The unofficial blog of the USC community in Barbados
Wednesday, 25 December 2013
Tuesday, 24 December 2013
Monday, 23 December 2013
Sunday, 22 December 2013
Saturday, 21 December 2013
Friday, 20 December 2013
Thursday, 19 December 2013
Wednesday, 18 December 2013
Tuesday, 17 December 2013
Monday, 16 December 2013
Sunday, 15 December 2013
Saturday, 14 December 2013
Friday, 13 December 2013
Thursday, 12 December 2013
Wednesday, 11 December 2013
Tuesday, 10 December 2013
Monday, 9 December 2013
Racism and Health: Findings, Questions and Directions
"Dr. David R. Williams, (Florence Sprague Norman and Laura Smart Norman Professor of Public Health (Harvard School of Public Health and Professor of African and African American Studies at Harvard University), presented "Racism and Health: Findings, Questions and Directions" at UMass Amherst on Mar.5, 2013. Dr. Williams' lecture draws from years of research. He provides an overview of his findings and strategies going forward. The lecture should be viewed in its entirety. Unfortunately, the slides were not filmed during his presentation.
This lecture is co-sponsored by the UMass Center for Research on Families' Tay Gavin Erickson Lecture Series, the 2012-13 Clinical Psychology Diversity Speaker Series (awarded a 2012 APA CEMRRAT Implementation Grants Fund (IGF) for Ethnic Minority Recruitment, Retention and Training in Psychology), the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, the Psychology Department Research Mentoring Group Speaker Series which is supported by the UMass Amherst Center for Teaching & Faculty Development's Mutual Mentoring Initiative, funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Department of Public Health in the School of Public Health and Health Sciences and the Western MA Public Health Training Center."
Last month, Dr. Williams received the Stephen Smith Award for Distinguished Contributions in Public Health from the New York Academy of Medicine. Dr. Williams is a native of St. Lucia and a graduate of the University of the Southern Caribbean - Class of 1976. He was also partially educated in Barbados prior to college, and is a practicing second generation Seventh-day Adventist Christian.
Sunday, 8 December 2013
Saturday, 7 December 2013
Friday, 6 December 2013
Thursday, 5 December 2013
Wednesday, 4 December 2013
Tuesday, 3 December 2013
Monday, 2 December 2013
Saturday, 16 November 2013
The Jews of Adventism: Growing in number, ancient and modern sabbatarian faiths connect.
"Every Sabbath a growing number of Seventh-day Adventist congregations are taking on a distinctive appearance: men wearing skullcaps and prayer shawls, alongside women, recite prayers in the Hebrew language of their forebears. In many places the Torah, a parchment scroll of the first five books of the Bible—authored by Moses—is read from the platform. A Jewish flavor permeates the proceedings, even the potluck suppers.
And while the congregations are thoroughly Adventist—using the same Sabbath school quarterly (edited by Clifford Goldstein, a Jewish Adventist) and holding the same doctrines as other congregations around the globe—there’s something different here. Worshipping one God and His Son, the Messiah, dozens of Jewish Adventist congregations are demonstrating the connection between the Sabbathkeepers of ancient Israel and many of God’s followers today.
From the bustling metropolis of Buenos Aires, Argentina, to the American Jewish neighborhoods of Los Angeles, Miami, and New York City, to Israel’s teeming streets and beyond—Seventh-day Adventists are reaching and receiving Jewish believers in both Jesus and the three angels’ messages. Richard Elofer, a longtime worker in the field of Jewish Adventist outreach who heads the church’s World Jewish Adventist Friendship Center, based in France, estimates there are between 4,000 and 5,000 Jewish Adventists active in the church today.
That may not seem like many, but it’s far more than have ever been recorded before, Elofer said. The difference, which he has seen during 23 years of working to reach Jews, is a ministry approach that understands the Jewish mind-set and adapts the Adventist message to be understood by those who may be unfamiliar with any Christian beliefs.
“The change I have seen is tremendous,” Elofer told Adventist World. “In the 1990s we had no Jewish Adventist congregations in the world; today we have about 40 of them, 25 just in the United States..."
Click here to read more in the original Adventist World article.
Thursday, 14 November 2013
State of the Church
State of the Church - Ted Wilson from GCComm on Vimeo.
IN UNPRECEDENTED STATE OF THE CHURCH ADDRESS, WILSON TAKES MESSAGE TO VIEWERS
November 14, 2013 | Silver Spring, Maryland, United States | Author: ANN staff
Seventh-day Adventist Church President Ted N. C. Wilson today released a State of the Church address in which he updated the denomination on its mission and membership growth and highlighted concerns, including lack of involvement and disunity.
The most prominent annual speech of the Adventist Church president has traditionally been delivered as the Sabbath sermon during Annual Council, a nearly week-long meeting of the denomination’s Executive Committee. But Wilson took his message directly to video viewers in what is believed to be the first such address for an Adventist Church president.
Wilson said “revival” should be the church’s top priority, quoting Adventist Church co-founder Ellen G. White, who once wrote, “A revival of true godliness among us is the greatest and most urgent of all our needs.”
He also reviewed several initiatives that have been launched since he became president in 2010, including the 777 prayer initiative, which reminds members to pray for revival at 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.; The Great Controversy Project, which has distributed more than 140 million copies of White’s book “The Great Controversy”; and the recent launch of a worldwide comprehensive health ministry.
