Asia United Theological University Asian Center for Theological Studies and Mission

Asia United Theological University Asian Center for Theological Studies and Mission News ACTS International Graduate School

My name is Kewal Bahadur Khadka. I am from Nepal and I was born in 1974 June 30 and brought up in Hindu family. When I was 15 years old I received my lord and savior Jesus Christ with the help of Indian missionary. God begun to work in my life and opened the way for me to join Bible college in India in 1991 July 15. I began to experience His grace and love throughout my seminary life in India. After my M.Div. course God used me to work together with Korean missionary from San Dol Presbyterian Church of Korea working in Nepal (Rev. Kim,Yeon Jeon the Founder Evangelical Presbyterian Theological Seminary and Evangelical Presbyterian church of Nepal). In 2006-2008 God led me to come to ACTS in Korea and finished my Th. M. course. In 2008 June I went back to Nepal and worked together with Korean missionary in the seminary training church planter till 2012. I am very happy and thankful to God all the Board member and the faculty of ACTS for giving me another privilege to come and study for my Ph.D. course. Please regularly pray for me that I may do well in studies and finish in time and go back to Nepal and serve God.

My name is Erna Lisbeth Siahaan. I come from Indonesia. I was born and grown up in Medan, North Sumatra. Then I moved to Java Island for further studies. Before I came to South Korea, I was teaching in a Christian school in Bekasi, West Java. Here at ACTS I am pursuing Th.M., majoring in Old Testament. I finished Master of Divinity also in South Korea, that was at Asia LIFE University in Daejeon (2006 - 2009). After completing my studies at ACTS, I pray that I come back to my country to teach people in order to equip and make disciples based on God’s Word.

I am Raveen Kumar from India, and came to Korea just before one month. I was working as pastor and teacher, running an organization called “We Will Worship Ministries” in which we have village ministry, church planting, youth ministry, social work and the bible school. By the grace of God there are 18 pastors in the Bible school, who are equipping themselves with the living word of God back in India. God blessed me with an incredible vision and mission to be a blessing to many, for which I wanted to be a preacher and teacher for His glory in the days to come. One parts of the mission is establishing a university back in India in which many the needy will be provided. I joined in AIGS for Th. M. program major in New Testament. It’s a great blessing for me being in AIGS, I just feel it as my home, faculties are tremendous, they are not just as professors but like my family members. I love this campus and life style in it. I sturdily consider that AIGS is the right place where I can endow myself with education and Christian integrity with utmost spiritual life. Perhaps any one asks me about the best place, I will say it is AIGS.

My name is An Juanjuan from China. I am now studying Th.M. course in ACTS, and my major is New Testament. At the same time, I am doing my ministry in Chinese worship of Chung-ang University Church every weekend now. I have been a biology teacher in a high school of China for one and half years. I like teaching, so after I graduate from here I want to go back to China to teach the Bible and teach theology. Thank you! God bless you!

I am a pastor and was serving in a church called Bade Baptist church, Nagaland; India. In God’s own good time, He brought me to ACTS to enhance and equip myself for His ministry through Th.M (Practical Theology) program. I count it all joy and blessing to be a part of ACTS family. God bless ACTS family!

My name is Paogoumang Chongloi from India. I was born and brought up in a Christian family. I am the youngest son in the family. I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal saviour in 24 April, 2006 and joined the theological seminary in the same year. Before I arrived in ACTS, I completed my Bachelor of Divinity in 2010 and was involving in the church’s children and youth ministry.

I was born in a pagan family. But I saw myself growing up in the church as a child. It was in my primary school days that my life was handed over to Christ during the spiritual emphasis week. From then I began to attend the new seekers class where I was taught the ways of the Lord and became baptized after confessing Christ as my personal Savior and Lord in the year December 16, 1973, by the late Rev. J.M. Mokwe of blessed memory. I sensed my call into the gospel ministry in my primary school years. Later on while as an apprentice of auto- mechanic, it became very clear that I will serve the Lord Jesus Christ. This took effect when I did abandon all that I had into full time training of five years in the Cameroon Baptist Theological Seminary, from 1986-1991. After serving for two years in the field, went in again for an advanced program, Diploma of Theology. This was from 1993-1996. Another moment of training after some years of field work, I went in for the B.A. in theology; from 2007 to 2010 at the Baptist Seminary Kumba, Republic of Cameroon. I have served in the following capacities: church pastor, association evangelist, chaplain, Gospel leader, church musician (organist, piano). Wissenschaftlichkeit der Theologie: A Scientific Approach to the Bible (II) Mission Culture & Opinion

