Zprávy HCJB 10.1.2006

 3.3 MILIONU LIDÍ DOKONČILO V ROCE 2005 BIBLICKÁ STUDIA
   Navzdory zemětřesení, suchu, hladomoru, hurikánům a občanským válkám loni lidé v rekordním počtu reagovali na misijní činnost Biblické Ligy. Přes 3.3 milionu zájemců dokončilo v roce 2005 svá biblická studia a mnoho z nich při této příležitosti dostalo vlastní výtisk Bible. V jihovýchodní Asii dokončilo studia 1 milion lidí, což je proti roku 2004 34% nárůst. Tato čísla odrážejí odevzdanost misijních pracovníků i dobrovolníků působících ve více, než 50 zemích, řekl Mike Southworth, výkonný viceprezident misie. „Skrze dílo těchto úžasných lidí a jejich sborů doma poselství šířené Biblickou Ligou proniká do života dalších lidí v zapadlých částech světa.“ (Bible League)
 
 VŠECHNY ZPRÁVY V ANGLIČTINĚ
   NEW CUBAN LEGISLATION LEADS TO CLOSURE OF 3 HOUSE CHURCHES

At least three Protestant churches have been forcibly closed down in Cuba after legislation on house churches was announced in 2005. The legislation was announced in April 2005 after Pope John Paul II’s funeral and required all house churches to register with the authorities. Stuart Windsor, national director of Christian Solidarity Worldwide, said, “We learned of these church closures, confiscation and demolition with deep concern. We are calling on the international community to strongly discourage the Cuban government from taking any more measures that would restrict the rights of the Cuban people to meet and worship together. In addition, we call upon the Cuban government to return those buildings that have already been confiscated, allow for the reopening of those that have been shut down, and authorize the reconstruction of the church that has already been demolished.” (Christian Solidarity Worldwide)

* HCJB World Radio continues to air Spanish programs to Cuba via shortwave from South America. Hundreds of listeners have enrolled in the ministry’s Bible Institute of the Air, a Spanish correspondence program incorporating radio broadcasts. In addition, numerous pastors’ workshops sponsored by Apoyo, a joint training ministry with Leadership Resources International, have been held in Cuba since the mid-1990s.

DEM. REP. OF CONGO HOME TO ‘WORLD’S DEADLIEST HUMANITARIAN CRISIS’

A story in The Christian Post, citing a study published by Britain’s leading medical journal, indicates that the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has suffered from back-to-back wars and years of corruption, is home to the world’s deadliest humanitarian crisis. The study shows that nearly 4 million people died from 1998 to 2004 with 38,000 people dying each month -- a rate 40 percent higher than the average for Sub-Saharan Africa. The majority of deaths result from preventable diseases rather than directly from war violence. “Less than 2 percent of the deaths were directly due to violence,” said Rick Brennan, health director of the International Rescue Committee. “However, if the effects of violence -- such as the insecurity that limits access to healthcare facilities -- were removed, mortality rates would fall to almost normal levels. It’s a sad indictment of us all that seven years into this crisis ignorance about its scale and impact is almost universal.” (Religion Today)

SEMINARY IN RUSSIA FEARS LOSS OF RELIGIOUS FREEDOMS

The Moscow Evangelical Christian Seminary in Russia (supported by OMS International) is asking people to pray as the government continues to curb religious freedoms in the country. J.B. Crouse, the former president of OMS, said Russia has started cutting back on foreign missionary visa requests as two missionary couples were recently denied visas. Crouse is concerned that the situation could worsen if the government disallows foreigners from sponsoring students. The seminary’s associate provost, Sasha Tsutserov, says 95 percent of all of the school’s graduates are in ministry. “They go and plant churches, they join mission groups, they go to the places where [you could not go] because Russia alone covers 11 time zones. It’s a huge land.” (Mission Network News)

3.3 MILLION PEOPLE WORLDWIDE COMPLETE MINISTRY’S BIBLE STUDIES

Amid earthquakes, droughts, famines, hurricanes and civil wars, people around the world last year responded to the Bible League’s outreach in record numbers. More than 3.3 million of the ministry’s Bible studies were completed during 2005, and many of these people received their own copies of God’s Word as a result. In Southeast Asia alone more than 1 million Bible studies were completed, a 34-percent increase from 2004. These totals reflect the dedication of the ministry’s staff and volunteers in more than 50 countries, said Mike Southworth, executive vice president of ministries. “It’s through these incredible people and their local churches that the ministry of the Bible League is extended to others living in some of the remotest parts of the earth.” (Bible League)

* HCJB WORLD RADIO CELEBRATES 75TH ANNIVERSARY IN 2006
(www.hcjb.org/75)

Pioneer missionary radio broadcaster HCJB World Radio will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2006, holding a variety of activities throughout the year to commemorate its initial broadcast from Quito, Ecuador, on Christmas Day, 1931.

