Lausanne Occasional Papers

Launched in 1975, the Lausanne Occasional Papers series serves as a repository of insightful reflections, scholarly analyses, and practical insights emerging from the global dialogues and consultations convened by the Lausanne Movement. These papers delve into diverse theological, missiological, and practical topics, providing a platform for thought leaders, practitioners, and theologians to contribute to the ongoing conversation on world evangelization.

  • Culture and SocietyHealthScienceSexualityTheology

    A Theology of the Human Person

    This paper seeks to provide a preliminary theological and biblical response to the urgent and pertinent gap in evangelical and global Christian thought on the theme of the human person. The mounting anthropological concerns of our time relating to the nature of human beings, human sexuality, racial and ethnic…
  • Digital MinistryMediaTechnologyTheology

    Christian Faith and Technology

    Introduction Technology has always been an integral part of human life. Throughout history technology has allowed humans to communicate, build, explore, create, prosper, and survive, but also to exploit, dominate, destroy, and kill. Technological artefacts are part of the matrix of everyday life, and yet through them we recreate…
  • ChurchDiscipleshipPrayerSpiritualityTheology

    The Formation of Disciples for Mission and the Formation of Disciples as Mission

    Introduction  The need for this paper arises from two widely perceived problems. The first may be seen in relation to the end or outcome of mission: the low level of spiritual maturity, the lack of Christian formation, and evidence of anemic discipleship within the global evangelical movement.[1] The second…
  • ChurchScripture and TranslationTheology

    ‘Do You Understand What You Are Reading?’

    Introduction: Evangelical Unity in Diversity ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ is Philip’s question to the Ethiopian official who is poring over Isaiah 53:7–8 (Acts 8:27–33). The Ethiopian needs help to make sense of the biblical text, and Philip, led by the Spirit, is there to guide him.…
  • Diasporas and Migration

    People on the Move

    Introduction Since the dawn of civilization, human beings have been on the move. Some people move in search of greener pastures, to find livelihood, to seek safety, for education, in search of employment, join family, for trade, to engage in business, or for sheer survival. Others move to escape…
  • Disability Concerns

    Ministries of People with Disabilities: ‘All in’

    ‘Disability ministry is not disability ministry unless the disabled are ministering.’ – Joni Eareckson Tada Question: What are the barriers (social) and obstacles (all other spheres) to called and gifted people with disabilities serving in all areas of ministry in local churches and Christian organizations? Where are we at?…
  • Culture and SocietyTechnologyTheology

    Being Church in a Digital Age

    Introduction Already in the early days of the internet, Christian individuals and groups saw the potential in the technology for fellowship, outreach and evangelism. Digital technology has long been adopted by enthusiasts, but also marginal groups such as those living with disabilities or in hostile areas. In places such…
  • Jewish Evangelism

    Jewish Evangelism

    Introduction: Why Jewish Evangelism The year was 1980, the city was Pattaya, and the occasion was a Lausanne Consultation on World Evangelism-sponsored (LCWE, today known as the Lausanne Movement) conference that was focused on ‘reaching the unreached’. One of the many outcomes of this monumental conference was the birth…
  • Children at Risk

    Mission with Children at Risk

    Preface This Lausanne Occasional Paper is a product of the Lausanne Consultation on Children at Risk, which was convened from 17–19 November 2014 in Quito, Ecuador. More than sixty church leaders, Christian practitioners, missiologists, theologians, and NGO network leaders gathered from five continents to engage in daily worship, group…

  • Case Studies

    Peacemaking amidst urban violence in Brazil - C. Rosalee Velloso Ewell (Brazil) It all started with a flirt between two teenagers on a dusty street of Londrina, Brazil. It ended with one person dead, another death-listed and an entire family on the run. Londrina is the third largest city…

  • Can Christians Belong to More than One Religious Tradition?

