Missions expert to speak at Church Leaders Conference

Dr. Charles Van Engen, a theologian, author, former missionary and seminary professor, will speak on “Becoming a Missional Church” during two morning addresses and a question-and-answer session following lunch. The free conference will begin with registration and coffee from 8 to 9 a.m. and conclude by 1:30 p.m.

Van Engen is the Arthur F. Glasser Professor of Biblical Theology of Mission at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif., where he has taught in the School of Intercultural Studies since 1988. Before joining Fuller’s faculty, he was a missionary in Mexico, working primarily in theological education. A Hope College graduate, he holds a Master of Divinity degree from Fuller and earned a Ph.D. from the Free University of Amsterdam.

Van Engen also taught missiology at Western Theological Seminary in Michigan and served as president of the General Synod of the Reformed Church in America from 1998 to 1999. He is the founding president and CEO of Latin American Christian Ministries Inc. He is also the author, co-author or co-editor of numerous books on mission, including “God’s Missionary People: Rethinking the Purpose of the Local Church,” the Evangelical Dictionary of World Missions, and “Footprints of God: A Narrative Theology of Mission.”

Approximately 125 pastors and spouses representing different denominations are expected to attend Northwestern’s Church Leaders Conference. The reservation deadline is March 26. For more information or to register, contact Mary Beltman in Northwestern’s advancement office at 712-707-7106 or mbeltman@nwciowa.edu.