A Church for All People
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Our mission: To inform, An international inspire and unite newspaper Vol. 71, No. 9 | September 2014 for Churches of Christ In English, Spanish, ‘a church for all people’ IN TENNESSEE, minister urges IN COLORADO, the Christians, in two languages, Rocky Mountain to ‘embrace God’s multicultural, Reunion crosses the multiethnic vision.’ language barrier. BY ERIK TRYGGESTAD | THE CHRISTIAN CHRONICLE BY BOBBY ROSS JR. | THE CHRISTIAN CHRONICLE NASHVILLE, Tenn. weet tea and homemade tortillas. WESTMINSTER, Colo. — “Amen! Amen! The faithful who dearly love each — and Amen!” said a chorus of voices that both — sang praises to God, side by side, echoed through the Northwest during a bilingual worship service hosted Church of Christ auditorium as Sby the Brentwood Hills Church of Christ. visiting minister Steven Curo Lyrics to “I Will Call Upon the Lord,” or “A preached from 1 Corinthians 1:18. Jehová Invocaré,” flashed across the overhead Seconds later, screens, alternating between English and Curo repeated Spanish. the same verse Enoch Rinks, a about the former missionary message of the to Paraguay and cross being songleader for foolishness to the morning, those who are knew many of the perishing but the believers before power of God to him weren’t fluent those who are in both languages. being saved. “Y’all just try the Again, a best you can,” he hearty round of BOBBY ROSS JR. encouraged them. “Amén! Amén! Steven Curo In Tennessee’s Amén!” followed preaches in English capital city, home the Scripture and Spanish at the to country music reading — only Colorado event. and no fewer than this time with 74 Churches of distinct Spanish accents. Reaching Hispanics in the U.S. Christ, it’s easy not Curo alternated between English to try — to remain and Spanish as he delivered a First in a series | More inside in separate congre- bilingual sermon at the recent Rocky CHURCHES AND THE BORDER CRISIS .... 13 gations, said guest Mountain Reunion — an event DIALOGUE: HECTOR HINOJOSA ............ 17 preacher Dan designed to improve unity among EDITORIAL: RESIDENT ALIEN CHURCH ... 29 Rodriguez. Christians in northern Colorado. “Here in “It was amazing,” church member Nashville, you can have a church of the shape Jesús de Hijar said of the opening or color you want — and I’m just talking about assembly, where the faithful sang Churches of Christ,” said Rodriguez, who hymns such as “Love Lifted Me” ministers for the Hollywood Church of Christ simultaneously in both languages. in California and teaches religion and Hispanic “It was really something that to me, studies at nearby Pepperdine University. PHOTOS BY ERIK TRYGGESTAD personally, filled me up.” But staying homogenous in an increasingly Roberto Santiago, minster for the Grandview Church of Christ in Nashville, Colorado is one of seven states diverse city denies churches the chance to Tenn., translates from English to Spanish as Dan Rodriguez speaks at the with a Hispanic population of at grow, he said — and to reflect the divine Brentwood Hills Church of Christ in Nashville. At left, Christians sing songs least 20 percent. See TENNESSEE, Page 12 of praise in both languages during the bilingual Sunday service. See COLORADO, Page 14 2 THE CHRISTIAN CHRONICLE SEPTEMBER 2014 DA! It’s back! DA! Not Duh. But “DA,” which Yes, public schools and universities. Join means “Yes.” While everybody else is churches and individuals all across the saying “No,” Ukraine is saying “Yes!” DA! nation on September 28, 2014, to place Regions all across Ukraine are asking for THE BIBLE. Bibles in public schools and universities THE $1,000,000 S UNDAY the Bible in thousands of public schools with WE WANT EVERYONE TO GET IT. in Ukraine. Now, more than ever, hundreds of thousands of students. And now, public universities. let’s say “Yes!” Just say “DA!” EEEASTERN EUROPEANM MISSION facebook.com/EasternEuropeanMission twitter.com/@EveryoneGetsIt 800-486-1818 MillionDollarSunday.org SEPTEMBER 2014 THE CHRISTIAN CHRONICLE 3 Breaking news THE CHANGING FACE OF CHILD AND faMILY SERVICES An emergency reminds us — landing — and a keep a packed Love thy city chance to preach bag for heaven IN A HALF-CENTURY, Agape has expanded its mission from adoption and FROM STAFF REPORTS | THE CHRISTIAN CHRONICLE foster care to community programs fighting Memphis’ cycle of poverty. ab! LaGuardia! Now!” “I don’t want to scare you, but we I had just walked BY JOHN R. Irby | FOR THE CHRISTIAN CHRONICLE The city rarely makes “the good need to realize that this is serious,” ‘Cthrough the front door lists,” said Andreana Brown, who Brent Missildine told his wife, Lisa, of CBS News