Throughout the Majority World, there are many places without qualified preachers, authors and academics to speak to Christians in their current circumstances and in their context. Langham Scholars works to address this by equipping Christian leaders around the world to receive their PhDs in Bible and theology and then serve the church in their nations. Scholars have a great impact on the Majority World both during, and following their studies.
Influencing nations
After graduating with their PhDs, scholars do many things of great influence, including advising Governments and working with international NGOs.
15% of Scholars advise or work for international NGOs
Two times more Governments are advised by Scholars
Two times more Church unity initiatives are supported by Scholar
One such Scholar is Kenya’s Gladys Mwiti, who has great influence that she uses for God’s kingdom. After receiving her PhD with support from Langham, she returned to Nairobi to launch Oasis Africa Counseling Center in response to the suffering she observed in her community. Today she is a global authority on trauma counselling. Her work has put her on the front lines of tragedies like the Rwandan genocide and Nairobi’s Westgate mall attacks.
Speaking about the faith and resilience of the Kenyan people from her expertise on trauma, Gladys reflects, “I love the hope that is in Kenya and the rest of Africa. We seem to bounce back from horrible misfortunes…So it’s like there’s a lot of hope. We are hit left and right and centre, and we still continue to stand. And then a lot of encouragement one for another, and also corporate spirit, social support and so on. And then of course we are people of faith…We’ve chosen to be people of the cross. If Christ is all you have, then Christ becomes everything you need.”
Influence through scholars
Aldrin Penamora has helped build friendly Christian-Muslim relations through his role as an advisor to a key Consultant of the Chief Minister of the Bangsamoro Region in the Philippines.
Lascelles Newman influenced the government of Jamaica to implement a Restorative Justice program in the Ministry of Justice.
Various Langham Scholars including Danut Manastireanu, Mumo Kisau,
Joseph Galgalo, Ivan Satyavrata, and Femi Adeleye have served with
World Vision in the UK, Kenya, India, and Ghana.
Munther Isaac served with Musalaha, a faith-based organisation in Israel seeking peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
Training leaders
Scholars take their expertise and often use it to be a part of multiplying disciples in their nations. Whether it’s starting a centre for theological training, teaching students who go on to launch their own ministries or discipling Christians on the mission field, Langham Scholars are training Christian leaders in their contexts around the world.
80% equipped students who launched new ministries, churches, or schools
78% expanded indigenous theological education by adding degrees, courses, students, or accreditation
Juan José Barreda Toscano does just this as the Director of Biblica Virtual. This virtual Bible school he founded embodies what it means to be the hands and feet of Christ in Argentina and trains students to live practically and faithfully as leaders for Christ. One of these students is Ariel, a pastor who says he has learned that “following Jesus used to mean ‘go to church,’ but today following Jesus is to go outside and be with the people!”
Trainers and founders
Antonio Carlos Barro founded South American Theological Seminary in 1994, serving 5,000 students in Brazil.
Franklin Wang founded Zion Bible Institute in 2000, serving 2,000 students.
Kostake Milkov began The Balkan Institute for Faith and Culture in Macedonia.
Creating resources
Many Scholars go on to become authors of academic papers, articles and books, with many resources being the first of their kind and having a great impact on their contexts.
77% of scholars contribute to multi-author book projects
66% write their first recent and relevant theological book
Scholar Havilah Dharamraj completed a PhD at Durham University in 2006 and is now the Academic Dean of India’s leading evangelical theological institution for post-graduate study. Havilah worked on the highly significant South Asia Bible Commentary (SABC), which was supported by Langham Literature.
The commentary is the go-to reference most used by South Asian Christians and leaders to understand the Word of God within the Asian context. It was written by South Asians; with Havilah’s contribution and editorship being one of the most substantial contributions.
Published authors and writers
When God Uses Evil Spirits to Accomplish his Purposes (written in
French) by Rodrigo Franklin de Souza (France).
Why “I Feel Called” is Not Enough (2018) by Kei Hiramatsu (Japan).
O Enredo da Salvação: Presença Divina, Vocação Humana e Redenção Cósmica (2021– written in Portuguese) by Bernardo Cho (Brazil).
No Cheeks More to Turn (2019) and God of the Remnant (2021) by Sunday Bobai Agang (Nigeria).
Langham invests in PhD scholarships, regional consultations, and Scholar care because the new platform and global network accelerates the impact of spiritually mature leaders for 25 years.
Support the training of Langham Scholars by financially partnering with Langham Partnership Australia. Learn more