Doug Birdsall
Encyclopedia
Rev. Dr. S. Douglas Birdsall is the executive chairman of the Lausanne Movement
, a global network of Christians launched in 1974. He provided overall leadership for the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization in Cape Town
, South Africa
. Drawing over 4,000 participants from198 countries and from a wide variety of denominations, Cape Town 2010 was the most diverse gathering of Christians in history.
, an M.Div from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
, and ThM from Harvard University
. He is currently a research scholar at the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies
. Birdsall received on honorary doctorate from Belhaven University in 2010.
with LIFE Ministries in 1980. Five years later he became LIFE's director of staff for Japan, and in 1991 Birdsall was named president of the mission. Birdsall re-organized the agency to focus on developing Christian leaders, and led its expansion throughout Asia
and name change to Asian Access. Today Asian Access trains pastors and Christian leaders in more than a dozen Asian countries.
In 1999 Birdsall was appointed director of the J. Christy Wilson Center for World Mission at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Hamilton, Massachusetts
. In 2004 he was named executive chairman of the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization. In 2007 he stepped down from presidency of Asian Access to focus entirely on the Lausanne Movement. He continues to serve on the Asian Access board.
As chairman of the Lausanne Movement Birdsall writes and speaks frequently on matters pertaining to Christian mission.
, where his father was a United Brethren
pastor. In 1975 Birdsall married Jeanine Rowell. All three of their children were born in Japan. Their eldest, Stacia Birdsall Lee, is a graduate of Princeton
, Yale
, and Columbia
, and presently lives in Manhattan
where she works as a midwife. Their son, Judd, earned a B.A. and M.A. at Wheaton College, served at the U.S. State Department in Washington, DC, and is presently pursuing a PhD at the University of Cambridge
. The youngest child, Jessamin, graduated from Harvard University and now serves with Save the Children
in India
.
Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization
The Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization, abbreviated LCWE, is an Evangelical Christian movement that grew out of the 1974 International Congress on World Evangelization and promotes active worldwide evangelism. LCWE is also known as The Lausanne Movement...
, a global network of Christians launched in 1974. He provided overall leadership for the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. Drawing over 4,000 participants from198 countries and from a wide variety of denominations, Cape Town 2010 was the most diverse gathering of Christians in history.
Education
Birdsall received a B.A. from Wheaton CollegeWheaton College
Wheaton College may refer to:* Wheaton College , private Christian, coeducational, liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois* Wheaton College , private, coeducational, liberal arts college in Norton, Massachusetts...
, an M.Div from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
Gordon–Conwell Theological Seminary is an evangelical theological seminary whose main campus is based in South Hamilton, Massachusetts, with three other campuses in Boston, Charlotte, North Carolina and Jacksonville. The current president of Gordon-Conwell is Dennis Hollinger...
, and ThM from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. He is currently a research scholar at the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies
Oxford Centre for Mission Studies
The Oxford Centre for Mission Studies is in the former St Philip and St James Church on Woodstock Road, Oxford, England, opposite Leckford Road. It was established in 1983....
. Birdsall received on honorary doctorate from Belhaven University in 2010.
Career
Birdsall and his wife, Jeanie, began their career as missionaries in JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
with LIFE Ministries in 1980. Five years later he became LIFE's director of staff for Japan, and in 1991 Birdsall was named president of the mission. Birdsall re-organized the agency to focus on developing Christian leaders, and led its expansion throughout Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and name change to Asian Access. Today Asian Access trains pastors and Christian leaders in more than a dozen Asian countries.
In 1999 Birdsall was appointed director of the J. Christy Wilson Center for World Mission at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Hamilton, Massachusetts
Hamilton, Massachusetts
Hamilton is a town located in the eastern central portion of Essex County in eastern Massachusetts. It is primarily a suburban bedroom community, most commonly known for its equestrian estates...
. In 2004 he was named executive chairman of the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization. In 2007 he stepped down from presidency of Asian Access to focus entirely on the Lausanne Movement. He continues to serve on the Asian Access board.
As chairman of the Lausanne Movement Birdsall writes and speaks frequently on matters pertaining to Christian mission.
Family
Birdsall is a fifth generation Christian minister. He was raised in Peoria, IllinoisPeoria, Illinois
Peoria is the largest city on the Illinois River and the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, in the United States. It is named after the Peoria tribe. As of the 2010 census, the city was the seventh-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 115,007, and is the third-most populated...
, where his father was a United Brethren
United Brethren
United Brethren may refer to:*Apostolic United Brethren, a Mormon fundamentalist group headquartered in Bluffdale, Utah*Church of the United Brethren in Christ, an evangelical Christian denomination based in Huntington, Indiana...
pastor. In 1975 Birdsall married Jeanine Rowell. All three of their children were born in Japan. Their eldest, Stacia Birdsall Lee, is a graduate of Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, Yale
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, and Columbia
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, and presently lives in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
where she works as a midwife. Their son, Judd, earned a B.A. and M.A. at Wheaton College, served at the U.S. State Department in Washington, DC, and is presently pursuing a PhD at the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
. The youngest child, Jessamin, graduated from Harvard University and now serves with Save the Children
Save the Children
Save the Children is an internationally active non-governmental organization that enforces children's rights, provides relief and helps support children in developing countries...
in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.