 students and teachers. The class that was taken hostage was primarily composed of kindergarten students, ranging in age from two to six years and representing 12
Book of Essays, Dinner, Honour Retiring Adventist Church Statesman Bert B. Beach Silver Spring, Maryland/USA | 22.06.2005 | Ecumenism Paying tribute to decades of interfaith effort, friends and leaders of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and others gathered at the church's world headquarters June 16 to honour Dr. Bert Beverly. Beach, director of inter-church relations for this protestant mainstream movement. "Building Bridges of Faith and Freedom," a Festschrift, or celebratory publication, honouring Dr. Beach was released at the dinner. It is believed to be the first such tribute published by a world church department.
Adventist Development Agency Marches Against Tobacco in Cambodia Silver Spring, Maryland/USA | 22.06.2005 | ADRA On May 31, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) led a parade in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in celebration of World No Tobacco Day. Nearly 1,000 people participated in the demonstration, carrying signs and banners that promoted World No Tobacco Day and ADRA’s stop smoking campaign, the Tobacco or Health program. They also took part in a ceremony declaring the National Military Hospital (also known as Preah Ket Mealea Hospital) a “smoke-free zone.” “The parade was aimed at raising
Jamaica: Adventists Issue New Guidelines For Funerals Mandeville/Jamaica | 19.06.2005 | International The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Jamaica, The Bahamas, Cayman and Turks and Caicos will no longer conduct funerals in its sanctuaries for deceased persons whose lifestyle were lawless and devoid of good principle. At the same time, the church will insist on a code of conduct barring mourners from wearing flesh-revealing attire, drinking alcohol, bearing firearms or vending in the precincts of the church. The decisions come as part of several companion measures recommended by the Issues
Most U.S. Teenagers Believe In The Resurrection Washington D.C./USA | 17.06.2005 | Bible Nearly three-quarters of American teenagers believe Jesus rose from the dead and will return to judge good and evil. A little over 11 per cent do not believe it and about 17 per cent are "not sure". Only 14 per cent think he will return in their lifetime, compared with just over 45 per cent who do not. These are among the findings of a survey conducted by the American Bible Society (ABS) of a thousand young people aged between 12 and 17. Asked what they would do differently if they knew
ADRA Implements Polio Eradication Campaign in Yemen Silver Spring, Maryland/USA | 17.06.2005 | ADRA At the request of the Ministry of Health of Yemen, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is heading a campaign aimed at eradicating polio in Yemen. The project will vaccinate approximately 80,000 children under the age of five. It is also meant to stop an ongoing polio outbreak that began in late February, affecting approximately 179 children. Teams deployed by the Ministry of Public Health will complete the vaccination, going from house to house to vaccinate children in the com
Philippines: Government and Adventists in Healthy Lifestyle Festival Cebu City, Philippines, | 17.06.2005 | Health & Ethics Bringing better health to Central Philippines was the goal of a recent collaboration between Seventh-day Adventists and the Philippines government's Department of Health. The two-day "Healthy Lifestyle Festival" brought more than 2,000 participants to the campus of East Visayan Academy in Talisay City, Cebu, Central Philippines. Three hundred volunteers from the government and Adventist hospitals assisted in the festival, which offered "one-stop" health services and featured strategies for m
New President for U.S. Adventist Publishing House Pacific Press Nampa, Idaho/USA, | 15.06.2005 | International A 10-year veteran sales executive will become president of the Pacific Press Publishing Association, a Seventh-day Adventist owned publishing house, on August 11. Dale Galusha, currently vice president of sales and ministries, will succeed Robert Kyte, a 25-year veteran of Pacific Press who was its president for the past 16 years. Under Kyte's leadership, Pacific Press achieved and maintained financial stability while keeping pace with publishing industry technology. Kyte, an attorney, w
ADRA and NCC Unite in Cancer Battle in Ghana, Uganda, Burundi Silver Spring, Maryland/USA | 14.06.2005 | ADRA The Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) and the U.S. based National Cancer Coalition (NCC) have joined forces in the fight against cancer in Ghana, Uganda, and Burundi. [img id=464 align=right]In March, ADRA distributed US$200,000 of methotrexate donated by the NCC for the treatment of pediatric cancer patients in Uganda and more than US$150,000 of methotrexate for cancer patients in Burundi. These medicines will be used to treat leukemia in more than 100 African children for the
Religious Leaders Promise To Advocate The End Of Hunger In The World Silver Spring, Maryland/USA | 14.06.2005 | International With fervour and conviction, religious leaders from Jewish, Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Muslim, Sikh and Buddhist traditions, urged more than 1,000 participants at the first Interfaith Convocation on Hunger at the Washington National Cathedral in the U.S. capital on June 6 to advocate for the end of hunger in the United States and abroad. Increasing worldwide hunger rates -- some 852 million people across the globe are going hungry, including nearly 6 million children who die each year from
