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260 Mission Studies Bibliography David J. Bosch, Transforming

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260 Mission Studies Bibliography David J. Bosch, Transforming 260 Mission Studies Bibliography David J. Bosch, Transforming Mission. Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission, Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis Books 1991, 587 pp. A book such as this could only be written by someone who is really well acquainted with mission and missiological literature. David J. Bosch is Profes- sor of Missiology at the University of South Africa (Pretoria) and many publi- cations bear witness to his scholarship: Die Heidenmission in der Zukunfts- schau Jesu (1959), A Spirituality of the Road (1979), Witness to the World: The Christian Mission in Theological Perspective (1980), The Church as Alternative Community (1982), Mission in Creative Tension: A Dialogue with David Bosch (1990), etc. The author is aware of the escalation in the use of the word "mission" in recent times and the concomitant insecurity which the ambivalent under- standings of mission engender. He has no intention of restricting himself to one of the many "definitions" that may obstruct the view for an unprejudiced scrutiny of the "paradigms" of history. But in every phase of the book one thing is crystal clear: the Christian faith is missionary by its very nature; it is meant for all people; it is concerned with other-worldly and this-worldly salvation; the Church is both "sacrament and sign": sign in the sense of "pointer, symbol, example or model", sacrament in the sense of "mediation, representation, or anticipation" (p. 11). A thought which meanders like a golden thread through the whole book is that the "mission" of the Church cannot be detached from the "missio Dei," that mission belongs to the essence of the Church, as lasting concern and task of the Church inseparable from it. "Theologically speaking," we read in the introduction, "'foreign missions' is not a separate entity." A substantial part of the book is devoted to the Scriptures, in particular Matthew, Luke and Paul's Epistles. The New Testament has to be understood as a "missionary document," since ultimately it concerns Jesus of Nazareth who lived, died for the salvation of mankind, and was raised from the dead. The above-mentioned biblical authors each represent "sub-paradigms" of the "early Christian missionary paradigm" and "interpreted mission for their communi- ties" (54). Matthew wrote as a Jew for mostly Jewish communities, the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts wished to demonstrate the essential unity between the mission of Jesus and the church, Paul wrote as the "apostle to the Gentiles." For Bosch the key missionary passages are the Great Commission in Matthew's gospel and the inaugural speech in Nazareth in Luke; since Paul had ex- perienced the unconditional and gratuitous love and grace of Jesus, he pro- claimed him as the Messiah and Lord. Following Hans Kfng (Kfng /Tracy, Theologie - wohin? Auf dem Weg zu einem neuen Paradigma, 1984) Bosch distinguishes six main paradigms: 1. The apocalyptic paradigm of primitive Christianity, 2. the Hellenistic paradigm of 261 the patristic period, 3. the medieval Roman Catholic paradigm, 4. the Protestant paradigm of the Reformation, 5. the modern Enlightenment paradigm, 6. the emerging ecumenical paradigm. It is interesting to notice how new theological developments result in new missionary models ("paradigms"), even determine "paradigm shifts" of mission. The author brilliantly brings out the missionary importance of figures like Origen, Augustine, and Thomas Aquinas. According to Bosch the key missionary text of the Greek patristic paradigm was John 3:16 ("For this is how God loved the world"), for the Latin church the "compelle intrare" of Luke 14:23 (236). Luther "discovered" Paul for the 16th century (240); the theological, political, cultural, and social background of the missionary movement of this time is very well described. At the time of the Enlightenment the Protestants experienced what the Catholics, says Bosch, experienced with the Second Vatican Council. Concepts such as "radical anthropocentrism," "relativization of Christianity," "primacy of reason," "privatization of religion," etc. had important implications for mission. Some of these were very negative indeed, but not all; there were also definitely positive effects, so much so that the 19th century with good reason could be described as the "great missionary century" and a "Copernican revolution" (345) was possible in the field of missionary enterprise. Bosch characterizes the time after the Enlightenment as the "postmodern paradigm" (349). Transition necessarily involves insecurity but also the dis- covery of new values. History, context, sociology, hermeneutics are beginning to take on a new importance. Such phenomena as metaphor, myth, and analogy are being reevaluated. There is an upsurge of interest in "theology as story" (353). Pentecostal movements are emerging. At the Jerusalem Conference of the International Missionary Council (1928) the idea of a "comprehensive approach" was propagated (356). The understanding of church comes up again and again. The relationship of church and mission to the world demands a theologically relevant definition. The importance of Gaudillm et Spes and Evan- gelii Nuntiandi is acknowledged and the theses of J.C. Hoekendijk and L. Rftti are subjected to criticism: "It is this church, ambiguous in the extreme, which is 'missionary by its very nature,' the pilgrim people of God, 'in the nature of' a sacrament, sign and instrument" and "a most sure seed of unity, hope, and salvation for the whole human race" (389). , A book review necessarily has to be limited to general impressions. But I hope these few observations show clearly enough that a thorough study of Bosch's book is worth while. In all periods of church history the question and meaning of mission has been discussed. Down through the ages people have struggled with the problem of getting the message of Jesus Christ across. In tune with the ever changing historical circumstances new aspects, new models, new solutions, new "paradigms" were offered, but basically it was always a question of the same "missio Dei" which God brings about in the world his own way and through the Church. There is no point in getting excited again and .
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