Today in Christian History – June 20

1989 – Death of Traian Dorz, a Romanian poet who served as leader of the Orthodox revival movement known as The Lord’s Army. He had suffered imprisonment, harrassment, and restriction by a hostile government and hostile church authorities.

http://www.christianhistoryinstitute.org/today/6/20

The Army of the Lord (Romanian: Oastea Domnului), also known as The Lord’s Army, is an evangelical „renewal movement within the Romanian Orthodox Church”. The founder of the Army of the Lord, Father Iosif Trifa, as well as consequent leaders, Ioan Marini and Traian Dorz, felt that „people needed to come to the gospel and that the Orthodox Church in Romania needed to return to her true mission: to serve God and to represent God in the midst of our nation.” Tom Keppeler writes that „What Wesley was to the Anglican Church, Trifa was to the Romanian Orthodox Church. As Wesley’s preaching and ministry drew crowds from the working classes, so Trifa’s as well was a ministry that grew among the villagers and workers of the fields.” In the 1930s and 1940s, „millions of Romanian Orthodox, including priests and religious, took part in its activities of evangelization, printing and open air meetings.” Members of the Army of the Lord greet one another with the phrase „Praise the Lord!”, followed by the reply would be „Forever, amen!”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Army_of_the_Lord

Alin Cristea: Our Amazing Josef Tson

On the last day of September 2014, the most prominent Romanian evangelical reached the age of 80. Yet he looks like he may be … 63.

He has had an amazing life and has been the model of a faithful Christian man. Our amazing Josef Tson.

There is no other Romanian evangelical with such charisma and such a wonderful and often miraculous story of walking with God. His life story could be made into a movie. Or into a trilogy of movies.

“To study Josef’s entire life is to study the greatness of our God and His actions in the lives of His children,” wrote his daughter, Dorothy Ghitea, in Josef Tson’s Biography, „Josef Tson – New Horizons in Spirituality and Serving (2004)”, a Festschrift or compendium of theological essays written in honor of Joseph Tson’s 70th birthday. This volume includes essays by Peter Kuzmic, Paul S. Fiddes, John Stott, Livius Percy, Radu Gheorghita, and others.

The first element characterizing the extraordinary life of Josef Tson is his courageous stand for religious freedom. Dorin Dobrincu, an important Romanian historian, mentioned Josef Tson as “the most vocal of evangelical Romanian opponents of communism.” He was our leader in the fight for religious freedom.

For years, Josef Tson spoke on Radio Free Europe, and he was well known in Romania as „the pastor from Radio Free Europe”. He was our voice for freedom.

The second important element of Josef Tson’s life is his prophetic vision for the freedom of Romania. He firmly believed that one day the Iron Curtain would come down. Convinced that Communism would soon fall, he worked tirelessly as President of the Romanian Missionary Society to bring about his vision for training Romanian young men and women for ministry. To achieve this, he initiated an ambitious program of publishing Christian books and training materials in the Romanian language, to provide all the books necessary for theological training. He wanted to be able to flood Romania with Christian literature as soon as communism fell, and to provide an entire curriculum to be used in a Christian University. He was our hope for freedom and our guide in how to use freedom for the glory of God.

Third, Josef Tson was the rock of our new freedom in Romania. He pioneered several new evangelical institutions in the new era of freedom. When communism fell in Romania, Dr. Tson returned to Romania and initiated the establishment of the Romanian National Alliance of Evangelicals, the Emanuel Bible Institute in Oradea (now, Emanuel University), the Radio „Voice of the Gospel” network, and the Publishing House called „The Christian Book.”

Preacher, writer, leader, Josef Tson is part of our legacy. He is our amazing Josef Tson.

