Delegates from 20 Countries Gather in Lviv for International Congress of Evangelical Christians

The heads of Pentecostal Churches around the world gathered at the World Forum of Evangelical Christians, which was opened on October 10 in Lviv. Ministers have come from Belarus, Russia, Germany, USA, Canada, Uzbekistan, Moldova, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and others were attended the opening day of the forum.

As Iryna Naumets told RISU, currently most delegates are from the countries of the former Soviet Union.

Organizers expect the event to gather many representatives from various fraternities of Evangelical Christians – both registered and unregistered unions. According to Mykhailo Panochko, a bishop of the CCEFU (Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith of Ukraine), it is the first time in the history of the Pentecostal Church that the International Congress of Christians of Evangelical Faith is being held in this part of the world at such a large scale.

“The purpose of this international forum: common prayer for the salvation of people and a series of workshops and lectures on the topic of evangelization,” said the bishop. “Speakers will share experiences how best to spread the Word of God to reach people's hearts in the world today, and we will talk about the special role of the Holy Spirit, through which the faithful of Christ can put God’s plans into practice.”

As noted Mykola Sinyuk, deputy bishop of the CCEFU, this congress is a fantastic opportunity to gather all the ministers from the 20 years since the collapse of the Soviet Union in a kind of Pentecostal family. “We have not seen each other for a long time,” he said. “We can meet here and remember the past, think about the development of Pentecostalism in the modern world.”

Marek Kaminski’s “The Essence and Importance of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit” and Viktor Pavlovsky’s “What Does Pentecost Mean?” seminars were the highlights of the opening day of the forum.

Marek Kaminski, a bishop from Poland, said that the world does not need Pentecostal culture, but the love and power of the Holy Spirit. According to him, the problem is not that there is a lot of sin in the world, but that in the churches there is not enough of the Holy Spirit.

George Davydiuk, a Christian evangelist and singer from the United States, often comes to Ukraine. He says that he likes Lviv the most because it is the heart of Ukraine. “The Pentecostal movement is growing around the world,” said the minister. “And it grows not because it is a denomination or doctrine, but because the Lord is doing His work.”

According to Ivanasa Shkulisa from Lithuania, the secretary of the International Assembly of the Church of Evangelical Faith, the theme of the congress is more educational than analytical. “Maybe at the next forum we will discuss problems of Pentecostalism, theological teaching, etc.,” said the minister. “At the First Congress we begin with the core of the Pentecostal movement – the spiritual gifts of the Holy Spirit.” According to the minister, in Lithuania there are about 5,000 evangelical churches, 80% of which are Pentecostal. Between Slavic and Western Pentecostals there is a difference in the form of service, but they are unified in spirit, said the minister.