five Williams College students met in a field, as was their habit, to talk and pray and, like so many young people, to dream of a better world. When a sudden thunderstorm interrupted, they sought shelter under a haystack—and there resolved to offer their lives, in the name of Jesus Christ, to carry their faith into service “into all the world.”

Within two years one of them, Samuel John Mills, had organized an alliance called “The Brethren” to bring the gospel to those around the world who had never heard it. By 1810 the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Mission, the first foreign missionary society in the U.S., had been formed; in 1812 Adoniram Judson and Luther Rice sailed to India as the first overseas missionaries. Later the American Board of Homeland Missions was formed to serve within our borders—evangelizing, establishing schools for Native and Black Americans, and playing a key role in the movement to abolish slavery.

So it was that the American foreign missions movement was born two centuries ago in a haystack during a summer storm. Since that August day, young people have followed their faith to meet physical and spiritual needs in every part of the world—establishing schools, equipping hospitals, founding churches. They have been supported by the prayers and offerings of generations of Christians. And countless people around the globe trace their Christian lineage through a hayfield in northwestern Massachusetts.

The Haystack Movement has changed the shape of lives and communities, brought cultures into dialogue and, sometimes, into conflict, and inspired generations of Christians to engage the wounds, needs, and hopes of the world. Now, as a new millennium begins, how will we live a third century of the Haystack legacy? What does Christian mission mean among us today?

We invite you to remember, to dream, to pray, to celebrate at the site of the haystack this September.

Because we live in an ever-shrinking global village… Because it matters more than ever how we reach out in faith to the physical and spiritual needs of the world… Because young people bursting with idealism and hope still want desperately to make a difference… Because the Spirit which moved those five students continues to break open our hearts and minds… Because the inscription on the Haystack monument in Williamstown still inspires and beckons: the field is the world…

Ready to register? Click here to go to our registration form.

Want to find out more? You can look at the schedule of events.

Lamin Sanneh will be our keynote speaker on Saturday. Bart Campolo will be our Sunday celebration worship leader. You can also read about our panel discussion on the meaning of missions, our workshops, and other music during the weekend.