“God is doing so much in this church that at times it just overwhelms me,” he said.
Wilson went on to explain what he said were four “spiritual maladies” affecting some people in the Adventist Church:
• A loss of Seventh-day Adventist identity among some pastors and members.
• A “growing tide of worldliness” in many Adventist Churches.
• The “danger of disunity.”
• Spiritual apathy and lack of involvement.
“Too many of our pastors and members either have failed to recognize, or have forgotten, the divine prophetic calling God has given us as a church,” Wilson said.
Regarding “worldliness” entering the church, Wilson said, “Standards that were once cherished by Seventh-day Adventists in the areas of diet and dress, recreation and amusement, and Sabbath-keeping, are fast becoming things of the past.”
Wilson lamented that the church’s historic commitment to healthful living wasn’t adhered to by many members. “When the Adventist health message, which so many honest-hearted people in the world are embracing, is made of none effect, or considered to be legalism or fanaticism, rather than a glorious gift from a loving Creator, something is tragically wrong.”
Regarding church unity, he again quoted White, who said “Unity is the strength of the church.”
Wilson said God has given the Adventist Church a “divinely inspired organization and “mutual agreements called church policies” that help hold the church together “as a worldwide family.”
He later added, “I pray that every one of us will lay aside our personal opinions for the good of the body of Christ, and that we will, together, march forward to the kingdom of God.
Regarding spiritual apathy, Wilson said church members would not grow spiritually without active involvement in church life and service activities. “We have to examine our lives to make sure that God is working in us in a vital way—and I speak to myself, as well.
“Brothers and sisters, I appeal to you, as I appeal to my own heart, to make a full, complete, total consecration to Christ,” Wilson said, before ending his address with a prayer asking God to bless Adventist Church members and others seeking the “truths of the Bible.”
Click HERE to watch Wilson’s 41-minute video address.
Click HERE to read a transcript of Wilson’s address.The most prominent annual speech of the Adventist Church president has traditionally been delivered as the Sabbath sermon during Annual Council, a nearly week-long meeting of the denomination’s Executive Committee. But Wilson took his message directly to video viewers in what is believed to be the first such address for an Adventist Church president.
Wilson said “revival” should be the church’s top priority, quoting Adventist Church co-founder Ellen G. White, who once wrote, “A revival of true godliness among us is the greatest and most urgent of all our needs.”
He also reviewed several initiatives that have been launched since he became president in 2010, including the 777 prayer initiative, which reminds members to pray for revival at 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.; The Great Controversy Project, which has distributed more than 140 million copies of White’s book “The Great Controversy”; and the recent launch of a worldwide comprehensive health ministry.
“God is doing so much in this church that at times it just overwhelms me,” he said.
Wilson went on to explain what he said were four “spiritual maladies” affecting some people in the Adventist Church:
• A loss of Seventh-day Adventist identity among some pastors and members.
• A “growing tide of worldliness” in many Adventist Churches.
• The “danger of disunity.”
• Spiritual apathy and lack of involvement.
“Too many of our pastors and members either have failed to recognize, or have forgotten, the divine prophetic calling God has given us as a church,” Wilson said.
Regarding “worldliness” entering the church, Wilson said, “Standards that were once cherished by Seventh-day Adventists in the areas of diet and dress, recreation and amusement, and Sabbath-keeping, are fast becoming things of the past.”
Wilson lamented that the church’s historic commitment to healthful living wasn’t adhered to by many members. “When the Adventist health message, which so many honest-hearted people in the world are embracing, is made of none effect, or considered to be legalism or fanaticism, rather than a glorious gift from a loving Creator, something is tragically wrong.”
Regarding church unity, he again quoted White, who said “Unity is the strength of the church.”
Wilson said God has given the Adventist Church a “divinely inspired organization and “mutual agreements called church policies” that help hold the church together “as a worldwide family.”
He later added, “I pray that every one of us will lay aside our personal opinions for the good of the body of Christ, and that we will, together, march forward to the kingdom of God.
Regarding spiritual apathy, Wilson said church members would not grow spiritually without active involvement in church life and service activities. “We have to examine our lives to make sure that God is working in us in a vital way—and I speak to myself, as well.
“Brothers and sisters, I appeal to you, as I appeal to my own heart, to make a full, complete, total consecration to Christ,” Wilson said, before ending his address with a prayer asking God to bless Adventist Church members and others seeking the “truths of the Bible.”
Click HERE to watch Wilson’s 41-minute video address.
Source: Adventist News Network
Wednesday, 13 November 2013
Barbados And The Barbados SDA Sec. School Congratulate Mayor-Elect Adrian Mapp
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| Adrian Mapp - Mayor-Elect of Plainfield, NJ |
USC's main feeder school in Barbados, Barbados SDA Secondary School, which is celebrating 60 years this year, is also now celebrating and congratulating one of its alums - Adrian Mapp - who was elected last week as the Mayor of Plainfield, NJ, a Metro-New York area community of 50,000.
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| Map shows location of Plainfield, NJ |
"Plainfield Mayor-elect Adrian O. Mapp was honored Saturday evening as the nation's first Barbadian-American Mayor.
