Sudan
Outreach for War-torn Region
Seventh-day Adventist Church members recently held outreach meetings in south Sudan, an area experiencing an influx of displaced persons returning home after 20 years of war. The meetings were well attended and included more than 1,000 children who participated in daily programs. Church members will continue to hold outreach meetings throughout 2009. Sudan is home to 40 million people and nearly 14,000 Adventists.
Source: Adventist News Network
India
Christian-Hindu Relations Still Tense
Church leaders in Orissa, India, say conditions in the region are still dangerous. In August 2008, attacks on Christians began after the assassination of a Hindu clergyman. The homes of nearly 800 Seventh-day Adventists in the region were destroyed and many Adventists were among the 50,000 people displaced by the violence. Many of those people still have not returned home.
Source: Adventist News Network
England
Bible, Koran Move to the Top
Libraries in London have been instructed to place religious texts on the top shelves of bookcases after complaints by Muslims over the location of the Koran. In Muslim homes the holy book is placed above “commonplace things.” The decision to relocate religious texts draws criticism from a variety of sources, including Christians and Muslims. Some opponents say libraries should not be run in accordance with religious beliefs, while others say putting the religious books on top shelves makes them harder for readers to access.
Source: christianpost.com
Venezuela
Search for Missionary Plane Continues
Seventh-day Adventists in Venezuela continue to search for a medical missionary plane, though the government has called off the official search. The plane, piloted by Robert Norton, disappeared on Feb. 16. Among the six passengers on the plane were Norton’s wife, Neiba, and an Adventist teacher. The pilot was a volunteer for Adventist Medical Aviation and has over 20 years of flying experience.
Source: Adventist News Network
Cuba
Seminary Celebrates
The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Cuba is celebrating the first class to graduate with master's degrees in pastoral theology from the island’s Inter-American Division Theological Seminary site. President Jamie Castrejon praised the committed efforts by teachers and administrators providing graduate-level programs to students in Cuba. “This victory for the church in Cuba means our Cuban brothers and sisters have up-to-date pastors just like the rest of our territory,” says Castrejon.
Source: Inter-American Division
