Asia Theological Association (ATA) is Asia’s most prominent evangelical accrediting agency, with 393.00 Bible colleges and seminaries from 33.00 nations across Asia, South Pacific, West Asia, and beyond. It often holds consultations to discuss topics relevant for Asian churches. In 2012, ATA had a consultation at the Malaysia Bible Seminary, focusing on the Scripture: Its Authority, Meaning, and Mission. One hundred six delegates came from twenty countries representing fifty theological institutions from the Middle East, Asia, the South Pacific, USA, England, and South Africa. At the end of the consultation, we wrote and approved a document with five articles of faith on the Scripture.
The first article, for example, said, “In our faith and love for the Word of God and in service to the Body of Christ to which we all belong, we hereby solemnly commit that we shall read, study and meditate upon the Word of God with delight and present it to others in understandable language.” The following four articles focused on the Scriptures’ sufficiency, how to incorporate that in theological education, how it should lead to Christ and Christ-like living, and the Holy Spirit’s enabling work.
My presentation will focus on the history of the Asia Theological Association, the context of the consultation, an expanded understanding of the five articles of faith regarding Scripture, and the importance of an Asian manifesto like this for Asian churches. My position as the Publications Secretary of the Asian Theological Association and an attendee at that consultation give me first-hand insight into this manifesto. I want to share it with the wider (Western) audience, such as the ETS delegates.