The Oregon Faith Report - Faith News from Oregon

American Baptist Churches of Oregon,

The American Baptist Churches of Oregon have initiated a partnership with Baptist Builders to help provide hope and relief for those whose lives were devastated by Hurricane Katrina. “It is as though they have been forgotten,” a recent commentator on Louisiana said. “When it first happened there was a lot of concern, a lot of help. Now they seem to have amnesia. Americans have moved on.” Though months have now passed, little has been done to restore homes and churches in much of the area destroyed by Katrina.

February 5, 2009 would have been Bertha Holt’s 105th birthday
by John Aeby, Director of Communications

Eugene, Oregon–People who knew Bertha Holt often mention her energy and pace of life. A brisk walk wasn’t fast enough for all she had to do in her day; she ran nearly everywhere she went. News media some times referred to her as “the jogging grandma,” and even in her 90s, she was still trotting down the lane near her little house in Creswell, Oregon, or around the track at the local middle school. To this day, if you know what you’re looking for, you can see the distance markers she set out alongside Gibson Lane.  But of course, she was so much more than running and energy.

She and her husband Harry founded Holt International because they believed that children should have mothers and fathers of their own. It was simply a matter of obedience to God to pursue an opportunity He set before them. Of course, few people would have recognized this as an opportunity, only the many formidable obstacles that lay in the way of such an idea.

By Allison Brandow
Faith Report Reporter,

Aryeh Hirschfield, a Portland, Ore., rabbi, died on Jan. 6 during a snorkeling accident in Mexico. Hirschfield led the P’nai Or congregation, which meets in southeast Portland.  His memorial service was held at Congregation Neveh Shalom on Jan. 12. According to the Jewish Review, more than 1,000 people attended the service.

Hirschfield was ordained in 1985 and began a congregation – Havurah Shir Hadash – in Ashland, Ore., the same year. In 1991, Hirschfield began making occasional trips to Portland to lead Sabbath services for a growing congregation. Eventually, the group formed the P’nai Or community, and Hirschfield moved to Portland in 1996 to take the position of rabbi there.

By Randy Alcorn,
Eternal Perspectives Minsitries
Sandy, Oregon

Are you Willing to be Hated for Speaking the Gospel Truth?  When Gianna Jessen spoke at our church a few weeks ago, she said many memorable things. The one that I’ve been thinking about is that to be a follower of Christ you need to be willing to be hated.  I agree, and that’s what I want to talk about. Of course, this does NOT mean being hateful. Nor does it mean seeking to be hated. Or having a persecution complex, so you think people don’t like you because you’re following Christ, when they actually don’t like you because you’re an idiot.

Senate Vote Likely to Lead to More Abortions and change the coverage in 14 states — including Oregon.

Susan B. Anthony List –  — Today the president of the Susan B. Anthony List commented on the Senate’s defeat of an amendment sponsored by Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) that would have permanently codified the Unborn Child Rule in the State Children’s Health Insurance Program:  “This action suggests that 59 senators are more committed to the demands of the abortion industry than to caring for the health of pregnant women and their unborn children,” said Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser. “President Obama has said that he wants to reduce the number of abortions, but this misguided vote is likely to lead to more abortions. We are disappointed that President Obama failed to use his influence to persuade the Senate majority to preserve a policy that has affirmed pregnant women and their unborn children.”

By Sheila Allen
NW Baptist Witness Newsletter

TIGARD, Ore. —As a pastor in Japan with three young sons, Mike Yokoy made his way to Tigard, Ore., as a missionary to the United States 20 years ago, where he assumed the pastorate of a fledgling congregation of 15 people.  Today, Japanese International Baptist Church has reached beyond its ethnic origins and has truly become international in its scope, with church members touching the world by loving all they come in contact with, regardless of their cultural background.

“It is a unique thing God is doing,” said Kenji Yokoy, pastor of the Japanese International Baptist Church English congregation and son of Mike Yokoy. “We are getting people we would never have imagined reaching. People from prison, those who have been addicted, they stay because there is love here.”