General Assembly Lectures

General Assembly 2012:’ Loving our neighbour in an individualist society’

 

We have 2 mornings with 2 lectures (25 minutes each) and 1 morning with optional lectures (Thursday) – parallel to members meeting. Time: 10.45 – 12.30. This includes time for questions and discussion in table groups.

Tuesday 9 Oct

1. Dr. Pablo Martinez. ‘Why followers of Jesus should be good neighbours’.
   1. Why every human needs (unconditional) love to flourish as a person (and in society).
   2. The reality is (many times): hate, resentment, and enmity, with all consequences of brokenness, isolation, and oppression. The meaning of Christian love (agape) in Europe’s history.
   3. Why Europe needs Christian love, agape (again) and how we can help one another in a Christ-like approach.
   4. How can our members (national EA’s and Europe wide organizations) play a decisive role in practising a Christ like approach?
2. Dr. Thomas Schirrmacher. ‘Our nearest neighbour’
   1. Why cooperation and unity is so necessary to be true witness of Christ in today’s Europe (& Central Asia)?
   2. How can we maintain our evangelical identity and seek cooperation with others? Is it Biblically acceptable to speak about ‘limits in cooperation’ (You can mention ‘Christian witness in a multi-religious society’)
   3. Is one of the reasons for failing to be ‘Good News People’ that we miss a theology of suffering in our EA & church ministry?
   4. Let us think through a couple of cases or stories (like mixed marriage; cooperation across denominational barriers, place of homosexuals in the church…)

Wednesday 10 October

3. Dr. Christine Schirrmacher. ‘Jesus, the great commandment, and our Muslim neighbour’.
   1. Rapidly changing demographic scene in many European countries. What does it say to us? What are main (theological, ethical, practical) challenges for Christian church and for EA?
   2. What are the biggest challenges that we face in Europe and Central Asia (related to Christian-Muslim relations) now and in the near future.
   3. Islam is a ‘post-Christian’ feature. How do we apply Jesus’ teaching in dealing with Muslims? And how our members (national EA’s and Europe wide organizations) can play a decisive role in it?
4. Victor Akko (Hamburg): ‘Multi ethnic & multicultural cooperation’
   1. ‘Why migrant churches & established churches need each other in Europe’?
   2. Why there is still a lack of cooperation and unity between the two?
   3. Do we need to encourage the establishment of multicultural and multiethnic churches in Europe to exercise good neighbourliness? What are best practices, good stories?
   4. How can we develop strategic (European) networks for exchange, sharing knowledge, experience, good practices?
   5. How can our members (national EA’s and Europe wide organizations) play a decisive role in improving situations nationally and locally?

Plenary Round Tables (evening sessions Tuesday, Thursday)

5. (Plenary) Round table with short stories on ‘Who is my neighbour?’ (Christine Schirrmacher, Pablo Martinez, Bert de Ruiter, international pastors):  ‘The Good Samaritan in a multi-ethnic society’:
   1. How Jesus’ story of the Good Samaritan finds applications in our (European and Central Asian) context? Mention best practices, ‘stories of hope’
   2. What challenges do we find in our own context to exercise ‘Christian neighbourliness’? (Explore situations of national EA’s/national churches in different parts of Europe, Turkey, Ukraine, Israel, Central Asia.)
   3. How our (national) movement can play a (more) significant role in exercising neighbourliness? What should be the role of EEA?

6. (Plenary, diverse contributors) Round table on the situation in the financial and economic crisis in Europe.
   1. How do we evaluate the actual situation?
   2. What consequences do we expect for the churches and for NEA’s and EEA?
   3. Good practices of offering (Christian or Biblical) perspectives on the crisis.
   4. How our movements can be of help when economic and social pressures aggravate?

Tracks (afternoons Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)

1. Dr. Sas Conradie (UK, Lausanne & WEA Generosity Network), Peter Briscoe, and other participants of the European Generosity Network:
   1. Why ‘generosity’ is one of the most important issues for Europe today.
   2. Exploring the vision for generosity and how our networks can encourage the ‘art of giving’ nationally and in Europe.
   3. Stories and best practices from other parts of the world.

2. Lee  Behar (MacLellan Foundation)
   1. Essential principles of fundraising!
   2. How we can improve FR plans?
   3. Frequently asked questions and answers
   4. Creating a grant plan

(Lee will be around to talk individually to ministry leaders to advise)

3. Thomas Schirrmacher (Bonn, Germany) with Pablo Martinez, Leonardo de Chirico (Italy to be asked): Exploring our Evangelical heritage!
   1. What kind of unity is EA and how can we make it as fruitful as possible?
   2. What binds us together and how do we understand and practice Evangelical unity?
   3. Follow up on cases mentioned in the lecture on ‘Our nearest neighbour’.
   4. Why Evangelicals need traditional churches?
   5. Should Evangelicals pray and work for renewal of traditional churches?
   6. What role does (E)EA play in ecumenical efforts?

