(MENAFN- Swissinfo) Held in the middle of the Cold War, the Swiss congress on Lake Geneva gathered leaders from 150 countries and gave birth to a theology that challenged the dominance of the Global North. It redefined Christianity's role in Latin America, Africa and Asia. This content was published on December 4, 2025 - 09:00 9 minutes Vinicius Pereira

For a few days in the summer of 1974, Lausanne became the centre of the Christian world. It was there, on the shores of Lake Geneva, that the Lausanne Covenant was born – a document that sought to shape Protestant theology by uniting faith and social responsibility.

Half a century later, the legacy of that congress continues to divide the evangelical field between those who embrace its vision of faith as a commitment to social transformation, mainly led by countries in the Global South, and those who adhere to traditional evangelism, centred on individual conversion and mission expansion, led by the Global North.

“Perhaps the Lausanne Congress was the first indication that, within conservative Protestant circles, American domination, in both personnel and perspective, was beginning to be seriously challenged. The congress, however, only established the debate; it did not resolve it, and that discussion continues today,” says Brian Stanley, emeritus professor of World Christianity at the University of Edinburgh.

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