Paul Booth, our Preacher of the Month, came to the festival from Atlanta, Georgia where he is a student at Emory University and a member of Zion Hill Baptist Church. He was accompanied (and introduced) by his preaching mentor, Howard Creecy. Lucas preached a sermon on John 4:1-42. Paul says he preaches "that God's grace, bounty, and blessing might inspire and invigorate spiritual leadership among every nation and generation."
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Coming Soon from the Academy of Preachers
In May, the Academy of Preachers will launch an initiative to raise $50,000 to support our work to inspire the next generation of young preachers. We look forward to sharing how you can become a part of and support this effort.
June "iPreach" Newsletter
We look forward to sharing complete coverage of our summer preaching camps with all of you, following completion of our three preaching camps in Indiana, Tennessee and Georgia.
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FOUNDING PARTNERS
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Greetings!
Welcome to our 2nd monthly installment of the iPreach Newsletter, a communication with the latest news and events of the Academy of Preachers. There are several ways for young preachers across the country to engage and get involved with the Academy over the next several months. First, enrollment for two summer preaching camps is still available for any young preacher age 16 to 28. Read on for more information about how you can enroll and be a part of this excellent learning experience.
Second, registration is now open for the 2011 Festival of Young Preachers. Visit us online to learn more about the plans for the 2011 Festival and download a registration form. Next year's Festival promises to be bigger and better. Don't miss your opportunity to join hundreds of others from across the country!
The Academy received a mention in a story in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution this month. Click here to read all about a young preacher from the Atlanta area and the unique role the Academy plays in helping young preachers across the country.
Finally, the Academy wishes to recognize and congratulate the members of the 2010-2011 Leadership Team. Seventeen young preachers from varying backgrounds and denominations have volunteered their time and service to the Academy. Click here to read all about them.
Want
to see your blog or article about the Festival of Young Preachers in
included in our newsletter? Send the link to [email protected].
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2010 Summer Preaching Camps
Last summer we hosted what we believe was the only preaching
camp in the nation. This summer we are expanding that number to three.
When you think about it: it is strange that
this has not been done before. Young people go to summer camp for everything
from balancing equations to twirling batons. They cultivate skills in
leadership, athletics, arts, mathematics, agriculture, marketing, even testing:
but no preaching.
True: Western Kentucky University does have a nationally recognized program in speech and forensics (and no: that forensics is not the
science of solving crimes). That program comes close to what we are launching
and we may well collaborate with them in some way in the future.
This summer's preaching camps for young preachers will be held in in Nashville, Tennessee and Richmond, Indiana. Both are hosted
by institutions: Belmont University and Bethany Seminary. Both are accepting
registration for up to 24 young preachers. The third camp, which will be held in Atlanta, Georgia is designated for
the Young Preachers Leadership Team.
All the camps have these things in common: an open and ecumenical atmosphere;
good food and good lodging; a free day for a field trip; and a preaching coach
for each camper. But the most important aspect is this: the young people preach every
morning on Monday and Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Four sermons in five days! No
wonder one young preacher told me at the end of the camp last year: "I have
preached more this week than in my entire seminary career."
If last year is any
guide, the most powerful element of these camps will be the peer coaching that
goes on long after we old preachers have gone to bed. This peer influence flows
back and forth, and
everybody learns and loves and lives a little deeper into the teachings of Christ
and the gospel for a full week. Everybody comes out on the other side a better
preacher and a more faithful servant of God. You can be a part of this.
To register for the 2010 Preaching Camps, visit www.academyofpreachers.net and click on Preaching Camps.
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Welcome to Our New Founding Partners
The Academy is pleased to welcome four new Founding Partners this month.
- The Lord's
Day Alliance, with offices in Boston, voted to raise $10,000 to help underwrite
the 2011 Festival of Young Preachers.
- The University of Evansville is planning
to offer a course in Christian Preaching centered around participation in the
2011 Festival of Young Preachers.
- The South Texas School of Christian Studies in Corpus Christi Texas will collaborate with the Academy in hosting a campus
festival of their young preachers in August.
- The Archdiocese of Louisville is
not only coming on as a strong partner but will be the host of the second
national Festival of Young Preachers in 2011.
We pray that our partnership in gospel
work will enrich the whole Christian community!
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A Word from Dr. Moody
This week I received a warm, wonderful letter of endorsement from
Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville. Two weeks ago, I sat in the dining hall
at Cincinnati Christian University and spoke with the president, three faculty
and three young preachers.
Before that I was in the coffee shop on the campus of Southern Baptist
Theological Seminary having lunch with three students who preached in the
inaugural Festival of Young Preachers in January. And most recently I talked
with two professors in an office at Louisville Presbyterian
Theological Seminary.
These episodes illustrate the broad ranging interest in preaching-and also
in the Academy of Preachers. The groups mentioned above have a wide range of
convictions, practices, and traditions. But they all have an interest in gospel
preaching and gospel preachers.
Preaching is a central element in the worship of all Christians. Church
leaders are looking for better preaching; lay people are desperate for better
preaching.
The Academy of Preachers is one way the Christian community in America
can inspire young people to pursue interest in preaching.
Most professions in our country-from farming to singing, from the
courtroom to the theater-have national organizations to encourage young people.
The Academy of Preachers is the first such organization for preaching. We want
to have a presence on every campus and in every Christian community:
identifying, connecting, inspiring and supporting young people who are
responding to the call to be a gospel preacher.
You can help us: pray for us, direct us to young people, recommend us to
your church or denomination, send us a donation, attend an event, or just call
and tell us of your support.
We are doing a great work-you can do it with us! - Dwight Moody, Executive Director
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"The
Academy of Preachers an ecumenical initiative launched through a
generous grant from the LIlly Endowment and energized by the conviction
that gospel preaching is a vocation of public and social significance,
a calling worthy of the very best and brightest of our young people."
Visit us online at www.AcademyofPreachers.net. God Bless!
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