The World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) has held an online celebration to mark its 180th anniversary. Hundreds of people from more than 22 countries attended, and the event was rebroadcast to accommodate different time zones.
Founded in London in 1846, the WEA now extends to more than 160 countries and territories. Through nine regional evangelical alliances spanning regions including Asia and Europe, it serves 650 million evangelicals worldwide. Commemorative gatherings were scheduled around the world on 27 September, designated “WEA Day”.
In his opening remarks, Secretary General Botrus Mansour spoke about the tension between the call to unity and evangelicals’ tendency to act according to their own convictions and conscience. He said this tension had intensified as the alliance embraced diverse cultures and strong national identities.
Nevertheless, he emphasised the importance of celebrating diversity while recognising the greater strength of what unites evangelicals, saying that “what unites us is much more, and we need one another”.
Following a video tracing the WEA’s history, Chris Wright, Director of International Ministries at Langham Partnership International, spoke about the organisation’s founder, John Stott, a leading British evangelical figure.
Wright described Stott as an important figure in the WEA’s history who strongly supported the organisation and was deeply involved in its theological work over many years.
Brian Stiller, a former president of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (EFC) who has served as the WEA’s global ambassador since 2011, reflected on the alliance’s growth from a gathering of Protestant leaders in one city into a global network of 164 national alliances representing more than 650 million Christians. He described it as the world’s largest and most geographically diverse evangelical network.
The celebration explored the WEA’s past, present and future, interspersed with prayer, Bible readings and worship videos. During a section focusing on the future, James Burden, the WEA’s Web and IT manager, introduced its new website.
Mansour also announced a new initiative, “Call 33”, explaining: “It’s a collaborative initiative answering God’s call together toward 2033.”
He identified four priorities at the heart of “Roadmap 2030”, a document drawn up several years ago: strengthening national alliances, advocacy, collaboration, and strong organisational structures.
Godfrey Yogarajah, chair of the WEA’s International Council, issued an anniversary message ahead of the celebration.
In it, Yogarajah recalled that the leaders who gathered in London at the organisation’s founding believed that “the gospel is bigger than any one church, any one tradition, any one nation”.
“They gathered not to compete, but to connect,” he said, adding that their purpose was to proclaim together that Jesus Christ is Lord rather than to divide.
The WEA shares its origins with what is now the UK’s Evangelical Alliance (EA). It was founded in 1846, when around 800 representatives from more than 50 denominations across various countries gathered in London.
After the Second World War, the EA, the US National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) and other bodies played a leading role in establishing the present international organisation in the Netherlands in 1951.
At that time, its English name was the World Evangelical Fellowship (WEF). It adopted its current name, the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), in 2001.
Since its founding, the organisation has promoted evangelical unity across denominational boundaries. Today, it also undertakes advocacy at the United Nations and elsewhere, including in defence of religious freedom.