Saleem S. Younas (1) I am Saleem S. Younas from Pakistan. I have been serving my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in Pakistan since 1996. Pakistan is one of the leading Muslim countries with an estimated population over 180 million, which makes it the second largest Muslim country and the sixth most populous country in the world. The major religion of Pakistan is Islam. According to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), World Fact-book, Library of Congress and Oxford University, over 97% of the total population of Pakistan is Muslim and the remaining 3% is Christian, Hindus and others. Most frequently, Pakistani Christians suffer into the hands of Islamic radicals because of their faith in Jesus Christ. Blasphemy law is a hanging sword on Christian believers because of its misuse against them. Often, blasphemy law becomes a major cause of Christian persecution in Pakistan. But in spite of all these problems, the Christians are growing in Pakistan by God s grace and mercy. I thank God to be born in the toughest land like Pakistan where I have been practicing my Christian faith and witnessing Christ to the non-Christians. My parents are true believers in Christ who led me to my Savior Christ. I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior at the age of seventeen. Soon after my life-changing encounter with God, I got involved in local church youth activities and began to experience divine love and mercies in my life. The Lord began to prepare me for preaching the gospel. For the first stage of ministerial training, He led me to join Pakistan Operation Mobilization (OM Team) Para-church organization in 1989. I joined OM Team just to spend my three months summer vacation but the Lord had a wonderful plan for me which eventually turned out to be two and a half years training until I decided to serve him for the rest of my whole life. For the last one and a half years of my service with OM Team, I was given the responsibility to lead travelling team. During this period, we reached out with the gospel to thousands of believers and non-believers in the whole Punjab province from North to South. I can never forget my adventurous trips down to the northern parts of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), which are strictly controlled by the Islamic fundamentalists. During evangelism, many times we were abused, beaten and taken to the police stations, but I thank Lord it was a wonderful and unforgettable part of my training. I acknowledge OM Team proved to be a gateway to my Christian ministry. Today, I am a pastor because of the explosion that OM Team brought into my life. It opened my eyes to understand and respond the divine call for Christian Mission in Pakistan. Summary in English

