AMERICAN PASTOR DIES IN IRAQI AMBUSH (muslim neighborhood)

ASSIST News ^ | Wednesday, February 18, 2004 | By Jeremy Reynalds

[miltonim]

AMERICAN PASTOR DIES IN IRAQI AMBUSH

By Jeremy Reynalds
Special Correspondent for ASSIST News Service

BAGHDAD, IRAQ  (ANS) -- The U.S. military has confirmed that gunmen killed an American pastor when the taxi he was riding in was ambushed outside Baghdad.

The Baptist Press reported that John Kelley, 48, was pastor of Curtis Corner Baptist Church, an independent Baptist church in South Kingstown, R.I. He was traveling with a number of other ministers who went to Iraq on a two-week trip to explore the possibility of starting a church there.

U.S. paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division learned of the Feb. 14 attack while they were patrolling in the town of Mahmudiyah, about 15 miles south of Baghdad, according to the Associated Press. They were told the Americans had been riding in a taxi when a white sedan pulled up alongside them and opened fire.

Three other men, including David Davis of Grace Bible Baptist Church in Vernon, Conn., and Kirk DiVietro of Grace Baptist Church in Franklin, Mass., were injured in the ambush and were being treated at an Iraqi hospital, soldiers were told.

Kelley, a former Marine, leaves a wife and four children. The Boston Globe reported that Kelley's wife, Jane, had received a bouquet of flowers her husband had arranged to be sent on Valentine's Day; several hours later she was told of his death.

According to the Boston Globe the group was a loose-knit delegation led by Pastor Robert Lewis of Cumberland, R.I. Members were helping an Iraqi pastor open what they believed would be the first Baptist church in the country.

“The door is open right now. You can't wait until it's safe over there. You've got to go when there is opportunity," said Erik Vukic, a 35-year-old construction worker who was serving as a spokesman for Kelley's church, First Baptist Church of Warwick, R.I.

"Every day people die in their sins. The only escape from the Lake of Fire is to put their faith in the Savior, who is Jesus Christ."

The Boston Globe reported that State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the administration discourages travel to Iraq by private citizens and does not encourage missionary work.

"We have a very strong travel warning that tells people not to go to Iraq, that it still remains a dangerous place," he said. Travel has been discouraged for "any Americans except for those that might be engaged in official duties or in support of the effort that's underway now," he added.

Kelley, a former US Marine, took Arabic lessons to prepare for the trip with the group. He was a personal friend of Lewis, a retired pastor of Blackstone Valley Baptist Church in Rhode Island and a founder of Global Resource Group, a small nonprofit organization that supports missions worldwide.

In an e-mail from Baghdad to a church member, Lewis described the shooting as "an execution-style attack," the Boston Globe reported.

"Their van was sprayed with automatic weapon fire. The attack came from a small passenger car that was behind the van. The car passed the van on the right side and repeatedly sprayed the vehicle with bullets," he wrote. "This was a tragic loss. Pastor Kelley has been a close associate of mine for many years. We have worked on a number of projects together in the work of the Lord.

"He was [a] volunteer for this team, as were the other members. He requested permission to come, and he has certainly been a blessing to all with whom he has had contact. My grief is without description."

Sam Stricklin, a pastor at First Baptist Church in Warwick, who traveled to Iraq last month, said Kelley's group appeared to be taking too many risks. Stricklin told the Boston Globe that during his trip to Iraq, he surrounded himself with Arabic-speaking friends, rarely went out in public, and was advised never to leave Baghdad.

"My understanding is that this group was way too much on their own and did not know what they were getting into and should never have been allowed to leave Baghdad," Stricklin said.

He added, "They were going to a different neighborhood, which I understand was a Muslim neighborhood . . . I understand that they did not get good advice."

---

[miltonim]

Muhammad-inspired persecution of Christians, Jews and all non-Muslims continues...

Mohammed, The Mad Poet Quoted....

[1stFreedom]

I'm sorry this pastor was killed.

On another subject, there are Christians already in Iraq. All they need is 1000 more denominations moving in, right?

At least their historic Christianity is largely unblemeshed by protestantism and liberalsim.

[SquirrelKing]

protestantism and liberalsim.

Did you just lump me in with the liberals?

[rabidralph]

No, he lumped you in with liberal sims--those role-playing game characters that create their own neighborhood.

[SquirrelKing]

Ah.

[1stFreedom]

Protestantism was just 15-18th century liberalism. ;-)

[Warlord David]

Its sad to hear that a Baptist minister died. With that said.
If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen.

These ministers should not be their, their ill equip to deal with a muslim society or culture. They have no understanding of the area or people. Their currently is no proper instruction on the best way to evangilize the middle east culture, which is total different from evangelizing western cultures.

[Southron Patriot]

Baptist are not Protestant's.
Baptist have been around since the beginning of the early 1st century church!

[1stFreedom]

Baptists have not been around since the first century.

Though Foxes book of Martyrs tries to make a case for that, his book is not very credible.

[1stFreedom]

Some quick history on the Baptist Church.

Baptists were born out of the Radical Reformation which began during the 16th century, although some of the European "Anabaptist" communities may have begun earlier. They were called Anabaptists, but they did not call themselves Anabaptists or Baptists. "Anabaptists" means "re-baptizers" and was the derogatory term used by Catholics and other Protestants alike

[1stFreedom]

This might be why you think the Baptist denomination has been around since the 1st centure:

Succession of Baptist Churches View -- This viewpoint goes beyond mere "continuation of biblical teachings" and and declares that Baptist churches actually existed in an unbroken chain since the time of Christ and John the Baptist.

Commonly referred to as "Landmarkism" or the "Trail of Blood" theory (J.M.Carroll wrote a book of supposed Baptist history by this name), this view declares that those churches which stood outside the influence of the Roman Catholic Church at various times in church history were, in actuality although not in name, Baptist churches.

That which made them Baptists was their refusal to accept infant baptism, or, said another way, their refusal to accept the legitimacy of the Roman Catholic Church as a Christian entity. However, many of the historical churches which Landmarkists label as Baptist churches were actually heretical in regards to doctrine.

Nonetheless, the "Landmarkist" view, which has little actual historical support, remains popular among certain Baptists. The reason for its moderate popularity (and, indeed, strong popularity among some rural Baptists in the southern and western United States) stems (to some degree) from a long-standing dislike (if not hate) of Catholics by many Baptists.

Representative writers of this viewpoint include J.M Carroll, G.H. Orchard and J.M. Cramp. It should also be noted that, interestingly enough, much of the Baptist history material thus far posted on the Internet is Landmarkist in nature, indicating that, truth aside, Landmarkists are a very vocal lot.

[Larry Lucido]

On another subject, there are Christians already in Iraq. All they need is 1000 more denominations moving in, right?

On another subject, there are politicians already in Iraq. All they need is [insert really large number here] more political parties moving in, right?

On another subject, there are newspapers already in Iraq. All they need is [insert really large number here] more newspapers moving in, right?

On another subject, there are TV stations already in Iraq. All they need is [insert really large number here] more TV networks moving in, right?

On another subject, there are communications services already in Iraq. All they need is [insert really large number here] more communication service providers moving in, right?

On another subject, there are consumer goods already in Iraq. All they need is [insert really large number here] more consumer brands moving in, right?

[1stFreedom]

All the things you mention are creations of man which simply life to degrees.

Christianity is different, it concerns divine truths. It's something that shouldn't be distoted by competing half gospels.