I just received word that I’ll have the privilege and responsibility being one of the North American representatives at the Younger Leaders Gathering ’06 (mid 30’s and younger) sponsored by the Lausanne Movement. This gathering of 550 emerging leaderes from roughly 100 countries will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at the end of September 2006.
As a former student of TV Thomas, Robert Coleman, and Ajith Fernando I have heard many stories from this historic movement, and its importance for the evangelical church. I can’t believe that I get to participate, wow!
Historically the Lausanne Conference has focused on world evangelization. What is ‘world evangelization’ today? So much within Western Christian thought and practice is being reimagined – if not entirely revisioned – that I wonder what this global conversation will be like. How will the effects of the spread of consumerism, globalism, urbanism, post-modernism, the threat pandemics or more generally what does the ‘spread of the Good News of Jesus Christ’ sound like to those whose lives are so radically different from mine. For those discipled into a form of colonial Christianity what is world evangelism? With all the conversation in recent years regarding atonement theories, universalism, the afterlife, etc. how might such a conversation proceed? How big is ‘our’ gospel? Can I understand ‘their’ gospel? And what happens when our gospels tangle?
If you could bring a question, a concern, or a hope to such a gathering what might you bring? I’m open to suggestions and thoughts.
Peace, dwight
let me be the first to welcome you to Malaysia. If I get the confirmation, then I would likely be there too. even if it’s no … I’m can still meet up.
perhaps the question we can explore together is what is our role “globally” in regards to the church of the future? and how we could work together in this direction?
Thanks so much Sivin, I look forward to connecting with you.
That’s a great question. Coming from a western perspective i have a kenotic sense of ‘role’ and as we have seen throughout church history those with power have often experience a stewardship crisis.
peace, dwight
my worries is how often our mindsets here are still “colonized” – and the process of “decolonizing” might be too fearful or painful for some. But this is a needed process to come to a place where we can have a “proper confidence” in our own theologizing, spiritual formation and mission. On the other hand, I’m concerned of a over-reactionary mode where we may take pride in our so called “vibrancy” and miss the hard work of being self-critical. It’s a long road …
I think American Evangelical Protestantism has evolved into a collection of:
A. People of the same personality type (roughly a sixth of the population)
B. People unable to bridge out of the cookie-cutter to other types of people.
Evangelism is both the successful proclamation of the gospel, as well as the successful assimilation of the new convert into the church. However, in North America, only 1/40th of the converts ever find a church home. Given the different cultures of the world, what would make that number better?
The international environment is either prior British colony, prior French colony, or other (roughly a third each). Much of our models assume prior British colony. The Brits did a good job of leaving their colonies with working infrastructure, schools, hospitals, etc., and evangelism nested well into that paradigm.
However, most of the world doesn’t have that background, and we are faced with an evangelism challenge that needs to understand a different underlying paradigm. How do we generate the underlying paradigms, and the evangelism strategies?
In the US, “evangelism” is largely Youth-oriented (5/6th) and recovery oriented (1/6th). Only 1 percent of evangelism is “normal adult” oriented. But, international cultures do not have the “American tenager” culture, nor twelve-step, celebrate recovery, etc. paradigms. How do we amplify something that is one percent of our evangelism model, into a world culture?
American religion is often seen as an extension of George Bush’s foreign policy, Rick Warren’s hatred of the French, and a Republican party that resembles the German Christian Democrat party of the fifties. Yet, most foreign countries have a parliamentary democracy that is based on coalition and compromise, seemingly more mature than American politics over the past decade. How do we create credibility?
Hey Dwight
I guess the question to continually ask Lausanne is what difference these major events really make. I’ve attended *many* and still have yet to see aany significant things be landed at the community level. Good conversations, some helpful relationships established, but the cost of these events is a bit high (the one in Thailand a couple of years ago cost a few million not counting the time involved by people).
Would it be that we could use the money for more “under the radar” projects and initiatives. Ah, but I’m a dreamer.