The recognition came as part of the Barbadian-American Charitable Organization of New Jersey's annual dinner dance at L'Affaire.
Hundreds of Barbadian-Americans and their friends gathered to dine and dance as well as celebrate the 47th anniversary of Barbadian Independence and honor several of its members, including our Mayor-elect and his wife Amelia.
Master of Ceremonies Miguel Edghill detailed some of the charitable activities of the organization, which include scholarship support and disaster assistance.
The Rev'd Canon Leroy Lyons, recently retired rector of St. Mark's Episcopal Church in Plainfield, gave the invocation." ...Source: http://ptoday.blogspot.com/2013/11/mapp-honored-as-first-barbadian.html
Thursday, 31 October 2013
91-Yr Old Bajan USCian To Disengage From The Public Lecture Series Which Bears His Name
On the occasion of the 11th Annual Public Lecture of the George and Esther Simmons Book Collection held on Monday, October 28, 2013, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Port of Spain, Trinidad, under the patronage of His Excellency Gerard Latulippe, High Commissioner for Canada to the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Dr. George Simmons announced that next year's 12th lecture would be his last as he feels it is the final one he is mentally and physically able to plan.
This year's lecture was delivered by Professor John Hare, Professor of Philosophical Theology at Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA. Using the philosophical work of Immanuel Kant as his springboard, Professor Hare reasoned that Providence, Grace and Justification show that morality depends on religion.
Click here to read more.
Click here for photostream.
Click here to read a profile of Dr. George Simmons which appeared in the local (Barbados) media last year.
Wednesday, 30 October 2013
Annual Week Of Prayer Goes Social
A special, September 26 edition of Adventist Review, pp. 14-15, carries all eight readings for the Week of Spiritual Emphasis under the title, "And They Followed Him." MORE (October Adventist World/NAD Edition, pp. 14, 15)"
Even though this is a NAD (North American Division of SDA) project and we here in Barbados are in the IAD (Inter-American Division of SDA), there are no SDA divisional boundaries on Facebook so anyone with a Facebook account can participate. USC Barbados will be echoing the NAD page during the week of prayer.
Click here to download PDF with readings for the week.
Tuesday, 29 October 2013
Bajan USCian Officiates 75th Annual Conference Of The Barbados Labour Party
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| Jan Hartley officiating BLP Annual Conference (click images to enlarge) |
In the full spirit of our school motto - “Beyond Excellence” - Bajan USCians are always proud to serve their country when duty calls - even in the political arena. This past weekend saw fellow alum Jan Hartley officiating at the 75th Annual Conference of the oldest political party in Barbados - the Barbados Labour Party. Jan is also very supportive of the local (Barbados) alumni chapter of her alma mater - the University of the Southern Caribbean.
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Thursday, 24 October 2013
New Men's Dorm At USC Named For Bajan USCian
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| Timothy S. Greaves Hall on the campus of the University of the Southern Caribbean, Maracas Valley, Trinidad (click images to enlarge) |
"“While we cannot fully control our legacy and how we are remembered, we are more likely to achieve the desired results if we seek them, than if we move through life without direction or purpose.”
The late Dr. Timothy Greaves sought to leave behind a legacy that would be remembered for years to come from living a life filled with purpose and by making significant contributions to his alma mater, the University of the Southern Caribbean. Today, the memory of his indomitable spirit will forever be enshrined in the halls of his dear “old USC” as of October 20th, the New Men’s Residence Hall was officially opened and named in his honor. The opening of the New Men’s Residence Hall was part of the Alumni Reunion Weekend 2013 celebrations.
Nearly ten years ago, a University Technical Committee was formed to oversee the construction of new male and female residence halls. Although the project has been ongoing for quite some time and many obstacles have been encountered along the way, the spirits of those directly involved have not been dampened as faith and trust in an all-powerful God reigns supreme.
The Residence hall construction project became a reality to students, staff, alumni and others who have been around the University for years, when the buildings on the hill began to emerge in 2012. One year later after the preliminary work began, the University is happy to announce the completion of the Timothy S. Greaves Hall - the new and contemporary men’s residence hall. The men, who currently reside at Cedar Hall, will move into the new hall in January 2014. Work on the female hall and overall project completion is carded for 2015.
This dream has become a reality and is just the first of many dreams that will be realized at USC in the coming months and years.
Dr. Greaves is an inspirational role model for the USC community and beyond and has left behind him a legacy of service and teaching that we want to be remembered. Despite severe physical disabilities, he achieved career accomplishments that might seem nearly impossible to many people. His scholarship, professional competence and character were of the highest caliber. Dr. Greaves was a man of enormous courage and unfailing good humor despite his physical limitations.
Follow us as we continue our journey to making more dreams become a reality and continue is moving USC “Beyond Excellence!”" ____ USC Alumni Association
Dr. Timothy S. Greaves came from the most prominent (both within and without Adventist circles in Barbados) Greaves family of St. Lucy, Barbados. His father, Pastor Eric Greaves, served as the President of the East Caribbean Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in the 1960s when its territory still stretched from the US Virgin Islands in the north to St. Lucia and Barbados in the south. One of his uncles, Wrensford Greaves, was a well known lay evangelist throughout the north of the island and was one of the founders of the Mile-&-A-Quarter SDA Church, and Lay Leader of the Speightstown SDA Church for many years. Tim's sister, Norma Greaves, served on the faculty and staff of USC for over 40 years, and continues to serve the church today as Librarian of the Barbados SDA Secondary School. His brother, Dr. Donn Greaves, serves at the church-run Cave Memorial Clinic and Nursing Home in Brittons Hill. His first cousin, Sir Philip Greaves, once served as Deputy Prime Minister of Barbados.
