Evangelism

Evangelism or evangelization ( more common in the Catholic area ) denotes the spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It can be operated both in the sense of non- proselytizing or other creditors, to the conversion (conversion) and baptism of those addressed aims, and in the sense of catechesis for revival or reawakening of faith already baptized Christians.

In a narrower understanding of the term is used in Protestant and evangelical circles the term evangelism often as a term for more or less elaborate proclamation events aimed primarily at church distanced and non-Christians. The shapes of these crusades, whose history dates back to the 18th century are complex; they range from about evangelism crusades weeks in the Church rooms and tent crusades up to the so-called evangelistic road use and for personal evangelism.

Theological basis of evangelism (hereinafter and in the narrow sense) is the so -called Great Commission of Jesus, the disciples are asked to go forth into all the world and proclaim the Good News.

Etymology

The term derives from the New Testament (Greek: εὐαγγέλιον ) ago gospel and means people with the gospel of Jesus Christ, and make known to invite them to a personal faith decision. Preacher that occur in evangelism, called evangelists.

History

As a precursor to the modern movement of evangelization apply inter alia Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-1165), Peter Waldo (1179-1218), Berthold of Regensburg ( † 1272 ), John Wycliffe ( 1320-1384 ) and the Brethren of the Common Life. Above all, the Reformation and Counter-Reformation produced a large number of preachers who worked outside their own church community evangelistic manner, in part, initiated great spiritual movements. Representing the many preachers here were the Lutheran Johannes Brenz (1499-1570), called the " traveling evangelist " Kaspar Schwenkfeld (1489-1561) and the Baptist Hubmeier Balthasar ( 1485-1528 ).

Eighteenth century

An important date for the emergence of evangelism movement in the Anglo -Saxon is 17 February 1739th George Whitefield, who is regarded as one of the first evangelists in the modern sense, preached on that day in the open air in Kingswood near Bristol, before church distanced mine workers. The success of this crusade led him, as itinerant evangelist ( traveling evangelist ) first by Britain and later by Scotland, Ireland and the North American states to pull. Here he met with Jonathan Edwards and the 1734 revival broken under its effectiveness and motivated many followers of this movement for evangelistic ministry. In close connection with him worked John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement. As in the American pioneer era (1792-1825), hundreds of thousands began the great westward migration, they were followed by Baptist and Methodist lay evangelist from their evangelistic work in 1800 a renewed revival movement was born.

Nine Century Style

Significant impetus to the development of evangelism in Germany was already the early pietism. The actual birth of modern evangelism is, however, dated here at the beginning of the 19th century. During this time, met Pietism and the Anglo-Saxon revival movement. From this encounter numerous evangelists and evangelistic initiatives emerged, its aftermath are partly up to the present make out inside. Starting points of Protestant evangelism in German-speaking were initially confined geographically to the so-called revival areas. In the following period originated in these regions facilities and works whose effect went far beyond the borders of revival areas beyond and exceeded the national limit. These works include the Evangelical Society of Germany (1848 ) and founded in 1897, German Protestant Association for Community Care and evangelism. Must be mentioned in this respect the creation of evangelists schools - for example, in Chrischona in Basel ( 1841 ) and the Johanneum in Wuppertal ( 1886 ). The launched in the 19th century professional missions also had an evangelistic purpose. Your addressees were uprooted by industrialization and church distanced professionals.

Support of evangelism were also the time in German-speaking young free churches at that time. They included, among other Baptists, Methodists and Adventists.

Among the most important German-speaking evangelists that time belonged to the non-denominational preacher acting Elias Schrenk ( 1831-1913 ). His models, mostly non-theologians, however, coming from England and America. Among them were Charles Grandison Finney, the lawyer and the shoe salesman Dwight Lyman Moody, who reached as travel Evangelist millions of people in his 40 - year tenure.

Twentieth Century

In the mid-20th century, especially Billy Graham were, Oral Roberts and William Branham known through mass crusades. While Billy Graham worked primarily with non- charismatic churches and congregations, Roberts and Branham were leaders of the healing revivals of the Pentecostal movement.

In Germany led the German tent mission since the Second World War evangelistic major events through. Likewise, founded in 1954, Janz Team. Today known as preacher on major events in Germany Reinhard Bonnke, Andreas Hübner, Wilhelm Pahl and Ulrich Parzany whose focus is mainly in Africa. Evangelist Bonnke brings to evangelistic meetings in Africa together an extraordinary number of visitors, in Nigeria ( West Africa) has exceeded the one million mark for the first time.

In Germany since 1993 regularly interdenominational mass crusades under the name ProChrist take place, whose central event is transmitted to now over 1,300 venues in 18 countries each via satellite.

The success of the evangelistic work in the Anglo-Saxon and the German Pietist and free-church space also led to a large extent shaped by Orthodoxy and Enlightenment regional churches to rethink. Already in the revolutionary year of 1848 and a year later in a memorandum Johann Hinrich Wichern had demanded: "It must be again preached the gospel from the rooftops, it must be offered and praised freely on the markets and streets [ ... ] as it were at the gates the parent church! " Implemented within the Protestant churches these claims, however, were. Only after the First World War through the establishment of the Ecclesiastical parish mission

From the mid- 20th century, the American evangelist and Baptist pastor Billy Graham led by Great Gospel, in which the use of modern technology, millions of people have been reached. Of great importance for the further development of evangelism in the German-speaking countries were the United evangelism of Billy Graham in Berlin in 1963 and transferred from the Dortmund Westfalenhalle out in many places multi-day evangelistic meeting Euro '70. The Berlin evangelism became the impetus for the convening of the World Congress on Evangelism, which took place from October 26 to November 4, 1966 in West Berlin and attended by over 1200 people from over 100 nations. It is considered a first world conference on evangelism. The Euro '70 with their succession events became the nucleus of ProChrist. This interdenominational evangelistic major event will be held regularly since 1993, and is transmitted from a central location in the meantime 1300 venues in 18 countries. As the successor to Billy Graham here evangelized the country church pastor Ulrich Parzany.

It can be observed that in the last decades of the 20th century, more and more evangelism events take place around the world. So it was in January 2005 in India, a three-day event, in which more than 7 million people came together in three events.

Support and practice of evangelistic events

Evangelizing churches, communities and so-called free plants rely inter alia on the so-called Great Commission of Jesus Christ. Typical core of every campaign event is the sermon, which ends in a call to conversion.

Crusades find occasionally held in churches and community spaces, deliberately non-church venues are more often employed, such as town halls, sports stadiums and large tents (see tent evangelism ). A special form is television evangelism in which a centrally -produced program will be transmitted via satellite to community centers and youth centers. These include mass evangelism as ProChrist and Jesus House.

Another form of evangelistic practice is the street evangelism, should be taught beliefs in the public space by short sermons, music, and creative cabaret (for example, street theater, mime, etc.).

Besides the aforementioned evangelistic events, especially in the area of ​​the so-called evangelical or personal evangelism friendship evangelism has a special meaning. Specific courses and literature to motivate and guide to bring the Christian faith in everyday encounters and relationship networks for language to do so.