Dr Philippe Kabongo-Mbaya (France) is a minister, and also the external representative of the Conférence réformée du Zaïre (Reformed Conference of Zaire, COREZA). He holds a doctorate in theology from the University of Strasbourg.

Dr Gerishon Kirika (Kenya) teaches in the department of Religious Studies, Kenyatta University, Nairobi. He convened the Kenyan study group:

Dr Faith Gathu, university lecturer;
Dr Mary Getui, university lecturer;
Mrs Sarah Karanja, director, Lay Training Programme;
Chris Karingithi, director of programmes, World Vision;
Steve Mwangi, postgraduate student; and
Anani Nduwamungu, theological student from Rwanda.

Dr C.M. Kao (Taiwan) has served as principal of the Senior Citizen's College since 1989. A graduate of Tainan Theological College, he served as principal of Yushan Theological College for 13 years and as general secretary of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan for 18 years. He was a prisoner of conscience in Taiwan for 4 years 3 months; see Testimonies of Faith: Letters and poems from prison in Taiwan, Studies from the World Alliance of Reformed Churches 5 (Geneva: WARC, 1984).

Zoltán Tarr (Hungary) is a university chaplain in Budapest, and a member of the Hungarian planning team for the 23rd general council. He is a graduate of the theological faculty of the Gaspar Karoli Reformed University, Budapest, Hungary, and studied at Princeton Theological Seminary, USA, in 1994/95.

Dr Arthur Van Seters (Canada) is a minister of the Presbyterian Church in Canada and principal of a theological seminary of his church, Knox College in the Toronto School of Theology. He is well known for his vigorous and idiomatic paraphrases of Scripture.

Johanna van Wijk-Bos (USA) is a native of The Netherlands. She received her first theological degrees at Leiden University in The Netherlands and her PhD in Old Testament from Union Theological Seminary in New York, USA. She is Professor of Old Testament at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Her latest book is Ezra/Nehemiah and Esther in the Westminster Bible Companion (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1997).

Stephen Farris (Canada) is Professor of Preaching and Worship in Knox College, University of Toronto, and a minister of the Presbyterian Church in Canada.

Páraic Réamonn (Switzerland) is communications secretary of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, and a minister of the Church of Scotland.