JOEL-NEWS-INTERNATIONAL-395 * 13 FEBRUARY 2002 * WWW.JOELNEWS.ORG
IN THIS EDITION:
JN395-1. Global figures and trends from 'Operation World'
JN395-2. Prayer and revival news from North America
JN395-3. Prayer and revival news from Europe
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QUOTE - "People say that they don't want to join a church. What they mean is, they don't want to join an institution. They all want to be part of a family." (Rick Warren)
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JN395-1. Global figures and trends from 'Operation World'
This edition contains a number of tables, which are best viewed with a fixed-width font such as Courier.
Global figures and trends
The current issue of the American magazine 'Mission Frontiers', published by Ralph Winter, contains a summary of figures and trends from the 2001 issue of Patrick Johnstone's book 'Operation World'. The following are some extracts from the study, which give a brief overview of the development of global Christianity:
1990-2000: 120 million growth
Evangelicals have grown in number from 300 million in 1990 to around 420 million in 2000. That is 4.7% growth per year - the fastest-growing major religious movement in the world. Even excluding biological growth, that means an average of 6 million new believers in Evangelical churches each year. The figure of 420 million includes around 17 million Evangelicals in the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches.
Daily conversions
There are a number of estimates of the number of 'daily conversions' ranging from 25,000 to 160,000 per day:
'Decisions' per day
| per year | integrated in %
25,000
9.125 m 60%
50,000
18.25 m 33%
80,000
29.2 m 20%
160,000
58.4 m 10% (approx.)
These statistics show that either the integration ability of existing churches is way too low for the number of new believers, and that new churches must be planted, or that we must work on new ways to integrate more people who 'make a decision for Christ'.
Growth of non-Western churches
Some 40% of the Evangelicals are no longer part of a Western denomination or organisation. These independent churches have tried to 'de-Westernize' Christianity, even though many of them were founded by the pioneering work of Western missionaries. 80% of all Evangelicals are the result of Protestant missionary work over the past 200 years.
The dark-skinned global village
According to the study, the least-reached nations in the world are Somalia with 67,314 inhabitants per Evangelical believer, Tunisia (28,192:1) and Yemen (14,374:1). In Kenya and the USA, the relationship is 2:1. In a 'global village' of 12 Evangelical Christians, two would be from North America, two Latin Americans, three Africans, three Asians, 1 European and one from Oceania. Europe brings up the rear with 2.4% Evangelicals.
Religious change in the 20th Century
(All figures in millions)
Religion 1900 % glob.pop. 2000
%
Christians 558.1 34.5 1,973
32.5
Moslems 200.1 12.4
1,279 21.1
Atheists 2.9 0.2
938 15.5
Hindus 203 12.5
820 13.5
Buddhists 127.2 7.8
400 6.6
Chinese
Religions 450 2.8
383 6.3
Ethnic
Religions 106.3 6.6
176 2.9
Others 21.4 1.3
95 1.6
Distribution of Evangelicals in 2000
(All figures in millions)
Continent Evangelical % glob.pop. % continent
Africa 116.1
27.6 14.8
N. America 93.8 22.3
30.3
Latin America 55 13.1
10.6
Europe 17.3
4.1 2.4
Asia 135
32.1 3.6
Pacific 4.8
1.1 15.2
Increase of non-Western missionaries
One of the most dramatic changes is in the sending of missionaries: the number of missionaries sent out by the 2,900 mission agencies which Johnstone examined grew from 76,120 in 1990 to 97,732 in 2000. Ten years ago, 91% of all missionaries were from Western nations; this figure has dropped to 79%. In 1990, South Korea had sent out 2,032 missionaries; by 2000, the number had grown to 10,646. Brazil sent out 1,080 missionaries in the last 10 years, the Philippines 678. The USA is still the main source of missionaries, sending out 46,000 - a number which has grown by 6,000 in the last decade.
Europe: mission field number one
The nations which saw the largest drop in missionary numbers between 1990 and 2000 are Zaire (-818), Brazil (-416), Taiwan (-318), Pakistan (-249) and the Philippines (-240); the nations seeing the greatest increase were Russia (+1,711), England (+660), India (+535), Ukraine (+524) and Japan (+446). On a continental level, Europe is currently experiencing the greatest increase in missionary numbers, having gained over 5,000 in the last 10 years.