Serbia: Increased Attacks On Religious Minorities Belgrade/Serbia | 10.06.2005 | Religious Liberty By Branko Bjelajac, Forum 18 News Service Serbia has seen a sharp upsurge in attacks on religious minorities, with more than one hundred recorded incidents in 2004, double that of the previous year. This high level has continued in 2005, with more than 25 in the first five months of this year, Forum 18 News Service has found in its survey of the attacks, which range from slander and vilification of religious minorities in the media to physical attacks on places of worship and individuals. Bap
Adventist Health Addresses HIV/AIDS in the South Pacific Lae/Papua New Guinea | 10.06.2005 | Health & Ethics "HIV/AIDS in Papua New Guinea is no longer a problem, but a crisis," reported Gad Koito, director of health ministries for the Papua New Guinea Union Mission (PNGUM), quoting Papua New Guinea’s Minister for Health. "And as a church, we have started very late," he added. His comments were part of a report from the Commission on HIV/AIDS established by the church's administrative South Pacific Division (SPD), delivered to the SPD executive committee’s midyear meeting. At present, 12,000 HIV/AI
California/USA: Blaze devastates Dobbins Adventist church Dobbins, California/USA | 09.06.2005 | International The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is investigating the cause of an early-morning fire that heavily damaged a Yuba County foothills church June 7. The fire gutted the central part of the Dobbins Seventh-day Adventist Church on the 10000 block of Marysville Road and caused US$300,000 in damages, according to Tina Rose, a spokeswoman for the Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit of the CDF. A passerby noticed the fire at around 5:15 a.m. and called authorities, she said. The caus
New Zealand: Adventist church in Levin gutted in suspicious blaze Leviin/New Zealand | 09.06.2005 | International Members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Levin are heartbroken that almost a year of renovations have gone up in smoke. The church building was gutted by fire early morning on June 8. "I feel deep sadness," said church secretary Sheila McNabb. "A place we've worshipped in for a number of years is gone. "I got there when the fire was out. It was black, wet, dirty and horrible." Police are treating the blaze, which started shortly after 3am, as suspicious. The fire comes four years
Venezuela: Traveling to Adventist Children’s Ministry Conference: <br><br>Car Accident Claims 5 Lives, One Left Critical Barquisimeto, Venezuela | 08.06.2005 | International The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Venezuela and throughout Inter-America is mourning the loss of five of its members after a tragic automobile accident on Friday, June 3. Among the dead were three women and two children. One woman remains in critical condition. "Our Division suffers because of this tragic loss, especially the faithful workers on the road on their way to do their duty. We extend our heartfelt condolences to the church in Venezuela and especially the ministerial families who
President of South Pacific Adventists: Time to spread the Gospel of Hope is now Wahroonga, New South Wales/Australia | 07.06.2005 | International The president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the South Pacific, Pastor Laurie Evans, called on Adventist church members to recommit to the gospel commission at the opening of the mid-year meetings of the executive committee of the Church’s administrative South Pacific Division, headquartered near Sydney (Australia). Pastor Evans referred to the tsunami tragedy in southeast Asia and the death of Pope John Paul II as signs of the times, during his report. "If ever the world needed to he
Poland: New Bible Society Premises Herald A Bright Future For Bible Work Warsaw/Poland | 06.06.2005 | Bible The Bible Society in Poland has officially opened on May 13 new premises with a bookshop on Marszalkowska Street (ul. Marszałkowska 15A) in the capital Warsaw. In November 2004 the Bible Society has been forced to leave its premises on Warsaw’s Nowy Swiat Street, after almost 60 years of activity there. Folowing a High Court decision, the Society lost a long-running legal case, spanning more than 30 years, over the ownership of the Bible House at Nowy Swiat Street. More than 75 guests an
Third Session of Theological Dialogue between Pentecostal and Reformed Churches Detmold/Germany | 01.06.2005 | Ecumenism Delegations of some classical Pentecostal churches and of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) met in Detmold (Germany), from May 25 to 31, 2005. It was the third session of an international dialogue on "Experience in Christian Faith and Life" which began in 2002, following the first five-year round of theological conversations on "Word and Spirit, Church and World" (1996-2000). According to a published Joint Communiqué, the theme of this year's meeting was how Pentecostal and Refor
ADRA Launches New Interactive Web Site Silver Spring, Maryland/USA | 01.06.2005 | ADRA The Adventist Development and Relief Agency International (ADRA) launched its interactive new Web site on June 1, giving internet users an opportunity to make a difference and stay informed with just the click of a button. "Our new Web site is designed to better connect people with what we’re doing worldwide. Some of the exciting new features include a video message from ADRA’s president, streaming of ADRA’s World Radio and ADRA’s World Presents video segments, and comprehensive features on i
Adventists In Botswana Mining Town Declared War On Alcoholism Selebi-Phikwe/Botswana | 01.06.2005 | International The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) in Selebi-Phikwe, a mining town located in the north-east of Botswana, has declared war on alcoholism and called on the community to join in the fight, reports the Botswana Press Agency (BOPA). The Adventist Church declared its fight against alcoholism, which seems to be joining HIV/AIDS in destroying our beloved nation, says an SDA youth member at the end of a march against the vice. The SDA youth member, Keolebogile Mbulawa, said on behalf of the ch
