From the coordinator
2004 Forum for World Evangelization
The conference Forum 2004 will take place from 29 September to 5 October 2004 in Pattaya, Thailand, the very venue where LCJE was established in 1980 at a similar conference, also sponsored by The Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization (LCWE).
During its almost 25-year-long history LCJE’s leadership has always acknowledged its affinity with LCWE. One of the ways in which this is shown is the fact that for an individual or an agency to be a member of LCJE they must be in substantial agreement with the Lausanne Covenant. The fact that there will be an issue group focusing on Jewish evangelism at Forum 2004 will strengthen the connection between LCWE and LCJE.
Forum 2004 will be a working consultation, bringing leaders together to address some of the most vital issues facing evangelism today.
As mentioned in the LCJE Bulletin 74 (November 2003) Jewish evangelism is one of the 31 so-called issue groups at Forum 2004. But in some of the other issue groups there will also be individuals involved with LCJE and Jewish evangelism, e.g. the groups “Non-Traditional Families”, “Religious and Non-Religious Spirituality in the Postmodern World” and “Racial Reconciliation”.
The JEWS issue group consists of Ole Christian Kvarme, Theresa Newell, Richard Harvey, Susan Perlman, Bodil F. Skjøtt (as facilitator) and myself (as convener).
It is our hope that the report which will be drawn up will be a call to the church, a call which will be for the good of the Jewish people. Since many people today question both the legitimacy and the necessity of Jewish evangelism, we shall hardly avoid a theological argument. If we succeed in speaking clearly and firmly of the need to share the gospel with the Jewish people we will be doing world evangelism a theological favour. For then we all need the gospel.
For our efforts to succeed, we need your prayers.
Kai Kjær-Hansen
lcje.int@gmail.com