Yiye Avila
Encyclopedia
Jose Joaquin Avila better known as Yiye Avila, is one of the most famous and respected evangelist
s in Latin America and a former [Mr. America].
in the Double A
level and training as a weight lifter. In 1952, he competed and won the Mr. Puerto Rico bodybuilding contest and would go on to win the title of Mr. North America in 1954.http://www.musclememory.com/show.php?a=Avila,+Jose
While training for the summer Olympic Games
of 1956, Avila experienced terrible pain in parts of his body and, after various tests, was diagnosed with chronic arthritis
by his doctors. This prevented him from participating in the Olympics or in any other future sporting event. The pain was so intense, that Avila suffered limited mobility and could not even perform everyday chores. As a consequence of his health problems, Avila turned to Christianity and began praying, seeking divine intervention for his situation. According to him, he received a divine revelation through the reading and study of Christian bible and allegedly received healing from Jesus Christ. From that time on, he dedicated himself to ministry.
, Christianity, and the Apocalypse
. Eventually, his ministry and followers increased dramatically, and a new three story building near the PR # 2 state road was built to accommodate the attending public. His preaching was followed by various church groups and many Latin American evangelists invited him to preach to their local communities and churches. This demand prompted Yiye to create a radio and, eventually, a television network called Cadena Del Milagro (Miracle Network) so that his preaching could reach those same communities that he visited. The network and his ministry has grown considerably over the years, expanding to magazines, books, audio tapes, videos and televised scheduled programming. The three story building which he and his close followers originally built now serves as the headquarters for Yiye's ministry and his television network.
Since the 1970s, Yiye has been a laborious evangelist, visiting almost all Latin American countries, many North American cities, and parts of Europe at one time or another. He appears daily on his morning telecast preaching selected verses from the Bible and receiving prayer petitions from viewers. He also appears every Saturday night on the network's flagship show, Campaña Por TV (Campaigning Through TV), where he preaches selected verses of the New Testament
, presents Christian music groups, and invites viewers to convert to Christianity. In his shows he encourages viewers to constantly congregate by going to Christian churches and to form Christian groups to discuss the Bible and current events. These shows and many other programs are broadcasted in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, and are transmitted via satellite to Latin America, the continental United States and certain parts of Europe.
In addition to his television shows and public preaching, Yiye Avila is a prolific writer, publishing numerous works throughout his ministry years. Furthermore, many of his public preachings have been recorded and published in tapes and compact discs.
On April 28, 2009, Noemi Avila, the second daughter of Yiye Avila, died in a car accident in Freites, Venezuela.
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
s in Latin America and a former [Mr. America].
Early life
Yiye Avila was born in Camuy, Puerto Rico. His parents (Pablo Avila and Herminia Portalatin) were respected schoolteachers, and he eventually followed in their footsteps. Surprisingly though, upon enrolling at Universidad Interamericana De Puerto Rico in San Germán, his plans had been to study medicine. He obtained a Bachelors degree in natural sciences, and from there he completed his pre-med studies. In spite of this success, he chose to return to his hometown of Camuy, and teach chemistry and biology at the local high school for 23 years. Eventually, however, a change of careers would come that would take him to 128 nations.http://www.yiyeavila.org/biografia.php .Sporting life
He began playing baseballBaseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
in the Double A
Minor league
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities. This term is used in North America with regard to several organizations competing in...
level and training as a weight lifter. In 1952, he competed and won the Mr. Puerto Rico bodybuilding contest and would go on to win the title of Mr. North America in 1954.http://www.musclememory.com/show.php?a=Avila,+Jose
While training for the summer Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
of 1956, Avila experienced terrible pain in parts of his body and, after various tests, was diagnosed with chronic arthritis
Arthritis
Arthritis is a form of joint disorder that involves inflammation of one or more joints....
by his doctors. This prevented him from participating in the Olympics or in any other future sporting event. The pain was so intense, that Avila suffered limited mobility and could not even perform everyday chores. As a consequence of his health problems, Avila turned to Christianity and began praying, seeking divine intervention for his situation. According to him, he received a divine revelation through the reading and study of Christian bible and allegedly received healing from Jesus Christ. From that time on, he dedicated himself to ministry.
