by J. Herbert Kane
Man has a tendency to perpetuate institutions, whether or not they continue to serve their original purpose. As a result, agencies and institutions clamor for support long after they have outlived their usefulness.
Man has a tendency to perpetuate institutions, whether or not they continue to serve their original purpose. As a result, agencies and institutions clamor for support long after they have outlived their usefulness.
That is not true of the Association of Evangelical Professors of Missions. It was founded about a decade ago to bring together evangelical missiologists with common interests, problems, and goals. The problems still remain. Indeed, they are greater than ever. As for the interests, they also are still with us, though they have not received the attention they deserve.
In all fairness it must be said that, to this point, the AEPM has not been the success its founders had hoped for. The reasons are many. Among them are the lack of dynamic leadership, the high cost of travel, the time and place of meeting, the lack of an attractive agenda, a lack of communication, and the slim attendance at the annual meetings. The reports and papers presented at the meetings have often left something to be desired. The AEPM has not been a notable success. Indeed, on more than one occasion its life was threatened.
But all is not lost. The present leaders are aware of these facts and are determined to do all they can to revive the AEPM, so it will become a viable organization worthy of our support. And there is no doubt in my mind that the AEPM deserves to have every evangelical missiologist get behind it. There are three reasons for them to do so.
First, the evangelical wing of the church is making the greatest strides today, both in North America and in the Third World. Many "daughter" churches are larger than their "mother" churches. The weight of our numbers ought to ensure the success, to say nothing of the survival, of the AEPM.
Second, the evangelical wing of world missions is the most dynamic movement today. Almost every innovation in world missions in the last 50 years was initiated by evangelicals, new movements such as church growth, evangelism in depth, theological education by extension, and frontier missions. In radio, Trans World Radio, World Radio Missionary Fellowship, and Far East Broadcasting Company. In literature, Evangelical Literature Overseas, Moody Literature Ministries, World Literature Crusade, and Christian Literature Crusade. In student work, Campus Crusade for Christ, Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship, Navigators, and International Students, Inc. In youth work, Teen Missions, Youth with a Mission, and Operation Mobilization. In specialized work, Wycliffe Bible Translators, World Vision International, MAP International, Gospel Recordings, Mission Aviation Fellowship, World Home Bible League, Scripture Union, and others.
These evangelical agencies represent a vast worldwide missionary activity, unprecedented in the long history of missions. Surely there is room for one academic organization devoted to the understanding and evaluation of this dynamic wing of the evangelical world mission.
There is a third reason why the professors should support AEPM. The AEPM is the only academic association that includes scholars from both the Bible colleges and the theological seminaries of the U.S. and Canada. Evangelical missions in the 20th century have received the lion’s share of their candidates from the Bible colleges. Indeed, the Bible institutes, as they were called in the early days, were the first to introduce courses for students preparing to serve overseas.
Today many of the larger Bible colleges have departments of missions, with professors experienced in cross-cultural missionary work. The enrollment in the Bible colleges continues to rise year after year.
There is a definite need for the AEPM. Its interests and problems differ from those of other associations. Moreover, the AEPM can and will survive under the new leadership of David Hesselgrave and his AEPM colleagues.
But in order to function well, the AEPM must have the support of evangelical missiologists at both levels, college and seminary. The professors in the Bible colleges need the professors in the seminaries, and vice-versa. The former will keep the latter from becoming too theoretical, and the latter will keep the former from becoming too pragmatic. The cross-fertilization will be fruitful. The AEPM is the only association that brings the two groups together equally. This valuable asset must be preserved.
Copyright © 1984 Evangelism and Missions Information Service (EMIS). All rights reserved. Not to be reproduced or copied in any form without written permission from EMIS.