    Can Christians Belong to More than One Religious Tradition? KangSan Tan Perspectives on Non- Christian Religions This paper seeks to explore the notion of multireligious belonging and evaluate whether it is theologically possible for a Christian to follow Christ while retaining some form of identification with one’s previous religion…

  • The Global Public Square

    The World Missionary Conference that met in Edinburgh in 1910 recognized the ‘world’ as a single unit, united not merely scientifically (one human species living on planet Earth) and technologically (‘organically knit by the nerves of electric cable and telegraph wire’)[1] but theologically (created and redeemed through the one…

  • Towards a Missiology of Caring for Creation

    Over recent years far more attention has been given to the creation within an understanding of the redeeming purposes of God. It is fair to say that an effective consensus has been reached among evangelical theologians that God’s redemption in Christ extends beyond the person, and beyond the human…

  • The World in the Bible

    The idea of ‘gaining the whole world’ while ‘losing your own soul’ crossed my mind as I struggled to work through a concordance search on the biblical words translated ‘world’ and related words and concepts. It was a most illuminating exercise, however. The first and most startling thing that…

  • The Whole World – Statement of the Lausanne Theology Working Group (Beirut 2010)

    Editorial Preface: ‘The Whole World’— Reflections of the Lausanne Theology Working Group The  Lausanne Theology Working Group hosted a consultation in Beirut, Lebanon, 14-19 February 2010. 23 people from fourteen countries convened and worked together around four plenary papers and sixteen case studies, which provided us with a very wide…

  • A Neopentecostal Experience of Aimara people

    I Background to the case study The ideology used to design Bolivian State institutions to date is just another example that reveals the system of ethnic discrimination that makes Bolivia what it is today. The present indigenist government is making huge efforts to change this deeply rooted, unjust reality,…
  • Southeast Asia

    Way of Hope in Cambodia

    Introduction Cambodia’s approximately 12 million people have suffered decades of civil war, including genocide under the Khmer Rouge holocaust, where as many as 2 million people died. This extended period of destruction has devastated Cambodia’s social, economic, and intellectual infrastructure, limiting its ability to break itself from the grip…
  • Science

    Lessons from My Daughter: Reflections of Church and Ethics

    ON NOVEMBER 23, 1993 we were suddenly thrown into the unknown country of people with disabilities and their families. Our daughter Karis was born with cerebral palsy. All four hemispheres of her body suffered movement damage. She depended completely on us for all tasks like eating, getting dressed, brushing…
  • Culture and SocietyHinduism

    New Faces of the Church: An Indian Case Study

    Introduction ‘Matta, Pitta, Guru, Devam,’ is an oft quoted maxim in India. It simply means, ‘Mother, Father, Teacher, God,’ and signifies the order of priority that many adopt in their lives. In the Indian view of life, therefore, fidelity to one’s family and caste community is of paramount importance.…
  • EuropeProclamation Evangelism

    ‘Unwanted Sectarians’: Spirit, Migration and Mission in an African-led Mega-Size Church in Eastern Europe

    The following article was written and accepted prior to the news that Pastor Sunday Adelaja is under investigation for fraud. Even if it transpires that Pastor Sunday is guilty in some way, we cannot judge the whole church, or the whole work of God, on the basis of failings…

  • Ethnicity and The People of God’

    Introduction There is one element of our biblical understanding and Christian speech that must be revised at least within popular circles of Christianity, which includes, by the way, the majority of Christians around the world: the identity of the people of God regarding race and ethnicity. The issues of…

  • The Whole Church as a Transformed and Transforming Society

    When evangelicalism was defined at the international conference convened in London in 1846 to establish the Evangelical Alliance the definition explicitly excluded an ecclesiological statement. The reason for this was that the great evangelical revival of the eighteenth century had created a situation where members from most of the…

  • Biblical Perspectives on the Role of Immigrants in God’s Mission

    Introduction [1]We know that throughout history we have seen great movements of peoples and groups from one place to another. This includes the Latin American continent where the history of many peoples, ancient and modern, tells the stories of periodic migrations of peoples from north to south, from east…

  • The Whole Church – A Brief Biblical Survey

    I The Origin of the Church If we think of the church as the community of people who confess Jesus of Nazareth as Lord and Saviour, and who seek to live as his followers in the power of the Holy Spirit, then the historical origin of that community, defined…
  • Theology

