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Back to the Bible
Formation1939 (1939)
Websitewww.backtothebible.org

Back to the Bible is an international Christian ministry based in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States.[1]

History

Founded in 1939 by Theodore H. Epp on radio station KFOR (AM) in Lincoln, Nebraska,[2] Back to the Bible expanded by supporting missionaries and broadcasting via shortwave radio to other countries. By the mid-1950s, it was being broadcast somewhere in the world in any given minute,[3] and in 1954 the organization's first international Bible teaching ministry office opened in Canada. By the time of Epp's retirement in 1981, the Back to the Bible program was syndicated as a daily 30-minute broadcast on more than 800 radio stations worldwide.[4]

Under Epp's direction, the broadcasts were also noted for music by the Back to the Bible Choir and quartet.[2] Several popular phonograph recordings were made by the choir in the 1940s and 1950s. Back to the Bible also had a weekly youth program on Saturdays, featuring a youth choir and serialized adventures with a Christian theme, such as the Danny Orlis series written by Bernard Palmer.[5] Both the music segments and youth program were discontinued in the 1980s.

By the 1970s the organization had offices in Australia, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, England, France, India, Italy, Jamaica, Mexico, the Philippines, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Venezuela.[6]

Warren W. Wiersbe, former pastor of Moody Church in Chicago, Illinois, served as leader of the Lincoln-based ministry between 1984 and 1989. He was followed by Woodrow Kroll.

2010s

Back to the Bible announced Woodrow Kroll's retirement in January 2013. Dr John Munro, senior pastor at Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, became the program's next Bible teacher and served from August 2013. In August 2014 he was removed from this position following a complaint from a member of his church staff; after investigation by the church he was reinstated as senior pastor, but Back to the Bible stood by its decision to dismiss him from his role there.[7][8]

From August 2014 to June 2016, the daily Back to the Bible program featured Bible teaching from Warren Wiersbe, David Chadwick and Darrell Bock.

In July 2016, Ron Moore, pastor of The Bible Chapel in the Pittsburgh area, was named president and Bible teacher. He served as president until February 2018, and was succeeded by David Platt.

Back to the Bible ceased broadcasting on the radio in October 2020; it has continued to be produced as a podcast, with the ministry stating that brokered programming fees on most religious stations had made continuing to syndicate the program no longer viable.[9]

Current situation

As of 2018 Back to the Bible has offices in nine countries outside the United States (Canada,[10] Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Japan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Trinidad & Tobago) and broadcasts in multiple languages.[11]

The charity has a 2-star rating from Charity Navigator, an independent evaluator of American charities.[12]

Bible teachers

Bible Teacher Years
Theodore Epp 1939–1980
Warren Wiersbe 1980–1990
Woodrow Kroll 1990–2013
John Munro 2013–2014
Warren Wiersbe (Interim) 2014–2016
David Chadwick[13] (Interim) 2015–2016
Darrell Bock (Interim) 2015–2016
Ron Moore[14] 2016–2018
David Platt[15] 2018 – 2018
Bryan Clark[16] 2018-2020
Nat Crawford [17] 2020-Present

References

  1. ^ "Back to the Bible website". 2008. Retrieved 2015-08-20.
  2. ^ a b Ward, Mark (2017). The Lord's Radio: Gospel Music Broadcasting and the Making of Evangelical Culture, 1920-1960. McFarland. p. 91. ISBN 978-1476667348. Retrieved 2018-09-25.
  3. ^ Christopher H. Sterling, Cary O'Dell, ed. (2010). The Concise Encyclopedia of American Radio. Routledge. p. 270. ISBN 978-1135176846.
  4. ^ Theodore H. Epp biography, Mennonite Encyclopedia online
  5. ^ Back to the Bible, God at work 40 Years, Lincoln, Nebraska: Back to the Bible (1979)
  6. ^ Randall Herbert Balmer (2002). Encyclopedia of Evangelicalism. Westminster John Knox Press. p. 42. ISBN 978-0664224097. Retrieved 2018-09-25.
  7. ^ Elisabeth Arriero (2014-09-07). "Suspended Calvary pastor John Munro to return after complaint 'not supported'". Charlotte Observer. Archived from the original on 2016-07-28. Retrieved 2018-09-25.
  8. ^ Morgan Lee (2014-09-08). "Fired 'Back to the Bible' Pastor Cleared of Charges by Megachurch". Christianity Today. Retrieved 2018-09-25.
  9. ^ "Gleanings: December 2020".
  10. ^ Back to the Bible Canada
  11. ^ Back to the Bible International
  12. ^ "Back to the Bible". Charity Navigator. Retrieved 2018-09-25.
  13. ^ David Chadwick Archived 2016-08-02 at the Wayback Machine, Back to the Bible
  14. ^ Ron Moore, Back to the Bible
  15. ^ Meet David Platt Archived 2018-04-28 at the Wayback Machine, Back to the Bible
  16. ^ Meet Bryan Clark, Back to the Bible
  17. ^ Meet Nat Crawford, Back to the Bible
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