wfn.org | Adventist Pastor in UK Wins "Preacher of the Year" Award

["Christian B. Schäffler" <APD_Info_Schweiz@compuserve.com>]

December 23, 1998
Adventist Press Service (APD)
Christian B. Schaeffler, Editor-in-chief
Fax +41-61-261 61 18
APD@stanet.ch
CH-4003 Basel, Switzerland

United Kingdom: Adventist Pastor Wins London Times 
"Preacher of the Year" Award
[98/37/01]

London, United Kingdom, 06.12.1998 [APD/ANR] Seventh-day 
Adventist pastor, Ian Sweeney, took first place in the finals of 
the prestigious London Times "Preacher of the Year" 
competition on Friday, November 27. 

Sweeney, who currently pastors in the Sheffield district, was 
originally entered for the competition (without his knowledge) 
when a publisher forwarded to the Times a sermon which he 
had originally written for a book on black preachers. His first 
knowledge of his involvement in the Times "Preacher of the 
Year" competition was when he received a letter telling him 
that he was one of the 30 preachers shortlisted for the final 
from an initial list of over 250. Assessors visited each of these 
30 candidates in their home churches and only six reached the 
finals. 

Ruth Gledhill, religion correspondent of the Times said, "This 
year's entrants were of such a high standard that we decided 
to invite six preachers to compete in the finals instead of five."

The final event took the form of a two-hour worship in which 
each of the candidates was asked to speak for ten minutes on 
a subject of their choice. Sweeney's winning sermon was 
entitled, "It's the Thought That Counts." 

The prestigious seven-person judging panel evaluated the 
speakers on 10 criteria, instructive for all  preachers: 1) Was 
there a clear message?; 2) Was attention held throughout?;  
3) Did the sermon engage both the mind and the emotions?; 
4) Were  illustrations used effectively?; 5) Was the voice used 
effectively?; 6) Was there a  balance of theology and 
application?; 7) Was the personality of the preacher  engaged 
by the sermon?; 8) Did the message have identifiably biblical 
values?  9) Did the sermon evoke a positive response? 10) 
Was there a sense of God  speaking through the preacher?

In a later interview, Sweeney admitted to being a little 
nervous. "I did ad-lib a bit, and I went slightly over my ten 
minutes, but it seems that I got my message across!" 

"Sweeney, 33, whose parents were born in Antigua, was the 
first black preacher to win the contest, now in its fourth year," 
reports the Times. 	

After being announced the winner and presented with the 
awards, Sweeney commented: "There is no triumphalism, no 
feeling of one person being better than another.  This trophy 
is in recognition of the sterling work being done in our 
churches week in and week out. There is no greater calling 
and no greater privilege than to speak on God's behalf."   

After the event, he was presented with a sculpture of a dove 
and will later receive prize money totalling 1,000 pounds 
(US$1,600).

The event took place in the Methodist Central Hall, 
Westminster, and was witnessed by over 1,000 people. Pastor 
Sweeney is married and has three children ages 6, 4, and 3. 

The organisers state: "The Times Preacher of the Year Award 
is held to encourage and celebrate the work of preachers and 
give them the opportunity to have their sermons heard 
outside their congregation."  

The Times report also briefly identifies the Adventist Church 
and its beliefs.

"There are about 19,000 Seventh Day Adventists in Britain," 
reports the Times. "The denomination, whose members 
observe the Sabbath from sunset on Friday to sunset on 
Saturday, evolved from the American Adventists, who 
expected the second coming of Christ in 1844. Seventh-day 
Adventists still believe Christ's return is imminent, although 
they do not set a date. They are strictly biblical in theology, 
and do not drink alcohol or smoke tobacco. Many avoid tea, 
coffee, and meat."