In 2014, an article in Forbes magazine entitled “Want to Know the Language of the Future? The Data Suggests It Could Be…French” points out the preeminence of French in many international institutions, from the United Nations to the European Union to the Olympics Committee. More importantly, it goes on to point out that the French language is growing fast, and growing in the fastest-growing areas of the world, particularly sub-Saharan Africa. The latest projection is that the number of French speakers on this planet will reach 750 million by the year 2050. A study by investment bank Natixis even suggests that by that time, French could be the most-spoken language in the world. French is a fast-growing global language that will be present on all continents. At Huguenot Heritage, we are working hard to produce excellent biblical education in French that will reach this generation and generations of French-speakers to come. As the number of Christians in the church of Jesus Christ in French-speaking nations grows, there will be quality biblical and theological training waiting for them.
How many people speak French currently? Here is a visualization:
Francis has a trio of passions—his faith, his family, and his food. He was trained to become a chef in the elite world of gastronomy in Lyon, France before being trained as a minister of the Gospel at the Reformed Seminary in Aix-en-Provence. He worked as a chef in France and Switzerland, and later created his own high-end restaurant in the USA. He was ordained in the Presbyterian Church in America in 1987, and ministered as a church planter in France and in Quebec for 24 years. Francis now works with Huguenot Heritage in partnership with Third Millennium Ministries. He and his wife Donna have five children and seventeen grandchildren.
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