Open Doors in Italy
Contributed by Carl Ballerino.
Rosemary and I started our trip to Italy in Gesualdo, a small town of about 3000 in the mountains about an hour from Naples.
Our hosts were Joel and Esther Marino. She was born and raised in that town, but they now live in Texas about an hour from Waco, where we met. They still have a home in Gesualdo. When we arrived, they had already shared about our community with many people in the area.
Esther's dad, Carmine Pugliano, was an officer in the Italian army during World War II. After the war he escaped from the Allies and fled to Argentina. There he had a powerful experience with the Lord that changed his life. He received the revelation of the oneness of God. Carmine felt the Lord call him to go back to Italy.
When Carmine returned to Italy, he founded five churches. He has the distinction of bringing the message of the oneness of God and of baptism in Jesus’ Name to Italy in the early ‘60s. I guess you'd say he was the second person to bring the true message of God’s oneness to Italy—after Paul!
He passed away in 2008 but is still very well respected, and all the churches he founded remain active.
We attended the church in Gesaldo, met their pastor, spoke in the church and spent about six or seven days in the town. We had a Bible study and met many Christians who are true brothers and sisters.
From there, we went to a fairly large church of about 300 to 500 people just outside of Naples. The pastor is a humble, honest man who has taken over the church for his dad, who is ill. Their congregation has many young people and young families with dedicated lives. He has a heart for his people and a burden for evangelism, but he shared that he feels overwhelmed as he tries to meet all the needs. As we spoke, we felt the presence of God, and he was open and receptive to specific words that we shared. We prayed with him before we left.
Many of the churches in Italy are not united. I believe what the churches lack is the revelation of the fivefold ministry. Joel has been reaching out to a number of churches all across Italy because he hopes to set up a conference there. He knows many pastors, and they are receptive to meeting with us because of their relationship with him. He recently texted me, “I am so blessed to know you and Rosemary. Thank you for taking time to step into our little world and understand our burden, that I now know we both share. I pray for the strength to step through the sdoor He is opening.“
Please pray that God will continue to open doors among these humble, open, sincere believers. Pray for wisdom and God’s timing to share the message of His kingdom.
