Cecil Robeck on Fuller’s Ecumenical Vision

Cecil M. Robeck jr. is Professor of Church History and Ecumenics and Director of the David J. DuPlessis Center for Christian Spirituality at Fuller Theological Seminary.

We have traveled together by plane from Cape Town to Amsterdam, after the last Lausanne Congress, where he was invited by Doug Birdsall to be in charge of the Catholic and Orthodox delegates. We had lots of fun on the way, especially as I had with me my colleague Fr. Mihai Pavel, who has a deep sense of humour.

Together with Doug and Cecil, we are trying to strengthen and nurture theological dialogue with Catholics and the Orthodox post Lausanne III. I will keep you posted on the evolution on this front. Recently, Cecil sent us a very interesting overview of the relations between Evangelicals and especially the Catholics (unfortunately, this is an internal document and I cannot make it known on a larger basis without proper permission). In this message, he mentioned a recent text of his that was published in Theology. News & Notes, on Fuller’s ecumenical vision. Here is part of it, for your interest:

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René Padilla Reflects on Lausanne III Congress

René Padilla is one of the veterans of the Lausanne Movement and one of the architects of the holistic turn in Evangelical theology.

His presence, with Samuel Escobar, another Lausanne veteran, on the scene of the congress in Cape Town, reflecting on Lausanne from 1974 to 2010 was one of the highlights of the event (you may watch HERE a video recording of this conversation).

René has published recently some reflections on the latest Lausanne event. here are a few excerpts:

Doug Birdsall, Executive Chair of the Lausanne Movement, is probably right in claiming that Cape Town 2010 was “the most globally representative assembly of evangelicals in history.” Beyond doubt, this accomplishment was to a large extent the result of his long-stretched efforts to make it happen.

…

One of the most positive aspects of the program was the inductive study of the passage for the day in table groups of six, which provided the members of each group an opportunity to learn from and to pray for one another, to develop new friendships, and to build partnerships for the future. 

Teeming Diversity – Tim Stafford on Lausanne III

The Third Lausanne Congress demonstrated that global evangelicalism has been transformed.

It began with crisis, and it ended in worship.

The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization, held October 17-25 in Cape Town, South Africa, was the first gathering of evangelical Christians to attempt to accurately represent the reality of today’s church leadership. Though the West had a strong voice, its numbers were much smaller than the enthusiastic, unintimidated participants from Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Consequently, the congress had an atmosphere of continual discovery, as participants looked around and saw the teeming diversity of global faith. Ugandan Anglican Archbishop Henry Orombi told a news conference, “It is a joy to see heaven begin here.”

Cape Town 2010 – Reflections from Doug Birdsall, Lausanne Movement Executive Chair

Greetings from Boston.  Jeanie and I are now home after being with family, friends and Lausanne colleagues in South Africa, Sri Lanka and India following Cape Town 2010 (CT2010).  We are home in time to celebrate my favorite American holiday, Thanksgiving.  I have much to be thankful for this year, especially in light of the recently completed CT2010.

It is far too soon to fully assess the significance of CT2010.  Indeed only the Lord truly knows how CT2010 will impact his church and the world in the years to come.  As I reflect on the Congress, read blogs, emails and articles from participants, I am in awe of God’s blessings on this gathering.  Please join me in praising the Lord for the following:

Lausanne III – Closing ceremony 2 – sermon of Lindsay Brown

This was one of the best messages during the congress.

The sermon may also be watched and downloaded HERE on the Lausanne III web site.

You may watch the full closing celebration by following the link HERE.

Lausanne III – Closing ceremony 1 – worship

You may also watch the first part of the closing celebration HERE on the Lausanne III web site.

Lausanne III – Testimony of North Korean Girl

You may also watch this testimony HERE on the Lausanne III website.

The Cape Town Commitment – Part 1

PREAMBLE

As members of the worldwide church of Jesus Christ, we joyfully affirm our commitment to the living God and his saving purposes through the Lord Jesus Christ. For his sake we renew our commitment to the vision and goals of the Lausanne Movement.

Videos from Lausanne III Congress

The Lausanne 2010 Congress web site is continuously loading more and more video  recordings from this important event.

Check HERE the list of videos and watch whatever is of interest to you.

Please also pray for the future of this movement.

May God be glorified through whatever will follow!

Third Lausanne Congress closes with ringing call to action

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA 25 October 2010

The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization closed today in Cape Town with a ringing call to the Church. This Congress, perhaps the widest and most diverse gathering of Christians ever held in the history of the Church, drew 4,000 selected participants from 198 nations. Organizers extended its reach into over 650 GlobaLink sites in 91 countries and drew 100,000 unique visits to its web site from 185 countries during the week of the Congress.

Andy Crouch on Lausanne Congress

I follow the writings of Andy Crouch with great interest. His writings are insightful and edgy. This time he writes about Lausanne II, the congress to which I have just been a witness, but I had no time to write on because of a host of professional responsibilities following this event. Since I agree to a large extent with what Andy writes here, I invite you to evaluate it for yourselves.

