i a p u l s e

In t h i s i s s u e ,

Columbia Bible College Library p„ 0 . Uox 3122,. Columbia, S. C. 2 9 2 0 3

e v a n g e l i c a l m i s s i o n s INFORMATION SERVICE • BOX 794 • W H E A T 0 N . ILLINOIS 60187

V o l . I l l , No. 6 , September 1972

V I E T N A M REPORT a n d COMMENTARY

by Paul H. B a r t e l

Editor's ^ Paul Bartel is a veteran mission­ary to the Asian people. For

several years he has served as behind-the-saene research editor of Asia PULSE, Deeply involved in the Asian scene, he gathers news from every source, sifts it, evaluates it and collates it for the benefit of our readers. We are grateful to him for this timely, well written report on the Vietnam situation and commend it to all who read as a challenge and stimulus to prayer.

- I I S T C R I C A L

PREFACE)

A f t e r hav ing been r u l e d b y China f o r a thousand y e a r s , V ie tnam ga ined i t s I nek; p e n donee in 939 A . D . , but she l o s t her freedom when T h e French d i v i d e d I t i n t o t h r e e p a r t s - Cochin China In t h e s o u t h , Annam in t h e c e n t e r and Tonkin In t h e n o r t h . Th is t o o k p l a c e d u r i n g

tfie l a t t e r h a l f of t h e 19th c e n t u r y . Japan occupied Vietnam In 1940 and used I t as . base t o move on i n t o M a l a y s i a and I n d o n e s i a . N a t i o n a l i s m , combined w i t h Communism, u ; l t jer j lhe_J.enderslu.p o f .

r e r f . The French ga^ Hn Chi M i n h . r e j e c t e d the French r u l e when t h e ,1 ^p^npqpi w l t h -

jg_Le_ i n 1954. In J u l y of t h a t y e a r an agreement IL I +fuaL d l v i d l n g t h e count ry a t t h e 1 7 t h / n » r * i I « I , G I V I N G + H E N O R + H E R N

y to the V i e t M i n h , comprised of 22 p r o v i n c e s w i t h some 5 6 , 0 0 0 square m i l e s and ^ , 0 1 as i t s c a p i t a l The south w i t h 35 p rov inces and 6 5 , 0 0 0 square m i l e s remained ; t ree under a d e m o c r a t i c form of government . Today the Nor th has 2 1 , 1 5 0 000 people V the S o u t h J j g ^ . O Q O . Communist a c t i v i t i e s under t h e V i e t Cong encouraged by ^underground a s s i s t a n c e from t h e N o r t h , have c o n t i n u e d t o d i s t u r b t h e peace of t h e icountryside i n c e s s a n t l y . p

PRESENT FERMENT

In o r d e r t o f u l l y u n d e r s t a n d t h e f e r m e n t , c o n f l i c t a n d s u f f e r i n g o f t h f i V l n t n ^ m R ^ e p e o p I e , o n e m u s t n o t o n l y c o n s i d e r t h e c o n - ^ - K . , Ch r I s t i a n i t y v e r s u s a n c i e n t r e l i g i o n s ,

t ffrontation of Communism versus democracy (y j r icul tura l l i f e versus c i t y i n d u s t r i a I i z a t ion . a n d a s imple economy versus t h e 1 rtf/p I i cated a r t i f i c i a l i n f l u x of war t ime c a p i t a l from j t i e West . A l l of these ITi I ngs ffeye combined t o change t h e p e a c e f u l v i l l a g e l i f e i n t o a confused m o b i l i z a t i o n o f f*yipower and economy on a war t ime f o o t i n g

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These i n f l u e n c e s have d I s r u p t e d ~the c r e a t i n g a chaotTc s o c i e t y w i t h thousands of h e l p - ( 5 3

h e , y*) ^ J ^ r ^ 4 S o

i t-L 1 FULSE for Afiica, Aiii> Euiape i n d t - i l i n America ire pubHihed irpiLirly n p i r l t>t the Infer mil inn it t\\iti pro* bird E&113 i n u t l i E M , The oplnlohl 'rvfd ire not JitcttiariJr rnildzicd by O'M A/IE MA.' i M is. Write ioi free brochure on huw jrau Ifto tin J t c e h t thtie iod oih*r mfitanl publkuipnj on eujrenl

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Asia PULSE - page two

EVANGELICAL WITNESS|

I t Is now s i x t y y e a r s s i n c e Rev. R. A. J a f f r a y , ploneef, C h r i s t i a n and M i s s i o n a r y A l I i a n c e m i s s i o n a r y , led the vanguard f o r e v a n g e l i c a l w i t n e s s , by e n t e r i n g Tourane

(now Danang) In 1 9 1 1 . The f i r s t p r o t e s t a n t m i s s i o n a r y p r o p e r t y was purchased from a French agent o f t h e B r i t i s h and Fore ign B i b l e S o c i e t y , Thus t h e f i r s t beachhead f o r e v a n g e l i c a l miss ions In Vietnam began. Dur ing t h e subsequent 60 y e a r s , mission­a r i e s of t h e C&MA have c h a l l e n g e d I h e o p p o s i t i o n of t h e s y n t h e t i c r e l i g i o u s system,

n**" formed through the f u s i o n of Chinese Buddhism, Confuc ian ism and Taoism. .Among the many t r i b a l g r o u p s , p r i m i t i v e animism has been the main form of r e l i g i o u s f a i t h . Ttr J e s u i t s e j r fe red V ie tnam In the 17th c e n t u r y a n H n o u g h t + n m n n n p n i i / ^ the. r p - i i g i m i s

