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Vol. 18, No.2 nternatlona• April 1994 etln• Culture and Religion and Missionary Expertise t was a chance remark offered by a distinguished church Missions and missionaries play an important partin helping I historian: "I appreciate the INTERNATIONAL BULLETIN. Today us understand one another in global context, even as they help it is clearly the missiologists who are leading the way in helping the peoples of the world find one another in the reconciling love us understand cultureand religion." This observationfinds fresh of Jesus Christ. evidence in our current issue. "Forty-five Years of Turmoil: Malawi Christian Churches, 1949-1994," by Andrew Ross, illuminates the religious and cul tural dynamics that have producedoneof Africa's mostvigorous On Page movements for self-government. Of course, not all missionaries 50 Is Ecumenical Apologetics Sufficient? A in Malawi would have been capable of providing in-depth Response to Lesslie Newbigin's "Ecumenical cultural insight. But in any case, missionary and church opinion Amnesia" was not consulted at midcenturywhenthe decision was madeby Konrad Raiser the British government to incorporate Malawi in a white-con trolled federation. The resulting turmoil illustrated the destruc 51 Reply to Konrad Raiser tive powerof miscued appraisals of the Malawiancharacter. Had Lesslie Newbigin the political powers been as informed and as sensitive as some of 53 Forty-five Years of Turmoil: Malawi Christian the senior Scots Presbyterian missionaries to intertribal dynam Churches, 1949-1994 ics and to the cross-tribal solidarity that had been produced by Andrew C. Ross three generations of evangelism and education, perhaps the 60 The Parliaments of the World's Religions: 1893 futile attempt to impose a white-dominated federation might and 1993 have been avoided. Alan Neely We also draw attention to Rosemary Seton's comprehensive compilation of mission archival resources in the United King 66 Archival Sources in Britain for the Study of dom. Here are rich veins of cultural and religious insights re Mission History: An Outline Guide and Select garding many non-Western cultures, justwaiting to be mined by Bibliography the diligent researcher. Of course, he or she must not be put off Rosemary Seton by the fact that this expertise was earned by the labor, sweat, and 72 The Legacy of Charles Simeon blood of missionaries! John C. Bennett In this issue's "Noteworthy" we announce the second an 74 Noteworthy nual round of grants for missions research, funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts of Philadelphia and administered by the Over 78 The Legacy of Claudius Buchanan seas Ministries Study Center. Many of the projects listed take up Wilbert R. Shenk issues of cultural and religious identity, reflecting the fact that 84 Book Reviews protocols for the grant program encourage, among other things, 94 Dissertation Notices research that illuminates the role of missions and indigenous churches in the building and shaping of culture and community. 96 Book Notes of issionaryResearch Is Ecumenical Apologetics Sufficient? A Response to Lesslie Newbigin's "Ecumenical Amnesia" Konrad Raiser nder the title "EcumenicalAmnesia," this BULLETIN pub event. Newbigindoes notreally respond to this challenge,which U lished in its January 1994 issue a review by Bishop is central to my argument, and in fact he can state his basic Lesslie Newbigin of my book Ecumenism in Transition (Geneva, Christological and ecclesiological affirmations almost without 1991).Iamgratefulto the editor,Dr. GeraldAnderson,for having any reference to the pneumatological dimension. invited me to contribute a response to this review for the subse I think it would not be unfair to say that Newbigin wants to quent issue. Since I wrote my book in order to generate discus maintain "Christo-centric universalism" as the valid model for sion about the present condition of the ecumenical movement, understanding the ecumenical movement and would therefore this is a very welcome opportunity to engage in critical dialogue. reject my analysis of an emerging "paradigm shift." His entire My gratitude is further directed to Lesslie Newbigin, whom critical reflection is based on the conviction of the nonnegotiable I deeply respect as a trusted guide on the ecumenical way. Of the truth of the earlier paradigm, and he would consider any depar various critical reviews of my book, his is by far the fairest and ture from it dangerous for the ecumenical movement. most noble one, and he enters into the heart of the argument. I have no difficulty accepting his review as a very sincere Indeed, it is this kind of mutual challenging and mutual correc effort to defend the continuing validity of the basic elements of tion rooted in a common commitment that we need in the the old paradigm-in particular its understanding of unity, its ecumenical movement; it is a central expression of what this Christology with a strong emphasis on the atonement, its movement is all about. ecclesiology, and its missionary orientation. This