Photos: Miroslav Volf in Bucharest

POZE: Miroslav Volf la București

Pentecostal Denominations Uniting After Nearly 100 Years of Division

http://www.charismanews.com/us/42800-pentecostal-denominations-uniting-after-nearly-100-years-of-division

Romania’s Pro-Life Generation: The Fourth Edition of the March for Life 2014

This year, almost 40 Romanian cities will see the fourth edition of the March for Life, the biggest yet both in participation and reach. This year’s theme is “Adoption, the noble choice”, promoting adoption, as the natural solution to protect children born by mothers in difficulty, whose families cannot assume the responsibility of raising a child.

http://www.marsulpentruviata.ro/romanias-pro-life-generation-fourth-edition-march-life-2014-adoption-noble-choice-becomes-nation-wide

Charlotte, North Carolina (SUA): Prayer for Persecuted Church and Chess Tournament

http://web.rombcc.com

SIMPOZION: The Romantic Rationalist: Life, Joy & Imagination in the Work of C.S.Lewis

http://simpozioncslewis.blogspot.ro

• Dr. Rodica Albu, Professor of English language and linguistics at Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași, editor and co-author of the volume Inklings. Litera și spiritul (Inklings. The Letter and the Spirit), (2004) and the first translator of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe into Romanian (1993).

• Dr. Emanuel Conțac, Doctor in Philology, Lecturer at the Pentecostal Theological Institute, Bucharest, translator of the Works of C.S. Lewis: Surprised by Joy (2008, 2011), Fernseed and Elephants and other Essays on Christianity (2011), Meditations on the Psalms (in Press).

• Dr. Laura Carmen Cuțitaru, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Linguistics, Department of English, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi, Romania

• Dr. Teodora Ghiviriga, Assist. Professor of English language and linguistics at the Faculty of Letters, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi

• Dr. Till Kinzel, Professor of English and American literature and culture University of Paderborn, Germany

• Prof. Dr. John Lotz, Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, Associate Professor at UMF, Iași

• Dr. Danuț Manastireanu, Director for Faith and Development in the Region of Eastern Europe and the Near East of World Vision International, associate professor at the Faculty of Evangelical Theology in Osijjek, Croatia and the International Theological Seminary, Prague.

• Dr. Mircea Paduraru, Associate Professor of Ethnology and Folklore, Department of Romanian Language and Literature and Comparative Literature, Department of Journalism and Communication Sciences at Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi

• Daniela Vasiliu, Teacher of English and Theology, PhD student, at Doctoral School of Philology, Faculty of Lettres, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iași

• Dr. Michael Ward, Senior Research Fellow Blackfriars Hall, University of Oxford, England and Professor of Apologetics at Houston Baptist University, Texas, author of Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis (Cambridge, 2010) and presenter of the BBC television documentary The Narnia Code (2010)

• Mr. Walter Hooper, Personal Secretary to C.S. Lewis, will provide a recorded message from Oxford to the Symposium

Ernie Haase & Signature Sound in Romania

Daniela Stoica (Radio „Voice of the Gospel” Oradea): “The character of the first Romanian Concert performed by Ernie Haase and Signature Sound was full of excellence and enthusiasm.

After an accident in Hungary, the difficulties of the time difference and the tiredness of the trip the 5 musicians and the band offered to the public an amazing show. The musicians were impressed by the nice welcome and all the help that they received to unload their instruments.

The one hundred empty places in the hall were filled by the six hundred enthusiastic people that sang along many of the songs performed by the band including a new song learnt by the audience last evening.

Ernie Haase declared that through his concerts performed in Romania he would like to bring faith and hope to all people that are listening to the songs and to guide their eyes toward Christ.

The next concert Ernie Haase & Signature Sound takes place today in Cluj-Napoca.“

Gary Chapman at Bucharest Book Fair 2011

Page Patterson at Emanuel University of Oradea

Photo: PaigePatterson.info

Dr. Paige Patterson, the 8th president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, has four sessions about The Holy Spirit: Tuesday-Friday, 09.00-13.00, at Emanuel University of Oradea, Romania.