    ‘The Whole Church’: Statement of the Lausanne Theology Working Group

    Editorial: ‘The Whole Church’ – Reflections of the Lausanne Theology Working Group THE LAUSANNE Theology Working Group hosted a consultation in Panama, 26-30 January, 2009. 25 people from around the world convened, and worked together around 4 plenary papers and 18 case studies, which provided us with a very…

  • Case Study: How Will We Know When the Holy Spirit Comes? The Question of Discernment

    When the Apostle Paul stood in front of the Areopagus, he began by connecting with the spirituality of the ancient Athenians, affirming their search for God and the spiritual awareness of their poets. Paul attempted to use the Athenians’ spiritual language to tell about the Creator God and about…

  • The Gospel in Historical Reception

    ‘you welcomed the message with joy…’ 1 Thessalonians 1:6 I. Introduction Central to the theological reflection of the Lausanne movement has always been the realization that the gospel is rooted in real history and the gospel has been received within particular historical cultural contexts through the ages. The gospel…

  • ‘Unexpected’ Guests at God’s Banquet Table – Gospel in Mission and Culture

    I. Introduction Split cod and ale. That is all they have eaten for years on end. But today the sisters’ table is sumptuously spread with exquisite fare that awakens all senses. With lavish love the servant Babette has spent even her last cent on this banquet. And no one…

  • The Gospel and Ethics

    I. Introduction Why do evangelicals draw such a sharp distinction between faith as cognition and faith as a way of life? Given our Lord’s teaching, example, and depictions of the final judgment, it is appropriate to begin with the reminder that the New Testament was written by disciples for…

  • Signs, Wonders, and Ministry: the Gospel in the Power of the Spirit

    I. Introduction This article examines the inseparable relationship between the Holy Spirit and the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The subject matter is considered from the viewpoint of contemporary Christianity in the global south, particularly, African-led Pentecostal/ charismatic Christianity. We will look at how these African churches,…

  • The Gospel and the Achievement of the Cross

    I. The Centrality of the Cross Central to Christianity is the cross of Jesus Christ. The cross and the resurrection of Christ formed the heart of the apostles’ preaching from the very beginning (1 Cor. 1:23; 2:2; 15:3-4)[1] and the belief that Christ died for the sins of the…

  • ‘The Whole Gospel’: Lausanne Reflects on its Own Vision

    Editorial: ‘The Whole Gospel’: Lausanne reflects on its own vision ‘THE WHOLE CHURCH taking the whole gospel to the whole world’. This is the phrase with which the Lausanne Covenant (1974) sums up the meaning of evangelization. It is a resounding triplet that has become an unofficial motto of…
  • Diasporas and Migration

    Case Study: Overseas Filipino Workers

    Globalization has engendered the phenomenal growth of transnational economic migration, with its opportunities and heartaches. The economic interdependence of countries has resulted not only in the exchange of goods but also in the exchange of services, in the form of the movement of migrant contract workers from poorer economies…

  • Following Jesus in a World of Suffering and Violence

    I. Introduction Suffering is a fact of life for many people in our world. With advances in our time of global communication and information technology, countless stories of horror, pain and suffering are brought daily into our living rooms. Whenever we switch on the television or radio or read…

  • Following Jesus in Contexts of Power and Violence

    I. Followers of Jesus and Christendom. Any traveller knows that in order to get to a given destination, one must know one’s present location. To be ‘lost’ makes arrival at any desired destination a matter of highly implausible chance. I begin the task at hand, then, by locating North…
  • Reconciliation

    Following Jesus as his Community in the Broken World of Ethnic Identity

    I. Defining Ethnicity This paper arises from a deep conviction that the relationship between the community of the church and the ethnic community has been neglected in evangelical ecclesiology and missiology to the detriment of the church’s life and mission. It is a pity that there is no noun…
  • Workplace Ministry

    Following Jesus in the Globalized Marketplace

    I. God and the Marketplace Is God interested in the marketplace? Many Christians seem to operate on the everyday assumption that he is not. Or at least, that God is not interested in the marketplace for its own sake, as distinct from interested in it as a con-text for…

