David Bloom, A Favorite Correspondent of Mine, Was a Christian!

Update on David Bloom's family and a continuing tribute, 10 years after his death - he died in Iraq on April 6, 2003

Arguably one of my favorite news personalities was David Bloom. He joined NBC in 1993 and became White House Correspondent in 1997. In 2003, he became one of 153 journalists who died in the Iraq war. Bloom was embedded with the Third Infantry Division. Tragically, he passed away when a blood clot traveled up from his leg to his lungs. This is called a pulmonary embolism. He died at the age of 39. Bloom left behind his wife, Melanie, and three daughters: Nicole, Christine, and Ava.

What I did not know until I read of Chuck Colson’s account of David Bloom’s life and death in Anne Graham Lotz’ book, Why? Trusting God When You Don’t Understand, was that Bloom had become a Christian. After reading Chuck Colson’s book, Born Again, Bloom committed his life to Jesus Christ. Subsequently, he attended a weekly Bible study and, according to Colson, he was growing. Whenever Colson traveled to New York they would get together for mutual spiritual encouragement.

Upon hearing of Bloom’s death, Colson immediately questioned why. Finally, an evangelical Christian high up in the news media and he is taken away. Why would God take him in the prime of his life and career? Colson found the answer at the memorial service when Bloom’s faith was made known to an audience that was a cross-section of the who’s who of politics, entertainment and network news.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Call to be a Ragamuffin: A Review of the Movie on Rich Mullins' Life

Image
I thought this film was absolutely great.  The acting was good and the story was real.  Shocked and saddened at the ghosts of Rich's childhood, if I may use that terminology, I was drawn into the healthy and unhealthy ways he struggled with his raising.   Like the Bible does with its heroes, Ragamuffin doesn't sugarcoat Rich's life.  He struggled with smoking and with alcohol.  His language wasn't always church language, to put it mildly.  One sees someone seeking to be real.  Tired of the masks Christians often put on and the blindness to the call of Christ to provide for the least of these, Rich gives generously to Christian churches and charities while living humbly.  Seeing the poverty of others and the difference he could make in the lives of those with less, Rich Mullins pours himself wholly into ministry.   Just a few other thoughts in closing.  His tragic death is handled well.  In  the special features section, Dav e, Rich's brother, does a
Read more

What's In a Name?

Image
What’s in a Name?  In 1990, I graduated from Philadelphia College of Bible.  Over the years, PCB changed and with it, its name altered as well.  After achieving university status under President Babb, a new name was chosen, Philadelphia Biblical University, one that does not easily roll off the tongue.  Eventually, students, alumni, the community, etc., got used to it like will eventually happen with the new name change.  However, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t reasons to wrestle with the proposal.   The rationale for the name change Dr. Williams, current president of PBU, argues that there is a perception of PBU being a Bible college with “university” in its name, leading people to believe that it has “limited offerings and a narrow vocational focus.”  My thought:  The word narrow sounds familiar to me.   Matthew 7:13-14 Furthermore, market research conducted via focus groups and a survey yielded data that was considered in favor of a name change in gene
Read more

Reproducible Pastoral Training - A Book Review

Image
Reproducible Pastoral Training: Church Planting Guidelines from the Teachings of George Patterson by Patrick O’Connor is a book about missions. However, its insights are also helpful to anyone who is either starting a church or seeking to see it grow. Patrick O’Connor dives into the wisdom of George Patterson and presents it in an intelligent way. Various topics are explained in the text. How does one reach a culture with the Gospel of Jesus Christ? What is better, door-to-door evangelism or another technique? Is it best to begin with a multi-cultural church or to start with one culture? How does one utilize contacts for the sake of the Gospel? Also, how does one prevent establishing a foreign church rather than a native one? Furthermore, the author goes into issues like how leaders are trained and when they should begin serving. I found myself revisiting preconceived notions of what is done in Western churches and thus is considered to be biblical. For instance, the d
Read more