[ACNS, by Gavin Drake] Anglican provinces across East Asia are staging a cross-provincial youth forum to encourage potential new leaders and to “ignite the fire of revival” in the region. The forum, which begins on Wednesday, will bring together around 100 young adults, under the age of 30, from the Anglican provinces of Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Myanmar, the Philippines, South East Asia and Australia; and from the US-based Episcopal Church’s Diocese of Taiwan.

During the six-day forum, in Kuala Lumpur, the young people will explore intentional discipleship, mission and evangelism, gender equality, social concerns, ecology concerns, advocacy of human rights, crisis relief, socio-political-religious extremism, migrant issues, temptation and addiction; and the biblical interpretation of those issues.

The event has been organised by the Council of Churches of East Asia (CCEA), the pan-provincial regional assembly of Anglican churches in the region. The chairman of the CCEA, the Archbishop Ng Moon Hing, said that the topics chosen for the youth forum have been chosen to reflect “huge concerns” expressed by the CCEA Assembly about the “extreme pressure on the coming generations” from the challenges of socio-political-religious extremism, secularism, atheism, cyber addiction, hostile family upbringing, gangs, and moral laxity. The forum will address the issues in the context of the Anglican Communion’s Five Marks of Mission and intentional discipleship.

“The present day challenges are confusing to the young adults who have just completed their studies and coming into the work force,” Archbishop Moon Hing said. “Without careful and clear guidance, it is so easily to catch up with debts, addictions, hang-ups, corruptions, pseudo ideology of good governance, integrity and transparency, and these will inflict great cost and handicaps to them as they progress in life.

“The CCEA Assembly together with the provinces and dioceses are rushing against time to make an impact to some youth potential leaders with the hope that this can be duplicated in their home churches, parishes, dioceses and provinces.

“The CCEA churches are blessed with large number of young people in most of the provinces and dioceses, and hope to instill upon some the marks and values of the seniors and out-going leaders of the churches.

“We are hopeful that this youth forum will begin the spark to ignite the fire of revival among many young people in our churches and dioceses.”