Gary Benedict to Serve Second Term as U.S. Alliance President
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., June 1 /
Christian Newswire/ -- The U.S. Christian and Missionary Alliance Board of Directors announced that Dr. Gary M. Benedict has been reelected as the denomination's president.
Dr. Benedict is serving as the eleventh president of the U.S. C&MA. Having received an honorary doctor of divinity degree from Nyack College in Nyack, New York, Benedict became the thirteenth president of Crown College in 1997. During his tenure, enrollment at Crown increased by 60 percent.
In 2004 Benedict was elected corporate vice president for the U.S. C&MA. He was chosen to serve as president of The Alliance during General Council in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 2005.
Benedict's vision for the future of The Alliance includes healthy people leading healthy churches that will multiply themselves and reap a grand harvest. He also envisions a strong laity, which he refers to as a "sleeping giant." He says, "There remains a huge, untapped ministry potential among our laity."
He believes that the "true" headquarters of The Alliance is the local church. "Our mandate at the National Office is to serve the local church and to assist it in carrying out its Great Commission ministries. Grassroots ministry flows from our local churches to U.S. neighborhoods and to the nations of the world."
The Alliance is a fellowship of evangelical believers joined together in local churches, dedicated to fulfilling Christ's command to take the gospel to all nations. The Alliance has a thoroughly evangelical doctrinal statement and encourages believers from diverse backgrounds and theological traditions to unite to complete Christ's Great Commission.