  • Following Jesus as the Truth: Postmodernity and Challenges of Relativism

    To proclaim Jesus of Nazareth as Lord and Saviour is to make an absolute and universal truth claim. When the church declares that he is the way to the truth about God and eternal life, she is making a statement about reality that is true for everyone and everywhere,…
  • Workplace Ministry

    Following Jesus as Unique Lord and Saviour in a Broken Pluralistic World

    I. Locating Our Discussion Truth claims lie at the heart of every religion. The uniqueness of each religion is framed primarily in terms of its respective truth claims. In their attempts to construct a Christian the-ology of religions, leading theologians like John Hick, Paul F. Knitter and J. S.…
  • Workplace Ministry

    Following Jesus in Our Broken World

    ‘The whole church taking the whole gospel to the whole world’. This is the resounding vision of the Lausanne movement. Emerging out of the epoch-making first Lausanne Congress of 1974, Lausanne has functioned as a forum for a wide range of individuals, agencies and networks all around the globe…
  • Jewish Evangelism

    Jewish Evangelism: A Call to the Church

    We are Not Ashamed of the Gospel Jewish evangelism means to share the gospel with Jewish people. Jesus did it and the apostles did it. The first communities of Jewish believers in Jerusalem and Galilee did it. The early church took shape through Paul’s evangelistic ministry to Jewish communities…
  • Business as Mission

    Business as Mission

    The context for the production of the Lausanne Occasional Papers The Lausanne Movement is an international movement committed to energising “the whole Church to take the whole gospel to the whole world.” With roots going back to the historical conferences in Edinburgh (1910) and Berlin (1966), the Lausanne Movement was born…
  • Science

    Bioethics: Obstacle or Opportunity for the Gospel?

    The context for the production of the Lausanne Occasional Papers The Lausanne Movement is an international movement committed to energising “the whole Church to take the whole gospel to the whole world.” With roots going back to the historical conferences in Edinburgh (1910) and Berlin (1966), the Lausanne Movement was…
  • Theological Education

    Effective Theological Education for World Evangelization

    The context for the production of the Lausanne Occasional Papers The Lausanne Movement is an international movement committed to energising “the whole Church to take the whole gospel to the whole world.” With roots going back to the historical conferences in Edinburgh (1910) and Berlin (1966), the Lausanne Movement was…
  • Ministry Fundraising

    Funding for Evangelism and Mission

    Introduction Lausanne 2004 … Forum for World Evangelization … addressed many of the key issues facing the church and its mission in this decade. Participants at the conference were invited to join one of over 30 “Issue Groups,” with each group assigned on a specific topic to present a…

  • Diasporas and International Students: The New People Next Door

    Introduction This publication is about the opportunities and challenges presented to Christians by the presence of people from different countries, who are now living near them.  It is written for vicars, pastors and other leaders of Christian congregations and ministries.  It describes the findings of about 50 people who…
  • Orality

    Making Disciples of Oral Learners

    EXECUTIVE SUMMARY From the time of the Gutenberg Bible, Christianity “has walked on literate feet” and has directly or indirectly required literacy of others.  However, 70% of all people in the world are oral communicators • those who can’t, don’t, or won’t learn through literate means.  Four billion in…
  • Men and Women

    Empowering Women and Men to Use Their Gifts Together in Advancing the Gospel

    I.  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS by Mimi Haddad, Convener More than at any other time in history, Christians around the globe today are rigorously examining what the Bible says regarding gender.  As a result, we observe a burgeoning of literature and great discussion at a global level.  The Lausanne 2004 Forum for…

  • The 12/25 Challenge Reaching the Youth Generation

    Preface As part of the Lausanne hosted Forum in Pattaya, Thailand, Sept 29-Oct 6th, 43 youth leaders from 23 countries in all continents gathered to share, pray, discuss and plan together ways of reaching the youth generation world wide with the good news of Jesus Christ.  It was our…

