The Complex Spiritual Mosaic of East Asia 423

T IGUASSU, 15 WOMEN and men, representing differ- The A ent parts of East Asia and different concerns for East Asia, met together to discuss the major issues we face in reaching complex East Asia for Christ as we enter the 21st century. This paper is built on that discussion, but it goes beyond what we could spiritual cover in our short time together, to try to paint a larger pan- orama of the challenges facing the church in mission in East mosaic of Asia. East Asia East Asia is an incredibly diverse place! But before we discuss it, we need to define it. The term “East Asia” is used here in the way that it is generally used in contemporary political and economic discussion, i.e., to describe collec- Ian tively the countries of Northeast Asia (China including Hong Prescott Kong and Macao, Japan, North and South Korea, Mongolia, and Taiwan) and Southeast Asia (Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar/Burma, Philip- pines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam). It needs to be noted that this politico-cultural definition—which is commonly used in East Asia today—differs significantly from the physiographic definitions traditionally used by Western geographers.1 Two billion people live in the 17 countries of East Asia, including significant groups of all the world’s major religions, except Judaism. The region is not just one world but many worlds—sometimes intersecting, sometimes colliding, sometimes merging into each another.

1 Geographers commonly use the term “East Asia” to refer to “the continental part of the Far East region of Siberia, the East Asian islands, Korea, and eastern and northeastern China” (Ency- clopaedia Britannica, 1998).

421 422 responding to the challenges

A World of Whirlwind harsh IMF medicine unleashed a flood of Economic Growth unrest that unseated President Suharto and has gone on to inflame ethnic rela- East Asia caught the attention of the tions, does the economy continue to fal- world in the 1980s and ’90s for its remark- ter seriously. Much of East Asia appears to able economic growth: “The World Bank be back on a path of renewed economic has pronounced that nowhere and at no growth. China, which proved to be an eco- time in human history has humanity nomic anchor during the crisis, is increas- achieved such economic progress” (Nais- ingly becoming the economic dynamo of bitt, 1996, p. 10). With the Japanese the region, along with the vast network of economy in the lead and other Asian ti- 53 million overseas Chinese who control gers close behind, it looked as though East much of East Asia’s economy. Asia was set to overtake the West. Books The last 50 years have therefore been, about the East Asian Economic Miracle for much of East Asia, a time of dramatic and talk of the coming Pacific Century growth and massive modernization. In abounded. “As we move toward the year Asia as a whole, the incidence of poverty 2000,” wrote trend-watcher John Naisbitt has been reduced from 400 million in in 1996 (p. 10), “Asia will become the 1945 to 180 million in 1995, while the dominant region of the world: economi- population has grown by 400 million; Asia cally, politically, and culturally.” now has a middle class of almost half a Naisbitt’s book, Megatrends Asia, prob- billion (Naisbitt, 1996, pp. 10, 15). Mod- ably marks the zenith of 1990s optimism ernization has brought urbanization: East about Asia’s economies. The following Asia currently has nine mega-cities.2 More- year, the East Asian Economic Miracle was over, while the cities of Japan have nearly suddenly replaced by the East Asian Eco- stopped growing,3 many of the others— nomic Crisis. The crash started in Thai- particularly Jakarta, Bangkok, and Ran- land in July 1997 and rapidly spread to goon—are still growing uncontrollably,4 Korea, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Other East overwhelming existing infrastructure and Asian economies didn’t crash in the same available resources. way, but a sort of “economic guilt by asso- Modernization and the dramatic eco- ciation” sent their currencies tumbling and nomic growth have encouraged rampant their economies into decline. materialism, epitomized by Deng Xiao- The crash, however, was followed in ping’s words, “To get rich is glorious.”5 In many countries by a remarkably fast re- many places in East Asia, the old gods have covery. Korea and Thailand (which fol- been pushed aside, not in favor of a new lowed the IMF prescription for recovery) ideology or a new religion, but in order and Malaysia (which rejected outside as- to pursue success and prosperity. sistance and pursued an independent Modernization and globalization have path) have all bounced back. Of the four also created an enormous demand for that crashed, only in Indonesia, where the

2 Mega-cities are cities with a population of over 10 million. 3 Tokyo has a growth rate of 0.23% and Osaka 0.00% (FEER, 1998, p. 63). 4 Their growth rates are: Jakarta 2.60%, Bangkok 2.83%, Rangoon 3.19%, (FEER, 1998, p. 63). 5 Deng Xiaoping said this in the early 1980s, and it rapidly became a defining aphorism for his economic reforms and China’s new “socialist market economy.” the complex spiritual mosaic of east asia 423

English: from Mongolia, where English is Malaysia, for example, was given inde- now taught in schools instead of Russian; pendence in 1957 with a constitution that to Japan, where a recent paper suggested made it a secular state—though with Is- that English should be made the second lam as the state religion. Since then, Ma- language; to Phnom Penh, where students laysia has eagerly pursued modernization at the Institute of Technology burned and very much desires to be a significant French flags in protest when they were player in the modern world. For example, told they would have to learn French in- one of President Mahathir’s grand projects stead. It has even been suggested that is the Multimedia Super Corridor, which within this century, English could replace he hopes will place Malaysia in a place of the national language of some countries leadership in the information age (MSC, of East Asia. 1999). In recent decades, however, the Modernization, however, is not a single government, eager to prove that modern- step but a continuum, and different Asian ization and Islamization are not incompat- societies are at different points on that ible, has also pursued a vigorous program continuum. Even within one Asian soci- of Islamization. ety, different sectors can be at very differ- At another level of Malaysian society, ent stages of modernization. In fact, even modernization and urbanization have to talk of a continuum is too simplistic, as brought Malays6 out of their traditional societies may adopt some parts of ad- kampung communities and exposed them vanced modernity while retaining many to the wider world. One consequence of pre-modern characteristics. This can be this, for many, has been a new emphasis seen with modernity’s external trappings: on Islam, with its international stature, as a tribal person may still live in primitive key to defining their identity, rather than conditions while sporting a cellular tele- traditional Malay customs, which appear phone; the Mongolian living with his increasingly irrelevant (Muzaffar, 1985, pp. sheep and camels on the edge of the Gobi 358-359). Desert may have a satellite dish outside Challenges for the church his ger. This patchwork adoption of the trap- The economic growth, modernization, pings of modernization has taken place and rapid change pose many challenges not only on the level of material posses- for the church in mission in East Asia. sions, but also on the level of ideology and One challenge is not to be left behind values. Consequently, the results of mod- by the pace of change. Churches are in- ernization—especially in the realm of re- nately conservative, and they rapidly lose ligion—are often quite different from the touch with their contemporary generation. results in the West. In particular, while it They thus lose their ability to show the was often assumed in the West that the relevance of Christ to all peoples at all secularization of society and the privati- times, or in particular to their people at zation of religion were the inevitable by- this time. The church in Korea is battling products of modernization, this has not with this. Having enjoyed dramatic church always happened in Asia. growth up until recently, it is finding that

6 “Malays” refers to the Muslim Malays who comprise about 55% of the population of Malaysia; not to be confused with “Malaysians,” which refers to the entire population and includes Chi- nese, Indians, and some tribal peoples. 424 responding to the challenges the methods and approaches that were so investment into the country and reduced successful in reaching earlier generations export out of the country resulted in 100% are not effectively communicating the gos- inflation in 1998, making the poor poorer pel to the new generation. still (Freeman & Than, 2000, p. 74). The new generation includes the “Net” Finally, in the midst of success, one of generation, and with Internet access in- the greatest dangers to spiritual vitality creasing exponentially, this “Net” genera- (which is the root of genuine mission) is tion is growing dramatically in urban East materialism. Materialism has sapped the Asia. Although the number of Christian life out of much of the church in Europe websites is also growing, few churches and more effectively than Communism’s direct Christian groups have done more than assaults ever succeeded in doing. One post the information that they normally Christmas in Singapore, our local shop- give out in print. Much thought needs to ping mall boasted the biggest Santa Claus be given to how to relate the gospel to in the world, standing four stories high in the new generation. Christians also need front of the mall. Once Christmas was over, to consider how to use the Internet for he was replaced by an even bigger, 17m effective evangelism and discipleship high, god of fortune. This could easily be among these young people and how to a parable of the church if its center is not use it to reach and disciple those in re- Jesus Christ. stricted access communities. Thus far, I have spoken about modern- Another challenge is to address the ization and the impact of the modern inequalities that rapid modernization has world, but we are now entering, if not al- created or exacerbated. The flow of people ready in, the post-modern world. Much into the cities has created a vast under- has been written about post-modernism class of urban poor in cities like Manila in the West, and we touched on it briefly and Jakarta, including a variety of groups in our East Asia group at Iguassu. We can who have been completely marginalized certainly expect that Asia will be affected in the process. The recent economic cri- by the currents of post-modernism. It is, sis has exaggerated these inequalities, par- however, likely that the effect of post- ticularly in urban centers: World Bank modernism on East Asian societies will be figures suggest that the number below the significantly different from the effect on poverty line in Indonesia increased from Western societies, if for no other reason 11% in 1996 to 14-20% in 1999, while in than that significant elements of the post- Thailand, figures from the International modernist worldview are already present Labor Organization suggest an increase in Buddhism and other Asian religions. from 8% to 14% in a similar period (Bhanu, 2000, p. 62). Rural East Asia was World of less immediately affected by the crisis, Unreached Peoples partly because it had gained less from the East Asia has roughly 2 billion people, growth—many communities are still liv- less than 5% of whom know Christ. What ing as they have done for centuries—but knowledge of Christ there is is very un- also because its agricultural produce still evenly distributed. For example, at one end had value. of the spectrum are the South Koreans, Countries like Laos, where the popu- among whom dramatic church growth has lation is largely rural and the per capita occurred and 27% are Protestants. At the GDP is US$400, seemed immune at first, other end of the spectrum, one of China’s but the delayed impact of reduced foreign the complex spiritual mosaic of east asia 425

Tibetan people groups has a population sion—not just satisfied to continue the of over 1 million, yet we know of only nine process of reaching their own people, but Christians, only one of whom could be ready also to reach out in mission to other considered a mature believer. Even within peoples. ethnic groups, there can be huge dispari- There are many barriers to this. One is ties. For example, among the Han Chi- the natural tendency to gravitate to one’s nese, Tony Lambert (1999, pp. 19, 29, 238) own kind—even (or particularly) when reports that in one area of China, 18% of sent overseas. I remember listening to the the adults are registered Evangelical Chris- national secretary of our mission in Tai- tians (this does not include children or wan lamenting that, although they had unregistered house-church believers). Yet sent a number of missionaries to other in Sichuan province, there is only one East Asian countries, the workers had church per million people, and in parts nearly all ended up as Chinese reaching of the province less than 0.2% are Chris- other Chinese. The mission had found it tians. very difficult to communicate a lasting vi- Except for Japan and Korea—both of sion for cross-cultural mission from the which are ethnically highly homoge- Chinese to non-Chinese. This would be neous—the countries of East Asia are each true of much of the missionary movement home to a diversity of different ethnic from the overseas Chinese church groups.7 In many of these countries, the throughout East Asia—most of it is di- church is strong and growing among one rected toward other Chinese. The work is or more people groups, but it is nearly excellent and necessary, but it is not reach- non-existent in others. Thus, in Malaysia ing cross-culturally to the unreached. and Singapore, the church is strong and For the East Asian church, cross- growing among Chinese and Indians but cultural mission does not have to be over- tiny among Malays; in China, it has grown seas mission. It does not even have to cross rapidly among the Han but not among the national borders—the unreached of other Muslims or Tibetans; in the Philippines, cultures are there beside them. However, there has been vigorous church growth one of the biggest barriers to cross-cultural among nominal Roman Catholics but little mission within countries is that of preju- among the Muslim tribes in the south; in dice and hostility between neighboring Burma, the majority of the Karin and Chin but different groups. A Filipino brother, are Christians but very few of the majority who regularly conducts awareness semi- Bama people or the Buddhist Shan. This nars about Islam among Filipino pastors list could easily be continued. and other Christians, finds that for many the immediate associations of the word Challenges for the church “Muslim” are words like murderer, rapist, One of the greatest challenges for the terrorist, and kidnapper. Not surprisingly, East Asian church in mission is to be a it has taken time to develop a vision among church engaged in cross-cultural mis- Filipino Christians for reaching out to their

7 Johnstone (1993, p. 41) lists 1,859 national ethno-linguistic groups in the countries of East Asia, half of which he classifies as belonging to the unevangelized/unreached world. However, many of these groups are tiny. More recently, Joshua Project 2000 has brought together mission statisticians to produce a list of “least evangelized” peoples. These are people groups with a population of at least 10,000 who are less than 5% Christian of any sort and less than 2% Evangeli- cal Christian. By March 1999, they had identified 429 such groups in East Asia. 426 responding to the challenges

Muslim neighbors. However, now that that inside. Countries that restrict the entry of has begun to happen, even in a small way, outsiders often, but not always, also im- it means that the number of people con- pose restrictions on national believers in- cerned for Filipino Muslims is far greater side the country. Thus, there are repeated than would ever have come as expatriate reports of pastors and believers who are missionaries. imprisoned and fined in China, Vietnam, The barriers that divide ethnic groups and Laos. This raises many questions of can be very serious, and crossing them how best to tackle issues of religious free- may be harder for someone from a geo- dom. Such believers are usually delighted graphically near but alienated ethnic to have the prayerful support of believers group than for someone from a distant from outside the country, but they are of- group. But crossing barriers is a sign of ten ambivalent about the value of politi- the gospel and must be done. Particularly cal intervention by Western governments, in a world where ethnic division and frag- particularly the United States. There are mentation are on the increase, the church always the dangers that such intervention must be seen to be bridging those barri- will reinforce the idea that Christianity is ers rather than reinforcing them. a Western religion relying on foreign support and that it will revive distorted memo- Creative Access ries of Christianity arriving in Asia on the World coattails of Western imperialism. Over half the countries of East Asia are Challenges for the church closed to those identified as “missionar- These creative access countries present ies,” and they restrict or outlaw straight- a number of challenges to the church in forward approaches to evangelism and mission. One is to develop fresh ap- church planting. But to talk of “half” is proaches that will both win an entry into misleading; more than 80% of East Asians these countries as well as win a hearing. live in these “closed” or “restricted” coun- As Ted Ward (1999, p. 148) has pointed tries—including many of East Asia’s un- out, it is an “insidious colonial assump- reached peoples. Nor is it a simple case of tion” that missionaries should automati- “open” or “closed” countries. Rather, East cally be allowed to go anywhere they wish. Asia’s countries lie on a continuum, with “It is based on the presumed rights and wide-open countries such as Japan and the actual power of people from a dominant Philippines on one end and tightly shut society to enter wherever and whenever North Korea at the other. In the middle they choose within the empire.” He notes are countries like Indonesia and Singa- further, “Resistance to outsiders and their pore, which allow missionaries to enter agenda is an ordinary characteristic of a for limited roles such as theological edu- people’s sense of dignity and purpose.” cation but not for evangelism and church Humanly speaking, we do not have a right planting. Nearer the closed end are coun- of access to these countries but have to tries like China and Vietnam, which do not win our entry with the government, just welcome missionaries but do welcome a as we will have to win our hearers once wide variety of foreign experts, profession- we have entered. als, and business people. Though these countries exclude mis- “Creative access” is, of course, the view sionaries, they welcome those who can of the outsider trying to get in. In all of contribute to their development through these countries, there is a church already sharing their professional expertise, devel- the complex spiritual mosaic of east asia 427 oping businesses, or assisting in relief and We also need to develop a deeper un- development. It is the need for outside derstanding of the process of evangeliza- help that provides an open door. Don tion in creative access contexts. Often a Hamilton (1987, p. 80) once noted, “From significant part of that process—and there- the perspective of the host government, fore an important contribution of those the ideal ‘foreign expert’ has a Ph.D., 10 called to serve there—is winning the trust to 15 years of work experience in his field and confidence of both government offi- of expertise, and a willingness to work for cials and the target community, so as to a subsistence income.” There are not too increase the window of opportunity for many people available on these terms. Christian efforts now and in the future. It However, if Christians have the skills the is also important to recognize that al- governments are looking for and are ready though these countries may be “politically to sacrifice their personal professional ad- resistant” because their governments op- vancement and standard of living for the pose mission and make their people hard sake of the gospel, they can find open to reach (Tennent, 1998, p. 223), this says doors. nothing about the receptivity of the people This approach requires a different kind themselves to the gospel. Because of their of cross-cultural worker than many culture or religion, they may also be highly churches are used to sending. Asian resistant to the gospel. However, they may churches need to develop their under- be very open, with a growing Christian standing of the calling and gifts needed movement among them. If the former is for this kind of mission, particularly where the case, a quiet witness may be the most the expectation of a missionary is that he appropriate contribution. However, if it is will be an ordained man whose primary the latter, the creative access worker needs identity is that of a religious professional. to be able to contribute to the work of Tentmakers, as they are often called, must harvesting among the people. be seen as more than just undercover mis- There is also a need for careful reflec- sionaries—something that governments tion on the platforms and approaches understandably react against. We must used. What does it mean for the gospel if understand their distinct calling to con- we use teaching English, bringing in for- tribute to the evangelization of a people eign expertise, or the victory of capitalist through living a Christian life with integ- economics as the means to gain entry? We rity, serving in a professional job with ex- should not shrink back from taking the cellence, and sharing the good news with opportunities that God is giving. As missi- sensitivity. Tentmakers need an integrated ologist Max Warren (1976, p. 92) once theology of their work as well as their said, “For effective obedience to the Great evangelism. They are not simply mission- Commission, the one thing supremely aries in disguise, nor are they just pro- needed in every age is a lively response of fessionals pursuing their professional Spirit-inspired opportunism, ever alert to vocation in another country and taking the the certainty that God will provide differ- opportunity to witness. They are individu- ent opportunities in different circum- als who have responded to a calling from stances.” We do, however, need to reflect God to contribute to the establishment biblically and theologically on what we are and growth of the church in another coun- doing and how we are doing it. This may try and culture—using their professional be particularly important in this area, as skills to enable them to do these things. professional, business, and entrepreneur- ial skills are needed in order to seize the 428 responding to the challenges opportunities. People with such skills may the one-party state has no intention of al- not have had much opportunity for train- lowing liberal-democratic reforms” (Evans, ing in the skills required for theological 1998, p. 2). One-party totalitarian rule re- reflection. mains and clearly plans to remain. What is called, for example, “socialism with China and the Chinese characteristics” in fact appears to Communist World be “capitalism with totalitarian character- Although the Soviet Union has disin- istics.” These countries might be described tegrated and Eastern Europe is no longer as post-socialist, but they are not post- 8 under its sway, Communism still lives on Communist. in East Asia in China, Vietnam, Laos, and The truth is that of the two great Com- North Korea. Mongolia is the only East munist powers of the 1980s—the Soviet Asian country that has moved from Com- Union and China—China is doing much munist government to democratic govern- better. The Soviet Union, which put po- ment. litical reforms before economic reforms In China, Vietnam, and Laos, Commu- and has suffered national and social dis- nism no longer represents an economic integration, is seen as a disaster—not as program or a program of social and cul- an example to follow. China, which has tural transformation. Marxist economics implemented extensive economic reforms have been discredited and thrown out in while retaining tight political control, has favor of free-market economics. These seen significant and sustained economic countries are increasingly adopting free- growth. Vietnam and Laos now look to market capitalism in their economic poli- China as the example to follow. While cies and in many of their social policies. many Western political commentators “Free-market” implies increased freedom such as Chris Patten (1998), the last gov- in the market. For this, they must be com- ernor of Hong Kong, argue that a liberal petitive, and it has therefore been impera- political climate is essential for a free- tive for these countries that they catch up market economy to flourish, these coun- with the rest of the world in skills, educa- tries are determined to prove otherwise. tion, technology, etc.; thus, they have an Their governments are also deter- urgent need for foreign expertise. Free- mined to remain in control. This was market has also meant opening their doors shown in China in the quick and decisive to foreign commerce, thus providing many suppression of the Falun Gong in 1999. business opportunities. Changing eco- Founded only seven years earlier in 1992, nomic policy has been the main key to Falun Gong (or Falun Dafa) combined opening these countries up to the outside Buddhism, Taoism, and qigong-traditional world. Chinese forms of meditation and exercise. Communism, however, remains as “a However, it was not the beliefs or prac- device of political rhetoric which pro- tices of this group that worried the gov- claims, both externally and internally, that ernment, but its dramatic growth as a

8 Evans (1998, p. 1) calls these “post-socialist” regimes. “Why the term ‘post-socialism’? For Laos I have argued that while it is economically and socially capitalist by almost any social scientific criteria, I prefer to use the term ‘post-socialist’ to describe the regime because of the political continuity between the revolutionary and post-socialist phases…. The parties that came to power are still in power, and the marks of radical ideological change—the names of the states and sym- bols such as their flags—remain unchanged.” the complex spiritual mosaic of east asia 429 highly organized mass movement, making changes transforming the rest of the Com- sophisticated use of the Internet and munist world. Despite the rapid economic claiming 100 million adherents, including decline that it has experienced since the many party cadres and military officials. end of Soviet subsidies in 1990, North Although this figure is probably optimis- Korea has remained as tightly shut as it tic, it still rivaled the Chinese Communist can, firmly committed to the totalitarian Party in size, which has 60 million mem- rule that has passed from father to son in bers. Such a threat to the government what has been called the world’s only could not be tolerated. Its leaders were Communist monarchy. North Korea also arrested in April 1999, the movement was remains committed to a socialist-style, cen- outlawed in July, and an anti-cult law was trally planned economy, although it is cau- passed in October specifically to deal with tiously experimenting with Chinese-style this group. Free Economic and Trade Zones. In recent The determination to control is also years, the hermetic seal has been broken shown in the policy of these East Asian by the severe famine that has swept the Communist countries toward Christians. country. As a result of this, a number of There is some freedom to worship in the Christian aid agencies have been allowed state-controlled religious bodies, but reli- very controlled access to parts of the coun- gious expression outside these bodies is try, and large numbers of North Koreans often ruthlessly suppressed, including have crossed the northern border into growth in new communities. Northeast China, where many South Ko- The church in many places has grown rean missionaries are operating. dramatically under Communism. The The situation also changed in 1998, most well-known instance of this is in when the South Korean government China: there Protestants numbered about dropped its antagonism toward the North 1 million when the country became the and adopted instead a “sunshine policy” Peoples Republic of China in 1949, but of active engagement. The stated aim on now they number between 35 and 70 mil- both sides is reunification—it always has lion. Today in China there are at least three been. But it is difficult to see what shape distinct streams to the church: the official the reunification will take. The North does Three-Self Patriotic Movement churches, not want to be simply absorbed into the the unofficial house churches, and a grow- South, the way East Germany was ab- ing number of Chinese intellectuals who sorbed into West Germany, and the have come to Christ but who are part of younger generation in the South is not neither. In addition, there is a growing sure that they want to pay the economic phenomenon that has been called “Cul- price for such absorption. North Korea ture Christians”—intellectuals who, find- watchers see a number of possible sce- ing Marxist-Leninism bankrupt, have narios for the future.9 The best is gradual turned to Christianity to provide a coher- reform leading in time to carefully ent worldview, but who have not made a planned reunification. The worst is war, personal commitment to Christ (Lambert, which would be senseless, but some fear 1998; Liu, 1998; P. Lee, 1996). that the North Korean leadership could North Korea, the hermit kingdom, has resort to it as a last desperate attempt to managed to stand apart from the dramatic hold onto power. The other possibilities

9 See, for example, Foster-Carter (1998) and Noland (1998). 430 responding to the challenges are that the country may simply collapse sisters who are suffering persecution and or that somehow, defying the odds, it will developing creative ways to reach both the manage to stumble on for some time, per- resistant and the receptive who still live petuating the peculiar isolated state that under Communism. it has created. As the doors of these countries become As I write, there are encouraging signs more open, it is also vitally important that of a more open approach to the outside foreign mission groups and churches rec- world. In January 2000, North Korea es- ognize that while they have been kept out, tablished formal relations with Italy, and God has not. He has continued to work, in May it restored diplomatic relations with raising up a people for himself. Initiatives Australia. But the biggest breakthrough is from the outside must therefore be un- a summit of the leaders of the North and dertaken with respect for the church al- South Korea leaders planned for June 12- ready on the inside. Cooperation and 14, 2000. This will be their first summit coordination are needed, so as to contrib- since the peninsula was divided in 1945. ute effectively to the work God is already It also represents the first high-level talks doing in these countries rather than for nine years. A meeting between the hinder it. The mad rush that characterized leaders of North and South Korea was due post-Communist mission in Eastern Eu- to take place six years ago, but North Korea rope and Russia proved so destructive in leader Kim Il-Sung died of a heart attack many ways that Ralph Covell writes about just days before it was scheduled. We wait “why I don’t pray for China to open” with prayerful but somewhat breathless (Covell, 1995). Even with today’s levels of anticipation to see whether this meeting limited openness, the impact has not al- will actually happen and what the out- ways been positive. For example, it is dis- come will be. appointing to see that in Vietnam, where There is very little clear information the opening up of the country has allowed about the church in North Korea. Many the involvement of all sorts of foreign Christians fled to the South when the groups in the lives of the churches, the country was divided, and the 300,000 who result has been to halve the rate of growth remained suffered severe persecution. of the church, fragment it into many dif- However, reports of a significant and ferent pieces, and introduce numerous growing underground church have been complications through the generous but leaking out of the country. I have seen sug- sometimes unwise use of foreign money. gestions that there may be 30,000 or How can we avoid such outcomes? 100,000 Christians—even that there are There is also a broader challenge to the 100,000 Christians imprisoned for their church, in the face of the bankruptcy of faith. In the circumstances, it is obviously socialist economics and the wide ac- impossible to get any accurate statistics, ceptance of capitalism as the only viable and so all such numbers must be treated economic system. Is there a Christian al- with caution. However, there is clear evi- ternative? Do we share the belief that dence that the church has survived. greed—carefully regulated with a light touch—will result in the best provision for Challenges for the church all, particularly the poor and needy? Or East Asia’s Communist world poses does Christianity offer a perspective on numerous challenges to the church in economics that stands apart from both mission. Some of these have already been socialism and capitalism? mentioned: supporting our brothers and the complex spiritual mosaic of east asia 431

The Buddhist and of the culture in such a way and such a Buddhist-Influenced World form as to bring about a spontaneously growing church movement. Of East Asia’s 2 billion people, about Why is reaching Buddhists so difficult? half are Buddhist or influenced by Bud- One reason is that the Buddhist worldview dhism. If that sounds a little vague, re- is so completely different from the Chris- member that vagueness is a Buddhist tian one, making it very difficult to com- quality! Buddhism is inherently syncretis- municate the good news effectively. We tic and in many places has combined with speak about a God who loves the world other religions to form a new synthesis and gave his Son for it, but Buddhists be- that you may or may not call Buddhism. lieve that the world is unreal and that love As Patrick Johnstone (1993, p. 42) ob- is a lower emotion from which the enlight- serves, “The boundary between Buddhism ened escape. What lowly kind of mis- and China’s Taoism or Japan’s Shinto is informed god is this—especially one that hard to define”! And the Buddhist would is so earthly as to have children! probably ask, “Why do we need to define Even when a Buddhist becomes a it?” Christian, my colleagues say that it takes This confusion is particularly true of five to nine years for the “purification of the Chinese, whose religion is a combina- the Buddhist mind” to take place, i.e., for tion of Buddhism, Confucianism, and Tao- the new believer to really understand and ism. Should they be called Buddhists? adopt the Christian view of the world. Often the religions are simply described In many parts of East Asia, it is very as “Chinese religions”—which neatly difficult for a Buddhist to conceive of fol- avoids the question. The other difficulty lowing Jesus because of the prevalence of with the Han Chinese in China is know- “extreme pluralism,” in which ethnic iden- ing how many should still be considered tity determines religion. To be Thai is to religious (never mind Buddhist) after 50 be Buddhist; their religion is an integral years of Communism. Operation World part of their ethnic and communal iden- classifies 59% of the Chinese as “non- tity. The same is true of the lowland Lao, religious,” though that figure is probably the Burmans, and the Tibetans, as well as high, given the religious resurgence expe- many others. rienced in China in recent years. Related to this is the need for Chris- If we set aside the Han Chinese but tians to be able to offer seekers and new include the Japanese—whose Buddhism converts answers, not just to eternal ques- is blended with Shintoism—we still have tions, but also to very real practical ques- a population of between 300 and 350 mil- tions that arise when becoming a Christian lion strongly Buddhist peoples in East conflicts strongly with ethnic identity. Asia. Though the kind of Buddhism var- These questions include: “Whom will I ies—there being Theravada, Mahayana, marry?” “Who will be my friends?” and and Lamaistic Buddhism—the reaction to “Where can I bury my dead?” Death and the gospel is largely similar: polite indif- death rites are particularly serious issues ference that is frustratingly hard to pen- for those from Buddhist and Chinese reli- etrate. Countries like Thailand and Japan gious backgrounds. There are two major have been open to missionaries for more elements to this. One is the relationship than a century, but the church is still rela- with ancestors and finding adequate re- tively small. The good news of Jesus still sponses to ancestor worship, particularly does not seem to have got under the skin 432 responding to the challenges when ancestor veneration and/or worship markable is that before the Communists is often not just a religious activity but is came to power in 1921, Mongolia was an also a critical element in the social hierar- extremely Buddhist country with 700 chy. The other problem is that of fulfilling monasteries and 110,000 lamas. (This filial responsibilities and determining ap- number represented at least a third of the propriate Christian behavior at funerals. total male population.) Mongolia followed Although indifference to the gospel Lamaistic Buddhism, which was intro- leading to high levels of resistance is the duced by Tibetan lamas in the 16th cen- hallmark of many of the purer Buddhist tury. There had been a number of attempts people of East Asia, this has not been as to reach the Mongolians over the centu- true where Buddhism has been blended ries, and there were missionaries in Mon- with other beliefs. The most notable ex- golia until the 1920s; however, when ception is the Han Chinese, among whom Mongolia became Communist, there was dramatic and spontaneous church growth no indigenous Mongolian church. occurred during the second half of the 20th Why the breakthrough now, we must century. This growth has continued and ask? One effect of 65 years of Communist mushroomed without outside assistance. rule has been to break the identification The church has also grown strongly of being Mongolian and being Buddhist. among Koreans, where Buddhism was Although Buddhism is now enjoying a re- mixed with Shamanism and Christianity vival and is still seen as the natural reli- was strongly identified with nationalism. gion of many Mongolians (mixed with Among minority tribal peoples, where Shamanism), it does not have the hold that Buddhism is often mixed with animism, it once had. Humanly speaking, this has there generally has been more response given the gospel an opportunity that it did the more animistic and less Buddhist the not have earlier in the 20th century. people have been. The other place where we have seen a But we are still praying for break- breakthrough is Cambodia. There the through among the purer Buddhist peo- Khmer people have traditionally practiced ples who, as a whole, have been a very a form of Theravada Buddhism that is very unresponsive group. However, there have similar to the highly resistant Theravada been signs of such a breakthrough in two Buddhism practiced in Thailand. Again, places in the last decade—places where we have seen dramatic church growth in the hegemony of Buddhism and ethnic/ the last decade, with the number of Prot- national identity has been broken or re- estant Christians increasing from 1,000 in duced. 1990 to 20,00010 in 1997. This growth out- The first is Mongolia, where for many strips anything happening among Bud- years only a handful of known believers dhists in Thailand. We have been sending existed. Then, in 1990, after 65 years as a Thai missionaries to Cambodia, but it may Russian satellite, the country suddenly not be long before we start sending Cam- became open and democratic. Today there bodian missionaries to Thailand. are at least 40 Mongolian churches and Again we must ask, why the break- between 5,000 and 10,000 Mongolian through? In God’s sovereignty, it may be believers. In 1997, they formed the Mon- that the terrible and traumatic incidents golian Evangelical Fellowship. What is re- that took place under the Khmer Rouge

10 The figure of 20,000 is quoted by the Cambodian Ministry of Religion. the complex spiritual mosaic of east asia 433 have broken the Buddhist cultural hege- Thirty million Muslims are to be found mony and opened hearts to the gospel. At in China. Many of these are in ethnic the same time, we must recognize that the groups such as the Khazak and Uygur, number of believers in both Mongolia and which straddle China’s western borders Cambodia is still less than 0.3% of the with Central Asia. Nearly 9 million are Hui. population. A church movement has be- These people are called Chinese Muslims gun, but there is still much to be done. because many of their customs and their architectural forms are as distinctly Chi- Challenges for the church nese as they are Islamic. But there are reck- Buddhism still stands as an immense oned to be only 50 Christians among the challenge to the church in mission. We Hui and no Hui churches (Paterson, 1999, surely cannot rest until there are sponta- p. 150). There are also other smaller Mus- neously growing church movements lim groups, such as the Salar of Qinghai, among each of the Buddhist peoples of who migrated from Samarkhand in Uz- East Asia. How such movements will be bekistan in the 11th century. These people achieved we do not know. There is no number only 100,000. There are no guaranteed church-planting formula for known believers among them, and as of starting a movement among Buddhists. A January 2000, there were no known Chris- lot of missionary effort will be required, tians trying to reach them. along with a lot of prayer for the break- In contrast to the Buddhists’ smiling through that God alone can give. disinterest, the Muslims are fiercely antagonistic toward any attempts to evan- The World of Islam gelize them. Those who do attempt evan- When we talk of Islam, people usually gelization may face vehement opposition think of the Middle East and perhaps of and even physical danger. Central Asia, but rarely of East Asia.11 How- In Malaysia, the many barriers to shar- ever, nearly a quarter of the world’s Mus- ing Christ with Muslims are reinforced lims live in East Asia, making it a critical with legal restrictions. Although the con- part of the world for mission to Muslims. stitution allows freedom of religion, in- In Southeast Asia, Muslims comprise cluding the freedom to propagate one’s 40% of the total population. In Malaysia, religion, it also allows states to pass laws Indonesia, and Brunei, they are in the controlling and restricting the propaga- majority, with Indonesia having more tion of other beliefs among those profess- Muslims than any other country in the ing the Muslim religion. Most states have world. Muslims form a significant minor- therefore passed laws that effectively for- ity in Myanmar, Southern Philippines, and bid the evangelization of Muslims (Lee Min South Thailand, where they have posed Choon, 1998, pp. 92-98). In 1987, several an armed challenge to the government. Christians and believers from a Malay back- In Singapore, the existence of a significant ground were arrested and held under Muslim minority is the main reason for a Malaysia’s Internal Security Act for evan- rigidly enforced policy of maintaining re- gelizing Muslims (Ho, 1989). Although ligious harmony. they were all eventually released and a

11 This is not just an oversight in Christian mission. Robert Hefner (1997, pp. 8-18) laments and documents how Southeast Asian Islam has been consistently neglected in both Islamic studies and Southeast Asian studies. 434 responding to the challenges successful legal challenge was made particularly in Aceh, which threaten to against arrest under the Internal Security fragment the country. At the same time, Act for religious activities (Lee Min Choon, there are positive factors. There has been 1999, p. 88), this event had a chilling ef- a strong movement for democracy that fect on Muslim evangelism. contributed to the downfall of President Indonesia, despite its massive Muslim Suharto and led to the first authentically population, is not a Muslim country. In- democratic elections in June 1999. As a stead, it has an official ideology called result of those elections, Abdurrahman Pancasila that recognizes five religions: Wahid became President. He is a Muslim Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Roman Ca- cleric and the head of a huge Muslim or- tholicism, and Protestantism. However, ganization, but he is politically moderate, there is a movement within Indonesia to sensitive to Indonesia’s diversity, and in make it an Islamic state, and the greening the past has assisted Christians against of Indonesia (similar in many ways to the persecution. However, his health is poor. saffronization of India) is already steadily At such a time, we certainly need to be underway. The country is currently in tur- very much in prayer for this nation and moil, and some see evidence to suggest our Christian brothers and sisters there. that much of this turmoil has been orches- The international resurgence of Islam trated by those who would seek to make has also affected the region, encouraging Indonesia much more strongly Islamic, as greater assertiveness by Islamic groups well as by those who support former Presi- generally, along with political movements dent Suharto. for an Islamic state in Malaysia and Indo- There has been an increasing campaign nesia. The influence of Middle Eastern against Christians in Indonesia, which is Islam has also been felt more strongly in exemplified in the dramatic increase in the recent decades. In South Thailand, wealthy number of attacks on churches. The fig- Middle Easterners have become the model ures speak for themselves: in the 10 years to emulate rather than the West. There are between 1945 and 1954, no churches were also reports of missions from the Middle attacked; between 1955 and 1964, 2 were East to Muslims in East Asia to strengthen attacked; between 1965 and 1974, 46 were and encourage their weaker brethren. attacked; between 1975 and 1984, 89 were Challenges for the church attacked; between 1985 and 1994, 104 were attacked; and between 1995 and As we think about the church in mis- 1999 (note that this is a five-year, not a sion to Muslims in East Asia, we can re- 10-year period), 355 were attacked. A joice that in all of the East Asian countries number of church leaders claim that Is- where there are large numbers of Muslims lamic troops, sometimes assisted by gov- (Indonesia, 180 million; China, 50 million; ernment troops, are waging a war of Malaysia, 11 million; Philippines, 5 mil- extermination on Christians in the Moluc- lion), there is also a strong and vigorous can islands. Christian church. In Indonesia, churches It is very difficult to know what is re- are established in a number of ethnic ally happening or what the future will groups that are predominantly Muslim. bring. The country is still in an economic In the other East Asian countries, the mess and tottering on the brink of insta- church’s strength is in non-Muslim ethnic bility. The secession of East Timor has re- groups. ignited other secessionist movements, the complex spiritual mosaic of east asia 435

The barriers of language, ethnicity, fear, issues being highlighted. The first is how prejudice, and suspicion between Chris- we regard nominal Christians. The neces- tians and Muslims are often high. The chal- sity of evangelizing nominal Christians was lenge to the churches in these countries particularly stressed. It was noted that is to cross these barriers in such a way as missions research that portrays nominal to share Jesus effectively. Those who are Christians as evangelized could be mis- won to Christ must not be brought back leading, causing misunderstanding and across the divide as trophies. Rather, they undermining this important work. This is need to remain in their communities and particularly an issue in the Philippines, become the core of a growing movement where the majority of the population is to Christ among the Muslims of East Asia. nominally Roman Catholic. Many feel that to achieve this result, The second issue is that of syncretistic there will need to be significant contex- Christianity. Many of those who would be tualization of the form this movement identified as Christians, including Evan- takes. However, it often seems much more gelical Christians, continue with pre- difficult for local churches to understand Christian practices and a worldview that and endorse radical contextualization is incompatible with the Christian faith. than for missionaries from outside, who Thus, for example, some of the animistic are operating at a distance from their own Manobo tribal people in Southern Philip- church communities. Yet the missionaries pines, who responded to the gospel and from outside must also engage with the now, at least in name, are Christians, still Christians inside in getting alongside the need to be evangelized (or re-evangelized) Muslims in these countries. because their understanding is so shallow. In a different way, in Indonesia in the The Church in the 1960s, everyone had to choose one of the Worlds of East Asia five religions recognized by the govern- The church in many parts of East Asia ment—Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, is well established and mature. It not only Buddhism, or Hindu-Bali. Christianity has its own well-qualified leadership, but proved attractive to many animists, be- also is increasingly contributing leadership cause it appeared less restrictive than to the church worldwide. In some coun- some of the others, since adherents could tries of East Asia, the church is large, Evan- still eat pork. It was also attractive to a gelical, and vigorous. This is particularly number of Communists, for whom becom- true in Korea, the Philippines, and China. ing a Christian appeared to be a more pro- Even in countries where the church is nu- gressive step than reverting to being merically small, it is established and ma- Muslim. This forced choosing of a religious ture, as in Japan and Thailand. Mission to affiliation resulted in churches being filled East Asia, even to unreached ethnic groups with unconverted people. within East Asia, must come with respect The East Asian for the church that the Lord has already Church in Mission established. “Established, mature, and Evangelical” One of the great encouragements in is not, however, an accurate description East Asia is the continuing growth in the of all the church in East Asia. The prob- number of missionaries being sent from lem of nominalism was raised in our dis- East Asia to the other parts of East Asia cussion at Iguassu, with two different and the world. The Japanese were some 436 responding to the challenges of the earliest pioneers; in the early 1990s, negative way during the East Asian eco- they had sent more cross-cultural mission- nomic crisis: when the Korean won sud- aries per Evangelical Japanese Christian denly halved in value, many Korean than any other country in East Asia. They missionaries suddenly had to return home were, however, overtaken by the Koreans, or else make stringent economies in or- who had 6,000 Korean missionaries over- der to continue their ministries. But do seas in 1997. Today, the church in tiny wealth and overseas mission necessarily Singapore, though it has not sent the larg- go together? There is an increasing interest number of missionaries, has sent more est in mission among the East Asian missionaries for every 1,000 Christians churches in countries with less developed than any other national church in the economies. This includes the Philippines world (Johnstone, 1998, p. 115). (which had the largest delegation at the The diverse nature of today’s mission second Asian Missions Congress), Indone- force is particularly evident in newly open sia, and East Malaysia. A major challenge countries like Cambodia and Mongolia, for mission in East Asia is developing new which have been allowing foreigners in for models for mission that will break through less than a decade. When I have visited the economic barriers and release this these places, I have been struck by the way force into the harvest field. I do not see the same numerical domi- The largest mission force, however, is nance of Western missionaries from North yet to come. In the 21st century, the church America and Europe that I see in tradi- in China, with its 35-70 million Christians, tional fields. The Westerners are there, but may become the largest sending church so too are missionaries from Korea, Hong in the world. At the moment, it is very Kong, Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, active in reaching other Han Chinese and elsewhere—and they are clearly mak- within China. There are signs of a very ing a significant contribution. small but growing interest in reaching The Asian missionary movement has cross-culturally to China’s minorities. The had its difficulties and challenges, which day will come when Chinese from China it continues to wrestle with. Some were will be a significant part of the cross- addressed at the Asian Missions Con- cultural and overseas mission force gresses held in Seoul, Korea, in 1990 and around the world. in Pattaya, Thailand in 1997. The first congress was a great celebration of the emer- Conclusion gence of the Asian missions movement. As I bring this brief survey to a close, it The second, while continuing to celebrate, must be with apologies for all that has included more reflective evaluation of been missed. This has been an attempt to what needed to be done to ensure that draw with the broad strokes of a Chinese movement’s continued growth and effec- brush-stroke painting rather than with the tiveness. intricate details of Balinese art. I hope the The Asian missionary movement also survey has been helpful. illustrates the strong relationship that of- It is both exciting and daunting to look ten exists between overseas mission and out over East Asia at the dawn of a new economics: missionary sending has been millennium. God has been mightily at strongest where both the church and the work in this part of the world, and yet so national economy have been strong, such many still do not know him or give him as Korea and Singapore. Those who can the glory he is due. Our commission re- pay can go. This was demonstrated in a the complex spiritual mosaic of east asia 437 mains. Our duty is faithfulness. We do not ———. (1998). The church is bigger than you know all that God has in store. But our think: The unfinished work of world . Fearn, Ross-shire, Scot- faith is in the Lord who can and will bring evangelisation land: Christian Focus Publications. glory to his name throughout this part of Lambert, T. (1998, November/December). the world. “Culture Christians”—A new phenomenon. China Insight, p. 1. References ———. (1999). China’s Christian millions: The costly revival. London: Monarch Bhanu, S. (2000). The social impact of the Books. Asian crisis. In Regional Outlook: South- east Asia 2000-2001 (pp. 62-63). Singa- Lee Min Choon. (1999). Freedom of religion pore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. in Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Kairos Research Centre. Covell, R. R. (1995, January). Why I don’t pray for China to open. Evangelical Missions Lee, P. K. H. (1996, December). The “Cultural Quarterly, 31(1), pp. 14-19. Christians” phenomenon in China. Ching Feng: A Journal on Christianity and Chi- Encyclopaedia Britannica. (1998). Asia: Physi- nese Religion and Culture, 39(4), pp. 307- cal and human geography: The land: Re- 321. lief: The regions of Asia. Encyclopaedia Britannica CD 98. CD-ROM. Liu Xiaofeng. (1998, November/December). The phenomenon of “Culture Christians” Evans, G. (1998). The politics of ritual and (T. Lambert, Trans.). China Insight, pp. 2- remembrance: Laos since 1975. Chiang 4. Originally published in Tianzhujiao Mai, Thailand: Silkworm Books. Yanjiu Ziliao [Research Materials on Ca- FEER: Far Eastern Economic Review. (1998). tholicism] in December 1996. Asia 1998 yearbook: A review of the events Marshall, P. (1998, January). Statistics, mission, of 1997. Hong Kong: Review Publishing and human rights. International Bulletin Company. of Missionary Research, 22(1), pp. 2-8. Foster-Carter, A. (1998). North Korea: Four sce- MSC. (1999). What is the MSC? Internet: http:// narios. Internet: http://www.megastories.com/ www.mdc.com.my/msc/index.html. Ac- nkorea/scenario/scenario.htm. Accessed cessed March 31, 2000. December 20, 1999. Muzaffar, C. (1985). Malayism, Bumiputraism, Freeman, N. J., & Than, M. (2000). Economic and Islam. In I. Ahmad, S. Siddique, & Y. outlook: Indochina and Myanmar. In Re- Hussain (Eds.), Readings on Islam in gional Outlook: Southeast Asia 2000-2001 Southeast Asia (pp. 356-361). Singapore: (pp. 68-84). Singapore: Institute of South- Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. Ex- east Asian Studies. cerpted from C. Muzaffar (Ed.). (1979). Hamilton, D. (1987). Tentmakers speak: Prac- Universalism of Islam. Penang, Malaysia: tical advice from over 400 missionary Aliran. tentmakers. Ventura, CA: Regal Books. Naisbitt, J. (1996). Megatrends Asia: Eight Hefner, R. W. (1997). Politics and religious re- Asian megatrends that are reshaping our newal in Muslim Southeast Asia. In R. W. world. New York: Simon & Schuster. Hefner & P. Horvatich (Eds.), Islam in an Noland, M. (Ed.). (1998). Economic integra- era of nation-states (pp. 3-40). Honolulu, tion of the Korean peninsula. Papers pre- HI: University of Hawaii Press. sented at a conference of the same name, Ho, D. K. C. (1989). The church in the Islamic Arlie House, Washington, September 5-6, context: Malaysian Christian released. In 1997. Institute for International Econom- Bong Rin Ro (Ed.), Christian suffering in ics. Asia (pp. 101-103). Taichung, Taiwan: Asia Paterson, R. (1999). The continuing heartcry Theological Association. for China. Tonbridge, England: Sovereign Johnstone, P. (1993). Operation world: The Word. day-by-day guide to praying for the world (5th ed.). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House. 438 responding to the challenges

Patten, C. (1998). East and West: The last gov- Ian Prescott ernor of Hong Kong on power, freedom, was born in En- and the future. London: MacMillan Pub- gland and grew lishers Ltd. up in Argentina Tennent, T. C. (1998). Equipping missionaries and Scotland. for the resistant. In Reaching the resistant: He studied engi- Barriers and bridges for mission (pp. 221- neering in Cam- 231). (Evangelical Missiological Society Se- bridge, where ries No. 6.) Pasadena, CA: William Carey he met Anne- Library. Marie. Together Ward, T. (1999, October). Repositioning mis- they joined sion agencies for the 21st century. Interna- OMF Interna- tional Bulletin of Missionary Research, tional and 23(4), pp. 146-153. served nine years in the Warren, M. A. C. (1976). I believe in the Great Philippines, where they were involved in Commission. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. planting two churches and supervising a va- Eerdmans Publishing Co. riety of other ministries. In 1996, Ian became OMF’s International Director for Evangeliza- tion, based in Singapore and responsible for OMF’s field work throughout East Asia. Ian and Anne-Marie have three children, all born in the Philippines and currently schooling in Malaysia and India. 30

HE MAN HAD WITHDRAWN from the worldly busyness A vision T of the market place. As all men seeking holiness, he de- sired revelation from beyond. Traveling with his uncle across from the the deserts as a young boy, he had come across the many religious expressions of the business centers of Western Asia. world There he had met the Jews and Christians also. Could it be that his own many gods in the temple of Mecca were blas- beyond: phemous? Islam His meditation was abruptly ended as a light appeared. In fear, the man tried to escape the angelic being from a world beyond. Wherever he looked, the vision could not be escaped. Silence was broken by a voice demanding, “Recite!” Bertil Shaken by the experience, he made his way down the Engqvist mountain to his home. He tried to describe the dreadful sight to his wife, Khadija. The former rather rich widow, slightly older than he was, lovingly shared that God would never allow an evil spirit to come to him. Destiny and calling came to Muhammad, and with them a new era dawned in the history of mankind, in the year 610.

