American evangelist Andrew Palau staged one of the largest-ever Christian outreaches in Eastern Europe last week when he shared the Gospel message with more than 14,500 people in Romania.
-
(Photo: Luis Palau Association)Andrew Palau shares the Gospel with thousands of Romanians during the Bucharest Festival with Andrew Palau, May 31-June 1, 2008.
The massive campaign event stretched 10 days and included activities ranging from small gatherings in schools, churches, prisons and senior centers to a huge outdoor concert near the People’s Palace – the largest and most expensive civilian administration building in the world.
It ended with the Bucharest Festival with Andrew Palau, May 31 to June 1, which included extreme sports demos, activities for kids and families, and concerts that featured music ranging from classical to hip-hop.
More than 1,750 documented decisions for Christ were collected by week’s end, according to the Luis Palau Association.
"When my dad came here in 1990, the people were just emerging from the tyranny of the communist regime and hungry for the Good News of God's love," recalled Andrew Palau, in a statement.
His father, Luis Palau, was the first person to openly share the Gospel in a post-Iron Curtain Romania.
"This week, we were blessed to meet face-to-face the results of that harvest – people who came to faith through Luis and have since made incredible contributions to the Kingdom," said the younger Palau.
Many of the hundreds of volunteers, counselors and leaders at the Bucharest Festival had first come to faith through Luis Palau’s campaign nearly 20 years ago, according to the Association.
Romania is a nominally Christian nation and out of its capital city Bucharest’s 3 million people, there is only a 0.5 percent evangelical Christian population.
Andrew Palau will head back to the United States this week and next host “BeachFest with Andrew Palau” in Myrtle Beach, S.C., on June 13-14.
RSS
I think you are right. The Romanians have been through a lot. Forging strong relationships by Evangelicals with the Orthodox would be Prudent, so it doesn't look like sheep stealing.
This way Evangelicals will be perceived as friends to the Orthodox, and this makes it easier for future missions.
Good point, Chris.
Hopefully this Amercan Evangelist did the proper thing and asked the Orthdox Bishop in Romania if he could do this in The Bishop's diocese. Now, I'm not Orthodox but we must have respect for a Christian culture that has survived through all the wars, communism, the Muslims, etc. The Orthodox have been there for 1000 years and before that they were a part of the Catholic Church for about 800 years previous to that in Romania.
Having respect for other Christian faiths is always a good move and shows love for the entire Body of Christ.