Gene Edwards

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gene Edwards

Earl Eugene "Gene" Edwards (born July 18, 1932 in Commerce , Texas ) is an American Baptist pastor, evangelist, house church founder , author and public speaker.

Life

Edwards is the second and youngest son of JC "Blackie" Edwards, a Louisiana oil worker, and Gladys Brewer Edwards, a teacher. He spent his first six years in Commerce , Texas , then seven years in Bay City . While in elementary school, he was discovered to have a learning disability that was later known as dyslexia . For a year he attended the San Marcos Baptist Academy, then he attended college at East Texas State University from 1947 to 1951 . In 1949 he turned to Christ through a conversion of faith . 1951-1954 he studied at the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth to become a pastor. In 1952 he was able to study for a year at the International Baptist Seminary in Rüschlikon near Zurich (today IBTS in Prague), where he particularly looked at the places of the Anabaptists and delved into their history. In 1953 he married Helen Rogers, a secretary for a Baptist church in Nashville , Tennessee . The ceremony was performed by Frank Laubach and aired on NBC with the title "Bride and Groom".

Edwards was from 1954 to 1956 pastor in the England Grove Baptist Church in Commerce and 1957-1958 in the Tabernacle Baptist Church in Pickton , Texas. In 1962 he published his first books on personal evangelism, "Winning Souls". In Tyler , he and a small group read the book The Ordinary Christian by Watchman Nee , which touched and shaped him deeply. He began studying early church history and looking for people who knew Nee. At a conference in Louisville , Kentucky , he contracted the infectious disease histoplasmosis , from which he has suffered ever since.

In 1965 Edwards moved with his family to Los Angeles , where he worked as a high school teacher for ten years. During this time he began to write books about the spiritual life and the Christian community. His first books and tapes were published by his own publishing house, the Christian Books Publishing House, later SeedSowers. He also published works on the Catholic mystics Madame Guyon , François Fénelon , Miguel de Molinos and Brother Lorenz . In 1991, Tyndale Publishers published several books by Edwards, which made him internationally known. The book " A Tale of Three Kings " (in German: The stuff the kings are made of ) sold over half a million copies and was read by many American literature students.

Based on his studies, he began to propagate house churches in the 1970s so that the early Christian spiritual practices such as the Lectio divina would be practiced again at the meetings in the houses and that all Christians would be involved and also jointly responsible. He also pleaded for an organic leadership culture and a high level of participation, which the Apostle Paul had already used in his church planting by often moving on after a short time and creating space for the local Christians.

Edwards lives in Florida with his wife.

criticism

Edwards as a person, his house church model and its practical implementation are controversial. Critics complain that he is authoritarian, elitist and dishonest, which strongly contradicts his original findings and intentions and makes him unbelievable.

Works

Edwards has written about 30 books, the following have been translated into German:

  • The stuff kings are made of. About power, powerlessness and authority. Leuchter , Erzhausen 2000. ISBN 978-3-8748-2210-7 (New edition: ASAPH 2010. ISBN 978-3-9401-8839-7 . Original title: A Tale of Three Kings )
  • The prisoner in cell 3. John - a prophet who no longer understands his God or of suffering in the face of a loving and almighty God. Leuchter, Erzhausen 2001. ISBN 978-3-8748-2222-0 (Original title: The Prisoner In The Third Cell )
  • God's love story. Leuchter, Erzhausen 2005. ISBN 978-3-8748-2239-8 (Original title: The Divine Romance )
  • Living in God's Presence. Teamwork 2005. ISBN 978-3-9368-1107-0

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ [1] Edwards homepage
  2. ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original dated May 6, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Homepage ntrf.org  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.ntrf.org
  3. ↑ [2] Edwards on youtube
  4. ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original dated May 12, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Autobiography on Edward's homepage  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.geneedwards.com
  5. ↑ [3] Blog familyhoodchurch.blogspot.ch
  6. ↑ [4] Edwards on homepage angelfire.com
  7. ^ [5] Edwards on homepage searchingtogether.org
  8. ↑ [6] Viola and Edwards on wordpress.com
personal data
SURNAME Edwards, Gene
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Edwards, Earl Eugene (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American Baptist minister, evangelist, house church planter, and author
DATE OF BIRTH July 18, 1932
PLACE OF BIRTH Commerce, Texas, USA