A Vision for the World Beyond

A prominent leader of the Hizbollah party in Lebanon was asked if he wanted to see all of Lebanon become Mus- lim. He looked intensely at his questioner, then answered, “No.” Quickly he added, “I want the world.” That has been the intention from the beginning of Islam. Perhaps we could question the motivation, but believing the best would be to understand that there was a genuine concern that people were not submitting to God and that it was time to establish the will of God among the peoples.

439 440 responding to the challenges

In Islamic teaching, there are only two lieve in God the Father, God the Mother, groups of people: the House of God and and God the Son! In amazement we would the House of War (those that have rebelled try to communicate that that is not what or live in ignorance). Either you are in, or we believe. But many Muslims are con- you are out. The struggle for souls has vinced that this is indeed our belief. been one in which people should leave The vision of God should be looked at their way of unbelief. The mission of Is- again. In Matthew 16:16, Peter exclaims, lam is to call people back to their submit- “You are the Christ, the Son of the living ted place under God’s sovereign rule. God!” Jesus quickly points out that this This rule of God has not been limited was a spiritual revelation. “This was not to a geographical area. God is a God of revealed to you by man, but by my Father all. Islam’s rapid spread across the north in heaven” (v. 17). Let us be careful with of Africa, across European soil, and toward the mystery of our faith and not be too Asia was to establish God’s rule over all snappy with our Muslim friends who do people. However, there has always been not understand what Peter didn’t under- room for the non-atheist and the mono- stand, nor anyone else. theistic believer. In certain areas, it was seen as liberation. Indeed, there have even A Vision been circumstances in which the Chris- Given to Muhammad tians and Jews were better off under Is- “You Christians are funny!” the busi- lamic rule than under the brutal hands of nessman from Saudi Arabia said. “You certain Byzantine rulers, who ruthlessly want the latest of everything, but not when killed anyone opposing their power or it comes to religion. There you hold onto doctrine! the things from the time before Muham- mad received his revelation.” A Vision of God There is another name for Muhammad: The call is a call back to the basics, to the “Seal of the Prophets.” Muslims de- the One God who is sovereign and abso- clare him to be the last of the prophets. lute. Man should not even think that he In Islam, previous revelations are super- has freedom or power. No, God is sover- seded by the final. Muslims would even eign. He is so sovereign that we cannot use John 16:7 to confirm the finality of rightly accept anything but as from God. the Prophet. Their argument is that para- In the daily life, there are the “if God wills.” kletos (“the helper”) should be periklutos It might be good or bad, but nothing can (“the praised”), which is “Ahmed” or “Mu- threaten the position of God. Man’s rela- hammad” in Arabic. tionship becomes, then, that of a slave to Muhammad’s central place is seen in a master. God is God, and man exists to sayings such as, “No one will meet God serve. God doesn’t have any equal or son. that has not met Muhammad first.” Com- This is where we get into conflict. What pare this with Jesus’ declaration, “No one about Jesus? Is he the Son of God? Our comes to the Father except through me,” Muslim friends would oppose that state- in John 14:6. The basic creed of the Mus- ment strongly. Why? Because there is no lim is, “There is no God beside God, and God beside God. “You believe in three Muhammad is the messenger of God.” The Gods!” they would say with dismay. “Me? messenger or apostle is there at the heart No way!” Some of the more uneducated of the creed, the very testimony through Muslims would gladly explain that we be- a vision from the world beyond: islam 441 which one becomes a Muslim. Say it three Muslim nations … agreeing to protect times with intensity, and you are there! spiritual, ethical, social, and economical Muslim values.” A Vision of Renewal The Muslim World League, founded in All world powers experience periods 1961, declared during their conference of increase and of decline. Such is the case held in Mecca in 1974 that they needed to with Islamic rule as well. cooperate not only in the realm of eco- As 18th century Europe grew in power, nomics, but also in their mission activi- the Ottoman Empire was gradually parti- ties which needed to increase. Sheikh tioned, marking a general decline in Is- Saleh al-Ghazzas emphasized the need to lamic power until political and economic “develop a coordination plan for all Mus- developments of the late 20th century. At lim activities in the whole world, to reach this time, as the post-Christian nations of maximum result and a minimum of du- the West fell more and more under the plication and waste.” power of a materialistic view based on Let us look at one more statement. The humanism and socialism, their own spiri- Islamic World Festival was held in London tual emphases diminished. Instead, wel- in 1976, with the goal of letting Europe fare had taken the church’s place, and become familiar with Islam. At a related Mammon grew fat again. The Industrial meeting, Prince Muhammad Ibn-Faisal World was run on oil from mainly Islamic stated, “Islam doesn’t belong to East or countries. When the taps were tightened, West. It is God’s message … to each man discussions could begin! Black gold be- whatever his background, nationality, came a valuable resource used to favor the color, race, or language might be.… The cause of Islam. answer [to the challenge of this era] lies Islam has not had this much success in a rediscovery of the controlling prin- since their troops stormed across Europe ciples of human issues, shortly in the rein the 8th century (finally stopped in the discovery of man’s relationship with God. Battle of Tours in modern-day central The Koran is inviting all those who belong France) or since Islam was knocking at the to the Prophet Abraham to help each other gates of Vienna during the Ottoman Em- to reach the goal that makes it possible pire. Today the success is of a different for mankind to live in peace with God, kind. It is an issue of teaching and pen- through submitting to his will.” It was also etration through the movements of peo- stated that, “Man is looking for a new fu- ples due to wars, famines, or economic ture.… Islam is today offering mankind developments. … a new alternative as a foundation for It is obvious that a political and eco- the order of life and society.” st nomic bloc is created in areas where there As we enter the 21 century, that vi- is a dominance of Muslim lands. Organi- sion of the Muslims has not faded but de- zations such as the Arab League, OAU, veloped in such a way that we today have OPEC, and others have become global over 15 satellites and hundreds of radio power factors. In the introduction to the stations broadcasting Islamic teaching. 1970 Islamic Conference in Jeddah, the Scores of publishing houses, university foreign ministers from about 25 Muslim courses, and cultural centers around the nations agreed that their “common faith world exist with the purpose of sharing is a strong factor in drawing nearer and their message. TV stations are focusing on establishing an understanding between the demands from an ever-increasing Mus- lim population as they claim their right- 442 responding to the challenges ful say in the development of the nations. Even in our high-tech global village, Through immigration, both voluntary and there is segregation based on the differ- forced, we find that today some of the ences of origin and religion. The great 1,200,000 Muslims live in each of the na- migrating groups are definitely harassed tions of the world. in many nations. Fear and separation become further ingrained. The migrants seek A Sad Vision their identity deeper within themselves, The problems that the church is facing in their culture, language, and religion. are multifaceted. We have a history of A Vision of Today scars. From the old days of laughing at Mu- hammad in his search for truth, through As we look at the world today, we the history with Crusades and wars, even would see that the diversity among Mus- into this new millennium, Russia’s bomb- lims is as great as that among Christians. ing of Chechnya is perceived by many as “Who is a Muslim?” is not as easy to an- being the Christians bombing the Muslims. swer today as it probably was in the 7th The vision of the ruins of Grozny is as sad century. It is not only the fact that Islam is as the ruins of the Crusaders’ castles along spread among all colors and races, but the road to Jerusalem. there are definite variations of Islam. Mus- Apart from these political marks along lims are facing issues similar to those the the path of reconciliation, there are the church faces as splits and sects are formed. scars that minorities from both sides bear. Islam also has a tendency to be eclectic As the Bolsheviks crushed the Muslim and contextualized. Therefore, the Mus- tribes in Central Asia, so the Muslims in lims of Central Asia will be different in Indonesia treat the Chinese Christians. We many ways from the Muslims of Suriname, can understand the effects of the broken the American Black Muslim will be differ- Balkans, where Christian Serbs fight Mus- ent from the Bedouin Muslims of Gaza, lim Albanians. and the city-dwelling Muslims of Damascus Then we have the prejudice of both will be different from the rural Muslims of sides. A Russian Christian believer who left Malaysia. Central Asia talks about die Schwarze (“the Christian missionary pioneers knew at black ones”), referring to the majority the end of the 19th century what today the people among whom he lived all his life, church worldwide is suddenly aware of. without learning either their language or The breakdown of the former Soviet culture. This is often a problem where Union has opened the eyes of many to see minority groups of Christians live among that in that old bloc there were millions the majority Muslims. The minority has who counted themselves as Muslims, a been extremely protective, which is under- thing made obvious as the new republics standable in the light of potential perse- seek their identity. The trend in many cution. “A poor status quo is better than countries in Africa seems likewise to be a losing all,” goes the reasoning. However, stronger recognition of Islam, as some it is also a matter of cultural preservation. even introduce Sharia law (Islamic law In an attempt to protect traditions, one which is not bound to any geographical group keeps to itself even when it comes region). Now we see it clearly: the Arabs to questions of marriage. None of the are not the only Muslims. Actually, the groups wants to be diluted or, worse, de- great majority of Muslims are not Arabs! filed. a vision from the world beyond: islam 443

A Muslim is a person like any other. together with the local people during the The father is wondering where to get fighting in Lebanon. They had a wonderful money to provide for his family. A mother time of witnessing as they were sharing in is worrying about her sick child. A teen- the suffering of the people. Suddenly the ager is under pressure from her peers. battleship New Jersey launched its rocket Where do I get a job? Whom shall I marry? attack on the hills above Beirut. The at- What is there to eat? What will my parents mosphere changed in the shelter, and say? How can we buy a home of our own? someone said, “That is your ship!” What are these foreigners teaching? Some years ago, I came back from a The Muslims are not only the tradi- former Soviet republic where there was a tional blocs of peoples, but there is an struggle by the Islamic forces to take over increase in their numbers in nations that the government. I cannot forget the look traditionally have another religion, such on the faces of my dear American col- as Korea or Germany. These are Muslims leagues as I asked them to pray that the who have migrated or through marriage Communists would remain in power! An or conversion have become Muslim. We unthinkable thought, it seemed. must forget the camel-riding, sword- Many long-term missionaries thought swinging image of old movies and The that the Gulf War could have been an an- Arabian Nights, an image that anyway is swer to prayer, as it seemed to have the so false. Instead, we must look at the tech- potential of opening up some of the least nological wizards, professional soccer accessible nations for the gospel. But few players, and scientists in Australia, Singa- ever considered that the oil-rich countries pore, France, and elsewhere. being attacked were also the powers behind the spread of Islam. Was it because A Vision Unnoticed the welfare of the West was threatened that Many of those early Asian missionary those nations acted so harshly against Iraq? pioneers wrote about their experiences An interesting twist on the political across the Silk Road, into the Asian sub- scene is the change of regime and system continent, and down the Arabian Penin- in South Africa. Suddenly there is a new- sula. However, only a few wrote in English. found eagerness on the part of many in This was and is a problem, as there has the church. They are ready to get involved, been an accepted tradition in modern feeling they want to do something, now mission that if it isn’t done in English, it that the isolation is broken. With the isn’t done! This tradition is very unfortu- growth of the church in Latin America and nate when it comes to mission. It could in South Korea, two other major sectors be particularly damaging as we look at the of the church are on the scene. Neither of political involvement of nations easily these areas is English speaking! It is good identified as English speakers, particularly to know that the Holy Spirit demonstrates the United States and Great Britain. It is a his skill in languages, as in Acts 2:4-12! reality that we have to consider. I am not pointing a finger at any cer- This political identification or associa- tain nationality. However, we have to be tion can be difficult to avoid, but we must aware of the reality. The problem would be aware of it. Either we communicate the be similar for a Han Chinese to communi- view of our own governments, or people cate with a Muslim Uighur in Xinjiang, or might attach that view to us. Once two for a Serb to witness to a Kosovar, or for a American women were sitting in a shelter Greek to witness to a Turk. These hostili- ties are based on historical political devel- 444 responding to the challenges opments that might have nothing to do ignorance anymore. We know where the with the individual in question, but he or unreached live. We know their languages. she is still subject to the circumstances and We know how to get there. We have all the history. knowledge—but if we do not have love, Unless we accept the fact that Christ is we are nothing. Love believes all things; building his church (Matt. 16:18), we eas- therefore, we should press on by faith until ily would come with our own models of all have heard. what the church should be and look like. In John 4, we see the Master go to That could well be an Anglo-Saxon model. Samaria. The Scripture states that he had Never mind what nationality would try to to go there, although he was also tired. It realise it, but due to the common theo- is not by feelings that we do the will of logical educational system, the model is God, but by obedience. The Jews had likely to be Anglo-Saxon. This might be nothing to do with the Samaritans, but one of the great threats to the develop- God did. He had a message for them. The ment of the church among the majority disciples were puzzled by the Master who peoples. Our knowledge might become a spoke to the Samaritan woman. They hindrance, as we are rather set in our ways could only engage in commerce with the and in our understanding. Our knowledge Samaritans. At times, we are like that too. actually creates detachment from the so- We exclude the Muslims, although we ciety and causes misunderstandings. For don’t mind envisioning the regions as example, we may have a problem if the tourist sites or doing business with them— translated songs become a major element particularly buying oil or using their for- in the worship of the newly formed fel- tune. lowships. In one Muslim country, I heard The disciples were told to lift their eyes the missionary teach that the local instru- to see the harvest, but it was nothing like ments were of the devil and that their tra- what they expected. Beyond the muddy ditional way of singing was spiritistic. hills, they saw the commotion among the Samaritans. There was a movement among A Vision of the Harvest the ones whom the Jews considered un- Having recognised that there are prob- touchables. But the Master had touched lems, we still have to move ahead. It is the Samaritans through the testimony of not my intention to discourage us, but an outcast. I think there is a movement rather to have us in all humility seek a among the people of Islam today. Who solution to the issues at stake in the Mus- takes credit for it is in one way unimpor- lim world. We all have a role to play. The tant. What matters is that the Master is thought of reaching the whole world is touching the Muslims today. There is a not one invented in a Bible college some- harvest already as thousands of Muslims where, but it is the desire of the God of are turning to Jesus—for instance, across love and compassion. It is his idea, and Central Asia and among the Iranians both we have the privilege to work with him. inside and outside their nation. There are What bothers me is that we actually surely still unreached peoples, but that have the knowledge and the capacity to should not stop us from following the deliver the good news to the Muslim Master’s vision. peoples, but we do not have the compassion to do it. We cannot say that we live in a vision from the world beyond: islam 445

A Vision of the Bride pel brought to every Muslim man and woman, even if it carried a high price tag The final vision is one of the bride of on it (Col. 1:24-29)? Would we be deter- Christ, the one that will make herself ready mined to see these peoples as a part of (Rev. 19:7). As we consider the unreached our everyday life? It might be through peoples of the world, we need to let prayer or giving to a particular purpose, knowledge express itself in action. The e.g., Scriptures to the Pamyrians. Would vision that God has shown us is an inclu- we take it so seriously that we would ac- sive vision. All peoples. That includes the tually talk about it, plan for it, and then Muslims. To take it even further, if the do it? Baluch or Qashqai or Lezgian people are In the first year of this millennium, an not a part of the people reached, then the estimated two million Muslims went on bride has not made herself ready. With the the pilgrimage to Mecca. There has never eyes of faith, we can take the facts as they been a Christian gathering of that size. are today and transform them into a vi- Millions across the globe celebrate the sion of what will be tomorrow. The Lord’s Feast of the Sacrifice. This is one of the statement, “I will build my church,” means greatest feasts in Islam. It is a remem- exactly that. brance of Abraham’s sacrifice, but they Understanding the commitment of our don’t know that God’s true sacrifice of the Christian brothers and sisters in Muslim Lamb has been given for them. However, regions, particularly those coming from one day there will be a gathering that no Islamic backgrounds, we need to listen one can count. The day will come when respectfully to them. We need to support people from Libya, Turkmenistan, Bangla- their ministry through prayer and re- desh, and all other Muslim nations will sources in a wise, non-directive way. We together worship the Lamb. It is time to must want them to succeed, even if that prepare for the wedding of the Lamb! would mean less for others to report or take credit for. Their risk-taking is normally Bertil Engqvist, a far beyond that of most followers of Christ. Swedish artist, “You are my crown,” Paul says of the be- turned to Christ in lievers in Thessalonica and Philippi. Would 1965 at the age of 23 we say so too of the peoples that are said in the midst of a successful career. In to be unreached at the beginning of the 1968, he and his third millennium? wife Gunnel moved What does it take, then, to see the bride to the Middle East of the Lamb ready? Instead of a warfare with Operation Mo- mentality, we need the mentality of our bilization and re- self-sacrificing Master to display the love mained in the region with their three children until 1992. After serving in the Arab world, of God in all its beauty. This is the time he became OM’s Area Coordinator for the for us to make an inventory of the way we Middle East in 1986 and later also for Cen- use our time and finances. This goes for tral Asia. He is also the founder and Inter- missions, churches, and individuals. The national Director of Operation Mercy, an mental transformation is a change Paul affiliated relief and development organization. The Engqvists have been missionaries writes of in Romans 12:1-2. We need to with the Swedish agency InterAct since 1979, let Christ control our thoughts (2 Cor. seconded to OM. 10:5-6). Would we aim to see the full gos-

“ Y NAME’S EZEKIEL, but you probably don’t recognise Dry M me.” Some day, a film producer will make a blockbuster based bones on Ezekiel’s prophecy. It has all the ingredients: colour, noise, drama, a tumbling succession of strong visual images, bi- in the zarre events, out-of-body experiences, riveting characters, intense emotion, even a heart-tugging love story. West The trouble is that no producer would know what to do with the real meaning of the story, if he even grasped it. How could he ever come to grips with God? He’d probably Rose have to edit him out (just imagine, Ezekiel minus God!). He Dowsett would have to cast the story as fiction (science fiction maybe) of a pre-scientific era (plenty of scope here for amazing vehicles, journeys through space, and special effects). Or maybe it could be classed as fantasy—fantasy on a par with a cross- fertilisation of The Hobbit with Mickey Mouse (though with a much weaker moral framework than either of those). A producer would need to be politically correct (tricky, with all those references to Israel, war, animal sacrifice, and women’s “monthly uncleanness,” to name but a few; quite a few potential lobby groups to keep a wary eye on, there, but nothing that some extensive editing couldn’t handle). And he’d need to tone down the religion bits (though a good New Age spirituality spin would be fine). But none of these obstacles need stand in the way. In the post-modern world, a producer would have no scruples, moral or intellectual, no restraints of reverence or commitment to truth, to prevent him from changing anything he wished or, for that matter, plagiarising anything that appealed to him. He’d simply do whatever he wanted, taking artistic

447 448 responding to the challenges

(or any other) autonomy for granted. other experience to hold their attention. Likely to make a huge killing at the box Briefly and only on the surface. So what? office? Go for it! Just make sure you get The producer made his money; the audi- the right screen idol to play the role of ence whiled away an hour or two pleasur- Ezekiel, and success is pretty much guar- ably enough; life goes on. anteed. It wouldn’t cross the producer’s Mind you, in heaven, Ezekiel doesn’t mind that the copyright for the story-line recognise himself. It was a reinvented belongs to God—and anyway, who’s go- stranger on the screen in the cinema and ing to sue on his behalf? on the screen of their minds. If they Perhaps this seems a far-fetched sce- stopped to think about it at all, they didn’t nario. To be sure, a mere 40 years ago no know that that was so. Come to think of mainstream film producer would have it, by the time they stepped out of the cin- contemplated behaving in such a way, ema, they didn’t even recall his name. The though the really avant garde, with their producer used a nickname “to resonate tiny audiences, might dare anything. Let better with today’s world.” Ezekiel has a imagination run riot in producing “Ben new identity, a million new identities, no Hur,” yes. But Ezekiel, gutted, freeze- identity at all. No matter. Life goes on. dried, and reconstituted radically differ- Maybe. ently? No! Yet today, most of the assumptions that Short Circuits in Reality would have kept “Ben Hur” in one cat- The preceding scenario was intended egory and Ezekiel in another have been to crank up your imagination a little and, swept away. Today, they’re both just sto- especially if you are a Western Christian ries, imaginary stories about a past we can- ostrich (with your head hidden in the not really know, and even if we could sand), perhaps to rattle you a little. For know it, would it really matter? We are the fact is that we in the West badly need disconnected from history. And with sto- to be rattled. Indeed, like the dry bones ries, you are entitled to tell them any way Ezekiel so famously saw in his vision in you wish, with or without the author’s the valley, we desperately need God not permission. The book, the film, and the only to rattle us back into shape, but also book of the film of the book need have to re-clothe us in healthy flesh and then little in common, maybe not even a title. to pour new life into us by his Spirit. We, Fiction is there to be customised, like most too, are very dry bones indeed. other things, to suit yourself. Let the con- The church in the West is in deep sumer reign supreme. The producer wants trouble. That is not to say that there are to do it his way. The trick is to persuade no signs of spiritual life at all. In the grace the audiences through carefully designed of God, there are evidences here and there advertising that he is doing it their way of authentic, God-breathed vitality. None- too. theless, these are mostly few and far be- He probably is. That’s why it’s a block- tween in much of the West. Some former buster. And that’s also why those in the strongholds of Christendom are now spiri- audience go away with each having seen tual wastelands. And even where the a subtly different story, and they are con- church is more visible, even very active, tent that it is so. “This is what it means to there may be very troubling questions me,” they say, and they go home to party about its health in terms of truth and faith- or to sleep. Tomorrow, there will be an- fulness. More perhaps than we find com- dry bones in the west 449 fortable, we need to face the fact: the even (if we come from that sort of church) church in the West is in deep trouble. enjoy the adrenaline rush of upbeat events It is, of course, a mistake to think that well orchestrated or the satisfaction of being only a minority, sometimes a very aesthetic pleasure. On the other hand, we tiny minority, is the trouble. Neither the may feel rather aggrieved, as if God hasn’t Lord Jesus himself nor the early church treated us very nicely (even, we may think, regarded minority status as abnormal. It fairly), if life is hard going. (Surely, he owes was only with the advent of Christendom us something better in return for our ef- that the church was seduced into believ- forts on his behalf?) Meanwhile, heads ing that she should exercise majority con- down, let’s get on with the real business trol by force, not faith (in parts of Europe, of life like everyone else: getting and we are still paying the price for that wrong spending, eating and drinking, raising turning). Nor is it even enough to point families, avoiding sickness, staving off to the fact that that minority is shrinking death. to something smaller still, distressing All this is very far removed from the though that should be. We may, in the radical Christianity of the New Testament. mercy of God, be better able to see our- There we find a template of lives lived selves clearly and honestly for the first time entirely differently after conversion from in a long time, when our poverty and na- those lived before. Not that the early Chris- kedness show up undisguised by nomi- tians are to be idealised, as if they were nal adherents. Alternatively, of course, it perfect. They weren’t. But both the Lord’s may be that the very size of some congre- teaching and that of the apostles point to gations, especially some of today’s so- a radical new life that is to be shown in called mega-churches, is presumed to be the lives of Christian believers, at every evidence that all is well and that the level of the human personality. We are to church is successful, hiding deeper and be profoundly different from those around less palatable realities. No, size and num- us in the way we think, in the way we be- bers are not an adequate measurement of have, in our inter-relatedness with fellow health and life. believers, in our values and worldview, More fundamentally, the real trouble and in all our relationships with the world. is that the church in the West, in very large Being men and women of faith involves measure, is indistinguishable from the having our lives shaped first and foremost world. We have lost our way and, with it, not by what is seen (for that must pass the integrity of new-creation-life. We have away) but by what is unseen (for that is been taken captive, and we haven’t even real and eternal reality). Truth, which must noticed. We are like dry-boned skeletons define the unseen (after all, animists and harmlessly, powerlessly clanking in our New Agers also live by the unseen), is not chains, while the world goes out to play. deduced by human reasoning but given We think and act like the world, with the sovereignly by divine revelation. We most thinnest veneer of difference. There is a urgently need to be deeply changed by profound and widespread biblical illit- God’s Word. eracy. Consequently, we are happy enough To follow such a pattern, of course, has for the cosy psychological release of sins always required Christian people to live forgiven (vaguely understood) and the on something of a collision course with choice of club (the church) to meet with much of their culture. In the West, the dis- congenial people to pursue our hobby sonance between living the way of Chris- (Christianity) from time to time. We may tian faith and the way of the prevailing 450 responding to the challenges culture has steadily increased over recent ments had extended the jurisdiction of the centuries. But it was in the 20th century church alongside those of the Crown(s) especially that the church in the West ca- and commerce. It was confidently ex- pitulated spectacularly but, paradoxically, pected that within a few years the heathen without recognising that that was what she everywhere would have been gathered in, had done. In the 21st century, the crisis of and every other religion would have qui- falling numbers may, with hindsight, be etly disappeared. In many European coun- seen to be the least of the church’s prob- tries, the 19th century had also seen a lems. To focus primarily on numbers massive church building programme in short-circuits reality. The bones are indeed the expanding cities. Towering cathedrals numerous. They are also very dry. and multiple churches appeared to testify to the approval of the God who was so The 20th Century: signally (and, they felt, understandably) Free Fall From Grace blessing them. But buildings are never the For Europe, the 20th century began same as life. with a blaze of confidence—and the The Trojan horse was already within church basked in the glow. To be sure, for the city walls, for much of the confidence the church, there were some disquieting was fixed firmly in the capacity of human signs for those who cared to look. France, beings to conquer and control the world for example, with 100 years of aggressive and to do these things without divine as- rationalism and humanism behind it, al- sistance. Ironically, what had begun as an ready presaged what would happen else- expression of faith became its undermin- where, with the church sidelined and held ing. The modern scientific enterprise grew in contempt by more and more of the precisely out of the belief that the God population and with Christian convictions who had created the world had created it largely excluded from public discourse. with coherence and dependability, with But if France was an embarrassment to the laws and order reflecting divine reliabil- church, her gaiety, especially in Paris, her ity. So it followed that the study of the lively philosophers, and her scientific and natural world and of astronomy, physics, artistic achievements ensured her popu- mathematics, and, later, every other larity as a kind of loveable rascal. For those branch of science would lead to more de- who wished to be so persuaded, the mes- vout worship of God. As science disclosed sage from France was clear: shake off the hitherto undreamed-of intricacies, it shackles of the church and enjoy the free- would only serve to show how marvellous dom. Moreover, by and large, Europeans the Creator was. were supremely confident that their cul- But with all the tragic inevitability of tures were superior, that their empires fallenness, before long scientists were were secure, and that progress and grow- obsessed with their discoveries, not with ing prosperity were inevitable. Human the One to whom those discoveries achievement, especially European human pointed. Reverent exploration of God’s achievement, need know no limits. world became proud explanation of man’s The church shared that confidence, world. The agricultural revolution, then ironically supported the institutions and the industrial revolution, and more re- policies that seemed to be at the forefront cently the medical and technological revo- of progress, and benefited from the pros- lutions have each in turn (alongside their perity. The 19th century missionary move- many undisputed benefits) also reinforced dry bones in the west 451 human arrogance. Humankind, entrusted trol over nature is, most Europeans—even by God with dominion over the world on those who discovered the emptiness of his behalf, instead usurped control and Marxism’s promises—have not returned banished God. to the church. The dream has changed, Many Christians, in both the 19th and but Christianity is not a part of the new early 20th centuries, especially those with dream either. certain eschatological views, readily bought into the belief in progress. A growing num- Christianity Discarded ber of people continued to attend church Once the great cathedrals and abbeys only as a matter of social correctness or as of Europe towered over life below and a cultural habit, rather than as a commit- pointed to the transcendent. Now the new ment of personal faith on which they had cathedrals dedicated to commerce and fre- staked their lives. As science grew in con- netic human pride dwarf the ancient fidence and supplied “expert” answers in buildings and, Tower-of-Babel-like, scrape ever expanding areas of human life, the the sky. All over Europe, cathedrals and Christian faith was regarded increasingly churches are tourist attractions—muse- at best as a matter of private and personal ums declaring the subliminal message, conviction. Sadly, Christians ceded first in- “Past but not present, quaint but irrel- tellectual ground (for example, miracles evant, art of a bygone age, empty house should be discarded because they are “su- for rent”—while the shopping malls shout, perstitious,” or they should be reinter- “Come and worship! Here’s life!” and buzz preted with scientific explanations), then with purpose and participation. moral ground. Religion had been priva- In a visual age, architecture matters. tised. Europe became more and more But even more, the media, especially the openly secular. visual media, shape minds and lives and It is also hard to over-estimate the dam- overwhelm us in images and impressions age done to the Christian cause in Europe and presuppositions we are not even by two world wars. It is arguable that the aware of. The media sell us a dream, pack- spectacle of allegedly Christian nations aged as a promise. The media sell us opin- tearing each other to shreds in barbaric ion, packaged as truth; fantasy, packaged manner undermined the credibility of the as fact. When it comes to Christianity, the church in many people’s minds. It also media pounce gleefully on every church made possible the Russian Revolution and scandal, every internecine squabble, every the tide of Marxism on the one hand and whiff of heresy (or conviction), and they completely entrenched secular humanism render not only the church but by asso- through the rest of Europe on the other. ciation God as ridiculous, puerile, and ab- While many people turned to the church surd. In the ubiquitous TV soaps, watched in the dark days of war, in days of peace by millions, Christians (and especially they left it again. They had regained con- clergy) are portrayed as bigots or fools. No trol. God was unnecessary. Men returning wonder that the world, relentlessly tutored home after surviving the unspeakable bru- by the media, is convinced that the church talities of war abandoned the church in has nothing to say that’s worth listening disillusioned droves. to. Christians are a bunch of hypocrites And even when events have shown who shouldn’t be allowed to peddle their how little faith deserves to be put in hu- prejudices in the world of public affairs. man nature, how double-edged “progress” The gospel is an out-of-date, discredited is, and how incredibly precarious the con- 452 responding to the challenges fairy story where nobody lived happily ever world, though this time less through di- after. As for Jesus, he may or may not have rect military might and more through tech- been a good guy—who knows? Whatever, nological and economic control. We live he comes in handy as a swearword. in a cauldron of religious pluralism, with But before we despair utterly, let us institutionalised (as well as popular) op- remind ourselves that we are to be men position to claims to the uniqueness of and women of faith, locked onto and living Christ as the only truth and the only Sav- by God’s truth. So, whatever our culture iour. We live in cultures where Christian- shouts so stridently, whatever appearances ity has been so marginalised that most may be, we need to go behind and beyond people could not articulate clearly the core to what God says is in fact the case. And it beliefs of the Christian faith, and indeed is there, of course, that we see a gloriously increasing numbers of men and women different picture. This is not because of live out their lives without ever encoun- human ability (and insofar as the church tering the gospel in coherent form. became captive to the humanism and Many Christians from the first three pride of secularism, it is just as well that centuries of the church would identify recent events have shaken us out of it: let with most if not all of these characteris- us repent and put such sin behind us). tics. The details may be different, but the No, it is all to do with the grace and un- general picture bears significant similari- changeable character of God. The world ties. In particular, and fundamentally, the may think it has discarded God and the church in the post-modern West, with Christian faith, but God is not so easily rather few exceptions, must come to terms dislodged. His ultimate triumph is abso- with weakness rather than power as the lutely assured. base from which she operates. The early church did not have to be told that: it was Revisiting the their daily experience, vividly underlined Pre-Constantinian Church through persecution and martyrdom and In some ways, we are back where we injustice. The post-modern church is re- started. Of course, that is not entirely true. luctant to face up to her changed circum- There have been 20 centuries of Christian stances. After all, post-modern culture sees history, which have indelibly marked much weakness as failure, power as achieve- of the world besides shaping the church. ment. So then, who finds it comfortable In that sense, we cannot go back to where to own up to failure? we started. But in other ways, we are per- Yet here, surely, is precisely where we haps closer to the context of the pre- need the courage to embrace the true Constantinian church than we realise. paradox of the cross. To follow in the foot- For the first time in 15 centuries, steps of the Lord Jesus Christ, we must be through most of Europe, the church has prepared to empty ourselves of all power, neither political nor economic nor edu- all rights, all status. It is when we not only cational power. It has a diminishing role preach “the foolishness of the cross,” but in public discourse, though some legal also—far more costly—live “the foolish- systems and some widely held moral val- ness of the cross” that the power of God ues owe far more to their Christian roots is displayed to the world. To be sure, we than the church’s detractors would care live not only this side of Calvary, but also to admit. We find ourselves in the midst this side of the resurrection and of Pente- of a struggle to conquer and unify the cost. Nonetheless, like the Master, we are called to give ourselves up to the cross; dry bones in the west 453 then God will pour out the blessings of mation, it is sobering to wonder what all that followed. If, however, we rush to might have happened had the church con- embrace the triumph of the resurrection sistently and corporately “taken up the and of Pentecost, by-passing the cross, we cross.” find ourselves grasping nothing. As it was The challenge to us today in the West for the Lord, so it is for us: without death is to do exactly that. there is no life. Perhaps if we understood this principle From the Past to the better, we would not designate churches Present to the Future “successful” because they are large or Christians, of all people, should take popular or wealthy. This is the language history seriously. The Bible makes that of power. Rather, we would ask, “Are those clear, for the Living God has chosen to who come being challenged to lay down reveal himself in time and space. From their lives for Christ? Is this a community Genesis to Revelation, God shows his deal- which openly acknowledges its weakness, ings with his world from the beginning of gives away its wealth, puts faithfulness time—the start of history—to its close. In above popularity, demonstrates dynamic the 2,000 years since the church began, love, and points to the grace and glory of God has continued to keep his people at God? Is this a body of people who live out the very centre of what human history is their daily lives in such a way that every- about, as he prepares them for eternity. thing about them declares the gospel of The study of church history is extremely Christ crucified?” instructive, as we seek to learn what God In its earliest years, the Christian com- has been doing and where his people have munity understood these values. Most taken right or wrong turnings. In particu- congregations had a precarious existence, lar, biblical Christians will want to exam- whether or not they actually met in hid- ine history in the light of the Scriptures, ing, and the cost of following Christ because God himself has declared that ensured that few believers could be half- what happened in the past was written to hearted. Since then, down through the teach us (Rom. 15:4), that is, so that we centuries, the church has almost always may in our turn live more fully in accord been at its most vibrant where it has not with his will in the present. Reflecting been compromised by official status and upon the past—and especially the past in political power but has had to concentrate the light of God’s Word—will help us to on spiritual integrity. The easing of perse- understand where we are now and how cution, the institution of state protection, we came to be where we are. It will help and the growth of power in society may us to clear our vision and to grow in self- have seemed a blessing to the church fol- knowledge, however painfully. lowing the Constantinian Settlement in the However, looking back is only part of th 4 century. With hindsight, it may be easier the story. In some ways, recognising what to see the many ways in which the church was happening in the past from the view- came to be corrupted by power and se- point of the present—that is, with the ben- duced by wealth and increasingly lost its efit of hindsight—can be easier than either bearings. While in the mercy of God the accurately interpreting the present or church spread in spite of the alliance with helpfully anticipating the future. Nonethe- political power, and even though there less, it is important that we turn now from have been movements from time to time reflecting upon the past to facing the fu- flowing from spiritual renewal and refor- 454 responding to the challenges ture. For the church is called to be pro- our own. We will expect to learn, because phetic as well as historical if she is to be it is the same Triune God who dialogues effective. She is called to have her eyes on with them as with us. We are members of that sure horizon of the Lord’s return and the same body. to live in the present in the light of God’s Such listening is very liberating. It is declared intentions for the future. also extremely instructive. Many of our brothers and sisters in Africa, Asia, and The Humility of Listening Latin America have had to struggle with For centuries, the Western church has issues and realities not addressed in tra- been in the habit of doing all the talking. ditional Western theologies. They have not In particular, the Western Protestant chur- always found the answers to their ques- ches on the one hand and the Roman tions, and sometimes the answers they Catholic church on the other have as- have found have not been true to the sumed themselves alone to be the church. Scriptures. But often they have in the Other parts of the church, ancient or mod- grace of God found real answers in God’s ern, have tended to be regarded as irrel- Word to questions Westerners did not even evant (the ancient churches), heretical know were there and wouldn’t have (depending on your viewpoint), or imma- known how to answer had they encoun- ture (the churches of Africa, Latin America, tered them. This very activity of coming and Asia). Still today in international gath- to the Word for fresh insights into fresh erings, Westerners tend to dominate the problems is sometimes methodologically talking. While there are complex cultural more familiar to God’s people beyond the reasons contributing to this dominance, West. Why? Because in the West we have biblical Christians should model some- often lived as if we had all the answers th thing very different. that mattered, whether from the 4 cen- th th If we think primarily in structural and tury, the 16 , or the 19 . Now, in the light organisational terms and in terms of hier- of new and bewildering contexts, we may archy, then it is likely that Western Chris- know neither the answers nor even how tians will continue to mirror Western to formulate the questions. secular values. These tend to include a Further, some of the issues which cur- focus on the need to dominate and exer- rently haunt us in the post-modern world, cise power in international relations, be such as responding to pluralism, or living they economic, political, or cultural. After without a privileged place in our cultures, all, Western churches have seniority of age or dealing with pervasive pagan spiritual- and wealth on their side. Until recently, ity, or having no concept of absolute truth, they had the weight of numbers too. In are issues about which our Two-Thirds other words, Western churches have op- World brethren have valuable wisdom. erated from a power base. But if we see The question is, are we willing to be the world-wide growth of the church as humble enough to listen? Can we toss our the gracious work of God, and if we truly pride aside and ask for the help we so grasp what it is to be brothers and sisters badly need? in the family of God, then we will have a Not that there is room for any of God’s much richer relationship with the church people—east or west, north or south—to beyond the West. In particular, we will be be proud. And even as many Two-Thirds set free to listen, expecting to learn from World believers puzzle over the decline of Christians in situations far different from Western churches, they need to recognise soberly that they, too, are often just be- dry bones in the west 455 ginning to experience the impact of third- all the amazing contours of God-made- generation nominalism, syncretism, and visible in and through his people—are the awful corrosion of modernity. Only by held in God-derived balance with each the grace of God will they avoid in the near other. Down through the centuries and all future what we in the West already struggle around the world, wherever the gospel has with. For the forces of globalisation ensure taken root and been genuinely incarnated that very few societies indeed are sealed in this culture or that, contextualisation against precisely those forces which have has taken place. The term may be mod- created so much havoc among us. In many ern. The practice is as ancient as God’s countries, quite as much as Christianity, people. neither Islam nor Communism has been Contextualisation is often misunder- able to withstand subversion via moder- stood—or wrongly applied. There are those nity. Global trade, global media, global who so confuse form and meaning that travel, global ambition, global technol- any hint of change from traditional formu- ogy—all these and many more are high- lations of doctrine or from traditional ways for the expansion of modernity’s expressions of worship is immediately (and now post-modernity’s) empire. And branded heresy. Writings and practices they are almost unstoppable. Short of seal- from centuries ago are so venerated that ing off a country from all contact with the the slightest deviation is passionately re- outside world (as has happened in large sisted. But there is a world of difference measure in North Korea, for instance)—a between recognising how God has used measure which can only happen in the great Christian leaders in their generations most repressive of societies—there is no and given us a valuable legacy through way of keeping modernity at bay. And them, and regarding them as the last whether modernity seeps in or floods in, word—or a word with almost the weight both the harmful and the helpful invade of eternal Scripture. Augustine, Calvin, together. Spurgeon, Hudson Taylor—pick your hero We would be wise to ensure that the where you will, the fact is that if they were grace and humility of listening operate in speaking and writing in today’s world, they every direction—north, south, east, and would speak and write differently. They west. Truly, we need one another. would no doubt affirm many of the same things. They would also now address Contextualisation things that were not a concern in their Revisited own day and age, and in some areas they The Christian church, as opposed to might devote rather less attention to is- society in general, does however have a sues which burned in their day but do not key. And of all Christians, the missionary in ours. There would even be some things community should be most aware of this they passionately maintained centuries key, for it lies in the practice (and praxis) ago which today they would see as wrong, of contextualisation. the product of cultural captivity in their Properly understood, contextualisation own generation. is not a theory or a method or a 20th Contextualisation is not about recap- century passing fad. No, it is the dynamic turing some imaginary golden age of the living out of biblical truth in the here-and- church in the past. Nor, on the other hand, now, so that faithfulness and relevance, is it about going with the flow of the age truth and life, continuity and freshness— in such a way that the church’s message and practice are hostage to whatever cul- 456 responding to the challenges ture she finds herself in. If Evangelicals munity and the church in the non-Western (and, even more, fundamentalists) in the world have a special responsibility here, past have been especially susceptible to for they have both the experience of the the former, it is arguable today that quite struggle to engage in authentic critical as many in the West have now capitulated contextualisation and also the measure of to the latter. In our anxiety to be relevant, clear-sightedness and objectivity that to woo people for Christ, to demolish bar- comes from a little distance. The mission- riers to belief, we have too often allowed ary community must speak with tears and the world to “squeeze us into its own pain, not arrogance. There are no simple mould” (Rom. 12:2, Phillips), instead of formulaic answers, and the needed bringing culture under the authority of changes will surely make us cry out in dis- God’s Word. Because we have not been tress, as well as stretching our faith to the discerning in relation to many of the limits. The Western church must listen claims, values, and practices of modernity with tears and pain and penitence. The and now of post-modernity, we have been, alternatives are too dreadful to contem- as it were, sucked into a quagmire. plate: a Europe swept bare of churches, The answer, of course, lies in critical as North Africa was long ago, or a form of contextualisation, carried out prayerfully, Christianity so indistinguishable from humbly, persistently—and with the Word secular culture as to be totally emascu- drenching our minds and hearts. It is the lated. Scripture, pondered together by the be- In one way or another, the time has lieving community, through which we come for the re-evangelisation of the West. must evaluate every part of culture. At the It is a tough mission field, for which we same time, as we are deeply involved in urgently need the very highest skills of the real life of those within our cultures critical contextualisation if the gospel is (we have no authorisation to live in some once again to take root. kind of self-contained Christian ghetto), we will come back to the Scriptures with Roadblocks for the Gospel pressing questions for which we need in the Post-Modern West God’s answers. The Western church ur- Cultures are not neutral. The assump- gently needs leaders who grasp this need, tion that they are, frequently favoured in who will turn away from the secular model the past and still held in some quarters, is of administrator-therapist (preferably com- more a product of humanism and a belief bined with a high-profile, “successful” in “progress” than of biblical truth. Cul- personality, with a show-biz public plat- tures cannot be neutral precisely because form persona), and who instead give they are a product of human societies, and themselves to modelling and teaching because of the radical nature of human authentic gospel life distinct from but in- fallenness, anything that humankind pro- carnated within the prevailing culture. duces will be affected by sin. At the same This kind of critical contextualisation, time, because men and women are made lived out day by day, is costly, exhilarat- in the image of God and because—how- ing, radical. Because we have lived for so ever defaced—there are still ineradicable long unconsciously absorbing the values traces of that image in every person, there of modernity—its rationalism and human- will be elements of the divine as well as of ism—it will take great courage, often the the demonic in every culture. loneliness of the prophet, to stand against prevailing patterns. The missionary com- dry bones in the west 457

