A newly formed Asian American Advisory Council will meet with SBC Executive Committee and NAMB leadership to communicate the perspectives of churches and church leaders from several Asian cultures.
Executive Committee President Frank S. Page announced the initiative during his February 18 address to the Executive Committee. “We’re excited about working with a group of our Asian friends from various cultures,” he said. “Realize, of our forty-five, almost forty-six thousand churches, almost one in four is ethnic in some shape, form, or fashion. Almost ten thousand,” he said. “[L]eadership in all of our Convention needs to reflect that ethnic diversity.”
The Asian American Advisory Council will elect a chairman at its initial meeting on April 11 in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Council is a three-year ministry initiative (2013-2016) established by the presidents of the EC and NAMB in an ongoing effort to engage the many faces of the SBC in meaningful dialogue about how we can work together as full and equal partners in the harvest. Page announced the formation of a Hispanic Advisory Council in 2011 and an African American Advisory Council in 2012.
The three Councils’ chief aims include helping the EC, NAMB, and other SBC entity heads understand the perspectives that Hispanic, African American, and Asian American Southern Baptists bring to the common task of reaching the United States and the nations with the Gospel.
The Council is representative of the regions of the country and reflects the cultural diversity of the Asian American population, with members representing Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Hmong, Japanese, Korean, Lao, and Vietnamese churches. Paul Kim, who made the 2009 motion at the SBC that resulted in the adoption of the 2011 SBC ethnic study committee report, serves on the newly-formed council.
The purpose of the Council is consultation, communication, and cooperation. It will neither launch nor execute ministries. It will provide information, insight, and counsel through NAMB and EC staff to the broader Southern Baptist community relative to the special needs and concerns of Asian American churches and church leaders in the Southern Baptist network of churches.
It will communicate with key Asian American pastors and laymen, Baptist Fellowships with whom they relate, and Asian American leaders serving in elected roles in state Baptist conventions and on state Baptist convention staffs.
In addition, the Council will enable the presidents and staff of the EC and NAMB to maintain vital contact with the broader Asian American Baptist family through participation in strategic meetings and personal conferences.
During his announcement, Page singled out Ken Weathersby, who was in the audience, praising his efforts in strengthening relationships and raising awareness and involvement of our various ethnic churches and fellowships in Cooperative Program promotion and development. Weathersby is presidential ambassador for ethnic church relations with the North American Mission Board.
ASIAN AMERICAN ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBERS:
Seang Yiv
President, Cambodian Fellowship
bivocational church planter
Peter Chung
Senior Pastor, Mandarin Baptist Church of Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Abraham Chiu (Chinese)
Senior Pastor, Crosspoint Church of Silicon Valley
Milpitas, California
Peter Leong
Senior Pastor, Southwest Chinese Baptist Church
Stafford, Texas
Ted Lam
Church Planting Specialist, Chinese Fellowship
Benny Wong
Senior Pastor, First Chinese Baptist Church of Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Roger Manao
Senior Pastor, Philadelphia Bible Church International
President, Filipino Fellowship
Jeremiah Lepasana (Filipino)
Senior Pastor, Bible Church International
Randolph, New Jersey
Rev. Sam Vang
Pastor, Hmong Baptist Community Church
Irving, Texas
President, Hmong Association
Yutaka Takarada
Senior Pastor, Japanese Baptist Church of North Texas
Dallas, Texas
President, Japanese Fellowship
Mike Yukoy
Senior Pastor, Japanese International Baptist Church
Tigard, Oregon
Director, Japanese Church Planting Network
Dr. Jong Oh Aum
Executive Director, Korean Fellowship
Lewisville, Texas
Dr. David Gill
Pastor, Concord Korean Baptist Church
Martinez, California
Rev. Peter Hwang
Vice President, Council of Korean SBC
Dr. Dennis Man Poong Kim (Korean)
Pastor, Global Mission Church
Silver Spring, Maryland
Dr. Paul Kim (Korean)
Pastor Emeritus, Antioch Baptist Church
Cambridge, Massachusetts
President, Asian American CPM
Dr. Daniel I. Park (Korean)
Pastor, New Song Church
Carrollton, Texas
Dr. Sung Kun Park (Korean)
Pastor, Brundo Street Baptist Church
California
Pat Anongdeth
Pastor, New Hope Lao Baptist Church
Texas
President, Lao Fellowship
Joel Baylaungrath
Pastor, Woodbine Laotian Baptist Church
Haltom City, Texas
President, Lao Fellowship East
Dr. Oudone Thirakoune
Laotian Baptist Church
Atlanta, Georgia
Dr. Christian Phan
Senior Pastor, Agape Vietnamese
Renton, Washington
Dr. Thang Uc
Pastor, Vietnamese Baptist Church
Pensacola, Florida
Jason Kim
NAMB
Member, Atlanta Korean Baptist Church
Atlanta, Georgia
Dr. Jeremy Sin
NAMB
Member, First Chinese Baptist Church of Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia
Gihwang Shin
International Mission Board
