INFEMIT Press Release – March 2011 PDF Imprimir Correo electrónico
The Now and Next: Together in Mission --INFEMIT Global Summit was held in Nairobi, Kenya, March 6-9, 2011. Thirty-six delegates from twenty-two countries, and ranging in age from 20 to 78, joined in order to:
  • Celebrate God’s faithfulness in the 35-year-long journey during which INFEMIT pioneers and community have been contributing to and shaping global mission discourse and praxis.
  • Discern the new landscape of global Christianity and define the role of INFEMIT in this context.
  • Celebrate the passing of the baton to the next generation of INFEMIT as a model of intergenerational leadership engagement.
  • Reinvigorate INFEMIT for the new task ahead: Mission with and for the Younger Generations.
  • Prepare together for their engagement in developing a theological foundation for Mission for and with Children and Youth through the Theological Consultation on Children (March 9-12), which INFEMIT co-sponsored.

    INFEMIT_participants

Through plenary sessions, inter-regional and inter-generational processing groups, prayer, and regional gatherings, participants joined in “seeing”, “discerning”, and “committing” to God’s transformative work in the current missiological landscape.
The intercultural fellowship and the intergenerational exchange were not only the high points of the Summit itself, they were also hopeful signs that the work of INFEMIT will continue into the future. INFEMIT pioneers—those who forged ahead with the vision of biblical, contextual, theological reflection for the sake of praxis in the 1970s and 80s—inspired the Summit participants with stories and memories. In attendance among the pioneers were Mary Bediako, David Gitari, Peter Kuzmic, Melba Maggay, Rene Padilla, Tito Paredes, Vinay Samuel, Ron Sider and Chris Sugden.

These pioneers also commended to God the leadership of the current Networking Team, affirming the next generation’s passionate willingness to take on the local and global challenges of the day with the same commitment to biblical, missiological praxis. Member of the present Networking Team are Joshua Banda, Bambang Budijanto, Corneliu Constantineanu, Ruth Padilla DeBorst, Wonsuk Ma, Las Newman, Ben Quarshie, Victor Rey Riquelme, Paul Joshua and Al Tizon.

Participants of the next generation (between the ages of 25-35) also graced the Summit, ensuring INFEMIT’s future even further. These included Janell Anema, Stephanie Andrade Vinueza, Paul Joshua, Kanthamanee Ladaphongphatthana, Jocabed Solano, Karina Vargas, Minenhle Khumalo, and David Nacho. In addition, institutions, organizations, fellowships and churches were represented by Theresa Lua, Jebaraj DG, Kennedy Dhanabalan, Hans Geni Arthanto, Barry Wade, Lucy Waweru, Andre Chitlando, Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu and Bill Prevette.

As participants return to their respective countries and regions they now do so bound to the commitments pledged before the entire Fellowship. These include intentional intergenerational dialogue on, and engagement in, integral mission, concrete research agendas, and continuing work on the integration of faith and public engagement. All these initiatives respond to the vision ratified by the delegates from the regions. INFEMIT seeks to grow as a Gospel-centered community of mission theologian-practitioners that serves the church in its transformational engagement, both locally and globally.