The question is, how do we discern truth was to be found in Christian revela- what is the product of fallenness and what tion, then that absolute truth was to be is the product of grace in any given cul- found through scientific research, then ture? Such discernment is of very great that absolute truth probably existed but importance, because the products of fall- was unknowable. Finally, in post-modern enness will prove to be roadblocks to the culture the concept of absolute truth is gospel, and the products of grace will rejected. This has ironically produced the prove to be doorways to the gospel. The only acceptable absolute: that there are task of critical contextualisation is not sim- no absolutes. ply to engage in analysis: what is good, Closely related to this idea is the belief what is bad, what is neutral in this cul- that there is no “meta-narrative,” that is, ture? Rather, by helping us to discern these no overarching story that affects everyone differences, contextualisation provides us everywhere, nor even one story for any with important tools: what are the things one individual. Instead, there are many to affirm? What things may be a “way in” fragmented stories—a variety of religions, for the gospel? How can we build on them? a variety of myths, a variety of personal What are the things to reject as incompat- preferences—and everyone should have ible with biblical truth? How does chal- freedom to choose for himself and indeed lenging these things affect evangelism and to choose different stories for different discipleship? What are the things which parts of his life. So widely is this personal are genuinely neutral? Can they be utilised autonomy embraced and so committed is as doorways for the gospel? These things the disbelief in absolute truth that the may be at the level of worldview or of be- gospel becomes both incomprehensible liefs, values, or practices. When cultural and outrageous: it is, after all, predicated insiders and cultural outsiders work on upon Christ as the embodiment of abso- such an evaluation together in genuine lute truth and as the exclusive Saviour for and humble partnership, there may be a all people everywhere in all generations— heightened discernment about a specific the absolute meta-narrative, of breath- culture and a greater understanding of taking proportions. The declaration of the how to work within the culture with both uniqueness of Christ was foolishness to faithfulness and relevance. the Greeks; to the post-modern, it be- The most important roadblocks to the comes something to legislate against wher- gospel nearly always take one of two ever it is possible and to shout down or forms. They may be so pervasive as to drown out where it is not. make it impossible to conceive of living Moreover, bound up with the rejection within the culture with a particular issue of absolute truth is a rejection of the reli- removed. Examples would include ances- able meaning of words. Words only mean tor practices in Japan or materialism in the whatever you choose to make them mean. West. (That is not to say that there isn’t If you are the source of a message, you significant materialism outside the West!) launch it into space, but you cannot insist Both of these examples—and many oth- that your intended meaning is in fact the ers that could be cited—touch nearly every meaning. It only means whatever the re- area of life. The second form of roadblocks cipient chooses to have it mean—even if may be more hidden, at the level of un- that is quite the opposite of what you derlying presuppositions, but extremely meant. Christianity is, of course, intensely influential. For example, in modern cul- verbal. It is no accident that the Scriptures ture it was first assumed that absolute are called the Word of God and that the 458 responding to the challenges

Lord Jesus Christ is the Living Word and has considerable implications for dis- the Last Word. God communicates in cipling Christians in a post-print, word- words, and those words are given divinely subversive world. In other cases, churches intended content which we are not at have responded by throwing out word- liberty to change. Our task is to seek to based ministry (reducing it to vox pops understand what he intended and in- and the four-minute sermon) and rush- tends—and our allies are the Holy Spirit ing to adopt mime, drama, stage spectacles on the one hand and the community of which ape the world of entertainment, God’s people on the other. But we are also fast-paced visual images, and suchlike. in our turn to communicate in words, with However valuable these things may be in precision as well as graciousness. a subsidiary role, the problem is that most In post-modern culture, the devaluation of them convey imprecise messages, im- of words and the substitution of images pressions which invite the viewer to in- and subliminal experience (sometimes vest meaning as he wishes. While this fits drug-induced) pose a major roadblock to neatly with a post-modern mindset, it is the gospel. This is far deeper than the incompatible with the “thus says the Lord” growing problem of functional illiteracy of revelation. (where people who technically are able Another consequence of rejecting the to read nonetheless refuse to do so, re- concept of truth, and especially absolute jecting print in favour of pictures). Here truth, is the rejection of authority. The is a culture where communication chiefly moment you abolish an objective exter- occurs below the level of rational under- nal final authority, you begin the inevitable standing and where manipulation by slide towards not simply individual au- vested interests is easy. Provided the felt tonomy but anarchy, unless you head in- impact is a buzz of the senses—excite- stead into dictatorship (which is at base a ment, spine-tingling fear, heightened con- variant supreme authority). That process sciousness, adrenaline surges—people may be slowed down by well-established become addicted. The mass media, the social structures such as government and entertainment industry, and advertising law, but sooner or later people will de- have all understood (and shaped) this spise government and flout the law wher- shift. Moreover, they have learned how to ever these conflict with personal wishes. use their powers for their own benefit (in- What many people choose to see as sim- creased markets, changing public opinion, ply a philosophical principle becomes all etc.), while deceiving the recipients into too quickly a matter of the gravest social believing that they are actually still in con- significance. In those cultures most af- trol. fected by post-modernism, we already see By and large, the church has not be- the accelerating breakdown of law and gun to address this communication shift order, a rejection of any concept of limit- adequately and certainly not with the bal- ing personal freedom for the sake of the ance of critical contextualisation. In some good of the community, and the supplant- cases, churches have responded by ignor- ing commitment to hedonism and per- ing the cultural shift and by insisting on sonal gratification. This process is using words alone, in traditional manner. happening not only in the secular world. This not only makes for frustrated evan- It is being mirrored in many parts of the gelism (because people do not hear what church. you think they should have heard, on the This is an enormous challenge to ef- basis of what you have said), but it also fective mission in the post-modern con- dry bones in the west 459 text. It is an inescapable part of the Chris- post-modern cultures, there are many tian message that God requires us to bow bridges or doorways for the gospel. These to his authority, that we are to submit to we need to use boldly. the authority of the Scriptures, that we are To begin with, most people are not to submit to one another, and that Chris- entirely consistently modern or post- tian discipleship is about yielding up modern, and neither modernity nor post- claims to personal autonomy while yet modernity is consistent within itself either. accepting personal responsibility. Instead This means that there are frequently of focusing on self-fulfilment and gratifi- “chinks in the armour,” cracks in the cation, we are called on to give ourselves worldview and the resultant practice, in loving service of others and to be will- which thoughtful people can be brought ing to accept pain and loss out of love for to recognise. We need to pay renewed at- God. These are fundamentals which we tention to the rather neglected field of are not free to set aside. apologetics. We need to find effective, con- A final roadblock in the post-modern fident ways of drawing attention to those world is consumerism. The customer inconsistencies and to the biblical answers reigns supreme, and products must be to them. We need to find the ways in which shaped to suit his wishes. Of course, as in our generation the truth of Romans 1–2 we saw above under communication, the is being displayed: men and women can- producer of the goods may be ruthless in not entirely escape awareness of God, in shaping the mind of the consumer so that whose image they are made. God’s Word he wants exactly what the producer wishes tells us that the created universe, our own to sell. Here, too, the church is having instinctive sense of right and wrong, and great difficulty. In some cases, congrega- our habit of making moral judgements tions have succumbed to the consumerist about others all point to truths about God: philosophy. In adapting themselves to of- that he is a personal being, that he is the fer what people want, they have changed Creator, and that he is a moral being to the message. After all, who wants to hear whom we are accountable. Like the men of sin and judgement? Who in a success- and women of Hebrews 11, it is possible oriented culture wants to hear that the very to respond to this revelation about God best we can do is so much rubbish when in repentance and faith, even before a it comes to the Lord’s standards of per- person has heard explicitly about Jesus fect righteousness? How much easier to Christ. Alternatively, we may suppress this adopt a message of self-esteem, self-fulfil- truth about God, and for that we are held ment, and therapeutic comfort! But the accountable. gospel is not a commodity to be marketed, In recent decades, after the barren de- with updated models to suit today’s world. cades of growing scepticism, there has The fact that sectors of the church have been a renewed recognition that human adopted the language and practices of beings are spiritual beings. Partly this marketing is a measure of their captivity comes from trying to live in a totally ma- to contemporary culture. terialist framework and finding that it does not fit the facts. It is fascinating, for ex- Bridges for the Gospel ample, to listen to people in China or the Not everything is doom and gloom! former Soviet Union speaking of the way Along with all the sobering challenges to they still wish for socialism but not the the Lordship of Christ in both modern and atheistic materialism of Marxism. 460 responding to the challenges

On the one hand, this is opening the humility and hard work, here is an oppor- door to all kinds of spiritual experiences tunity to win the trust of a significant sec- and to regarding any form of spirituality tor of the post-modern generation and to as being as valid as any other. The empha- build bridges for the gospel. There are also sis may be firmly on experience, which may some excellent examples of Christians be thoroughly divorced from truth. At the leading the way in sound environmental same time, it is increasingly easy in many projects, and these we should be able to parts of Europe, where beforehand there speak of accurately, humbly, with dignity, was only cynicism, to talk openly and eas- and pointing to the Lord who is their in- ily with unbelievers about spiritual mat- spiration. ters. Two generations ago, belief in the One of the features of post-modernism supernatural was largely the province of is its widespread disillusionment with the cranks and spiritists. Today, there is accep- answers of modernity. The doctrines of tance that there is a very real supernatu- humanism and progress which promised ral world, though what that world is so much have failed to deliver on those perceived to be like may be very far re- promises. Sometimes this failure intro- moved from the biblical worldview. This duces a good and effective bridge for the has been further complicated by the fact gospel. However, in the past the church that some Christians have enthusiastically also frequently absorbed many of the val- adopted beliefs and practices in relation ues of humanism and progress, and we to the supernatural that are more animist need thoughtfully and radically to disen- than biblical. There is clearly a great deal tangle ourselves from them before we can of work to be done here, but it would seem speak with integrity to the post-modern that some people, perhaps especially generation. On the one hand, we need to young people, are coming to saving faith recapture a vivid sense of the Lord’s rein Christ from a starting point of belief in turn, with all its implications; this, not the supernatural. progress, is the true grid through which Along with interest in the spiritual, we are to view the future. On the other there is a growing awareness of the envi- hand, we also need to develop a more ronment. While for most people that may profoundly biblical anthropology, estab- be entirely divorced from the Creator, lishing within a biblical framework both nonetheless that concern readily leads us the glory and the limitations of human in conversation straight back to Genesis beings. We need a clearer articulation of 1–3. As Christians, we need to repent of the balance between fallenness (the bad the way we have failed in the past to speak news) and being made and re-made in the with a clear voice about responsible care image of God (the very best of good news). of God’s world. For the most part, Chris- We need a clearer grasp of biblical blue- tians along with everyone else have prints for society as well as for individu- colluded in the greedy exploitation of the als, for the world as well as for the church. environment. It is only quite recently that In a culture where many people are in the West there have been Christian asking the painful questions, “Who am I? voices raised in warning and protest and, What is my identity?” Christians above all more importantly, with suggestions of a people should be able to speak of the better way. It is not surprising that many wonder of knowing our true identity in of those most passionately committed to Christ. This is our ultimate identity, and it environmental issues are scathing about is one that is not threatened by family the church, given its track record. But with breakdown, by unemployment, or by dry bones in the west 461 growing old. Many post-moderns know all his people would love one another and too well the precariousness of tying their be one, reflecting the loving unity of the identity to fragile relationships which may Trinity, in order that men and women fracture, to physical desirability, or to job might believe. That prayer is as vibrantly and career. contemporary in its significance today as If identity is a bridge for the gospel, so ever it was. The quality of our relation- too is purpose. “What am I here for?” is ships within the Christian family is key to another question which haunts many our effectiveness in mission in our weary, people. “To shop till you drop” is hardly a hurting West. satisfying answer. No wonder it leads to Further, the quality of our love for those despair. After a while, people wake up to outside the Christian family is also funda- the fact that consumerism and entertain- mental to our reaching our societies for ment do not adequately deliver on their Christ. Those who have betrayed others promises, any more than humanism and or who have been betrayed frequently progress did in the past. The inescapable (ironically, the pursuit of self-fulfilment will hollowness of these pillars of post-moder- always lead to betraying others in the pro- nity sooner or later becomes a gateway for cess) may be shocked when they encoun- the gospel. Disillusionment can, in the ter persistent, forgiving love. The Lord is grace of God, become a doorway to hope, calling us to live out what we profess to the true hope of humankind, the Lord believe. This is counter-cultural indeed. Jesus Christ. If issues of identity and purpose leave Back to Ezekiel unbelievers sensing their meaningless- We began with an imaginative encoun- ness, post-modern life is also intensely ter with Ezekiel, re-packaged for the post- lonely. This is inevitable, because God has modern world. Many of the themes we so created us that it is through relation- have briefly raised in this paper are em- ship with him that we are able to enter bedded in that scenario. But as we open into the security of belonging, first to him, our Bibles again to Ezekiel 37, there is a then to others around us. Many Western- timelessness about the message that we ers are desperately searching for a sense who name the name of Christ need to of belonging, of connecting to others at a ponder. God is still in the business of meaningful level, and yet simultaneously transforming dry bones into dynamic gos- they make that impossible by drawing back pel warriors. Just as surely as God’s people from commitment in relationships. Be- were in desperate straits in Ezekiel’s day, longing is a product of faithfulness and so are we today. Much of the Western reliability and commitment, and these are church is a jumble of dead bones, despite essential cornerstones of God’s own char- some places where there is life and God- acter. Perhaps one of the most powerful breathed energy. signs of the gospel in our contemporary In Ezekiel’s vision, how did God dem- Western world is a church—even fami- onstrate the transformation of those dry lies—living in committed, faithful love for bones into a mighty army of servants of one another, even through the hard times. the King of Kings? On the one hand, This voluntary giving of ourselves to one Ezekiel is commanded to preach his heart another, through thick and thin, through out, declaring the word of the Lord. How pain and sorrow as well as joy, is not just bizarre that must have seemed, how sense- a doorway for the gospel but a great wel- less. How can dry bones live? How can coming arch! The Lord Jesus prayed that 462 responding to the challenges dead bones hear? Was Ezekiel talking to vival and renewal of the church. Such a the wind? Had there been an audience, church in turn will be able to declare the he would have been laughed to scorn. word of the Lord to the world. And the That principle is true today too. Living by Lord himself still delights to pour new and declaring the word of the Lord pro- Spirit-life into his creatures. phetically amongst a continent of the spiritually dead may seem to the observer a Rosemary fool’s game. But it is the way of God and Dowsett and her husband Dick therefore constitutes true wisdom. So on have served with the one hand, God’s prophets must speak OMF Interna- urgently to the dry bones of his people tional for more and then to the post-Christian culture in than 30 years, which we live. including eight On the other hand, it is God and God years in the Philippines alone to whom belongs the power to cre- working with ate life out of death. So as Ezekiel in obe- IVCF students dience cries out for life to be given, praying and staff. Rose that God in his mercy will do what is hu- taught for a manly impossible, the Lord and Giver of number of years at Glasgow Bible College, Scotland, where she established a degree Life transforms the dry bones into vibrant, programme in missiology. She is currently healthy people. Here is the Spirit-filled, working on an in-service training programme revived people of God, now able to be all for all OMF personnel worldwide. She is a that God lovingly designed them to be, to writer and travels widely as a lecturer and do all that he sovereignly designed them Bible teacher. She also serves as International to do. Chairman of Interserve International and is a member of the WEF Theological Commis- The key to effective mission in the post- sion. Rose and Dick have three adult children, modern West needs to begin with the re- two of them married. 32

T IS WIDELY RECOGNISED that the West is experiencing a Let X = X: I significant cultural and worldview transformation. Esti- mates of its nature and importance vary, but it is undeniable Generation X that new generations are growing up with a worldview radically different from that of their parents and grandparents. and world The label “Generation X” has been applied to those born more or less between 1965 and 1980. By their attitudes and mission outlook, this generation, of which I am a member, shows itself to be the first to have been significantly shaped by post- modernity rather than modernity. Richard Anecdotal evidence of the personal experience of “Xers” Tiplady shows that we do not find it easy to fit into the culture and structures of much of the contemporary Western church, especially into its organisational forms—including the present mission structures. Just as post-modernity is a reaction against modernity, so much of the Xer outlook is a reaction against the Baby Boomer worldview which preceded it and which currently shapes much of the organisational form and culture of Western society, including the church and its mission structures. This mismatch has been noted by many Boomers, as well as by the older generations in the world mission community, and it has led to some discussion of the “problem” of Generation X, with attempts to help Xers to fit into existing cultural norms and structures. But what if the problem is not with the Xers? What if the problem is with the culture of the existing structures? If mission agencies, in their structures, procedures, and ethos, reflect the worldview of the generations which formed them, then these are not sacro- sanct. Like all cultural forms, they are contingent, relative,and subject to evaluation by other cultural norms and by the Bible.

463 464 responding to the challenges

If Generation Xers do world mission ing) and how power is used to maintain their way, again subject to evaluation by the status quo (even when these existing the Bible and by others, but in a way that ways are sterile and perishing). is true to their own worldview nonethe- I suppose that many Christians and less, what would it look like? Are new strat- other observers of the West would accept egies, structures, and methodologies that our status quo (Western culture) is needed? Can the existing structures be sterile, even perishing. What does this changed to allow the Xer worldview to mean for the Western church, and, in par- exist alongside others, or are new ones ticular, what does it mean for our under- needed? standing and practice of world mission? How might the current “power holders” Motion but No Growth? of world mission (i.e., the mission agen- One of my favourite stories is that cies and training colleges) be acting like found in the “Missing Chapter” of Doug- the “seniors” in Coupland’s story? las Coupland’s book Generation X, a A Theology of Culture novel first published in 1991, which charts the life and outlook of three characters, I want to begin by developing a theo- Dag, Claire, and Andy. The “Missing Chap- logical understanding of culture, which is ter,” though excluded from the novel, be- the filter through which I will interpret came available on the Internet in 1998. the trends outlined above. I start with the This story is set on the asteroid Texlahoma, issue of culture, because there are many where it is “always 1974” (if you read the different attitudes within the church to- novel, it makes sense—really). wards the desirability (or not) of engag- The story concerns the fact that a mur- ing with the surrounding culture(s) in derer is at large, “a gruesome murderer which the church fulfils its mission. So, who liked to pick on children in particu- given that there are many opinions on the lar.” The response to this was, “So, natu- matter, it is important that I spell out my rally, people were upset, and seniors were position on this issue. You may agree or doubly worried as the number of young- disagree with things that I say, but it may sters paying into their social security kitty be helpful for you to know why I make was shrinking daily. They screamed for some of the comments I do, so that we action.” Texlahoman society begins to im- can at least know exactly what it is we are plode, but eventually, through a stroke of agreeing or disagreeing about. luck, the murderer is caught. However, the “Culture” is a term which describes the story ends with the caution: “In spite of worldview, beliefs, values, and behaviour the terror Texlahomans endured, and what of a particular group of people. It is some- they might have learned, it remains 1974 thing that is transmitted from one genera- there, and it always will. There are no vari- tion to another. Books and books have ables in Texlahoma’s equation that permit been written on how culture works, what change. There can be motion but no it is, and how we should understand hu- growth.” man identity in relation to it. For me, the For me, the power of the story is to be easiest way to understand culture is to found in noting how the power holders think of it as “the way we do things around and vested interests of Texlahoma (the here.” Culture is finite and limited, it is “seniors”) are threatened by changing cir- deliberate and chosen, and yet it also ex- cumstances (which admittedly are worry- erts a controlling influence on what let x = x: generation x and world mission 465 behaviours, values, and beliefs are accept- in the “rule/subdue” language of these able and unacceptable in a society. verses from Genesis). As such, human cul- However, this is not a paper about the tures are good, and the human propen- relationship between theology (and the sity to create culture is a fulfilment of our church) and culture in general. I want to created identity. address questions raised by one specific However, we are no longer simply culture (Western “post-modern” or “post- created in the image of God. Genesis 3 whatever” culture) and the implications contains the story of human fallenness. for mission, which is the purpose for Through sin, humanity is now cut off from which the church exists. By “mission” I do God, compelled to wander (like Cain) in not wish to imply some mystical doctrine the cosmos, looking for a home. But al- of saltwater, i.e., that “mission” only hap- though sin is a corruption and a twisting, pens once you have crossed over some it has not eradicated the image of God in “clear blue water.” Mission is not a geo- humanity. The creation mandate for hu- graphically defined activity. It is the church man multiplication, to “fill the earth,” reaching out with God’s love in Christ to which was given to humanity in Genesis a fallen world. However, the focus of the 1:28, is reiterated to Noah in Genesis 9:1; organisation I work for, Global Connec- Genesis 1:28 also gives us the cultural tions, is “world mission” (i.e., cross- mandate. Therefore, Cain and his descen- cultural mission), so much of my reflection dants built cities and developed agri- has been developed with this type of mis- culture, the arts, and technology (Gen. sion and its current structures in mind. 4:17-22), despite the judgement of God My starting point for understanding upon their ancestor. Humanity is still cre- human cultures is Genesis 1:26-28a: “Then ative, sharing in that aspect of the divine God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, image, even while fallen. in our likeness, and let them rule over the Thus, human cultures are both good fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over and bad, all mixed up together. Just as the livestock, over all the earth, and over human beings are both made in the im- all the creatures that move along the age of God and also “totally depraved” ground.’ So God created man in his own (which does not mean entirely evil, but image, in the image of God he created him; instead corrupted throughout by sin, even male and female he created them. God our good bits), so are human cultures. blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruit- Some people try to separate cultures into ful and increase in number; fill the earth elements that are “good,” “bad,” and “in- and subdue it.’” different,” but, just as in my own case, All cultures are shaped by human be- where my weaknesses and failings are so ings, who are made in the image of God often the flipside of my strengths, so it is and who share (among other things) in with human cultures. God’s creative capacity. All cultures, It would be much easier if we could through their beliefs, values, and permit- separate out the various elements, embrac- ted and proscribed behaviours, are ating the good and rejecting the bad, but tempts to bring some kind of order and fortunately for our sakes, God doesn’t do understandability to the complex and cha- it that way. Jesus’ parable of the wheat and otic world that we encounter. Cultures are tares (Matt. 13:24-30) shows that God will attempts to make sense of the cacophony allow good and evil to co-exist until his of reality (control and order are implied final judgement. The reason Jesus gives 466 responding to the challenges for this is, “While you are pulling up the So how should we understand this weeds, you may root up the wheat with massive cultural transformation? I would them” (v. 29). Trying to make the separa- suggest that we can learn a great deal from tion now may result in rejecting something reflecting on popular culture as portrayed that is good. in the media. The media may be great cre- Thus, we not only have to live with the ators of cultural trends, but they are also different culture(s) of the world; we also good reflectors of such trends, market- have to accept that what seems bad to us driven as they are. (because it is different or a threat) might “Stay true to what you try to be—your actually be good. For example, post- individuality.” This line, from a song by modernity has undermined the hubris of current British teen pop sensation S Club modernity, which was and is no particu- 7, is a good starting point. An article in lar friend to the Christian faith. The Observer newspaper in April 1999 spoke of the rise of an “I-Society” in Brit- Why Is Contemporary ain, i.e., a generation which has rejected Culture Change the “me” culture of the 1980s for one So Important? which values “individuality, indepen- Every generation is tempted by the dence, identity, and interactivity.” I believe delusion that it is unique. Perhaps the re- that the issues of individuality and iden- ality is that every generation is unique, tity are at the core of the questions that moulded as it is by the life circumstances contemporary culture (and in particular, and challenges that face its members. This Generation X) is asking. The question of theory certainly underlies most of the identity is found in a lot of current con- work done on generational demography, temporary music, e.g., “Some day I will whether by theorists such as Don Tapscott, find, the one who lives inside my mind” Bill Strauss, and Neil Howe, or in the semi- (“Dazed, Beautiful, and Bruised” by Cata- nal article on this issue and the implica- tonia). tions for world mission, written by Kath Of great importance in creating these Donovan and Ruth Myors (1997). issues is the shift to a post-industrial soci- I don’t make any claims that Genera- ety. In the highly successful British film, tion X is unique in the sense that we are The Full Monty, a change in lifestyle is special or more privileged in our under- forced upon the protagonists by the clo- standing of life. Perhaps, however, we are sure of the steelworks in which they had unique in other ways. Management guru previously worked. This illustrates a sim- Peter Drucker wrote, “Every few hundred ple fact: philosophers, theologians, and years in Western history there occurs a preachers of all kinds need to be aware sharp transformation.… Within a few short that people’s beliefs and values are often decades, society rearranges itself—its shaped by their behaviour and lifestyles, worldview, its basic values, its social and rather than vice versa. So how might we political structure, its arts, its key institu- characterise post-industrial society? It is tions. Fifty years later, there is a new world. marked by the change from manufactur- And the people born then cannot even ing industry to service sector jobs; the imagine the world in which their grand- change from the factory gate to the shop- parents lived and into which their own ping mall; the change from production parents were born. We are currently liv- line to workstations in cubicles; the ing through just such a transformation.” change from machine tools to information let x = x: generation x and world mission 467 technology; the change from terraced woman just finishing some interior deco- housing to executive homes. rating, with the room painted in exactly Life is becoming more diverse, more the same colour as the stolen item. In fragmented, more individualistic (note the other words, if you can’t find the colour mirth that accompanied the news that you like from the hundreds already on Hillary Rodham Clinton’s 50th birthday offer in your nearest DIY megastore, then party in 1997 was attended by her 500 they will mix up another, just for you. “closest personal friends”). The outlook A recent article in The Face magazine shaped by post-industrial society is one focussed on household appliances, furni- which focuses, as we noted above, on iden- ture, and clothing which build on the con- tity, on who we are. In a consumer society, cept of “beanbag” culture, i.e., objects that our self-definition often comes primarily mould to your body shape (or lifestyle). from the products we buy and the brands However, unlike the original beanbag, the we identify with (Pepsi or Coke, Gap or Memo Chair doesn’t just adapt to your Levis?). Since we are now looking for in- perfect shape; it retains your imprint. So dividuality—“our” own unique identity, does the AVO mobile phone, with a shell “our” genetic blueprint—then we don’t of rubber which moulds to your grip. Gel want to look and be the same as everyone shoe insoles have been developed, which else. We want to be distinct, “us.” This adjust to the shape of your foot, and as means that we live in a day not of mass your foot gets warm, the gel hardens, so production, but of mass customisation. leaving an imprint. Henry Ford, credited with the inven- This is the key theme of much market- tion of mass production, famously said of ing in the West: whatever suits “you.” Per- his Model T, “You can have it any colour sonal individuality and customisation to you want, as long as it’s black.” I recently that individuality are the order of the day. visited the Ford U.K. website, which This mass customisation of society moves showed that Ford currently offers nine beyond products that we buy to the infor- different cars for sale in the U.K. (Ka, Fi- mation and knowledge we receive. Talk esta, Escort, Focus, Mondeo, Puma, Cou- of an “information explosion” is common, gar, Galaxy, and Explorer). Taking the Ford through the development and expansion Focus alone, you can choose from four of satellite/cable/digital TV, the now- body shapes (3-, 4-, and 5-door saloon, ubiquitous CD-ROMs, and, of course, the plus estate), four levels of specification Internet. (CL, Zetec, LX, Ghia), and five different In response to this, we see the devel- engines (1.4, 1.6, 1.8, 2.0, 1.8tdi), in one opment of tailored communications. of 11 colours. So there are 880 different “Old” media such as newspapers and Ford Focus options, before even begin- music producers are having to adapt to ning to think about interior seat trim or the demands of the consumers of the optional extras. “new” media, such as the ability to inter- Adverts for the household paint Dulux act with websites and to personalise both show a woman stealing some lilac under- the services and content received (thus the wear from a neighbour’s washing line, or Time Warner/AOL merger comes as no cutting a patch from a yellow hooded top great surprise). Similar “tailoring” can be worn by a shaven-headed bodybuilder sit- seen in the propensity to talk of “nar- ting in front of her on a bus. In both ad- rowcasting” rather than “broadcasting”; in verts, we then cut to shots of the same direct-marketers working with smaller and 468 responding to the challenges smaller segments of the population; and is the leading cause of stress among those in the use of Internet “cookies,” which al- in touch with it. I can take it in small doses, low websites to identify return visitors, to but as a lifestyle I found it too confining.” retain your personal information for future use, and to offer services such as those Thoughts on a provided by the Amazon.com website, in- Generation X Worldview cluding recommendations (based on your So how does all this affect our view on previous buying patterns) and user pro- life as Christians? What happens when the files (“people who bought this book also post-modern disintegration of reality bought …”). meets the mass customisation of lifestyle In this analysis, I suppose I must make and the information tsunami? How is this reference to the word “post-modern,” influence reflected in the Generation X even though the word is slippery and hard worldview? Here are some ways: to define. (Note the now-famous quote in the Independent newspaper, as far back Individuality as 1987: “The word has no meaning. Use We have a major focus on and concern it as often as you can.”) The commonly for individuality and identity (who am I?). accepted definition of post-modernism is Since this focus can be created, it leads to “incredulity towards metanarratives” (Jean- insecurity. (If reality is nothing more than François Lyotard). He noted how the lead- “a collective hunch,” then my place in that ing ideas of Western thought (Marxism, “reality” is in doubt, for how do I know democratic liberalism, Keynesian econom- who I am?) This diversification and frag- ics, Christianity), while claiming to offer mentation of lifestyle and of society lead universal “salvation,” offered it in practice to situations where we have more acquain- only to the few. The as-yet unrealised tances but fewer friendships (hence the emancipation of all humanity led in each popularity of “Friends”-type TV pro- case to the desire to “conquer” others to grammes). its point of view. Thus the freedom offered was not universal and inclusive but lim- Flexibility ited and exclusive, and it was implicated We see a paradoxical unwillingness to in violence. commit too deeply to any one identity. We I prefer the description used by the allow for the concept of self-reinvention. comedienne Lily Tomlin. She has a char- (In Close Personal Friend, a film produced acter called Trudy the Bag Lady, who is in 1995 to accompany the promotion for helping some aliens from outer space to his book Microserfs, Douglas Coupland determine whether, in their search for in- comments, “Humans are the only animals telligent life in the universe, Earth might who can say, ‘I’m going to move to San be a likely location to find it. Trudy is not Diego, lose 20 pounds, and grow my sure it will be. Commenting on her own hair.’”) madness, she says, “I refuse to be intimi- Likewise, we don’t just deal with in- dated by reality anymore. After all, what is formation overload by customising the reality anyway? Nothin’ but a collective information to our needs. We “surf ” the hunch. My space chums think reality was Internet (don’t go too deep, or you will once a primitive method of crowd control get drowned by the information), or we that got out of hand. In my view, it’s ab- channel-hop while watching TV (a type of surdity dressed up in a three-piece busi- parallel-processing or multi-tasking). ness suit. I made some studies, and reality let x = x: generation x and world mission 469

Scepticism fence of concepts such as “facts” and “ab- In a post-modern worldview, all meta- solutes”). narratives (constructions of reality) are 4. A critique of my culture is inevita- used by the powerful to maintain their bly a critique of me. own interests and extend them to the det- I would accept that Generation X and riment of others. These values encourage the changes happening within Western scepticism towards all authority holders, culture do need to be carefully evaluated secular or religious. and that this will include a biblical critique. Perhaps this should not, however, be our So What About Generation X starting point nor the priority within the and Global Mission? global mission movement for the time being. Left to ourselves, Generation Xers As I think of my generation’s involve- are more than capable of critiquing them- ment in world mission, why is the culture selves and their cultures. While this is not change that we have looked at so impor- the goal of this paper, it does not mean tant? Because it reflects the culture of an that I am unaware of the need for this as increasing proportion of the population well. of the Western world, and it will shape the I would suggest that a better starting way that the Western church “is” and the point is to ask what it is that God offers way it “does” mission in coming years. us—a critique or salvation? Of course, Critique or accept? judgement is implied in the latter, for if The following question will have arisen there were no problems with a culture, a in some people’s minds: Do we just ac- worldview, or a person, then there would cept the culture change you have de- be no need of salvation. This might proscribed and go with it? Shouldn’t the role vide a fruitful line for reflection of how of the church be to provide a biblical cri- best to undertake mission in a post- tique of these trends? modern culture. We should identify the I have a number of problems with this culture’s deepest questions and needs and particular question: then consider which biblical/theological 1. As we noted earlier, cultures are themes could answer the quest and bring both good and bad (made in the image of salvation in its fullest biblical meaning— God but also tragically broken), and these shalom or wholeness. elements are not easily separable (but are The generation gap often the flipsides of one another). I want to focus here on the question 2. The language of “critical contex- of how Generation Xers might do mission, tualisation” usually ends up focussing on rather than how to do mission to them. the “critical” part and not giving too much We might want to begin by asking why attention to the contextualisation. contemporary culture change is so threat- 3. I don’t see too many comparative ening to the “power holders” in the West- critiques of the existing culture of the ern missionary movement. I suspect that church and the influence of modernity it comes down to a conflict of values. As a thereon. After all, there are no totally ob- result of all we have considered so far, the jective viewpoints, and too often a critique generation gap is wider now that it has of post-modernity by Christians is based ever been. largely on modernist assumptions rather than especially-biblical ones (e.g., the de- 470 responding to the challenges

For example, in an article in Details out there sometime in the future, all hatch- magazine in 1995, Douglas Coupland ing small, slimy, horned babies crawling noted the Baby Boomers’ unease with the towards some form of truth, tirelessly, en Xer attitude: “One would think that the masse, waging war against the forces of Boomers, coming of age in the ’60s, would dumbness. So please, be a monster.” be thrilled to see the notion of individual- Maybe we are just what the Japanese ism adapting itself to a changing world. have called shin jin rui, a “new kind of Instead, all they see are monsters.” human being.” Maybe we just see the Likewise, Xers are not too keen on the world differently. If so, how will this af- world being bequeathed to them by older fect the world mission involvement of the generations. “Imagine coming to a beach Western church in the coming years? at the very end of a long summer of big There appears to be a lack of aware- crowds and wild goings-on. The beach ness by many in the current mission send- bunch is sunburned, the sand shopworn, ing structures (i.e., the mission agencies) hot, and full of debris—no place for walk- of the culture-bound nature of these struc- ing barefoot. You step on a bottle, and tures. The assumption is that because they some cop cites you for littering … much are the norm, they are OK, even biblical like River Phoenix in Running on Empty, (although it may be more accurate to say GenXers have had to cope and survive in that these structures are largely modern- whatever territory the Boomers have left ist with a few generational tweaks, sprin- behind” (Strauss & Howe, 1991, p. 321). kled with a biblical overlay). From this Whether it’s a matter of environmen- vantage point, mission agencies judge tal degradation or mortgaging the future post-modern and Xer behaviour by their to pay for the present, Xers will have to own values. But surely it is cultural sin to pay the cost of the consumption inherent judge the behaviour and attitudes of one in today’s lifestyles, without having en- culture by the values and beliefs of an- joyed the primary benefit. As the Coup- other. How would we react if we heard land article mentioned above begins, “You someone say to an African or Latino, were born in the ’60s. Does that mean “Don’t live according to your culture. It’s you’ll have to pay for it the rest of your worldly. Live in my ‘biblical’ way”? life?” Let’s be honest. Some missionaries did say that in the past, but would we dare to May I speak to my now? Yet that is often how Xers are made older mission colleagues? to feel. We have noted that scepticism, Please don’t patronise us either. There individuality, and flexibility are characteris a lot of talk about the need GenXers istics of the Xer worldview. How might have for pastoral care, as if our “problems” these qualities affect our world mission in- can be solved through understanding and volvement? patience, until we become more like the older generation. Maybe we are monsters. Scepticism But maybe we’re good monsters, like In Generations, writers William Strauss Godzilla. Coupland ends the article just and Neil Howe (1991) note that the key mentioned with the following: “Andy difference between GenXers and their Warhol once said that he liked sci-fi mov- preceding generational cohort, the Baby ies where the monster lays an egg at the Boomers, is that scepticism has replaced end, because it guarantees a sequel. Well, idealism. There are numerous reasons for I’m thinking of millions of monster eggs this. let x = x: generation x and world mission 471