  • Reconciliation as the Mission of God

    INTRODUCTION by Chris Rice, Issue Group 22 Convenor This Lausanne Occasional Paper on “Reconciliation” is itself the product of a hopeful journey of Christian unity, shaped by a group with deep divides in our very midst.  The Paper is the outcome of intense work over 2003-2005 by 47 Christian…

  • The Impact on Global Mission of Religious Nationalism and 9/11 Realities

    Section A: Religious Nationalism 1. INTRODUCTION History is the story of nations.  History includes the stories of culture, language, politics and religion.  Down through history, religion has played a major role in shaping nations and society.  Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity Islam and other religions have had great impact on their…
  • Islam

    Understanding Muslims

    1.  INTRODUCTION: CHANGING CONTEXTS In 1978 the Glen Eyrie Report (Lausanne Occasional Paper No. 4) had probing questions to consider concerning missions to Muslims.  The health of missions to Muslims was not encouraging.  There was a sense that the Church had made many mistakes in taking the gospel to…
  • Media

    Media and Technology: The Rainbow, the Ark and the Cross

    Executive Summary The media was widely used in biblical history.  Noah used the Ark, Moses used the staff, Nehemiah used the city wall, Jesus used mud for healing the blind and God used the rainbow, the dove and the cross.  The media has been a symbolic means to signify…
  • Children and FamilyChildren at Risk

    Evangelization of Children

    FORWARD The main focus of this paper is the evangelization of children who have never heard the Good News of Jesus Christ.  But there is another significant group that is addressed: those children within our church communities who, while evangelised, remain un-impacted.    Definition: For the purposes of this…
  • Arts

    Redeeming the Arts: The Restoration of the Arts to God’s Creational Intention

    PROLOGUE For an established and respected mission organization to recognize the arts as strategic to the life and mission of the church, and to commission a paper about the arts in the context of faith and redemption, is both visionary and long overdue.  Apart from a small number of…
  • ContextualizationCulture and Society

    Religious and Non-Religious Spirituality in the Western World

    1. PREFACE In the Western world there is a growing sense of need to have some spiritual orientation in life.  However, those who pursue this quest for spirituality are uncomfortable with institutionalised religion.  They are also disturbed by explanations of life that are based on scientific reductionism, as well…
  • Research

    The Two Thirds World Church

    1. Introduction The following document describes a very important step in the process of better understanding the church in the majority world, in order to open opportunities to strengthen it through corporative effort among the various regions included. From the beginning of the process, the convenor tried to keep…
  • Church PlantingResearch

    The Realities of the Changing Expressions of the Church

    INTRODUCTION Over the past thirty years new varieties of church have emerged all over the world.This study is based on cases from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, and North America.Each of these churches considers themselves to be authentic expressions of the Body ofJesus Christ. Beyond that they might appear…
  • PrayerSpiritual Warfare

    Prayer in Evangelism

    Introduction The vision of Issue Group 13 on ‘Prayer in Evangelism’ was to ‘Embrace God’s agenda for World Evangelization through Prayer in Evangelism.’ Its purpose was to ‘Reawaken, encourage and equip the church to be involved in world evangelization through Prayer in Evangelism.’ The group planned to: Define the…
  • Leadership

    Future Leadership

    1. The Vision: A Global Movement for Developing Christ-Like Leaders Imagine a worldwide church where every leader is mentoring younger leaders,where leadership is both Christ-like and contextual,where leaders partner together across boundaries,where millions of future leaders are emerging—bringing the whole gospel to the whole world. Where would it lead?What…
  • Workplace Ministry

    Marketplace Ministry

    1. Introduction (a) Mind the Gap between the Church and Marketplace Ministry Many may have had the experience of stepping onto a train in London, Sydney or elsewhere, to the ritualistic incantation of the words ‘Mind the Gap’ warning you not to fall between the platform and train.2 This…
  • Tentmaking

    The Local Church in Mission

    Part A. The Local church and the Great Commission 1. Introduction This paper is the outcome of the work of thirty leaders from many parts of the world, deliberating together from across the globe for six months via email, followed by seven days of discussions in Pattaya, Thailand, September…
  • Collaboration