More r e c e n t l y a new p o l i t i c o - r e l i g i o n s , c o r f f m o y n ac H a n n ^ i j ^ m has a r i s e n . I t s n a t i o n a l i s t i c emphasis I t has a c q u i r e d a c o n s i d e r a b l e f o l l o w i n g . MjJJJard

has become t h e most f o r m i d a b l e foe of t h e message a n d m i n i s t r y n f t h e Cross

scene . Due t o Commun i sm

fc he dc SI

s-l at & w, t l t ;

The E v a n g e l i c a l Church of V ie tnam ( a f f i l i a t e d w i t h t h e C h r i s t i a n and M i s s i o n a r y A l l i a n c e ) has a t p r e s e n t over 5 3 , 0 0 0 b a p t i z e d C h r i s t i a n s and a C h r i s t i a n c o n s t i t u ­ency of about 100 ,000 s o u l s . Some 2 0 , 0 0 0 a r e p r e p a r i n g f o r b a p t i s m . T h i s group has 368 c h u r c h e s , 131 o r d a i n e d m i n i s t e r s and a t o t a l o f 386 n a t i o n a l w o r k e r s . The m i s s i o n a r y s t a f f on t h e f i e l d now numbers about 8 0 . O ther s o c i e t i e s a t work a re the ^ Southern B a p t i s t , Seventh Day A d v e n t l s t , M e n n o n l t e , U n i t e d World M i s s i o n , World V i s i o n and W y c l i f f e B i b l e T r a n s l a t o r s .

M A N ' S S T R U G G L E

lAND THE DIVINE an

P E R S P E C T I V E i i . _ J

Whi le we seek t o t a k e o b j e c t i v e view of t h e V ie tnam s i t u a t i o n , we a l s o agree w i t h news r e p o r t e r s

_ l m p o S S l h | f > t n g j y e a p u r e l y n b j e n t l v e y i p n n f any ^ I t n a t l o n , r i n g t h a t i n t e r p r e t a t i o n by the w r i t e r ' s own p o l i t i c a l p e r s n e c t i v e .

F u r t h e r m o r e , we as C h r i s t i a n s b r i n g t o our r e p o r t i n g a n o t h e r v i t a l a s p e c t , in t h a t , w e seek t o see t h e s p i r i t u a l dimension of a s i t u a t i o n when we b r i n g God. H i s Word j a n d H j s church Into, the p i c t u r e . We seek t o I n t e r p r e t what God Is d o i n g a m i d man's ( s t r u n g f n , f a i l u r e s and v i o l e n c e . Whi le a l o v i n g God does not w i l l i n g l y des ign the

f

s u f f e r i n g of o v e r r u l e s so

men He often

b i t t e r w a r , t h e t h a t God

y e t amid t h e unavo idab le consequences of man's r e b e l l i o n men may come t o a r e a l i z a t i o n of t h e i r need f o r Him and thus turn

r e t r i b u t i o n i n t o o p p o r t u n i t l e

I t h a t

f o r men t o seek God. lhrough t h e agonies of h e a r t s of men a re o f t e n s i f t e d o u t b e f o r e God's judgment s e a t . I t is thus i_5 a b l e t o t u r n ba in i n t o b l e s s i n g and make t h e w r a t h of man t o p r a i s e Htm.

Viewed from t h i s d i v i n e p e r s p e c t i v e we can see t h a t God's S p i r i t Is a l s o I n v o l v e d In s e e k i n g t o woo men t o H i m s e l f in the s t r u g g l e s of any p e o p l e . The f o r c e s of darkness

a l l and e v i l may cause chaos in s o c i e t y , v e t God through i t a l l _js Even as the A p o s t l e Paul so c l e a r l y s a i d ,

waging "^We

H is b a t t l e w r e s t l o not

a g a i n s t t h e aga i n s t _S^tanjc_powers . a g a i n s t f l e s h and b l o o d , but a g a i n s t p r i n c i p a l i t i e s , a g a i n s t powers , r u l e r s o f t h e darkness of t h i s w o r l d , a g a i n s t s p i r i t u a l wickedness in h igh p l a c e s , (Eph. 6 : 1 2 ) . From such a vantage p o i n t , we can understand t h a t w h i l e God doesn't stop t h e normal consequences of man's rebeJJ l r i n * n r l d I s n h p r i i p n r o , y p t He o f t e n overFuTes t h e consequences o f mania s i n fop t h e s a l v ^ t l n n n f many p o r g n n s i n v o l v e d .

Many of our peop le have c o m p l e t e l y l o s t s i g h t o f t h e f a c t t h a t t h e war in V ie tnam is a c t u a l l y a g l n h a l c t r n g g l p h p t w p p n t h P f r p p w n r l r l and t h o Commun i s t n a t i o n s " Rot on ly have our boys he lped t h e Vietnamese t o f i g h t f o r t h e i r f r eedom, bu t t h e struggle has a l s o been on our b e h a l f . The g r e a t t r a g e d y of t h i s s t r u g g l e has been t h a t i t has been a l l o w e d t o drag on I n d e f i n i t e l y w i t h o u t an e a r l y d e c i s i v e c o n c l u s i o n . In t h i s we have s u f f e r e d w i t h t h e brave people of SouTh V ie tnam, Cambodia and Laos.

