A searchable, downloadable PDF of the original article appears below. John A. Vissers is professor of systematic Theology at Ontario theological Seminary, Toronto.
I was still a high school student when the first Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization was held in 1974 in Switzerland. Nevertheless, the impact of that meeting, primarily through the Lausanne Covenant, has been felt by a generation of younger evangelical Christian leaders. Convened under the leadership of Billy Graham, the first Lausanne heralded a new day of evangelical cooperation in world evangelization and a willingness to acknowledge the importance of social justice issues and Third World concerns in the Christian missionary enterprise. The Lausanne Covenant, whose primary architect was British Anglican theologian John Stott, provided a framework within which a new network of evangelical cooperation could emerge.
This past July “Lausanne II in Manila” brought together over 4300 evangelical Christian leaders from about 170 countries to assess what has happened over the last fifteen years and to chart a course for world evangelization as we approach the year 2000. Through plenary sessions, workshops, and informal networking, we were challenged by our sisters and brothers from around the world to “proclaim Christ until he comes” and to commit ourselves as the church of Jesus Christ “to take the whole gospel to the whole world.”
Where Lausanne I had its covenant, Lausanne II issued its manifesto. On the final night of “Lausanne II in Manila” participants endorsed the following 21-point manifesto as an expression of the key ideas which has emerged throughout the meetings. It was quite clear, however, that the Lausanne Covenant world remain the touchstone for the Lausanne movement. The chairperson of the Lausanne Committee, Canadian evangelist Leighton Ford noted that the document had been drafted with the intention of accompanying the 1974 covenant rather than replacing it. The first affirmation of the Manila Manifesto is a re-commitment to the Lausanne Covenant as the basis of cooperation in the Lausanne movement.
This past July “Lausanne II in Manila” brought together over 4300 evangelical Christian leaders from about 170 countries to assess what has happened over the last fifteen years and to chart a course for world evangelization as we approach the year 2000.
This is perhaps the best way to understand the meetings and the manifesto of “Lausanne II in Manila.” Lausanne I had been a kind of kairos event in which, for the first time, a worldwide gathering of evangelical Christian leaders covenanted to work together in the specific task of evangelization. Lausanne II was a world congress on evangelization made possible because of the first Lausanne meeting. The Lausanne Covenant set the agenda for the Lausanne movement. The Manila manifesto seeks to clarify and advance the agenda further.
The Manila Manifesto seeks to address the key issues of world evangelization today as they were identified at the Lausanne meetings. The affirmations, together with nine pages of appendices intended as elaborations of the affirmations, were commended for study and reflection. The document takes a strong stand on the authority of Scripture, the biblical gospel, the reality of sin, and the uniqueness of Christ and his saving work on the cross. It identifies the significance of the gospel for the poor and oppressed, it affirms the power and presence of the work of the Holy Spirit in evangelism, and it acknowledges the reality of principalities and powers of evil which wage war against the work of evangelization. It calls the whole church, clergy and lay, to take the gospel to the world, emphasizing the priority of the local church in this mission. It will provide the framework over the next few years within which evangelical leaders can continue to struggle for some understanding and agreement in the areas of the power of the Holy Spirit in world evangelization as that power and presence is being experienced in dramatic and miraculous ways in much of the two-thirds world. High on the agenda will remain the question of social action and justice as part of the task of evangelization.
The Manila Manifesto is important for evangelicals within the Presbyterian Church in Canada for at least two reasons. First, it identifies a world vision for evangelization with which we need to keep in touch as we work for renewal within our own denomination. The issues identified in this world context will assist us in setting forth our witness for renewal here in Canada.
Second, many Canadian Presbyterians will be involved in Vision 2000, the national task force on evangelization in Canada sponsored by the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, and most likely the continuing Canadian Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization. It may be that the Lausanne Covenant and the Manila Manifesto will assist evangelicals within the Presbyterian Church in Canada to stand together with evangelical Christians from diverse national, cultural, theological, and ecclesiastical backgrounds here in Canada and abroad as together we seek to take the whole gospel to the whole world.