First of all, Generation Xers grew up city area. Here’s how he describes him- with TV, so they were exposed to advertis- self: “… an unashamed Evangelical, re- ing at a very early age. The latest Royal formed, Calvinistic, conservative; strong Mail advert in the U.K. tells us that we are on the authority, centrality, and sufficiency now exposed to 1,500 adverts a day; I read of the Bible; but craving obscurity, trust- elsewhere recently that Americans are ing in small communities connected exposed to 3,000 adverts per day. As a re- organically in an ad hoc manner, and un- sult, instead of ceding to mindless con- interested in hierarchy, organisational sumption, we have learned to be sceptical. power, and grand strategies.” We can see through hype, and we subject GenXers don’t want to be bamboozled all truth claims to sharp-eyed evaluation. with talk of “the big picture.” Whatever More recently, advertisers have become “big picture” is presented to us, it will be aware of this and have tuned their adverts wrong. The world is too complex, life is to this new situation. Consider, for ex- too changeable, and God is too mysteri- ample, the following voiceover on an ad- ous for us to get fired up by that kind of vert for Nike sportswear: “Don’t insult our language. intelligence. Tell us what it is. Tell us what Also, being sceptical of authority, we it does. And don’t play the national an- have a strong sense of the need for jus- them while you do it.” Coca-Cola has mar- tice, along with an awareness and hatred keted its Sprite soft drink in the following of injustice. We will be stirrers, both within way: “What soft drink do the world’s best the church and without. I’m afraid others snowboarders drink? The same one as the might just find us “rocking the boat” a world’s worst snowboarders. Image is little. nothing. Thirst is everything. Obey your Flexibility and individuality thirst.” The advertisers don’t con us with this approach, but we appreciate the irony. Frustration with Xers is usually ex- Xers also grew up experiencing the pressed in terms of a lack or loss of com- reality of disappointment. It has been mitment. My father has worked for the noted that in 1969 our parents’ genera- same company for 30 years. For him, that tion saw Neil Armstrong step out of Apollo represents security. For me, it sounds like 11 and walk on the moon, whereas in 1986 a life sentence. we saw primary school teacher Christa In their paper “A Generational Perspec- McAuliffe blown to pieces in the Chal- tive on the Future,” Kath Donovan and lenger Space Shuttle disaster. How will Ruth Myors (1997) demonstrate how the this scepticism affect our view of world working patterns and values of each gen- mission? I suspect church and mission eration of missionaries have been shaped leaders will see a lack of enthusiasm for by the culture. While the authors worked ambitious programmes to “complete the from an Australian context, their observa- evangelisation of the world.” We’ve heard tions can be applied to other Western na- it all before, and we expect that we’ll hear tions. it again. What we’re looking for is low-key, For example, the group they refer to sustainable, grassroots mission involve- as the Boosters (elsewhere referred to as ment. the Builders, GIs, or Silent Generation— A friend of mine has just left his post born 1920–1950) had their consciousness as director of a large Evangelical relief and shaped by the experiences of the Great development organisation, to work in a Depression and World War II. Thus we see small church-planting ministry in an inner- their core values of personal sacrifice, flex- 472 responding to the challenges ibility, and long-term commitment to a no longer fresh, in touch, cutting edge. It common cause. Many of these GIs and is seen as necessary movement in order Silents became missionaries, and their to gain more experience, to be more em- outlook has shaped the spirituality that is ployable, more relevant to the work. I often associated with missionary service. make no judgements on this state, but feel In contrast, the Baby Boomers (born that we should at least acknowledge it as 1950–1965) grew up in the prosperous a fact. Shouldn’t we be encouraging mis- 1950s (the “Eisenhower” era; the British sion agencies to support people into prime minister of the time famously re- longer-term service by allowing them to marked, “You’ve never had it so good”) complete short-term contracts, without and the 1960s, a time of freedom, ques- then feeling the pressure of either owing tioning, and individualism. As a result, the agency or failing the agency? There is their core values are clustered around in- a view that says those interested in mis- dividualism, self-development, and work. sion today are not as committed as previ- In contrast to their preceding generations, ous generations because they will not offer Boomer missionaries feel more able to their lives in long-term service. I believe change mission agency or country of work, this to be incorrect, and I see many who but they feel more constrained to remain are committed to living out one day at a in the area of ministry in which they are time for God, reflecting the temporariness skilled and practiced. of life and its situations. This could actu- Now this pattern is not necessarily a ally be seen as a healthier, more honest bad thing. It’s actually OK and indeed in- commitment.” evitable, if we accept the reality of our Short-term service doesn’t mean that cultural conditioning and its origin in our every Xer doing mission will be an inex- created nature. Each generation is called perienced learner. Instead, they will be to work out what it means to live for Christ able to bring their experience with them, in its own era. But it is not called to make contribute and learn, and maybe then any answer it may find to be normative move on, taking that experience else- for all the succeeding generations. Why where. As with the letter-writer quoted not allow Xers the same freedom to do above, I don’t see a lack of commitment mission their way, based on their under- to mission among Generation X. What I standing of who they are in Christ—an see is a lack of need or desire to stay with understanding which is formed in the con- a single organisation, or to remain within text of the culture which shaped them? structures that feel alien and outmoded. And why should that be wrong? Organi- A heart for world mission sational commitment and commitment to The following is taken from a letter Christ are not synonymous. written by an Xer, sent to us at Global This personal flexibility and concern Connections in November 1999: for individuality will affect other core val- “Today’s world is a temporary place. ues and concepts currently cherished by There is hardly a job that comes with long- the missionary movement. Our motivation term security these days, but mission agen- for mission will be different, as will our cies still talk in terms of ‘long-term’ and understanding of what mission actually is. ‘short-term,’ with ‘short-term’ as somehow We will be able to accept different visions, lesser. But people live in an environment goals, styles, and so on from different in which they are expected to move on people, and aim to combine the strengths after a time; otherwise, they are seen as of each into a wider whole. Our commu- let x = x: generation x and world mission 473 nication about mission will have to be tai- in the secular human resources literature lored more explicitly to the needs and than in the church, which seems to be context of each person. I suspect that as more keen to hold onto its old ways of Evangelicals we also have a tendency to doing things, rather than asking whether overcommunicate (this article is probably new situations require new ways of work- a good example of that). Perhaps we ing. A starting point for reflection on this should aim to be more like Jesus of subject can be had by visiting the follow- Nazareth, whose judicious use of stories ing websites: and parables provides a welcome relief to www.growingupdigitial.com the information explosion we’re experi- www.rainmakerthinking.com encing today. www.generationsatwork.com The current structures through which mission is undertaken will probably The Remaining Challenge change a lot. For most of us, structures Of course, GenXers will not be the only and hierarchy hold little or no appeal, and group doing mission in the foreseeable a strong desire for a relational way of liv- future. The older generations—the Baby ing will have to be reflected in our work Boomers, the Silents, and the Veterans— methods. Will Xers change traditional make up the major portion of the church. sending structures such as mission agen- But behind even the GenXers comes the cies, will they abandon them, or will they next generation, the Millennials. The chal- start their own organisations? The answer lenge that we all face is to retain some kind is probably “all of the above,” for we al- of unity (or, even better, to try to find some ready observe these trends. The inertia kind of generational synergy) in the midst inherent in human nature and cultures of this diversity. It won’t be an easy task. will ensure that most organisations stick Neither is it impossible. around, even if Xers don’t form the cre- Writing in the context of cultural di- ative heart of them. They will express their versity, The Observer journalist Simon own creativity elsewhere. Caulkin (1999), commenting on Neil Kin- Since Xers don’t want to limit their op- nock’s task of streamlining the work of the tions, they find it difficult to commit to European Commission, noted, “The tricki- one organisation. Few are staying with one est, and most interesting, issue of all is a mission organisation for a long time. The cultural one. Although some companies attitude of “stay a short while, contribute have tried it, one thing that can’t be inter- what you can, learn what you can, move nationalised is organisational culture.” In on,” mentioned above, is widespread his book on organisational culture, among my contemporaries. I have also Charles Handy (p. 68) says something heard the perhaps-unfair-but-genuine similar: “The first essential, then, of organi- question, “Couldn’t you do anything else?” sational efficiency is cultural purity. To being directed towards someone who had each his own god. Harmony is health. It is spent 25 years working for the same organ- when the gods compete within one activ- isation. ity that confusion results, for then the law Perhaps the core questions are man- of cultural propriety is infringed.” Robert agement ones. How do you manage a Flood and Norma Romm (p. 14) note, “Di- group of individuals who like to be flex- versity is desirable, but … complementar- ible? How do Xers like to lead and be led? ity is not obviously theoretically feasible.” I find it ironic, even sad, that more effort is being put into answering this question 474 responding to the challenges

And yet there is something in the gos- to help overcome problems of disunity pel that says that this adversariality can- and broken relationships in the churches not and must not be the case. For the at Rome and Corinth. In the process, Paul gospel is about reconciliation between modified the Jerusalem Council provisions God and people and between people even further, with greater liberty in Christ. themselves. And if God in Christ accepts Might we not transfer Paul’s thought in us as we are, then we too must accept one Ephesians 3:10-11, and instead of Jews and another as we are—modern, post-modern, Gentiles, think of the generations? The text pre-modern, or whatever. Reconciliation might read: “God’s purpose was to show does not come about by forcing people to his wisdom in all its rich variety to all the fit into one particular mould. We must rulers and authorities in the heavenly surely agree with the observation of realms. They will see this when GenXers French post-modern philosopher Michel and Boomers and Silents are joined to- Foucault, that simply to establish norms gether in his church.” of being and behaving is not an adequate This may provide us with a biblical and solution to diversity. For as soon as a norm theological starting point to develop unity is established, it alienates those who do in the context of diversity. Not just to “man- not conform; and conforming is not age” or cope with diversity, but to see it as enough. a strength and to allow each generation Complementarity—finding unity in to bring its own unique strengths and gifts diversity—is essential. For unity is central to the task of mission. Unity has to be more to the effectiveness of our mission. Re- than simply an affirmation of what we have member Jesus in John 17:23 in this regard: in common (which can so easily reduce “May they be brought to complete unity to the lowest common denominator). to let the world know that you sent me.” Unity in diversity welcomes and needs the This tension is not an issue of which the input of each (à la 1 Cor. 12), not just de- biblical writers were unaware. In the Old spite ethnicity, gender, or generation, but Testament, both Ruth and Jonah provide because of them. We need the specific in- stories which illustrate God’s concern for sights and perspectives of each, for other- the apparent “outsider,” who didn’t fit the wise we are all impoverished—GenXers, “norms” of God’s people and who could Boomers, Veterans. thereby have easily been excluded. In the New Testament, we see the is- Drawing to a Close sue arising in one of the earliest crises to My concern in this paper has been to afflict the early church, that is, the demand focus on mission issues from the perspec- by Jewish Christian leaders that Gentiles tive of Generation X and to present a per- must be circumcised as a condition of sal- spective of understanding towards us and vation in Jesus Christ. Acts 15 describes our idiosyncrasies. I make a plea that we the decision of the Council of Jerusalem all let X = X and that we be allowed to that non-Jews should be allowed to be- find our place in God’s church and God’s come Christians without submitting to mission. At the WEF Missions Commission circumcision and the law of Moses. Yet at consultation in Iguassu, Brazil, in Octo- the same time, James introduced some ber 1999, some of the seniors of the world provisos (Acts 15:19-20), so that the exer- mission movement were very supportive cise of freedom in Christ should not be- of our right to find our own answers to come a hindrance to fellowship and unity. our own questions. However, others chal- Paul developed the same theme himself let x = x: generation x and world mission 475 lenged our thoughts on these issues, ask- ———. (1995). Microserfs. New York: Regan ing if we were speaking rhetorically. Some Books. suggested that we were “sincere but mis- Donovan, K., & Myors, R. (1997). Reflections on attrition in career missionaries: A gen- guided” or that we were plain “heretical.” erational perspective into the future. In W. They could not allow that we might actu- D. Taylor (Ed.), Too valuable to lose: Ex- ally be right. However, I believe that we ploring the causes and cures of mission- can make space for diversity, thus allow- ary attrition (pp. 41-73). Pasadena, CA: ing each generation to contribute from its William Carey Library. strengths and to have its weaknesses com- Flood, R., & Romm, N. Diversity management. pensated for. Handy, C. The gods of management. The biggest mistake that the Western Strauss, W., & Howe, N. (1991). Generations: missionary movement can make is to act The history of America’s future, 1584 to 2069. New York: Morrow. as though it is on the asteroid of Texla- homa, and that it is always 1974. Over a Richard Tiplady is quarter of a century on, the world is a dif- the Associate Direc- ferent place. In another 25 years, it will tor of Global Con- be a different place again. Only as we re- nections (formerly spond to and embrace the changes in our known as the Evan- gelical Missionary culture, and accept the strengths and gifts Alliance) in the U.K. of each generation, can the church truly Prior to this, he be a place and a messenger of reconcilia- worked in local tion, for all generations, in a changing church leadership world. and mission mobili- sation. In 1993, he References lectured in a theological college in Nigeria. He holds a theol- Caulkin, S. (1999, July 25). The Observer. ogy degree from London University and a master’s degree in theology from Nottingham Coupland, D. (1991). Generation X: Tales for University. He is married to Irene, and they an accelerated culture. New York: St. have one son, Jamie, who was born in 1992 Martin’s Press. and whose ambition is to be a monster.

LMOST ALL WHO HAVE attended major consultations From A participate with a fear that they “plough the ocean,” as the South American liberator Simón Bolívar once said in the synthesis dismal and difficult time after the deadly revolutionary battles for independence from Spain in South America. The saying to synergy: comes back to haunt us: “After all is said and done, much more is said than done.” What we all desire to see emerge as the Iguassu a result of the Iguassu Missiological Consultation is an think tanks enduring legacy, a visible and practical outworking of the discussions, papers, and conclusions. Will there remain something of enduring substance? One element of such a legacy already exists in the form of suggestions and recommenda- Rob tions to the broader missiological community stemming from Brynjolfson the think tank sessions that were a key component in the consultation program. This chapter attempts to synthesize the analyses, suggestions, and recommendations branching from those think tank sessions. Recognized experts participated in each of the 12 topics. Some of these coincided with WEF Missions Com- mission (WEF/MC) Task Forces already at work. Many of the groups could already identify forums or networks that would sustain the dialogue and would continue working to imple- ment the suggestions. The think tank sessions, then, are the very place we might find real solutions to real problems and contribute lasting efforts directly attributable to the Iguassu Missiological Consultation. The various topics fell into a natural, progressive organization. The four divisions move from the activity of sending, to strategizing, to issues related to staying, to missiology. Two of the original 12 groups amalgamated, and two others decided not to contribute reports. Below is a summary of the nine reports that were submitted.

477 478 responding to the challenges

Suggestions tain and returned can help the boy. Some Relating to Sending have not gone to the mountain and have neither heard the word of God nor seen The church and mission his glory. It is also possible to go to the As history begins with Adam, so mis- mountain, see and hear the Lord, but sion begins with the church. One team never descend to help. “Only those whose gathered to focus specifically on the local lives are marked by the rhythm of worship church in mission. Tite Tiénou presented and mission,” we are told, “can be used a plenary paper, thus contributing to the to bring salvation to a broken world.” consultation a perspective of church and This group continued with two more mission from the developing world. This observations that relate to this rhythm of think tank, on the other hand, fretted over worship and mission. One is that holistic an apparent overtly Western perspective. ministries are a necessary concern of the Chaired by pastor John Wood, the group church, but they are inadequate. Too often, expressed introductory regrets that most the local church engages in mission at a members of the missiological community safe distance. Churches need to consider struggle less specifically with issues relat- how they can engage the communities ing to the local church. they serve, providing local cross-cultural The group determined three important mission. A question for self-assessment is, issues that are here presented as recom- “Is your neighbourhood glad you’re mendations to the missiological commu- there?” Finally, the group indicated that nity. First, church centeredness is essential equipping in gifts misses the mark unless to 21st century missiology. John Wood re- a people match their gifting to the pas- marked, “If mission ultimately begins and sion that drives their lives. The passion will ends in God, it begins and ends experien- show us where we are called to minister, tially in a local church.” The experience and our gifts tell us how to minister. of mission in the local church, therefore, Organizational and denominational needs to reassess the ministry, the lan- language continues to detract from the guage, and the training of leaders of the greater reality of unity in mission. Re- local church. assessment of the church and mission is This think tank reported the need to critical. Shifting the emphasis of language reassess the ministry of the local church. to that of family will affect both where and “There must be a rhythm of worship and how mission is done. Asking, “Is the fam- mission,” we are told. A pattern emerges ily there?” and, “What is the family doing?” from Matthew 17. The group of disciples reduces unnecessary competition and the behold the glory of God. They also hear redundancy invoked by asking, “Is the or- the word of God saying, “This is my Son ganization there?” Subsequently, this also whom I love; listen to him!” Jesus says, affects the way the church and missions “Fear not,” and then he leads the group undertake partnerships and fund-raising. down the mountain. At the foot of the This suggestion is only helpful to the mountain is a human father in need, who extent that it can be implemented. The cries out, “This is my son, whom I love. challenge before the mission community Help him!” The think tank points to this in North America, at least, is how to ex- as the “cry of the world.” tend influence to the context of the local Wood made a striking observation. church. The mission community in North Only those who have been to the moun- America and elsewhere can develop and from synthesis to synergy: the iguassu think tanks 479 use inclusive family language. Perhaps in emerging movement through the process time the church will follow suit. We are of discerning its own unique context. left looking for a more intentional ap- These questions have been organized into proach to this problem. four categories: The think tank spoke of the need to 1.Observe the movement of God in train pastors in the process of missiologi- your country: What is God doing in your cal thinking and visioning. They acknowl- country? What is the state of the church in edge, once more, that this concern speaks your country? chiefly to the North American context. 2.Determine the level of unity in the “Pastors,” we are told, “no longer take the church: Is there an attitude of co-opera- word of mission thinkers and leaders.” tion amongst leaders? Does a national The result is that missionary activity, with- Evangelical fellowship or Evangelical alli- out adequate reflection, quickly becomes ance exist? If yes, how strong is it? What misguided, uninformed, or not sustain- are the other national platforms for draw- able. An example of such misguided ef- ing people together? forts is the local church that presumes a 3.Consider the development of mis- level of cross-cultural sensitivity by merely sions to date: Are you a younger sending training and funding a national to repro- country or an older sending country? If duce an enterprise that in every way ex- you are a new sending country, what are hibits its foreign origin. The training of the international mission agencies doing? pastors in the process of missiological What are people at the grassroots level thinking and visioning should assist the saying about global mission? movement by developing an awareness of 4.Analyze present mission structures the national alliances and networks al- and institutions: What are the issues fac- ready at work, thus avoiding the Adam ing the mission sending structures from syndrome (“history starts with us”) and your country? What are training or educa- fostering partnership and cooperation. tional institutions doing to equip your missionary force? National missionary Offered below are 18 principles this movements resource group provided as a guide for Sending also requires mobilization. beginning national missionary move- The think tank on national missionary ments. Once the context of the new move- movements provided very helpful sugges- ment has been determined, the principles tions and recommendations for emerging listed below will assist the development movements. The focus of this group was of a strong foundation. on both starting national missionary movements and strengthening them. Foundational concerns This team outlined two important as- 1.The Holy Spirit is the primary ini- pects of starting a movement. The first tiator of a national missionary movement. relates to the context of the national 2.The centrality of the local church missionary movement; the latter, to under- must be affirmed by a national missionary lying principles behind starting a move- movement. ment. Movements emerge within a context Leadership which, undeniably, needs to be understood. As such, the group has provided 3.Servant-leadership is vital. for the global missionary community a list 4.A nationally accepted platform for of questions that should serve to guide an gathering is needed. 480 responding to the challenges

5.Common, clearly defined outcomes this material be circulated widely through must be developed. electronic media or through bulletins, 6.The support of a cross-section of ensuring its availability to those needing leaders is needed. assistance. First, the national missionary move- Attitudes and relationships ment needs to set a strong spiritual foun- 7.Consensus must be built. dation. Principally, this requires fostering 8.Relationship building is needed be- openness to the Holy Spirit’s guidance and tween the potential participants of the encouraging dependence on the Spirit. It movements. will also include some form of spiritual 9.The national missionary movement “stock taking.” Building relationships is should not compete with or duplicate the second critical need in strengthening what already exists. national missionary movements. There are 10.The national missionary move- any number of ways to work at relation- ment should be an open neighbourhood, ships. The most helpful suggestion relates not a gated community. to fostering attitudes of acceptance and 11.Networking with other national openness, expanding the circle of involve- missionary movements is vital to success. ment disproportionately. Thirdly, a na- 12.Key leaders participating in larger tional missionary movement ought to international mission conventions/con- provide significant services to churches gresses can so impact these individuals and agencies. The perceived value of these that when they return to their country they services will determine the extent of in- can catalyze a national missionary move- volvement of those being served. Finally, ment. the stability and maturity of these move- 13.National missionary movements ments must be achieved. These qualities must recognize the role of the expatriate are not automatic. The timeliness or popu- and find ways to cooperate. larity of an emerging national movement Other factors is no guarantee of sustainability or effectiveness. 14.Timing is key. 15.Research can be very helpful. Missionary training 16.Effective information flow is criti- Sending involves both the church and cal. national missionary movements; it also 17.The agenda for the national mis- presupposes an element of missionary sionary movement arises from the context training. Research points to the urgency rather than from the outside. of whole-person training, and the team on 18.Start simply. missionary training quickly identified this Strengthening national missionary as a common value. The group moved on movements was the other key concern of to consider three specific areas relating to this reflecting group. Many young move- training. The first area dealt with the on- ments have blossomed over past years, going needs of trainers. How can trainers producing accumulated experiences that keep current? The second area identified may serve to guide those still in process. a need to develop recognized standards The group identified and analyzed four of quality in training. Finally, the session critical areas and produced a significant considered how to meet the training needs list of suggestions, hints, and examples for of tentmakers. each of these. This writer proposes that from synthesis to synergy: the iguassu think tanks 481

Francophones and Hispanics, among rize criteria already established by the Task others, utilize a marvelous term, reciclaje. Force on Missionary Training. The content In English, we might think of retooling or of this discussion worked its way into an refreshing. A nurse takes refresher courses article and was subsequently published to keep abreast of new developments in in the International Missionary Training medicine. No one wants to sit under the Fellowship Bulletin, Training for Cross- scalpel of a surgeon who has not kept Cultural Ministries (Vol. 99, No. 2). current with new techniques. It is not sur- While the think tank group exhibited prising, then, that the missionary trainers strong support for the criteria established gathered on this team determined that by the task force, evidence of diverse val- keeping current is essential for continual ues in training surfaced. On the one hand, improvement of the quality of missionary consensus grew for the adoption of the training and the effectiveness of trainers. criteria published in the article. On the Brainstorming led to a number of sug- other hand, it became more apparent that gestions intent on refreshing or keeping the criteria heightened the distinctions the trainer current. The obvious sugges- between formal and nonformal training. tion came first: to share resources through Representatives from both types of insti- the development of literature, journals, tutions clearly valued distinct methodolo- bulletins, and electronic media. Another gies, and though claiming to be working suggestion proposed the development of towards the same objective (a trained per- a program for ongoing improvement of son), they achieve divergent results. As- the various centers by polling alumni to suming that these differing approaches are determine critical areas needing improve- adversaries is a common mistake, when ment. It was further recommended that in reality they complement each other. reviving the WEF/MC International Mis- Inevitably, this signals the need for sionary Training Associates would foster greater dialogue and partnership amongst open communication and consultation the various centers and institutions. It is between schools. The development of time to stop comparing the merits of vari- electronic media encapsulates the last two ous methods of training and begin to see suggestions. The development of an Inter- that whole-person training will encompass net forum provides the means to share informal, nonformal, and formal educa- contextualized models and curricula and tion. A recommendation was noted that to encourage cooperative curricula devel- more intentional partnerships in training opment. Furthermore, it would serve to would allow training centers and formal disseminate training resources, including academic institutions to pursue excellence the production of full textbooks, articles, within their value systems. The nonformal theses, and abstracts, whether by CD-ROM centers must pursue excellence in hands- or the Internet, for those centers strug- on training and character development. gling with the lack of adequate materials. The formal academic institutions must The think tank identified the WEF/MC In- pursue excellence in the development of ternational Missionary Training Fellowship foundational knowledge and skills in re- as a potential broker to act on these rec- search and reflection. Missionary candi- ommendations. dates, on the other hand, inevitably need The second focus of this resource both, and satisfying this need can be best group was to examine the need for a rec- achieved through cooperative initiatives ognized standard of quality in missionary on the part of both kinds of institutions. training. Bob Ferris was asked to summa- 482 responding to the challenges

The final area of dialogue that the team Partnership discussed related to the training of tent- and cooperation makers. The tentmaker has distinct train- The partnership and cooperation think ing needs to that of the traditional career tank provided a very helpful analysis of missionary and therefore requires train- the present situation, demonstrating that ing that is adapted to meet his or her spe- partnership is hindered by the problem cific objectives. One obstacle that such of two competing models. The group training will face is the variety of defini- enunciated this concern, saying that it is tions surrounding the concept of tent- “more a question of competing models making. This topic was directly addressed than murky definitions.” The popularity by one of the think tank sessions. The pri- of the “P” word does not make clarifica- mary obstacle, however, is the rapid de- tion an easy task. This observation is per- ployment that often affects the tentmaker, haps all the more striking in light of the making the acquisition of suitable train- fact that one pre-consultation event of- ing almost impossible. On the other hand, fered a one-day seminar on this topic. any training is better than no training at Business and family are the distinguish- all. A reminder of the importance of life- ing natures of these two competing mod- long learning or “just in time” learning els. A comparison of certain characteristics helped the group see that tentmakers re- exhibits the dissimilar approach each quire training on demand and may very model will take. The business model views well access this training while serving on people as stockholders, while the family the field. model sees them as members. Control in One example was cited demonstrating the business model is maintained with how tentmaker training must address spe- money, but in the family it is relationships cific needs. “Strategic Coordinator Train- that keep control. In the business model ing” was a Korean model designed for the emphasis is on activities, while the fam- tentmakers who are retooling after a cross- ily model values fellowship. Contributions cultural experience. The training that was are seen as competitive in the business received focused on how to develop and approach, but they are complementary in manage a project. the family model. No contribution is de- valued even though recognized as distinct. Suggestions Both models will pursue accountability. Relating to Strategy However, the business model is one-sided, Leaving the issues relating to the pre- whereas the family model seeks a mutual field context, we move to concerns affect- accountability. ing the strategic foundation of missions. Reporting for the team, Hugo Morales The urgency of the task, principles of stew- contributed the following observation: ardship, commitment to excellence, and “This dichotomy makes us believe that our driven call to worship compel us to- while one model allows for the efficient wards higher standards of excellence. For accomplishment of kingdom tasks, it does these reasons, we find it imperative that not uphold in its rightful place the char- our efforts be effective. Several sessions acteristics of the second one (family), dealt with issues relating to the strategic where it is identified as more than ‘do- deployment of mission resources. ing’; we are to be ‘living’ kingdom-based relationships, which are centered around people who care for one another and have from synthesis to synergy: the iguassu think tanks 483 a vision of ministry that points them in tion. The recommendation was to convene the same direction.” The group concluded a task force on partnership and set this that a biblical model needs to be devel- group to work on various tasks. First, the oped, with an emphasis that rings true to task force would need to develop a bibli- passages such as Philippians 1:3-6. cal theology of partnership. Second, the The resource group on partnership theology that is developed would need to and cooperation, after analyzing the pres- be worked into a partnership handbook. ent situation, moved on to consider hin- The handbook would spell out the theol- drances to developing partnership in ogy of partnership, would be sensitive to mission. They observed that diverging divergent contexts, would elicit contem- agendas, insufficient emphasis on relation- porary models, and would include a best ships, and the indiscriminate usage of old practice checklist and a workable assess- sponsorship methods hinder the achievement tool. Third, the task force would ment of true partnerships. Figure 1 com- encourage the development of a curricu- pares the sponsorship approach to that lum that supports biblical partnership of partnership. training for institutions of learning and for parties already attempting to develop partnerships. Fourth, a call was made for an SPONSORSHIP PARTNERSHIP international consultation on biblical partnership, well represented from all conti- Money Gifts nents. Control Communion Donation Participation Tentmaking Hierarchy Equality Tentmaking (bi-vocational cross- Imposed vision Shared vision cultural ministry) has emerged as a singu- Short term Enduring larly significant strategy to reach many of One-sided Mutual those yet to be evangelized in the world. I – You We However, definitions and descriptions, Domination Cooperation this team reported, continue to lack clar- Dependence Interdependence ity. Tentmaking as a practice has already Parent – Child Peers emerged and actually has been with us for Suspicion Trust centuries in one form or another. How- Unhappiness Joy ever, there is no fully accepted definition of who and what a tentmaker is. Further- Figure 1 Sponsorship vs. Partnership more, we lack further description of what a tentmaker does. The group concluded that truly effec- The name “tentmaking,” though popu- tive partnerships accomplish the deter- larized from the examples of the Apostle mined task primarily through healthy and Paul, Priscilla, and Aquila, does no true strong personal relationships. The rela- justice to the concept. An immediate need tionships are sincere, not merely expedi- for theological and biblical reflection was ent. The result is that both the process and observed. The present-day concept of the outcome exalt the mutual relationship tentmaking, though not necessarily at vari- in Jesus Christ. ance with these biblical examples, is cer- The partnership and cooperation group tainly distinct. Access is the motivating proposed a single recommendation, with factor in most cases. Surely, there ought a well-developed agenda for implementa- to be other examples found in Scripture 484 responding to the challenges of people who served God in ministry tion is that missions texts begin to treat while maintaining a vocation? tentmaking as an integral part of today’s The team called for clear conceptuali- missionary strategy and no longer relegate zation of tentmaking, integrating people it to the appendix. Finally, missionary in their interactions with daily life. God evaluation criteria must consider issues looks for people intending to use market- relating to the context and nature of tent- able skills to bless the world in which we making ministry and not just look at re- live. The motivation of the tentmaker sults based on unrealistic expectations. ought not to differ from that of any other Media and technology Christian. The tentmaker might, for example, assist in a church planting project The unique relationship that media but may not actually be a church planter. and technology enjoy relative to the fu- Further, tentmaking is more than an ex- ture of mission allows them to fall into cuse to gain access to closed nations. Yet, the category of strategizing. Initially, these as a strategy, we cannot avoid the fact that subjects were to be discussed by two re- tentmaking has evolved to address the source groups, but they came together various obvious needs of access. In this under one title by mutual accord. regard, we are warned that the nature of The merged sessions on media and tentmaking, while allowing access, will not technology clearly identified both ele- produce the same mass results that tradi- ments as mixed blessings. They are essen- tional missionary efforts may have done tial and useful for the global cause of the in the past. There is room for neither kingdom of Christ. Unfortunately, they naïveté nor unrealistic expectations. also carry innate problems and concerns Current issues in tentmaking continue that must be addressed. “An uncritical use to frustrate the task of definition. The re- of media and technology threatens mis- source team identified two concerns that sion and missionaries.” are essentially distinct faces of the same The group defined three main con- coin. The first problem is one of identity. cerns: spiritual vitality, Christian commu- “It is our estimate,” writes Carlos Calderón, nity, and message integrity. Three danger “that a large number of potential mission- signs, which this group also contributed, aries are at a loss, without guidance or help us understand how these areas be- instruction, as they struggle, balancing come concerns. They come to us in the God’s call to serve him and a ‘professional form of questions for self-analysis. First, life/upbringing’ that has been defined for what does this use of media or technol- them as less than ‘missionary quality.’” ogy do to my general sense of overload The second problem relates to the de- and my vitality? Second, what does this use valuing of vocation. The team suggested of media or technology do to my face-to- that research be undertaken surveying face relationships? Third, how does this available literature and related subject use of media or technology color the mes- matter, with the intention of reminding sage we are trying to send? the global church of the significant con- One of the very significant contribu- tribution of tentmaking. The group stated tions of this think tank group was a dis- that this material urgently needs to be discussion of the biblical concept of wheat seminated in the languages of the newer and tares. The observation that emerged sending countries, since they offer the from the session was that both wheat and greatest potential pool of future tent- tares grow together; hence, there is a makers. Another significant recommenda- mixed blessing. The group developed a from synthesis to synergy: the iguassu think tanks 485

IEI"USSI USS EUSSI EUSS ""TAEHW" TAEHW "TAEHW" "TAEHW ""SERAT" SERAT "SERAT" "SERAT

Ctnoitazilautxetno rebeiHaekatnacenoyna,tenretnIehtaiV nidezilautxetnocedsiflestiesruocehT .noitazilautxetnocnoesruoc .ecapsrebyc

Pnrewo ierahsnac"stnapicitraplautriV" wenaemoceb"stnapicitraplautriv"esehT .dnettayllacisyhptonnacyehtsecnerefnoc .seirtnuocnworiehtnietile

Isgnirahsnoitamrofn noissimaaivsecruoserhctamsdeeN htiwgnola,sruccodaolrevonoitamrofnI .etisbew .sgninrawsurivsugob

P"spihsrentra nrehtuos"a;demroferasknilhtuoS-htuoS stimildnaerawtfosehtsetanimodhsilgnE .elbissopedamsiQMEfonoitide .spihsrentrapeht

Penoitamalcor Tsh Jduse edulcniebyamDVDnomlif naitsirhCamorfdehcatedsiegassemehT txendlossreyalpDVDihcatiHllahtiweerf .laudividninaitsirhCaneveroytinummoc .raey

C;sseccaevitaer tsaEelddiMehtnielbaliavasiVTetilletaS yamliam-ednasetisbewfoesusseleraC nossenisubllamsaputesnacsnaitsirhC .noitucesrepotdael .sseccaevitaercroftenretnIeht

Figure 2 Key Missiological Issues in Terms of Wheat and Tares table that compares key missiological is- missionaries and how agencies and chur- sues and the implications rising from me- ches can care for their members. dia and technology in terms of wheat and Relief and development tares (Figure 2). The team on media and technology An observation, immediately obvious leaves us with three recommendations, but nonetheless striking, offered by the which really are recommended disciplines think tank on relief and development to reduce the amount of “tares” while states that relief and development will growing “wheat.” First, it is essential that occur whether planned or not. Meredith we keep a Sabbath, so that our spiritual Long noted that 50% of national mission- vitality will not wane as a result of the use ary workers with the India Missions Asso- of media and technology. Second, we need ciation already provide some form of to build relationships in order to combat development. They are spurred to action the depersonalization of technology. And by visible need. Unfortunately, projects third, we must incarnate the message. No and programs receive sporadic starts with- technology can replace the essential and out clear reflection regarding long-range core element of the gospel, which is love. plans or sustainability. If such is the case, and should this be Suggestions a widely shared phenomenon, this think Relating to Staying tank recommends that the WEF/MC con- duct a survey assessing the training needs Two think tank groups related to issues of workers who already provide some form of remaining on the field. One dealt with of R&D or who are likely to develop some issues relating to relief and development involvement in this kind of ministry. Fur- affecting many of the missionary receiv- thermore, this survey could also identify ing countries of the world. The other Christian R&D organizations with needed group considered the ongoing care of 486 responding to the challenges expertise, in order to broker regional may limit direct integration with evange- workshops that train workers in specific listic activities. technical and support needs. Member care This recommendation underscores the need for networking. Various R&D agen- Staying implies much more than mere cies are now identifying issues and con- longevity or perseverance in cross-cultural cerns stretching beyond their jurisdictions. mission. It means fostering the life and A forum that brings together church, mis- ministry of missionaries in ways that re- sion, and R&D agencies will address com- lease them not only to survive, but also to mon concerns. For example, many now thrive in difficult contexts. It also includes see the strengthening of the local church reducing undesirable or painful mission- as a new priority. This task is difficult to ary attrition. The think tank on member achieve, since many R&D agencies develop care is a natural link in the chain to ad- large-scale projects and rarely relate dress these issues. The concerns of this directly to the local congregation. Net- think tank, however, swell beyond merely working will improve the coordination of staying, with emphasis on such elements activities while ensuring that identifiable as wholeness and effectiveness. priorities are met. The think tank recom- The member care group broached the mends, therefore, that WEF become in- subject with a two-pronged emphasis. The volved in the formation of MICAH, which first was content. Three specific content- has replaced the International Relief and related issues were identified by the Development Agency, in order to explore group. First, member care must occur its potential to serve as a forum address- throughout the life cycle of the mission- ing in teams the multifaceted issues that ary. Moments of acute need are easily iden- arise. tified. However, members need care at The integration of all facets of minis- every stage of missionary service. Second, try continues to be a concern for R&D member care needs to be people centered. organizations. Biblical values and world- This will require that member care be cul- view are crucial to secure integration. turally relevant and in line with best prac- Biblical holism is now understood to be tice principles. The last concern is that foundational to all Christian ministry. It is member care be provided by qualified essential, then, to determine points of con- people. vergence between development activities The second prong of the member care and evangelism. The goal must become group’s emphasis dealt with structures. the achievement of holism as opposed to First, seminars and retreats geared to pro- distinct complementary emphases. The vide supportive care and spiritual refresh- R&D think tank proposed that this can be ment will become key structures for achieved when biblical values and world- delivering member care. A second struc- view become more explicitly part of the ture is needed to address complicated or ministry projects, thus securing inner long-standing issues. Centers with appro- change and not merely temporary out- priate facilities are essential for the provi- ward behavioral adjustments. This will sion of physical and mental health care. result in the diminishing of distinctions Crisis teams, the third proposed structure, between Christian R&D and evangelism. are needed for special care and should be Notable exceptions will remain. Issues of established to provide consulting, train- integrity relating to donor obligations and ing, and services. Finally, the member care security relating to difficult-access nations team recommended that a suitable struc- from synthesis to synergy: the iguassu think tanks 487 ture be developed for further research. This trinitarian-based missiology would Major stressors, observed the group, need have at least a triple focus. The initial fo- to be monitored and researched. cus needs to look biblically and theologi- The member care resource group also cally at the unique role of each member produced a working model for member of the Trinity relating to mission. “Each care, and they expect to publish an article divine Person has a distinct and yet over- in detail. The goal of a working model of lapping role in creating, revealing, and member care, in the words of Kelly O’Don- redeeming.” This initial affirmation focus nell, “… needs to build up three areas: on the Trinity then led to an understand- character (virtue/godliness), competence ing of community in light of the fact that (cross-cultural/professional skills), and the Trinity is the primal community. There- compassion (love/involvement) in cultur- fore, community is self-revealing through- ally relevant ways.” Further discussions out every activity of God, including the life included the need to develop a code of of the church and mission. Questions best practice for member care, a consid- arose in terms of the missiological appli- eration of the diversified needs around the cation of structures of community and world, and a look into the future. how they relate to our human organizational models. Do our models emerge Suggestions pragmatically, or are they an expression Relating to Missiology of the Trinity? The think tank on missiological issues In relation to evangelization, the ques- stands alone in this report because it en- tion was asked: “In what way would this joyed strong attendance and keen inter- communal model impact our presentation est, and its themes were visibly threaded of the gospel, with the epic Story centered throughout the consultation. A number of not in pragmatic and selfish individualism key recommendations emerged. The first but rather in shared values of community?” so strongly represented the pitch and As the church comprehends its trinitarian tenor of the plenary sessions that it be- missiological foundation and as it accepts came the pillar in the contribution of this the implications of the reality of global- group. The concluding recommendations ization, it must rise to give visible expres- are related to the practical outworking of sion to the community of God. “The missiology. church by definition must live out the val- This pillar, then, is a call to return to ues of trinitarian missiology, for it is the or clarify a trinitarian-based missiology. gathered and scattered people of God, “Among the issues voiced,” reports Bill each individual and each people with Taylor, “the need for trinitarian-based unique contributions, but all shared co- missiology has received the most attention equals and enhancing each other.” from a majority of the participants.” Frus- The other practical issues relating to tration was expressed at the token esteem missiology were then reported and pre- attributed to the Trinity in mission. The sented in the form of declarations. The think tank called upon future contribu- first affirms that missiology must be regen- tors to ensure that missionary books be erated. There is now a need for a new written from the perspective of Trinitar- missiology to fit a new context. The glo- ianism and no longer offer mere mention bal missionary community needs to pro- of the subject. duce this new missiology. A remodeling of old missiology will not meet the needs 488 responding to the challenges of the ever-changing world in which we erational sensitivity is also required if live. On the other hand, this resource team missiology is to rise to the challenge of recognized the value of continuity and the reaching the world’s young and of open- regard for work completed in the past. ing up space for the next generation of Secondly, the rise of new missiology mission leaders and missiologists. must be adaptable. “A creative tension,” it The missiological issues resource team was observed, “exists between the univer- concluded with a prophetic word of en- sality of the gospel and the contextuality couragement that the future of missiology of the different regions.” “In creating glo- is bright, because we have a God who an- bal missiology, we must not make missiol- swers prayer and a global fellowship with ogy uniform. Contextuality must be taken which to work. The WEF/MC intends to seriously.” Furthermore, missiology must continue to hear from the global church be approachable. New nomenclature is and mission community with the view to needed to replace dated and misunder- convene a Task Force on Global Missiology. stood terminology and expressions. This is of particular import if the new missiolo- Final Thoughts gy is to be embraced by the global church. The nine topics summarized here en- The global mission community, according joyed significant, creative, and helpful in- to David Tai-Woong Lee, “… must use less put from the 160 women and men from technical language so that a greater num- some 53 nations, reflective practitioners. ber of reflective practitioners can under- The international mission community of stand and use the language and process, the WEF/MC now inherits in these recom- even as they also create missiology and mendations and suggestions a rich, yet shape the global missions movement.” practical legacy. Implementing even a por- Thirdly, missiology must be praxis tion of these will advance the missionary driven. This requires that both practitio- cause significantly. Let us pray that such is ners and theorists of mission must work the case, and sooner rather than later! together in formulating future missiology. There is no other means to secure a Rob Brynjolfson missiology that is not speculative and to along with his wife ensure that it is born out in practice. Silvia and three Finally, missiology must be inclusive. children call the Americas their Two critical areas of concern hover over home. Silvia hails the vista of missions. New missiology must from Argentina and be sensitive in relation to gender and the Rob from Canada. different generations that form the global Their overseas expe- movement. The former relates to the role rience ranges from of women in leadership. Women have church planting to Bible teaching in South America, Spain, and contributed a remarkable legacy in the Africa. Presently, they serve as missionary history of missions. Not always were lead- trainers and are the founding directors of ership roles accessible in the missions Gateway: Training for Cross-Cultural Service, structures, and some agencies started by located in Langley, British Columbia, Canada. gifted women eventually were taken over Rob received an M.Div. degree from Regent College and is completing a D.Min. degree by men leaders. Missiology needs to affirm from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. the gifting of the Holy Spirit in women and allow him to use his servants. Gen- Part 6

Listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality

THE GLOBAL MISSIONARY MOVEMENT must revisit and recapture mission that arises from community and spirituality. The WEF Missions Commission in 1996 convened an international consultation that analyzed issues related to missionary attrition. The results of that 14-nation research project were published in Too Valuable to Lose: Exploring the Causes and Cures of Missionary Attrition (William D. Taylor, Ed., William Carey Library, 1997). Significantly, the prime reasons for early and painful return from mission service (in both the older and younger sending countries) were not related to inadequate formal training in missions. The significant finding showed that the prime causes were clustered around issues related to spirituality, character, and relationality in the life of the missionary. Who is responsible to ensure that these qualities are part of the non-formal, “prefield curriculum” of the missionary or of the future pastors of the church? Is it the individual candidate for ministry? Is it the ordaining or sending church? Is it the missionary training programme or the theological institution that claims to train pastors? Is it the sending body (whether agency or church)? Instead of segmenting and fault- finding, would we not profit more by revisiting some of the

489 historic as well as contemporary models of mission that have risen from intentional communities that emphasize deep spirituality? It was a missionary friend and colleague, called to the contemplative vocation, who challenged us prior to Iguassu to include this theme in both the program and the book. Her concern was that this component would help counter the contemporary preference for models of formal ministry training that have been exported (primarily from the West) around the world. The unfortunate reality is that most of the current theological education industry—and too many missionary training schools—have bought into the formal model that is historically based on the university. This does not bode good news nor health for the future of the church in mission. Formal training for ministry today is in crisis, and we must both revisit Scripture and learn from these other models of mission. The future of ministry and mission training must be grounded in renewed spirituality and rooted in community. During the Iguassu Consultation, four of these models (written by Warner, Tiplady, Ekström, and Burns) were presented in their historical order early in the morning, just after worship and prior to the heavier missiological topics. This format helped set a tone for each day. Two other case studies were later commissioned for this book, the Nestorians (Harris) and Copts (Omondi). We are grateful to God for the encouraging number of ministry and mission training programs that are building core components of spiritual formation, character development, and intentional community and relationality into their prefield equipping process.

490 34

OST CHRISTIANS in the English-speaking world have Celtic M recently encountered some bit of artistic or liturgical legacy left by the Celtic Christians. Their crosses, dances, community, music, and prayers are everywhere. This popularity has to do with the way Ireland, Scotland, and Wales preserved their spirituality, rich local cultures and traditions—a preservation that attracts Westerners subsumed in a homogenized world and a global and culture without local character connecting us to place. We mission recognize the simple elegance and profundity of their prayers and the lost art of living well as creatures in creation. Their expansive imagination and complex artistry enliven us. Un- derstandably, the Celtic Christian tradition has mostly been Clifton D. S. recovered and appropriated in private devotion and public Warner worship. But there is another aspect of Celtic Christianity that can inform and reform our vocation as the church. We can also learn from the character of their mission.

