NEWSBREAK

eventh-day Adventist Church members in Spain are mourning the loss of at least two of their fellow believers, who are among the nearly 200 killed in coordinated bomb attacks in and around Madrid on March 11.

One member, 27-year-old Nicoleta Diac, was identified on March 12. The other, Emilian Popescu, married with two children, had not yet been identified, according to Pastor Adrian Bocaneanu, president of the church in Romania, who was in Spain for evangelistic meetings. However, Popescu has not been heard from since the attacks, and his papers were found at a blast site.

"Yesterday (Sabbath) on two different live transmissions from Madrid, a crew from the only news channel in Romania, Realitatea TV, featured members of the Adventist churches in Madrid who have been injured by the blasts or were on board one of the death trains," Bocaneanu wrote in an e-mail to church leaders. "They also carried a report on church meetings on Sabbath and the way the church responded to the crisis."

Pastor Ulrich Frikart, regional president of the Adventist Church, said, "The Seventh-day Adventists of the Euro-Africa [church region] feel indignation, abhorrence and sympathy about the terrible attack of Madrid. Our deepest interest goes to the families and relations of the victims. We are mourning with the Spanish people, and our church members and pray for those who are affected by this absurd act of terrorism. These sad occurrences put us in mind of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and of His soon return."

Church leaders also had reports of seven members hospitalized with injuries from the bombings. The attack, whose source has not yet been positively identified, is being called one of the worst terrorist attacks in Europe's modern history.

The attacks came while the Adventist Church was holding special meetings for the large Romanian population in Spain, with Pastor Bocaneanu as speaker. Bocaneanu said local pastors and members are forming prayer groups and offering help to victims.

There are 10,000 Seventh-day Adventist church members worshipping in 80 congregations in Spain. Approximately 4,000 Adventist members are in Madrid, while there are more than 72,000 church members in Romania.                                          --Adventist News Network

California Conference Releases
Statement After Fresno Killings
The following statement was released to the public news media by the Central California Conference of Seventh-day Adventists:

"We grieve with all of Fresno-and all of the United States. At these times of tragedy we pray that God will comfort those who have been hurt deeply by these senseless events. This world is filled too often with sorrow and pain. As a Christian church, we want to help people through tragic times.

"News reports have indicated that Marcus Wesson [accused of killing nine persons in Fresno] is a Seventh-day Adventist. That is incorrect. We cannot find any record of Marcus Wesson being a member of any Seventh-day Adventist Church.

"The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a mainstream Protestant church with more than 13 million members worldwide. We operate schools, clinics, hospitals, and churches in more than 200 countries worldwide.

"Adventists believe in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. We worship Him each Saturday and look forward to His soon return to usher in an era of peace when tragedies like this one will never again occur. Adventists have never believed in polygamy nor condoned its practice."

Bi-Division Women's Convention Held in Malaysia
The second Northern (NSD) and Southern Asia-Pacific Division (SSD) Women's Convention was held January 14-19 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with the theme, "Empowered to Lead."

Postponed from 2003 because of the SARS outbreak, the long-awaited program was attended by 486 delegates from 17 countries. It was coordinated by the two division women's ministries directors: Ellen Missah (SSD) and Young-Ja Nam (NSD).

Ardis Stenbakken, General Conference (GC) women's ministries director, gave the keynote address. Seminar presenters included author Nancy Van Pelt; Stenbakken; Linda Koh, GC children's ministries director (formerly SSD women's ministries director); Choi Sun Hae, lecturer and research fellow at Sookmyung Women's University, Korea; Sally Lam-Phoon, Southeast Asian Union Mission women's ministries director, and Ellen Missah.

Division presidents Jairyong Lee (NSD) and Alberto Gulfan (SSD) also spoke at the convention.

U.N. Official Calls on Men to Reduce
HIV/AIDS Among Women
Celebrating International Women's Day on March 8, United Nations (U.N.) secretary-general Kofi Annan called on all men to assume the responsibilities that would reduce the "terrifying pattern" of HIV/AIDS infection among the world's women.

Such responsibilities would include "ensuring education for their daughters; abstaining from sexual behavior that puts others at risk; foregoing relations with girls and very young women; and understanding that when it comes to violence against women, there are no grounds for tolerance and no tolerable excuses," Annan said.

Nearly half of the 38.6 million adults (ages 15-49) living with HIV/AIDS are women, with 15 million orphans because of this deadly disease. Women are more vulnerable, according to Annan, even though they are usually not the ones with the most sexual partners outside of marriage, nor are they more likely to be injecting drugs, but due to society's inequalities.

Ardis Stenbakken, director of the Department of Women's Ministries for the world church, noted that the "month of March is important to women, with International Women's Day, the World Day of Prayer, and the International Women's Day of Prayer." North American Adventist churches (the United States and Canada) also celebrated March as women's history month.

TED Reaches Secular Society via TV
For the first time, the Adventist church in the Trans-European Division is using television to reach secular, unchurched people.

Ten one-hour programs titled "Evidence" were broadcast on the Hope Channel via satellite March 1-12. Co-hosted by Dwight Nelson, senior pastor of the Andrews University Adventist Church in Berrien Springs, Michigan, and Gillian Joseph, television news presenter for BBC London, the series opened with the ultimate question: "Where is Love?"

Street interviews; interviews with children, a sociologist and psychologist; and music, all identified views about love. Love isn't rational, Nelson concluded, yet it is the single force that drives humanity. He used Scripture to define the true meaning of love. The final program focused on "Justice," with graphic photos and interviews with people who had experienced injustice. "The Cross combines two elements," Nelson said, "justice and mercy; and if we want mercy for ourselves, then we have to allow it for others. We have to be able to forgive." Viewers responded positively from many countries including France, Sweden, Australia, South Africa, Iceland, Ukraine, Netherlands, Serbia, and Japan.

"Presenting Biblical values to our secular unchurched friends in a way that is invitational, not instructional, I believe helped our viewers understand the subjects in a more authentic way," said Miroslav Pujic, executive producer of Evidence and communication director for the Trans-European Division. He said a further series of telecasts introducing Christianity is planned.              --Adventist News Review

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