An important Lausanne conference will be hosted by Manila, Philippines, in May, with the focus on evangelism in Asia.
On May 22-26, the Sixth Asia Lausanne Conference on Evangelism (ALCOE VI) will be held at the Legend Villas, Mandaluyong City, MetroManila, Philippines. The theme will be "A New Heart for the Evangelization of Asia". A maximum of 150 participants are invited to the conference, with no more than seven individuals representing each country.
The objectives of ALCOE VI are to reawaken the passion for the evangelization of Asia, to identify effective strategies and to declare a recommitment to the Great Commission that has been entrusted to Christians. Asian Lausanne committee has spearheaded the planning of the conference.
ALCOE VI would be most targeting on church or para-church leader and that forty percent of attendees will be under the age of forty. These individual leaders being invited are influential figures of his or her national church for the evangelization of Asia. However, non-invitees are welcome as guest participants.
The last ALCOE was held in last August 2002 at Seoul, Korea. 125 church leaders from 20 Asia countries met with one another to discuss about missions in Asia. A final statement was adopted at the conference and now circulating among Asian churches stresses the need for a holistic approach to mission and evangelism.
"We will continue to proclaim the salvation and love of Christ through the Word, deeds of love and action for justice, and through the ‘signs and wonders’ of the Holy Spirit in healing and deliverance ministries," the statement says.
Evangelism in Asia has been a great challenge for world missions due to its diversity. Asia comprises of hundreds of ethnic groups with thousands of different languages. More significantly, four of the world's top religious strongholds - Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, and Islamism - reside in these areas.
Asian Christians often experience persecution in some countries where non-Christian faith dominated. There are conflicts between Christians and Islamic extremists in Indonesia and Malaysia. Even in India, Christians are being discriminated and are not able to enjoy religious freedom under strong influence of Hinduism.
The statement noted that Asia has less than 20 percent of the world’s land mass, but almost 60 percent of its population. Only 8 percent of the population knows Christ as Lord and Savior.
The Asian Lausanne committee celebrates its expansion as some 20 new members from 12 countries were confirmed as members. The current members of ALCOWE Executive Committee include: Dr. Jong Yun Lee as chair, Dr. Hwa Yung as vice chair, Rev. Makito Masaki as secretary, Lim K. Tham as treasurer, Dr. John Chong Nahm Cho, Dr. Ken Gnanakan and Rev. Stephen Mirpuri.
