Our Story and Core Values
Our Story
Christian Educators Outreach is a not-for-profit, 501(c)(3), organization formed in the USA for the spreading of the gospel of Jesus Christ through the support of partner organizations involved in the ministry of the Gospel, the providing of relief for charitable, religious, educational or scientific purposes including serving the aged, the poor, the widowed and the orphaned. The organization performs this through the collection and distribution of resources to provide logistical and financial support for organizations and independent individual partners who serve in either short or long term capacity. These partner organizations are involved with the development and maintaining of orphanages and camps for a variety of disadvantaged and at-risk children and youth, the support of churches and church planting and teaching English as a Second Language (ESL). Since its founding in 2000, the organization based in Charlottesville, Virginia was administered by volunteers and donated labor, which has enabled CEO to channel the majority (greater than 90% in 2000-2009 (fiscal year ended June 30, 2009)) of donated funds directly to partners who serve primarily in the developing world. As a Christian organization which seeks to bring aid and education, it is important that we state our “core beliefs.” We take our philosophy from Jesus who said that we should Love God with all our heart, soul and mind and then that we should love our neighbor as our self. We believe the world is our neighbor.
In 2009 CEO took a step of faith. The board announced this step in a spring time letter to our financial partners which said, in part: “We, the Board of Directors, are writing to let you know of a significant change taking place at Christian Educators Outreach. This dramatic step forward will allow CEO to take a stronger role in advancing God’s kingdom and to reach the potential with which it was founded. Since its origin in April, 2000, CEO has supported ministries to those in spiritual and physical need in Hungary, Ukraine, Croatia and most recently South Africa. As our partners in these locations have spread the Gospel of Christ and His love, our Executive Director, Tom Foley, has facilitated, encouraged and mentored them, all while working as a full time teacher at The Covenant School. In addition, scores of students have been led by Tom on mission trips in support of these efforts.
After a period of study, discernment and prayer, Tom, with the blessing of the Lord and the encouragement of his wife Anna and the Board of Directors, is leaving his teaching position to go full time into the ministry of CEO. With God’s help and Tom’s full time attention, CEO will be able to fulfill its mission of placing English teachers in Hungarian schools, enabling church planters to start new churches and giving professional and spiritual assistance to preschools in Africa.”
CEO today is poised to open news fields of partnership to, as our Mission states, “We cross cultures in Word and deed through education, development and missional leadership to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those in need.”
Our Practice
We believe that partnerships are key. There is no hierarchy within CEO. We believe in connecting ministry partners together with each other and supporters from other places to help everyone have a role in the fulfilling of the Great Commission.
Our Partners: click here to read about out our partners serving abroad!
Our Core Beliefs
1. We believe in the historic creeds of the Christian faith—the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed.
2. We believe that the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, is authoritative and trustworthy. Indeed, we believe that in the original autographs the Bible is infallible reflecting the character of God as he inspired these writings.
3. We believe that Jesus of Nazareth, later known as Jesus Christ was born as a result of a miraculous conception. That the Holy Spirit conceived Him in the womb of the Virgin Mary, that he is fully man and fully God, with there being no mixture in his dual nature—the perfect God-Man.
4. We believe that Jesus suffered and died on the cross, his blood being the only possible payment for the sins of man, and that He himself claimed this in saying “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6, NKJV). Therefore, we believe that there is no way to eternal life but through His atoning blood which was shed on the cross. We believe that when he died on the cross, He was dead—not in a coma or other state of unconsciousness.
5. We believe that Jesus miraculously rose from the dead in his body—that his resurrection was indeed both physical and spiritual.
6. We believe that Jesus will come again personally and visibly to establish his kingdom. We believe that His coming is imminent and that it is the Father’s plan; no one can know the time or date of his return.
7. We believe that we serve the one true God in three persons – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – who are all equal in attributes and same in character.
8. We believe that God made man in his own image. Sin was imputed to humanity from Adam. Therefore, because of this sin nature, man is incapable of a right relationship with God apart from the atoning work of Christ.
9. We believe that the great commission instructs believers to go “…to the end of the earth..” (Acts 1:8b, NKJV) to further spread the Gospel.
10. We believe that the universal “body of Christ” (I Cor. 12:27, NKJV) – the holy catholic church—is made up of believers in Jesus, and that his body should strive to work in harmony regardless of denominational label.
As we agree in Christ and in the aforementioned doctrines, we will work together to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ”…to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8b, NKJV)