Asia PULSE - page t h r e e •

Ke should a l s o n o t f o r g e t t h a t our boys have aga in and aga in demonstra ted t h e i r love for t h e s u f f e r i n g Vietnamese p e o p l e . They have done much t o a l l e v i a t e s u f f e r i n g and have p a r t i c i p a t e d in many types of h u m a n i t a r i a n work. They have b u i l t c h a p e l s , donated from t h e i r meagre s a l a r y , b u i l t orphanages and o f t e n come t o t h e a i d o f t h e u f f e r i n g . For i n s t a n c e , when t h e Home of B l e s s i n g c o l l a p s e d In S a i g o n . T h i s t h r e e

storey r e i n f o r c e d c o n c r e t e b u i l d i n g c o l l a p s e d one n i g h t , c r u s h i n g f i f t e e n c h i l d r e n and one of t h e i r t e a c h e r s t o d e a t h . I t was our army men who came a t t h e b r e a k of (j3y w i t h t h e i r heavy equipment t o l i f t t h e huge c o n c r e t e s l a b s and e x t r i c a t e t h e wounded, maimed and dead. They had e a r l i e r g i v e n t o t h e p r o j e c t and r e j o i c e d in the d e d i c a t i o n of t h e b u i l d i n g , but they were a l s o t h e r e t o rescue t h e s u r v i v o r s in that b l e a k hour o f t r a g e d y .

MISSIONARY May 30th marked t h e IOth a n n i v e r s a r y of t h e c a p t i v i t y of CAPTIVES t h r e e A l l i a n c e m i s s i o n a r i e s . A r c h i e M i t c h e l l , D r . A r d e l I

1 V i e t t i and D a n i e l Gerber were bound and t a k e n c a p t i v e by t h e Viet Cong. They were d r i v e n away from t h e i r s t a t i o n of mercy a t Banmethuot Lepro¬ s a r ium in t h e i r own v e h i c l e . Sparse i n f o r m a t i o n f i l t e r i n g t h r o u g h , I n d i c a t e s t h a t hese t h r e e b rave heroes of t h e cross have been s e r v i n g t h e V i e t Cong in medical work. Irs. M i t c h e l l , her f o u r c h i l d r e n , Dan G e r b e r ' s mother , ( h i s f a t h e r was k i l l e d In a arm t r a c t o r a c c i d e n t In 1 9 6 8 ) , Dr . V i e t t i ' s f a t h e r (he r mother passed away In 1970)

have borne t h e s e p a r a t i o n w i t h g r e a t p a t i e n c e and f a i t h . Much p r a y e r has gone up for these c a p t i v e s o v e r t h i s pro longed p e r i o d .

op

THE

the var jous t r i b a l been _both s t r o n g the Commun i s t s a r e

CHURCH i UNDER |F

Among some of t h e most f r u i t f u l n

.groups in f a i t h

Many of these have and f i r m in, t h e i r

phoses of C h r i s t i a n wj.tness among

t o C h r i s t . In f a c t , they have VIetnam

t u r n e d

groups whenever they encounte r

o p p o s i t i o n a g a i n s t Communism keen ly aware and have d e c l a r e d t h e i r I n t e n t i o n s t o wipe

them. Hanoi r j^dj_oj;eported s a y i n g , "The resistance of t h e s e C h r i s t i a n s has been a pr imary f o r c e In r e p e l l i n g CommunIst varices in t h e C e n t r H I High I anris . l !

Of t h i s o u t such

s tubborn ad-

(jieu Huynh was an o u t s t a n d i n g S t i e n g t r i b a l years ago, h i s f a i t h was shaken to a t ime of doubt and u n b e l i e f

unt i I he r e s o l v e d t o

_ p a s t o r . A f t e r a c c e p t i n g C h r i s t s e v e r a l when s e v e r a l members of h i s f a m i l y d i e d . T h i s led but h i s soul was r e s t l e s s as he c o u l d not f i n d

he r e s o l v e d t o f o l l o w C h r i s t , r e g a r d l e s s of t h e c o s t . He e n t e r e d t h e Biblical and T h e o l o g i c a l I n s t i t u t e a t N h a t r a n g . Upon g r a d u a t i o n in 1970, he was assigned t o t h e Binh Long a r e a , w h i l e l i v i n g a t An Loc. Though h is e f f o r t s a t f I r s t

f r u i t l e s s , y e t in due t i m e t h e h a r v e s t began t o come in"! When two m l s s l o n -s p e c i a l s e r v i c e s , some 550 o f h 1 s

proved aries v i s i t e d turned

h i s church and h e l d t o C h r i s t w i t h i n 36 h o u r s .

S t i e n g t r i b e s m e n ^

Vietnamese armies began t h e i r a t t a c k on An Loc on A p r i l 5 many S t i e n g When the N o r t h jrjhpsmnn__f 1 ed f o r r e f u g e t o h is house in fjleu Huynh u n t i I Apr i I 14. when t h e enemy

An Loc C i t y . They remained t h e r e w i t h r o c k e t unleashed a d e v a s t a t i n g mortar -anc

RTTTing and wounding hundreds of innocent c i v i l i a n s . F l y i n g shrapne l whole r i g h t s i d e and two l a rge p ieces c u t deep I n t o h i s stomach and f o o t .

h o s p i t a l , he was g i v e n a bed and medical a i d .

barrage, sprayed h i s fleeing t o t h e nearby p r o v i n c i a l

Thomas it

Stebb ins In S a i g o n , As he r e l a t e d t h i s p a r t of t h e s t o r y r e c e n t l y t o Rev. tears f lowed down h i s cheeks . "God a l l o w e d t h e s e wounds.' ' he s a i d , !lia__sj)axejny f o r the very n e x t day many of those who were not wounded l e f t t h e c i t y o r i f o o T A l ­most a l l o f them, i n c l u d i n g a Buddhis t p r i e s t and a C a t h o l i c p r i e s t , were e i t h e r killed o r c a p t u r e d . I wou I d^jcertaj n I y have been w i t h them had I not been wounded t h e nighjLbefore. 1 - p p . $ * * r

f 3 7*. C f c *

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A s i a PULSE - page f o u r

