Exploring the World Christian Encyclopedia and World Religions in 2022
A special issue of the International Bulletin of Mission Research (IBMR) recently featured the third edition of the World Christian Encyclopedia (WCE-3), co-authored by Gordon-Conwell professors Dr. Todd Johnson and Dr. Gina Zurlo. Published in 2019, WCE-3 is the culmination of five years of research by Dr. Johnson and Dr. Zurlo in their leadership as co-directors of Gordon-Conwell’s Center for the Study of Global Christianity (CSGC). WCE-3 provides detailed quantitative information on Christianity from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. Because of the support of hundreds of missionaries, historians, theologians, social scientists, and pastors, the encyclopedia offers “statistics with a human face,” as described by Dr. David B. Barrett who authored the first edition.
The January 2022 issue of the IBMR explores the range of content in the new World Christian Encyclopedia and contains reflections on WCE-3 from scholars of different disciplinary perspectives from around the world.
Within the journal, Dr. Johnson, Dr. Zurlo, and Peter Crossing, primary Data Analyst for the CSGC, also co-authored “World Christianity and Religions 2022: A Complicated Relationship.” Reflecting on how the world’s population is becoming more religiously diverse, they suggest ways in which Christians can engage with members of other religions. The article includes excerpts of their most cited research each year, the annual statistics on the status of global Christianity, which is also available in its entirety here, below.