Peregrinatio

Celtic Christianity flourished during the so-called Dark Ages, the period when learning ebbed between the fall of the Roman Empire and the Middle Ages. Having developed independently of Rome, Celtic Christianity established its own character and customs, including semi-monastic living arrangements. Peregrinatio was one of their unique customs, a combination of asceticism, adventure, and mission practiced by monks who would hear a call to drift the seas, led only by the Spirit of God in the wind of their sails. Where they landed, they started a new community like the one they had left behind. This was a common form of mission. These Celtic missionaries called themselves peregrini, a Latin word that is not easy to translate. They were pilgrims,

491 492 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality for lack of a better word, but they were sail with some brothers?” The abbot per- unlike medieval pilgrims. Peregrini were mitted the journey, and having recruited voluntary exiles who felt called like Abra- 12 companions, Columbanus set upon the ham to a land that would only be revealed seas to a land God would show him, tak- after the journey had begun, a place to ing inspiration from Abraham. Peregri- which prevailing winds and currents su- natio. It was a voluntary exile for the love pervised by God would take them. And it of God. Columbanus and his company hit was usually a lifelong commitment. Once, upon the shore of what is now France and some Celtic monks who drifted ashore in pushed into the interior until they came Cornwall were taken to the king, who to present-day Burgundy. There they de- asked them where they had come from cided to remain. Maybe God spoke to and where they were going. The three men them, or perhaps it was the fabulous wine replied that they “stole away because we of the region that kept them there—the wanted for the love of God to be on pil- Irish were not known to turn down a fine grimage, we cared not where” (De Waal, festive beverage. In any case, there they 1997, p. 2). This quote illustrates that it stayed. was both a geographic journey and an in- That part of Europe was in shambles terior journey: voluntary exile for the love at the time. The Roman Empire was far of God. beyond the memory of even the oldest generation. For as long as anyone could Columbanus remember, the area had been hit by wave Columbanus, a 6th century Irish saint, after wave of attacking barbarians. Cor- is a prime example of what we speak of. ruption, moral decadence, and social- Columbanus burned with sexual desire in political chaos were the new norm. The his youth and sought the counsel of a church was on the verge of disappearing godly woman. Warning him with the ex- into a syncretistic religion of Christian- amples of Eve, Bathsheba, and Delilah, she laced paganism. Columbanus and his fel- gave him some counsel that proved very low peregrini held up the light of Christ effective: “Take flight from your home- in that particular place and time. They land.” He did. He made his way to the spoke publicly of salvation in Jesus, served opposite corner of the island and sought the oppressed, cultivated the life of the the guidance of a few renowned monks. mind, and established several monaster- He joined their monastic community in ies in the area, to which thousands flocked what can loosely be called a monastery. over the next 10 years. Throughout the Charismatic and bright, Columbanus so-called Dark Ages of Europe, other Celtic soaked up the teaching of his elders and peregrini were being led to other places the Scriptures, especially the psalms. He around Europe, embodying the presence learned them by heart and gained a repu- of Christ and leading contagious lives of tation as a learned man in theology. Eyes holy recklessness. must have been on this budding scholar- Community and Mission saint. “Will he become the next abbot? Will he oversee multiple monasteries?” Celtic Christian concepts of spiritual- In his mid-40s, with a secure reputa- ity and community had a distinct charac- tion as one of Ireland’s most gifted Chris- ter and a distinct influence on their tian leaders, he put a request before the mission. Most missionaries were monks presiding abbot: “Dear abbot, may I set who lived in the semi-monastic com- celtic community, spirituality, and mission 493 pounds. They requested the blessing of they might read their books and commune the abbot and went out in groups. Typi- with God.” cally, the first thing they would do upon arrival was to start a new monastery, just Celtic Christianity and as Columbanus did, which would then Contemporary Mission serve as the center for prayer, ministry to Community, creation, reflection, asceti- the poor, and hospitality. Celtic Christians cism, contemplation, and a robust em- knew of no other way of being a Christian brace of life on earth: these are not the but to be a Christian in community. Pere- typical values of Evangelical mission. Our grini were sent from a community, with pragmatism could use some theological others, to form the nucleus of a new com- reflection. Our activism could use the re- munity. minder that we are not God, a reminder that often comes through the stillness of Spirituality and Mission contemplative prayer. Our mission could Their spirituality likewise shaped their use a stronger theology of creation, a the- mission. How can it be otherwise if the ology that would cause us to value life on most clear and powerful message we con- earth and the earth itself. This means, by vey is our life itself, and our spirituality is implication, that in addition to our con- nothing more than our distinct way of liv- cern for people’s eternal destiny, we ing the Christian life? I will choose four would direct our missional concern to- adjectives to describe the spirituality of the ward God’s redemption of the physical peregrini and their lived life in Christ: person, of culture, and even of non- robust, ascetic, reflective, and contempla- human creation. And all of these things tive. They were robust, in that they lived would take place in the context of true passionately, with an enormous love for community. Our Celtic brothers and sis- life and the created realm. They were as- ters in Christ call us to join them. cetic, in that they voluntarily deprived Christian and pre-Christian Celts gravi- themselves of many comforts, for the love tated toward the “thin places”—moun- of God. They were reflective, in that they taintops and islands where the elements gave serious attention to learning and the meet. Land and air, land and sea. Bound- life of the mind. This trait one picks up ary places. In our time, we are in a psy- again in their love for creation, for only chological thin place—a new millennium. with a muscular creation spirituality and At such a time, there is value in looking theology could they deem the things of back even as we look forward. When we this world such as art, music, and books look back, we remember who we are and as worthy of their sustained attention. learn from our own story. And when we Finally, they were contemplative, in that look back to Celtic Christianity, we find they valued solitude and prayerful medi- that we are all, in one sense, peregrini. tation. John T. McNeill (1974, p. 157) We are voluntary exiles for the love of God, writes, “The peregrini went abroad not to journeying to a land which we know not, receive benefits but to impart them. They led by the Spirit, in the presence of Christ, were prepared to accept the hardships of protected by the Father, living to the glory pioneering, asking for themselves only the of the Three-in-One. fellowship of a dedicated community and, in many cases, a private hideaway where 494 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality

References Clifton D. S. Warner currently lives in Van- De Waal, E. (1997). The Celtic way of prayer. couver, Canada, where New York: Doubleday. he and his wife, Chris- Joyce, T. (1998). Celtic Christianity: A sacred tine, are students at tradition, a vision of hope. Maryknoll, NY: Regent College. He is Orbis Books. studying spiritual theol- Lehane, B. (1995). Early Celtic Christianity. ogy in the M.Div. pro- London: Constable. gram. They have two children, born in Can- McNeill, J. T. (1974). The Celtic churches: A ada. Cliff received his history A.D. 200–1200. Chicago: University B.A. and M.A. in Spanish philology and lin- of Chicago Press. guistics from the University of Texas, where Stimson, E. W. (1979). Renewal in Christ: As he taught Spanish while serving as a pastor the Celtic church led “the way.” New York: of small groups at Hope Chapel, Austin, Texas. Vantage Press. Prior to that, he served as a campus minister with InterVarsity at the same university. If you want more, you’ll just have to get to know him. 35

URING THESE YEARS when Islam has so captured the Nestorian D minds and hearts of Arabs, it is difficult for Christian believers in the West to imagine a time when Christian com- community, munities thrived in the Middle East. Do we remember the first thrilling days of the church in China and India? It is spirituality, good to look back and celebrate God’s faithfulness to the worldwide church and to repeat the stories of the body of and Christ’s ancient missionary lineage in the East. Reading these mission chapters of human history, we find galvanizing memories and pose compelling questions of our Christian ancestors and of ourselves. The theology and spirituality of the Nestorian church Paula can be traced from the 4th century out of Antioch via scholar- Harris monks to the School of Nisibis, which in its day was the best- respected center of learning in Asia. The Homilies (496 A.D.), written by Narsai, the scholar-director of the school, tell us that Nestorian theological education was rooted in spiritual discipline, and the school functioned more as a spiritual community than a seminary or Bible school. Along the monastic model, male students took vows for the period of their enrollment, held property and possessions in common, and worked on the campus properties (including a farm) rather than paying tuition. Spiritual discipline was strict. The curriculum was modeled after Theodore of Mopsuesta (350– 428 A.D.), who was claimed as the father of Nestorian theology. Theodore is called “the Interpreter” in the ancient Nestorian church as well as the modern Syrian church for the model of Bible study and exegesis that he pioneered. He taught his students at Antioch that biblical exposition focused on what the Bible literally said, rather than tracing the

495 496 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality reader’s critical interpretations of the text. versy between Christians who were call- This was in marked contrast to Origen of ing Mary the “Mother of God” and others Alexandria, and some other Western who called her the “Mother of man,” he church fathers, who read allegorically and proposed calling her the “Mother of opened the Bible to several layers of mean- Christ,” which proved to be an extremely ing in the text. Theodore produced literal, unpopular compromise. Secondly, there text-centered interpretations and raised was a dispute between Nestorius and up a school of students who focused more other Western bishop-rivals on the unity on hermeneutics than homiletics. The of Christ: Nestorius called him one per- study of the Bible was considered so im- son (prosopon) with two natures (physis), portant that the title of the director of the human and divine; the Monophysite Cyril School of Nisibis was mepasquana, which preferred one person (hypostasis) with means “interpreter” or “exegete” of the one nature (physis); the Chalcedon com- Scriptures. promise was one person (hypostasis) with Most importantly for our purposes, the two natures (physis). Several facts are rel- theology of the school was a missionary evant. This theological dispute took place theology, modeled not simply on Peter or in multiple communities and in transla- Paul but on Jesus himself. To his students, tion to multiple languages. At the Coun- director-interpreter Narsai paraphrased cil of Nicea, “person” was being translated Jesus’ words, saying, “Your task is this: to interchangeably hypostasis or ousia. One complete the mystery of preaching! And hundred years later, the West was differ- you shall be witnesses of the new way I entiating between hypostasis (“person”) have opened up in my person.… You I and ousia (“basic substance”), as in the send as messengers to the four quarters three persons of the Godhead, but one [of the earth], to convert the Gentiles to substance. At that point, in the West pro- the kingdom of Abraham. By you as the sopon meant “person,” connoting “face” light I will banish the darkness of error, or “appearance,” but it was being trans- and by your flames I will enlighten the lated into the Syriac parsopa (“permanent blind world.… Go forth! Give gratis the personality”) by the East (Moffett, 1998, freedom of life to immortality” (Narsai, pp. 248-249). Around this time, the 1958, p. 165). Nestorian doctrine of the Trinity was de- We may ask of the Nestorians, who fined as “one divine nature only, in three claim Theodore as their theological father perfect persons (quenuma), one Trinity, and Narsai as their first teacher, who was true and eternal of Father, Son, and Holy Nestorius whose name you bear? How Spirit” (Wigram, 1910, p. 162). justified are the accusations of heresy? If we ask whether there are other mea- Nestorius, for whom the church was sures of the heresy or orthodoxy of Nes- named, was a student of Theodore and torius and the church which bears his became a controversial bishop of Con- name, the answer must be yes. Scholars stantinople (428 A.D). Nestorius is infa- from Luther to Samuel Moffett have ex- mous for being excommunicated as a amined his writings and concluded there heretic and banished to a monastery in was nothing particularly heretical about Egypt. The Nestorian church bears some them (Moffett, 1998, p. 176). Secondly, it of his stigma. Catholic critique of his theo- is significant that, despite these theologi- logical positions revolves around two cal disputes, the Nestorian church and Christological disagreements. First, in a Nestorius himself always subscribed to short-sighted attempt to resolve a contro- the historic creeds of the West (Nicea 325, nestorian community, spirituality, and mission 497

Constantinople 381, Ephesus, 431 A.D.). their clergy husbands. The reasons cited When the Nestorian church had occasion for this decision were both scriptural and to send bishops, archbishops, or other moral. They were based on instructions emissaries to Rome or Constantinople, in 1 Timothy regarding ministerial lead- they were received into full communion ers being “married only once.” In addition, (after being grilled on their theology) in it was felt that a strict application of the the Western church and occasionally asked ascetic rule for those called into church to celebrate communion for the Western ministry might cause abuse and immoral- leaders. This seems to indicate that the ity (“better to marry than to burn,” 1 Cor. theological differences may have unrav- 7:9). The Persian critique of “weak” celi- eled somewhat during times of face-to-face bate clergy may have been a third, cultural contact as they communicated in the same reason. language. As it took on cultural uniqueness, the The Nestorian missionary model incor- Nestorian church continued to grow. From porated both professional missionaries its Persian center in Seleucia-Ctesiphon (i.e., ordained monks, priests, and bish- and then later, Baghdad, the Nestorian ops) and lay believers who traveled widely church spread down the Persian Gulf and as merchants, soldiers, refugees, or the north into Central Asia. As the churches like, spreading the gospel as they went. grew, they asked for leaders and ordained For example, an early 6th century Nestor- clergy to be sent to baptize converts, to ian missionary community combined two teach a more mature theological under- merchants, a missionary bishop, and four standing of the gospel, and to pastor the priests. They grew their own food and congregations. Many of the earlier 5th cen- taught the converts to do so also. They tury models of Nestorian mission commu- preached the gospel and baptized converts nities were admirably unified despite great among the Hephthalite Huns (a Turkish diversity. They incorporated priests and people). They learned and wrote down bishops from both sides of theological the Huns’ language for the first time, trans- quarrels described previously, as well as lated the Scriptures, and taught the Huns ethnic diversity. to read and write. We must admire their The Arabic Christian community at mission’s striking success at integrating Hirta (which had an ordained Nestorian evangelism, education, church planting, bishop as early as 410 A.D. and remained and even agriculture.1 a Christian diocese for 700 years) formed These Nestorian priests, bishops, and a close community which transcended tra- monks were all men. Reconstructing traces ditional Arabic tribal differences, calling of women’s involvement in this church, themselves “servants of God.” When per- during that era in the Middle East and Asia, secution of Arab Christians began in 522 is a tenuous project. However, a 5th cen- A.D., they appealed for political and mili- tury general synod of the Nestorian church tary help to Ethiopia, the closest Christian affirmed the rights of all Christians to power. After mutual skirmishes, an army marry, which may have meant increased of 70,000 Ethiopians marched into Yemen, influence of women on church matters via killing so many pagan Arabs and Jews that

1 It should be noted that these Nestorian men weren’t the first Christians there. There was a community of Christian women nearby on the shores of the Caspian Sea, which was also written about in 196 A.D. Unfortunately, little historical explanation remains of who they were or which missionaries founded this particular community. 498 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality even non-Christians began to tattoo ing mostly from prison and exile, Mar Aba crosses on their hands to escape death. called the Eastern church to spiritual and According to Arabic tradition, Muhammad moral revival, to a renewed study of theo- was born shortly after this battle. Observ- logical foundations, and to reconciliation. ing the results of this model and the later Like other patriarchs, he reaffirmed the Crusades, we must sadly question the use historic creeds of the West, including of violent political power and the close Nicea, as the theological foundations of ties between a persecuted church and a the Nestorian church. He consecrated and foreign government. Other missiological sent the first bishop to the Nestorian com- issues arise as well. Despite the admirable munity of Hephthalite Huns, mentioned unity of the church, why was there never previously. an authentic Arabian base of Christianity? Some of the most extraordinary After 400 years, why were the Scriptures achievements of the Nestorian church never translated into Arabic, and why were were in the 7th century, under patriarch Arabs barely literate? Perhaps if Muham- Yeshuyab II.2 In this era, Nestorian mis- mad had encountered a different, more sionary monks and priests won converts authentically Arabian Christian commu- from the Persian state religion, Zoroastri- nity, he would have responded differently anism, from Mongol and Korean shaman- on his own spiritual journey. ism, and from Buddhism, Islam, and Despite this mixed record, the Nes- Hinduism, despite the fact that in many torian church was a thoroughly mission- instances it was a capital crime to convert. ary church, led by courageous missionary Responding to the growth and maturity leaders in multicultural societies. The 6th of the church in India, Yeshuyab II conse- century patriarch Mar Aba was led by a crated the first archbishop for the church Christian Jew to convert from the power- in India. He also authorized the first Chris- ful state religion, Zoroastrianism. While on tian mission to China, a mission which trial for his conversion and evangelism, founded Christian communities all along Mar Aba said publicly to his non-believing the trading routes among the Turkish Persian king, “I am a Christian. I preach tribes of Central Asia, the Mongols, along my own faith and I want every man [sic] the Silk Road, in Tibet and Gansu Prov- to join it. But I want every man to join it ince, and finally in the capital of T’ang of his own free will and not of compul- Dynasty China. This is phenomenal to sion. I use force on no man” (Wigram, imagine. When the Pope sent his mission- 1910, p. 200). If only his wisdom and spirit aries, they traveled 1,000 miles from Rome had influenced the Western church! There to England, and he could reasonably ex- was a cost to his courage, but God was pect replies from them. In the same time faithful. At trial, he was convicted and period, when Patriarch Yeshuyab II sent spent years in prison, but the admiring missionary priest Alopen and others 5,000 king commuted his sentence from death miles to China, he couldn’t even reliably to exile. Notably, the king’s favorite wife, know that his missionaries arrived, much Anoshaghzad, was a Christian. One won- less lead and direct them. Nevertheless, ders, did she influence this decision to free the Nestorian church survived 700 years Mar Aba from the death sentence? Lead- in China, and at its height there were

2 As an ambassador from the Persian king to the emperor in Constantinople, Yeshuyab was grilled on his theology and received into full communion in the body of Christ. He also negoti- ated a successful peace between Persia and Constantinople. nestorian community, spirituality, and mission 499

Nestorian communities in 11 major Chi- communication difficulties, and his at- nese cities, including nearby communities tempt to adapt further to local cultures, in Korea, Tibet, Mongolia, and other bor- Timothy reorganized the church into mis- dering countries. Foreign and indigenous sionary bishops and local bishops, giving Nestorian priests translated portions of the the missionary bishops more indepen- Scriptures and became influential figures dence and authority in their contexts. He in the T’ang Dynasty courts. The Sui Dy- consecrated a bishop for the community nasty (581–618) and early T’ang Dynasty in Yemen, despite its strict prohibition of were ruled by mixed-blood Chinese- Christian evangelism among Arabs. Mis- Turkish emperors. The Turkish-Mongolian sionary-minded Timothy prayed openly mother of the first T’ang Dynasty emperor before a Muslim caliph, asking God that was quite possibly a Nestorian Christian. Christians could share the “pearl” of the But later emperors were thorough non- gospel: “God has placed the pearl of his believers. A Buddhist empress, Wu Hou, face before all of us like the shining rays declared Buddhism the state religion (691 of the sun, and everyone who wishes can A.D.) and persecuted Christians. enjoy the light of the sun” (Vine, 1948, The Nestorian church in China suffered pp. 125, 270). a tragic end, which poses difficult ques- Timothy elevated the Indian bishop at tions for us. How much did the priests’ Rewardashir into an archbishop and wisely influence with the T’ang Dynasty nega- granted the Indian church more indepen- tively affect their position? Did their later dent authority. This church was at most alliance with Mongol rulers prove prob- an adopted daughter or sister of the lematic as the Chinese responded to for- Nestorian church. The Thomas Christians eign dominance? Although there seem to (tracing their evangelistic roots to the have been many converts, and there were Apostle) had had mature churches that Chinese monks and Mongol bishops, were well acculturated to Indian ways where were the Chinese leaders of the when they sought out the wider interna- Nestorian church? Only portions of the tional church body and requested a bishop Scripture, hymns, and Christian texts were from the Nestorian patriarch a few centu- translated, but not the entire Bible. In re- ries earlier. As the Indian church grew and viewing the fragmentary records that re- integrated with the Nestorians, additional main, one finds a great deal of orthodox Syriac churches had been founded by Christian theology but also some Buddhist lay and ordained Nestorians. The Indian and Confucian phraseology incorporated church maintained a tenuous balance of into the Christian texts. How much has reaching out to the wider international the translation process been distorted body of Christ, while persistently holding by a syncretized theology? Did the long onto the traditional Christian roots of their communication distance from the inter- own local church and adapting to local national Christian community negatively culture. For example, the Nestorian priests affect the mission churches in China? initially struggled when the Indian Chris- In the 8th century, Nestorian Patriarch tians sat cross-legged during readings of Timothy held ecclesiastical authority over the gospel, being more accustomed them- a church that stretched from Central Asia selves to stand out of respect for the Scrip- to South India, from Turkey to Yemen, ture. Christianity survived and grew as a from the Western Persian/Syrian border to minority religion in India in spite of ter- the Eastern Chinese/Korean border. Pos- rible odds. sibly because of the great distances, the 500 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality

The Nestorian church survived under cal leaders educated in their own language the renewal of Persian rule (945–1055 and traditions; at times, it significantly did A.D.), the Crusades (1095–1291), under not. Some scholars have suggested that the medieval Islam (1000–1258), and well into Nestorians overly contextualized their the Mongol conquest of Ghengis Khan methods and that this contributed to their (1162–1227). Large numbers of Mongols disappearance. were converted to both Christianity and It is notable that the Nestorian church Islam. In 1009 A.D., 200,000 Turks were survived despite the fact that in this mil- baptized by Nestorian priests. Several key lennium the great Asian empires ruled by Mongol queens were Christians, includ- Persians, Chinese, Mongols, or Arabs never ing Sorkaktani (Ghengis Khan’s daughter- had a Christian emperor similar to Con- in-law) who subsequently became the stantine in the West. However, many of mother of three great Asian emperors— these pagan emperors had Nestorian Mongke of the Mongolian Empire, Kublai Christian queens or queen mothers, so we Khan of China, and Hulegu of Persia. Un- must wonder about their influence on der these emperors, Christianity mostly political decisions about church matters. flourished. Kublai Khan later wrote to the Nestorian church leaders made strategic Pope requesting him to send 1,000 mis- alliances with political rulers and their sionaries to China; sadly, only two Domini- consorts, which sometimes served the cans were dispatched with Marco Polo and church and its purposes and sometimes his uncles, and even those two turned hurt it. There is no one simple missio- back because of the difficulty of the jour- logical answer as to why this church sur- ney. Other Nestorian monks went sepa- vived so long, only to retreat into an rately and served long years in China. inwardly focused state church in Iran, Ar- Several key Mongol tribes became mostly menia, and the hills of Kurdistan. But the Christian at that point, including the fact remains that it did retreat from its Uighurs, the Onguts, the Naimans, the missionary priorities and ceased to obey Keraits, and the Merkits. Jesus’ command and promise to all Chris- What happened to this missionary tian disciples that “you will be my wit- church which thrived in China, India, Per- nesses … to the ends of the earth” (Acts sia, Mongolia, and Arabia? Did the Islamic 1:8). conquest prove fatal? No, the Nestorian Around the time of the Islamic con- church survived Islamic domination for quest, two apologists, a Nestorian Chris- hundreds of years as a minority religion.3 tian and a Muslim, debated their faith. They continued to win converts to the Towards the end of the long public de- gospel and to grow new communities, in bate, the Christian confessed, “But now spite of always being a smaller overall per- the monks are no longer missionaries.” centage of the population than Christians Samuel Moffett adds, “If Christians were were in the West. They survived encoun- no longer evangelizing and the monaster- ters and persecution with the powerful ies were no longer producing missionar- Asian religions of Islam, Hinduism, Bud- ies, the decline might well be fatal. And dhism, Confucianism, Zoroastrianism, and yet, after 300 years of Islamic rule, the Shamanism. At times, the church suc- church of the dhimmis, though separated, ceeded in becoming indigenous, with lo- battered, limited, and self-wounded, was

3 Both the Persians and Muslims allowed Christians a degree of freedom and self-rule within self-contained Christian communities, called melets in Persia, and dhimmis under Islamic rule. nestorian community, spirituality, and mission 501 still surviving and still undefeated as part Paula Harris cur- of what Christians call ‘the body of Christ rently provides leader- on earth’” (Moffett, 1998, p. 361). ship in program development, missiology, and multi-cultural re- References lations to the Urbana Student Mission Con- Isichei, E. A. (1995). A history of Christianity vention, which is spon- in Africa: From antiquity to the present. sored by InterVarsity Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub- Christian Fellowship. lishing Co. Paula is also a single Moffett, S. H. (1998). A history of Christianity mother of two biracial nd in Asia: Vol. 1. Beginnings to 1500 (2 ed.). children and a graduate student at Fuller Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books. School of World Missions. Before coming to Narsai. (1958). Statutes of the School of Nisibis. Urbana, she served as a language instructor In A. Vööbus (Ed. and Trans.), Papers of in Quiquihaer, China, with English Language the Estonian Theological School in exile, Institute, and then developed and directed Vol. 12. Stockholm, Sweden: ETSE. evangelistic lingua-cultural exchange pro- Neill, S. (1982). A history of Christian mis- grams in Ukraine with InterVarsity Missions. sions. New York: Penguin Books. Paula studied at Wheaton College, Illinois, Saeki, P. Y. (1951). The Nestorian documents and the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and relics in China (2nd ed.). Tokyo: under their graduate program in English and Maruzen. literary criticism. Vine, A. R. (1948). The Nestorian churches: A concise history of Nestorian Christianity in Asia from the Persian schism to the modern Assyrians. London: Independent Press. Wigram, W. A. (1910). A history of the Assyrian church, A.D. 100–640. London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.

HE MORAVIAN CHURCHES date their commitment to Moravian T world mission from 21 August, 1732. Over the next 150 years, this movement, centred on the original Moravian com- community, munity at Herrnhut, in Saxony, Germany, sent out a total of 2,158 missionaries. These missionaries displayed a distinct spirituality, form of spirituality and community, which provided a model to the emerging Protestant mission movement of the early and 19th century. mission The roots of the Moravian community are to be found in Pietism, which was a late 17th century renewal movement within the Lutheran church in Germany. Protestant theology (both Lutheran and Reformed) had become as formal and Richard arid as the Roman Catholic scholasticism it had originally Tiplady reacted against. By contrast, Pietism focused on a relationship with Jesus Christ, not on dry, correct orthodoxy. A disciplined life was more important than sound doctrine, and piety and the fear of God replaced irrelevant intellectualism. Personal conversion and experience superseded a satisfaction with nominal Christian allegiance. As such, the Pietists preceded the Evangelical Revival in Great Britain and North America by some 50 years or more. As well as developing a faith which engaged the heart rather than the mind, Pietism was responsible for stimulating a new interest in missionary outreach. In Lutheranism, the religion of the people was the choice and responsibility of the state. The Puritan theocratic vision meant that church and state, if not co-terminous, were at least closely allied. In both cases, missionary work was easily seen as the property of the civil and ecclesiastical hierarchy. By contrast, the Pietists taught that missionaries were to go out under the direction of Christ and the Spirit alone, irrespective of political con-

503 504 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality siderations. As such, mission outreach essary in order to follow Christ, for Chris- became a matter in which the “ordinary” tianity engaged the emotions and the will, person could be interested and partici- rather than the mind. By the same token, pate. This breakthrough was to have pro- mission was not an activity reserved for found implications for the life and vision the interest of the ruling elite. of the Moravian community, to which we The Moravian missionaries exemplified now turn. this way of thinking, in that the Herrnhut The Moravian community was formed community was largely composed of un- in 1722, when Count Nicolas von Zinzen- educated peasants and artisans. Not that dorf, who had been nurtured in Pietistic they disdained preparation for mission, circles, allowed a group of persecuted re- but they saw their settlements as “proved ligious refugees from Moravia to settle on seminaries” for missionaries, and even as the family estate in Saxony. The new com- late as 1818 they rejected a proposal to munity was named Herrnhut (“The Lord’s form a separate training school for mis- Watch”), from Isaiah 62:6-7. Herrnhut de- sionaries. veloped its own form of Pietism, with a In 1793, the Moravians informed the deep devotion to the crucified Christ and newly created BMS that “learning, and an absolute, unconditional surrender to what the world calls accomplishments, we his will. have not experienced to be of much use,” The community’s missionary interest and in 1795 the LMS were advised that, was stirred by a number of factors. Some among non-Europeans, a craft was more of the community, while in Denmark, met appropriate than theological learning, as a slave from the West Indies. Zinzendorf the Moravian missionaries already knew himself, while in Copenhagen in 1732, the Bible, and they prayed for the constant heard that the Lutheran mission to Green- guidance of the Holy Spirit. land was in danger of being abandoned. This “democratisation of mission” was This information was in fact wrong, but it also a characteristic of the early British and spurred Zinzendorf to call on the Herrn- American “faith” missions of the late 19th hut community to support this mission. century, which saw themselves as releas- Thus was the decision made, and it mobi- ing for mission the “neglected forces of lised a new missionary movement, almost Christianity.” They also saw the new “mis- unparalleled in passion and commitment, sion halls” as functioning as training which would in turn have a significant grounds, in much the same way as had impact on the later Protestant missionary the Moravian communities. movement. The Moravians’ experience, together Mission as with their distinctive take on spirituality Communal Action and community, contributed to the follow- The Herrnhut community was self- ing aspects of their missionary methodol- supporting, and it was expected that this ogy: model would be followed by their missionaries wherever they worked. The tension Mission as a inherent in such a dual role, in that mis- “Popular” Movement sionaries might be diverted from their core We have already noted the democra- calling, was recognised. One check on this tising influence of Pietism on Christianity. was that each Moravian mission commu- Intellectual ability was not deemed nec- nity lived “as one family,” with a common moravian community, spirituality, and mission 505 cash account, so as to restrain any mem- whole of the later Protestant missionary ber who might be so tempted out of self- movement. interest. Moravian missionaries arrived in The BMS drew on this model in its Greenland in 1733 and worked alongside early days and recommended it to Will- the existing Lutheran mission (albeit not iam Carey, Joshua Marshman, and William without some tensions). At first, they fol- Ward in Serampore, India: “You will find lowed the Lutheran style of preaching and it necessary to form what you proposed, a sought to prove the existence and at- kind of Moravian settlement; as otherwise tributes of the one God (i.e., to “preach we do not see how they can be sup- idolatry out of them”) and then to enforce ported.” obedience to the divine law. As the Strict discipline was another character- Lutherans had already found, this attempt istic of the Moravian community, and the (which could be said to be based on He- LMS lamented in 1796 that “we have not, brews 6:1) made no significant impact on like the Moravians, disciplined troops, but the indigenous shamanism. a hasty levy of irregulars … and we are not In 1740, the Moravians reported their to expect the subordination kept up in first convert, who had been “solidly awak- their missions.” ened by the doctrine of Jesus’ sufferings.” They believed that the Holy Spirit had re- A Martyr Mentality? vealed this emphasis to them, and there- The Moravian missionaries seemed to after it became their approved method and specialise in going to remote, difficult, and message. dangerous regions. In the first 20 years of It led to some interesting experiments the movement, they could be found work- in contextualisation. Zinzendorf advised ing in Greenland, the West Indies, the Arc- his missionaries in Greenland not to speak tic Circle, North America (among the of Christ as a sacrifice, since the autoch- Native Americans), Suriname, South Africa, thonous shamanism knew no such con- Algiers, Ceylon, China, Persia, Ethiopia, cepts. Zinzendorf also is reputed to have and Labrador. said, “If the greatest need of the heathen Perhaps their early experience of per- is a needle, then we should call our Sav- secution and migration gave them a spe- iour a needle.” Such attempts were vital, cial sensitivity and empathy towards those if the focus of Christ was to be maintained who were marginalised and who might but also be meaningful at the same time. otherwise be overlooked. It is possible, despite their mutual antagonism, that David Brainerd was influ- “Christ Crucified enced by the Moravian missionaries who and Nothing Else” worked within a few miles of him in Penn- sylvania in 1744. The Moravians claimed The above quotation, taken from 1 that while he used “the usual method of Corinthians 2:2, might be the most signifi- preaching … by connected arguments,” he cant and lasting contribution of Moravian was ineffective, whereas when he “ven- spirituality to missionary practice. We have tured straightaway to preach to them sim- already noted how this was a hallmark of ply the Saviour,” he and other Presbyterian the Herrnhut community, and after an ini- ministers were “astonished by … such a tial false start, it became their distinctive large and quick awakening.” message and one which influenced the 506 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality

The fifth clause of Carey, Marshman, centrates either on ecclesiology or pneu- and Ward’s “Form of Agreement” (com- matology, it is perhaps also important to posed in 1805 to outline their methods in retain the Moravian emphasis on Chris- detail) refers to the Moravians specifically tology. in this regard: “It is a well-known fact that the most successful missionaries in the Richard Tiplady is world at the present day make the atone- the Associate Direc- tor of Global Con- ment of Christ their continued theme. We nections (formerly mean the Moravians. They attributed all known as the Evan- their success to the preaching of the death gelical Missionary of our Saviour….” Alliance) in the U.K. In summary, we see that the Moravians, Prior to this, he by their communal lifestyle and their spiri- worked in local church leadership tuality, established a model for mission- and mission mobili- ary work which was not just successful in sation. In 1993, he itself, but which had a profound influence lectured in a theo- on the emerging Protestant missionary logical college in Nigeria. He holds a theol- movement of their century and the next. ogy degree from London University and a master’s degree in theology from Nottingham In the contemporary era, when much University. He is married to Irene, and they of the focus of missiological thinking con- have one son, Jamie. 37

F THE SEVERAL missionary models in the history of the Jesuit O Catholic church, I have chosen to consider some elements about the Jesuits and then to describe the way their spiritu- community, ality and community life converted into concrete action in mission. spirituality, Ignatio de Loyola (1491–1556), a Spanish soldier, founded the Jesuit Order in 1534. He was wounded in a and battle, and during his convalescence he experienced a reli- mission gious conversion. After a period of intense prayer, he wrote a book called Spiritual Exercises, a kind of manual to bring people closer to Christ, with emphasis on the devotional life. According to John Veltri (p. 2), in his explanation about Bertil the writings of Ignatio during the months of prayer, he “no- Ekström ticed how God led him to pay attention to the diverse ‘voices’ inside of him, to the movements of consolation and desola- tion in his heart and spirit. He gradually learned to discern the sources of these desires, thoughts, and movements of the heart and spirit: which of them came from God and which of them drew him away from God, and most importantly, which of them he should act upon.” Loyola found six other men who joined him in his spiritual efforts, and by vows of poverty, chastity, obedience to the Pope, and pilgrimage to Jerusalem, they started a new religious society. In 1540, Pope Paul III approved the organization of the order. Loyola was a contemporary of Martin Luther and John Calvin and could be compared with them as a reformer within the Catholic church. “For Luther,” says Latourette (1975, p. 843), “the path led to revolt from Rome and to the Protes- tant Reformation. For Loyola, there came an enhanced devotion to the Papacy and a discipline and an organization which were the major new force in effecting and shaping the Catholic Reformation.”

507 508 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality

Innovations sins, healed the sick and possessed, and gave hope to the poor and to those so- The Jesuits introduced numerous in- cially and economically outcast,” the Je- novations, breaking with medieval prac- suits should minister in their society. tices of penitence, fasts, and common But Ignatio argued that this spiritual- uniform and choral recitations. Key words ity is also realistic. It is a daily struggle to characterize the Jesuits were mobility, between good and evil, and there must adaptability, and flexibility. Their openness be a sensibility to what kind of works to society and to the changes taking place should be done for the best of the people in their new times allowed them to be- and what God’s will is for the concrete come involved in a great variety of minis- situation. tries in many parts of the world. The Ignatio’s “Prayer for Generosity” is a society grew rapidly, and in a few years good example of what he meant: the mission-driven Jesuits were found in “Lord, teach me to be generous. many places, especially in Latin America, Teach me to serve you as you deserve; Asia, and Africa. Their missionary purpose To give and not to count the cost, was clear, and as a result of relative inde- To fight and not to heed the wounds, pendence from the political authorities To toil and not to seek for rest, (e.g., the King of Spain), they had some To labor and not to ask for reward, freedom to demonstrate that priority. They Save that of knowing that I do your will.” served directly under the authority of the Pope, and obedience to him was one of The Jesuits their core values. One of the more famous in Latin America Jesuits was Francis Xavier (1506–1552), who was a missionary to several places in The first Jesuits came to Latin America Asia, particularly India and China. in 1549, less than 10 years after papal ap- The Jesuits described part of their mis- proval of the order. They stayed until 1767, sion “to advance souls on the way of Chris- when they were expelled from Spain and tian life and doctrine, to propagate the from all the colonies because of the con- faith by public preaching and expound- flict between the missionary church and ing Holy Scripture, to give the Spiritual the colonial Hispanic civilization. Pope Exercises, to do works of charity … and Clement XIV abolished the order in 1773, to try to bring spiritual consolation to the but it was reestablished in 1814 by Pope faithful by hearing confession” (Latou- Pius VII. rette, 1975, p. 847). In their work in Latin America, the method used by the Jesuits was that of the Jesuit Spirituality tabula rasa (“blank slate”). They assumed that the indigenous tribes needed to start The understanding of spirituality from scratch, both in their religious life among the Jesuits is based on Loyola’s and in the organization of their society. writings. The Society of Jesus should fol- That did not hinder the Jesuits from us- low the example of Jesus “in a life of prayer ing some of the cultural expressions of the and in a continuous search for how best native peoples. The famous reducciones to live as an authentic human being be- (“reductions”) were, in many places in fore a loving God.” Veltri (p. 3) calls this Latin America, their main project. The an incarnational spirituality, giving practi- communities included school education, cal action to the gospel values. In the same agriculture, cultural events, religious life, way that “Jesus preached forgiveness of jesuit community, spirituality, and mission 509 and catechism. Like the Celtic orders, all guay, so strong were their emphases on was done in a combination of spirituality common ownership and on the sharing and community, shown in missiological of outcomes by all individuals in the com- practice. One key idea of the reducciones munity. affirmed that it was possible to live a com- Their defense of the indigenous people munity life, sharing everything and build- is a rich lesson for us today. Bartolomeu ing a just and harmonious society. It was de las Casas, a Dominican, had earlier a kind of community development, where shown the way. The Jesuits took the Indi- the Amerindian peoples participated in ans’ side against the Spanish and Portu- the administration and benefited by the guese colonizadores. They gave the growth. Of course, that was a problem for Guaranies human status and value as peo- the Spanish colonizers to accept. They ple created by God. wanted the Indians to work for them as slaves and not to be their equals in any Paternalism sense. So the Jesuits were forced to aban- and Superficiality don their missions, and the reducciones But there were also weaknesses in the were destroyed either by the conquista- Jesuit form of work. They forced the Indi- dores or by themselves in the absence of ans into a kind of community life that they the leadership of the friars. were not used to, and when the Jesuits had to leave, those model societies were Methodology dispersed and, in some cases, destroyed. Pablo Deiros (1992, p. 290), Argen- The paternalistic way of acting never al- tinean Baptist church historian, cites Fer- lowed the Indians to take over the respon- nando Mires’ book, Colonization of the sibility for the community. Stephen Neill Souls in Hispano America, synthesizing (1982, p. 203) makes the following com- the methodology of the Jesuits in the fol- mentary about the work of the Jesuits in lowing points: Paraguay: “The weakness of all this great 1. They studied and learned the indig- enterprise was that the Jesuits did so little enous language (the Guarany). to develop a sense of initiative and inde- 2. They assured that the reducciones pendence among their flock. They seemed were isolated from the Spanish cities. to wish rather to have around them doc- 3. They tended to respect the basic po- ile children than to train adults for self- litical relation between the leaders (ca- government. They had complete control ciques) of the indigenous tribes. of the situation for more than a century; 4. They won over the Indians by help- in that time they never brought forward a ing them to develop their artistic activi- single candidate for the priesthood and ties (music, handicraft, painting, etc.). developed no order of religious women 5. They practiced the religious “accom- or nuns.” modations” as Francisco Xavier had done Another problem was the superficial in India. way that the Indians had received the 6. They practiced a kind of economic Christian faith. Although different from accommodation, improving the system their own experience of renewal and used by the Indians. strong spiritual experiences, the Jesuits According to the French historian seem not to have had the same concern Clovis Lugon (1977), the Jesuits founded for deep spirituality among the new con- a Christian Communist Republic in Para- verts. The focus was more on orthodoxy 510 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality than on real conversion (Deiros, 1992, p. Jesuits. (1992). The new encyclopedia Bri- 358). The result was a superficial and tannica. Vol. 6. Chicago, IL. nominal Christendom, typical of many Latourette, K. S. (1975). A history of Christian- (rev. places in Latin America to the present day. ity: Vol. II. Reformation to the present ed.). New York: Harper & Row. Holistic Mission Lugon, C. (1977). A República “Comunista” Cristã dos Guaranis (La Republique What we learn from the Jesuits is that Communiste Chretienne des Guaranis) – spirituality can lead both to an active par- 1610/1768. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Paz e Terra. ticipation in the society and a holistic Mellis, C. (1976). Committed communities: practice of the gospel. Their sense of com- Fresh streams for world missions. Pasa- munity life was not limited to themselves, dena, CA: William Carey Library. but rather they wanted to share their Neill, S. (1982). A history of Christian mis- Christian principles with others. Only in sions. New York: Penguin Books. mission could the spiritual and commu- Veltri, J. Presentation of the Jesuit spiritual- nity life be meaningful. We can criticize ity. In the web page managed by Rev. the Catholic Orders in general and the Raymond Bucko of the Department of So- ciology and Anthropology at Le Moyne Jesuits in particular for not having the right College, the Jesuit College of Central New approach to the gospel and not preach- York. ing faith in Jesus as we understand it. They can also be charged for their ways of do- Bertil Ekström was ing things and imposing the Catholic be- born in Sweden and liefs on the indigenous tribes. But we with his wife, Alzira, cannot deny that they had a deep concern they have four children. Ekstrom is a to reach their own unreached peoples and missionary kid who to establish a holistic model of life that has lived in Brazil we very often lack in our mission work since he was four today. years old. A Baptist pastor and semi- References nary teacher, from 1991 to 1995 he was president of the Brazil- Deiros, P. (1992). Historia del Cristianismo en ian Association of Cross-Cultural Agencies, America Latina [The history of Christian- and from 1997 to 2000 he has served as presi- ity in Latin America]. Buenos Aires, Argen- dent of COMIBAM, the Latin American conti- tina: FTL. nental missions network. He serves on the Dussel, E. (1981). A history of the church in Executive Committee of the WEF Missions Latin America: Colonialism to liberation. Commission. He is a staff member of Inter- Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub- act, a Swedish Baptist mission, and is affili- lishing Co. ated with the Convention of the Independent Baptist Churches of Brazil. He has a master’s Ekström, B. (1995). The Paraguayan culture: degree in theology from the Theology Faculty The syndrome of the pombero. Academic of the Baptist Seminary of São Paulo. paper. São Paulo, Brazil: FTBSP. 38

OW WAS IT THAT the Coptic church was able to endure Coptic H years and years of a harsh regime bent on obliterating it? Its survival can be greatly attributed to the monastic commu- community, nities within the church that conserved its spirituality and flavor, thus enabling the church to carry out missions both spirituality, within and outside of Egypt for the length of time that it did. It is understood by many that the Coptic church was and the first to take Christianity to Ireland through the monks of mission the Monastery of St. Mena. From Ireland, Christianity spread to the rest of the British Isles—Wales, Scotland, and England. This constituted the earliest outreach by the Coptic church in missions that served as a precursor to their future mis- Francis sions. The Coptic church is said to have been founded by Omondi the Apostle Mark as the church of Alexandria and Libya, the first among the Pentapolis churches which extended from Barka eastwards to Tunisia during the first Christian century. In the 4th century, the church had two Bishops in Libya. To- day there are two churches there—one in Tripoli and the other in Bani-Gazi. In the time of St. Athanasias (4th century), the Coptic church was established in Ethiopia, and its first bishop, St. Fremontious, was consecrated in A.D. 329. The church in Nubia was also established, which remained under the pastoral care of the Coptic church until the revolution of the 19th century. Meanwhile, they remained under the Pope of Alexandria, along with the Nubian, Libyan, Ethiopian, and Pentapolis churches. With Jerusalem, today they compose the See of St. Mark. The pages of the Coptic chronicles are littered with detailed accounts of religious harassment motivated by religious intolerance. The spread of Islam during the 7th and 8th centuries in Egypt affected the Coptic church, though it neither

511 512 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality obliterated her nor totally quenched her an appeal for volunteers who would be missions drive. With the coming of the willing to serve in the outlying villages out- Muslim rule in Egypt, the church came side Cairo and in the farming areas where under very harsh rule. Laws were devel- no one went. As a high school student oped concerning places of worship, de- involved in the youth programs of the pending on the conquest and the terms church, Marcos went out to serve, un- of treaties. Conversions, construction of aware that he was sparking the beginning new churches, and the erection of syna- of a mission movement within the Coptic gogues were forbidden. However, limited church. He showed a keen desire to serve restoration of worship places was permit- in the region, although his fellow servants ted with certain restrictions. From the be- were not in favor of reaching out to the ginning of the Islamic conquest, Christians cultures in which they had not been had been forced to cede to the Muslims raised. Nevertheless, during the out- half of their churches, which then became reaches in the villages, they learned how mosques. Muslims imposed restrictions on to understand these different cultures so the use of bells, on burial ceremonies, and strange to them and to discern the kind on construction of worship places. of entrance they should seek so that their Destruction policies were also carried mission and services would be accepted. out against the churches, monasteries, and These were the key lessons: convents. For instance, when Mohammed 1. Listen well and observe carefully be- al-Mudabbin arrived in Egypt as a minis- fore drawing any conclusions. ter of finance in A.D. 861, he tripled the 2. Understand the mind of the people jyzya (taxes paid by Christians) and or- and their way of thinking before doing dered churches to be pillaged. The diwah anything that may conflict with their cus- (money and alms) intended for the bish- toms and belief. This will avoid initial re- opric and the monastery were confiscated. jection. Monks were imprisoned, while patriarchs 3. Learn their own language. You will who were unable to pay the taxes de- thus win their hearts, because the people’s manded from the Coptic episcopate fled tongues are very dear to them. Once you from place to place and went into hiding. speak to them in their own languages, As long as Muslims have ruled Egypt, the their hearts will open, and they will listen hold on Christians there has not changed to you. as such. Yet in spite of these difficulties, The way these young Christian work- the church has been able to develop a fo- ers to the villages came to the level of the cus on mission. local people was crucial. They were not seeking to change their cultural life as Entering Our Days much as they wanted to transform their The contemporary mission movement spiritual life. They were able to gather in the Coptic church is embedded in the people in community around the Word of story of Bishop Antonios Marcos, the God, from children to youth to adults, in bishop of Africa affairs in the Coptic a real atmosphere of fellowship. This re- church. In the decade of the 1950s, the sulted in spiritual joy—the joy of praising churches began outreaches that cata- and singing, of comfort in prayers, and of pulted them into greater service in mis- belonging to one body. sions. In a youth meeting at St. Mary’s After Marcos served in the villages, he Church in Faggala, Cairo, a servant made enrolled in the university to study medicine. There every book he read and every coptic community, spirituality, and mission 513 movie he watched about mission work in church and the launching pad for further Africa stirred him. He soon confessed a missions into Africa. desire to serve in Africa, which was seen It was during this time in the monas- at that time as a strange spiritual ambi- tery that the increasingly tragic news about tion for his generation. the difficult situation throughout Africa The church was trying to upgrade the stirred the hearts of the monks towards standards of the pastoral service to the the peoples of Africa. The thought that people and to prepare new priests and there was no Coptic mission serving these servants in the same fields. Even missions peoples was distressing to them. The con- began to be considered part of the pasto- tinent and its people began to fill their ral work of the church. But the church prayers, though they had no way of recognized that they did not have the abil- following through beyond prayer. The ity nor the experience nor sufficiently Western churches of Catholicism and Prot- equipped servants to serve people of other estantism had arrived in Africa as early as cultures. Without any clear direction, the 15th and 18th centuries, respectively. Marcos finally chose to serve as a tent- Yet the Coptic church, which had had no maker in Ethiopia. As a medical practi- influence, was now beginning to cast its tioner, he found doors opened to him to mission vision towards Kenya, Uganda, meet people’s health needs as well as spiri- Tanzania, Zambia, and the Congo. tual needs. Ironically, he had earlier not First, they had to recruit missionaries wished to go to Ethiopia, knowing that the to serve the needs across Africa. This led church there had its own patriarch, bish- them in the 1960s to inaugurate the Insti- ops, and institutions. He had wanted to tute of African Studies in the theological serve among a people who knew nothing college of the Coptic church. In the 1970s, about the Lord. scores of young men to be sent to Kenya, So Marcos went to Ethiopia with the Uganda, Ghana, and Zaire were trained blessing of the church, but with the un- in a monastic approach to dogma, theo- derstanding that he was on his own to logical history, canons, and traditions in meet his needs. Thus began what in sub- order to shape them for service. sequent years became a new missions The challenge of poverty was inevitable outreach of the modern Coptic church in as these missionaries served in the con- Africa beyond the borders of Egypt and text of Africa. But the Coptic missionaries south of the equator. found they could equip the people to meet In Ethiopia, Marcos had a remarkable their own needs by training them in handi- career. He was greatly loved by the people crafts and practical skills by which they and even offered citizenship: he had be- could become self-supporting. This should come so identified with the culture, the be understood in the context of a church people, and the church that they consid- that itself had little financial capital to help ered him Ethiopian. He returned to Egypt alleviate the poverty in which they found soon after the Ethiopian Revolution of themselves. 1974. There he entered the monastic life with the monks of Baramose Monastery. Coming to a Close The monastic life was saturated with The Copts initiated their modern Afri- prayer, meditation, the practice of psalm- can ministries at a time when other mis- odic praises, and long vigils into the night sions had already claimed great exploits hours. This spiritual community became in the region where they were working. a source of great spiritual energy for the 514 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality

Therefore, they decided to focus on rais- Francis Omondi ing up indigenous churches in areas that and his wife Anne lay far off the beaten tack. One of their have three boys. They serve with unique contributions was to establish Sheepfold Ministries, monasteries which in turn became centers a Kenyan Mission of training and of spiritual formation for agency that plants the people. churches among This monastic-centered approach to unreached people groups (especially mission, which also shaped the early Irish Muslims) in East Af- missionaries of previous centuries, has rica. They are in- once again flowered within the Coptic volved in training church. It is now bearing good fruit within and sending cross-cultural church planters. the nations of sub-Saharan Africa. The an- Francis founded Sheepfold Ministries while a cient faith once delivered to the Copts of student at Kenyatta University in Kenya (1988), and he has directed the organization Egypt by the Apostle Mark continues to for the last 12 years. He is an ordained priest bear fruit to the honor and glory of the in the Anglican Church of Kenya. He holds a Triune God. degree in education and economics from Kenyatta University. He is a WEF Missions Commission Associate. 39

HE ANTIOCH MISSION, Brazil’s first interdenominational Brazilian T national missions agency, was born within the context of a Bible school in the interior of the State of Paraná. Antioch In the late 1960s, a charismatic revival swept churches in several regions of Brazil. In the north of Paraná, several community, churches under the leadership of Jonathan Ferreira dos Santos, a newly graduated Presbyterian pastor, adopted the spirituality, renewal and began experiencing miraculous church growth and and vitality. Within a few years, over 30 young men and women felt called to full-time ministry and went to Pastor mission Jonathan for help. They were already engaged in evangelism, preaching, teaching, and miraculous healings and de- liverances from Satanic forces; they acutely felt the need to band together for prayer and for gaining more Bible knowl- Barbara edge and practical skills. Burns Pastor Jonathan and his wife invited the women to live in their house, and he rented a neighboring house for the men. Thus began their studies and life together. Because the numbers rapidly increased, Pr. Jonathan was able to get a piece of property for a school as a donation from the city of Cianorte. On the weekends, everyone had ministry assign- ments. During the week each day after classes, students and teachers cleared the forest, laid bricks, and built their own school. By 1970 there were over 100 students. This school was not for adolescent students. Students were not invited by someone to learn to be future ministers. They were already active, seeking the Lord for help and spiritual growth. This led to a community developed through their own efforts, with the guidance of Pr. Jonathan and other leaders who were joining him.

