Wednesday 26 Jul
Baptist Mission Australia is a founding member of the new Global Baptist Mission Network.
It was wonderful to be in Stavanger, Norway, earlier this month for the launch of the Global Baptist Mission Network [GBMN]. Baptist Mission Australia is one of 23 founding members of the network, an initiative of the Baptist World Alliance [BWA].
The GBMN will bring together mission agency leaders, Baptist Union/Convention mission leaders and Baptist missiologists from across the globe, fostering learning, encouragement, resourcing and the sparking of new collaborative initiatives and partnerships.
I’m thankful to our Communications Team for producing the GBMN launch video that was played in Stavanger. You can view the view video here. It’s my privilege to serve on the network’s steering committee with a small number of colleagues, chaired by Kang-San Tan, the General Director of BMS World Mission.
The GBMN launch was a part of the annual BWA Gathering, which year focused on theme of mission. The gathering led in to the European Baptist Federation 'SENT' Conference. It was a very encouraging week as Baptist leaders from across the globe came together to share around missional conversations in our rapidly changing world.
The founding member bodies of the Global Baptist Mission Network come from Africa, Asia, Europe, North and South America. As a sign of partnership, it was wonderful to stand alongside the General Secretary of the Baptist Church of Mizoram as our long-term ministry friends from India were also welcomed into the network.
The GBMN Vision is:
We see the Good News of Jesus being embodied across the globe – from everyone to everywhere.
The GBMN Purpose is:
We exist to enable and encourage collaboration in the ministry of proclamation and demonstration amongst Baptist mission agencies, enterprises, departments, professionals, and practitioners from across the globe, so as to impact the world for Christ, consistent with the BWA motto: Networking the Baptist Family to Impact the World for Christ.
The network has been established with two key collaborative initiatives:
1. A Global Mapping Project
The mapping project will develop an information-based website where GBMN members will be able to access information on Baptist conventions and mission agencies from across the world. The lack of such global data has been an information gap, which has hindered collaboration.
2. Many Places-Many Voices Project
In our rapidly changing world and with huge shifts in World Christianity, this collaborative initiative is aimed at sparking polycentric and polyvocal missiological thought and dialogue, which leads to the adoption of new missional directions and fosters, through the GBMN, new missional partnerships across our global movement. I am leading the Many Places-Many Voices project with our research project headed up by Rev Dr Darrell Jackson, the Interim Principal at Whitley College.
Please join me in praying for the new network, its founding bodies and growth over the next 12 months. Our prayer is that the network will be a catalyst for the Holy Spirit to spark new missional imagination and partnerships in our changing world.
I am encouraged that Baptist Mission Australia is at the table as a founding body. This affirms our commitment that we are better together, stronger in partnership with others.
Scott Pilgrim
Executive Director
PS:
By the way, our Exploring Mission course kicks off again on Monday 7 August. This great online community gathers from around the country on Zoom on Monday Nights from 8-9:30 p.m. We run a unit per term, which consists of five sessions. Our next unit is 'Spiritual Formation for Mission'. You are welcome to join us for a single unit or complete all of them.
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