Tributes have flowed following the death of prominent UK Christian leader Rev Dr Joel Edwards, who passed away at the age of 70 from cancer.
Edward’s family posted a letter he had written on social media in which he thanked people for their “prayers, love and holding on to me with that fingernail miracle”.
“Words cannot express the death, breadth and height of my gratitude, but I have gone home,” Edwards’ wrote. “My earnest prayer is that your faith and tenacity on my behalf will not be considered a pointless religious exercise, but that it will have strengthened your faith in a God who is marvellous, mysterious and majestic in all that He does: The Faithful One.”
Edwards was a former general secretary of the Evangelical Alliance in the UK, a role which he held for more than a decade.
Gavin Calver, CEO of the Evangelical Alliance, said in a statement on the EA website that Edwards was “an outstanding leader and communicator”.
“He served the Evangelical Alliance wonderfully over many years, culminating in his time leading the ministry as general director,” he said. “I’ve known Joel since I was a boy and I’m incredibly grateful to him for his friendship, wisdom and support. In my time as CEO he has been one of a few very significant voices of encouragement and challenge that have helped me immeasurably. We will all miss him dearly and his contribution to the Evangelical Alliance will never be forgotten.”
In a tribute posted on Facebook, Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Stephen Cottrell, the Arechbishop of York, said they were “deeply saddened” by Edwards’ death.
“He worked tirelessly for many years with churches of all denominations to find common purpose, seek unity and encourage us all to try and learn to disgree well,” they wrote.
Other tributes came from Pete Greig, founder of 24/7 prayer movement, Archbishop Angaelos, the Coptic Orthodox Archbishop of London, and Mervyn Thomas, the president of religious freedom advocacy CSW.
Edwards served as a probation officer for a decade and later as a pastor in east London before serving for as the general secretary of the African and Caribbean Evangelical Alliance.
In 1997, he became the first black Pentecostal general director of the Evangelical Alliance and spent 11 years in that role. During his years in the role, he was awarded an honorary doctorate from St Andrews University, received the title of honorary canon at St Paul’s Cathedral and was appointed a commissioner for the Equalities and Human Rights Commission.
Edwards was later a member of the International Religious Advisory Council to Tony Blair’s Faith Foundation and was instrumental in the formation of Micah Challenge International, its international director. In 2008, he published his influential book, An Agenda for Change.
He was was awarded the Langton Award for Community Service by the Archbishop of Canterbury “for his unique contribution in uniting evangelical Christians across the UK in challenging global injustice”.