Evangelism
Although Yiye Avila was always deeply interested in Christianity, he reportedly was convinced to dedicate all his life and work to evangelism after watching a Christian television show hosted by Oral Roberts, an American tele-evangelist in the early 1960s. In 1967, Ávila retired after 21 years as a teacher and began to concentrate on Christian work instead. He became a full-time preacher and, in 1972, he invited several friends, family, and neighbors to form the Escuadron Relampago Cristo Viene ("Christ Is Coming Lightning Squadron"), which would congregate constantly in a small room in his house to discuss the Bible, salvationSalvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
, Christianity, and the Apocalypse
Apocalypse
An Apocalypse is a disclosure of something hidden from the majority of mankind in an era dominated by falsehood and misconception, i.e. the veil to be lifted. The Apocalypse of John is the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament...
. Eventually, his ministry and followers increased dramatically, and a new three story building near the PR # 2 state road was built to accommodate the attending public. His preaching was followed by various church groups and many Latin American evangelists invited him to preach to their local communities and churches. This demand prompted Yiye to create a radio and, eventually, a television network called Cadena Del Milagro (Miracle Network) so that his preaching could reach those same communities that he visited. The network and his ministry has grown considerably over the years, expanding to magazines, books, audio tapes, videos and televised scheduled programming. The three story building which he and his close followers originally built now serves as the headquarters for Yiye's ministry and his television network.
Since the 1970s, Yiye has been a laborious evangelist, visiting almost all Latin American countries, many North American cities, and parts of Europe at one time or another. He appears daily on his morning telecast preaching selected verses from the Bible and receiving prayer petitions from viewers. He also appears every Saturday night on the network's flagship show, Campaña Por TV (Campaigning Through TV), where he preaches selected verses of the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
, presents Christian music groups, and invites viewers to convert to Christianity. In his shows he encourages viewers to constantly congregate by going to Christian churches and to form Christian groups to discuss the Bible and current events. These shows and many other programs are broadcasted in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, and are transmitted via satellite to Latin America, the continental United States and certain parts of Europe.
In addition to his television shows and public preaching, Yiye Avila is a prolific writer, publishing numerous works throughout his ministry years. Furthermore, many of his public preachings have been recorded and published in tapes and compact discs.
Personal life
Yiye Avila is married to Carmen Delia Talavera (better known as Yeya) and had three daughters: Noemí, Doris Myrna, and Carmen Ilia. http://www.elorador.com/articulo_detalle.asp?ArticleID=468 Although his ministry has expanded across three continents and he has become a household name among Christian families in Latin America, he still lives a humble life, reportedly living in the same house he owned and in the same conditions before his ministry began.On April 28, 2009, Noemi Avila, the second daughter of Yiye Avila, died in a car accident in Freites, Venezuela.
