Month: November 2011

WEA Discusses Future of Missions

/ Steinar Opheim

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Tentmaking and Business as Mission are among the subjects being discussed when World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) this week arranges a global consultation to discuss what future will look like in the worldwide mission work.

As you read this issue of TMBriefs approximately 230 invited leaders from more than 50 nations are gathered at Schönblick Christian Centre an hour drive outside Stuttgart in Germany to focus on future strategies for reaching out with the gospel. “God’s disturbing mission” is the headline for the conference. According to Bertil Ekström who is heading WEA’s Mission Commission there are several reasons to be disturbed and to rethink how we best can proceed to bring the Gospel further on.

– The environment in which we are doing mission has been dramatically changed. God is doing new things that we need to focus and reflect on. Compared to the number of Christians in the country, Mongolia is now sending out more missionaries than any other nation. Who would have expected that just a few years ago? The church planting movements in India and Africa have also given us new thoughts on how we can send out workers in God’s kingdom and start new, Christian fellowships, says Ekström, who has been leading WEA’s Mission Commission the past five years.

The Swedish-born former missionary to Latin America says many young people are reacting negatively to the shallow plans that often are made on how the world can be reached with the Gospel.

– Without sacrificing their commitment to Jesus and His mission, many have rejected simplified statements of truth, reductionist descriptions of the world and three-step, short-cut strategies “to finish the job”.  We are motivated by the need to think together with leading practitioners around the globe about how and why God is disturbing our traditional ways of doing mission, states a document made by WEA’s Mission Commission before the conference in Germany started.

Tentmaking and Business as Mission are among the subjects being discussed at the conference. The GO Equipped TENTmaking course developed by Global Opportunities and Tent, has for several years been run annually in many African nations. The tentmaking model is a good fit for the African churches and enables them to take part in the global mission work although they may not be rich on material resources. Also in Latin America and in Asia the tentmaking model is widely used.

The Paradise that is Closed to Jesus

/ Steinar Opheim

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The Maldives is regarded as a paradise for divers, surfers and other sun-loving tourists. But it is strongly prohibited to proclaim Jesus in this minor, Asian, island nation. Tentmakers who don’t mind working under tough, spiritual conditions are encouraged to hand in applications for the many job openings in the country.

Medical personnel in several categories, accountants, business executives, sales people and a great variety of workers in the tourism industry are some of the job openings currently available in the Maldives. The salary is decent. A medical doctor can easily make more than $3,500 per month. That is not bad in a country where the living costs are relatively low.

Below you’ll find links to websites where you can search for jobs in the Maldives. In most jobs you are expected to work 40 hours per week. In your spare time you can enjoy the many astonishing spots on the islands, do some diving or just relax on one of the many beaches that are enjoyable 12 months a year. You can of course also book a night or two in one of the many hotels that have “Paradise” as a part of their name and promise little less than “heavenly experiences” to their visitors.

The spiritual environment will however be challenging.  Except Saudi Arabia, the Maldives is the only nation in the world claiming that 100 per cent of its citizens are Muslims. All of them belong to the Sunni branch of Islam. In fact it is prohibited for the 300.000 people carrying a Maldivian passport to have any other faith.

Recently new laws were enacted which limit the religious freedom even more both for the citizens and for expats working in the Maldives. According to a report made by the Religious Liberty Committee in World Evangelical Alliance the new law bans preaching of any other religion than Sunni Islam.

“It is illegal in the Maldives to propagate any faith other than Islam or to engage in any effort to convert anyone to any religion other than Islam. It is also illegal to display in public any symbols or slogans belonging to any religion other than Islam, or creating interest in such articles,” states the law that is named “The Protection of Religious Unity Act”.

The law also prohibits translation of non-Muslim religious books to the local language. Another clause says, “It is illegal to possess, distribute or publicize programs, writings, artworks and advertisements on religions other than Islam.” Maldivians who violate the new law may be imprisoned for up to five years. Foreigners “shall be handed over to the Department of Immigration and Emigration for deportation.”

– The new law will harm the Maldives’ international reputation and tourism industry, and hurt the country’s youth in particular. There have been instances of suicides by, and persecution of, Maldivians who have gone public about their disbelief in Islam. Crime and violence are also rising. The stifling of essential human freedoms is incompatible with both true Islam and liberal democracy, concludes WEA’s Religious Liberty Commission.