Biography – Miriam L. Charter
Biography
Miriam was born in China. Her parents and grandparents served in China as missionaries.
Returning to Canada as a child, Miriam knew very early that God had called her to work cross-culturally,
a calling that came almost simultaneously with becoming a child of God. After her undergraduate years
at University of Calgary, Miriam taught French for three years before going to seminary, following which
she served as Pastor of Discipleship and Christian Education at First Alliance Church in Calgary for four
years before going to Eastern Europe where she served as a missionary to the underground church
under Communism.
While in Eastern Europe during the 80’s and 90’s she worked with a very clandestine program of
discipleship among women in Romania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Poland. Miriam
pioneered a work among women, teaching them to disciple other women and to begin women’s groups
all across Eastern Europe. God gave Miriam the privilege of being present with believers in country after
country in Eastern Europe at the very moment when freedom from the yoke of Communism came to
their country. In 1992, Miriam returned to North America to do doctoral studies in the field of
Education and Intercultural Studies. She moved to southern Russia in 1995 where she studied the
Russian language and did her doctoral research. After leaving Russia, she returned to First Alliance in
Calgary, where she served as Pastor of Life Development for two years.
From 2000 to 2006 Miriam established a branch of Ambrose University in Toronto. This branch of
Ambrose was founded to have as its focus the preparation of people who would serve in countries
where Islam is the predominant religion. In 2006 she moved to Chicago where she directed the PhD
program at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School till she returned, in the summer of 2012 to take up a
position in Intercultural Studies at Ambrose University. She is so happy to be back in Canada at last!
Recently Miriam returned to Romania to celebrate with thousands of women now trained and leading
other women in women’s ministries in a country that, 25 years ago had little understanding of what
women might do in the church. In line with 2 Timothy 2:2, the young women whom Miriam taught in
those years have taught the next generation of disciples, who in turn are now teaching young women,
thousands of them, across Romania, Bulgaria and around the world.
Miriam often speaks about her three passions in life: 1) the millions in this world who, through no fault
of their own have never heard of Jesus (unreached peoples) 2) the millions in this world who, because
they are willing to be known as followers of Jesus, suffer intensely (the persecuted church) and 3)
investing in the next generation who will lead the Church in the decades ahead. She is passionate about
mentoring young women and men as they respond to the call of God upon their lives.