The Alliance in Africa: A Source of Blessing

The Alliance Churches of West and Central Africa are ready to further embrace the Alliance DNA and move forward to be a source of blessing to the unreached people groups in their neighborhood and beyond.

The AWF Africa Regional Conference and Symposium of Theology served two purposes: strengthening the Alliance DNA and broadening the vision for the missionary work. The theme was “Be a Source of Blessing,” and Dr. Jura Yanagihara was the main speaker for the Regional Conference. Dr. Bernie Van de Walle delivered the keynote lectures of the Symposium of Theology.

Strengthening the Alliance DNA means each believer experiencing a deeper life in Christ and being moved to missions as a result of the transformation brought by the work of the Holy Spirit. This will bring unity to the church and will allow members to grow and mature as a church on mission. Our Alliance Churches in the region are strategically positioned to reach out to North Africa, where there is a large concentration of the less-reached people groups of the continent.

Being Alliance also has an impact on the way the church ministers. Many important questions arose during the discussion time. Among them were: How to teach and practice healing ministry in the African context, and how does social work relate to the mission of the church? Those questions need to be addressed based on a deep understanding of the ecclesiological and missiological background of the Alliance movement and the African cultural and spiritual environment.

Rev. Celestin Koffi presided over the Regional Conference that brought together representatives from Angola, Burkina Faso, Congo, Congo-DRC, Cote d’Ivoire, Gabon, Guinea, Liberia and Mali, from January 13th to 17th, in Bamako (Mali).

Author: Jura Yanagihara

Edited by: Dick Lawyer