> THE FIRE OF THE SPIRIT

v > iOF THE HOLY

V U . . . V I i ufiu • vu'Wi I IIU I WW V_ I I l_J I ̂ 1 IC J f Jl 11 Wl I I HQ l\UI I I I U have w i t n e s s e d ?, PfllLcon ve rs ions and 600 heal I n n s . In Banmethuot t h e r e a r e 400 ne* b e l i e v e r s , A c o n f e r e n c e a t D a l a t saw 1,200 C h r i s t i a n s crowd i n t o t h e church there.

(cV I S i m i l a r r e v i v a l f i r e s a r e b u r n i n g among the Bru t r i bespeop I e , a f t e r two Bru s t u d e n t / r e t u r n e d from N h a t r a n g . where_the r e v i v a l began. An a l l day and n i g h t meet ino amo^i

( the_Bxu5-Was marked bv c o n f e s s i o n of s i n and t h e b u r n i n g of f e t i s h e s . Onq_young lady p a r a l y z e d fo£_8_vearr , was reported, m i r a c u l o u s l y h ^ l p d .

SOCIAL I Wade Coggins of t h e E v a n g e l i c a l | CONCERN F o r e i g n M i s s i o n s A s s o c i a t i o n

t r a v e l i n g w i t h a t o u r group of t w e l v e o r g a n i z e d by t h e World R e l i e f Commission of t h e N a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n of E v a n g e l i c a l s , ment ions v i s i t i n g v a r i o u s phases of r e l i e f work . They a r r i v e d in Saigon A p r i l 2 6 t h . "We went d i r e c t l y t o t h e Hoa Kanh C h i l d r e n ' s H o s p i t a l nor th of

\ Danang. T h i s h o s p i t a l was b u i l t by men in t h e U.S. Mar ines and upon t h e i r departure , ' Z ' y w a s t u r n e d o v e r t o World R e l i e f Commission f o r o p e r a t i o n . The d e d i c a t e d s t a f f is ?/\Sy c a r r y i n g on a very e f f i c i e n t o p e r a t i o n . " He went on t o s a y , "We had an i n t e r v i e w

{f/ w i t h Dr . Tran Nguon P h i e u , M i n i s t e r o f Soc ia l W e l f a r e . H i s depar tment is extremely busy t r y i n g t o keep up w i t h the re fugees f l e e i n g from the a reas o f s e v e r e s t f i g h t s

i ^ World V i s i o n P r e s i d e n t , Dr . Stan Mooneyham, v i s i t e d Saigon In May and r e p o r t e d , \f "The Communist o f f e n s i v e in South Vietnam has d r i v e n 7 5 0 , 0 0 0 p e o p l e from t h e i r homes

and f a r m s . D e s p e r a t i o n is t h e o n l y word t o d e s c r i b e t h e hunger and p a n i c t h e s e v h e l p l e s s peop le f e e l r i g h t now." The E v a n g e l i c a l Church of South V ie tnam is mobil­

i zed t o a s s i s t In d i s t r i b u t i o n of r e l i e f as funds a re made a v a i l a b l e . Not on ly do they g i v e food f o r t h e body but a l s o m i n i s t e r t o t h e s o u l , by g i v i n g t h e Word of I if

FRUIT Dur ing t h e pas t seven y e a r s , over h a l f a m i l l i o n men have heard Ikf* |j\MI!NG t h e gospel a t t h e Quang Trung T r a i n i n g camp. Ten m i l l i o n New

THE ^TXTTAJS? Tes taments , Gospels o f John and o t h e r p o r t i o n s o f S c r i p t u r e have been d i s t r i b u t e d . Over two m i l l i o n Pocket Testament

League gospels of John were g i v e n o u t . As a r e s u l t o f the f r u i t of t h e s e e f f o r t s t h e f o l l o w i n g churches have been b u i l t : The C a p i t a l C i t y M i l i t a r y C h a p e l , The M i l i t a r y P r i s o n C h a p e l , The Quang Trung T r a i n i n g Cente r C h a p e l , the Con Son Prison I s l a n d Chapel and t h e Duy Tan M i l i t a r y H o s p i t a l Chapel a t Danang. World V i s i o n has s u p p l i e d 2 , 5 0 0 wheel c h a i r s , 2 0 , 0 0 0 p a i r s of c r u t c h e s , and 2 , 4 5 5 ton'-, of medicines and re I I e f suppI I e s .

