Edwin Louis Cole also known as Ed Cole, was the founder of the Christian Men's Network, a religious organization devoted to helping Christian

Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

 men and fathers. He published many books and preached numerous sermons relating to men and religion.

Early life

After his birth in Dallas, Cole lived with his mother in Texas until the age of four, when he became ill with a severe case of scarlet fever

Scarlet fever

Scarlet fever is a disease caused by exotoxin released by Streptococcus pyogenes. Once a major cause of death, it is now effectively treated with antibiotics...

. After being told that he would not survive without sea air and sun, his mother Florence moved to Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 with young Edwin.

Cole was educated at Belmont High School

Belmont High School (Los Angeles, California)

Belmont Senior High School is a public high school located at 1575 West 2nd Street in the Westlake community of Los Angeles, California. The school, which serves grades 9 through 12, is part of the Los Angeles Unified School District.-History:...

 in Downtown Los Angeles

Downtown Los Angeles

Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, United States, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area...

.

In Los Angeles, Edwin played an active role in the Angelus Temple

Angelus Temple

Angelus Temple was the central house of worship of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel in the Echo Park district of Los Angeles, California....

 of Aimee Semple McPherson

Aimee Semple McPherson

Aimee Semple McPherson , also known as Sister Aimee, was a Canadian-American Los Angeles, California evangelist and media celebrity in the 1920s and 1930s. She founded the Foursquare Church...

, often participating in the Temple's illustrated sermons. He played a trumpet with street corner witnessing teams on Los Angeles's skid row

Skid row

A skid row or skid road is a run-down or dilapidated urban area with a large, impoverished population. The term originally referred literally to a path along which working men skidded logs. Its current sense appears to have originated in the Pacific Northwest...

.

He enlisted in the United States Coast Guard

United States Coast Guard

The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...

 during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, where he met his wife, fellow Coast Guard member Nancy Corbett. Later Cole began street witnessing again, and within two years accepted the pastorate of a church in northern California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

.

Religious career

Cole eventually became the first full-time district men’s minister for a major denomination. He spent the next two decades undertaking a number of religious endeavors, including mission trips, evangelizing, and Christian TV stations. In 1977 Cole founded the Christian Men's Network. At that time he was still actively ministering on two Christian television networks, acting as chancellor of a ministry school, and helping to establish a radio ministry. In April 1984 Cole resigned from these positions to focus exclusively on his men's ministry, which started slowly but grew in the 1980s and 1990s.

Later life

In 1993 Cole and his wife moved back to Texas to continue ministering. In 2002 he was diagnosed with cancer

Cancer

Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...

 while being treated for a broken back. He collapsed on August 25, 2002 and was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition. He died on August 27, 2002 and was buried at a private ceremony in Newport Beach, California.

Quotes

An exhaustive complete listing of all 940 "Coleisms", their scriptural references, and additional information, is at The Ed Cole Library "Coleism" Section

• "Manhood and Christlikeness are synonymous."
• "Have faith in God; God has faith in you."
• "Being a male is a matter of birth. Being a man is a matter of choice." Ben Kinchelow
• "Teach to teach to teach. " / "Teach to teach, 'til every man is taught."
• "Christians are not patched-up sinners, they are new creations."
• "You don't drown by falling in the water; you drown by staying there."
• "Do not let others create your world for you, for they will always create it too small."

External links

• The Ed Cole Library
• Edwin Louis Cole at New Man Magazine (address referenced in article is now P.O. Box 92921, Southlake, TX 76092)
• More Edwin Louis Cole at New Man Magazine
• Christian Men's Network (CMN) Worldwide