Mennonite Weekly Review

DELHI, India — As news of anti-Christian persecution in India spread, the International Missions Association canceled its annual Holy Spirit in Mission Conference and regional outreaches.

Instead, a small cluster of 11 IMA leaders met in Delhi Sept. 29-Oct. 5, hosted by the Fellowship of Christian Assemblies, one of the IMA’s 18 member organizations. The group spent the first day in fasting and prayer for the church in India as well as for needs and opportunities in their own lands.

P.C. Alexander, leader of the Fellowship of Christian Assemblies, dubbed the downsized group “Gideon’s army.”

“The government of India wants us to think we’re a tiny minority,” Alexander said. “But with the Lord we are a majority. We are ‘more than conquerors.’ The gospel unites us and breaks all barriers.”

Alexander said the violence had affected some of the 120 church planters who work with his organization in north India. New believers in their circles had been forced to burn their Bibles and reconvert to Hinduism. There were community efforts to close down their headquarters.

In spite of this, Alexander said they had decided to quietly move ahead with a two-week World Missions Institute, followed by the scaled-down IMA.

“A meeting like this — with internationals who pray and share about missions together — is very unusual for India,” he said.

Philip Okeyo, IMA member from the Kenya Mennonite Church, described how Kenyans hosted a World Missions Institute for leaders from seven African countries on the heels of a political crisis in Kenya early this year. The event sparked seven new churches.

IMA members from Latin American countries affected by hurricanes and political instability requested prayer. Javier Soler, a leader with Amor Viviente (Living Love) in Honduras, reported on plans for a yearlong mission training school among Anabaptist groups in Latin America.

Daru Sari reported from Indonesia. Amid ongoing Muslim-Christian tensions in the country, they continue to plant churches.

Tilahun Beyene, an EMM staff member who facilitates the work of the IMA, noted highlights this year: new mission training initiatives in Africa, Latin America and Asia; links with the Back to Jerusalem mission movement from China; fresh partnerships and revival in Europe; and new vision and equipping for work in the Muslim world.

The IMA began when a group met at Mennonite World Conference in Calcutta in 1997 with a vision for cross-cultural ministry.