Pastor Anthony Alexander and wife, Saratha with Pastor Jan Paulsen
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Anthony Alexander, recently freed after spending more than two years in a Sri Lankan prison, was welcomed onto the General Conference Session stage with a standing ovation during the afternoon Global Mission program on July 1. His introduction on stage came as a surprise to the estimated 30,000 people present for the program, who had been told only to expect “a special international guest.”
“Pray,” Alexander told the crowd gathered at the SkyDome. “Pray unceasingly. We are almost home.”
Alexander, a former Global Mission pioneer who has established a number of Seventh-day Adventist churches in the war-torn region of northern Sri Lanka, was arrested in March of 1998 on false charges of terrorism and storing ammunition for use by the "Tamil Tigers," an anti-government militia. A Sri Lankan judge threw out the charges in May this year saying that there was "insufficient evidence to convict Anthony Alexander of the charges presented before me. He has been detained long enough, therefore I am ordering that he be released immediately."
During his imprisonment, Alexander was tortured, forced to sign a confession in a language he did not understand, and deprived of his diabetes medication. For twenty-six months Alexander was separated from his wife, Saratha, and their five children. Global Mission director, Pastor Michael Ryan, asked Alexander in today’s meeting how he had been affected by the imprisonment ordeal.
“It affected me mentally, physically and socially,” said Alexander. “But spiritually, it helped me–drawing me even closer to God.”
Alexander’s wife Saratha, who accompanied her husband, told the audience that she has also been changed by the experience. “Where I once relied on my husband, I now know I can depend on God for everything.”
During his 26 months in prison, Alexander conducted weekly worship services, gave more than 50 Bible studies each week to other inmates, and began translating the book The Desire of Ages into the Tamil language.
Soon after his release, Alexander said that he decided two things while in prison. First, he wanted to commit himself “more fully–heart, soul and mind–to God, and second, to never, ever, go anywhere without Saratha.” |