515 516 listening to mission that rises from community and spirituality

When I arrived at the school in 1971, I Within seconds, the entire class was pray- was amazed at the vitality of prayer, at the ing and crying. Other classes heard the practice of preaching in every available prayers and came to join in. The whole place, at the miracles, and at the togeth- school community prayed until noon. erness of a student-run school. Students Because it was a spiritual community and prayed together, often all night or early in not a traditional formal school, it was all the morning. They all participated in right for the students to pour out their church planting teams. They prayed for hearts together. It was all right to hear the sick and oppressed and possessed. from the Lord. God could speak to these They fasted. They worked in the garden, students and shake them out of their tra- cleaned toilets, cut the grass, ran the of- ditional outreach limits and make them fice and kitchen teams, and monitored the see his love for the world. dormitories. Class-bound theory was of- Within a short time, a vital missions fered within this active community con- movement had sprouted. Watered by oc- text. casional critically important God-sent out- Up until the early 1970s, the school’s side forces, it blossomed into a world-wide missions vision remained limited to the outreach which continues to grow even 400 km radius around Cianorte. A census now. taken in the early 1970s revealed that 20% The school, which, after some low of the population in the region was Evan- points, has regained its original number gelical,1 due in part to the Bible school’s of students, continues with a missions practical ministry. emphasis, offers a master’s degree in mis- In 1972, several factors led to an en- sions, and continues a mission prayer min- larged missions vision and outreach. Leslie istry. The school’s denomination has its Brierly (a World Evangelization Crusade own missions agency with several mission- missionary) visited the school and showed aries world-wide. missionary slides. Robert Harvey, also of Of wider significance was the birth of WEC, became acquainted with Pr. Jona- the Antioch Mission in 1975. A new gradu- than and begin influencing him toward ate, who had been touched by the new world mission. Missions began to be cross-cultural missionary emphasis in taught in the classroom, and eventually a class, was sent to Mozambique in 1974 to course on cross-cultural missions was in- work with drug addicts. After a short time, cluded in the curriculum. he was caught in the middle of the Marx- In spite of these influences, most of the ist revolution and was imprisoned, along students were still doubtful and critical of with his American colleagues. When the the idea of cross-cultural missions. Then students and teachers in Cianorte heard one morning, during the devotional pe- of his imprisonment, they were electri- riod of a missions class, the idea of mis- fied—some to scoffing and criticism, oth- sions caught fire. One of the skeptical ers to prayer and brokenness. students started to pray. Suddenly he be- A small group began to pray for their gan crying and knelt down on the rough friend Clesius each day at a set time, and cement floor, asking God to forgive him God began to speak to that group and for not accepting missions as part of God’s show them that it was not just for Clesius plan for the churches and for his own life. that they must pray, but for Mozambique,

1 This number is from memory, and the exact date of the census is uncertain. brazilian antioch community, spirituality, and mission 517 for Africa, and for the world. In one meet- in leadership in the AMTB over the years. ing, they joined hands in an emotional (The AMTB sees the need for cooperation moment and vowed to give their lives for and mutual help between agencies.) From missions. They decided on that day to form the AMTB came the Association of Brazil- an organization that could inform and ian Missions Teachers (APMB), an active challenge the churches to send and sup- association which offers consultations and port missionaries and to pray for Clesius missiological literature to missions teach- and future Brazilian missionaries. They ers. even decided on a name—the Antioch From spirituality and community to Mission. mission. That is exactly what happened To that original group came Pr. Jona- and in that order. Can one exist without than and Pr. Decio de Azevedo, the Antioch the other? The Antioch Mission came from Mission’s first elected president, along a spiritual community and has sought to with many others. The Mission was legally create wider spiritual and missionary com- organized and registered in 1978, and in munities. It continues to operate as a com- its constitution declared: “The Antioch munity model, with students and teachers Mission is an Evangelical, interdenomina- living together to learn and to minister, tional Association, … with the purpose of just as in Cianorte, but now with a nation- announcing the glory of God among the wide and world-wide outreach. nations and of making disciples of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, inspired in Barbara Burns the work of the Holy Spirit in the New was born in Pasa- dena, California, Testament church in Antioch, which, hav- and was raised being been born through missionary effort, tween Palm Desert, became a missionary church. The Antioch California, and Mission desires to help Evangelical chur- Prescott, Arizona. ches fulfill their missionary responsibility Moving every year in the world, participating in the spiritual between the two places gave her the and material support of those sent.” first exposure to an The Mission eventually moved to Lon- aspect of good mis- drina and then to São Paulo, each time sionary training! broadening its sphere of influence. Chur- Her educational background includes the West ches began to hear about missions, and Suburban Hospital School of Nursing, Chi- cago; Arizona State University, BSN; Denver schools were challenged to help prepare Seminary, MREM; and a D.Miss. from Trinity cross-cultural missionaries. In 1977, the Evangelical Divinity School in 1987. Over the Mission started its own training school, last 23 years, Barbara has served as a mis- with one student and one teacher; it now sions teacher across Brazil in a diversity of has a full-blown seminary and missions schools. For six years she was the Executive training program. Over 150 missionaries Secretary for the Brazilian Association of Mis- sions Teachers. Currently she is the Educa- have been prepared and sent to the field. tional Coordinator for the Centro Nordestino The Antioch Mission was also involved de Missões missionary training program in and influential in the formation of an As- Brazil. She is an Executive Committee mem- sociation of Brazilian Cross-Cultural Mis- ber of the WEF Missions Commission. sions Agencies (AMTB) and has been active

Part 7

Accepting serious commitments

WE CONCLUDE THIS PUBLICATION with a diverse commentary on the Iguassu Affirmation by eight colleagues from seven nations. All were present in Brazil: Prado, Wood, Ross, Fountain, Girón, Stamoolis, Anyomi, and Castillo. They offer their own personal and diverse perspectives on this document. They represent women and men, pastors and missionaries, practitioners, theologians, and missiologists from North and South, East and West. They represent gifted and godly colleagues from the borderless church of Christ. They represent the reflective practitioners who offer such promise to the future. They each speak to different aspects of the Affir- mation that touched them personally. In so doing, they re- fract the light of the glorious diamond of our global Evangelical missiology. Drawing to a close, the final word comes to challenge the reflective, passionate, and globalized practitioner. Sug- gestions and recommendations are made to continue the process that was initiated at Iguassu and that is now presented in this missiological volume. But much remains to be done. We invite and challenge the leadership of our borderless church of Christ. This specific word is directed to local church and denominational leaders, to students and faculty of the theological education

519 institutions and missionary training centres, to the missionary sending structures and member care networks, and to the national, regional, or international missionary movements and networks. We cannot afford to live and serve with a spirit of autonomy and independence. May our global Evangelical movement be known by that unique and Spirit-empowered combination of action and reflection, study and strategy. Let us remember and emulate the superb example of that great reflective practitioner, the Apostle Paul: evangelist, missionary, church planter, team leader, strategist, missiologist, theologian, and author. To the Triune Father, Son, and Spirit alone be the high glory!

520 40

OLLOWING IS THE TEXT of the Iguassu Affirmation, as The F in chapter 2, but here the sections are interspersed with comments from eight reflective practitioners. The following Iguassu commentators were selected: • Pastor from the Two-Thirds World: Oswaldo Prado, Affirmation: Brazil • Pastor from North America: John Wood a • Practitioner/missiologist from the South Pacific: Cathy commentary Ross • Practitioner/missiologist from Europe: Jeff Fountain by eight • Practitioner/missiologist from Latin America: Rudy Girón reflective • Missiologist/theologian from North America: Jim Sta- moolis practitioners • Practitioner/missiologist from Africa: Seth Anyomi • Practitioner/missiologist from Asia: Met Castillo Oswaldo Prado The Iguassu Affirmation John Wood Preamble Cathy Ross We have convened as 160 mission practitioners, missi- Jeff Fountain ologists, and church leaders from 53 countries, under the Rudy Girón World Evangelical Fellowship Missions Commission in Foz Jim Stamoolis do Iguassu, Brazil, on October 10-15, 1999 to: 1. Reflect together on the challenges and opportuni- Seth Anyomi ties facing world missions at the dawn of the new millen- Met Castillo nium. 2. Review the different streams of 20th century Evan- gelical missiology and practice, especially since the 1974 Lausanne Congress.

521 522 accepting serious commitments

3. Continue developing and applying to people of all nations, are needed for a a relevant biblical missiology which re- valid missiology in our time. flects the cultural diversity of God’s peo- Our discussions have invited us to ple. fuller dependence on the Spirit’s empow- We proclaim the living Christ in a ering presence in our life and ministry world torn by ethnic conflicts, massive as we eagerly await the glorious return economic disparity, natural disasters, of our Lord Jesus Christ. and ecological crises. The mission task is In the light of these realities, we make both assisted and hindered by technologi- the following declarations. cal developments that now reach the re- Commentary by motest corners of the earth. The diverse Oswaldo Prado religious aspirations of people, expressed in multiple religions and spiritual experi- The meeting promoted by the WEF mentation, challenge the ultimate truth Missions Commission in Brazil, in Octo- of the gospel. ber 1999, was remarkable. Besides hap- In the 20th century, missiology wit- pening in a Third World country, the nessed unprecedented development. In moment couldn’t have been more propi- recent years, reflection from many parts tious because we were about to conclude of the church has helped missions to con- another stage of missions history—the tinue shedding paternalistic tendencies. Second Millennium. Today, we continue to explore the rela- With an objective of proclaiming Christ tionship between the gospel and culture, in a fallen world, which is subject to all between evangelism and social responsi- kinds of social and economic differences, bility, and between biblical mandates the meeting echoed the passion of and the social sciences. We see some in- everybody’s heart. From the perspective ternational organizations—among them of a pastor who lives in a country where a World Evangelical Fellowship, the Lau- few own too much and the majority live sanne Committee for World Evangeli- with practically nothing, how does one live zation, and the AD 2000 and Beyond and also spread to the whole world the Movement—that have begun a promising kingdom of God? Thinking about these process of partnership and unity. matters has had an enormous impact on Increased efforts at partnership have my heart, for I have ministered for 20 years been catalyzed by an emphasis on meth- in a local church in the metropolis of São odologies involving measurable goals Paulo. and numerical growth. Flowing from a Iguassu raised other questions: How commitment to urgent evangelization, do we reconcile the Brazilian expatriate these methodologies have shown how our missionary heritage, which has often been task might be accomplished. However, paternalistic, with the fact that because we these insights must be subject to biblical were poor we received not only qualified principles and growth in Christlikeness. missionaries but also financial resources th We rejoice in diverse missiological during a great part of the 20 century? Are voices emerging around the world, but we capable of fulfilling the mission now we confess that we have not taken them without foreign resources? Also, how are all into our theory and practice. Old we to explain the growth of the mission- paradigms still prevail. Participation by ary movement in these last years, which and awareness of the global church, as has characterized the church of Latin well as mission from people of all nations America, Africa, and some places in Asia? the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 523

What we realized at that memorable become (a working paper to be taken into Iguassu meeting was that the 160 mission different cultural contexts as a starting leaders in attendance, some of them pas- point for further missiological reflection). tors, were open to listening to what the It is filled with good things, but many of Holy Spirit would say at that critical mo- them are buried treasure because, until ment of history. Those who came from one reaches the section entitled Commit- nations with long missionary traditions, ments, there seems to be neither a com- as well as those who have experienced a pelling and clear outline guiding the missionary church in their countries for presentation, nor a clear statement of the only a few decades, gathered together to themes being discussed, but merely a col- reflect on the challenges of a relevant lating of good things that ought to be said study of missions as it relates to a new or of topics offered for further reflection. millennium. On closer look, however, there is an internal structure in the first two sections Commentary by that helps someone like me better appre- John Wood ciate the early sections of the Affirmation. It is a privilege to have been among The opening paragraph of the Pre- those who gathered in Foz do Iguassu on amble gives three reasons for the consul- October 10-15, 1999, for the WEF Missions tation having been convened. The paper Commission’s missiological consultation. then turns to the global context in which My perspective is that of a white, North we serve. To a world facing ethnic, eco- American pastor of an affluent suburban nomic, and ecological crises and religious congregation. I carried two overarching pluralism, “we proclaim the living Christ.” concerns to the consultation. First, how The Preamble is almost entirely Christo- can independent-minded, entrepreneur- logical in its focus, with only one reference ial Evangelicals express the unity for which to “the Spirit’s empowering presence” and our Lord fervently prayed the night before none to God the Father, while the three his crucifixion—a unity so winsome and following sections of the Affirmation are visible that it will validate the gospel (John self-consciously trinitarian. The paper 17:21, 23)? And second, how can affluent would be stronger and more internally Christians truly partner with Christians of consistent, I think, if the Preamble estab- limited financial resources without rein- lished a trinitarian foundation for what forcing patterns of dominance and depen- follows. However, I suspect that the dence? The time spent in worship and Christological focus is in response to the fellowship with brothers and sisters from problem of religious pluralism that denies around the world was a particular plea- the uniqueness of Christ. sure. The papers and workshops were Five themes begin to emerge in the stimulating. The daily Bible teaching of Preamble that receive fuller treatment in Ajith Fernando was challenging and con- the Declarations and Commitments, victing to one accustomed to the comforts namely, the ultimate truth of the gospel and assumptions of American life. and the following four needs: the need The Iguassu Affirmation produced by for holistic missions, for increasing part- the conference bears all the marks of what nership and unity among Evangelical it is (a paper written by a small, culturally organizations, for a biblical critique of diverse committee and edited by the en- missiological methodologies, and for a tire assembly acting as a committee-of- greater diversity of “missiological voices” the-whole) and of what it is intended to shaping our reflection. Because these 524 accepting serious commitments themes are addressed more fully in the shifted and is now to be found in the sections that follow, the paper would, I South rather than the North. We are slowly think, be stronger if the Preamble omit- beginning to realize the essential nature ted its third, fourth, and fifth paragraphs of partnership between North and South (beginning with, “In the 20th century, and that we in the North (or West or what- missiology witnessed …” and ending with, ever designation you prefer—Aotearoa/ “… for a valid missiology in our time”). New Zealand fits neither!) desperately The Preamble would then focus on the need the insights, challenges, and vitality cultural contexts in which we do missio- of our Christian sisters and brothers from logical reflection and would set the stage the South to enlarge and enliven our faith for what follows: “In the light of these re- and witness. alities, we make the following declara- Equally essential is the nature of part- tions.” nership between men and women in mission. It is glaringly and painfully obvious Commentary by that we as Evangelicals are lacking the in- Cathy Ross sights, the vision, and the heart of women I gladly present my personal inter- in mission. In the Republic of South Af- action with the Iguassu Affirmation. I write rica, they speak of “affirmative action ap- this from the perspective of a privileged pointments,” so that marginalized groups white woman, who has lived and worked can enter spheres which were open only in the Democratic Republic of Congo (for- to whites in the apartheid era. If only the merly Zaire) as a CMS mission partner and Evangelical world could enable similar who now teaches missiology in Aotearoa/ affirmative action for women in mission, New Zealand. so that just as we were created in the im- I applaud the efforts of the WEF to age of God to complement one another, bring together mission practitioners, we could listen and learn from one an- missiologists, and church leaders from all other in the fullness of the body of Christ. over the world to reflect on mission in this new era. However, as a woman, I was Commentary by shocked and disappointed at how few Jeff Fountain women were at the consultation. Of the Our departing plane rose and banked 160 participants, 19 were women. Where over the gigantic Iguassu Falls, the awe- were the women? There are approximately some natural backdrop to our consulta- twice as many women as men working in tion. From the air, I could clearly see the mission around the world, so it is indeed great watershed where the broad, brown lamentable that so few attended a consul- river plunged suddenly into the gorge tation such as this. The Preamble rightly below, with some 265 wild torrents of states, “Old paradigms still prevail.” How foam gradually merging into a chocolate true this is when it comes to hearing and ribbon winding on downstream through experiencing women’s perspectives on the dark green tropical vegetation. mission. That image remains indelibly im- The Preamble also states, “In recent printed on my mind. And since my return years, reflection from many parts of the to Europe, it lingers as a striking metaphor church has helped missions to continue for the occasion of the consultation. The shedding paternalistic tendencies.” Thank- great watershed of the millennium transi- fully, we are coming to the realization that tion loomed large during our delibera- the centre of gravity for Christianity has tions. We were conscious that the new the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 525 century would bring unprecedented chal- Commentary by lenges and opportunities. The last decade Rudy Girón of the 20th century had warned of white The first thought that comes to my water approaching. The rate of global mind when I think of the Iguassu Consul- change had increased dramatically. A ma- tation is Proverbs 15:22, “Plans fail for lack jor break with the familiar past was immi- of counsel, but with many advisers they nent. While the round figure of 2000 was succeed.” The Affirmation that came out an arbitrary milestone of history with no of the discussion of 160 missiologists, particular eschatological significance, it practitioners, missionaries, theologians, happened to coincide with mega-shifts in and others is really a product of corpo- culture, communications, politics, econ- rate wisdom. Women and men from 53 omy, and beliefs. Historians would likely nationalities, representing a great variety look back on this millennial turnover as a of theological, missiological, and denomi- great historical discontinuity. national positions, were present that For those of us at the consultation from week. So we can look at the Iguassu Affir- Europe, that was especially true. Marxism mation as a good attempt to express a had imploded, and Christendom’s long corporate missiology. The Affirmation was millennium of power and privilege was a challenge to achieve with such diversity rapidly nearing its end. Increasing num- of cultures, ages, perspectives, and lan- bers of Europeans were now post-Com- guages represented in that event. munist, post-Christian, and post-modern. What would the New Europe look like in Commentary by the opening decades of the new millen- Jim Stamoolis nium? One of the main reasons the Iguassu This was a crucial moment to consult Affirmation will be a pivotal document for and evaluate and seek God’s wisdom the missiological community lies in its together. How would the Evangelical mis- approach to the contemporary situation. sions movement negotiate this approach- Taking full cognizance of the historical and ing turbulence? So then, how does the social factors that have shaped and con- Iguassu Affirmation reflect our state of tinue to shape the practice of missions, readiness, as the world Evangelical mis- the Affirmation demonstrates that it is sion community, for the changes rushing rooted in the historical continuum. It is headlong towards us? in interaction with and in critical reflec- As stated in the Preamble, “Old para- tion on the prevailing methodologies of digms still prevail”—and, we might add, mission that the Affirmation attempts to they die hard. Futurologist Patrick Dixon define the new paradigms. While the docu- warns that those stuck in last century’s ment betrays its origins as having the paradigms risk being labeled “pre- stamp of a committee rather than the millennialists”! Whatever our eschatology, seemingly smooth hand of a single author, it is imperative that we all make the tran- it is remarkable in its even-handed ap- sition to “post-millennial” paradigms. It proach to very complex issues. The draft- would be a Y2K tragedy of major propor- ing process, involving three full drafts that tions if the Evangelical community re- were presented to the entire consultation mained in a time warp. and a marathon revision session lasting three and a half hours, ensured that many viewpoints would be heard. As a member of the drafting committee, I had a sense 526 accepting serious commitments of cooperation and interaction that I had a Two-Thirds World country, signifies the scarcely believed possible. recognition the world is placing on the As the Preamble amply demonstrates, new direction of the global missionary before moving on to a new formulation, movement. As a millennium makes an exit we must give recognition to the factors and another is ushered in, for us who par- that have shaped the present paradigm or, ticipated in this significant meeting, the perhaps more properly, the present para- experience was more than words can de- digms. Economics and politics have always scribe. been an issue in missionary work, yet at The Preamble underlines the unity times it has been deemed unspiritual to forged by the global community of practi- acknowledge their power to shape mission tioners, missiologists, and church leaders practice. What tended to happen in the from the 53 countries gathered. The chal- course of European missions from the lenges and opportunities were viewed time of the Counter-Reformation on was through the lens of this togetherness. The for missionaries to use the economic and review of the past centered upon unity in political structures as vehicles for mission. diversity. The future focuses on the differ- While there often was criticism of eco- ent peoples and cultures united by a com- nomic and political exploitation, the situ- mon biblical missiology, contextualized in ation in a post-colonial environment these various cultural domains. Jesus is requires the mission agencies to under- declared as the living reality and answer stand the neocolonial pressures that im- to the complexities of our world. pact the gospel, both in the sending Commentary by countries and in the receiving countries. Met Castillo Mission is not just social science applied to a religious environment, but the I am honored to interact with the social sciences can shed light on the Iguassu Affirmation. I do so from the per- application of the gospel. Context is all- spective of an Asian mission leader with important for mission. One of the the Evangelical Fellowship of Asia and as strengths of the Affirmation is that the a missiologist and practitioner at the same document is deeply rooted in the reali- time. ties of history as well as the present situa- I was privileged to be one of the 160 tion. This is particularly evident in the participants in the Iguassu Missiological Commitments section that lists member Consultation, representing the Missions care along with the expected topics such Commission of the Evangelical Fellowship as spiritual warfare. The Affirmation is an of Asia and the missions movement in the accurate assessment of the current situa- Philippines. I believe that from the inception of mission and an attempt to speak a tion of the plan, there was an honest at- prophetic word about the challenges tempt to secure a fair representation from ahead for the missionary enterprise. the younger sending churches as well as the older sending countries. Commentary by I appreciated the three-fold purpose of Seth Anyomi the consultation, but I was more inter- The Iguassu Affirmation in mission his- ested in spending adequate time reflect- tory may be viewed as a watershed—the ing together on the challenges and great divide between an old and new era opportunities facing world mission. I also in missions. The venue of this historic WEF sensed a great deal of freedom and objec- Missions Commission gathering in Brazil, tivity in the discussions. There was, of the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 527 course, the tendency for the English speak- It is the Spirit who calls us into holiness ers to respond more quickly than those and integrity. The Spirit leads the church whose mother tongue is not English, but into all truth. The Spirit is the agent of the atmosphere was non-threatening. Re- mission, convicting of sin, righteousness, flecting together was the key. and judgment. We are Christ’s servants, The relevance of Christ as the message empowered and led by the Spirit, whose of missions must never be diminished. goal is to glorify God. Christ is the unchanging message to a fast- We confess the following themes as changing and diverse world. The unique- truths of special importance in this pres- ness of Christ must be proclaimed without ent age. These themes are clearly attested apology in polytheistic Asia. to in the whole of the Scriptures and speak We have gone a long way on the road to the desire of God to provide salvation to partnership in missions, but a lot more for all people. has to be done, particularly in the areas 1. Jesus Christ is Lord of the church of how we partner and whom we partner and Lord of the universe. with. A common perception is that partnership appears to be a game of the “big Ultimately every knee will bow and players.” While this type of partnership every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord. could serve as a teaching model and a The Lordship of Christ is to be proclaimed source of encouragement for the “small to the whole world, inviting all to be free players,” it is certainly one-sided and tends from bondage to sin and the dominion to be exclusive. Strategies and methodolo- of evil in order to serve the Lord for his gies are often minted by Western missiolo- glory. gists and then transported to the rest of 2. The Lord Jesus Christ is the unique the world. The small players often become revelation of God and the only Sav- implementers. But Iguassu produced a ior of the world. resounding voice calling for interdepen- Salvation is found in Christ alone. dent partnership that involves the global God witnesses to himself in creation and church. in human conscience, but these witnesses are not complete without the revelation Declarations of God in Christ. In the face of competing Our faith rests on the absolute author- truth claims, we proclaim with humility ity of the God-breathed Scriptures. We are that Christ is the only Savior, conscious heirs of the great Christian confessions that sin as well as cultural hindrances handed down to us. All three Persons of often mask him from those for whom he the Godhead are active in God’s redeem- died. ing mission. Our missiology centers on the 3. The good news of the salvation overarching biblical theme of God’s cre- made possible by the work of Jesus ation of the world, the Father’s redeem- Christ must be expressed in all the ing love for fallen humanity as revealed languages and cultures of the in the incarnation, substitutionary world. death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus We are commanded to be heralds of Christ, and ultimately of the redemption the gospel to every creature so that they and renewal of the whole creation. The can have the opportunity to confess faith Holy Spirit, promised by our Lord, is our in Christ. The message must come to them comforter, teacher, and source of power. in a language they can understand and 528 accepting serious commitments in a form that is appropriate to their cir- 7. Economic and political systems cumstances. Believers, led by the Holy deeply affect the spread of God’s Spirit, are encouraged to create cultur- kingdom. ally appropriate forms of worship and Human government is appointed by uncover biblical insights that glorify God God, but all human institutions act out for the benefit of the whole church. of fallenness. The Scriptures command that Christians pray for those in author- 4. The gospel is good news and ad- dresses all human needs. ity and work for truth and justice. Ap- propriate Christian response to political We emphasize the holistic nature of the and economic systems requires the guid- gospel of Jesus Christ. Both the Old Testa- ance of the Holy Spirit. ment and the New Testament demonstrate God’s concern with the whole 8. God works in a variety of Christian person in the whole of society. We ac- traditions and organizations, for knowledge that material blessings come his glory and the salvation of the from God, but prosperity should not be world. equated with godliness. For too long believers, divided over issues of church organization, order, and 5. Opposition to the spread of the gos- doctrine—such as the gifts and ministry pel is foremost a spiritual conflict of the Holy Spirit—have failed to recog- involving human sin and principalities and powers opposed to the nize each other’s work. We affirm, bless, Living God. and pray for authentic Christian witness wherever it is found. This conflict is manifested in different ways, e.g., fear of spirits or indifference 9. To be effective witnesses of the Holy to God. We recognize that the defense of God, we need to demonstrate per- the truth of the gospel is also spiritual sonal and corporate holiness, love, warfare. As witnesses of the gospel, we an- and righteousness. nounce that Jesus Christ has power over We repent of hypocrisy and conformity all powers and is able to free all who turn to the world, and we call the church to a to him in faith. We affirm that in the cross, renewed commitment to holy living. Ho- God has won the victory. liness requires turning from sin, training in righteousness, and growing in Christ- 6. Suffering, persecution, and martyr- likeness. dom are present realities for many Christians. Commentary by We acknowledge that our obedience in Oswaldo Prado mission involves suffering and recognize One of the points which especially that the church is experiencing this. We caught my attention was the firm commit- affirm our privilege and responsibility to ment to the fundamentals of Scripture. In pray for those undergoing persecution. We the beginning of the Christian era, the are called to share in their pain, do what church sought solidification of its faith we can to relieve their sufferings, and through many credos and confessions. In work for human rights and religious free- contrast, the 20th century was marked by dom. the sudden growth of pluralism and religious syncretism. The Brazilian Evan- gelical church is an example of the 20th century realities. Although we are experi- the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 529 encing numeric growth never seen before, a note of sweet catholicity by observing sometimes we may wonder when enter- our indebtedness to consensual ortho- ing a church building if we are there to doxy. (I take “the great Christian confes- adore the true God or just to feel some sions” actually to refer not so much to the “spiritual experiences.” lengthy and detailed Confessions of the The meeting at Foz do Iguassu showed Reformation that too often divide Evan- the singularity of Christ and his power gelicals, but rather to the great Ecumeni- over the world and the church. We could cal Creeds of the early church that unite not help but see that we are a Christian us.) The Declarations section then affirms church. We must not let go of the abso- for the first time the trinitarian nature of lute statements of high faith in the Scrip- missions and centers missiology on the tures. These statements have enormous biblical themes of creation, fall, redemp- relevance to the Third World church. Be- tion, and consummation. The first para- cause this church is still young, it suffers graph closes with another statement on the temptation to expand much more the work of the Holy Spirit. through business strategies than biblical The form of the Declarations then ones. changes to a cataloging of nine biblical and The character of the Latin American missiological “themes” confessed “as church is also a result of its economic and truths of special importance in this present political environment. Especially in the age.” I am a bit puzzled at the structure of 1970s and ’80s, Brazil and other countries the presentation at this point. It would experienced totalitarian army govern- seem either that the first paragraph, nar- ments, which worsened social distinctions rative in form, should be broken down and resulted in poverty and social injus- into a list of themes that would then flow tice. Our meeting in Iguassu recognized into the following nine, or that the nine that these situations also affected the ex- should be presented in a narrative form pansion of God’s kingdom. We now need that flows out of the first paragraph. Nor the Holy Spirit’s direction in fulfilling our is it entirely clear to me why only these mission, interceding for our political lead- particular themes are declared or why the ers, and developing concrete plans for words, “We confess,” are used of the Dec- evangelization aimed at the welfare of our larations and the words, “We declare,” are citizens. used of the Pledge. There are two things in favor of the Nevertheless, there is an unstated, un- Third World church. First, the church has derlying logic to the themes. They declare, known how to survive through all kinds in order: the Lordship of Christ, the of suffering. Second, it readily shares its uniqueness of Christ, the gospel of Christ meager possessions for the expansion of to the whole world, the gospel of Christ the gospel among people not yet touched to the whole person, opposition to the by the good news. gospel, suffering for the gospel, Christians and social structures, Christians and unity, Commentary by and Christians and holiness. These decla- John Wood rations are prophetic in calling each of us, The opening statement of the Declara- regardless of one’s cultural context, to a tions leaves no doubt that this is an Evan- costly declaration and application of the gelical document by strongly affirming the whole counsel of God to our own lives authority of Scripture. It then follows with and to every part of life, especially in the 530 accepting serious commitments places where principalities and powers are justice. The gospel is good news for opposing the spread of God’s kingdom. everyone, but women as a group are There is a strong and compelling appeal marginalized, oppressed, and alienated— for the wedding of a rigorous Christian perhaps more than any other group. Even mind and a vigorous Christian heart. secular governments realize this. The government of Aotearoa/New Zealand will Commentary by match aid agencies’ donations by four to Cathy Ross one for any project which targets the wel- As Evangelicals, we wholeheartedly fare of women. May we as Evangelicals be endorse these declarations. How good to at the forefront of any initiative which see the person of the Holy Spirit affirmed brings not only justice but also healing, as the agent of mission, which reminds us wholeness, and newness of life to margi- that the Holy Spirit may indeed do sur- nalized groups. prising and unexpected things in mission. In the seventh declaration, it is good No matter how much we strategize, God to see Evangelicals encouraging a realis- is the author of mission, and we know God tic awareness of and involvement in eco- delights in surprises. How appropriate to nomics and politics, under the guidance be reminded that we are “Christ’s ser- of the Holy Spirit, as an appropriate part vants” and not harbingers of a particular of mission. Too often, we have abrogated culture, worldview, or political system, al- our responsibility in this area and let bla- though we confess it has sometimes tant injustice continue, as long as we have seemed like that. had the freedom to “preach the gospel”! I am encouraged by the emphasis on the holistic nature of the gospel in the Commentary by fourth declaration. So often we have pur- Jeff Fountain sued and enforced a Greek dualism be- In the first place, much of the Iguassu tween spirit and body, to the detriment of Affirmation is reaffirmation. Developments God’s mission and the good news we pro- in the last decade had rendered such mid- claim. stream corrections necessary. While the It is this holistic nature of the gospel historic Lausanne Congress in 1974 had and its concern for justice which is good made ground-breaking progress in clari- news for women. Consider the following fying the interface between evangelism statistics: “Women form 35% of the world’s and social involvement, Lausanne II in paid labour force, head up 33% of all Manila (1989) had been followed by new households, make up 95% of all nurses, emphases which had sometimes stressed perform 62% of all work hours, and yet breadth at the expense of depth. Some had receive just 10% of the world’s income and urged an all-out effort towards closure own 1% of the world’s property…. Women before the century’s end. Others in Eu- make up 70% of the poor, 66% of illiter- rope had responded to that call with cau- ates, 80% of refugees, 75% of the sick.”1 tion. James Engel, in an article quoted by We see the urgent and pressing need Bill Taylor in the opening address, warned for women’s issues to be heard and ad- of “misguided strategies based on para- dressed by Evangelicals in mission. It is digms of world evangelization that have indeed a question of working for justice lost their mooring in all that Christ taught for those who are suffering outright in- about the kingdom of God.”