4. Hans Henrik Lund, dr. Gert Noort and international pastors ‘Multi-ethnic & multi-cultural cooperation’. In dept exploration of the questions of the Wednesday lecture:
   1. Do we need to encourage the establishment of multicultural and multiethnic churches in Europe to exercise good neighbourliness? What are best practices, good stories?
   2. How can we develop strategic (European) networks for exchange, sharing knowledge, experience, good practices?
   3. How can our members (national EA’s and Europe wide organizations) play a decisive role in improving situations nationally and locally?

5. Several speakers. ‘Faith & the public square’. Encouraging the church and national EA’s to establish and maintain its prophetic role in the public arena.
   1. Why need the church to speak up in society? What is her prophetic role? Can we do so while we are a (small) minority?
   2. Can EA or an interdenominational movement fulfil a prophetic role in public arena.
   3. How can we be relevant, up to date, appealing in speaking in the public square (media, politics, TV and radio programs etc.) and at the same time: honest, humble without any concession to Biblical truth.
   4. What are examples of good practices?
   5. What are main relevant topics in different parts of Europe?

Round Table meetings/short presentations (afternoons Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)

1. Julia Doxat Purser & Christel Ngnambi
   1. Fundamental Freedoms Project and the launch of the Global Charter of Conscience.
   2. Biblical guidelines of the Charter and FAQ’s
   3. How NEA can play a major role in promoting the Charter in their society.

2. Jennifer Roemhildt-Tunehag & Julia Doxat Purser: State of affairs re EFN
   1. Results of Bulgaria conference on human trafficking
   2. Situation of EFN working groups
   3. Actual challenges and how national movements can be (more) involved.

3. Colin Piper, Harry Bryans, Jim Brown: EEA 21 Youth and Children’s ministry
   1. First results of the survey on youth leadership in Europe (with the help of One Hope) from Bulgaria and the Netherlands;
   2. Perspectives on developing strategic youth leaders in Europe; best practices (e.g. Innov8)
   3. A new approach in discipleship training
   4. A new network – ministry of EEA re Children’s work.

4. Martin de Jong (Netherlands, City to City Network), Raphael Anzenberger (France) & different EA-leaders:
   1. How can EA serve (better) as an encourager and equipper for missional churches in Europe?
   2. Best practices of church planting in Europe.
   3. The role of European church planting networks and of City to City Network (Tim Keller).

5. Different EA-leaders
   1. Encouraging models of EA. What are the best practices? Comparing German model with Irish model (etc.).
   2. How to introduce good self-evaluation in EA’s?

6. Victor Akko (Germany), international pastors & migrant church leaders with Hans Hendrik Lund (Denmark, KIT): ‘Multi-ethnic or mono-ethnic Church plants?’
   1. Exploring challenges and opportunities
   2. What are best practices in national contexts
   3. What is necessary for coming 5 – 10 years?

7. Eline de Graaf & Niek Tramper ‘Daniel project’ an Egyptian model elaborated!
   1. Introduction of the Daniel project
   2. Recruitment of younger leaders and the role of national EA’s
   3. Choice of nation and city for launch in 2013.

8. Derek Copley & different EA and church leaders from Central Asia: developments in Central Asia.
   1. Challenges & biggest needs in different countries in CA.
   2. Stories of hope
   3. Development of the region- is an Eurasian region a good option?
   4. What EEA and WEA can mean for CA?

9. Rob Brynjolfson (WEA Leadership Institute, Vancouver)
   1. Presentation of different programme’s and target groups
   2. How (affiliate) members can take more advantage of the LI and encourage national participants to join the lectures.

10. Richard Kane (UK, Marriage week)
    1. The role and impact of Marriage Week in Europe (and Central Asia?)
    2. Can (affiliate) members play a role in promoting the marriage week in their society?

11. ‘Europe’s most burning questions’ (younger and senior leaders, guided by Evi Rodemann)
    1. What are most burning questions for church and society in Europe & Central Asia today? Perspectives of hope! (E.g. questions around migration and asylum; (un)employment; new religiosity & Buddhism; apathy  etc.
    2. Creating a platform of mutual encouragement, in particular between young people/younger leaders and experienced EA leaders.