Earlier this year, Tim was also posthumously honoured by his medical school alumni at Loma Linda University.
Click here for event photostream.
Thursday, 17 October 2013
This May Shock Some:
"LANDMARK SURVEY REVEALS IN-DEPTH BELIEFS, PERCEPTIONS OF ADVENTIST MEMBERS
The most extensive research ever conducted on the attitudes, beliefs, experiences and spiritual practices of Seventh-day Adventists reinforced some long-held assumptions about worshippers’ positive affirmation of the denomination, yet revealed an emerging trend toward secularization that is worrisome for some church leaders.
Among the most significant findings, based on tens of thousands of surveys from around the world:
• Sabbath School teachers were ranked higher than pastors and elders when church members were asked to state who was friendlier, warmer, more caring and had a positive effect on their spiritual lives.
• About three-fourths of Adventists strongly embrace the prophetic ministry of church co-founder Ellen G. White.
• Only about one in three families conduct daily worship.
• Almost half of college students and recent college graduates said they would accept practicing homosexuals as church members in good and regular standing.
• About 9 in 10 people who left the Adventist church were never contacted by their pastor after they stopped attending.
The findings, released this week to delegates at the 2013 General Conference Annual Council at church headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, were commissioned by the Office of Archives, Statistics and Research two and a half years ago.
The research was based on five separate projects. It consisted of 41,000 interviews or questionnaires around the world; involved 4,260 pastors; nearly 26,000 church members; 1,200 college students and recent graduates; and 900 former Adventists. Research teams from Adventist universities on several contents were involved in the unprecedented effort.
“In terms of both the breadth and depth,” said David Trim, director of the church’s research office, “this is the best snapshot we’ve ever had of the worldwide church.”
Before presenting the findings to hundreds of church administrators, Trim warned the audience to not be quick to judge. “Data is what it is,” Trim said. “What it means, is something else.”
The findings debunked longheld assumptions about the denomination’s gender makeup: The church is 57 percent female, and 43 percent male – quite a ways off from the belief that 65 percent of worshipers were female and 35 percent were male.
The findings also showed a church that is young – 54 percent of the members worldwide are between the ages of 16 and 40 – which has two disadvantages, according to Trim. For one, young members may be called too quickly into denominational administrative leadership positions without the proper experience. In addition, older leaders may need training to learn how to understand and work effectively with the younger generation.
Only 10 percent of church members globally are older than 60, and the largest proportion of aging congregants are in North America, Europe and Japan. In contrast, Trim said, “Our church in Latin America and Africa in particular is an extremely youthful church.”
The findings contained several bright spots, Trim said, including a statistic that shows that 53 percent of respondents stated that the Sabbath School adult Bible study guide helped “very much” to develop their religious life.
The study guide, perhaps not surprisingly, is least popular with worshipers is in North America, parts of Europe, and in and around Australia. “As someone who is both from Australia and Europe, and married to an American,” Trim said jokingly, “I will accept the blame for all those things. We are very cynical people in America, Australia and Europe.”
Another “success story,” Trim said, was that 92 percent of Adventists have an overwhelming conviction that the Seventh-day Sabbath is the true Sabbath, and only 3 percent disagree (that particular survey’s margin of error was 3 percent, which could perhaps mean zero disagreement).
The findings also pointed to several areas deemed problematic, such as people leaving the church unnoticed, and the seeping influence of secular values, Trim said.
Interestingly, the vast majority of inactive and former members are not rejecting the message and mission of the church.
“They are moving with the strong dynamics of contemporary society away from established forms of religious activity,” Trim said. “The fabric of most Adventist local churches is not sufficient to stem this tide.” He then told the delegates, “Brothers and sisters, I think this is a real challenge to us.”
While only 9 percent of Adventists were contacted by their pastor after they stopped attending church, a larger number of former members said they had been visited by elders or other church members. However, the findings show that 4 out of 10 Adventists slipped out of the church without ever being contacted by anyone.
The fact that members lapse unnoticed is a “tragedy,” Trim said.
From 2000 to 2012, more than 13.6 million people joined the church, mostly through baptism. But during the same time, 5.9 million Adventists were lost (and that doesn’t include those who died). That’s a loss rate of nearly 43.4 per 100 new converts. “That is too high,” Trim said.
Approximately 90 percent of respondents strongly agreed that the Seventh-day Adventist Church is God’s true last-day church with a message to prepare the world for the Second Coming of Christ. When asked if they expect the world to end within the next 20 years, just 22 percent of respondents strongly agreed, and 45 percent strongly disagreed, Trim said. “It’s not that people don’t believe that Jesus is coming, but there does seem to be some kind of skepticism about him coming soon.”
The research concluded that secularization is no longer limited to America, Europe and Australia. “It’s a globalized society,” Trim said. “People are watching the same television programs, reading the same apps and websites on their phones and computers, and secularization is a problem.”
Following the presentation, Vice President Benjamin Schoun acknowledged that challenges indeed lie ahead.