is an expres In saying this, Iamgladly affirming one of the mainconcerns sion of the theology and piety of the tradition of evangelical of Lesslie Newbigin. He may have read my book as advocating Protestantism out of which I come myself. Newbigin is certainly "the relativism of postmodern culture" and as suggesting an right that "the churches and movements that bear the name easy form of ecumenical coexistence that "evades the pain of 'evangelical' ... are the ones that are growing" today, whereas mutual criticism and mutual correction." I do not recognize my the historic churches of Orthodox, Roman Catholic, or Protestant intentions in this interpretation and would affirm as strongly as origin, with a few exceptions, seem to be declining. The WCC he does that "the WCC must see itself as the meeting place for all must of course remain openfor this tradition, as it tries to be open who make a Christological and Trinitarian affirmation along the to the contribution from all traditions and contexts represented lines of the WCC Basis. However sharp the disagreements are, in its constituency. the WCC cannot accept a less demanding role." It is noteworthy, however, that Newbigin in his review does I also acknowledge gratefully that Lesslie Newbigin con notrefer explicitly to my analysis of the challenges that are facing firms at least the first part of my thesis by admitting that the the ecumenical movement today (see chap. 3 of my book). We concept of "Christo-centric universalism" is indeed a "true de know from his more recent writings that he is intensely inter scription of the dominant model in the formative days of the ested in a critical dialogue with modern culture and convinced WCC." He further repeats his earlier conviction that a "full that we need to recover the fiduciary framework of biblical faith to counteract the reductionism of the scientific worldview. But his apologetic stance does not allow him to admit either the We seem to disagree about challenge of religious plurality or the challenges arising from the threats to all natural life systems. As a consequence, he does not the role of the Holy Spirit recognize thatlarge parts of my book have arisen from a constant in fact, Newbigin states critical dialogue with the universalism represented by the ecu menical missionary movement-that is, its profound reticence his affirmations almost regarding interreligious dialogue and its attachment to a theol without reference to the ogy of salvation history. Spirit. Like Newbigin and Visser't Hooft, I am convinced that the Christo-centric universalism of the classical ecumenical para digm is rooted in the missionary vision of "a whole world Trinitarian theology" is needed-at least for an adequate brought to Christ." When Newbigin therefore speaks of a "total missiology. I shall come back to this point at the end of my amnesia [in my book] in respect of missionary and evangelistic response. Finally, I am in agreement with him-and have said so work of the church," he is right as far as the material is concerned in my book-that the Trinitarian perspective cannot be placed as that I have used to substantiate my thesis; my ecumenical social an "alternative" over against the Christological confession but ization has been through the Faith and Order and Life and Work mustbe understood as its properbiblical frame of interpretation. streams of the WCC history. But he obviously does not agree However, we seem to disagree about what it means to take with my critical reassessment of the universalism of the mission the Trinitarian faith seriously and specifically to appreciate the ary movement in response to the new challenges of today, nor constitutive role of the Holy Spirit in understanding the Christ does he see a need for such self-critical analysis. My interest in a Trinitarian framework and especially in a fresh understanding Konrad Raiser is General Secretary, World Council of Churches, Geneva, of the work of the Holy Spirit is motivated by the conviction that Switzerland. we have to achieve a new interpretation and even transforma 50 INTERNATIONAL BULLETIN OF MISSIONARY RESEARCH tion of ourecumenicalfoundations that is comparable to the shift International Bulletin that emerged in the early fifties and that found its expression in the concept of the Missio Dei. of Missionary Research Since I wrote the original German version of my book five Established 1950 by R. Pierce Beaver as Occasional Bulletin from the years ago, the evidence for a profound shift taking place in Missionary Research Library. Named Occasional Bulletin of Missionary ecumenical consciousness is more clearly discernible. Having Research 1977. Renamed INTERNATIONAL BULLETIN OF MISSIONARY RESEARCH been elected recently general secretary of the World Council of 1981. Churches, I see my responsibility not so much in "ecumenical apologetics" but in facilitating and providing orientation for a Published quarterly in January, April, July, and October by process of transition thatwill change once again the profile of the Overseas Ministries Study Center ecumenical movement.