    Partnership and Collaboration

    Statement of intent of the Issue Group participants When Jesus was preparing to leave this earth, a key element of His prayer in the 17th Chapter of John dealt with "unity." This is familiar to all of us. And our inability to fully realize Jesus' prayer is too. This…
  • Cities

    Towards the Transformation of Our Cities/Regions

    1. Introduction Christianity was first and foremost an urban movement. However, for much of the history of the Church that has not always been true (Conn and Ortiz: 39-43). In June 1980, a fresh missiological movement with the large cities of the world was born in Pattaya, Thailand during…
  • Men and Women

    Non Traditional Families: Reaching families with the Good News

    This document is available as a PDF download. From the 2004 Forum for World Evangelization Pattaya, Thailand, 29 September - 5 October 2004 Download [402.27 kB]
  • Disability Concerns

    Ministry among People with Disabilities

    1. Introduction In South America, a woman with cerebral palsy has been lying in bed for 7 years in a back bedroom of a cinder-block home. In Africa, a young girl with Down syndrome is left on a river bank to perish because her parents believe she is a…
  • Least Reached Peoples

    Hidden and Forgotten People Including Those Who are Disabled

    1. Introduction: Why the “One-Fourth” World has little access to the Gospel In 1963, some said that the Age of Missions was over and that missionaries were only to go where local Christians invited them. Yet, 1970 figures showed that 44% of the world lived in unreached people groups.…
  • Children at RiskDisability ConcernsFreedom and JusticeIntegral MissionMental Health and Trauma

    “At Risk” People

    1. Introduction Jesus’ approach to people is counter-intuitive, even shocking. Instead of the King of all consorting with rulers and dignitaries, He preferred to spend his time with those that nobody else wanted to be with – let alone touch. As we, the ‘At Risk’ People Issue Group of…
  • Integral Mission

    Holistic Mission

    Introduction By Dewi Hughes This Lausanne Occasional Paper begins with a general introduction to holistic mission by René Padilla, which was written as a common foundation for the work of the Holistic Mission Issue Group at the Lausanne Forum held at Pattaya, Thailand in the autumn of 2004. Dr.…
  • Persecution and Religious Liberty

    The Persecuted Church

    Executive Summary Beginning with the Lausanne Covenant of 1974, the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization (LCWE) has consistently expressed a concern to pray and work for the freedom of those who are suffering for their faithfulness to Christ as well as to seek religious freedom for all people. Despite…
  • Culture and SocietyTruth and Pluralism

    The Uniqueness of Christ in a Postmodern World and the Challenge of World Religions

    1. Introduction1 “So are you saying there’s such a thing as absolute truth?” the student confronts the pastor after his talk. “I don’t believe there is absolute truth. I think you can believe whatever you want to believe. All religions are the same, so whatever is good for you is…

  • Globalization and the Gospel: Rethinking Mission in the Contemporary World

    1. Introduction Rethinking Gospel, Mission, Church and World The primary purpose of this paper1 is to identify the principal opportunities and challenges globalization presents the gospel of Jesus Christ. In the very composition of this paper, one certain but double-edged implication became clear: globalization presents Christians with a rare…
  • Spiritual Warfare

    Spiritual Conflict In Today’s Mission

    Preface This Lausanne Occasional Paper contains one person's perspective on the proceedings of the "Deliver Us From Evil" Consultation held in Nairobi, Kenya, in August 2000. Space limitations preclude this LOP from presenting all that took place at the consultation. The main intention here is to focus on the…
  • ContextualizationCulture and Society

    Modern, Postmodern and Christian

    PREFACE Three basic contexts of Christian mission have been identified in today's world. These are secularised peoples, resistant peoples and responsive peoples. (‘Living Word for a Dying World’ Consultation, Forum of Bible Agencies, De Bron, Netherlands, April 1994.) It is widely acknowledged that the first context - located in…
  • Media

    Radio in Mission

    I. INTRODUCTION Since the beginnings of the Church the great Commission has remained unchanged. Yet the environment in which the Church functions today is considerably more complex than in the days of the apostles. Not least is the enormous challenge we face of a burgeoning world population. Happily God…
  • Collaboration