The 34th ACTS Mission Conference AIGS Retreat for Fall Semester Our school will host the 34th ACTS Mission Conference at Yangpyung campus on Thursday, As soon as Fall semester began, AIGS also had a retreat Dr. Steven Cha from Onnuri Church October 25. The title of the conference is ‘Evangelism of Asia and the World Is Here From was the major speaker. ACTS.’ Sponsors for ACTS Mission guests from many areas of interest, and ACTS students Students from 16 countries played skits, mostly based on their own traditions and cultures. Dr. (including AIGS students from 16 different countries) will participate in the conference where Han Young Lee said, “Skits look like heaven. International students beyond race and country are booths from various organizations will be set up like mission exhibitions to share their visions. God’s real people.” In the first half of the conference, Missionary Kwang-gyu Choi, the President of World Mission During the retreat, there was an event of T-Shirts sales for raising AIGS funds. All of those 150 Alliance in the Dominican Republic, will preach a sermon at the opening service. Dr. Gary shirts were immediately sold out, and additional 100 were ordered and sold out again later in Bekker, the Director of Christian Reformed World Mission, will give congratulatory remarks. campus. All proceeds have been scholarship funds as well as the AIGS Student Body. In the second half every mission participating mission organizations and experts (designated by country name) will convene for a strategic meeting. Missions Office asks your prayer for the New AIGS Students, Luncheon with President conference and welcomes your call (031-770-7860, 7861) for registration. On September 12 new students of AIGS had a luncheon with ACTS President, Dr. Young-Ook ACTS Offers Master Degree in Multi-culture Education Kim who sketched the purpose of ACTS and encouraged and blessed them with charges to work hard and God. AIGS Student Body officers were also at the luncheon, having a pleasant talk with The multi-cultural population in Korea has increased to an influx of foreign workers and spousal the President. partners. In order to upgrade the standard of multi-cultural education and to train experts, the ACTS School of Education is now offering a degree (M.A.) in Multi-culture Education. Visiting Hochimin City The school, led by Dean Dr. Sook Kyung Yie, decided to open a Master Degree program in To boost the activity of the Institute of Vietnam Mission, President Young-Ook Kim and 2013 and started to recruit new students. Applications are accepted from October 22 through Professors Ung-Gyu Pak and Heungho Chung visited Hochimin City, Vietnam on September 28 November 2. By adding a new ‘Multi-culture Education’ track to two previous Master programs to October 1. Sunday sermon was preached at Korean Heavely Dream Church. They encouraged in Education and Counseling, the Graduate School of Education is now boasting to have three ACTS alumni who work hard in the mission field. They also met leaders of C&MA which is the majors in ACTS. officially recognized seminary in Vietnam and set up a channel for academic and missional Dr. Yie saw that while the field of multi-culture education is in high demand, the lack of exchange. ACTS will continue to have a close relationship with C&MA which was asked to send systematic approach is a serious problem. Vietnamese students to ACTS. Dr. Yie asserts that the direction for multi-culture education should be presented from the Christian perspective. Knowing this urgency and significance, ACTS decided to launch a new President Kim at CRC Headquarter degree program to produce experts in this area of education. In addition, Dr. Yie will oversee possible services of the new program that can be extended to educate school teachers and local President Kim and professors Jong Chun Won, Hung Ho Chong and Kyung Seung Ahn Korean government agencies in the systematic and professional way. Mission Conference held on July 25 through 27 in Chicago. On July 25, they drove to Grand Rapids, MI for four hours and visited Christian Reformed Church (CRC) Headquarters and ACTS Retreat for Fall Semester Calvin Theological Seminary (CTS). At meeting in Erie Room of CRC headquarter building were Dr. Gary Bekker, the Director of ACTS kicked off the Fall semester with a retreat at Kwang-Lim Prayer Mountain, Kwangju, on CRC Foreign Mission, Rev. Paul Yu, the Regional Director for Europe-Asia, Moses Chung, the September 5 through 7. The speaker was Rev. Namsu Choi of Kwang-myung Church of General Manager of CRC Home Mission, Dr. Jul Medenblik, the President of CTS, and Rev. Uijeongbu City. The Theme of the retreat was “Making a Devoted Disciple” David Koll, the Officer for Denomination Affairs. Speakers for undergraduate students were Rev. Gil Kim from YWAM and Rev. Youngmin Cho In 1994 ACTS and CRC Foreign Mission had once agreed on programs to train missionaries from IVF who gave special lectures. The retreat was enriched by the presence of the Holy Spirit and exchange students and professors. The alienated relationship between ACTS and CRC started in each service and prayer meeting. to resume from May in 2012 when Rev. Joel Boot visited ACTS. The visit to CTS on July 25 For M.Div. students, Rev. Sejung Yoon who is an ACTS alumnus and the Director of Pastoral made possible for both schools to review the 1994 agreement to discuss deeper level of Ministry in Mission Alliance of Korea Independent Churches, and Rev. Jongchul Hong, the of Ju- cooperation between the two. The major agenda was the exchange program for students and An Presbyterian Church, were invited for special lectures. The retreat concluded with a special faculty members of the two schools. In the future, more discussion will include degree programs, time for students to rededicate their life and study to the Lord by the grace of God. academic calendar, tuition fees, and residential issues. This makes it harder for Korean M.Div students to foster fellowship compared to in other As a part of the exchange program between the two schools, Dr. Gary Bekker was invited to programs. ACTS designated an hour of group gathering a week to enhance Christian fellowship ACTS Mission Conference on October 25. In return, ACTS will participate in CTS Worship as co-workers, which was implemented during the second semester last year. Symposium on January 24-26, 2013, where more than 3,000 people from all over the world The community gatherings meet every Thursday for an hour after evening chapel. Class leaders register. Two or three ACTS faculty members will of CTS Worship Institute in the future. from each academic year and student body make plans for fellowship and academic interests community. Last semester, ‘Preaching Contest’ and ‘Mission Night’ with AIGS students were held at the community gatherings. Community gatherings of each academic year are in this semester. A Special lecture about Christian heresy was given to the entire classes by Mr. Jiwon Tak, the head of Information Network on Christian Heresies. Campaign to Locating ACTS Alumni ACTS drives a campaign to locate alumni. The campaign will promote active interchange and strengthen the ties between alma mater and alumni. Their concern and loving attachment the greatest cornerstone on which the school may become prosperous. ACTS plans on creating an efficient system of thorough and consistent updating of alumni information. The integrated information will be used for sending messages, news letters and web magazines Also, school events such as Homecoming, Anniversary, and Alumni Meetings can be announced through the new system. Dr. Ju Hur, Academic Dean of the Graduate School of Theology, appeals to all alumni for their eager participation in the campaign to locate ACTS alumni, hoping that Homecoming Day on October 25 rekindles the ACTS spirit and vision held during their times at school. More questions can be answered at the Mission Office: 031-770-7860

ACTS Welcomes Seven New AIGS Students Seven new students for international graduate arrived for the second semester of the 2012 academic year, after the University Committee decided to admit them on May 15. They are two M.A., four Th.M., and one Ph.D. students. Three came from India, one from China, one from Cameroon, and one from Indonesia. Joining of new countries like an Now 45 students from countries are studying in order to evangelize their home countries. Funding

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