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	Evangelism Explosion International

BARF People/Organization Profile

Evangelism Explosion International

Evangelism Explosion International is an evangelistic organization founded by televangelist D. James Kennedy, pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It promotes the methods of evangelism contained in the book, Evangelism Explosion, also by Kennedy, one of the most popular evangelism manuals. It claims to have trained more people than Campus Crusade or any other organization.

The impression that we get from Evangelism Explosion is that it is a sales manual and not a religious text. While there is lip service given to the needs of individuals, the overwhelming impression is that the only thing that matters is that the church grows; converts are viewed as little more than interchangable pawns, the value of the work only being in the gathering of as many people as possible. The reporting form at the back of the text is indistinguishable from the charts that can be found in many sales offices. It's worth noting that direct marketing pioneer Rich DeVos, co-founder of the Amway Corporation, is a close associate of Kennedy's - a chapel at the Coral Ridge church is named for him.

Kennedy has since gone on to start Coral Ridge Ministries and the Center for Reclaiming America (CFRA). The CFRA, headed by longtime Ohio anti-abortion activist Janet Folger, is today most widely known for its advertising campaigns in newspapers, radio and television to promote so-called "ex-gay ministries." It has been working with Alabama judge Roy Moore to support his demand that the Ten Commandments hang in his courtroom, and is now working to implement organized and directed prayer and evangelism in public schools. Its yearly convention, "Reclaiming America for Christ," is largely centered upon encouraging evangelicals to promote their agenda through the political process and by working to legalize and legitimize evangelism in public schools and government facilities by various means.

Also affiliated with Kennedy and Evangelism Explosion is the Center for Christian Statesmanship, which works to establish prayer cell groups on Capitol Hill and in other Federal Government institutions.

Letter to an EE Vice President

Other Resources

Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church, website

Center for Reclaiming America, website (Requires Internet Explorer to view inside pages)

Center for Christian Statesmanship, website

Evangelism Explosion: a manual for outreach (Tyndale House Publishers webpage)

Excerpts from Evangelism Explosion

View or purchase Evangelism Explosion at Amazon.com

Evangelism Explosion D. James Kennedy Fourth Edition Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois, 1997. Original publication date: 1970 Foreword by Billy Graham

Excerpts

• Do's and Don'ts (Pages 62-64)
• "Green Fruit" (from "Avoiding Difficult Contacts," page 198)
• Religious Questionnaire (Page 224)
• Public Report Board Layout (Page 228)

Last updated August 29, 1999