’m in Cape Town for the third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization. Four thousand delegates are here in what is being described as the most representative gathering of Christian leaders in history. But one group is notably underrepresented: prominent figures associated with evangelical Christianity in the United States, especially pastors of large churches. Rather than name names, let me put it this way: pick a celebrated American evangelical church leader, especially one who founded his current congregation, and I will give you 5-1 odds that he (and most of the missing are “he”s) is not here, at least not as part of the official US delegation.

God’s Global Urban Mission – Solutions | The Lausanne Global Conversation

God’s Global Urban Mission – Solutions | The Lausanne Global Conversation.

This is a really prophetic message, be it controversial. A must watch.

You may find below the text of the presentation in PDF form. The author is open to receive feed back.

Raineer Chu – Global Trends

Integrity – Confronting Idols | The Lausanne Global Conversation

Integrity – Confronting Idols | The Lausanne Global Conversation.

Closing of Lausanne III Congress

Now, when I start writing, it is almost 1am here in Cape Town and I am exhausted after a very full day and not enough sleep last night (blame it on the blog :-). That is why this post will be very short.

I have started the day with about an hour in the congress hall, but I have left there around 9.30am, because I had decided to worship that morning in an Anglican church, together with my friend Fr. Tofana. I have so rare occasions to worship in a church of my own denominations, that I did not want to loose such an opportunity. Besides. St George Cathedral is a famous place for the fight against apartheid.

Turning Points in Church History – Part 2

Documentary presented at the opening of Lausanne III Congress in Cape Town, South Africa.

Turning Points in Church History – Part 1

Documentary presented at the opening of Lausanne III Congress in Cape Town, South Africa.

Third Day of Lausanne III Congress – UPDATE

Contrary to my hopes yesterday, I was not able to go to the congress in the morning to listen to Piper. I had to stay in the hotel room and edit a text on post-communism for a World Vision publication.

I arrived at the reunion site at lunch and what I heard from various friends about Piper’s presentation conformed my suspicion. His approach was, they said, judgmental and aggressive, in clear polemic with Ruth’s presentation the day before. Although his duty was to do an exposition of Ephesians 3, Piper did not abstain from correcting Ruth on some things in Ephesians 2. He also commented ungraciously about the applause she received, in spite of the fact that she tried to dissuade people from clapping at the end.

Statement of Lament for Evangelicals and the Legacy of Apartheid

This Lausanne Congress 2010 in Cape Town gathered in a land which 16 years ago stood in the grip of one of the greatest evils of our time—apartheid.

We regret that this was not named or confessed at the opening of the Congress.

As participants at the Congress we gathered for dialogue sessions and biblical reflection on peacemaking and reconciliation with careful listening to the stories of Christian involvement and resistance to apartheid. We were also encouraged by stories of hope for the future taking place through local reconciliation ministry.

Free day today at Lausanne III Congress

Today we did not have meetings at the Lausanne Congress.  Participants used this opportunity for tourism or for visiting different projects.

I was involved in a pilgrimage that explored the South African experience of reconciliation after apartheid. We had a very moving experience and I have taken lots of notes. I am, however, way too tired to transcribe them tonight and I plan, anyway, to put them here some time soon into Romanian, because of their relevance for the Romanian post-communist context. Until then, HERE is a summary of this event, from the blog of Chris Rice.

Talking about the devil, I have also found out that the cyber attack against the congress IT system came from China. No surprise with that. There is only one kind of good communists. You know which.

First full day of Lausanne III Congress

I will be brief today, as it is almost 1am, after a very full day.

The first (nice) surprise of the day was the Orthodox ikon on the screen at the devotional time in the morning.

Opening of Lausanne III Congress in Cape Town

The Third Congress of the Lausanne Movement started this afternoon in Cape Town. The opening festivity was quite moving and the African music was great. There are here over 4,000 participants from 198 countries and over 1,100 staff and volunteers serving at the event.

Cape Town 2010: The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization

Delegatia romana pentru Lausanne III (foto V. Croitor)

CAPE TOWN 2010: THE THIRD LAUSANNE CONGRESS ON WORLD EVANGELIZATION | Răscumpărarea memoriei.

Un dialog (nu chiar atit de) imaginar despre Rascumpararea memoriei – 5

Dragul meu prieten,

Nu există nici o îndoială că toate cultele religioase, creştine sau nu, au fost infiltrate şi folosite, în grade diferite, de către regimul comunist; surprinzător, chiar şi cele aflate în ilegalitate, cum ar fi greco-catoliciişi Oastea Domnului.
Da, Dorin Dobrincu a vorbit extrem de elogios despre carte, fara a ocoli şi anumite slabiciuni ale acesteia, şi planuieşte a scrie o recenzie academică a acesteia. Vasilica tocmai a publicat pe blogul lui intervenţia lui Dorin de la lansarea de carte. Alţi doi universitari tineri, Ioan Stanomir şi Mihail Neamtu, ambii ortodocşi, au vorbit foarte pozitiv despre carte. Acelaşi lucru l-a făcut şi domnul Cristian Vasile, un specialist recunoscut în istoria comunismului.