Source: Mission Frontiers and Friday Fax
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JN395-2. Prayer and revival news from North America
BUSH ENCOURAGED BY PRAYER - On the National Prayer Breakfast of February 7, 2002, President George W. Bush thanked the 'countless Americans' who prayed for him and his family. "Since we met last year, millions of Americans have been led to prayer," Bush said. "They have prayed for comfort in time of grief; for understanding in a time of anger; for protection in a time of uncertainty. Many, including me, have been on bended knee. The prayers of this nation are a part of the good that has come from the evil of September the 11th, more good than we could have ever predicted." Bush is probably the most prayed for president in the history of America. Over one million Christians signed up to pray for him at http://www.presidentialprayerteam.org.
YOUTH AWAKENING AMONG AMISH - Young people in one of the most ultraconservative, religious areas of the United States are encountering God in a new way. A Bible study group started four years ago has become a weekly revival service attended by over 1,000 teenagers and young adults from the rural Amish areas. More than half of those who attend the TBS (Tuesday night Bible Study) held by the Petra Christian Fellowship in New Holland come from Mennonite or Brethren churches; many of them have experienced baptism in the Holy Spirit and spiritual gifts for the first time, according to a report by Charisma News Service.
EMERGING PREACHERS AVOID SEMINARY - Emerging preachers value learning through experience more than seminary training, The Washington Times reports. According to Brad Smith, president of the Leadership Network, a network of 'innovative church leaders', learning Hebrew and Greek doesn't fit real-life needs. "There is a new kind of clergy who are driven by the question our culture is asking: What is the usefulness of our church to society? The older clergy don't think that's a valid question. The newer clergy think it is." In addition to that Rick Joyner of Morningstar Ministries said conferences and master-novice relationships have displaced seminaries as the main means of training Christians. Joyner told The Washington Times that "the Lord has called His church to be a family, and it seems that the most effective way that everything of lasting significance in the church is accomplished is based on relationship." The newspaper further observes that "the trend seems to be anything on how to connect deeply to the living God. Book tables are full of advice on prayer, seeking God, contemplation, revival, spiritual passion, prophecy and 'bridal love' for God."
BARNA REPORTS ON 'REAL TEENS' - American researcher George Barna released a new book regarding teenagers, entitled 'Real Teens'. The book is based on several national studies Barna conducted among kids 13 to 18. He reports that from now through 2019 America's teens will be dominated by a new generation - the Mosaics. Almost half of all these teenagers are 'interactives' while fewer than one out of ten are 'evaluators'. When asked to describe their primary goals for their life, the top-ranked faith-related goal was to have peace with God, which ranked seventh. The current teen concept of spirituality is decidedly different than has traditionally been the case. More information: http://www.barna.org.
FINDING GOD ON THE WEB - More and more people are coming to Christ in the comfort of their own homes. According to Dick Innes of ACTS International, God is using their website www.911FindGod.org as a vehicle to reach many people, including those in countries closed to the Gospel. He reports over a thousand salvation responses every year.
'REVIVAL ISLAND' IN HAWAII - A Hawaiian island best known for its pristine beaches and tropical splendor is gaining a new reputation, as the center of a dynamic revival that is touching communities throughout the Pacific Rim. The move of God centers on King's Cathedral in Kahului, Maui, which has grown in leaps and bounds in recent years. The church has started 15 extension fellowships on Maui and other Hawaiian islands, French Polynesia, Alaska, Japan and northern California. The growth is founded on aggressive prayer and visitation, according to senior pastor James Marocco in a Charisma News Service report. "Many people considered this place a graveyard of preachers," he said. "But they didn't understand that when God creates an anchor church in a given locale, He changes the spiritual temperature. Now this is called revival island, and people are starting churches all over the place. There are moments when demonic power is anaesthetized, and if the church is able to operate then, great strides in the advancement of the kingdom can take place. Prayer parts the clouds so the light of God's blessing can shine... We try to sustain prayer ministry to keep the clouds parted." The church is also characterized by strong cell-group and visitation ministries. "Visitation makes the devil nervous because when the church gets out of its four walls, it disrupts the powers of darkness," Marocco said. "We visit people as a way of saying: 'We're here, and this is our island. It doesn't belong to the devil.'"
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JN395-3. Prayer and revival news from Europe
LONDON POLICE AND CHURCHES PRAY TOGETHER - The Evangelical Alliance in the UK held a major prayer event in September for churches and the Metropolitan Police in an attempt to reduce crime in the Capital. Entitled 'For London', up to 2,000 churchgoers and police officers worshipped and prayed together in order to make a difference in London's communities. Bob Pull, leader of the Christian Police Association, said: "Prayer can have an absolutely fundamental role in creating a peaceful community." Joel Edwards, General Director of the Evangelical Alliance, commented: "There is now mounting evidence from cities such as Nottingham that prayer can play a part in reducing levels of crime dramatically." To support the initiative the EA published a 10 point plan detailing what church members can do to assist the police tackle crime. This includes the 'Adopt a Cop' and 'Adopt a Police Station' strategies, together with encouraging more church members - especially from the ethnic minorities - to actually join the police.