I EVANGELISM

ry ^JEEPJAND WlTjg

^ c a l l e d Evangel ism Deep and Wide. The go< people t o C h r i s t . He f e l t deeply t h a t t h i s was t h e o n l y s o l u t i o n f o r t h e n a t i o n a l c a l a m i t y . R e c e n t l y in a p u b l i s h e d a r t i c l e Rev. Mieng s a i d , " I n a n c i e n t t imes EIisha took up E l i j a h ' s m a n t l e , stood by t h e J o r d a n , s t r u c k t h e w a t e r and c r i e d , 'Where is t h e Lord God o f E l i j a h ? ' Today we s tand b e f o r e a n a t i o n in c r i s i s and ask t h i s ques­t i o n in r e v e r s e , 'Where is God's E l i j a h ? ' God is s e a r c h i n g f o r men in our day upon whom has f a l l e n t h e s p i r i t o f E l i j a h . "

Rev. Doan Van Mieng , P r e s i d e n t of the E v a n g e l i c a l Church , led t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n in n a t i o n w i d e e v a n g e l i s m under the proqr&

At I L:QQ a .m. pn A p r i l I Q n ' ° " U " y " h ' s n n r l e ^nd f u t u r e f a t h e r - i n - l a w c.arrl edJlLrc the i r—Packs from t h e h o s p i t a l t n a f r l p n d ' s horns nearby . Tha t n i g h t t h e enemv scof a d j j e c t h i t on the c i v i l i a n h o s p i t a l . Scores o f t h e s i c k and wounded were k i l l e d , i n c l u d i n g t h e p a t i e n t l y i n g on the bed Dleu Huynh had vacated j u s t a few hours e a r l i e r .

The r e v i v a l which began l a s t December In the B i b l i c a l and T h e o l o g i c a l I n s t i t u t e a t N h a t r a n q f i s c o n t i n u i n g unabated in the D a l a t and Banmethuot a r e a s . Rev. Spencer T , S u t h e r l a n d r e p o r t s t h a t 60 churches among t h e Koho tribes

Asia PULSE - page t i v e

INDIGENOUS Rev. R e g i n a l d Re I mer. A l l i a n c e m i s s i o n a r y , has MISSIONARY MOVEMENT found ready response tr» LodlgaOOUS t r i h a I o v -

p r e s s l o n of the g o s p e l . About t w o - t h i r d s of t h e Evangelical Church of V ie tnam is made up of e t h n i c V ie tnamese , who l i v e on t h e p l a i n s 3nd the r e m a i n i n g t h i r d of t r i b e s m e n , who l i v e In the mounta ins . Today 10 Vietnamese p 1 | c Q J j T n a r y f a m i l i e s and t h r e e s i n g l e men work among t h e t r i b e s . Rev. Truong van To t Was sent t o t h e I n s t i t u t e of Church Growth a t F u l l e r Seminary. Upon h i s r e t u r n t o Vietnam he j o i n e d w i t h Rev. R e g i n a l d Reimer in h o l d i n g t h e f i r s t Church Growth Seminar. Twenty V ie tnamese m i s s i o n a r i e s a t t e n d e d t h e I n s t i t u t e and d iscussed w i t h deep i n t e r e s t and i n s i g h t t h e development o f indigenous church g r o w t h . Mr. Reimer predicts t h a t a f u l l - f l e d g e d Vietnamese m i s s i o n a r y s o c i e t y w i l l be born In t h e near future. More such seminars a r e p l a n n e d .

former m i s s i o n a r y t o V i e t n a m , Rev. Dan ie l Bordreul has been m i n i s t e r i n g t o a Vietnamese church in P a r i s . A Vietnamese C h r i s t i a n of t h a t c h u r c h , Mr. D e s p e i s s e , visi ted V ie tnam r e c e n t l y and upon p r e s e n t i n g the need f o r work among the h a l f a mil l ion Vietnamese in P a r i s , P r e s i d e n t Mleng of t h e E v a n g e l i c a l Church In V i e t n a m , declared, "The t i m e has come t o send a Vietnamese miss ionary t o P a r i s t o he lp strengthen t h e s p i r i t u a l l i f e of Vietnamese C h r i s t i a n s t h e r e . He w i l l be t h e f i r s t Vietnamese m i s s i o n a r y t o be s e n t t o F r a n c e . ' 1 Sure ly t h e church of V ie tnam Is thus lengthening i t s cords In tho m i d s t of g r e a t s u f f e r i n g .

I PRAYER The E v a n g e l i c a l Church of AND THE "Vietnam cab led Dr . Nathan

.TURNING OF THE TIDE B a i l e y , P r e s i d e n t o f t h e J C&MA, r e q u e s t i n g t h a t

ty8y 7th be s e t a s i d e as a day of p r a y e r and f a s t i n g f o r V ie tnam. Dr . B a i l e y passed this request on t o t h e w o r l d w i d e c o n s t i t u e n c y of t h e C h r i s t i a n and M i s s i o n a r y Al l iance. I t is s i g n i f i c a n t , indeed , t h a t e x a c t l y on t h a t day P r e s i d e n t Nixon was closeted w i t h h i s - a Ides and a d v i s o r s a t Camp D a v i d . We l i k e t o t h i n k t h a t P r e s i d e n t llixon, a t t h i s most c r u c i a l t i m e in t h e a f f a i r s of our n a t i o n and of our Invo lvement in Vietnam, a l s o gave h i m s e l f t o p r a y e r . The N a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n of E v a n g e l i c a l s also announced a s p e c i a l day of P r a y e r f o r V i e t n a m , f i x i n g Sunday May 14th f o r such in te rcess ion .

Rev. T. H. S t e b b i n s , Chairman of t h e Vietnam M i s s i o n of t h e C&MA, wro te on t h e c l o s e of tha t memorable day in Saigon as f o l l o w s :

"The sun has gone down in V i e t Nam on our h i s t o r i c day of f a s t i n g and p r a y e r . C h r i s t i a n s a l l over t h i s war -weary land have u n i t e d t h e i r h e a r t s a s k i n g God t o bring an end t o t h e d r e a d f u l increased f i g h t i n g which P r e s i d e n t T h l e u says w i l l be r t h e f i n a l b a t t l e t o dec ide t h e s u r v i v a l of the p e o p l e . 1

•

"Pres ident Mieng and I a r e b e l i e v i n g God f o r a n o t h e r m i r a c l e in t h e h i s t o r y o f th is g r e a t c o u n t r y . We a r e t r u s t i n g God t o i n t e r v e n e and save t h i s land from s l a v e r y , a t h e i s m , f u r t h e r bloodshed and d e a t h .

