Foundation for Evangelism has new home, expanded vision
Jun. 14, 2006 News media contact: Tim Tanton * (615) 7425470* Nashville {357}
NOTE: Photographs and related reports, UMNS stories #356 and #358-359, are available at http://umns.umc.org.
By Neill Caldwell*
LAKE JUNALUSKA, N.C. (UMNS) - The newest building on the Lake Junaluska Assembly grounds is the home for the Foundation for Evangelism.
The foundation moved into its high-tech headquarters, valued at more than $2 million, in January. Its administration offices had been off campus in Waynesville for several years, but are now located in a prime spot beside the building site for Lake Junaluska's new Bethea Welcome Center.
The Foundation for Evangelism is an affiliate organization of the United Methodist Church's Board of Discipleship and was organized in 1949 by Harry Denman, a Methodist layperson who strongly believed in evangelism.
"Lake Junaluska was central to Harry Denman's ministry," says the Rev. Jerome Smith, who was director of communications for the foundation until this month. He will be taking a local church appointment. "The SEJ Archives and History Room houses the Denman collection (in the Harrell Center). The Foundation for Evangelism is a direct result of Harry's desire to promote evangelism."
Paul Ervin Jr. is the foundation's executive director, and retired Bishop Richard Looney serves as episcopal director. The staff includes about 20 full-time and contract employees at Lake Junaluska and seven more who are "embedded" in local congregations.
With a new home and a new newsletter, the foundation is expanding its reach into a number of areas beyond its more established programs, including an involvement with scholarships for students in the doctorate programs at Duke and Princeton universities, providing funding for youth workers, providing funding for campus ministry, and using the power of technology to expand evangelism and witness opportunities.
The foundation has developed computer software, "Web-Empowered Church," which seeks to empower churches to create effective Web sites. The software uses "open source" technology, which enables the user to create interactive communities on their Web site for exchanging information relating to things like prayer requests, sermons, education or daily devotions.
"We're working to help many ministries express themselves by providing resources and creating partnerships," Smith says. "We're focused on Christ-centered beliefs and fundamental Wesleyan teachings. What will evangelism mean in the 21st century? We define it as providing resources and education."
Smith says the foundation celebrates being at Lake Junaluska and what it means for Methodism.
"Lake Junaluska is a central place for Methodism, a place where a lot of programs were started," he says. "You might even say it's a small Methodist city. It has a historical role as a place for missions and retreats. But it's also in a unique position to play a fundamental role in the emerging church.
"This little man-made mountain lake is an oasis of faith amidst an ocean of storms."
*Caldwell is a freelance writer based in High Point, N.C.
News media contact: Tim Tanton, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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United Methodist News Service Photos and stories also available at: http://umns.umc.org