people better than any of the mis sionaries. That’s why the next step is in Bible teaching and training the people. There’s a cultural barrier which can be broken with this meth od. We have a completely national team, with the exception of our selves. Then, too, if violence should return to Colombia, these are the poeple who will stay on to carry out the work. M r . H ouse : That certainly typi fies II Timothy 2 :2 and is the proper scriptural method. What do you see, Don, as some of the pressing needs of the field today? M r . F ults : One of the constant problems is that of personnel. For example, there’s a school that teaches with our high standards. We could use a teacher there for the sake of a witness, helping our children. The day of “the great white father” mis sionary is past. What the Christians in these countries want are co-labor ers, all being servants for Jesus’ sake. Our Lord Himself declared that He came to serve and not to be served. Our ministry is to mobilize the Church. This is the key to suc cess on any mission field today. We also work with evangelical denomi nations showing them where their programs can possibly be strength ened. We help train national pastors who can in turn guide their own lay men. We. want everyone to realize he is to be an ambassador for Jesus Christ.
fulltime position with P.M.T. What are the purposes of your organiza tion? M r . B em is : Practical Missionary Training seeks to provide orientation for young people of college and semi nary age who are thinking of mis sionary service. This involves such important areas as how to cope with life situations on the mission field. We handle about 40 trainees each summer in C en tra l America. Throughout the year there are other activities in which several hundred are participating. By the way, at least 20 percent of these come from Biola. The application requirements are rather stringent. The applicant must have at least two years of col lege with grades averaging C or bet ter. He must have been a Christian for at least two years, giving evi dence of spiritual growth. As a mis sionary volunteer, he must be willing to serve Christ on the foreign field. M r . C ook : H ow did P.M.T. get its start? M r . B emis : Really through some miraculous circumstances. It was the vision of Dr. Oran Smith who used to teach in the Biola College Missions Department. The first trainee went to Cuba the summer of 1950. There they sought to bridge the gap be tween missionary theory and reality. The P.M.T. trainee has an opportu nity to see the mission field as it is, not through someone else’s eyes in the classroom. The trainee will also spend two weeks in Wycliffe Bible Translators jungle camp in Southern Mexico. This is maintained for the purpose of training candidates in the primitive and rugged code of life in difficult areas. Of course, theory is presented along the way. Throughout the summer there are classes on a variety of subjects taught by our staff as well as other missionaries. Spanish classes, for example, are offered daily. Our rec ords show that about 65 percent of our trainees actually end up in for
with Clyde Cook and Ken Bemis
M r . C ook : Our special guest is Reverend Kenneth L. Bemis, Direc tor of Practical Missionary Train ing, who was graduated from Biola in 1954. While he was a student he became involved in the Missions De partment which eventually led to a 22
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