WEA Welcomes Dr. Joel Hunter to the North American Council
The World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) welcomes Dr. Joel C. Hunter, senior pastor of Northland Church in Orlando, Fla. as the newest member to the Alliance’s North American Council.
“I am thrilled to see Dr. Hunter join our North American Council. As a senior pastor of one of the leading churches in the U.S. he brings great wisdom and expertise to our board,” Geoff Tunnicliffe, the WEA International Director said.
The North American Council consists of members from the WEA International Council, the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (EFC) and the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE). Dr. Hunter, an NAE board member, said he hopes to become a bridge between the NAE and WEA through his new commission.
“I am honored to be joining the North American Council of the World Evangelical Alliance,” said Dr. Hunter. “Part of my role is to be a liaison between the boards of the National Association of Evangelicals and the World Evangelical Alliance. I have such great respect for the leadership of [NAE president] Ted Haggard and of [WEA] Geoff Tunnicliffe, and can only imagine the potential of these two great organizations working more closely together.
“If I can work within the board to extend the WEA vision and influence, and can further the already crucial role of WEA in the world, I will count myself a very blessed man,” he added. “Perhaps I can add a pastor’s perspective to an already strong North American Council, but I will always remain in the role of a student.”
Tunnicliffe agreed that Dr. Hunter could bring a great voice of unity to the worldwide Christian body through his experiences.
“His passion for the local church as God’s instrument of transformation closely aligns with the vision of World Evangelical Alliance which envisions the church joined together in every community around the world effectively living out and proclaiming the good news of Jesus,” said Tunnicliffe. “These allied churches seek transformation, holiness and justice for individuals, families, communities, peoples and nations.”
Prior to leading the Northland Church in Orlando, Dr. Hunter served as a United Methodist pastor for 15 years in Indiana. Dr. Hunter received a Bachelor of Science degree in education from Ohio University, and a Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry in culture and personality from Christian Theological Seminary. In 2005, Belhaven College awarded him an honorary Doctor of Humanities.
Dr. Hunter is the founder of the Alliance for the Distributed Church and the Christian Citizen, and serves on the board for the World Evangelical Alliance, the National Association of Evangelicals, the Global Pastors’ Network, the Jobs Partnership of Florida, and the Christian Peacemaking Resources, Inc. He also sits on the advisory boards for Belhaven College, Man in the Mirror Ministries, Vision Orlando, Christian HELP and New Man magazine. He is also a visiting lecturer at the Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando.
He is the author of several books, “Prayer, Politics, and Power” by Tyndale House Publishers, and “The Journey to Spiritual Maturity”, a series of ten books, by Northland Foundation for the Arts and Education.
Dr. Hunter and his wife Becky have been married for 35 years, have three sons, Josh, Isaac, and Joel, and have four grandchildren.
World Evangelical Alliance (WEA)
World Evangelical Alliance is made up of 127 national evangelical alliances located in 7 regions and 104 associate member organizations. The vision of WEA is to extend the Kingdom of God by making disciples of all nations and by Christ-centered transformation within society. WEA exists to foster Christian unity, to provide an identity, voice and platform for the 420 million evangelical Christians worldwide.
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Contact Information:
Pauline Chang, Press Secretary
E-mail: pauline@worldevangelicalalliance.com
Tel: +[1] 202.223.7556
Sylvia Soon, Chief of Staff
E-mail: Sylvia@worldevangelicalalliance.com
Tel: +[1] 838-3922