The International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES) is an

interdenominational Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

association of 180

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

student movements worldwide, encouraging

evangelism Evangelism, or witnessing, is the act of sharing the Christian gospel, the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. It is typically done with the intention of converting others to Christianity. Evangelism can take several forms, such as persona ...

discipleship In Christianity, a disciple is a dedicated follower of Jesus. This term is found in the New Testament only in the Gospels and Acts. Originating in the ancient Near East, the concept of a disciple is an adherent of a teacher. Discipleship is n ...

and

mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

among students. The headquarters is in

Oxford, England Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

History

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, the

Oxford Inter-Collegiate Christian Union The Oxford Inter-Collegiate Christian Union, usually known as OICCU ( ), is the world's second oldest university Christian Union and is the University of Oxford's most prominent student Christian organisation. It was formed in 1879. Due to the ...

, founded in

1879 Events January * January 1 ** The Specie Resumption Act takes effect. The United States Note is valued the same as gold, for the first time since the American Civil War. ** Brahms' Violin Concerto is premiered in Leipzig with Joseph Joachim ...

, was a founding member of the

Student Christian Movement of Great Britain Student Christian Movement of Great Britain (or SCM) is a British religious charity led by students, past and present. The movement is an ecumenical and inclusive community that recognises unity in diversity and explores faith through worship, dis ...

(SCM) in

1892 In Samoa, this was the only leap year spanned to 367 days as July 4 repeated. This means that the International Date Line was drawn from the east of the country to go west. Events January * January 1 – Ellis Island begins processing imm ...

. Then in 1928, students left SCM due to differences over liberal positions and founded the Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship. This movement was established in Canada in 1928, Australia in 1930, and in the United States in 1941. In 1947, the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students was founded. Representatives from

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, the

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

came together in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

(USA) to strengthen evangelism, discipleship and world mission among students all over the world. It was present in 180 countries in 2023.

Programs

Group meetings are held each week to discuss the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

in universities. These groups are

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

, but not attached to any particular

confession A confession is a statement – made by a person or by a group of people – acknowledging some personal fact that the person (or the group) would ostensibly prefer to keep hidden. The term presumes that the speaker is providing information that ...

Organization

Representatives of all the member movements gather once every four years at the "World Assembly", where the General Committee meets to conduct official business of the fellowship.IFES
IFES WORLD ASSEMBLY
ifesworld.org, UK, retrieved 9 April 2020 IFES's General Secretaries have included: * Stacey Woods (1947–1972) *

Chua Wee Hian Chua Wee Hian (born 1939) is a Singaporean Evangelical, known for his longterm role as General Secretary of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students from 1972 to 1991. Biography Chua was educated at London Bible College and Fuller T ...

(1972–1991) * Lindsay Brown (1991–2007) * Daniel Bourdanné (2007–2019) * Jamil (acting, 2019–2020) * Tim Adams (2021–present)

Publishing houses

Christian literature distribution is also a feature of this ministry.

InterVarsity Press Founded in 1947, InterVarsity Press (IVP) is a Christian publisher located in Lisle, Illinois. IVP focuses on publishing Christian books and digital resources that discuss influential cultural moments, provide tools for mental growth through a ...

(USA),

Inter-Varsity Press Inter-Varsity Press (IVP) was previously the publishing wing of Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship. It supported the publishing or distribution of well over one million books each year to over 150 countries, including the translati ...

(UK), ''Presses Bibliques Africaines'' (Francophone Africa), Harmat (Hungary), Andamio (Spain), and ''Ediciones Certeza'' (Latin America) are examples of regional publishing houses.

Partnerships

Tyndale William Tyndale (; sometimes spelled ''Tynsdale'', ''Tindall'', ''Tindill'', ''Tyndall''; – October 1536) was an English Biblical scholar and linguist who became a leading figure in the Protestant Reformation in the years leading up to ...

is a Christian publishing house, publishing Christian fiction, nonfiction, children’s books amongst others. Tyndale has supported IFES since 1967, through Tyndale House Foundation and helps establish IFES-affiliated publishing programs in other countries including Pakistan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Brazil, Uganda, India and the United States. These programs enable students to write and publish their own brochures, books and curriculums, and to serve their local campuses.

References

Bibliography

* Douglas Johnson, ''A Brief History of the International Fellowship Of Evangelical Students'', Lausanne, Switzerland, IFES, 1964. * Pete Lowman, ''The Day of His Power'', Leicester, Inter-Varsity, 1988. * Alice Poynor, ''From the Campus to the World: Stories from the First Fifty Years of Student Foreign Missions Fellowship'', InterVarsity Press, 1986. * David M. Howard, ''Student Power in World Missions'', InterVarsity Press, 1979. (Brief history of North American students in mission beginning with the Haystack Movement through the SVM to the SFMF.) * C. Stacey Woods, ''The Growth of a Work of God'', InterVarsity Press, 1978. (Early history of InterVarsity/USA) * Keith & Gladys Hunt, ''For Christ and the University: The Story of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship of the U.S.A./ 1940-1990'', InterVarsity Press, 1991. * Lindsay Brown, ''Shining Like Stars - the Power of the Gospel in the World’s Universities'', Inter-Varsity Press, 2006. (Spanish translation: ''Brillando Como Estrellas'', Andamio. , * A. Donald Macleod, ''C. Stacey Woods and the Evangelical Rediscovery of the University'', Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2007. * Luke Cawley, "Campus Lights: Students Living and Speaking for Jesus Around the World", Edinburgh: Muddy Pearl, 2019.

External links

*
Preview of "''Brillando Como Estrellas''"
an introduction and history of IFES by Lindsay Brown (in Spanish) {{DEFAULTSORT:International Fellowship Of Evangelical Students International Fellowship of Evangelical Students Organisations based in Oxford Christian organizations established in 1947 Fellowships Christianity in Oxford