    Cooperating in World Evangelization: A Handbook on Church/Para-Church Relationships

    Foreword Recent years have witnessed a rapid increase in the number of Christian organisations around the world. These specialised ministry groups have, for the most part, grown out of a genuine desire to help fulfil the task of world evangelization. But they have not always been seen in that…
  • Nominalism

    Christian Witness to Nominal Christians Among Protestants

    There could be hundreds of millions of nominal1 Christians among Protestants around the world. It is impossible to get a precise figure; and in this matter, we are aware of the danger of appearing proud or judgemental. As we considered our task, two things became clear. First, we are…
  • CitiesFreedom and JusticeIntegral Mission

    Christian Witness to the Urban Poor

    1. Description of the People A. Overview Worldwide In 20 years from now, the world's population will have increased by 2 billion people. In 20 years, 80% of the world's population will live in the Third World countries. In 20 years, 12 of the 15 largest cities will be…
  • Freedom and JusticeIntegral MissionProclamation Evangelism

    Evangelism and Social Responsibility: An Evangelical Commitment

    Foreword Evangelicals and evangelism have always been bracketed. So much so that the adjectives 'evangelical' and 'evangelistic' have often been identified in the popular mind. It is not at all surprising, therefore, that whenever evangelicals have become concerned about social issues, some eyebrows have been raised, and questions have…

  • An Evangelical Commitment to Simple Lifestyle

    Exposition and Commentary by Alan Nichols The Reverend Alan Nichols, Th. Schol., is Executive Director of the Mission of St. James and St. John, an Anglican family welfare agency in Melbourne, Australia, and secretary of the Social Responsibilities Commission of the Anglican Church of Australia. He is the author…
  • Nominalism

    Christian Witness to Nominal Christians among the Orthodox

    1. Introduction The history of the Orthodox churches goes back to the early centuries. Throughout many centuries of persecution, these churches bravely proclaimed the gospel and were very much alive. This history reflects the reality of the often-quoted axiom, "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the…
  • ContextualizationCulture and SocietyEPSAFrancophone Africa

    Christian Witness to People of African Traditional Religions

    Introduction This paper is divided into two major sections. The first deals with a general understanding of African Traditional Religion (ATR) and our attitude toward it. The second deals with a selected comparison between ATR and Christianity and suggests some strategies for the proclamation of the gospel in a…
  • CaribbeanContextualizationCulture and SocietyLatin America

    Christian Witness to Traditional Religionists of Latin America & Caribbean

    1. Introduction Much religious expression throughout Latin America could be defined as "traditional religion," including Catholicism and even Protestantism as popularly practiced by the masses. In this study, however, we are limiting the term to two situations: a) indigenous societies which retain elements of pre-Columbian religion, though these may…
  • ContextualizationCulture and SocietyEast AsiaOceaniaSouth AsiaSoutheast Asia

    Christian Witness to Traditional Religionists of Asia and Oceania

    Introduction In a time of rapid urbanization, the revitalization of Hinduism, Islam, and Buddhism, and the spread of secular materialism, it is easy to overlook the fact that there remain many millions of people on the fringes of the great religions in Asia and Oceania. These include tribes scattered…
  • Buddhism

    Christian Witness to Buddhists

    Introduction This report deals with the two basic schools of Buddhist thought: Theravada (Hinayana, the Southern Schools) and Mahayana (the Northern Schools). Representatives taking part in the study group came from Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Japan, and Korea, as well as from countries such as Brazil and the United…
  • Hinduism

    Christian Witness to Hindus

    Introduction We give thanks to God Almighty for his gracious act of salvation in Jesus Christ, which has made possible the entrance into the Kingdom of God for over 565 million Hindu people dispersed throughout the world, with the majority in the Indian sub-continent. We rejoice in the fact…
  • Islam

