Factors Behind the Ukrainian Evangelical Missionary Surge from 1989 to 1999

“At the time, a surprised Western missionary likened the sudden search for God across the Soviet Union as a supernova. Everyone noticed the explosion of Christian witness and ministries, over five hundred mission agencies from the West were everywhere, but as Don Fairbairn correctly states in the foreword, their long-term results ‘were very mixed,’ too many ignorant foreign missionaries flashing through, then gone. John White was among the few who stayed, came to know the people. His focus is on the indigenous missionaries, the Ukrainian evangelicals.”


—Walter Sawatsky, Professor Emeritus of Church History and Mission, Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary





“As I began research into new mission movements in Central and Eastern Europe, I considered including the Ukrainian organization Light of the Gospel in my study, but I soon determined it was beyond my competence and resources. I am so glad I waited! John White has discovered far more and in greater depth than I ever could have. By embedding this one agency in a larger study of Ukrainian missions he offers a fine addition to the recent literature on emerging mission initiatives. I have learned much from his research and am glad to commend it to those seeking to better understand the mission situation in Ukraine.”


—Scott Klingsmith, Missiologist in Residence, Denver Seminary, author of Missions Beyond the Wall





“John White has performed an important service for both mission studies and global evangelical history. A trustworthy guide, he has succeeded in shaping scattered and fragmentary written and oral sources into a coherent, insightful narrative. The analysis is first rate!”


—Mary Raber, History Instructor, Odessa Theological Seminary