The commission met in Izmir, Turkey, during the BWA’s Annual Gathering from July 6-12, 2014.
In Izmir, no formal papers were presented at any of our three sessions. We held a joint session with the Commission on Religious Liberty, led by Turkish pastor, Ertan Cevik, with two other Turkish pastors participating, on the topic,”‘Baptist Life in Turkey and the State of Religious Freedom.”
Our second session was a joint session with the Baptist Worship and Spirituality Commission. Joel Gregory of that Commission led a presentation on his recent book, entitled, “Global Baptist Preaching and its Implications for Baptist Identity.”
Our third session was a panel discussion by Middle Eastern leaders on the topic, “The History and Identity of Middle Eastern Baptists Since 1990.”
So ended this quinquennium of activity. We will gather again in Durban in July 2015, and then a new round of work of this Commission will commence.