“We have much to learn and we probably need to incorporate these results into our strategic planning,” he stated, “because it is a very sobering picture in some cases, even though we have our strengths as well.”"
Source: http://news.adventist.org/all-news/news/go/2013-10-17/landmark-survey-reveals-in-depth-beliefs-perceptions-of-adventist-members/
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| David Trim, director of the Office of Archives, Statistics and Research presents the findings of the most in-depth research the denomination has conducted on its members. He delivered the findings to Annual Council delegates on Tuesday, October 15 [2013]. |
The most extensive research ever conducted on the attitudes, beliefs, experiences and spiritual practices of Seventh-day Adventists reinforced some long-held assumptions about worshippers’ positive affirmation of the denomination, yet revealed an emerging trend toward secularization that is worrisome for some church leaders.
Among the most significant findings, based on tens of thousands of surveys from around the world:
• Sabbath School teachers were ranked higher than pastors and elders when church members were asked to state who was friendlier, warmer, more caring and had a positive effect on their spiritual lives.
• About three-fourths of Adventists strongly embrace the prophetic ministry of church co-founder Ellen G. White.
• Only about one in three families conduct daily worship.
• Almost half of college students and recent college graduates said they would accept practicing homosexuals as church members in good and regular standing.
• About 9 in 10 people who left the Adventist church were never contacted by their pastor after they stopped attending.
The findings, released this week to delegates at the 2013 General Conference Annual Council at church headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, were commissioned by the Office of Archives, Statistics and Research two and a half years ago.
The research was based on five separate projects. It consisted of 41,000 interviews or questionnaires around the world; involved 4,260 pastors; nearly 26,000 church members; 1,200 college students and recent graduates; and 900 former Adventists. Research teams from Adventist universities on several contents were involved in the unprecedented effort.
“In terms of both the breadth and depth,” said David Trim, director of the church’s research office, “this is the best snapshot we’ve ever had of the worldwide church.”
Before presenting the findings to hundreds of church administrators, Trim warned the audience to not be quick to judge. “Data is what it is,” Trim said. “What it means, is something else.”
The findings debunked longheld assumptions about the denomination’s gender makeup: The church is 57 percent female, and 43 percent male – quite a ways off from the belief that 65 percent of worshipers were female and 35 percent were male.
The findings also showed a church that is young – 54 percent of the members worldwide are between the ages of 16 and 40 – which has two disadvantages, according to Trim. For one, young members may be called too quickly into denominational administrative leadership positions without the proper experience. In addition, older leaders may need training to learn how to understand and work effectively with the younger generation.
Only 10 percent of church members globally are older than 60, and the largest proportion of aging congregants are in North America, Europe and Japan. In contrast, Trim said, “Our church in Latin America and Africa in particular is an extremely youthful church.”
The findings contained several bright spots, Trim said, including a statistic that shows that 53 percent of respondents stated that the Sabbath School adult Bible study guide helped “very much” to develop their religious life.
The study guide, perhaps not surprisingly, is least popular with worshipers is in North America, parts of Europe, and in and around Australia. “As someone who is both from Australia and Europe, and married to an American,” Trim said jokingly, “I will accept the blame for all those things. We are very cynical people in America, Australia and Europe.”
Another “success story,” Trim said, was that 92 percent of Adventists have an overwhelming conviction that the Seventh-day Sabbath is the true Sabbath, and only 3 percent disagree (that particular survey’s margin of error was 3 percent, which could perhaps mean zero disagreement).
The findings also pointed to several areas deemed problematic, such as people leaving the church unnoticed, and the seeping influence of secular values, Trim said.
Interestingly, the vast majority of inactive and former members are not rejecting the message and mission of the church.
“They are moving with the strong dynamics of contemporary society away from established forms of religious activity,” Trim said. “The fabric of most Adventist local churches is not sufficient to stem this tide.” He then told the delegates, “Brothers and sisters, I think this is a real challenge to us.”
While only 9 percent of Adventists were contacted by their pastor after they stopped attending church, a larger number of former members said they had been visited by elders or other church members. However, the findings show that 4 out of 10 Adventists slipped out of the church without ever being contacted by anyone.
The fact that members lapse unnoticed is a “tragedy,” Trim said.
From 2000 to 2012, more than 13.6 million people joined the church, mostly through baptism. But during the same time, 5.9 million Adventists were lost (and that doesn’t include those who died). That’s a loss rate of nearly 43.4 per 100 new converts. “That is too high,” Trim said.
Approximately 90 percent of respondents strongly agreed that the Seventh-day Adventist Church is God’s true last-day church with a message to prepare the world for the Second Coming of Christ. When asked if they expect the world to end within the next 20 years, just 22 percent of respondents strongly agreed, and 45 percent strongly disagreed, Trim said. “It’s not that people don’t believe that Jesus is coming, but there does seem to be some kind of skepticism about him coming soon.”
The research concluded that secularization is no longer limited to America, Europe and Australia. “It’s a globalized society,” Trim said. “People are watching the same television programs, reading the same apps and websites on their phones and computers, and secularization is a problem.”
Following the presentation, Vice President Benjamin Schoun acknowledged that challenges indeed lie ahead.
“We have much to learn and we probably need to incorporate these results into our strategic planning,” he stated, “because it is a very sobering picture in some cases, even though we have our strengths as well.”"