HCJB World Radio President Dave Johnson will launch the year of special events with a program for staff around the world at 10 a.m. (EST) Wednesday, Jan. 11, in combination with the mission’s monthly day of prayer.

“To me this anniversary is a wonderful milestone of reflecting on God’s faithfulness and a legacy of a number of generations that have been faithful in impacting the world through radio in so many languages,” he said. “We can be absolutely confident that God wants to continue using us in the future. The key is realizing that all that has been accomplished has been done in the power of Christ -- working through people.

“When you look at the history of HCJB World Radio, people have always been willing to take a risk to do what God is calling them to do,” Johnson explained. “We’ve never been in ‘maintenance mode,’ whether it’s establishing a hydroelectric plant in Ecuador, putting up huge transmitters and antennas, building clinics and hospitals, or setting the ‘World by 2000’ challenge, working with other broadcasters to make Christian radio programs available in all of the world’s major languages. All of these things caused people to start asking questions, pushing us beyond our resources. But when we look back, these are the stories we like to tell because God worked in incredible ways!”

The theme for the anniversary year is, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness,” and the key verse is Isaiah 26:12, “Lord . . . all that we have accomplished you have done for us.”

On Sunday, Jan. 1, HCJB World Radio launched its 75th anniversary website in English (hcjb.org/75) while a Spanish site (www.vozandes.org/75) will begin at a later date.

Public events planned for Ecuador include the Quito Day concerts Dec. 1-3, an open house and sharathon Dec. 7-9 and a special Spanish service at 4 p.m. Dec. 25 (EST), the time of the first actual broadcast on Radio Station HCJB. A series of events for donors will also be held across the U.S. with cities and dates to be announced.

Events for the staff include the annual HCJB World Radio Prayer Retreat on May 3 and “Forever Family” reunions for all former HCJB World Radio staff members in Colorado Springs May 9-13 and Quito Sept. 8-18. Special receptions are also planned for staff members and government dignitaries in Quito in December.

A 75th anniversary book will be released in September, highlighting not only the history of HCJB World Radio, but today’s ministries and the future vision. It will be a hard-cover, 9-by-12-inch, 96-page full-color book with many high-quality photos. A Vision Video in both Spanish and English will also be available to celebrate the vision through the mission’s various presidents, past and present.

How will the next 75 years look different than the past 75 years at HCJB World Radio?
“What began with co-founder Clarence Jones playing ‘Great Is Thy Faithfulness’ on his trombone to a handful of radio receivers in Quito on Dec. 25, 1931, has led to focusing on discipling local believers and training them in mass media and healthcare around the world,” explained 75th Anniversary Coordinator Cheri Birkey.

“In the last 75 years the mission has developed a unique mix of radio and healthcare ministries, working together to reach all nations for Christ. In order to enhance these ministries, we want to integrate passionate discipleship and practical tools so that national believers are trained and equipped to complete the Great Commission. What began in Latin America has expanded to other parts of the world. Lord willing, we will continue partnering with local believers and equipping them to do what we’ve been doing for 75 years -- reaching people for Christ through mass media and healthcare.”

Together with local partners, HCJB World Radio now has ministries in more than 200 cities in more than 100 countries with Christian broadcasts in more than 120 languages and dialects. Thousands of healthcare patients are also meeting Jesus. Believers are being trained as missionaries, pastors, broadcasters and healthcare providers. HCJB World Radio’s desire is to integrate discipleship with practical tools to equip the growing church around the world and see lives transformed.

“What we are as a mission today is directly related to our past,” Birkey adds. “The 75th anniversary is the perfect opportunity to celebrate God’s faithfulness. Throughout the Old Testament the Israelites were encouraged to remember God’s goodness. We hope not only to remember what God has done in the past through HCJB World Radio, but to celebrate what He is doing today and the mission’s vision for the future.” (HCJB World Radio)

© Copyright 2006 - HCJB World Radio - Colorado Springs, CO USA

 

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