;'How encouraged our h e a r t s a r e t o know t h a t as our sun goes down on t h i s g r e a t day of p r a y e r f o r V i e t n a m , i t r i s e s over t h e r e and on many o t h e r lands around the w o r l d . What a comfor t and hope i t b r i n g s t o know t h a t C h r i s t i a n s around t h e world a r e b e l i e v i n g w i t h us f o r God's a l l - w i s e and l o v i n g s o l u t i o n t o t h i s most d i f f i c u l t VI 1 Nam s i t u a t i o n . "

Information has come through I n d i r e c t channels t o t h e A I M ance W i t n e s s , o f f i c i a l organ of t h e C&MA, t h a t t h e churches in N o r t h Vietnam were a b l e t o ho ld a c o n f e r e n c e in March. I t was r e p o r t e d t h a t many had b e l i e v e d and a r e zea lous f o r t h e Lord . Chr is t ians a r e s a c r i f i c i a l l y r e p a i r i n g some of t h e c h u r c h e s , which had f a l l e n i n t o d i s r e p a i r . They r e q u e s t e d p r a y e r as they seek t o renew t h e work amid g r e a t h a r d s h i p .

Asia PULSE - page s i x

i CHRISTIANS ARE I ENCOURAGED

The E v a n g e l i c a l Church of V i e t Nam conveyed t h e i r appre­c i a t i o n f o r the f e r v e n t i n t e r c e s s i o n of C h r i s t i a n s every

' ~' where on both days of p r a y e r , May 7 t h and 1 4 t h , through t h e C&MA S e c r e t a r y , Rev. T . Grady Mangham, J r . He s t a t e d , "The church l eaders and t h e M i s s i o n Chairman have noted w i t h t h a n k s g i v i n g t h a t s i n c e t h a t very day t h e s i t ­u a t i o n in South V i e t Nam has s t a b i I I z e d and a s p i r i t o f op t imism has s t e a d ! ly i n ­c r e a s e d . I f Is t h e i r o p i n i o n t h a t God has a g a i n d i v i n e l y i n t e r v e n e d In answer to t h e p r a y e r s of His p e o p l e . " Mr. S tebb ins a l s o s t a t e s : "Our m i s s i o n a r i e s a r e busy work ing w i t h t h e n a t i o n a l s In b r i n g i n g r e l i e f t o t h e re fugees and p r e s e n t i n g the gospel in some 88 re fugee camps." From Han^pfhuot comes t h e r e p o r t t h a t t h e church t h e r e - I s crowded out—at every s e r v i c e w i t h hundreds t u r n i n g t o C h r i s t . . . U n u s u a l b l e s s i n g Is r e p o r t e d from o t h e r areas as w e l l . In a c o n v e r s a t i o n F r i d a y May 26 th , Mr. S tebb ins f u r t h e r r e p o r t e d , "There Is a marked improvement t h r o u g h o u t t h e whole c o u n t r y . The people a re r e t u r n i n g t o P l e i k u by t h e hundreds. They must r e s e r v e space on t h e p lane n ine days in a d v a n c e . "

THE PRESS REPORTS IMPROVEMENT

i.

In t h e s e c u l a r p r e s s , R u s s e l l K i r k , in a s y n d i c a t e d column, r e l e a s e d on June 2nd w r o t e : "South Vietnamese marines

and s o l d i e r s have launched a counte r o f f e n s i v e in t h e n o r t h . Kontum and An Loc, 3* t h i s w r i t i n g , c o n t i n u e t o repe l the Communist t r o o p s . The N o r t h Vietnamese have l o s t 3 0 , 0 0 0 s o l d i e r s , dead or wounded, s i n c e t h e i r o f f e n s i v e began; t h e y a r e call lnS back d i v i s i o n s from Laos and Cambodia as r e i n f o r c e m e n t s .

"American mines have s e a l e d Haiphong and o t h e r N o r t h Vietnamese h a r b o r s ; no ships at a l l pass in o r o u t , and the channels a r e s i l t i n g up. N e i t h e r Russia nor China has I n t e r v e n e d a g a i n s t t h i s q u a s I - b l o c k a d e , and n e i t h e r power a p p a r e n t l y has any inten­t i o n of opposing t h e U.S. f l e e t w i t h f o r c e .

"American bombs have des t royed key r a i l and road b r i d g e s t h r o u g h o u t N o r t h V i e t Nam, some of them b r i d g e s p r e v i o u s l y unscathed. Hanoi has l o s t r a i I c o n n e c t i o n s both w i t h t h e Communist armies t o the south and w i t h Ha iphong. Under bombing, Hanoi I t s e l f has been e v a c u a t e d . Near V i n h , Nor th V i e t n a m ' s o i l p i p e l i n e r u n n i n g t o the DMZ has been c u t by bombing.

