Reverend Henry N. Dorsey was born in 1936 in the small western Kansas town of
Scott City. His Father was a circuit rider Minister for the Methodist Church. He
was brought up under a strict Christian environment. However, from about twenty
years of age, after rebelling, the Lord was not involved much in his life until
about 35 years old. In 1976, God stopped him cold! (He was doing a lot Of things
that were not in accordance with a walk with God, including Drinking a quart of
liquor per day). Once the Lord stopped him, he re-entered college, worked as
Clinical Counselor and Chaplain's Assistant for two years, in the Department of
Criminally Insane while associated with the Department Of Corrections in the
State of Tennessee. Then God, open the door, offering the acting Chaplain spot
and Counselor position in a work release center with the Department of
Corrections, which he accepted for another two years.
One of the blessings of being a Chaplain is that you have to allow all
religions and denominations to minister within the institution. Therefore, you
must work with all Churches. God must have been showing him that He was the one
and only, and that there are very little differences between what he rebelled
from and others. He found early, that when a Minister wanted to bring in a group
into the institution to Minister, if he would just let God lead, the decision as
to the permission for the group to come into the Institution, was very simple.
He simply found that after getting to know the Minister for a few minutes, if he
would set down at his desk, reach across, take the Ministers hands and start to
pray out loud; Within a five-minute prayer God would give the decision to the
Minister as to whether he wanted to Minister in the Institution or not.
There was once that a group came in to Minister, everyone greeted shaking
hands etc.. The Assistant Minister got up and started preaching on Gods Love and
how Christians loved each other. The Minister slid over and asked how things
were going. Rev. Dorsi, simply stated that all prisoners lie and they expect
others to do the same. In order to survive in the prison situation, you learn
real quick to listen with guarded hearing, watch what people do and you will see
the real truth. Rev. Dorsi pointed out that the people had separated themselves
to their own and the others (inmates) were left to themselves. Rev. Dorsi,
suggested that him and his associate Minister stop by Sunday afternoon to see
what the other Churches were doing.
Rev. Dorsey had said many times, "What I am trying to do here, is build a
bridge from there (pointing to a bluff across the river where "The Walls" main
prison is located) to down there (turning 180 and pointing to the metropolitan
area of Nashville). If you are going to keep ex-cons from repeating their crimes
and returning to prison, this bridge has to be a bridge built of Gods Love.
People have to accept these convicts who have paid their debt and made changes,
as they are, forgive them for what they have been, love them for what God will
guide them to become, and as Christians, we have to be their support as God does
his work within each of them." The program set-up required, on a rotating basis,
each Church would bring out pot-luck lunch and after Sunday morning services,
they would all eat lunch, play volley ball, horse shoes, sing gospel songs, etc.
However, as each Church member worked into the group, an inmate would start
asking questions, and soon under the guidance of God, they would place another
piece on that "bridge". When the Minister and his associate come by that Sunday
Afternoon, they simply stopped for a few minutes, then waved and drove-on. They
never came back.
The HCN cannot be all things to everyone, everywhere in Mexico, but they do
support the people, facilities, organizations that get down in the ditches, that
are building the bridges, with love, acceptance and forgiveness. These people
get on the streets with the young girls who have turned to prostitution for
survival, the glue sniffers, the kids on drug, the drunks and are leading them,
showing them, working to make the difference that the Supporters Of HCN want to
accomplish by donating their funds.
Rev. Dorsey accepted counseling youth with drug and drinking problems, in a
non-denominational Church Called the Lords Chapel, in Hendersonville, Tenn..
Henri felt it was a great opportunity to work and witness the Lord's work
through their Minister, Mike Nelson, taking that Church to 2,400 attendance each
Sunday in only 3 years. The basic doctrine of the Church is Love Acceptance and
Forgiveness.
While in Tennessee, Rev. Dorsey attended a Nazarene College in Nashville where
the Dean of the Ministerial Department offered the backing of the Church, if he
would start a street level youth ministry. Henri felt that it was not the path
that he was to follow. The street level Ministry was right in Gods will but it
didn't seem to be the right place and time. He felt that God was leading him to
South Texas as he was doing a lot of evangelistic work in Texas.
South Texas was just the jumping off place, He came to Mexico. The rest of
the story starts on the main page.
As far as a statement of Faith Goes, the Apostles Creed pretty well states
it.
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