We get this question quite often, especially at speaking events. The ministry name first originated years back with a group of students at a seminary where Joshua Lingel, the ministry founder, teaches. The students were polled for ideas to name the ministry and by consensus came up with Islamic Institute. To shorten it up, we called it i² Ministries.

However, it became apparent that the name Islamic Institute might convey to some an incorrect impression of our focus. While we do engage in Islamic studies as part of our ministry, the real goal of the ministry is not simply study for the sake of an academic exercise, but to impart the knowledge to others in order to multiply the effectiveness of the Kingdom of God and the body of Christ in reaching Muslims.

Today, the i in i² represents each one of the ministry staff, and the number 2 as an exponent represents a multiplication factor that will be recognized as we each invest our time, talents, and resources in equipping the global church with the tools needed for effective Muslim evangelism.