" I n Laos, government t roops reoccupy p o s i t r o n s abandoned by t h e w i t h d r a w i n g North V ie tnamese . On t h e s e v e r a l South Vietnamese f r o n t s , t h e Communists have l o s t much heavy a r t i l l e r y and many t a n k s . "

fo qu In

| •••

to

r PRAY FOR PRISONERS OF WAR

I— -

The q u e s t i o n of our l a n g u i s h i n g prisons o f war has been uppermost in many h e a r t s of our American p e o p l e . The

F i r s t Church of t h e Open B i b l e in Ottuma, Iowa has been c o n d u c t i n g a l l n i g h t prayer v i g i l s on F r i d a y e v e n i n g s . Our House of R e p r e s e n t a t i v e s has c i t e d them as "an example f o r a l l . " S u r e l y t h i s i s t h e way t o h e l p . May many o t h e r s f o l l o w t h e i r example u n t i l the Lord H imse l f under takes f o r our POWs.

THE MIRACLE The t i n y n a t i o n of Cambodia m i r a c u l o u s l y chose t o a l i g n her-0F CAMBODIA s e l f w i t h t h e f r e e wor ld when t h e i r P remie r P r i n c e Sihanouk

was v i s i t i n g P e k i n g . Now another g r e a t m i r a c l e has t a k e n p l a c e in Cambodia, as t h e n a t i o n responds t o C h r i s t . World V i s i o n P r e s i d e n t , Dr . S t a n l e y Mooneyham, h e l d t h e f i r s t p u b l i c e v a n g e l i s t i c meet ing In t h e h i s t o r y of

I

Asia PULSE - page seven

Phnom Penh, t h e c a p i t a l . The a u d i t o r i u m f o r 1,200 people was f i l l e d 40 minutes be ­fore the f i r s t m e e t i n g . One r e p o r t s t a t e s t h a t 2 , 0 0 0 remained o u t s i d e . On subse­quent days s e p a r a t e meet ings were h e l d In a nearby p a r k f o r t h o s e who cou ld not g e t Into Phnom P e n h ' s l a r g e s t a u d i t o r i u m . The e n t i r e P r o t e s t a n t church in t h i s o v e r ­whelming Buddh is t n a t i o n had o n l y about s i x hundred members.

jhe appearance of a C h r i s t i a n q u a r t e t on the Cambodian t e l e v i s i o n was ano ther breakthrough.

It was e s t i m a t e d t h a t 98% o f those who responded d u r i n g t h e Crusade were under 30 years of age . Chau U t h , p r e s i d e n t o f t h e Cambodian E v a n g e l i c a l Church s a i d , "We feel t h a t Phnom Penh has been shaken — t u r n e d upside down. B e f o r e , we used t o be Hidden peoplc3, but now we a re v i s i b l e . We have longed f o r t h i s t o happen f o r many years,"

r i i f f W e s t e r g r e n , former m i s s i o n a r y t o Cambodia, w r o t e t o u c h i n g l y o f h is v i s i t when he went t o Phnom Penh t o a s s i s t in a l i t e r a t u r e c o n f e r e n c e . He s a i d , " I cannot resist m e n t i o n i n g my love f e a s t w i t h F i f i , Cambodia's v a l i a n t c o l p o r t e u r . Word came that he was very i I I a t t h e Chinese h o s p i t a l . I was deeply moved and c o u l d n ' t r e s t u n t i l I went t o see h im. The moment I walked i n t o h i s room, he r e c o g n i z e d me, and a 5 | drew n e a r , he grabbed my hands and began t o cry and cry t e a r s of j o y and g r a ­titude. A f t e r c h a t t i n g a few minutes I read t o him from both Chinese and Cambodian New Testaments . Then we opened our h e a r t s t o t h e Lord In p r a y e r . What I remember post was h i s joyous g r a t i t u d e and love as he kept r e p e a t i n g 'Thank y o u , Lok, t h a n k you, Lok . ' The f e l l o w s h i p we en joyed dur ing t h a t h a l f hour was I n e x p r e s s i b l e . "

u r, Westergren went on t o speak concern ing t h e Cambodian p o l i t i c a l l e a d e r s h i p . " I t ^5 my p l e a s u r e t o meet a t d i f f e r e n t t i m e s , f o u r o f t h e p r e s e n t C a b i n e t members.

.The quest ion kept c r o s s i n g my mind as t o why they possessed an u n d e r l y i n g opt imism | j n the face of t h e problems they f a c e d . At l e a s t one b i g reason was t h e i r c l o s e i: contact w i t h t h e church and t h e m i s s i o n a r i e s , whose u t t e r c o n f i d e n c e In the Lord ] has communicated i t s e l f t o t h e s e men. These r e l a t i o n s h i p s a r e very persona l and f „arm, and should demand our everyday I n t e r c e s s i o n . "

I f i

f

Asia PULSE - page f i v e

INDIGENOUS Rev. R e g i n a l d Reimer . AI I 1ance m i s s i o n a r y , has MISSIONARY MOVEMENT f o u n d r e a d y r e s p o n d t o inHlgpn^nc t r l h a l a y -

press I on of the g o s p e l . About t w o - t h i r d s of t h e Evangelical Church of V ie tnam is made up of e t h n i c V ie tnamese , who l i v e on t h e p l a i n s 3nd the r e m a i n i n g t h i r d of t r i b e s m e n , who l i v e in the mounta ins . Today 10 Vietnamese missionary fami I j e s ^nd t h r e e s i n g l e men work among t h e t r i b e s . Rev. Truong van Tot was sent t o t h e I n s t i t u t e o f Church Growth a t F u l l e r Seminary. Upon h i s r e t u r n t o Vietnam he j o i n e d w i t h Rev. R e g i n a l d Reimer in h o l d i n g t h e f i r s t Church Growth Seminar. Twenty Vietnamese m i s s i o n a r i e s a t t e n d e d the I n s t i t u t e and d iscussed w i t h deep i n t e r e s t and i n s i g h t t h e development of Indigenous church g r o w t h . Mr. Reimer predicts t h a t a f i l l l - f ledgpH Vietnamese m i s s i o n a r y s o c i e t y w i l l be born in t h e near future. More such seminars a r e p l a n n e d .

