Billy Graham Association Campaign Invites Haiti to Spread Gospel
The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) plans to broadcast “My Hope Haiti” across the island later this month. The organization is calling local Christians to follow the example of disciple Matthew by inviting others into their homes to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Organizers of the “My Hope World Evangelism through Television Project” are encouraging participants on the Caribbean island to turn their TVs to a special program that will feature a message from the Rev. Billy Graham, or his son, Franklin Graham.
The program is set to broadcast nationally on July 21, 22, and 23 and BGEA wants those watching to invite others into their homes to also view the broadcast. Producers of the televised program are hoping to provide the perfect opportunity for participants to share the Gospel with neighbors and friends.
Participants are nicknamed “Matthews” in reference to the disciple who threw a great banquet for Jesus in his home, and welcomed others into his home to dine with the Lord.
Robert Jean Bilda, pastor of a church on the island, is also the national coordinator of My Hope Haiti. He compares the My Hope event to a “mini-festival” inside people's homes.
“You can receive your friends, your parents, your family, your neighbors inside your home to show the Gospel, to listen to the Gospel, to share the Gospel,” Bilda told BGEA associates.
“The main problem in Haiti is the spiritual thing, the voodoo,” Bilda added, listing the challenges his country faces. “God can give the Haitian people freedom through the Holy Spirit.”
Haiti marked the one-year anniversary of the massive earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people on January 12.
The population of Haiti is religiously diverse. Although Roman Catholicism was the designated state religion for many years and remains the dominant faith among the 9.7 million people, Protestants, Episcopalians and voodoo practitioners have a visible presence in the country, according to the 2005 International Religious Freedom Report published by the U.S. State Department, and the CIA's World Factbook.
The Billy Graham Evangelical Association uses My Hope World Evangelism Through Television to evangelize around the world by inviting participants to open their homes and share their faith.