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Police Close Azerbaijan Church

ocal authorities broke up a meeting at a Seventh-day Adventist church in Gyanja, western Azerbaijan, February 24, saying the church had failed to obtain a necessary re-registration certificate. Police told church leaders they were suspending future meetings until further notice and the church building would be sealed to prevent church members from gaining access.

Since the raid, church leaders in Gyanja have attempted to meet with city officials, and are working to secure documents showing their compliance with religious registration requirements, says Valery Ivanov, Euro-Asia region communication director.

Azerbaijan's government recently initiated a nationwide re-registration process for all religious groups. Local Adventist leaders say that all the documents needed for re-registration were submitted to the proper state committee before the February 1 deadline, but a certificate has not yet been issued.

In an interview with Keston News Service, Aleksander Kozlov, a member of the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations, said the committee is expected to approve the Adventists' re-registration applications "very soon." When asked about the disruption of the Adventist meeting in Gyanja, Kozlov acknowledged that it had occurred, saying, "Such raids are unpleasant, especially when they take place in the middle of services."

Many Protestant organizations in this central Asian country say Azerbaijan's re-registration requirements are being used by local authorities to place pressure on unpopular or minority religious groups. John Graz, General Conference public affairs and religious liberty director, says this trend is more noticeable outside the capital, Baku. "Religious pluralism is less accepted in more rural regions," he says. The situation is further complicated, explains Graz, by the fact that Azerbaijan, a predominantly Muslim country, is engaged in a war with Armenia, which is considered a Christian country.

Azerbaijan, located between Russia and Iran, has a very small Christian community; only three percent of its population claim a Christian affiliation.                                         --Adventist News Network

Church Urges Safeguards
Against Execution of Innocent
Adventist leaders in North America are urging the federal and state governments in the United States to halt scheduled executions in cases where the fairness of the legal process can be called into question.

A letter sent to U. S. Attorney General John Ashcroft states the church's concern for the "quality of life for all citizens." The February 21 letter calls for a moratorium on all scheduled executions in instances: "(1) where DNA or other evidence may have made a difference but was not made available during the trial, (2) until such evidence is made available for said cases, (3) on all cases where the defendant's poverty or race may have led to a poor quality defense or to a biased verdict, and (4) on all cases where the racial composition of the jury excluded the race of the defendant."

Clarence Hodges, public affairs and religious liberty director and vice president of the North American Division, says that "our system of justice must do everything it can to ensure that the innocent do not receive the punishment of the guilty.

"It is important for the church to take a stand on this issue," he adds. "The passion for justice--for fundamental fairness--is a hallmark of our Christian faith; it is a deep thread running throughout the teaching and ministry of Jesus Christ."

Hodges has spoken extensively with Adventists involved in the church's Prison Ministries program, who brought this issue to the attention of church leaders. He also met with three former death-row inmates who had served years in prison before being cleared of the charges against them. "I was forcefully reminded of the experience of Jesus, who was falsely accused and executed," says Hodges. "As a moral voice in society, Adventists have a responsibility to speak out for the innocent."

In the American criminal justice system, this means urging an appropriate use of scientific advances, such as DNA techniques, to help prevent miscarriages of justice, Hodges explains. It also means acknowledging growing evidence that socio-economic and racial factors can distort the judicial process, he says, quoting a recent comment by Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor: "A poor defendant will have a poor defense."

Hodges affirms that the church in North America is not at this time "addressing the appropriateness or inappropriateness of the death penalty," but he does not rule out a broad-based review of this in the future. "There would need to be input from a wide range of groups within the church," says Hodges, "with opportunity for church members, theologians, Adventist academics and lawyers, and church leaders to contribute to the discussion."            --Adventist News Network

Successful Youth Leadership Convention Held in Atlanta
James Black, North American Division youth director, described what he called "an all too successful" youth leadership convention in Atlanta, Georgia February 21 to 24. Nearly 2,000 youth leaders attended and many who wished to register on site had to be turned away. "We learned we can never do this in a hotel ballroom again," said Black. "We're going to have to go to a convention center."

Under the theme, "Leaders of Honor Now and Beyond," the convention aimed to provide resources and inspiration for leaders from each Adventist youth organization in North America. For the first time, youth, Pathfinders, Adventurers, and camp ministry leaders met together as one group. Participants came from the United States, Bermuda, Canada, the Bahamas, England, Netherland Antilles, and Ukraine.

Six general sessions, 60 workshops and 80 presenters focused on many training issues, including how to build a youth ministry from scratch, orientating new youth leaders, and Pathfinder/Adventurer leadership training.

"This is the church's way of assisting Adventist youth leaders in North America," said Black. "Folks are looking for direction. We minister to young people not just for now, but for the future as well," he said.

The North American Youth Leaders convention will be held every two years, with the next two planned for Denver in 2004 and Portland in 2006.                                         --Adventist News Network

Church Selects One of Their Own to Lead
Dr. Frederick J. Anderson was ordained as a church elder and officially recognized as lay pastor of the Seaside Community Church in Seaside, California on January 26, 2002.

While many choose to serve in this capacity, Anderson had no such aspirations. He found fulfillment in his work as a college professor, his family, and his service to the community.

His church then found itself between pastors. Anderson, one of the 158 members of the Seaside congregation, was asked to chair the transition committee. He did what he knew best--analysis and teaching. "We took the business SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis and applied them in a spiritual construction. Then we focused in on short, medium and long-term needs of the church," Anderson says. "It was transformational!"

Without a pastor, the members, led by Anderson, took full responsibility for their church. New people started attending. New members were baptized. Former members began coming back.

The church board attributed the growth in membership and members' renewed commitment to Anderson's leadership and asked the Central California Conference to consider him for their new pastor, in spite of the fact that he already had a full-time career. The conference's response was enthusiastic and supportive. Steve Horton, vice president of ministries, along with other members of the conference administrative team, will mentor Anderson in his pastoral responsibilities.

On January 26, the attendance swelled to nearly 400 to witness Anderson's ordination service as church elder and lay pastor. Choirs from two community churches sang and the local newspaper featured the event on their front page. Two of his college students came forward when Anderson ended his sermon with an altar call, swelling his baptismal class to 10 members.

Fully dependent on conference leadership to train and support him, Fred Anderson is humbled by God's call to this new position of leadership. "I believe we are seeing God's hand move in this church and the community," says Anderson. "We are so weak in our processes compared to what God can do."

Ingathering Totals Increase in North America
"The Ingathering: Hope for Humanity" program has embraced new outreach methods, reports Maitland DiPinto, director of the program. Ingathering totals for 2001 in North America were nearly $3 million, an increase of nine percent.

"By revising our name, implementing a renewed emphasis that all donated funds are used only for humanitarian purposes, and providing well-developed witnessing materials, we have bolstered our church and community support," says DiPinto.

During the past year, DiPinto and his associates produced a 16-page booklet that reports on aspects of the church's humanitarian work. They designed the "Hope Kit," a brochure that offers spiritual inspiration, Bible study correspondence courses, and a $50 gift certificate to local supermarkets. These and similar projects have encouraged the community and church members to donate more freely to the Ingathering fund.

"We want to motivate our church members to not only give personal contributions, but also to experience the opportunity that Ingathering provides to build relationships with their community," said DiPinto.

News Notes

Don King, president of the Northeastern Conference, was recently elected president of the Atlantic Union Conference. King replaces Ben Schoun, who was elected Adventist World Radio president.

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