ANR Bulletin
Adventist News Review
Trans-European Division of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church

2 November 2005

In this Issue:

* Serbia: New evangelistic initiatives in Serbia
* Pakistan: Thousands more may die in Pakistan
* Lebanon: New vision of University Chaplain
* USA: Longevity of Seventh-day Adventists
* TED Prayer Guide for week 6 ? 12 November


NEW EVANGELISTIC INITIATIVES IN SERBIA

BELGRADE, SERBIA [ANR] ? The Central Seventh-day Adventist Church in
Belgrade has recently commenced some new evangelistic initiatives in
an effort to reach the younger generation in this city of 2.5 million
people.

Using the church facilities the members are running a school of
English, providing free evening classes for those wishing to learn
the language. Two hundred and fifty people registered for the
commencement of the school and were accepted for elementary,
intermediate and advanced classes. Unfortunately due to the limited
size of the facilities, many more who had applied were turned away
until a future class can be held.

For the class in conversational English the Bible is used as one of
the text books. This has gradually sparked an interest in the minds
of the pupils so that after a few months of classes, some individuals
have expressed an interest in attending the Sabbath worship services
at the church.

Another initiative that is operated by the youth department of the
Central Belgrade Church is a LIFEdevelopment café group called
?BARKA? (meaning ?ark?). Approximately 80 young people from the
community have joined with young people from the church to fellowship
and eat together. Each week a different Biblical topic is discussed
or a DVD is watched.

In July of this year the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Belgrade
offered Bibles to the largest hospital in the city. In an agreement
with the administration of the hospital, each bed has a Bible placed
in the bedside cabinet for the use of every patient. Funds for this
initiative have been provided by members of the church and it is
planned for this project to be activated in other hospitals within
Belgrade.

[Miodrag Zivanovic/ANR]


THOUSANDS MORE MAY DIE IN PAKISTAN

BAGH, PAKISTAN [ANR] ? Urgent appeals have been issued by Raafat
Kamal, ADRA director for the Trans-Europe region, requesting donor
countries for funds to help the three million survivors of the
Pakistan earthquake who are now homeless. "Freezing weather has
already descended on the mountains of Kashmir but only a small number
of suitable tents have reached the area," said Kamal. "On the ground,
aid officials are warning that a greater number of people could die
of hunger, cold and injuries than the 53,000 who were killed by the
earthquake itself. People have been burning clothes donated by
charities in an effort to keep warm. Villagers arriving on foot at
the city of Muzaffarabad have been diagnosed with malnutrition and
exposure as well as quake injuries."

Continued Kamal, "We have had positive responses from ADRA directors
in donor countries, many of whom are arranging for survival supplies
such as tents and blankets to be sent to Kashmir, but much more needs
to be done."

On Tuesday 25 October Conrad Vine travelled to the Bagh District in
Kashmir and spent the day in meetings with local officials, community
members, and representatives from the World Food Programme and the
International Non-Governmental Organisations Forum.

"Officially 8,157 persons out of a population of 480, 000 in the Bagh
district are confirmed dead" said Vine, "however, the actual death
toll is expected to be much higher as there are collapsed buildings
all over Bagh which contain bodies that as yet have not been pulled
from the rubble. Ninety nine percent of government and public
buildings have been destroyed, together with 75% of all private
housing. People arriving at the clinics are suffering from gangrene
as a result of two-week-old, untreated, open wounds and Bagh town
smells of rotting bodies."

The earthquake has also affected the economic stability of the area.
Half of the population is entirely dependent on animals for their
nutrition, and nearly everyone raises a few animals. However, the
price of animals is collapsing due to families being forced to sell
their animals because they don't have enough feed or shelter to keep
them through the winter.

Immediate priorities for the area, as identified by Vine, are tents,
blankets, and animal feed and shelter. Vine and his team are
establishing an office in Rawalpindi which should be ready by Monday,
but until then, they will be living in and working from a couple of
winter tents. Transportation is being arranged; procurement planned,
and full proposals written. "We are working very long hours," Vine
concludes, "but with very limited infrastructure and almost no
personnel, nothing is straightforward."

[John Surridge/ANR]


NEW VISION OF UNIVERSITY CHAPLAIN

BEIRUT, LEBANON [ANR] ? Lebanon is a country where uncertainty is a
factor of daily life. Still recuperating from the decades-long civil
war, its citizens are now struggling to endure economic recession,
political instability and a potentially volatile spate of bombings,
seemingly targeting the Christian quarters of the capital, Beirut.

