International News at a Glance

• Trips and Internet Ads in French-Speaking Areas
• Members in Sweden to Distribute 2,000 Brochures
• Elder Ordained in Canada
• 3.75 Million Australian Households to Receive BSC Offer

Trips and Internet Ads in French-Speaking Areas

Joel Meeker returned safely from a long pre-Feast trip through the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Cameroon and Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire). Problems with Air Ivoire (his reservation was inexplicably canceled) prevented him from making his planned visit to Togo to visit brethren there. One new member was baptized in Ivory Coast.

Future travel plans for Mr. Meeker include visiting the brethren in Martinique at the end of this year, making another long trip through Africa, including more leadership training seminars, in January-February and visiting our brethren in French Europe during the Spring Holy Days.

We are currently adding approximately 100 new subscribers to Bonnes Nouvelles (the French title of The Good News ) each month using an advertisement for the French version of the booklet Why Does God Allow Suffering? A second ad is currently being prepared based on the booklet What Happens After Death? which was printed just before the Feast. The ads are specifically targeting France, Belgium and Switzerland, though French-speaking people all around the world have access to the Bonnes Nouvelles Web site.

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Members in Sweden to Distribute 2,000 Brochures

The three members in Sweden wanted to do something to help preach the gospel, so after discussing this with their pastor, Victor Kubik, and with Media and Communications Services employees Peter Eddington and John LaBissoniere, they decided on distributing brochures in their local areas.

Two thousand "Are We Living in the Time of the End?" brochures were available and promptly sent to them from the home office by Greg McCloud. A cover letter was written and translated into Swedish and put inside the brochure offering a translated Good News article on the end time by Gary Petty, the Swedish booklet Vägen till Evigt Liv (The Road to Eternal Life ), as well as the Are We Living in the Time of the End? booklet and a subscription to the English Good News .

A large percentage of people in Sweden can read English, especially those under 40, but the letter and translated literature are designed to reach those who cannot.

The members have just started to place the brochures in mailboxes in their areas (an accepted method of distribution in Sweden), and prayers are requested for the success of this effort.

Paul & Kira Spenser and Solveig Hammar

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Elder Ordained in Canada

David Campbell, a member of the Vancouver, British Columbia, congregation, was ordained into the ministry of Jesus Christ on the opening Holy Day of the Feast in Kelowna. Mr. Campbell, at age 41, is one of the youngest ministers in Canada and will serve as an elder in the Vancouver and Vancouver Island congregations.

He was born in Bellshill, Scotland, and raised in Vancouver. He attended Ambassador College, graduating in 1989. He attended the Leadership Workshop at the home office in 2005. He currently works as a consultant for a marketing company.

The Campbell clan has a 43-year history in the Church of God beginning in Scotland. His father and mother were original members of the first Radio Church of God congregation in Scotland in 1964.

David Palmer

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3.75 Million Australian Households to Receive BSC Offer

During the next six months, the United Church of God—Australia plans to offer the 12-lesson Bible Study Course to 3.75 million households in Australia. This will be the first time the BSC has been offered as "first contact" material in Australia.

The course will be offered on the Internet, through card decks, a Yellow Envelope drop, member letterbox drops, a Reader’s Digest ad reaching 954,000 and a coupon ad that will reach 2 million households.

Conservative estimates are that between 7,000 and 7,500 people will enroll.

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