1 Long, J. D. (1997, June 17). The plight of women. Monday Morning Reality Check. the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 531

The Declarations affirming the holis- order. The second declaration follows logi- tic nature of the gospel (see 4, 6, and 7) cally, in that Christ must then be the only help restore biblical balance to our under- Savior of the world because he is Lord of standing of the mission mandate. all. Therefore, all must have the opportunity to know who their true Lord is. These Commentary by are the essential pillars of the missionary Jim Stamoolis mandate, and without them there is no The strong Evangelical statements of redemptive mission, only humanitarian re- the introductory paragraph mean that the lief work. Therefore, holistic ministry flows document stands in the tradition of other out of the redemptive mandate. Christian confessional documents. Scrip- The spiritual nature of the conflict is ture, the Trinity, and the role of the Holy clearly pointed out. It is not a matter of Spirit are appropriately highlighted. These mere intellectual consent; rather, the are given to be undisputed points among spread of the gospel is a spiritual battle. Evangelicals. It is especially important to The realization of the reality of suffering identify the Holy Spirit as the agent of and martyrdom is an indication that the mission, lest any consider mission to be battle cannot be fought by armchair strat- primarily a human enterprise. egists sitting in comfortable surroundings. The Affirmation demonstrates that The essential focus on prayer for sisters there is an integral connection between and brothers who are undergoing perse- the foundation of mission and theology. cution reminds us again of the dual realms There is no sense of a missionary enthusi- of the physical and the spiritual. Later, in asm that is not clearly rooted in biblical the Commitments, there is a call for the theology. development of a theology of suffering When the document comes to the is- which will serve the entire church. sues that the consultation believed needed The call to halt the division over tradi- special emphasis, the key points are listed tions and organizations is most appropri- st that are necessary for mission in the 21 ate. It is not a call to structural unity of century. These topics would form the ba- organization, but rather a call to a unity sis for further study and reflection. They in the Holy Spirit. There is nothing that are a catalogue of the subjects for books would advance the cause of Christ more and monographs, written from different than ongoing demonstrations of the real cultural perspectives, which should form spiritual unity all Christians share by vir- the basis of missiological thinking. Much tue of their relationship to the Lord Jesus has been written on some of these topics Christ and the indwelling presence of the in English and other European languages. Holy Spirit. Charismatics who have felt What is needed is reflection from other excluded from the mainstream of Evan- parts of the church, so that all may ben- gelical life need to be welcomed as sisters efit from the experience of Christians in and brothers. The church among these other settings. communities is growing rapidly, and there The dual focus of the first declaration, needs to be a willingness to discern the that Jesus Christ is Lord of the church and work of the Holy Spirit within the various the universe, correctly points out that if traditions. While the experience of church he is not Lord of both, he cannot be Lord life differs from situation to situation, the of either. The confession of Christ as Lord reality of the presence of the risen Christ, of the church must include the confession as mediated through the indwelling Holy of his Lordship over the entire created Spirit, should give confidence of the abil- 532 accepting serious commitments ity of the Spirit to work in both old and parts of the world, but also to a spiritu- new Christian traditions. The Affirmation’s ally, socially, and culturally corrupted call to affirm, bless, and pray for authen- world, regardless of nationality or eth- tic Christian witness could be the single nicity. most powerful force in manifesting the The fact that in the cross God has won reality of Christ that the world has ever the victory points to a distinctive defini- seen. tion of spiritual warfare, its process, and The call for holiness for effective Chris- its universal assessment. Christ is the man tian witness is always in season. There was of war and the victor in every spiritual never a period in the history of the church battle. when holiness was not an important com- Neglected subjects in Christian doc- ponent. In spite of outward prosperity, the trine, “suffering, persecution, and martyr- lack of holiness has marred the testimony dom,” were brought to the forefront. This to Christ throughout the centuries. The made sense of the pain, humiliation, and temptation to various types of sinful be- tragic imposition on Christians in many havior only reinforces the spiritual nature parts of the world. A call to identify, offer of both the Christian life and Christian assistance, and join in every effort to bring mission. freedom and justice to oppressed Chris- tians worldwide was also a call for Chris- Commentary by tians to become truly the body of Christ, Seth Anyomi where all suffer when one suffers. The affirmations that follow the mis- There was a reminder that world gov- sionary review highlight the pillars of the ernments and economic systems originate Evangelical faith: the Lordship of Christ from God. Therefore, their success and over not only the church but the entire sustenance as such rest upon the faithful universe, his uniqueness as God incarnate prayer support and involvement of Chris- and the only Saviour of the world, and the tians worldwide. efficacy of his work which made possible The eighth declaration restates the the good news of salvation. These Great Commission, which if paraphrased affirmations all underscore the urgency of would read, “Go into every person’s giving expression to Christ’s message in world” and make disciples of all nations. every tongue and culture. This simplifies and explains the diversity The fact that we are to be heralds of of ministries and Christian organizations the gospel to every person on the face of having one common goal of bringing a the earth cannot be overemphasized. What Christian witness within one’s given is most important also is the language and sphere of operation. form in which the gospel is communi- The ninth point of the Declarations is cated. This declaration helps to clarify of particular interest to African Christians. misconceptions about the origins of Chris- Even in pagan societies, holiness and ex- tianity. Up to today, A.D. 2000, Christian- pressions of love in communal living are ity is still being referred to as the “white highly esteemed. The gods are said to re- man’s religion” in Africa. act violently to any act of impurity, injus- The Affirmation further declares the tice, or deliberate wickedness. An relevance of the gospel to every human emphasis on the doctrine of holiness, love, need, whether physical or spiritual. This and righteousness will register well with brings hope not only to impoverished the church in Africa. the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 533

Commentary by 1. Trinitarian foundation Met Castillo of mission I wholeheartedly support these affir- We commit ourselves to a renewed mations. Mission theology as rooted in the emphasis on God-centered missiology. God-inspired Scriptures can never be over- This invites a new study of the operation stated. There is a need to ground practi- of the Trinity in the redemption of the tioners and leaders in a biblical theology human race and the whole of creation, of missions. Doing missions is often based as well as to understand the particular on a few verses of Scripture picked out roles of Father, Son, and Spirit in mission from here and there, thus missing the to this fallen world. whole picture. 2. Biblical and theological It is good to emphasize a Christocentric reflection mission theology as expressed in the first We confess that our biblical and theo- three themes. This is in line with time- logical reflection has sometimes been tested Evangelical tradition on soteriology. shallow and inadequate. We also confess Salvation through faith in Christ is the that we have frequently been selective in foundation of mission theology that puts our use of texts rather than being faith- the “go” on our feet. It is the bedrock that ful to the whole biblical revelation. We withstands religious pluralism in our commit ourselves to engage in renewed world today. biblical and theological studies shaped The holistic nature of the gospel is by mission, and to pursue a missiology adequately and clearly stated, but how to and practice shaped by God’s Word, communicate this gospel to the non- brought to life and light by the Holy Spirit. Western, phenomenal mind in order to gain acceptance remains a real challenge 3. Church and mission to many practitioners. We who claim to The church in mission is central to be Evangelical and missions minded need God’s plan for the world. We commit our- to work on this some more. selves to strengthen our ecclesiology in It is when we proclaim the whole gos- mission, and to encourage the global pel to the whole person that we encoun- church to become a truly missionary ter opposition and experience suffering community in which all Christians are or even martyrdom. The gospel confronts involved in mission. In the face of increas- evil to the core, and evil will not tolerate ing resistance and opposition from politi- the gospel in society. cal powers, religious fundamentalism, and secularism, we commit ourselves to Commitments encourage and challenge the churches to We commit ourselves to continue and respond with a deeper level of unity and deepen our reflection on the following participation in mission. themes, helping one another to enrich 4. Gospel and culture our understanding and practice with insight from every corner of the world. Our The gospel is always presented and hearts’ desire is the discipling of the na- received within a cultural context. It is tions through the effective, faithful com- therefore essential to clarify the relation- munication of Christ to every culture and ship between gospel and culture, both people. in theory and practice, recognizing that there is both good and evil in all cultures. 534 accepting serious commitments

We commit ourselves to continue to dem- ject to the authority of Scripture. There- onstrate the relevance of the Christian fore, we call for a healthy critique of mis- message to all cultures, and ensure that sion theories that depend heavily on missionaries learn to wrestle biblically marketing concepts and missiology by with the relationship between gospel and objectives. culture. We commit ourselves to serious 8. Globalized missiology study of how different cultural perspectives may enrich our understanding of the The insights of every part of the church gospel, as well as how all worldviews are needed, and challenges encountered have to be critiqued and transformed by in every land must be addressed. Only it. thus can our missiology develop the rich- ness and texture reflected in the Scrip- 5. Pluralism tures and needed for full obedience to our Religious pluralism challenges us to risen Lord. We commit ourselves to give hold firmly to the uniqueness of Jesus voice to all segments of the global church Christ as Savior even as we work for in- in developing and implementing our creased tolerance and understanding missiology. among religious communities. We cannot 9. Godly character seek harmony by relativizing the truth claims of religions. Urbanization and Biblical holiness is essential for cred- radical political change have bred in- ible Christian witness. We commit our- creased interreligious and ethnic violence selves to renewed emphasis on godly and hostility. We commit ourselves to be living and servanthood, and we urge agents of reconciliation. We also commit training institutions, both missionary ourselves to proclaim the gospel of Jesus and ministerial, to include substantive Christ in faithfulness and loving humil- biblical and practical training in Chris- ity. tian character formation. 6. Spiritual conflict 10. The cross and suffering We welcome the renewed attention As our Lord called us to take up our given in recent decades to the biblical crosses, we remind the church of our theme of spiritual conflict. We rejoice that Lord’s teaching that suffering is a part of power and authority are not ours but authentic Christian life. In an increas- God’s. At the same time, we must ensure ingly violent and unjust world with po- that the interest in spiritual warfare does litical and economic oppression, we not become a substitute for dealing with commit to equip ourselves and others to the root issues of sin, salvation, conver- suffer in missionary service and to serve sion, and the battle for the truth. We com- the suffering church. We pursue to articu- mit ourselves to increase our biblical late a biblical theology of martyrdom. understanding and practice of spiritual 11. Christian responsibility and conflict while guarding against syncretis- the world economic order tic and unbiblical elements. In a world increasingly controlled by 7. Strategy in mission global economic forces, Christians need We are grateful for many helpful in- to be aware of the corrosive effects of sights gained from the social sciences. We affluence and the destructive effects of are concerned that these should be sub- poverty. We must be aware of ethno- the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 535 centrism in our view of economic forces. ity and have made errors, we affirm that We commit ourselves to address the re- they deserve love, respect, and gratitude. alities of world poverty and oppose poli- Too often, agencies, churches, and fellow cies that serve the powerful rather than Christians have not followed biblical the powerless. It is the responsibility of guidelines in dealing with cross-cultural the church in each place to affirm the workers. We commit ourselves to support meaning and value of a people, especially and nurture our missionary workers for where indigenous cultures face extinc- their sakes and for the gospel witness. tion. We call all Christians to commit Commentary by themselves to reflect God’s concern for Oswaldo Prado justice and the welfare of all peoples. Recognizing the strategic importance 12. Christian responsibility of the Brazil Consultation in Foz do and the ecological crisis Iguassu, during the week we raised some The earth is the Lord’s, and the gospel themes which may be used for our own is good news for all creation. Christians reflections and practices in a new millen- share in the responsibility God gave to nium. Some of these have great relevance all humanity to care for the earth. We call for the shepherding of our Third World on all Christians to commit themselves church. to ecological integrity in practicing re- One issue was grappling with the sponsible stewardship of creation, and we church/mission equation. Unfortunately, encourage Christians in environmental many have sought to disconnect the care and protection initiatives. church from its missionary duty, thereby blinding the church to its priority vision, 13. Partnership which is to spread the glory of the Lord As citizens of the kingdom of God and among all peoples. Our Brazilian ecclesi- members of Christ’s body, we commit our- ology is still fundamentally ethnocentric, selves to renewed efforts at cooperation, and we are forced to meet the demands because it is our Lord’s desire that we be of our denominational organizations. In one and that we work in harmony in his addition, our missionary heritage in many service so that the world will believe. We cases did not challenge us with a commit- acknowledge that our attempts have not ment to world mission. Thus, the pastors always been as equals. Inadequate the- and leaders of missions of the local church ology, especially in respect to the doctrine often need to undergo an apprenticeship of the church, and the imbalance of re- under a new paradigm in which the sources have made working together dif- church and mission walk together. ficult. We pledge to find ways to address Another area which we Brazilians will this imbalance and to demonstrate to the take home from Iguassu is the sincere and world that believers in Christ are truly open dialogue that took place among one in their service of Christ. those who work in the arena of mission 14. Member care study and reflection, along with the pastors who work primarily with missionary Service of the Lord in cross-cultural action. We regret that too often in the past environments exposes missionaries to we walked alone, when actually we should many stresses and criticisms. While ac- have depended on each other. We are a knowledging that missionaries also share church which needs a foundational mis- the limitations of our common human- sion study for missionary work. Also, those 536 accepting serious commitments who are on the mission field must be val- ner of the world.” This section is very ued much more. strong in content, addressing the need for For a long time, the church in Brazil, reflection both in traditional areas of Evan- as well as in many other parts of Latin gelical strength (e.g., trinitarian founda- America, has received unfiltered theolo- tion, biblical and theological reflection, gies and structures coming from North church and mission), as well as in areas America and Europe. In some cases, this where we have been weak (e.g., gospel has been healthy, but in other cases there and culture, spiritual conflict, Christian have been serious problems. Our meet- responsibility regarding economics and ing in Brazil raised the theme of spiritual ecology). This section will serve my own warfare. We recognized that spiritual war- congregation’s world missions team as an fare is present in most of our churches and excellent foundation document for further that it has become a divisive issue on each reflection. pastor’s agenda. We know that today I believe, however, that the two cen- Christians are carelessly using this area of tral sections on Declarations and Commit- spiritual conflict without proper care and ments would be stronger if they shared scriptural support. an internal structure or if the one flowed For us as Latin American pastors, there logically out of the other. They read as if was great value in reflecting on the pres- written by two different committees not ence of deep suffering in the Christian life. working closely enough with each other. Our church has tended to exclude all Commentary by kinds of pain and suffering, leading Chris- Cathy Ross tians to believe that such themes are not part of the Christian life. These extremes The Commitments are a rather eclec- are the result of imported theologies, tic collection, although most arise out of which teach material prosperity as a sign the Declarations. I look forward to more of a healthy spirituality. Nowadays Chris- detailed study on the nature and role of tians have a tendency to abandon their the Trinity in mission and on what a communities at the first sign of struggle deeper understanding of the Trinity might and suffering. Our meeting, fortunately, mean for us in our practice of mission and recovered the cross and suffering as an how we live in community in God’s world. integral part of the Christian life and gave The second commitment, calling for a us new strength to meet the tragedies in deeper theological and biblical reflection an oppressed world. on mission, is timely for Evangelicals, when many institutions seem to be dimin- Commentary by ishing their commitment to the study of John Wood cross-cultural mission in favour of other While this section is consistent in struc- disciplines. May we have the humility to turing its presentation and clear in stat- listen and learn from our sisters and broth- ing its themes, it is not as clear why several ers in other cultures and contexts as they of the themes already dealt with under the theologise in their communities, so that Declarations are now taken up again in a we may truly reflect the worldwide body different order without reference to what of Christ. has gone before. However, the Commit- I appreciate the positive approach to ments do propose a commendable and culture seen in the fourth commitment. necessary missiological project of continu- May we rejoice in all the good things of ing reflection “with insight from every cor- God’s world, realizing that God created the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 537 culture and that the gospel not only cri- was out of phase with church growth ex- tiques elements in any culture, but also ploding in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. enhances certain elements of culture. I Once synonymous with Christendom, pray that this commitment may also ex- Europe was now becoming a desperate tend to our Evangelical subcultures across mission field itself. the globe, so that we do not become en- Missiological insights traditionally re- trenched in our own favoured positions served for “the foreign mission field” but allow other perspectives to breathe needed urgent application in our Euro- new life into our particular contexts. pean cities and neighbourhoods. It is no The commitments, which urge godly coincidence that one of the most widely character and servanthood as well as the read and quoted European churchmen in call to suffering, are pertinent reminders the last decade was a former bishop in for us in the West that the way of Jesus is India, Lesslie Newbigin. He clearly saw indeed the way of the cross. May we es- that Europe was at an historic crossroads. chew triumphalistic and comfortable ap- For the first time ever, Europeans had tried proaches to mission and practise radical and rejected in turn each of the three servanthood. It is good to hear Evangeli- broad categories of worldview: animism, cals opposing policies that serve the pow- theism, and materialism. Post-modernity erful. May God give us not only the was a clear rejection of the last. Newbigin discernment to work out who the power- warned that when Europe forgot the Book less are for us in our context, but also the that told the story that brought the hope grace to serve these people. that had transformed culture after culture At last, we have an Evangelical decla- on the continent, Europe would revert to ration which deals with the environment her Eastern roots of animism. and urges us to protect the integrity of The Commitments listed in the Affir- creation! This is a huge commitment that mation present a serious and urgent requires advocacy and purposeful action agenda for us Europeans. We must see from us in the West. expressions of the church emerge that How we long for a true partnership of relate effectively to post-Christians (praise equals as we work in mission! Can it hap- God for the impact of Alpha groups in pen? Perhaps we in the West need to be many European countries!), post-Commu- silent for a time. Perhaps we need to sac- nists, post-moderns, and that growing ur- rifice our plans and strategies so that true ban population sector, post-migrants (the partnership can happen. Perhaps we need children of immigrants who have never the humility to remain silent, stand still, had any Christian influence in their up- and receive in humility from our sisters bringing). Such expressions will involve and brothers from the rest of the world. heavy wrestling with the themes of the Could we do it? What would happen if we gospel and culture, pluralism, and even did? spiritual warfare. We must go back to the future, recov- Commentary by ering models from the past which im- Jeff Fountain pacted pagan societies the first time round As the millennial watershed ap- with an attractive expression of the Chris- proached, church leaders across the Eu- tian faith—such as the Irish Celts, whose ropean continent were being faced with culture-redeeming, life-affirming commu- an undeniable truth: Europe had now nities became the building blocks for the become the Prodigal Continent. Europe 538 accepting serious commitments new order we now know as Western Commentary by civilisation. Rudy Girón The commitment to partnership, while Observations on Commitment 6 not new, takes on a novel twist for Euro- peans in the light of the historic shift in Of the many elements that we might the centre of gravity of the global church discuss, I would like to focus my atten- to the South and East. One of the consul- tion on points number six and seven of tation jokes was that for many Two-Thirds the Affirmation Commitments. As a prac- Worlders, partnership with Westerners was titioner in missions and a Pentecostal mis- like dancing with elephants! But we Eu- sionary, I find the elements implied in the ropeans today are spiritual lightweights sixth commitment quite relevant to my re- when it comes to church planting, expe- ality. Spiritual warfare is something that rience in cell churches, gifts of faith and comes to our doorway every day. Definitely vision, relating to immigrants, recognising it is a subject that needs to be addressed and understanding animism in contempo- in a biblical and balanced way. rary guises, and engaging in spiritual war- For a long time, Pentecostals have been fare. Our missionary God has begun to rightly known as those who experience send Asians, Africans, and Latin Americans and minister within the reality of spiritual to partner with us in Europe—and we warfare. In relatively recent years, other desperately need their help! authors, especially non-Pentecostal writ- A major personal takeaway was the re- ers, have become acquainted with the minder that the cross and suffering are issues of spiritual warfare or have experi- part of authentic Christian life. Sometimes enced a spiritual awakening in their min- an emphasis on marketing strategies and istry. Intrigued by their experience, they measurable success has clouded our have started to theorize and then write awareness that God’s ways are not ours, about spiritual warfare. Applying psychol- that resurrection life only follows death, ogy, anthropology, sociology, and some and that historically the blood of the mar- practical experience to their findings, they tyrs has been the seed of the church. have emerged with new understanding How God works through shakings and and theories about spiritual warfare. For sufferings has been clearly demonstrated traditional Pentecostals, many of these in recent events in the Balkans. Despite newer “revelations” are rather common. waves of anarchy that sent Western mis- At the same time, some of them are exag- sionaries packing, Albania, the world’s first gerated. We Pentecostals are amazed at atheistic nation, became a missionary- how these newer spiritual practitioners are sending nation in the closing months of able to theorize about what we have been the century. Evangelical Albanians are now practicing for decades! Until recently, tra- helping Muslim Kosovars to rebuild their ditional Pentecostals never had the inter- shattered land, and they have helped plant est, the opportunity, or the means to write over 20 new fellowships in the six months about their experience. That does not since the last NATO bombs fell. We can mean that they do not understand the continue to expect the “surprises of subject. On the contrary, they know by God”—even in 21st century Europe! experience what it means to engage in spiritual warfare against the dark forces and also about releasing the supernatural power of God in our world and ministry. the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 539

There has been an over-fascination ductive to convene a specific missiological with the mystical elements that are implied consultation on this issue, involving in spiritual warfare. This is true not only missiologists, anthropologists, missionar- of Christians, but also in our general soci- ies, and theologians from all branches of eties. Many movies about the super- Pentecostal and non-Pentecostal tradi- natural, demonology, voodoo, vampires, tions. and all sorts of spiritual evils have been When it comes to spiritual warfare, produced by the secular film industry. especially in what is called the “mission Many novels written by Christian authors field” (which is truly now everywhere), we have rewarded both the writers and their are aware of the need that we missionar- publishers with handsome financial prof- ies have to recognize that we are not just its. These realities prove that there is a fighting against human intellectual, politi- spiritual awareness of the ongoing warfare cal, or economic forces. We are truly bat- of the spirit. tling against evil cosmic forces. There is a Yet the seriousness of this issue did not spiritual realm in which we are engaged, emerge as it should have at the Iguassu and we need to be prepared both intel- Consultation, for only one presentation lectually and spiritually. Many missionar- on the subject was made, and that one was ies are returning earlier than expected to from a Christian anthropological stand- their homes and sending churches, frus- point. Nevertheless, the fact remains that trated and discouraged. The causes are understanding the nature of spiritual war- complex in most of the cases of prevent- fare is something with which we must deal able attrition. Nevertheless, we believe that seriously if we want to reach those who behind the obviously recognizable causes, are without Christ, regardless of culture there may be spiritual elements that are or nationality. The battle we face is not part of an evil warfare confronted by most just a political, financial, and intellectual missionaries, and we need to consider this one. We face serious spirituality issues in reality carefully. our society today. Spiritual warfare needs Before becoming a cross-cultural mis- to be seriously studied from a missio- sionary in Russia, I had worked in many logical standpoint, using the Scriptures as ministerial positions, both in my country our foundation. and outside my country. However, when I We also must give more room to those became a full-time missionary working who have spiritual warfare knowledge and outside my common “territory,” I experi- experience, who know how to engage the enced uncommon spiritual battles. If we evil powers, and who have lived victori- are not spiritually prepared to deal with ously over the years. Despite the fact that such battles, we may be defeated without many of these practitioners may not be even knowing what the reason for our able to explain intellectually all the details defeat was. Sometimes we cannot explain of such a battle, this should not exclude intellectually what is going on, but we them from the dialogue. It seems to me know, as Paul knew, that our battle is not that there are not many practitioners of against flesh and blood, but against “the spiritual warfare present in consultations rulers, against the authorities, against the like ours in Iguassu. Therefore, we are left powers of this dark world and against the with those who know the issue only from spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly the more theoretical side of the coin. This realms” (Eph. 6:12). This is not an easy is an issue that must be dealt with in fu- battle; it is spiritual warfare. ture consultations. It would be very pro- 540 accepting serious commitments

The Iguassu Affirmation calls for a se- Two-Thirds World missionary movements. rious biblical consideration of the issue, We acknowledge that when it comes to and rightly so. We need to revisit the Bible setting goals for reaching the unreached, to discover and evaluate the cosmic spiri- we run the danger of losing track of the tual realities that the early church con- deep spiritual challenges presented by the fronted from its inception. We need to unbelieving world. We have the tendency come afresh to the biblical text, carefully to reduce that reality to mere numbers and examining our theological preconcep- oversimplifications. But that does not tions, and discern with honesty the bibli- mean that the entire contribution coming cal and current worldviews, along with the from these well-respected leaders and or- reality of this massive spiritual battle. Be- ganizations is useless or that it can be dis- ginning with Jesus, who confronted Satan missed simply as “managerial missions.” in the early stages of his ministry, right to Even more serious is the fact that those the end of the apostolic era, the church who attack all the good elements of a sta- was already engaged in a great spiritual tistical approach to missions usually do battle. Today we see the need for the so from a position of intellectual advan- church worldwide to be prepared to en- tage. But many of these critics possess lim- gage in spiritual warfare. Our missiology ited practical experience of the realities will be incomplete unless we examine our of this world. concepts of spiritual warfare. As a missions mobilizer in Latin America, I can testify to the great blessing Observations on Commitment 7 it has been to our church to have statisti- This statement referred to strategies in cal and social sciences information to en- missions. It was unfortunate that almost lighten and shape our understanding of none of the major missiologists that rep- the Great Commission. The emerging mis- resent the so-called “managerial missiol- sionary movements from the Two-Thirds ogy” were at Iguassu. I do not blame the World have been founded with much in- organizers of the consultation for this ab- tercessory prayer. That prayer has been sence, for I believe they tried. Perhaps it greatly informed by the abundant data was mainly due to reasons on the part of gathered under the strategic vision of those who represent these missiological those who have worked hard to determine emphases. That left us again in Iguassu the numerical realities of the spiritual con- with only an unbalanced side of the coin. dition of the world. All of us can recog- If some of the missiologists who have pro- nize the blessing of having the objective duced a vast field of data regarding the numbers of Barrett, Johnson, Pate, Win- unreached people groups of the world ter, and others. None of us can deny the had been present at Iguassu, they would great impulse that the innovative concept have enriched the consultation. Articulate of the 10/40 window has brought to our proponents of this perspective could have missionary enterprise. People who never spoken on behalf of the methods and sta- before thought about spiritual needs in tistics used to promote missionary aware- other parts of the world suddenly have ness in the local churches and could guide been moved by the realities they have dis- us on the field itself. covered through this “managerial” ap- These statistical and sociological tools proach. that explain part of the spiritual reality of It is important to mention that missi- our present world have been a great re- ologists from academia have the tendency source and a great blessing to many of our to present the Great Commission in such the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 541 sophisticated theological jargon that the cially of the Great Commission, by reduc- common Christian (who wants only to un- ing everything to numbers and to mana- derstand how to contribute to the Great gerial strategies. We must be careful not Commission) is simply lost. Those of us to conclude that those who produce, use, who have preached in the great pulpits, and spread statistical information are seen as well at the simple pulpits of barrio only as the ones who reduce mission to churches, know how effective it is to trans- mere numerical elements. late the biblical mandate of making dis- What might be a healthy attitude and ciples in all nations, when we can show step to take? We must return to the tren- what a “nation” means and how many of ches of the rural and barrio churches and them are still unevangelized. I always keep there test our missiological jargon. Then in mind Matthew 9:36, where when Jesus we will realize that unless that jargon is saw the multitudes, he had compassion explained and illustrated, whether or not on them. A well-known missiologist once we include elements of “managerial missi- said, “Understanding leads to compas- ology,” nobody will understand what the sion.” Jesus saw the crowds and grasped Great Commission means. Let us keep a their spiritual needs. We need to see balanced approach to all the elements that through reliable statistics to the realities combine to formulate a relevant missi- of this world. I agree with that Presbyte- ology for our 21st century. rian pastor from the beginning of the 20th Commentary by century when he said, “We need to preach Jim Stamoolis missions with the Bible in the right hand and with the statistics in the other.” When the Affirmation reaches the Com- I recognize that when it comes to mitments, it sets out the theological and strategizing, we can run the risk of simply missiological agenda for the next several reducing mission to attainable numerical decades. As noted with the Declarations, goals. Also, we are well aware that mis- the points of the Commitments are with- sion is not simply sharing the gospel, but out a doubt the areas that should form it includes a holistic approach to the full the areas of writing and reflection for prac- needs of the person. Those of us who have ticing missionaries, professors of mission, been involved in what is called “manage- and graduate students. Each point could rial missiology” have found these empha- provide the seeds for many master’s theses to be a great blessing as we spread the ses and doctoral dissertations. These writ- missionary vision throughout our Latin ings need to be done in the various American continent. Yes! We affirm the linguistic and cultural contexts of mission, need to avoid an oversimplification of the not only in the traditional missiological mission or a reductionism in our scope centers of the Western churches. It would of missions. Nevertheless, we voice our be interesting to see how the various cul- concern that in applying the epithet tural traditions handle topics such as the “managerial missiology” to all statistical Trinity or spiritual conflict. strategizing, we may mislead the global The global missionary enterprise is missionary movement and deprive the mature in many respects, but it needs to church of very valuable tools that have encourage the younger churches to find blessed many of our churches worldwide. their own voices and to break out of tra- Again, I join my voice with the appeal ditional models of interpretation. To of the Iguassu Consultation that we avoid some, such words sound alarming, if not an oversimplification of missiology, espe- heretical, since they believe that the basic 542 accepting serious commitments exegetical work has been done. Neverthe- communication of Christ to every culture less, the Affirmation is correct when it and people. Upon these Commitments the points out the shallow and inadequate use WEF Missions Commission members of the Bible, along with the tendency to charged themselves with the responsibil- be selective in using the witness of the ity of impacting their respective nations, biblical text. It is critical that this commit- regions, and spheres of influence. ment not be lost or ignored. The Western The African church undoubtedly would church needs the witness and exegetical welcome a renewed emphasis on God- observation of those from other traditions centered missiology. Many African tradi- to unlock the depth of God’s revelation tional societies such as the Ashantis to humankind. The Bible has been read already hold God as a Trinity, symbolized through a Western filter that has been in the three-pronged symbol of nyame, unable at times to distinguish the biblical meaning God. The reminder by the Affir- worldviews from the cultural presupposi- mation would surely reinforce the under- tions coming from the Enlightenment. A standing of the trinitarian foundations of pertinent example would be the accep- mission. tance of spiritual activity in the New Tes- Regarding the topic of biblical and tament era by Evangelical theologians, but theological reflections, the approach for their unwillingness to understand how the church in Africa may differ from that demonic activity affects people for whom of most of the world. This is because the the link between the material world and majority of African Christians are still illit- the spiritual world still exists. erate. Whereas the issue of Bible doctrine The call for partnership is important, may not mean much to the average Afri- since it comes out of the theological and can Christian, they derive their strength missiological framework of the Affirma- from devotion to closeness with God tion. It places the problem exactly where through a consistent and in-depth prayer it needs to be if real progress is to be made, lifestyle. that is, in the area of theology and not just Regarding the issue of church and mis- pragmatic practice. sions, a gradual rather than radical ap- The practical concern for the human proach may better suit the need of the agents of the missionary enterprise is com- African church. Up until about two de- mendable, in that there has historically cades ago, all of Africa was a mission field. been a dual tendency to place the mission- The African church was not taught about ary on a pedestal of honor but to ignore her place in world evangelisation. Many the real human needs of the worker. The thus saw world missions as a reserve of call to deal realistically with these fellow the “rich” Western church. However, in servants of Christ in a biblical manner is recent times certain African nations have timely. There needs to be a revised com- begun to send out missionaries. These mitment to pastoral care if the missionary sending churches and agencies may well movement is to witness effectively to the serve as models and catalysts for the rest reality of Christian community. of the continent. With the African church plagued with Commentary by the virus of syncretism, an open discus- Seth Anyomi sion and resolution to the subject of the United by a common vision and call to gospel and culture will be welcome news. disciple the nations, crucial Commitments A clear distinction would need to be drawn were made to ensure an effective, faithful the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 543 between a people’s indigenous culture, year. This has not gone over well with the biblical culture, and doctrine. many other tribes and Christians resident Most African Independent Churches in the city who do not subscribe to this sprang up across the continent in reaction paganistic requirement. to the deep Westernisation of the gospel. Africans clearly understand spiritual The missionaries of old saw everything in warfare, since they naturally seem to be the African culture as evil and paganistic, closer to the spirit world. Where the Afri- and so even the good elements of the cul- can church may need instruction is in the ture, like our mode of worship, were not area of faith as the only basis for spiritual allowed in the church. The African Inde- warfare. Christ has already fought and won pendent Churches broke away from the the battle with the devil over sin and death. missionary established churches, but they The believer’s warfare is therefore one of went to another extreme by seeing only abiding faith in the victorious and all- good in the African culture, culminating conquering Saviour. in the syncretistic crisis. A commitment to In planning strategy in missions, we transform the evils in every culture by the must look to the Scriptures rather than to gospel and to strengthen the good ele- academic knowledge for our basis. To the ments is indeed refreshing news. African church, this focus is indeed good Pluralism is an African reality. Amidst news, since it means that the church is not myriad tribal, family, and household gods, at a disadvantage. Whereas many in the the uniqueness of Jesus Christ as the only African church are familiar with the Scrip- Saviour must be strongly emphasized. His tures, not as many are highly educated. deity, his message, and his redemptive Africa is part of the global Christian work must be highlighted to forestall all community. An understanding of this fact opposition to the gospel of Jesus Christ. may be cultivated by placing emphasis on That “urbanization and radical political Christ as the foundation and head of the change have bred increased interreligious true church. All believers are members of and ethnic violence and hostility” is true this one body, be they Asians, Americans, in every sense in the African context. A or Africans. change in government in Nigeria, for in- Cultural norms and values clash with stance, saw a Christian President ascend Christian ones, especially in societies the corridors of power, breaking a long where people live in fear of instant retri- tradition of Muslim leadership. The demo- bution when their deities are offended or cratic era has given rise to Muslim gover- provoked. This contrasts with the fear that nors seeking to institute the Sharia law in Christians have for our God—a fear which their states. This has resulted in severe originates from love and devotion to God, clashes between Christians and Muslims, rather than an aversion to punishment. leading to the loss of lives and property. As regards the doctrine of the cross and In Ghana, urbanisation has caused con- suffering, the African church may find it flicts between traditional African religion easier to accept suffering as a reality than adherents and the church in Accra, the their colleagues from the West, who are capital. The “Ga” traditional authorities not so used to such a lifestyle. Most of Af- want everyone in the city to obey their laws rica lies in the shadow of poverty, famine, concerning a ban on drumming and noise- and tribal warfare. The average African making during certain periods of the year. would die for his land. It is therefore easy They argue that their gods are offended to explain why it may be expedient for him by such activity during that time of the to die for his God. 544 accepting serious commitments

Sophisticated issues such as the world I would like to comment on three of economic order and the Christian’s re- the 14 themes. First, church and mission. sponsibility are quite remote to the aver- I have no problem with the church in mis- age African Christian. In a context where sion. I believe in the missions-involved peasant farming and mere subsistence are church, and we must do everything pos- the norm, such exalted themes will remain sible to enhance its effectiveness. But in outside their reach for many years. Edu- my part of the world, a great deal of con- cated African Christians may cooperate fusion arises over the relationship between with the Western hemisphere to find so- the church and mission. The problem lutions to these global issues. stems from the dichotomy of the church The issue of partnerships requires and mission organizations in doing mis- more clarification within the African sions. I bring this to the fore simply to state church. Inter-church or intra-church co- the need for a more thorough discussion operation within African localities is no on this issue. problem. This is part of the communal Second, gospel and culture. This is an culture. But when this extends to the West, area that requires serious study and con- then we run into difficulty. What kind of sideration. To many in the younger send- partnership could exist between unequals ing churches, this is something very new. in terms of economic, educational, and To others, a study of culture is often syn- technological advancements? The chal- onymous with compromising with the lenge is to find ways to forge equity be- “weapons of the flesh.” Still others look tween inequities. Most of us agree that the at this area as taboo. But it is time we view Lord mandated interdependence rather culture as the means through which God than dependence. communicates to man, for man sees real- The issue of member care is not a prob- ity through his cultural spectacles. He lem to the African missionary. The com- views the gospel through his values and munity cares for its own and extends the worldview. We cannot disassociate man same to strangers in their midst. The only from his cultural background in our at- problem might be a willingness of every tempt to lead him to faith in Christ. missionary, national or foreign, to inte- Third, globalized missiology. The missi- grate into the serving community. ology of the global church, whether older or younger sending churches, has to be Commentary by forged to a strong missiological concept Met Castillo in order to develop a strategy that will The list of 14 commitments is an ex- enhance the work of missions in the new cellent attempt to identify and describe the millennium. Third World churches are various areas that require serious atten- gaining new experiences that help them tion and study. It was a job well done, to become mature and capable. The ex- considering the diversity of minds, back- periences of the older and younger send- grounds, and experiences of the partici- ing churches should converge into one pants. I am sure there are more than 14 source of information for missiologists and themes, but if we take time to look at practitioners around the world. these, I believe we will acquire an understanding of missions that will result in our taking the Great Commission more seriously. the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 545

Pledge by depending continuously on the presence of the Holy Spirit. He gives us the We, the participants of the Iguassu assurance that one day people of all races, Missiological Consultation, declare our languages, tribes, and nations will stand passion as mission practitioners, missiol- before Jesus declaring, “Worthy is the ogists, and church leaders for the urgent Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and evangelization of the whole world and the wealth and wisdom and strength and discipling of the nations to the glory of honor and glory and praise!” (Rev. 5:12). the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In all our commitments, we depend Commentary by on the Lord who empowers us by the Holy John Wood Spirit to fulfill his mission. As Evangeli- The high point of the conference for cals, we pledge to sustain our biblical me was the final communion service at heritage in this ever-changing world. We which we signed the Pledge, declaring our commit ourselves to participate actively passion for the “evangelization of the in formulating and practicing Evangeli- whole world and the discipling of the na- cal missiology. Indwelt by the Spirit, we tions to the glory of the Father, the Son, purpose to carry the radical good news and the Holy Spirit.” I will not soon for- of the kingdom of God to all the world. get the joy of looking around at my sisters We affirm our commitment to love one and brothers of different colors from dif- another and to pray for one another as ferent cultures speaking different tongues, we struggle to do his will. a sweet foretaste of “the eschatological We rejoice in the privilege of being part vision when people from every nation, of God’s mission in proclaiming the gos- tribe, and language shall worship the pel of reconciliation and hope. We joyfully Lamb.” look to the Lord’s return and passionately While the document lacks the elegance yearn to see the realization of the eschato- and internal consistency of having one logical vision when people from every gifted author compose the original draft nation, tribe, and language shall worship and do the final editing, what it gains is the Lamb. the value of expressing the cries and whis- To this end may the Father, the Son, pers of many voices from diverse cultures. and the Holy Spirit be glorified. Hallelu- It is truly a consensual document and, as jah! such, will hopefully find favor and stimu- Amen. late dialogue among Christians of many Commentary by cultures who continue to “reflect together Oswaldo Prado on the challenges and opportunities facing world missions at the dawn of the new The Iguassu Affirmation recognized millennium.” that we cannot underestimate the task that was given to each of us as pastors, mis- Commentary by sion students, missionaries, or leaders. As Cathy Ross members of Christ’s church, we are called To the Pledge, I joyfully say: Amen! May to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom to we go in the name of Christ! all the world. This requires a serious discipleship which produces a healthy church within a holistic world missionary vision. We must take care to perform such a task 546 accepting serious commitments

Commentary by Commentary by Jeff Fountain Jim Stamoolis With the Iguassu Falls well behind us, It would be a work of God if not only now comes the application. We celebrated the 160 participants of the Iguassu Con- the “privilege of being part of God’s mis- sultation, but all who are engaged in the sion in proclaiming the gospel of recon- proclamation of the gospel could agree ciliation and hope.” Yet the one who offers with the Affirmation and undertake under hope leads. Let’s be honest—are we, the guidance of the Holy Spirit to trans- God’s people in Europe, really leading? form the missionary enterprise. Are we seen by our fellow Europeans as Commentary by offering hope? As I write these words, the Seth Anyomi Pope has just made an unprecedented apology for the sins of the Catholic Church The Pledge that concludes the Affirma- through the ages. May we Evangelicals tion is both collective and individual. For have the same courage to be honest about both the WEF Missions Commission body, our failures to demonstrate the gospel of which has the task of getting the message reconciliation and hope; about our short- out, and for individual Christians with di- comings in seeking the welfare of our “city vine accountability, there is an inner mo- of exile”; about abdicating our role and tivation to make a difference and to impact responsibility as salt and light in society. the next generation. May we earn a new name as “the people Commentary by of hope” as we accept the challenge of Met Castillo helping to shape the New Europe. May I join the rest of the participants in God visit us with mercy, vision, and cre- endorsing the Pledge. Yes, let’s go for it— ativity as we gather as leaders from across that the world might know Christ in their the continent in Budapest for the Hope hearts. for Europe congress, HOPE 21, April 27 – May 3, 2002.

Oswaldo Prado and his wife, Sirley, have two children and are missionaries with OC International (Sepal, in Brazil). Before joining OC, Oswaldo pastored the Independent Presbyterian Church of Ipiranga in São Paulo, Brazil, for 20 years. He is currently the Coordinator for Vi- sion and Strategy of the Brazil 2010 Project, advisor to the Secretary of Missions of the Independent Presbyterian Church of Brazil, and Vice- President of the Dr. Paul Pierson Global Mission Center in Londrina, Brazil. Oswaldo has a bachelor’s degree in theology from the Indepen- dent Presbyterian Seminary, and he is working on his master’s in missiology at the South American Theological Seminary in Londrina. He is author of the book From the Call to the Field. He is a WEF Missions Commission Associate. the iguassu affirmation: a commentary by practitioners 547

John Wood, grateful husband of Marianne and father of three children, is the Senior Pastor of Cedar Springs Presbyterian Church in Knox- ville, Tennessee. He holds degrees from the University of Massachusetts and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and he has studied at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. John frequently speaks at conferences for churches and mission organizations such as World Vision and SIL, and he serves on the boards of a number of schools and organizations, including the National Association of Evangelicals and WEF’s North American Council.

Cathy Ross completed an M.A. in French and German from Auckland University before going to study with her husband for two years at All Nations Christian College in U.K. They then spent time in Rwanda and Belgium prior to working with the Anglican Church in Zaire/DCR. Dur- ing their time there, Cathy was involved in the diocesan TEE programme. On her return to New Zealand, she worked half time as the Auckland Representative for the Church Missionary Society. She is married to Steve, and they have three young children. She is also the National President for Tertiary Students Christian Fellowship, and she serves on the NZCMS Council and the New Zealand Anglican Missions Board. She has a CDRS, Dip.Tchg., B.D., and is working on her doctorate on the role and contribution of CMS missionary wives to New Zealand in the 19th century. Cathy is currently the Director of the School of Global Mission, Bible College of New Zealand.

Jeff Fountain is regional director for Youth With a Mission in Europe and oversees 160 operating locations in 34 European nations. Origi- nally from New Zealand, Jeff studied history at Auckland University and later worked as a journalist and then for Inter-Varsity Fellow- ship. Jeff came to Holland in 1975 after working in Canada and married his Dutch wife, Romkje. Together they have three sons, and Jeff is now a naturalised Dutchman. He has been one of the initiators of Hope for Europe, a pan-European alliance of networks and partnerships spreading the hope of Jesus Christ throughout European life and society. Jeff also leads Centrum’s Heerenhof, a multi-functional centre of YWAM for ministries of renewal, re-evangelisation, and reform in Dutch society. He has actively promoted the DAWN vision in Europe and initiated VisNed, the contextualised DAWN movement in Holland. He edited a missions reader published by Kingsway in 1985 called The Final Frontier.

Rodolfo “Rudy” Girón, a Guatemalan, was graduated as an architect from the San Carlos University of Guatemala. God called him to full- time ministry at the age of 28, and he has been an evangelist, pastor, and educator in his denomination, the Church of God, Cleveland. For seven years he served as president of COMIBAM International, and he was a member of the Executive Committee of the WEF Missions Com- mission. In 1997, he and his wife were sent as missionaries to Moscow, where he is the president of the Eurasian Theological Seminary, an institution that serves the nations of the former Soviet Union. He and his wife, Alma, have four adult children. 548 accepting serious commitments

Jim Stamoolis was born in the United States of Greek im- migrant parents and was raised in the Greek Orthodox Church. While studying engineering, he was evangelized by a student from Guyana. Completing his B.S.I.E., he earned an M.Div. and a Th.M. in systematic theology from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He and his wife Evelyn served in theological education and student ministry in South Africa, and he earned a Th.D. in missiology at the University of Stellenbosch. His dissertation was published as Eastern Orthodox Mission Theology Today. In 1981, Jim was appointed IFES Theological Secretary and traveled internationally among student groups. From 1989 to 1998, he was Dean of the Graduate School of Wheaton College. He is currently Executive Director of the WEF Theo- logical Commission. He and Evelyn have three sons.

Seth Anyomi and his wife, Christiana, have four children. Trained as a teacher in Ghana, Anyomi later did further undergraduate study (B.A., Oral Roberts University) and a doctorate in educational administration from the University of Tulsa, Oklahoma. He and his wife pioneered the work of the African Christian Mission in Ghana. They have planted a number of churches and currently run a day care center, a Christian school, a vocational school for girls, a missionary training institute, and two medical clinics in Ghana. Since 1990, Anyomi has served as President of the Ghana Evangelical Missions Association. He is a WEF Missions Commission Associate.

Met Castillo and his wife, Ina, are the parents of three adult children. Together they served as pioneer church planters to tribal people of northern Philippines. Met has also been a teacher, editor, and author, and he is the founder and current President of the Great Commission Mission- ary Training Center. He served from 1983 to 2000 with OC International, based in Singapore and Manila. Met has been the coordinator of the two Asia Missions Congresses in his capacity as Executive Director of the Evangelical Fellowship of Asia’s Missions Commission. He did his initial ministry studies in the Philippines, then went to India (Union Biblical Seminary) and the U.S. (Asbury and Fuller), where he received his D.Miss. from Fuller Theological Seminary. He is a member of the Executive Committee of the WEF Missions Commission. 41

E ARE POISED at an historic moment in the flow of Drawing Wboth chronos time and kairos time. One the one hand, we rejoice in the borderless church of Christ, present in all to a of the political entities of the world as well as in thousands of people groups. close: I underscore a deep conviction, stated in the preface to the Iguassu Affirmation (see page 15): “We are profoundly inviting thankful to our Lord for those who in recent decades have reflective, sustained the passion for world evangelization. There are many women and men, organizations and movements which passionate, have done all in their power to focus our attention on the unfinished task, to understand the vast unreached world of and peoples and cities, and to underscore the vital necessity of obedience to Christ’s final charge to the apostles. For this globalized we are grateful, and we are indebted to them.” In light of this statement, as we gaze out over our vast practitioners unreached and under-reached world, we commit ourselves anew to the proclamation and incarnation of the fullness of the Great Commission. Inasmuch as it is in our power, we William D. want to provide a genuine and appropriate opportunity for Taylor all people in the world to consider and respond to the claims of Christ. Nevertheless, the fact is that the unreached worlds (primarily due to historical, geographical, cultural, and spiritual factors) are tough to reach. We also accept the challenge of the cities, of the poor, of the children at risk, of the educated sophisticates of our world, and of the power groups in cultures and nations. We must establish and nourish an incarnational Christian presence in the multiple and overlapping worldviews of our globe, whether pre-modern, modern, or post-modern.