Source: http://news.adventist.org/all-news/news/go/2013-10-17/landmark-survey-reveals-in-depth-beliefs-perceptions-of-adventist-members/
Monday, 14 October 2013
3000 A Day
"God will soon do great things for us if we lie humble and believing at His feet…. More than one thousand will soon be converted in one day, most of whom will trace their first convictions to the reading of our publications." — E.G. White, Counsels to Writers and Editors, p181. (*Words spoken to our workers in Europe in 1885 when the outlook for the publishing work was dark. —A. L. White)
I believe that "publishing work" now includes what we share on the Internet. What have you published today?
"O Zion, haste, thy mission high fulfilling,
to tell to all the world that God is light,
that he who made all nations is not willing
one soul should perish, lost in shades of night.
Publish glad tidings, tidings of peace;
tidings of Jesus, redemption and release."
Wednesday, 9 October 2013
Sunday, 6 October 2013
East Carib Takes 2013 Bible Boom Crown
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| Shannon Leacock flanked by Pastor Silton Brown, President of the North Caribbean Conference of SDA (offering prayer), and Pastor Anthony Hall, Youth Director of the Caribbean Union Conference. |
The Bajan USCian also congratulates fellow Bajan USCian, Tonya Parris, who placed third representing our beloved alma mater - University of the Southern Caribbean.
Saturday, 5 October 2013
Did You Know?
"Did You Know?" is a series of short videos that take a look at the 28 fundamental beliefs of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Each video is presented by a member of the Church and is a representation of what that belief means to them on a personal level. Click here to learn more.
Thursday, 26 September 2013
Thinking about USC but have questions?
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| Click image to enlarge |
Get the answers you need to shape your future during the afternoon session of our USC Day celebration at the Cave Hill SDA Church - Saturday, September 28, 2013 starting at 4:00pm. Hear presentations from Dr. Sylvan Lashley, Dean of the Division of Continuing Education at the University of the Southern Caribbean (USC), Dr. Noel Brathwaite, Director of Research and Graduate Studies USC, and Dr. Norma Niles, Coordinator of the USC Barbados Satellite Campus.
Cave Hill SDA Church
Cave Hill, St. Lucy
Barbados
Click here for driving directions.
Bus: Route #1B Pie Corner or Route #1AB Pie Corner/Boscobelle
Can't attend? Follow/participate in live-stream at bottom of this page or http://www.ustream.tv/channel/usc-barbados
Thursday, 12 September 2013
Here I Am To Worship
Adventist Education Trailer from Journey Films on Vimeo.
Profiles the second largest private education system in the world and the commitment to educate the “whole person” – body, mind and spirit. Featuring the Bronx-Manhattan School, Holbrook Indian School, Fletcher Academy, Spencerville Academy, Columbine Christian, Oakwood Academy and others – the viewer will experience the challenge of preparing today’s youth for a life of service. Spring 2013.
Wednesday, 11 September 2013
Monday, 9 September 2013
Did you know that Pentecostals and Roman Catholics dominate the Non-SDA new student population at USC?
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| Freshmen Enrollment 2012-2013 |
Saturday, 24 August 2013
Wednesday, 21 August 2013
Sunday, 11 August 2013
Bajan USCian Wins B'dos Calypso Crown
The Bajan USCian community, if not also the rest of the University of the Southern Caribbean (USC) family in the eastern and southern Caribbean, is still abuzz with the news that one of our own recently won the coveted 2013 Barbados calypso monarch competition. Although our largely conservative-evangelical Christian culture eschews the calypso genre for its perceived worldliness, misogyny and objectification of women, we celebrate our fellow alum's obvious talents and hope and pray for him that he would soon return them to the higher joy and greater service for which they were given. By way of reminder, Mr. Webster is also one of the composers of the current USC School Song.
Thursday, 1 August 2013
USC Barbados Location
View University of the Southern Caribbean - Barbados Campus in a larger map
Click here for more maps relevant to the Bajan USCian community.
Friday, 26 July 2013
US Lieutenant Colonel To Speak At His Barbados High School's 60th
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| LTC Harewood |
In celebration of the 60th Anniversary of the Barbados S.D.A. Secondary School, Pastor Dr. Andrew R. Harewood, a past student of the school and a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army, will be the featured speaker at a commemorative service on Sabbath, August 10, 2013 at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre beginning at 9:00 a.m.
"Born on the 1st December, LTC Andrew R. Harewood first entered military service as an enlisted soldier in 1990. Following five years of service as a 71M, LTC Harewood completed both Master’s and Doctoral Degrees at Howard University, Washington, D.C. and was the Howard University 1995 recipient of the Henry G. Mayard Scholastic Award. Prior to his commission, he served with the 92nd Field Hospital, and 5th Battalion, 159th Aviation Regiment.
LTC Harewood was commissioned 1st Lieutenant, in 1996, while assigned to the 310th Theater Area Army Command. His subsequent assignments have included 323rd Military Intelligence Battalion, Fort George G. Meade, Maryland; 109th Detachment Team at Willow Grove Naval Air Station, Pennsylvania, responsible for providing Religious Area Coverage to the soldiers of the 656th ASG, Willow Grove, PA, 453rd Finance Group, New Cumberland, PA and the 413th Adjutants General Company, Bristol, Pennsylvania. LTC Harewood has deployed to Central America (1994), Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003), and to Combined Forces Command Afghanistan (2006).
