Redesign a magazine and you could disorient some readers. But we hope that the redesigned Christianity Today you are holding will quickly give you a better sense of orientation. Look at the table of contents (page 3). You will see that news items, opinion pieces, and reviews are all tightly grouped, and each category is headed by a colored bar. Find that color—red, green, or yellow—running across the top of any page, and you’ll know what kind of material you’re about to read. If you’re in the middle of the magazine and see no color bar, you are reading one of ct’s classic feature articles.
Gathering opinions in one place means relocating some reader favorites: letters to the editor, the ct editorial, and our back-page columnists. If you are looking for those, just head for the green (page 53). We hope the result of our efforts will give readers a sense of consistency, orientation, and enjoyment.
Along with a new design, we are introducing a few new features. First, look at the opening page of Briefing, our redesigned news section (starting on page 7). There you’ll find a robust graphic portrayal of key data about a current issue. Next, look for the Village Green (page 56) in our opinion section. This feature gives three writers a platform to address a question that doesn’t lend itself to left-right polarization. Finally, check out our new back-page feature, Who’s Next? In each issue, Who’s Next? will introduce someone who is already making a serious contribution to God’s work, but who will have a far wider impact in the future.
There’s something else new in this issue. One year from now, the Lausanne Movement will gather in Cape Town, South Africa, to discuss the major global issues bearing on world evangelization. This month, we begin a series of essays designed to spark a conversation about the issues that those attending the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization will discuss.
In this issue, Christopher J. H. Wright, chair of the Lausanne Theology Working Group, explores the key themes that have characterized the Lausanne Movement from its beginnings. His article (page 30) and those that follow will be published outside North America by other periodicals in languages ranging from Norwegian to Kiswahili. (At this writing, about 50 publications have expressed interest.)
Because we hope for a “global conversation” about these issues, we have commissioned responses to each article from international leaders. Along with documentary videos and slideshows, their responses will appear on our website at ChristianityToday.com/go/conversation. Read the responses, then add your own comments. A generous grant from the Lausanne Movement has made these articles, responses, and videos possible. Let the Global Conversation begin!
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Related Elsewhere:
Inside CT was posted with Christianity Today‘s October cover package: “In the Beginning, Grace” and “Preaching as a Vertical Discipline.”
Articles mentioned in Inside CT will become available on the website during October. Click here to subscribe to the redesigned Christianity Today.