    Christian Witness to Muslims

    Introduction The seventy participants in our Consultation have come from twenty-six different countries—many of them countries in the Muslim world. We have realised how much we owe to the stimulus of previous conferences, such as those in Lausanne in 1974 and in Colorado Springs in 1978; and we have…

  • Christian Witness to Marxists

    Introduction Marxism today is not monolithic. First, there is the post-revolutionary Marxism of the Eastern European bloc of nations, including the Soviet Union. Secondly, there is the potentially revolutionary situation of the Third World of Africa, Asia, and Latin America. And, thirdly, there is the theoretical and parliamentary Marxism…
  • ResearchSpiritual Warfare

    Christian Witness to New Religious Movements

    Introduction New religious movements are springing up in the wake of worldwide religious ferment. In some cases, dying embers of old religions have suddenly burst into new flames. In other situations, religious "seed" transported, accidentally or intentionally, from one continent has taken root in another. Elsewhere traits from several…
  • Nominalism

    Christian Witness to Nominal Christians among Roman Catholics

    Introduction Among approximately one billion people in the world who are classified as "Christians" it is recognized that many still need to be evangelized. They are "nominal Christians" who have not committed themselves to Jesus Christ and do not acknowledge his claims on their lives. These nominal Christians are…
  • Cities

    Christian Witness to Large Cities

    Introduction Realistic strategies for world evangelization must inevitably confront the awesome urbanization of the world. The Consultation on World Evangelization, therefore, recognized that challenge in designating "Christian Witness to Large Cities" as one of its 17 mini-consultations. Our initial goal was to study 135 "world-class cities" (cities over one…
  • Culture and SocietyNominalism

    Christian Witness to Secularized People

    Introduction This document focuses primarily on strategy for reaching the secularized with the gospel. Initially, we shall attempt a broad definition of the concepts of "secularization" and "secular" in order to identify the target groups. Moreover, we have, in the work of the groups, found that not only the…
  • Jewish Evangelism

    Christian Witness to the Jewish People

    1. Why Go To Jews? Whereas the theme of COWE Thailand, 1980, is "How shall they hear?", we call attention to the fact that although application of this text is made to all people (Romans 10:12f.), the context of the passage is Paul's discussion of Israel. By Israel, we…
  • Diasporas and MigrationEast Asia

    Christian Witness to the Chinese People

    Introduction The Chinese constitute the largest single segment of the human race. Their unbroken history of more than five thousand years marks a culture that is durable and resilient. They have survived the ravages of countless internal struggles and foreign invasions and remain today a distinct people. And yet,…
  • Diasporas and MigrationFreedom and JusticeIntegral Mission

    Christian Witness to Refugees

    1. Introduction The plight of the refugees around the world has provoked our Consultation to reflect upon our responsibility, as Christians, to them. The following paper represents the fruit of that study and is intended to serve the church of Jesus Christ in the following ways: to inform the…
  • Islam

    The Glen Eyrie Report: Muslim Evangelization

    Introduction: The Background During mid-October 1978, a week-long consultation was convened at Glen Eyrie, Colorado, to explore the responsibilities of North American Christians toward the Muslim World. This was part of a continuum that began with the International Congress on World Evangelization at Lausanne 1974. At that time many…

  • An Exposition and Commentary by John Stott

    Preface A theologian who teaches in Asia has written about the Lausanne Covenant, "History may show this Covenant to be the most significant ecumenical confession on evangelism that the church has ever produced." It is a bold statement. As he says, only history will tell. In the meantime, while…
  • ContextualizationCulture and Society

    The Willowbank Report: Consultation on Gospel and Culture

    Introduction The process of communicating the gospel cannot be isolated from the human culture from which it comes, or from that in which it is to be proclaimed. This fact constituted one of the preoccupations of the Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization in July 1974. So the Lausanne Committee's…
  • Culture and Society

    The Pasadena Consultation: Homogeneous Unit Principle

    1. Introduction: The Setting A discussion of the "homogeneous unit principle" of Church Growth theory was held under the auspices of the Lausanne Theology and Education Group from May 31 to June 2, 1977, in Pasadena, California. Five faculty members of the Fuller Theological Seminary School of World Mission…

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