headquarters in MEMPHIS, Tenn. works for Agape Child and Family and his daughter, Sarah. New York when I heard my here will always be poor people Services, a nonprofit founded in the “We are on a plane over the Pacific boss. He was dashing toward in the land,” Moses proclaimed late 1960s by members of Churches Ocean with the electronics burning Inside Story me with ‘Tin the Old Testament book of of Christ. enough that there is smoke in the something Deuteronomy. “And there’s a lot of potential here,” plane. ... If this doesn’t turn out well, in his hand, Some 3,400 years later, in this she said. “There are a lot of people do you feel thrusting it metropolis on the who love this commu- that you toward me. It Mississippi River, nity. There are a lot of are ready was a plane named after the ancient people who want to be to meet the ticket — to capital of Egypt — from here and want to have Lord?” Minneapolis. which Moses and the their families here ... Missildine, This children of Israel fled to go to the schools pulpit min- wasn’t on — statistics reflect the and be a part of the ister for the Doug Poling my agenda ancient words. neighborhood.” Prattville for the day. Memphis is the Increasingly, Agape Church of I expected to write and poorest large metro- is helping the people Christ in anchor hourly news summa- politan area in the U.S., PHOTOS BY JOHN R. IRBY of Memphis improve Alabama, ries on our radio network — according to analysis Agape has served Memphis, their neighborhoods. and his PHOTO PROVIDED BY PRATTVILLE CHURCH OF CHRIST just as I did more days than of census data by a The nonprofit family were Tenn., for nearly 50 years. On Midway Island, Brent I can count during my years University of Memphis takes its name from a on their Missildine invites fellow in broadcast journalism. researcher. An estimated 28.3 per- Greek word found throughout the way to the stranded passengers who But CBS had just learned cent of the city’s 655,000 souls live in New Testament, often translated as Philippines, weren’t ready to meet God that Hubert Humphrey, then poverty. For children under age 18, “unconditional love.” Initially, its focus part of a to study the Bible. vice president of the U.S. the rate is an alarming 44.3 percent, primarily was adoption and foster care. mission team under Lyndon B. Johnson, according to census data. While not abandoning that mission, led by Demar Elam of the West Hobbs had collapsed during a visit Of the 85 public schools in Agape now offers a variety of services Street Church of Christ in Athens, Ala. to Minnesota. He was at a Tennessee that fall in the bottom 5 per- for families and entire communities. On a United flight between Honolulu Minneapolis hospital. So cent in performance, 68 are in Shelby The principle is simple, said and Guam, the pilot and passengers that’s where I needed to be. County, which includes Memphis. See AGAPE, Page 21 smelled smoke, forcing an emergency I didn’t know any of this at landing on Midway Island, a remote, the time. All I knew is that I 2.4-square-mile atoll northwest of had to get to the airport, fast. Hawaii. The church members prayed Luckily, my bag was fervently as the plane landed — safely. already packed. As they waited in a gym for a new The apostle Paul told plane, Missildine told his fellow passen- Timothy to “be ready in gers that he would study the Bible with season and out of season” any of them who felt, during the emer- (2 Timothy 4:2). The old- gency, that they weren’t ready to meet timers at the network echoed God. At first, all he heard was a laugh that sentiment, advising me from the crowd, he said but two people early on never to assume it’s eventually responded to his request. going to be a routine day — “Each person on our team showed and to be ready for anything. courage and strength,” Missildine told So I kept a carry-on bag in The Christian Chronicle. “After the my office — one that would captain addressed (the) crowd of pas- keep me from wasting time sengers, Demar shouted out his trade- at baggage claim. Inside the Michelle Wicks, a youth outreach specialist with Agape, reads to six of the children in mark phrase ‘God is good,’ and many See BREAKING NEWS, Page 4 the summer program in the Raleigh/Frayser neighborhood of Memphis. people then shouted, ‘All the time.’” 4 THE CHRISTIAN CHRONICLE INSIDE STORY SEPTEMBER 2014 BREAKING NEWS: A heart attack that wasn’t FROM PAGE 3 about how the Word of God urges bag I kept a suit, one dress shirt and us to be prepared at all times for a tie, one sport shirt, an extra pair ministry — and for Christ’s return. of trousers, two sets of underwear In Luke 12, just after Jesus tells his and two pairs of socks.