Mindful that Seventh-day Adventists cannot be detached from these
same realities, Pastor Levon Maksoudian, chaplain of the Adventist
Middle East University campus church in Beirut, is introducing some
initiatives to strengthen the spiritual experience of members.

?I am glad to say that there is strong support for the activities we
are proposing for this new academic year,? says Maksoudian.

Café-style Praise Service ? where people are enjoying more
interaction with one another. Food and drink is available while the
service is in progress followed by time spent praying and socializing
together.

Community Service ? Contact has been made with welfare societies in
Lebanon offering a ministry to orphans, elderly people and others who
have varying needs. Sharing the joy of Christ with those deprived of
life?s privileges is vital to Christianity.

Discussion Time ? Young people meet weekly to read the book of Acts,
learning more about the way the early church started and
incorporating some of these principles into a modern context. The
time spent studying and discussing is greatly appreciated by all.

Film Evenings ? Time is spent laughing together as comedy films are
viewed in the university?s auditorium and other, more important films
are also shown with religious themes.

The office of ?University Chaplain? ensures that students and church
members are given the opportunity to join whichever activities are
meaningful to them throughout the year. ?We have delegated
responsibilities to young people who are totally involved in planning
the programmes,? said Maksoudian. ?We want activities to be happening
almost every day and thus invite and attract everyone according to
their interests, providing an atmosphere where they can contribute
the talents with which the Lord has blessed them.?

The vision of the chaplain is ?to enjoy unleashing the power of the
Holy Spirit through worship; grow in the knowledge of the Word;
socialize and laugh together, and work together for those around us.?

[Alex Elmadjian/Levon Maksoudian/ANR]


LONGEVITY OF SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS

CALIFORNIA, USA [ANR] ? ?What if I said you could add up to ten years
to your life?? This was a question posed by Dan Buettner in an
article on longevity in the ?National Geographic? magazine. Buettner
says ?It begins with good genes, but it also depends on good habits.
If you adopt the right lifestyle, experts say, chances are you may
live up to a decade longer.?

Following much global research into the cultures of longevity
Buettner highlighted ?the residents of Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia,
Italy; and Loma Linda, California, USA which produced a high rate of
centenarians; suffer only a fraction of the diseases that commonly
kill people in other parts of the developed world and enjoy more
healthy years of life.?

These three areas ?offered three sets of ?best practices? to emulate?
said Buettner. However, it was noted that younger generations are
losing their culture of longevity as they depart from the ways of
their ancestors.

In Sardinia life centres around the family; the social component of
longevity is extremely important; less stress and more socialising.

Okinawa is home to the longest lived people on earth; at advanced
ages they are still living very active and healthy lives. Their
positive philosophy on life, says Buettner, is ?to have a reason for
which you wake up in the morning?. Life-long support groups, low
calorie diets and actively producing and gathering their own food,
has contributed to their longevity.

?The third and most amazing group? said Buettner, ?were the
Seventh-day Adventists, some of whom live in California, who outlive
their American counterparts by about 10 years.? His conclusion was
that ?quite simply, devout Seventh-day Adventists have a religion
that reinforces positive healthy behaviour. They have a vegetarian
diet, are non-smokers and non-drinkers; they take a Sabbath every
Saturday? during which they rest and just ?unplug? from what they
have been doing all week.

It was stressed that Seventh-day Adventists were the only culture of
longevity that were not losing their longevity edge; a perfect
example of why this religion is still growing and moving forward.

[ANR Staff/ANR]


TED Prayer Guide for week 6 ? 12 November 2005

ST ALBANS, ENGLAND [ANR] ? ?When he saw the crowds, he had compassion
on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without
a shepherd? (Matt. 9;36. NIV)

Millions of people today lack direction and hope; they do not know
Jesus Christ and His Saving grace. Through its ?Global Mission?
programme the Seventh-day Adventist Church looks with compassion at
the crowds ? the millions of people in countless people groups.

The Church is taking Jesus? words in Matthew 28 seriously: ?Therefore
go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit.

This week is the Annual Sacrifice week, and the offering at the end
of the week has the purpose of contributing towards taking the Gospel
and the Three Angles Message to areas of the world where they are not
yet known.

Prayer Requests:

1. That every member finds their place in the fulfilment of Matthew
28.
2. For every effort that is made to witness about God?s Goodness.

[Harald Wollan/ANR]


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ANR Staff: Miroslav Pujic, news director, Beverly Coysten, editor
ANR, 119 St Peter's Street, St Albans, Herts, AL1 3EY, England
E-mail: anr@ted-adventist.org
Website: www.ted-adventist.org

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