After redeployment in 2007, LTC Harewood was assigned to the Pentagon in the Office of the Chief Chaplain as the Force Management Integration Action Officer, and in 2008 was assigned to the Office of the Secretary of The Army as the Deputy Pentagon Chaplain until September 2010. From October 2010 until December 2011 LTC Harewood served as Logistics, Information and Resources (4/6/8) Manger for the United States Army Reserve Command Presently, LTC Harewood is the Deputy Command Chaplain of Army Support Activity-Dix, on Joint Base McGuire Dix Lakehurst.
Chaplain (LTC) Andrew Ricardo Harewood is a graduate of the U.S. Army Non-Commissioned Officers Academy (1995), the U.S. Army Chaplain Center & School Officer’s Basis Course (2000), Resource Manager Course (2001), Advance Career Course (2003), The Army Force Management Staff College (2007), U.S. ARMY Command and General Staff College (2009). LTC holds additional certifications in Theology, Counseling Psychology and Clinical Pastoral Education (C.P.E). In addition, Trauma counselor, Crisis Management Intervention, Mental Health Counseling are components of his comprehensive training.
LTC Harewood is a certified trainer of Living Works Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), Myers Briggs Type Indicator, trainer of The Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program.
LTC Harewood military awards and decorations include the Joint Meritorious Unit Award, The Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, the NATO Medal, the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal and citations from The White House, Pennsylvania Senate and various other civic and denomination awards.
LTC Harewood is married to Karen Annette, a Medical Doctor, and they have four sons. His hobbies include reading, distance running, billiards, scuba diving, and devising creative and educational methods of comprehensive leadership. Andrew’s life motto is, “Don’t tell me, show me”!" (http://www.dix.army.mil/Chapel/bios/chapel_biographies.html)
LTC Harewood is an ordained SDA Minister and currently serves the Fourth Street-Friendship Church in Washington, D.C. in the Allegheny East Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.
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Click here for more 60th Anniversary events.
Wednesday, 10 July 2013
Seeing 60/60
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| Click image to enlarge |
The Barbados Seventh-day Adventist Secondary School ticked off another item in its year-long celebration of the 60th anniversary of its founding when last night, July 9, 2013, sixty (60) students were graduated from the institution in a ceremony which not even Tropical Storm Chantal could curtail. Pastor Dr. Kern Tobias, President of the Caribbean Union Conference of SDA, delivered the feature address, and the school's first Head Girl, Dolores Rudder-Pierce, distributed the certificates and tokens. Dolores is pictured above (5th from right) along with several of her fellow schoolmates from 1953 together with the two surviving first teachers of the school - Professor Rudolph Allen who also taught at USC in the 1950s (second from right), and Ishbel Bayne, a USC alumna who was later Principal of the school for many years (third from right). The late Lucy May Kum and B.G.O. French, who also served at USC (the latter as President) were the other founding teachers of the school. 60th anniversary celebrations will continue next month with a homecoming week of activities and in September with a Back-To-School Day and a major concert in aid of the rebuilding of the school hall featuring the famous Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir from the USA.
Monday, 1 July 2013
@USCBarbados Tops Twitter #barbados
It probably doesn't mean much and it certainly will not last too long, but two of our recent @USCBarbados images currently top the #barbados Twitter hashtag. One photo is of our dearly departed USC alumna and veteran BSDASS teacher- Ferris Scott, and the other associated with the upcoming concert in aid of rebuilding the BSDASS school hall featuring the world-famous Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir. If you are a Twitter user, follow @USCBarbados for all the latest news, information and inspiration for the Barbados USC/SDA community and friends.
Sunday, 30 June 2013
Sweet Sights & Sounds From Sugar Hill
Sweet Sights & Sounds From Sugar Hill from USC Barbados on Vimeo.
Barbados SDA Secondary School Alumni Association's Sabbath Celebration at the Sugar Hill SDA Church on June 29, 2013.
Saturday, 22 June 2013
Thursday, 20 June 2013
Tuesday, 4 June 2013
Pastor Roosevelt Daniels, Divinitatis Doctor
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| Dr. Clinton Valley (President of USC - left) and Dr. Kern Tobias (Chairman of the Board of USC and President of the Caribbean Union Of SDA - right) hooding PR. Dr. Roosevelt Daniels, DD |
President Valley noted that the conferral ceremony was particularly emotional for himself as he and Pastor Daniels were not only classmates (USC [then CUC] Class of 1976), but together with David Williams and Gosnell Yorke graduated with honours. The other three went on to gain graduate degrees but although Pastor Daniels was accepted into graduate school he decided instead to forgo it for the mission field. Dr. Gosnell Yorke serves with distinction in Africa and Dr. David Williams is a tenured professor at the prestigious Harvard University.
Pastor Daniels is no stranger to Barbados having conducted several successful evangelistic series here including the final one of his evangelism career which was held last year under a large tent pitched on the grounds of the MAQ SDA Church at Hopeland, St. Peter.
