North American Conference on Muslim Evangelization

“The Glen Eyrie conference on Muslim evangelization [was sponsored] jointly by the North American Lausanne Committee and World Vision International. It was held in Colorado Springs in October 1978. Its report is not an official statement, although most of it was read to the conference, and participants’ suggestions were later incorporated into it. Some key evangelical leaders from the Middle East, Asia and Africa were present. Preceded by the circulation of forty foundation papers, the conference was a time of considerable ‘intellectual ferment’. It was also permeated throughout by a mood of penitence and humility. The wide diversity of cultures in the Islamic world was recognized. Although some biblical strategies for mission were considered, and a decisive break with the past was called for, no new strategies for Muslim evangelization were developed. The emphasis was rather on the need for integrity, transparency, courage, patience, on the willingness to suffer and on the centrality of love. The Samuel Zwemer Institute, later re-named the Zwemer Institute of Muslim Studies, came into being as a direct result of the Glen Eyrie consultation, with Dr. Don McCurry as its founding director.” (Stott, John, ed. Making Christ Known, Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans, 1997.)