UK: BOILER ROOMS - What began with the 24-7 prayer movement continues in so-called Boiler Rooms: starting with a week of round-the-clock prayer, the room remains permanently open for prayer. Like a permanently-heated boiler, the pressure builds... "The first Boiler Room is in Abbey Street in Reading, England (also known as the Millennium 3 Monastery)," writes Pete Greig, 24-7 founder and visionary. "Non-Christian dropouts and skaters hang around, strangers are drawn to the room, the local politicians are enthusiastic, pilgrims come from all over the world and stay to pray. The Boiler Room is full of Catholics, Quakers, Charismatics, Anglicans, all praying wildly. It is like the start of a new movement. We're dreaming of 50 new Boiler Rooms in the next 5 years..."
AWAKENING AMONG IRANIANS IN EUROPE - "Iranians seem to be experiencing a spiritual awakening," writes a couple who work among Iranians in Europe. "We're hearing of decisions for Jesus and baptisms all over. So many turned up to a recent seminar that the conference facilities were only just able to cope. In Germany alone, we know of 10 people working full-time with Iranians, and one Belgian church has recently baptised 19 Iranians, and 17 the week before. In Holland a group of Iranians are trained to go back to Iran to plant churches." (Source: FridayFax)
GERMANY'S MOST CHRISTIAN VILLAGE - When Wayne and Irene Negrini arrived in the German village of Wehingen, they opened their house, prayed with visitors and experienced healings and deliverances, took people into their home and started sharing their lives with each other. Today Wehingen has a population of 400 of which 150 are evangelical Christians - over 35% of the population.
SUPER-REGIONAL SERVICES NEW TREND IN SWITZERLAND - There have always been occasional regional or super-regional church services in Switzerland, but their number is growing, reports Friday Fax. Increasingly, Christians are organizing regular or occasional services in which the focus is on the region, and not a particular denomination or confession. In Switzerland some 2,300 attend the "Teenie Praise Night" in Bern; 1,200 the "Reithalle Gottesdienst Winterthur" (Winterthur Reithalle Service); 1,500 the "Heilungsabenden" (Healing Evenings) in Thun, and 750 the "Godi Frauenfeld" (Frauenfeld service). Other meetings with an attendance between 500 and 800 take place in Basel, Bulach, Gruningen and Frutigen. "We regularly see dozens of people giving their lives to Christ at these services," says pastor Florian Baertsch from Luzern, where city-wide services have been started, involving as many Christians as possible. Often, but not in every case, the initiative begins with young Christians.
HOPE 21 IN BUDAPEST - Hope for Europe (HfE) will convene over 1800 delegates from across Europe in Budapest, Hungary, to consider and plan how Christians can help shape Europe's future together. The aim of the congress, called HOPE.21, is to build faith and vision among European Christians for renewing and reforming twenty-first century Europe with the gospel, according to congress director Gordon Showell-Rogers, general secretary of the European Evangelical Alliance (EEA). The theme "Shaping Europe's Future Together" will draw an expected 1800 men and women from virtually every European country, to participate in some 25 simultaneous network consultations during the congress. These consultations are aimed to promote relationships and cooperation among workers in specific fields across the continent. Dates: April 27 - May 1, 2002 in Budapest, Hungary. More information: www.hfe.org/hope21.
SPAIN OPENS UP FOR GOSPEL - Successful evangelistic forays into two of Spain's best known institutions are being seen as evidence of a new spiritual openness in the country long known for religious intolerance, Charisma News Service reports. Pastors and missionaries believe that the spiritual tide has turned in the land where for centuries Catholicism and Islam established themselves by force. When the first healing campaign ever was held at a famous bullfighting ring in Madrid early 2001, evangelist Epi Liminana prayed for the sick at the heart of the sport that symbolizes Spanish culture and conquistador heritage. A number of healings were reported. Meanwhile, a 17-year-old Christian has been taking the gospel into one of the country's more modern leisure venues -- the discos often crowded with young vacationers who flock to Spain's popular beach resorts from all over Europe. Recording artist Kesia made the pop charts last year with a funky version of "Amazing Grace" -- the first time a Christian song had ever reached the secular charts. Since then she has been busy touring, especially discos, which is "where you have to go if you want to reach young people in Spain" according to mentor Curtis Clewitt. Many agree that there are new opportunities for the gospel. |