Literary works
| Title | Theme | Publisher/Publishing Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Fast of the Lord: Fast of Victory | Fasting Fasting Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. An absolute fast is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period, usually a single day , or several days. Other fasts may be only partially restrictive,... ; spiritual life |
Yiye Avila (January 1, 1976) | English, ASIN B0007B0N86 |
| Perfecto Amor: Comentarios Basado en 1ra. Corintios 13 (Perfect Love: Commentary Based on Corinthians 1 Chapter 13) | God is love; religious aspects, Christianity | Editorial Unilit (August 1998) | Spanish, ISBN 0-7899-0070-X |
| Señales De Su Venida (Signs of His Coming) | Second advent; eschatology Eschatology Eschatology is a part of theology, philosophy, and futurology concerned with what are believed to be the final events in history, or the ultimate destiny of humanity, commonly referred to as the end of the world or the World to Come... |
Editorial Unilit | Spanish, ISBN 1-56063-433-2 |
| El Engaño (The Deceipt) | Truthfulness and falsehood in religion (religious aspects) | 1990 | Spanish |
| Los Dones del Espiritu (The Gifts of the Spirit) | Biography; spiritual | Editorial Unilit | Spanish, ISBN 1-56063-434-0 |
| El Anticristo (The Antichrist) | Antichrist Antichrist The term or title antichrist, in Christian theology, refers to a leader who fulfills Biblical prophecies concerning an adversary of Christ, while resembling him in a deceptive manner... (biblical teaching); the Great Tribulation |
Editorial Unlimited | Spanish, ISBN 1-56063-592-4 |
| ¿Pasará La Iglesia Por La Gran Tribulación? (Will the Church Go through the Great Tribulation?) | Tribulation Tribulation The Great Tribulation refers to tumultuous events that are described during the "signs of the times", first mentioned by Jesus in the Olivet discourse... (Christian eschatology) |
Editorial Unilit | Spanish, ISBN 1-56063-743-9 |
| Sin Santidad Nadie Le Vera (Without Holiness No One Shall See Him) | Sanctity; spiritual healing | Editorial Unilit | Spanish, ISBN 1-56063-742-0 |
| La Ciencia De La Oración (The Science of Prayer) | Prayer; spirituality | Editorial Unilit (December 1995) | Spanish, ISBN 1-56063-633-5 |
| ¿Quiénes Se Irán?: El Arrebatamiento De La Iglesia (Who Will Go?: The Rapture of the Church) | Rapture Rapture The rapture is a reference to the "being caught up" referred to in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, when the "dead in Christ" and "we who are alive and remain" will be caught up in the clouds to meet "the Lord".... |
Editorial Unilit (December 1995) | Spanish, ISBN 1-56063-996-2 |
| Sanidad Divina: Y Por Su Llaga Fuimos Nosotros Curados (Divine Healing: And By His Wounds We Were Healed) | Biography; spiritual healing | Editorial Unilit (December 1995) | Spanish, ISBN 1-56063-634-3 |
| El Cuerpo Glorificado (The Glorified Body) | Resurrection Resurrection Resurrection refers to the literal coming back to life of the biologically dead. It is used both with respect to particular individuals or the belief in a General Resurrection of the dead at the end of the world. The General Resurrection is featured prominently in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim... ; Afterlife Afterlife The afterlife is the belief that a part of, or essence of, or soul of an individual, which carries with it and confers personal identity, survives the death of the body of this world and this lifetime, by natural or supernatural means, in contrast to the belief in eternal... (Christianity) |
Editorial Unilit (August 1998) | English and Spanish, ISBN 0-7899-0071-8 |
| Perfecto Amor: Una Exposición Acerca De Cual Y Como Debe Ser El Amor Que Servirá De Puntal | God; love; religious aspects; Christianity | Editorial Unilit | Spanish, ISBN 0-7899-0070-X |
| El Cristo De Los Milagros (The Christ of Miracles) | Christianity; spiritual healing | Editorial Unilit | Spanish, ISBN 0-7899-0073-4 |
| El Profeta Elías: La Fe Y Obediencia De Un Hombre Que Consagró Su Vida Al Servicio De Dios | Biblical teachings | Editorial Unilit | Spanish, ISBN 0-7899-0074-2 |
| El Sacrificio De La Cruz (The Sacrifice of the Cross) | Biography; atonement; salvation; the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of... |
Editorial Unilit (December 1996) | Spanish, ISBN 0-7899-0075-0 |
| El Valle De Los Huesos Secos (The Valley of the Dry Bones) | Biblical teachings | Editorial Unilit (December 1996) | Spanish; ISBN 0-7899-0072-6 |
| Perfecto Amor (Perfect Love) | God is love | Editorial Unilit (August 1998) | Spanish, ISBN 0-7899-0070-X |
External links
- La Cadena del Milagro (Miracle Network) official page
- Yiye Avila's biography on his official website
See also
- Bob GrahamBob GrahamDaniel Robert "Bob" Graham is an American politician. He was the 38th Governor of Florida from 1979 to 1987 and a United States Senator from that state from 1987 to 2005...
- List of famous Puerto Ricans