Monday, 20 May 2013
Dream With Eyes Open
"In the five weeks since the Boston Marathon bombings, graduating seniors have witnessed the cruelties of the world even as they dreamed of their impending future in it. That weaving of sorrow and hope shows the need for “dreaming with eyes open,” BU’s Baccalaureate speaker told Sunday morning worshippers at Marsh Chapel.
Bishop Peter Weaver (STH’75), former leader of New England Methodists and a former University trustee, borrowed that quote as the theme of his address from Elie Wiesel (Hon.’74), a Nobel laureate and BU’s Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities. Weaver interpreted Wiesel’s phrase to mean that wishing for justice and peace must be accompanied by hard work and honest recognition of worldly impediments to them.
“To dream with eyes open,” Weaver told graduating seniors and others in the audience, means that “dreams without deeds are simply daydreaming—and deeds unrooted in dreams can simply be a way of sleepwalking through life.”"
Read more: http://www.bu.edu/today/2013/dream-with-eyes-open-baccalaureate-speaker-tells-graduates/
Wednesday, 15 May 2013
After 150 Years
"Our 150th anniversary is not a time for parties or celebration — those who founded the General Conference in May 1863 would have undoubtedly been deeply disappointed to know that their descendants would still be on earth in 2013. This important anniversary is rather a time for reflection; for repentance; for thanksgiving; and for renewed commitment to the purpose for which God called this movement into being.
The worldwide church has designated Sabbath May 18, 2013, as a day of prayer, remembrance, and recommitment to mission. Each local congregation is encouraged to find appropriate ways to mark the "sesquicentennial" of Seventh-day Adventists being united for mission, including a focus on their local church history. Throughout our 150th year, individual Seventh-day Adventists can also be inspired by our history.
This important anniversary should prompt us to reflect on how God has led His remnant church "and His teaching in our past history" (Life Sketches , 196). We should both thank Him for miraculous leading — and reflect on what we have done, and not done, that grieves our God, and repent. It is a good time to commit ourselves, both individually and corporately, not just to "a revival but [to] a reformation", as Ellen White urged (R&H, July 15, 1902, p. 7). It is time to pledge ourselves anew to preaching "the everlasting gospel … to everynation, tribe, tongue and people" (Rev. 14:6).
As we reflect on 150 years of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, it is time to recommit ourselves to the prophetic destiny of the Great Second Advent Movement."
Source: http://www.adventist.org/150/
2013 also marks the 120th anniversary of the SDA Church in Central America and the Caribbean.
Monday, 13 May 2013
Annual report highlights worsening freedom of belief worldwide
“We are again reminded that for religious minorities, of which Seventh-day Adventists are in many regions, things can actually be very difficult and, in many places, are getting worse,” said Dwayne Leslie, director of Legislative Affairs for the Seventh-day Adventist world church.
The report from the independent commission categorizes offenders as tier 1, tier 2 or “watch list” countries. “Tier 1” nations are designated as “countries of particular concern” (CPCs), where religious liberty violations are defined as “systemic, ongoing and egregious,” and include torture, prolonged detention without charges, disappearances and “other flagrant denial[s] of life, liberty or the security of persons.” Countries re-designated as CPCs this year are Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Uzbekistan.
Newly categorized this year as “tier 1” nations are Egypt, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Vietnam. While not yet officially CPCs, these countries do “meet the threshold” for “tier 1” designation, the report states.
Countries designated as “tier 2” by the report are so listed for displaying “negative trends that could develop into severe violations of religious freedom.” These countries are Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Cuba, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Laos and Russia.
A small third group of nations comprise a watch list, and the commission is “monitoring” them for violations. Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Ethiopia, Turkey, Venezuela and Western Europe are on this list.
Western Europe has drawn criticism in recent years for curbing religious expression among minority faiths. Laws in France and Belgium now ban the burqa and other full-face veils. Switzerland has barred the construction of new minarets, or prayer towers atop Muslim mosques. And so-called defamation of religion laws—which religious freedom experts say could restrict religious speech worldwide—continue to emerge in the region.
In Iran, Leslie said, the government continues its oppression, arrest and, in some cases, torture of Christians, most recently American pastor Saeed Abedini, who was imprisoned in Iran in September ostensibly for his religious beliefs.
Pakistan, too, has made headlines in recent months for violence against Christians. In March, a mob torched the homes and businesses of a Christian community in response to alleged insults against Muhammad.
Nigeria is another increasingly troubling area, Leslie said. There, the extremist group Boko Haram has unleashed sectarian violence on Christian communities in recent years, regularly bombing churches and leaving hundreds of worshippers dead. Since January, Adventists in the country have reported declining church attendance and some church closures amid the country’s worsening religious conflict.
Countries such as Iran, Pakistan and Nigeria, Leslie said, are deeply entrenched in intolerance, and the report is unlikely to change their behavior. But for newly watch-listed countries, “dialogue can hopefully lead to greater freedom of belief,” he said.
After reviewing religious freedom violations, USCIRF makes policy recommendations to the U.S. president, secretary of state and Congress. These recommendations can include arms embargos, restrictions on exports and, Leslie added, further talks with some offending nations.
Beyond that, Leslie said, the report “constantly keeps religious liberty in the public eye, reminding people why it’s important for us to continue to fight for freedom for all people of faith.”"
Source: http://news.adventist.org/archive/articles/2013/05/13/annual-report-highlights-worsening-freedom-of-belief-worldwide
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