This significant 8-day gathering of evangelical world leaders in the Canadian city of Abbotsford, is now history. But you can still catch some of the impact by reading the following news releases which went out to world media during those days.
Audio & video tapes now available!
Information is also available concerning the Global Interface conference, a joint project of WEF Missions Commission and Evangelical Fellowship of Canada's Task Force on Global Mission, held prior to the General Assembly.
WORLD EVANGELICAL FELLOWSHIP GENERAL ASSEMBLY IMPACTS THE NATIONS
By the time the World Evangelical Fellowship (WEF) General Assembly concluded on May 15, in Abbotsford, near Vancouver, Canada, hundreds of people were expressing new hope for the positive impact their faith could have on society.
The Assembly drew well over 500 delegates and observers from 88 countries to focus on the strengthening of local churches. And they also learned a good deal about the continuing persecution of Christians in many of those countries.
WEF international director Jun Vencer, a Filipino attorney, told the Assembly that "more than ever, in a world of change and sin, evangelicals are called to strengthen their faith and move toward that blessed destiny when God's kingdom and will be done on earth as it is in heaven."
And chair of WEF's international council, Tokunboh Adeyemo of Nigeria, noting that the church grows strong in adversity, urged evangelicals to "preach good news to the poor, proclaim freedom to the captive, sight to the blind and release to the oppressed."
WEF traces its roots back 150 years, and, has functioned under its present structure since 1951. Today, it represents some 150 million of the world's Christians. The Abbotsford Assembly is the 10th such, the last previous one having occurred in Manila in 1992.
WEF exists to establish and help regional and national evangelical fellowships empower and mobilize local churches and organizations to disciple the nations for Christ.
The 10th General Assembly's theme was, indeed, that of "focusing the strength of local churches." Such speakers as Leith Anderson of Wooddale Church, a "mega" congregation in Minneapolis, and Myung Hyuk Kim, a Korean Presbyterian pastor involved in that nation's explosive church growth, helped sharpen that focus.
And the Sunday afternoon missions rally, which drew 6,000 people to a nearby stadium, heard international evangelist Luis Palau talk about the intense commitment required of evangelicals, to keep church growth across the world's cultures relevant and vibrant.
Countering much of the Assembly's optimism, was the continuing question of unprecedented persecution against Christians, especially in nations where fundamentalist Islam and the remaining vestiges of Marxism are influential. Johan Candelin of Finland, executive director of WEF's religious liberty commission, works to ensure that people from countries where restrictions prevail are able to communicate their concerns to the outside world.
Symbolic of that attention was the presentation of the WEF Religious Liberty Award to Brother Andrew, during the same rally at which Palau spoke. Brother Andrew's support for persecuted Christians across the globe was described as "legendary" by Religious Liberty Commission chair John Langlois.
Delegates also received a pointed reminder that women need to be released for ministry, both in the church and in society. That reminder came from Judy Mbugua of Kenya, whose own prodigious preaching and organizational efforts have led to highly effective evangelical programs to assist prostitutes and AIDs victims in several African and Latin American nations.
The 10th General Assembly marked the last time the group will deliberate before the end of the millenium. The next session is set for 2001 in a yet-unidentified city.