I would like to extend a heartfelt congratulations to my good friend, Dr. Jacob Bloemberg, on his appointment as the new Catalyst for the Lausanne Movement Cities Network. He is a proud alum of Bakke Graduate University, and an experienced urban missiologist and pastor. He loves God, loves his own city, and he is a gifted facilitator who helps others to seek the welfare of their cities. I have enjoyed collaborating with Jacob in many ways, first as a student at BGU, and then through global advocacy work around the world with city movement networks and with the United Nations through the Urban Shalom Society. He is the right person for the job at the right time in human history when so many people are moving to cities to live, work, and play. Many blessings, Jacob, and your BGU family is with you as you step into this important global leadership role.

Dr. Bryan McCabe, BGU President

BGU Board of Regents member and BGU DTL 2018 graduate Jacob Bloemberg has been selected to serve as the Lausanne Movement Cities Network Catalyst. This is the same role where Ray Bakke served from the early 1980s to the early 2000s that shaped his viewpoint and influence. Tanya Van Horne, Global Director for Issue Networks, commented, “We're confident that Jacob is the right fit for this role as a practitioner, a servant leader, and someone with fluency in network leadership. I'm grateful for the ways that Jacob is proposing to move forward with this process.”

Jacob is a city movement leader in Hanoi, Vietnam, and the author of Love [Your City]: Five steps to Citywide Movements. The Lausanne Cities Network has a unique calling to network Christian city leaders from a wide range of approaches, organizations, and locations. Jacob will be constantly exploring how God is moving in many diverse ways in cities and invite the city leaders to meet each other and increase their vision for impacting their cities.

In 1982, when Ray Bakke was invited into the “Lausanne Urban Associates” role by the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization, he was a relatively unknown pastor in Chicago without global travel experience. He was joined by World Vision Research Director Bryant Myers and together they developed a unique city consultation method. Before they would agree to an invitation to go to a city, the city leaders had to demonstrate a whole city, whole gospel, whole church mindset, meaning they had gathered leaders from many expressions of the church and roles in various sectors in the city. Ray often served as a neutral convener bringing researches outside perspective. Preparing for the event, Ray would ask the question, “What would you show me to demonstrate Jesus was active in your city?” Over a two-week period, the leaders would travel throughout the city to areas of poverty and wealth, interacting with leaders in business, government, education, media, church, and NGO sectors, listening to their stories. BGU students and graduates will recognize this consultation approach in the city immersions that BGU conducts two to four times each year in the largest cities on four continents.

For Ray, the hope was that this much time and exposure to each other’s work would create ongoing new partnerships and strategies among city leaders that would last long after Ray left. Ray’s exposure to these cities allowed him to become a vital global spokesperson for the importance of cities in God’s work. By the time of Ray’s death in 2022, he had traveled to over 520 cities where he often conducted these two-week urban immersions.

This rich heritage is the foundation that Jacob will be building upon. Already established as a global cities networker among a variety of diverse movements, Jacob will be creating new forms of whole city, whole gospel, whole church listening events to build a new generation of collaboration and partnerships. Building upon the work of Ray Bakke, then Glenn Smith, and more recently Mac Peir, Jacob has a unique challenge and amazing opportunity to help us all see more of God’s work in global cities. Jacob has the prayers, network, and innovation of the BGU family behind him.