Book Chapters Completed

I completed my final chapter and Introduction to the book I am co-authoring with Dean Blevins. The project expanded into two books instead of one. We will be talking to the publisher next week about the details of the project. Dean is doing a final edit of both books and then we will send it to the editors.

Since finishing all my writing projects I am spending this week and next week taking care of some home projects. Sherri and I leave for Europe on Friday, May 8. I will be teaching at Nazarene Theological College, Manchester, England; Vacation in Rome, Italy; and then teaching at Barcelona, Spain. I am looking forward to finishing my sabbatical in Europe.

Sofia, Bulgara

During my last day in Bulgaria I was in Sofia, Bulgaria. Cassie Lara and Joe Heath gave me a tour of the city. Cassie is one of my former students at NNU and Joe is from the church I served in Pennsylvania (small world)!

We visited several Eastern Orthodox Churches and a Russian Orthodox Church. The highlight of the day was attending the mid-night Easter Service on Saturday night at the patron church in Sofia. This Eastern Orthodox Church was built only about 200 years ago. The service included bringing in "holy flame" from Jerusalem. The priest brought the flame into the service, blessed it, and then lite the candles of the people. We lite our candle and carried it to our house. The story is if you can do that your home and family will be blessed for the year. During the service there were several secret service men in the audience. Later in the service the President of Bulgaria attended the service.

My time in Sofia was a great way to end my trip in Bulgaria. We finished the evening by eating spaghetti at 2:00 a.m. (Cassie made Joe and I dinner).

Varner, Bulgaria--Black Sea

Yesterday I travelled to Varner, Bulgaria, a city on the western side of the Black Sea. The city attracts tourist from Russia and southeastern Europe. Most people come to Varner to enjoy the beach during the summer. We had a 90 minute bus ride from Razgrad to Varner.








We visited a couple of Maunday Thursday services at the Eastern Orthodox Church in Varner. I had my picture taken with a Eastern Orthodox Church priest and he blessed me!














On Thursday evening the Church had a Maunday Thursday service. Everyone was seated at a long table and served a lamb dinner. After the dinner we participated in a foot washing service and then shared in communion. Everyone dressed up as first century disciples for the service. It was a fun and meaningful service. I served communion with pastor Nicholi.

Veliko Turnovo, Bulgaria

Yesterday I visited Veliko Turnovo, one of Bulgaria's most ancient cities. It was founded in the 4th century and became the centre of Bulgarian power during the 12-14 century. During that time it was the political, economic, cultural and religious center of Bulgaria. It was the capital of Bulgaria and included the castles of Tzarevetz, which housed the king and military on Tzarevetz hill. The fortress was built on two banks surrounded by the Yantra River between two hills. The two main architectual complexes are the King's Palace and the Patriachal Church. The fortress was conquered by the Turks in 1393.

Also, situated in the city of the place where all of the kings of Bulgaria are burried.

I visited two eastern orthodox monasteries. Before the destruction of Bulgaria by the Turks in the 14th century there were forty monasteries in Bulgaria. In Veliko Turnovo and its vincity there were over 14 monasteries built during the 12-14 century. I visited the Petropavlovsky monastery situated on the Arbanassi plateau. It is referred to as the "Peter and Paul" monastery. During the time of slavery in the 1700's it became a prominate place for Bulgarian revolutionaries. In 1913 the monastery church was destroyed by fire but rebuilt during the communist period.

The second monastery was the Kapinovo monastery fromt the 14th century. It was being refurbished due to smoke damage from lighting of candles. You can see the difference between the old "smoked" area and the new cleaned area.

Teaching in Razgrad, Bulgaria

I arrived in Razgrad, Bulgaria on Friday at 9:30 p.m. It took me 26 hours to get here. I flew to London to Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, and then a six hour bus ride to Razgrad. I began teaching a course of Christian education on Saturday evening. There are twelve students in the class from congregations in Bulgaria and Romania. The class is meeting for the weekend and each evening next week. The course is part of the extension program at European Nazarene College, Switzerland. The church has been in Razgrad for about a dozen years. Pastor Nicholi has been served as the pastor for over most of this time. Several work and witness teams have worked on the building of a new church, including Nampa First Nazarene.


On Saturday afternoon I visited anient Roman ruins in Razgrad. They were escavated in the 1950's when they were discovered while building a new factory. The ruins date back to the second to forth century.
On Sunday I taught Sunday school, preached, dedicated a baby, and played the drums. I also taught class from 4 to 9:30 p.m. I had a very busy day.

Another Article Accepted

I received word on Friday that my article, "Transformational, Experiential, and Non-Formal Learning Theories: Foundations for Christian Adult Education." was accepted by the Journal of Religious Education and will be published in May, 2009.

I also completed another chapter in our book. I have only one chapter to complete. I will finish the final chapter after I return from Bulgaria in a couple of weeks.

Article Accepted

I received word today that my article, "The Clergy/Laity Dichotomy: A Model of the People of God," was accepted for publication in the Christian Education Journal (Fall, 2009).

I also completed my eighth chapter for my book project. I only have two chapters to finish. I hope to complete one more chapter this week before I leave for Bulgaria next week. I will complete the last chapter when I return.