Samuel Escobar

Juan Samuel Escobar Aguirre (28 November 1934 – 29 April 2025) was a Peruvian evangelical theologian, missiologist, educator, and author, known for his influential role in shaping Latin American evangelical theology and global evangelical engagement with social justice. A founding leader of the Latin American Theological Fellowship, Escobar was widely recognized as a key architect of contextual theology in Latin America and a vocal advocate for integrating evangelical faith with sociopolitical responsibility.

Escobar was born in 28 November 1934 in Arequipa, Peru. Raised in the Evangelical Church of Peru, he experienced the marginalization of evangelicals in a predominantly Catholic society, which shaped his early awareness of religious and political dynamics.

In 1951, he began his studies of Arts and Education at the National University of San Marcos in Lima. That year, he was baptized by M. David Oates, a Southern Baptist missionary from the United States. While there, he encountered Marxist and existentialist thought but underwent a personal evangelical revival. In 1957, Escobar graduated with a degree in pedagogy. Nine years later, Escobar moved to Spain and earned his doctorate cum laude at the Complutense University of Madrid.

Escobar joined the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES) in 1959, with which he worked in Peru, Argentina, Brazil, and Spain. From 1972 to 1975, he served as General Director of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship in Canada. He returned to Latin America to continue his work with IFES and strengthen indigenous theological networks.

In 1970, following the first Congreso Latinoamericano de Evangelización (CLADE I) in Bogotá, Escobar co-founded the Fraternidad Teológica Latinoamericana (FTL), serving as its president until 1984. The FTL promoted a contextual, biblically grounded Latin American theology that emphasized social justice and local leadership.

From 1985 to 2005, Escobar was Thornley B. Wood Professor of Missiology at Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary (now Palmer Theological Seminary) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. He was also adjunct professor at Eastern University and later a consultant on theological education for the American Baptist Churches USA.

Escobar married Lily Artola in 1958, and they had two children together.

Escobar died on 29 April 2025, at the age of 90, in Valencia, Spain.

Escobar played key roles in global evangelical gatherings, including:

• Berlin Congress on Evangelism (1966)
• CLADE I (Bogotá, 1969)
• Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization (1974)
• Lausanne II (Manila, 1989)
• CLADE III (Quito, 1992)
• Lausanne III (Cape Town, 2010), where he chaired the advisory council

At Lausanne 1974, Escobar criticized North American evangelicalism for prioritizing personal salvation over structural justice. He urged evangelicals to pursue "holistic mission" by addressing social, political, and economic realities.

Escobar's theology blended evangelical convictions with a strong emphasis on justice, freedom, and human dignity. He advocated for a faith that was both deeply biblical and socially relevant, shaped by the Latin American context. He criticized missionary paternalism and supported efforts to "latinize" theological education and leadership.

Escobar was ordained as a Baptist minister in 1979. He served as President of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students from 1995 to 2003 and President of the United Bible Societies from 1996 to 2004.

He was Professor Emeritus at Palmer Theological Seminary and a contributing editor to the International Bulletin of Mission Research.

Escobar's papers are housed and preserved at the Wheaton College Archives and Special Collections.

Escobar authored more than twenty books, including:

• La Fe Evangélica Y Las Teologías De La Liberación (1987)ISBN 9780311091072
• Paulo Freire: Una Pedagogia Latinoamericana (1993)ISBN 9789687011325
• Servir Con Los Pobres En América Latina: Modelos de Ministerio Integral (1997)ISBN 9789879591529
• Un pueblo en tiempo de misión (1999)ISBN 9786124252969
• Changing Tides: Mission in Latin America (2002)ISBN 9781570754142
• The New Global Mission: The Gospel from Everywhere to Everyone (2003)ISBN 9780830877836
• La Palabra: vida de la iglesia (2006)ISBN 9780311421206
• In Search of Christ in Latin America: From Colonial Image to Liberating Savior (2019)ISBN 9780830889914
• People in Mission: An Autobiographical Reflection (2021)ISBN 9781506484006
• Samuel Escobar: An Anthology: Collected Essays on Mission, Culture and Theology (2022)ISBN 9781506488981
• Un pueblo en tiempo de misión (2022)ISBN 9786124252969

• Latin American Theological Fellowship
• Lausanne Movement