former m i s s i o n a r y t o V i e t n a m , Rev, Dan ie l Bordreul has been m i n i s t e r i n g t o a Vietnamese church in P a r i s . A Vietnamese C h r i s t i a n of t h a t c h u r c h , Mr, D e s p e l s s e , v is i ted V ie tnam r e c e n t l y and upon p r e s e n t i n g t h e need f o r work among t h e h a l f a (nil l ion Vietnamese in P a r t s , P r e s i d e n t Mieng of t h e E v a n g e l i c a l Church in V i e t n a m , declared, "The t i m e has come t o send a Vietnamese m i s s i o n a r y t o P a r i s t o he lp strengthen t h e s p i r i t u a l l i f e o f Vietnamese C h r i s t i a n s t h e r e . He w i l l be t h e f i r s t Vietnamese m i s s i o n a r y t o be s e n t t o F r a n c e . h Sure ly t h e church of Vietnam Is thus lengthening I t s cords in the m i d s t of g r e a t s u f f e r i n g .

1 PRAYER The E v a n g e l i c a l Church of AND THE 'Vietnam c a b l e d Dr . Nathan

I TURN ING OF THE TIDE B a i l e y , P r e s i d e n t o f t h e C&MA, r e q u e s t i n g t h a t

May 7th be s e t a s i d e as a day of p r a y e r and f a s t i n g f o r V ie tnam. Dr . B a i l e y passed this request on t o t h e wor ldwide c o n s t i t u e n c y of t h e C h r i s t i a n and M i s s i o n a r y Al l iance. I t is s i g n i f i c a n t , i n d e e d , t h a t e x a c t l y on t h a t day P r e s i d e n t Nixon was closeted w i t h h i s -a ides and a d v i s o r s a t Camp D a v i d . We l i k e t o t h i n k t h a t P r e s i d e n t llixon, a t t h i s most c r u c i a l t i m e in t h e a f f a i r s of our n a t i o n and of our invo lvement | n Vietnam, a l s o gave h i m s e l f t o p r a y e r . The N a t i o n a l A s s o c i a t i o n of E v a n g e l i c a l s also announced a s p e c i a l day of P rayer f o r V i e t n a m , f i x i n g Sunday May 14th f o r such intercess i o n ,

Rev. T. H. S t e b b i n s , Chairman of the V ie tnam M i s s i o n of t h e C&MA, wro te on t h e c l o s e of tha t memorable day in Saigon as f o l l o w s :

"The sun has gone down in V i e t Nam on our h i s t o r i c day of f a s t i n g and p r a y e r . C h r i s t i a n s a l l over t h i s war -weary land have u n i t e d t h e i r h e a r t s a s k i n g God t o bring an end t o t h e d r e a d f u l increased f i g h t i n g which P r e s i d e n t T h i e u says w i l l be f t h e f i n a l b a t t l e t o dec ide t h e s u r v i v a l of the p e o p l e . '

"Pres ident Mieng and I a re b e l i e v i n g God f o r ano ther m i r a c l e in t h e h i s t o r y of th is g r e a t c o u n t r y . We a re t r u s t i n g God t o i n t e r v e n e and save t h i s land from s l a v e r y , a t h e i s m , f u r t h e r bloodshed and d e a t h .

;,How encouraged our h e a r t s a re t o know t h a t as our sun goes down on t h i s g r e a t day of p r a y e r f o r V i e t n a m , i t r i s e s over t h e r e and on many o t h e r lands around the w o r l d . What a comfor t and hope i t b r i n g s t o know t h a t C h r i s t i a n s around t h e world a r e b e l i e v i n g w i t h us f o r God's a l l - w i s e and lov ing s o l u t i o n t o t h i s most d i f f i c u l t Vi '• Nam s i t u a t i o n . "

Information has come th rough i n d i r e c t channels t o t h e A I M ance Wi t n e s s , o f f i c i a l organ of t h e C&MA, t h a t t h e churches in N o r t h V ie tnam were a b l e t o ho ld a c o n f e r e n c e in March. I t was r e p o r t e d t h a t many had b e l i e v e d and a r e zea lous f o r t h e Lord . Chr is t ians a re s a c r i f i c l a l l y r e p a i r i n g some of the churches , which had f a l l e n i n t o d i s r e p a i r . They r e q u e s t e d p r a y e r as they seek t o renew t h e work amid g r e a t ha rdsh ip .

VISUALISING SOUTH VIET NAM South Viet N a m : seventeen mi l ­lion people, 3 8 0 organized churches, 6 church districts, 3 3 3 pastors, 5 3 , 4 2 5 baptized church members, 83 active mission­a r i es—21 of them currently on fur lough.

In these critical days for South Viet N a m the church looks to God for ten million converts before Jesus Christ re­turns.

W e must help them realize that goal . Al l can pray. Most can give. Some can go.

Do w h a t you can.

'Actually In IN dijiiicl. Thoi* on lui lijutlb not included.

S I N C E 1 9 1 1 V O I C E F O R G O D I N V I E T N A M

THE CHRISTIAN AND MISSIONARY ALLIANCE S ("J* yt 260 Wait 44lh St., New York, N.Y. 10036 • 125 r'onin Rd„ Burlington, Ont.