Agape Europe is the umbrella organisation for 41 national ministries in Europe. We bring spiritual hope and help to people from all walks of life.
Our History
How it all began
The beginning
1965In 1965, a young man named Kalevi Lehtinen met a group visiting his home country of Finland. They used an outline to explain how to know God in a personal way and he translated the outline into Finnish.
A year later, he met Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, the organisation that sent the team. Bright and Lehtinen shared a passion to help people understand Jesus’ love and how to begin a personal relationship with God. Kalevi and his wife Eine Lehtinen became the first European staff of Campus Crusade for Christ (later Agape Europe), along with Bernhard and Anne Rebsch of Germany. Lehtinen was the ministry director in Europe for ten years.
Almost 60 years later, we’ve expanded to 41 countries with ministries focusing on students, athletes, families, artists, teachers, young professionals, leaders and more. We are currently lead by Javier Garcia and a team of people from all over Europe.
Statement of Belief
Agape Europe is committed to introducing people to Jesus Christ, encouraging them to follow Him and equipping them to be sent out as ambassadors of the Good News.
We long to see Europe, with its cities and centres of influence, changed by the Gospel.
We trust in God who is revealed as Father, Son and Holy Spirit – acting in response to His command to love God and one another deeply, expressing this love in words and actions to a hurting world.
We believe that Jesus came into the world so that through His life, death and resurrection, our relationship with God can be restored and our sin, with its guilt and shame, forgiven. This relationship is experienced by grace through faith.
We are followers of Jesus who is fully God and fully human, and aspire to obey His teaching and be filled with His Holy Spirit, living life in all its fullness – now and forever.
We have a great love for the Bible and view it as authoritative for our life and ministry.
We value all human beings, made in the image of God, and act with grace and compassion to everyone.
We want to take seriously our stewardship of God’s creation.
As part of the Body of Christ, we work with local churches and other organisations as we fulfil our common mission.