549 550 accepting serious commitments

We recognize the huge challenge for An Agenda for the the re-evangelization of the West, a task Missiological Future: so eloquently articulated by Rose Dowsett Doing Missiology in this book and referenced by other au- We return to Escobar’s definition of thors. This massive combined global arena missiology (page 101): “… an interdisci- for the gospel requires an understanding plinary approach to understand mission- of God’s heart for the nations, for from ary action. It looks at missionary facts from that trinitarian artesian well flow the wa- the perspective of the biblical sciences, ters of motivation, truth, message, hope, theology, history, and the social sciences.” transformation, and expectation for the fu- How might we engage in this serious and ture. profitable task as we look to the future? The preface to the Affirmation goes on The more common approach is for us to affirm (page 15), “We are also grateful to operate individually, doing missiology to God for the growing body of women solo, maybe teaching or presenting these and men who are seriously reflecting on reflections to a group or conference, then just what it means to do biblical missiology perhaps publishing them. This seems to in this complex world. Just as the epicen- be the hallmark of the way modern theol- ter of the global church has shifted from ogy and missiology have been done for a the North to the South, in the same way long time. The extreme models would be the epicenter of creating and doing theol- the “ivory tower” scholars, who study, cogi- ogy and missiology is changing. We rejoice tate, teach, and write from a distance. The in the former shift and realize that the sec- fact is that this kind of person is carica- ond one invites us to greater missiological tured, especially by the extreme activist partnership.” (another caricature), who reputedly has The five selfs of the church of Christ no interest whatsoever in the more seri- lie before us: the older three, self-support- ous reflective task. ing, self-governing, and self-propagating, Casting aside these extremes, would and the newer two, self-theologizing and there not be an alternative approach to self-missiologizing. The Iguassu Consulta- the individualized work style? What might tion as well as this book sprang from all missiology look like when done in the five of these, but in particular the last two. context of the community of faith, where And so we now come to the end of this there is individual work but also the en- missiological book feast. The diamond of gagement of the corporate team? These globalized missiology has been at least communities or teams of reflective practi- partially revealed, and we see its refracted tioners can be most diverse. They include beauty. We must now lay out some of the theological and missiological students to- serious and practical missiological tasks gether in the task, or husbands and wives, that point us to the future. We speak di- or a formal class completing an assign- rectly to the reflective practitioners—those ment in a theological institution. They women and men, younger and older, less could be pastors and thinking laity of a and more experienced, who combine local church or denomination. They could heart, body, and mind in their passion for be teams of faculty in schools. They could God and the world he has created. be teams of women and men in mission societies around the world. They could be specialized teams from the national, re- inviting reflective, passionate, and globalized practitioners 551 gional, and international networks of our What does it mean to be a practicing su- Evangelical world. pernaturalist operating under the empow- However, all of these missiological ering presence of the Spirit? groups would exist and serve with a strong commitment as a community that also is Focusing on engaged in quietness, prayer, and active Different Categories of worship of the living and Triune God. In Missiological Concern that doxological context, they are observ- First, there are issues that emerge from ing, reading, studying, talking, arguing, national or regional contexts. This agenda challenging, modifying, presenting, and becomes clear as we read and evaluate the publishing. They are in service to God and two sections of this book written by 16 the church of Christ. authors representing diverse geographical Whether the missiological reflection is and cultural perspectives. I underscore done individually or in the context of here only a few of these critical themes community, it must be carried out in the that are specific to those arenas, whether broader arena of engagement with the the country is vast or small. In Asian na- historic families of faith that flow from tions, there are issues of ancestral worship, orthodox Christianity. Evangelicals must ministry in the context of religious plural- engage and learn from those bodies of the ism, persecution of Christians, authority historic Christian family of Christ which structures of culture, the new materialism, have such different trajectories. For ex- and economic prosperity. In Africa, simi- ample, what can we learn from the sub- lar issues emerge, but others are distinct, stantive theological foundations laid down such as spiritism and syncretism within for all Christians by the early Orthodox African traditional religions, Christian Fathers? What insight can we acquire from nominalism, and the legacy of Western the Roman Catholic monastic missionary missions and their influence on the orders—female and male? What of the younger mission movement. In Latin other streams of our rich, liturgical church America, questions include, How will history? Evangelicals grapple with the crisis of What can the independent churches nominalism in their churches? How will learn from the denominations? Ironically, they face the newer challenge coming many of the denominations of Africa, from the revival of pre-Columbian worship South Pacific, Latin America, and Asia were amongst Latin American indigenous started by missionary organizations that peoples? Christians in nations of the West in their “home country” were neither struggle with their own complex set of churches nor denominations. What can topics: the re-evangelization of their these independent mission structures people; church and missions cast in the learn from the denominations that grew mold of modernity but living in an increas- up out of their faithful evangelism and ingly post-modern world; and issues of church planting? gender in the Christian community. The What can non-charismatics and charis- island nations of the Caribbean and South matic Pentecostals learn from one an- Pacific have their own particular issues. other? Has the supernatural nature of the The Middle East, cradle of our faith, pro- Christian faith been stripped of its power vides a complex spectrum of challenges, due to an overly rational and logical gos- particularly for Evangelicals, who are a pel that was carried around the world? precarious minority within a minority. 552 accepting serious commitments

Secondly, there are issues more gen- church and its mission. Another set of is- eral in nature, with global implications, sues: What will we do with the reduction- requiring the service of the international isms of modern missions? Are they all community of reflective practitioners. We equally true and important? Are these do well to revisit the Iguassu Affirmation oversimplifications simply a concern of in order to identify these critical themes missions from the West, or are they of glo- and concerns. We can also review some of bal import? It certainly becomes a global the major papers of the second section of problem when we realize that the mini- this book, such as the chapters by Samuel malist emphases have been exported Escobar, Paul Heibert, Antonia van der around the world due to the enormous Meer, Chris Wright, David Tai-Woong Lee, communications resources of the West. and Alan Roxburgh. What are we going to What does the church in the West have do with our understanding of truth, to learn from the church in non-Western hermeneutics, and ethics? What about nations? What can the “older church” in issues of authority, suffering and mar- the West learn from the practicing super- tyrdom, and the nature of the Great naturalism and the ministry of the Spirit Commission? Significantly, the crisis of in the life of the non-Western churches? Christian nominalism appeared as a criti- How can the church around the world cal concern in all of the regions. Holistic best prepare to grapple with the increas- mission cannot be relegated to the second ing waves of persecution and suffering? tier of missiological importance. What does it mean to be the global body What do we do with the concerns and of Christ in these contexts? Where is our diverse positions on the issue of eternal theology of martyrdom? Who is best quali- destiny? At Iguassu, one of Chris Wright’s fied to prepare and strengthen in this footnotes on this subject provoked a great arena? Probably it will not be those whose discussion in the smaller working groups Christianity has been lived out in broad as well as in other informal gatherings that freedom, with government protection of week. We must revisit this vital theme, their religious liberty. Those who have opening the arena of discussion to the suffered must be the teachers, and the rest different convictions sustained within our of the church listens and learns. Evangelical community of faith. The World While Paul Hiebert’s chapter focuses Evangelical Fellowship has a core doctri- on spiritual warfare and worldview, he has nal statement. That framework offers the some significant and challenging remarks freedom of diversity as long as one oper- on the three major categories of doing ates within that biblical foundation. theology: systematic, biblical, and missio- What about the export/import business logical. Particularly intriguing were Paul’s in missions, primarily (but not exclusively, footnotes on the foundation and nature for the same mentality is found in other of systematic theology. What would it look regions of the world) from the West to the like if we opened up the categories of sys- rest of the world? Church, mission, and tematic theology beyond the commonly educational structures, theological catego- (at least in Europe and North America) ries, and ways of understanding and do- accepted ones? What are the implications ing missiology and theology have been of theology done primarily from a mis- taken around the world with the unspo- siological perspective? And what would a ken assumption that they are the right and zero-based theology and missiology look only way of doing things in the life of the like if we were able to start the process inviting reflective, passionate, and globalized practitioners 553 from scratch, as if nothing had been done on earth. What would it look like if teams before? Admittedly, this is impossible in of reflective practitioners engaged in the its fullness, but the potential is there for task of understanding these distinct roles startling new understandings about God, of the Godhead? Have some of our Chris- Scripture, truth, creation, and culture. tian bodies emphasized one member of What might a missiology look like for the Trinity at the expense of the others? the post-modern world, a reality not lim- A second dimension looks at the Trin- ited to Western nations? At Iguassu, the ity in the context of community. The Trin- younger participants grappled with their ity is the first community; it is an eternal own understanding of a hermeneutic and community; it is a community in which missiology by and for their generation, each Person defers to the other’s unique- so shaped by the most recent tectonic ness. This community is self-revealing in changes of culture and worldview. There history and in the life of the church. In was a degree of healthy tension between this light, new questions would emerge. them and some of the older participants For example, what is the united role of who simply did not understand the chal- the Trinity in creation, revelation, and re- lenging statements of their younger broth- demption? In what ways do they operate ers and sisters. This missiology of the together and not separately? What are the future must be articulated by the younger practical outworkings of the fact that each generation of mission leaders, but they in member of the Three cedes to each other, turn must invite the gracious input of the honors and enhances each other, releases older colleagues. And the leadership struc- each other to his specific role in divine tures, organization, and publishing houses realities? This is so eloquently revealed in must open space for this younger expres- Anton Rublev’s 14th century Russian icon. sion of Evangelical missiology. This also is The three figures appear as very similar missiology done in community. angels, but upon clear examination they Perhaps a more extensive note might are truly distinct, with the head of each be made regarding trinitarian missiology. slightly bowed to the other’s, deferring to Already a number of writers have ad- and honoring each other. dressed this theme, either as a segment of Missiologically, we must also ask in their chapters or in major presentations, what ways individualism and authoritar- such as Ajith Fernando’s expositions, Alan ian leadership in church and missions are Roxburgh’s chapter, and the observations truly Christian, especially when they ap- by Samuel Escobar. parently ignore collegiality or the rest of Trinitarian missiology has a multi- the body of Christ. This is an international faceted focus. The most obvious is the bib- problem, not limited to just one culture lical and theological study that identifies or nation. What’s more, does our Chris- the specific role in mission played by each tian concept of community come prima- member of the Godhead. Each Person has rily from pragmatic human organizational a distinct and yet overlapping role in cre- models, or does it emerge from the model ating, revealing, and redeeming. What of the supernatural Trinity? In what way Ajith Fernando did in Iguassu is a prime would this communal model impact our example of exegesis that identifies the presentation of the gospel, with the epic unique contribution of Father, Son, and Story centered not in extreme individual- Spirit, and then examines the church as ism and personal decisions, but rather in the manifestation of trinitarian missiology shared values of community? Already some 554 accepting serious commitments of our colleagues from India are discuss- God has created a huge platform of Chris- ing the implications of this gospel presen- tian centers around the world. This plat- tation to their vast nation. The church by form requires an open space of equals definition must live out the values of around the table of agenda and discussion trinitarian missiology, for the church is the of practical outcomes and decisions. It also gathered and scattered people of God, invites the stronger financial centers and with each person having unique contribu- organizations of the Christian world to tions to make but all sharing as co-equals ensure that these varied global voices are and enhancing one another. heard in venues, media, and publications. A word to the missiological stakehold- A Commitment of the ers, those who have a true commitment WEF Missions Commission to and need of a re-examined, biblical, and In October 1999, the Iguassu Consul- global missiology. These include Christian tation initiated a process. In the course of leaders in the missionary movement, that week, a representative team of seven mobilizers and activists as well as the re- men and women listened to their col- flective ones; it includes churches and de- leagues, edited and wrote, listened again nominations, administration and faculty and revised, and then finally drafted a of both theological institutions and mis- seminal statement of nine declarations sionary training centers, as well as mission and 14 commitments. That document was sending structures. I repeat, we desper- affirmed by the participants just prior to ately need each other at this moment of an extended service of worship and holy crisis and opportunity around the world. communion. The Iguassu Affirmation has We must develop strategic alliances as we now become a working document and has do our missiology—whether at the level already been translated into Spanish, Por- of grassroots ministry or in teams of re- tuguese, French, German, and Korean. It flection that lead us to a revised praxis. has been studied, critiqued, and criticized Let us come together to serve together. in different contexts around the world: Drawing to a Close from theological institutions to missiological classes, from churches to individual As we gathered at Iguassu, we had to mission agencies, from national to re- ask ourselves, “Why another international gional mission leader gatherings. gathering? Why another consultation? Why But the global missiological challenge another book? Why more missiological is vast as we look to the future. We in the reflection?” WEF Missions Commission cannot and We are bombarded on a daily basis with will not serve alone. We need the national, an unending flow of fast-breaking secular regional, and international networks to and religious news. This vast, 24-hours-a- work with and in this missiological com- day, immediate, global, and detailed news munity. Whether the World Evangelical is overwhelming. We simply cannot absorb Fellowship’s Theological and Missions and evaluate it all adequately. It comes Commissions, the Lausanne network, or from multiple sources, all claiming equal the new Great Commission Roundtable— importance, from flashpoints to trends. we all must come together to avoid dupli- We cannot keep up, and the result is a cation and confusion and to converge on gradual numbing of our Christian con- the missiological task with our combined sciousness. We also have vast theological resources and commitments. The Spirit of and missiological libraries and printed inviting reflective, passionate, and globalized practitioners 555 resources. On top of that, we now receive A Prayer for Renewal unprecedented information through the and Restoration Internet and CD-ROMs—all ready to serve Heavenly Father, the church around the world. our Lord and giver of life, Yet for all of the intense mobilizing, forgive us for the extent to which strategizing, activity, and mission events we have naively succumbed of the last 20 years, there was the reali- to the spirit of the age, zation that we were entering the new for our preoccupation with century with little actual, substantive in- false measures of success, teraction between theology and missi- for a sense of triumphalism ology, between practitioners and scholars, which replaces within the context of equal input by all humble dependence on you, the diverse voices of the global Evangeli- and for our blindness in avoiding cal church. In an age when the ancient those parts of your Word and new pluralisms unleash a bewilder- which do not fit neatly ing array of competing spiritualities and into our theology. religious options, it behooves us as Evan- We humbly confess our total gelicals to ground our practice upon dependence on you strong theological underpinnings and re- as the Lord of life. flections. At the same time, we need to Let us see a lost world afresh come together as equals and dialogue through your eyes “around the table,” thus allowing our and give us discernment missiology to be shaped by the interaction through your Spirit. of our diverse viewpoints and cultural re- Share with us your priorities alities. By doing this, we will participate and give us the courage to be in the new paradigm that emerges for the responsible stewards century unfolding before us. No longer of our obligation can or should one part of the body domi- to take the whole gospel nate or dictate to the rest. Our encounter to the whole world. at Iguassu was a foretaste of the mutual Speak, Lord, for your servants interdependence of equals that awaits us are listening. as we are willing to model ourselves after To you we give all glory, that self-same dance of the Trinity where honor, and praise. each member, in self-giving love, honors Amen. and enhances and defers to the others. May God give us wisdom of discern- References ment as we serve the living and Triune God, as we serve the church around the Engel, J. F., & Dyrness, W. A. (2000). Changing world, and as we serve our hungry and the mind of missions: Where have we gone pain-wracked global human family. wrong? Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. I close, presenting again for reflection and self-searching the prayer from Jim Engel which was given at the end of our first chapter (Engel & Dyrness, 2000, pp. 24-25). 556 accepting serious commitments

17 of them with his family as a long-term missionary with CAM International, serving on the faculty of the Central American Theo- logical Seminary. Married to Yvonne, a native Texan, he has three adult children who were born in Guatemala. He has edited In- ternationalizing Missionary Training (1991), Kingdom Partnerships for Synergy in Missions (1994), and Too Valuable to Lose: Exploring the Causes and Cures of Missionary Attrition (1997). He co-authored with Emilio Antonio Nuñez, Crisis and Hope in Latin America (1996), and with Steve William D. Taylor is Executive Director of the Hoke, Send Me! Your Journey to the Nations WEF Missions Commission and has coordi- (1999). He also serves as visiting faculty at nated the ministries of the MC since 1986. He seminaries in various countries. was born in Costa Rica of missionary parents and has lived in Latin America for 30 years, Index

Abraham, V. 416 Bediako, Kwame 113, 279 ACMI 158 Berger, Peter 296 AD 2000 and Beyond Movement 17, 109, 135, Berkhof, H. 262 138, 141, 142, 310, 384 Berlin Congress on Evangelism 41, 43, 104, adoption of people groups 316, 364 115, 137 Africa Inland Church Missionary College 268 Beyerhaus, Peter 300 Africa/Africans 6, 10, 28, 30, 33, 39, 51, 66, 69, Bible, role in mission 26, 43, 76, 114-115, 130, 102, 103, 105, 112-113, 142, 144, 145, 154, 145, 149-153, 533, 542 155, 158, 259-260, 265-268, 271-283, 287, 289, Bingham, Rowland 260 334, 339, 343, 351, 442, 454, 508, 513-514, Bloom, Harold 180 522, 532, 537, 538, 542-544, 551 Boer, Harry 119 African Independent Churches 84, 157, 543 Bonino, José Míguez 118 Albert, Vasantharaj 309 Bonk, Jonathan 386 Allen, Roland 28, 118, 225, 277 Bonke, Reinhard 201 Alter, James 415 Bosch, David 43, 102, 114, 143, 152, 153, 159- Alter, Robert 301 160, 167, 225, 261, 262, 296, 300, 392 Ambedkar, B. R. 249, 393, 398n, 399 Bowie, Richard 264 AMTB 158, 517 Brahmans/Brahmanism 393, 398, 399, 408, 409, Anderson, G. H. 296 410, 413, 416 Anderson, Neill 313 Brainerd, David 505 Anderson, Rufus 277 Bruce, F. F. 225n, 250 Angola 155, 156-157, 159 Brueggemann, Walter 301 animism 170, 291, 432, 537, 538 Brunei 433 annihilationism 208 Brunner, Emil 120 Antioch Mission 515-517 Buddhism 10, 200, 202, 216n, 249, 295, 297, APMB 158, 517 398, 411, 431-433 Araujo, Alex 155 Bühlmann, Walbert 28, 145n Ariarajah, Wesley 208n Bunyan, John 233 Arya Samaj 410, 416 Burma/Myanmar 425, 533 Aryans 399n, 408 Ashram Movement 230 Cambodia 432, 433, 436 Asia 6, 10, 33, 63, 66, 68, 102, 103, 105, 112- Canberra Assembly 350 113, 142, 154, 155, 158, 159, 266-267, 268, capitalism 59, 60, 62, 155, 171, 428 289, 295-304, 329, 339, 421-437, 454, 497, See also economics/economy 508, 522, 537, 538, 551 Carey, William x, 61, 109, 308, 318, 413, 505 Association of Evangelicals in Africa (AEA) 259 Carman, John 302 Ateek, Naem 341 Carmichael, Amy x Attali, Jacques 29, 36 Carpenter, Joel 103 attrition of missionaries 142, 319, 486, 489, 539 caste system/dharma 249, 312, 328, 393, 396, Ayodhya 411 398-400, 401, 402, 408-410, 413, 415-416 CELA III 359-360 Baby Boomers 380, 463, 470, 472, 473, 474 Celtic Christianity 491-493, 537 Bailey, Kenneth 336, 342 centers of Christianity 4, 6, 15, 48, 108, 279, Bangkok Assembly 350 524, 550, 538 Bar-Efrat, S. 301 Centre for Communication Skills (CCS) 326 Barrett, David 266, 287 Chacour, Elias 341, 342 Barth, Markus 45 Chalcedon, Council of 90, 181, 182, 335, 343 Baxter, Richard 233 Chalmers, James 286 Beaver, R. Pierce 103 Chapman, Colin 117

557 558 index character formation 20, 490 Communism 200, 428-430 See also holiness/godliness Confucianism 297 Charismatic Movement 193, 223, 225, 229, 281 Conn, Harvie 111, 113 See also Pentecostalism Conquest, Robert 47 Chethimattam, John 413 contextualization 26, 29, 31, 82, 105, 111, 126, China 28, 425, 426, 428-430, 433, 434, 435, 436, 138, 143, 154, 248, 288, 289, 294, 313-316, 505 342-343, 365, 384, 402, 415, 435, 455-457, Chinese people 297 458, 488 Chopra, P. N. 393, 394 Conway, Ruth 49 Christendom 34, 52, 128, 367, 525 cooperative model of mission activity 34, 105 Christian Leaders Training College (CLTC) 288, See also partnerships 290, 293 Coote, Robert T. 106 Christology 115-118, 304, 506 Coptic Christianity 335, 341, 511-514 Church Growth School/Movement 109, 111, Costas, Orlando 112-113, 138, 140, 360 138, 378 Coupland, Douglas 464, 468, 470 Church Covell, Ralph 430 and globalization 60-62, 145, 282 Cragg, Kenneth 335, 353 and mission 19, 45, 130, 145, 152-153, creative access 426-427 157-159, 264, 273, 280, 282-283, 361, critical missiology 112-114, 126, 140 363-364, 372, 374, 478-479, 535, 542, 544 Crowther, Ajayi 264 and Trinity 240-242 Crusades 39, 337, 348, 401 challenges among Arabs 355 culture 65, 358-359, 456-457, 464-469 challenges in Africa 281-282 See also gospel and culture challenges in America 387 culture Christianity 31, 276 challenges in East Asia 423-424, 425-426, Curitiba Covenant 154 426-428, 430, 433, 434-435 challenges in South Pacific 287-289 Dalitbahujan castes/Dalits 249, 320, 328, 398- challenges in India 326-327, 329, 394-395, 400, 401, 402, 408, 413-415, 416 397, 399-400, 401-404, 418-419 Daniel, Roy 317 challenges regarding God 197-204 Das, Bhagwan 408 challenges regarding Jesus 214-219 Dawkins, Richard 95 characteristics of 27, 68-69, 128-129, De Nobili, Robert 413 179-180 De Vaux, Roland 350 See also West and Christianity Deep Sea Canoe Missionary Movement 287, early 192-196, 245 291-293 growth 29, 33, 60, 63, 125, 152, 197, 255, Dehqani-Taft, A. B. 339 287, 341, 363, 365, 423, 429, 430, 432 Deiros, Pablo 509 See also numerical growth demonic activity maps 31, 111 history 181-183, 343, 450-453 See also territorial spirits in Africa 278-283 de-Westernization 314-315 in Europe 367-375 dharma – See caste system/dharma in India 319-321, 326, 412-419 Dieter, Melvin E. 234 in Latin America 359-360, 364-366 Donovan, Kath 466, 471 in Middle East 335, 338-344 Downs, F. S. 415 in South Pacific 287-291 Dowsett, Dick 208n tasks 130-131, 274 Drucker, Peter 32, 466 theology of 62, 243-255, 280 Dualism 85, 93, 105, 169, 171-172, 173, 274, CLADE I, II, III 361-362, 363-364 275, 276, 281, 368, 530 Coker, Christopher 179 Duff, Alexander 308 Coleman, Robert E. 234 Durant, Will 348 colonialism 31, 160, 216, 276, 401 Columbanus 492 East Asia 295-304, 421-437 COMIBAM 141, 158, 364 ecclesiology – See church, theology of communication/information technology 3, 59- 60, 144, 392, 401, 404 index 559 ecology/environment 20, 96, 368, 369, 371, 395- Foucault, Michael 73, 96, 474 396, 460, 537 Francis of Assisi 39 economics/economy 18, 20, 30, 59, 61, 64, 66, Friedman, Thomas 59, 61, 64, 65 152, 368, 396, 526, 530, 532, 544 Frykenberg, Robert 409, 410, 416 Ecumenical Movement 108, 110, 137n, 143 Fuller School of World Mission 136, 378 Edinburgh Conference 6, 43, 134, 338 Fundamentalism 19, 40, 52, 104, 105, 118, 216- Edwards, Jonathan 229, 349 217 Egypt 267, 334, 511-512, 513 Eliot, T. S. 379 Gabler, Johann 166 Ellul, Jacques 60, 61 Gandhi, Mahatma 227 Engel, James 12, 530, 555 Gandhi, Rajmohan 411 Enlightenment 73, 86, 184, 301, 302, 368, 386, Geivett, Douglas 208n 415 generations 367-385, 424, 463-475, 488, 553 environment – See ecology/environment George, Jacob 327 ERCDOM Report 116, 119 al-Ghazali, Hasan 340 Escobar, Samuel 138, 153, 365 Gitari, David 113 ethics 92-97, 98, 128 Glasser, Arthur 111, 137n, 361 Ethiopia 267, 335, 497, 505, 511, 513 Global Prayer Warrior Movement 292 ethnicity 17, 19, 29, 40, 68, 72n, 98, 157, 170, globalization 3, 8, 10, 23-24, 29-31, 32, 36, 44, 188, 249, 275, 280, 296-299, 334, 343-344, 49, 50, 57-69, 282, 295, 326, 365, 369, 370, 369, 380, 383, 407, 409, 411-412, 417, 425- 391, 393, 394 426, 431, 432, 435, 474, 497, 532, 543 globalized missiology 4, 11, 20, 105, 138, 142, See also racism 144, 146, 488, 544 Evangelical Church of West Africa (ECWA) 260 Gnanadasan, A. 309 Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI) 309-310 God Evangelical Fellowship of the South Pacific 292, his blessings 195-196, 199 293 his nature 180, 181, 182, 184, 185, 186, Evangelical missiology 4, 21, 101-120, 133-146, 187, 194-195, 264-266, 418 261-266, 271-283, 307-323 his power 192-193 Evangelical Movement 45, 103, 107, 115, 133, his role in mission 150-153, 191-204, 239 193, 200, 204, 229, 230, 241 his sovereignty 193-194, 198 Evangelism our response 196-197 and social responsibility 17, 32-33, 138, godliness – See holiness/godliness 53, 187, 277, 311, 336, 361-362 Gordon, A. J. 119 importance of 130 Gordon, Andrew 413 theology of 349-350 Gorringe, Timothy 64 Evangelism in Depth Movement 360-361 Gospel Evangelization of Muslims 444-445 advance of 10 exclusivism 208, 315 and culture 17-19, 26-27, 35, 47-48, 68, 117, export/import theology and models 9, 35, 63, 372-373, 415, 457, 537, 542-543, 544 126, 490, 552 barriers/roadblocks to 269, 456-459 holistic nature of 18, 275, 400, 530, 531, Faith missions 102, 104, 504 533 Falun Gong 428 See also evangelism Famonure, Bayo 260 Gospel and Culture Movement 85 Federation of Evangelical Churches in India Goudie, William 308 (FECI) 310 Gowans, Walter 260 Fee, Gordon 225 Graham, Billy 41, 43, 103, 216, 378 Fiji 286 Green, Michael 107, 264 Finney, Charles 349 Griffiths, Paul 302 Firth, C. B. 308 Fisher, F. L. 349 Habib, Gabriel 339 Forman, Charles 287 Haddad, Frieda 338, 342 Foster, Richard 229 Hall, Christopher 167n 560 index

Hall, Douglas John 179 inclusivism 208, 311, 315 Hamilton, Don 427 India 145, 307-329, 391-404, 407-419 Han Chinese 425, 431, 432, 436 India Missions Association (IMA) 309 Harris, Murray 213 indigenization 277-278, 314-316, 320-321 Harris, Paula 383 See also contextualization Headland, Isaac Taylor 308 See also national missionary movements Hedlund, R. E. 325 Indonesia 39, 422, 424, 426, 433, 434, 435, 436 Hefner, Robert 433n information technology – See communication/ Henry, Carl F. H. 40, 104 information technology hermeneutics 75-84 International Missionary Council 134, 135, 137, Herrnhut 503, 504 143 Hesselgrave, David 136, 141 Internet 10, 30, 253, 375, 380, 404, 424 Hick, John 87-88, 208n, 297 Iran 339 Hiebert, Paul 111, 300-301, 303, 368, 386-387 Islam/Muslims 10, 39, 83, 91n, 92, 267, 282, Hinduism 10, 83, 88, 92, 171, 200, 249, 295, 288, 295, 299, 312, 319, 327-328, 335-336, 298, 307, 308, 398, 407-412, 413-414, 416, 337-338, 341, 342-343, 347-348, 351, 352-353, 417, 500 357, 407, 409, 411, 412, 413, 423, 433-435, Hindutva movement 391-392, 394, 397, 398- 439-445, 500, 511-512 400, 402, 409-411 Hoddle, Glen 71, 92 Jaffray, Robert x Hoekema, Anthony A. 234, 403n Jainism 398, 411 Holiness Movements 119, 229, 233-234 Japan 142, 145, 425, 431, 435 holiness/godliness 19, 20, 190, 197, 198-203, Jayakumar, Samuel 413 232-236, 532 Jayaprakash, Joshi 311 holistic mission 32, 33, 51, 105, 116, 138, 140- Jesuits 34, 308, 413, 507-510 141, 153-154, 311, 363-364, 371, 418, 486, Jesus Christ 17-18, 88-90, 182, 183, 184, 207- 510, 552 221, 240, 261-263, 272, 302, 304, 386-387, See also gospel, holistic nature of 400, 527, 529, 531, 543 Hollenweger, W. J. 40 John of Damascus 336-337 Holy Spirit 16, 17, 21, 28, 44, 45, 118-120, 188, Johnstone, Patrick 145, 309, 352, 431 223-237, 240, 262-264, 304, 350, 530, 531, 545 Jones, E. Stanley 230, 308 homogeneous unit principle/homogeneous Jones, Hywel 208n groups 113, 138, 248, 249, 288, 312-313, Jones, John P. 308 399 Hong Kong Call 117 Kähler, Martin 167 Horton, Stanley M. 234 Kamaleson, Sam 247 Hourani, Alber 353 Kane, Herbert 136 Houston, James 229 Kearns, J. F. 416 Howe, Neil 466, 470 Kendrick, Graham 204 Hui people 433 Kent, Tom 260 Hunsberger, George 372 Kerr, David 339 Hunter, A. G. 90 Keswick Theology 233 Hutchison, William H. 102 Keyes, Lawrence 320, 321 Knitter, Paul 95-96, 208n, 297 IFES 34, 35 Koola, Paul J. 327 Iguassu Affirmation 1-2, 11, 15-21, 140, 141, Korea 142-143, 145, 422, 423, 424, 425, 426, 143, 145, 521-546, 554 428, 429-430, 432, 435, 436, 443 Iguassu Consultation 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 11, 15, 257, Kraft, Charles 111 522-523, 525, 526, 550, 554 Küng, Hans 208n, 399n Ilaiah, Kancha 394, 398 Kuzmic, Peter 38, 107, 153 incarnational approach 5, 42, 44, 54, 115-116, 132, 188, 354, 359-360, 364, 365, 373, 374, Lamaistic Buddhism 431 387, 404, 455-456, 485, 508, 549 Laos 424, 426, 428 index 561

Latin America 6, 10, 28, 32, 33, 38, 40-42, 63, Mauzy, Diane 303 66, 69, 102, 103, 105, 112-113, 116, 118, 142, McGavran, Donald 110, 111, 136, 138, 378 144, 145, 154, 155, 158, 159, 261, 289, 357- McGrath, Alister 115, 208n, 299-300 366, 443, 454, 508, 510, 522, 529, 536, 537, McNeill, John T. 493 538, 551 McQuilkin, J. Robertson 234 Latourette, Kenneth Scott 34, 41, 101, 507 media 362, 372, 386, 410, 451, 466, 467, 484- Launch Out Missions Movement 293 485 Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization megachurches 38-39, 130, 449 17, 106, 115 Mehl, Roger 108 Lausanne Congress (Lausanne I) 16, 103, 105, member care/pastoral care 21, 144, 150, 316- 112, 134, 137, 153, 363, 530 320, 486-487, 542, 544 Lausanne Covenant 29, 35, 103, 105, 112, 114, Mennonite Central Committee 35 115, 116, 117, 153, 295 Merton, Thomas 229 Lausanne II 106-107, 109, 153, 339, 530 Meyer, F. B. 234 Lausanne Movement 43, 103, 104, 106, 116, middle class 38, 110, 325-326, 334, 392-395, 119, 134-135, 137 410, 419, 422 Lewis, C. S. 59 Middle East 6, 39, 40, 333-344, 351-355, 434, Lim, David 113 495, 497, 551 Limbu, Ramyata 329 Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) 338, Lloyd-Jones, D. Martyn 229 339, 340 Loewen, Jacob 108, 303, 378 migration 27, 34, 42, 280 Lombard, Peter 164n See also refugee movements Longfellow, Samuel 233 military language 11, 414, 417 Lowe, Chuck 170 missiology Loyola, Ignatio de 507, 508 American 378-387 Ludden, David 411, 412 challenges and tasks 54, 76, 84, 85-86, 92, Lugon, Clovis 509 94-98, 127, 128, 130-131, 143-145, 182, Lull, Raimon 39 299-301, 365-366, 375, 383-387, 487-488, Luttwak, Edward 59 550-554 Lutzer, Erwin 208n critical 112-114, 126, 140 Luzbetak, Louis 134n, 378 definition 6, 101, 550 Evangelical 4, 21, 101-120, 133-146, Mahayana Buddhism 297, 431 261-266, 271-283, 307-323 Majumdar, R. C. 412 managerial 11, 24, 109-112, 113, 126, 137n, Malaysia 295, 296, 297-299, 302, 422, 423, 425, 140, 379, 540-541 433, 434, 436 Middle Eastern 333-344 Malek, Sobhi 342 trinitarian 19, 114-120, 143, 179-188, 189, Mallouhi, Christine 342 239-240, 304, 487, 536, 542, 553-554 managerial missiology 11, 24, 109-112, 113, mission/missions 126, 137n, 140, 379, 540-541 among Arabs 352-355 Mangalwadi, Vishal 313 biblical basis of 26, 43, 114-115, 130, 143, Manicheism 171 145, 149, 150-153, 272-273, 348-350, 533 Manila Manifesto 263 characteristics of 8-10 Mar Aba 498 history 28, 101, 125-126, 134-137 Marcos, Antonios 512-513 in Africa 267-268, 271-283 marketing concepts 4, 11, 20, 30, 31, 38, 62, in India 308-323 107, 109, 110, 111, 128, 255, 538 in Latin America 357-366 Marshman, Joshua 505 in Middle East 344 Martin, David 41, 42 in South Pacific 286-287, 291-294 martyrdom 3, 4, 9, 11, 18, 20, 130, 190, 404, motives for 159-160, 379 531, 532, 533, 552 modernity/modernization 3, 8, 10, 24, 35-37, Marxism 36, 37, 94 73-75, 82, 85, 93-94, 95, 98, 184, 185, 187, Massey, Ashish 320, 321 229, 252, 274, 296-297, 368, 370, 371, 422- materialism 10, 36, 392, 393, 395, 422, 424, 537 423, 424, 455, 463, 466, 469 562 index

Moffett, Samuel 496, 500 Operation Mobilization (OM) 34, 35 Molebatsi, Caesar 107, 153 opposition to the gospel 18 Moltmann, J. 261 See also receptivity/resistance to the gospel Mongolia 428, 432, 433, 436 Origen 166n, 336, 496 Moody, D. L. 234 Owen, John 233 Moore, R. L. 381 Moral Majority 40 Padilla, René 31, 112, 113, 116, 138, 140, 153, Moravians 503-506 363, 385 Morgan, G. Campbell 228 Pal, Bipin Chandra 408 Morocco 334 Panaphour, Darius 340 Mott, John R. 6 Pannenberg, Wolfhart 300 Mouw, Richard 42 Pannikkar, Raymundo 208n Mozambique 157, 159 Paredes, Tito 111, 113 Müller, George 253 partnerships 17, 21, 29, 44, 45, 51, 52, 108, 131, multiculturalism 27, 94, 370 144, 153, 221, 267, 268-269, 278, 282, 321, Murray, Andrew 234 323, 324, 481, 482-483, 523, 524, 527, 554, Muslim background believers (MBBs) 335, 340, 537, 538, 542, 544 343, 344 pastoral care – See member care/pastoral care Muslims – See Islam/Muslims paternalism 17, 33, 42, 69, 150 Myanmar – See Burma/Myanmar Patten, Chris 428 Myers, Bryant 141 Paul, Rajaiah 314, 320 Myors, Ruth 466, 471 Pentecostal Fellowship of India (PFI) 310 Pentecostalism 40-42, 52-53, 103, 104, 119, 234, Naisbitt, John 422 281 Narsai 495, 496 See also Charismatic Movement Nash, Ronald 208n Percy, Walker 53 National Council of Churches in India (NCCI) Peregrini 491-493 310, 311 persecution 3, 9, 10-11, 18, 336, 341-342, 404, national missionary movements 156-159, 266, 412, 416, 417, 419, 531, 532, 552 280, 309, 364, 479-480 Peters, George 264, 266 Nazir-Ali, Michael 108, 337 Peterson, Eugene 167, 172, 229 Nee, Watchman 229 Philippines 30, 425, 426, 433, 434, 435, 436 Neill, Stephen 7, 108, 509 Phillips, Gary 208n Nepal 226 Pickett, Waskom 308 Nestorians 335, 337, 348, 495-501 Pierson, A. T. 119 Nestorius 596 Pietism 186, 233, 503-504 Netland, Harold 84, 296, 297 PIN codes 316, 327 New Age philosophy 10, 71, 207 Pinnock, Clark H. 208n New Tribes Mission 201 Piper, John 229 Newbigin, Lesslie 29, 41, 86, 88, 97, 126, 182, Pluetschau, Henry 308, 413 184, 302, 317, 370, 372, 537 pluralism 3, 19, 24, 39, 71-98, 118, 155, 180, Nicea, Council of 181, 343 184, 208, 215-216, 266-267, 296, 297, 311, Nicholls, Bruce 314 400, 431, 543 Nicolai, Philipp 200 political systems 18, 526, 530 Nida, Eugene 378 Ponraj, S. D. 314, 315 Niebuhr, H. R. 265 Pope John Paul II 400, 417 Nietsche 37, 93 post-capitalism 32 Noll, Mark 381 post-imperial missiology 107-109, 139 nominalism 197, 201, 281, 287-288, 291, 294, post-modernity 3, 8, 10, 24, 35, 36, 52, 73-75, 340, 359, 368, 425, 435, 455, 510, 551, 552 82, 83, 94, 95, 98, 155, 180, 184, 187, 229, Norris, Frederick 313, 314 255, 301, 368-369, 370, 371, 372, 375, 386- Nouwen, Henri 9, 229 387, 424, 452, 456-459, 460, 461, 463, 466, numerical growth/numbers game 10, 30, 63, 468, 469, 537 109, 111, 255, 267, 313, 320, 363, 404, 450 index 563

poverty/the poor 20, 27, 32, 33, 34, 42, 50, 96, Schwartz, Christian Friedrich 308 128, 152, 154-155, 220, 307, 320, 325, 326, Scudder, Ida 308 334, 385, 386, 395-397, 424 secularism 7, 10, 19, 49 Prabhu Rayan, R. Z. 329 Sekar, Chinnasamy 328 prayer 31, 36-37, 38, 144, 229, 292, 293, 320, “selfs” of the church 6, 277, 550 341, 372, 375, 379, 445, 531, 532, 540, 542, servanthood 190, 209, 210, 211, 212-217 551 Shaw, Mark 265 pre-modernity 3, 8, 24, 98 short-term missions 5, 472 Priest, Doug Jr. 314 SIM International 260 proselytism 115, 339-340, 404 Simpson, A. B. 119 prosperity 18, 33, 38, 129, 220, 395, 403, 536 Sinclair, Maurice 108 Puritans 233 Sine, Tom 58, 59 Singapore 142, 425, 426, 433, 436 Race, A. 84, 89 Singh, Andrea 324 racism 369, 385, 399 Singh, Khushwant 308, 313, 402 See also ethnicity Singh, Sundar 215, 229, 313 Radhakrishnan, S. 408 Smalley, William 303, 378 radical discipleship camp 135, 140 Smith, Adam 64 Rahner, Karl 208n Smith, Wilfred Cantwell 91n Ramachandra, Vinoth 39, 118, 216n Snyder, Howard 30, 119 Rao, O. M. 314, 315 social responsibility – See evangelism and social receptivity/resistance to the gospel 28-29, 33, responsibility 367-368, 427, 432 Soltau, Stanley 313, 315 reflection, need for 4, 5, 16, 19, 59, 62, 72, 97- South Pacific 285-295 98, 102-103, 114, 116, 365, 372, 380, 427, 483, South Pacific Prayer Assembly 293, 294 493, 523, 531, 536, 542 Soviet Union 407, 428 refugee movements 3, 27 spiritual conflict/spiritual warfare 18, 20, 116, See also migrations 163, 168-176, 196, 214-215, 414, 531, 532, relationships, need for 49, 52, 125, 128, 130, 536, 538-540, 543 186, 188, 242, 245, 246-247, 252, 288, 369, spiritual gifts 230-231 370, 371, 373-375, 394-395, 400n, 449, 461, Spiritual Warfare Movement 111, 115, 129 473, 480, 482-483, 485 sponsorship approach to missions 483 relativism 74, 75, 95, 370 Stafford, Tim 137n relief and develoment 226, 485-486 Staines, Graham 217, 397, 412 religiosity 31, 37-38, 45, 52, 113, 118 Steuernagel, Valdir 44, 106, 107, 120 resistance – See receptivity/resistance to the Stott, John 43, 106, 107, 115, 138, 153, 254, gospel 261, 263, 264-265 Reyburn, William 378 Strachan, Kenneth 360, 361 rich, the 50-51, 61, 334 strategy in mission 20, 138-139, 142-143, 312, Richard, Ramesh 208n 316, 324, 326, 327-328, 329, 342, 362, 372- Richardson, Don 67-68 373, 381, 482-485, 540-541, 543 Robert, Dana 103 See also specific strategies, such as managerial Roy, Arundathi 396 missiology, partnerships, technology, and RSS 410, 416, 417 tentmaking Strauss, William 470, 466 Sudan 341 Sabra, George 340 suffering 3, 4, 9, 11, 18, 20, 190, 209, 210, 217- Salar people 433 220, 341, 386, 531, 532, 533, 536, 537, 538, Salonga, Jovito 107 543, 552 Samartha, S. J. 208n Sugden, Christopher 106, 302 Samuel, Vinay 113, 138, 153, 302 Sunder Raj, Ebenezer 315, 319n Sanders, John 208n syncretism 20, 81, 113, 157, 302, 314, 350-351, Sanneh, Lamin 31, 47 358, 435, 455, 543-544 Sati 308, 415 Schreiter, R. J. 30, 32 564 index

Taber, Charles 111 Values, American 380-383 Taoism 297 Van Engen, Charles 111, 252 Taylor, Hudson 61, 215, 318 Vancouver Assembly 350 technology 31, 49, 484-485 Veltri, John 507, 508 See also communication/information Venn, Henry 277 technology Vietnam 426, 428, 430 10/40 window 109, 139, 142, 143, 152, 351, 540 Volf, Miroslav 252 tentmakers/tentmaking 381, 427, 480, 482, 483- 484 Wagner, Peter 138, 313 Teresa, Mother 217, 325, 397 Walker, Andrew 73, 97 territorial spirits 109, 170 Walls, Andrew 28, 48, 108, 125, 279, 336, 384, Tertullian 336 386 Thailand 422, 424, 431, 433, 434, 435 Walvoord, John F. 234 Thapar, Romila 409n, 410, 411, 412 Ward, Ted 426 Theeratha, S. D. 409 Ward, William 505 Theerthan, John Dharma 308 Warneck, Gustav 134 Theodore of Mopsuesta 495-496 Warren, Max 108, 427 theological education by extension (TEE) 290 WEF Perspective 114, 117, 119 theology 164-168, 552 Wesley, John 44, 117, 119, 233, 252 See also church, theology of West and Christianity 29, 34-35, 126, 144, 151, See also evangelism, theology of 266, 447-462, 464, 550, 551 Theravada Buddhism 297, 431 Willard, Dallas 229 Thiagaraj, Henry 328 Williams, John 285, 286 Thiessen, J. C. 309 Willingen Conference 143 Third World Mission Association 135 Wink, Walter 171 Thoburn, Isabella 308 Winston, Shyam 318 Thomas, W. H. Griffith 234 Winter, Ralph 101, 125, 315 Thoreau, Henry 379 women 159, 293-294, 307, 308, 319, 324-325, Timothy (Nestorian) 337, 499 379, 488, 524, 530 Tippett, Alan 111, 136 World Council of Churches 134, 135, 137, 340, Tonga 286 350 Toon, Peter 229 worldview 3, 8, 9, 19, 24, 58, 68, 72, 75, 92, Tozer, A. W. 150, 229, 380 139, 163-176, 182, 201, 202, 275, 276, 281, training of missionaries 144, 149, 268, 364, 480- 296, 325-326, 380, 382-383, 386, 463-464, 549 482, 489-490 See also Buddhism, Hinduism, generations, translation of the Bible 31 modernity, post-modernity, pre-modernity trinitarian missiology 19, 114-120, 143, 179-188, worship 203-204, 249, 315, 379-380 189, 239-240, 304, 487, 536, 542, 553-554 Wright, N. T. 301 Trinity 19, 90, 180-187, 189, 223, 240-241, 371, Wright, Thomas 301 487, 496, 536, 541, 542, 553 Wycliffe Bible Translators 158, 378 Trinity Evangelical Divinity School 136 triumphalism 115, 118, 215, 373 Xavier, Francis 313, 508 Tunisia 334 Yeshuyab II 498 Yuasa, Key 113 Unity/oneness 17, 19, 21, 69, 104, 116, 153, Yugoslavia 407 157-158, 210, 230-231, 240-255, 312, 338-340, YWAM 34, 35 344, 361, 362, 365, 378, 385, 415-416, 461, Zaretsky, Tuvya 341 473-474, 478, 479, 523, 526, 529, 531 Zeidan, David 341 universalism 208 Ziegenbalg, Bartolomaeus 308, 413 unreached peoples 36-37, 66, 109, 312, 320, Zinzendorf, Count Nicolas von 44, 119, 233, 327, 424-426, 445, 540, 549 504, 505 urbanization 3, 19, 25, 128, 297, 325-326, 396, Zoroastrianism 171, 498 422, 423, 543 Utuk, E. 134n, 137n, 138n