Ted N. C. Wilson, a vice president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists and the son of a former church president, was elected to serve as president of the 16.3 millionmember global Protestant denomination.
Wilson was appointed by the church's 246-member Nominating Committee and confirmed by the General Conference Session delegation, which is an international body of 2,410 appointed members and the highest governing body in the church. He replaces Jan Paulsen, who has served as president since 1999.
"This is not just an organization, this is not just another denomination. This is God's remnant church," Wilson said in an address to delegates after his appointment.
"I do not know everything, but I shall seek wisdom from counselors and from the Bible and from the Spirit of Prophecy," he said, referring to the writings of church co-founder Ellen White.
"The Spirit of Prophecy is one of the great gifts God has given to the Seventh-day Adventist Church," Wilson said. "It applies to the past and to the future. And, we are going home soon."
Wilson asked that church members ask for God's guidance "and pray that the Holy Spirit would bring us revival and reformation."
Ng, a native of Singapore, began his ministry in war-torn Cambodia in the 1970s where he and his wife fled before the capital city Phnom Penh was taken by the Khmer Rouge political party. He later worked in various positions in Asia, including that of professor, and eventually received a call to the church's world headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, where he serves as the secretariat liaison between the GC and three of the church's 13 world regions. He replaces Matthew Bediako, who was elected in 2000.
Jerry N. Page, president of the church's Central California Conference, became Ministerial Association secretary by unanimous vote.
The Ministerial Association provides resources, training and support for more than 16,000 credentialed pastors around the world. It also provides support for pastors' spouses under the Shepherdess International program, which will now be coordinated by Page's wife, Janet.
Page fills the position left vacant by James A. Cress, who died in November, 2009.
World church Treasurer Bob Lemon was re-elected to another fiveyear term. Lemon, treasurer since 2002, said his appointment "was a real privilege and an honor" to work with treasury staff from around the world. He asked that delegates pray for every Adventist member and worker around the globe.
In brief remarks, he also said, "We need to change the soft currency of this world into the hard currency of eternity." The biggest challenge facing the church over the next five years, Lemon said in a brief interview after his appointment, is the need to increase involvement among young people.
ANN World News Bulletin is a review of news issued by the Communication department of the Seventh-day Adventist Church World Headquarters and released as part of the service of Adventist News Network.
NEWS REPORT FROM THE ELDER’S DIGEST BOOTH
“Please take one . . . or two . . . or three . . .” the sign at our booth read. To our utter amazement, “one, two or three” turned into a total distribution of all 31,800 Elder’s Digest magazines at the 2010 GC Session in Atlanta. We saw the Lord’s hand at work as elders, pastors and other church leaders stopped by and shared the blessings of having such a magazine available to them. Over the past five years, our circulation has grown from 5,000 copies to over 100,000 extending to all 13 divisions. Each quarter, the magazine is translated into over 10 languages, making a total of 200,000 copies. The enthusiasm at our booth was phenomenal! The Holy Spirit’s presence was evident as individuals stopped by to chat, pray and share personal experiences as leaders. Our prayer is that this magazine continues to serve our churches as an innovative resource and tool for all church leaders. Please refer to our website at www.eldersdigest.com to subscribe, as well as to view our archives. Also, feel free to follow us on Facebook and Twitter. A personal word of appreciation to all those who stopped by our booth. It is my prayer that you continue to be blessed through this magazine. Now, pray, read, and share with one . . . or two . . . or three . . . .
-Ricardo Bacchus is the production assistant of the Elder’s Digest magazine.
1. Elder Richard Black, a pastor from the Zimbabwe Conference, Southern Africa-Indian Ocean Division, taking back copies for his 15 elders.
2. A Junior Deacon, excited about the idea of becoming an elder someday, was ready to pose with his magazines.
3. Elder Daryl Joshua, from India, Southern Asia Division, eager to get Jonas Arrais’ signature, the author of ‘A Postive Church in a Negative World.’
4. The Elder’s Digest booth team: (left to right) Gerald Bacchus, Ricardo Bacchus, Jonas Arrais
5. The Figueroas’ family of elders, Miami Springs SDA Church, Florida Conference.
6. Elders from the Beulah SDA Church, Greater New York Conference, avid readers of the magazine.
7. The last magazine passed out comprising a total of 31,800 copies. All smiles!
