100 years ago: The modern ecumenical movement begins with the World Missionary Conference

From June 14-23, 1910 the World Missionary Conference took place in Edinburgh. At the time the conference was seen as the culmination of the 19th Century missionary movement, but it is now largely regarded as the beginning of the modern ecumenical movement. 1,200 delegates from major Protestant churches and missionary organizations, mainly from North America and western Europe, gathered in the Assembly Hall of the United Free Church of Scotland, as well as 100 extra delegates appointed by the executive committees.

Thorough research had been done in preparation for the conference: eight assigned commissions of twenty members each had conducted research on their assigned topic. Each commission produced a one-volume report, which as given to each delegate to be studied before heading to Scotland. The proceedings of the conference were compiled and later issued as the ninth volume.

Lord Balfour, a former British cabinet minister and a member of the Church of Scotland, was the president of the conference, while the main organizer was Joseph Oldham, a leader in the British Student Christian Movement. The individual with the most significant involvement with the conference, however, was John R. Mott, who served as the conference chairman. Mr. Mott (1865-1955) was an American Methodist layman and leader of both the Student Volunteer Movement for Foreign Missions and the World Student Christian Federation. He founded the WSCF in 1895 and served as its General Secretary from 1895-1920 and as Chairman from 1920-1928. The WSCF is a federation of national Student Christian Movements (SCMs) that represent the ecumenical movement on university campuses. Those who wish to see the extent of WSCF's liberalism should check their website and its various links. The Wikipedia entry on WSCF contains a partial list of famous members; discerning and knowledgeable Christians will recognize at least some of the names.

If ye were of the world, the world would love his own... John 15:19a

Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets. Luke 6:26

Mr. Mott was a co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946 for his work in establishing and strengthening international Protestant Christian organizations that worked to promote peace. He was closely involved with the creation of the World Council of Churches in 1948, and the WCC made him a lifetime honourary president. He was famous for the slogan (Mott's motto?) "the evangelization of the world in this generation," which strikes a familiar note to those of us who were involved with Campus Crusade for Christ in the 1980s. I occasionally heard Mr. Mott mentioned as the leader of the Student Volunteer Movement, but CCC never mentioned Mr. Mott's fellowship with the WCC or his relationships with worldly leaders such as the Rockefellers. For details on Mr. Mott's shady connections, read the article about him at Seek God.

A vote was carried at the conference to establish a Continuation Committee. The committee's work, under the leadership of Mr. Mott was interrupted by World War I, but served as the basis for the establishment of the International Missionary Council in 1921.

One of those in attendance at the World Missionary Conference was Charles Clayton Morrison, editor of the Christian Century. His firsthand account of the conference may be found here.