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Vol. 17, No.2 April 1993 A "Missionary Pope" and Other Thetnes few weeks ago our editor personally presented a copy personal account of his "Pilgrimage in Mission" and Graham A of the 1989-1992 bound volume of this journal to Fr. Kings's "sampler" from the private family letters of Canon Max Willi Henkel, O.M.L, director of the Pontifical Missionary Li­ Warren. brary in Rome. A year earlier, following another visit to Rome, By the way, whether you are new to the INTERNATIONAL the editor returned to New Haven with the announcement that BULLETIN or a well-established reader, you may want to consider he had discovered a new and in some ways unexpected candi­ investing in the last four years' worth. Details for purchase of the date for the INTERNATIONAL BULLETIN'S "Legacy" series: Pope Pius latest bound volume, which includes the sixteen issues of 1989­ XI.The present issue includes Vatican archivist Josef Metzler's 1992, will be found in the advertisement on page 84. documentation of Pius Xl's vigorous and creative contributions to the cause of the Christian world mission. Readers will be aware that in recent years this journal has featured a number of major contributions by and about Roman On Page Catholic missions. For instance, two years ago we carried exten­ 50 Defining Syncretism: An Interim Report sive excerpts from John Paul II's encyclical Redemptoris Missio Robert J. Schreiter, C.PP.S. (April 1991), followed a year later by the Vatican's important statement "Dialogue and Proclamation" (Apri11992). And in 54 Max Warren: Candid Comments on Mission April 1990 appeared Miikka Ruokanen's foundational study from His Personal Letters "Catholic Teaching on Non-Christian Religions at the Second Graham Kings Vatican Council." A review of the four-year cumulative index in 59 My Pilgrimage in Mission the newbound volume of the INTERNATIONAL BULLETIN reveals that John V. Taylor one out of every seven articles has dealt with Roman Catholic missiology or mission history. 62 The Legacy of Pius XI Another recurring theme in these pages is the Christian Josef Metzler, O.M.I. witness to the Jewish people. A further contribution will be 66 The Legacy of Jacob jocz found in this issue: Arthur Glasser's account of the life and Arthur F. Glasser ministry of Jacob [ocz, The issue of syncretism is still another concern familiar to 72 Themes of Pentecostal Expansion in Latin BULLETIN readers. Having presented Peter Schineller's case for America dropping the term from the missiological vocabulary (April Karl- Wilhelm Westmeier 1992), the editors now present a strong case for retaining the 74 Noteworthy term: "Defining Syncretism: An Interim Report," by Robert J. Schreiter, C.PP.S. 79 Book Reviews We also offer yet another study of Latin American Pentecostalism, by Karl-Wilhelm Westmeier, a Christian and 94 Dissertation Notices Missionary Alliance missionarywithtwenty-oneyears of service 96 Book Notes in Colombia. Finally, we consider it a privilege to publishJohn V.Taylor's of Research Defining Syncretism: An Interim Report Robert J. Schreiter, C.PP.S. n the twentieth century, syncretism has been under­ century conscientious but ultimately misdirected. The tradi­ I stood as a negative force in Christianity in general and in tional concern over syncretism, they maintain, obscures the missiology in particular. Starting with Adolf von Harnack and cultural process while imposing theological criteria in a way continuing on with Barth, Kraemer, and others, syncretism has unrelated to those cultural processes. To the extent that the been viewed as a distorted form of the Christianfaith, skewed by criteria do not relate to the actual situation, they leave the cultural and religious forces in the environment into which resultant cultural formation largely unaffected by theological Christianity has come. The roots of this negative attitude go deep judgments. The consequence is that the syncretism discussion into Christian history and its early encounter with the variform does notadvance; instead, the processes of syncretism are largely map of religiosity in the Mediterranean basin. Theological asser­ obscured and thus allowed to develop without appropriate tions of the uniqueness of Christianity among the world's faith dialogue with the Christian tradition. traditions have served to sustain a negative view of syncretism. Last year, in the pages of this journal,J. PeterSchineller tried Whatever the protestations to the contrary, Christianity has to mediate some of these differences and ended with the pro­ absorbed a considerable amount, both in form and in content, posal that missiologists abandon the term "syncretism" and call from its environment. This is so much so the case that adherents it something else, mainly because the term carries so much of some of the twenty thousand forms of Christianity alive on the negative weight.' I would argue that this is not a fruitful way to planet today would likely not feel comfortable in some of their proceed, since it not only does not clarify the issue but ignores cobelievers' worship of the same God. How would a U.S. Con­ important dynamics now present in the Christian church world­ gregationalist feel standing outside an Ethiopian church while wide. We need to keep the term, come to grips with its history, the priests celebrated the Divine Liturgy inside? How do and work toward a new definition. Pentecostalists feel among Quakers? When one takes this kind of a reading diachronically through Christian history, the varia­ Why We Need to Redefine Syncretism tions can be seen to be even wider. Some faithful Christians would aver that many, if not most, of these forms represent a It is tempting to dropa termthatseems to have takenon too much genuine discipleship; others aiming at a similar fidelity would history, but to do so neither clears the ground for new thinking beg to differ. No one can deny the great variety of cultural nor advances us into the thicket of contemporary theological accretions; how to judge them, however, divides us. discussion. Three major factors suggest that we continue to grapple with the term. Should We Continue to Speak of Syncretism? First, the fact that some missiologists may agree to abandon the term does not guarantee its passing out of our vocabulary. Not only does the syncretism problem not go away, it has once The term may simply become the sole property of a more again become the object of an increasingly lively discussion. The conservative missiology, with two negative results: (1) it will focus of the debate is shifting along with this new interest. In an work to arrest the larger discussion on in culturation, and (2)it earlier part of the twentieth century, syncretism was addressed primarily in terms of its theological consequences. Today, how­ ever, it is being discussed especially in light of its relation to the Missiology has not yet inculturation process-that is, its role in the development of a response to the Gospel that is rooted in a specific time and place. recovered from Barth's The recent resurgence of literature on the topic is indicative distinction between faith that we are entering a new stage in this discussion.' New forays into the field are most evident in the Netherlands and the and religion. German-speaking countries." They note the term's checkered history, and each offer's will work as an obstacle for missiologists in conservative tradi­ some suggestions about new directions that we might take. All dwell, in one form or another, on the largely negative use of the tions who are trying to help their colleagues understand cultural processes in the proclaiming of the Gospel. term "syncretism" in Christian theology and offer constructive Second, to substitute "inculturation" or some other term for suggestions about how we might proceed in the future. "syncretism" can obscure the very neuralgic point that syncre­ Along with these new attempts, there is another approach, tism raises-namely, the relation between theological develop­ found largely in the Americas, that takes its cue from the social ment and cultural processes. Missiology has not yet recovered sciences' use of the term "syncretism," viewing that usage as a from Barth's distinction between faith and religion, a distinction lens to refocus the discussion within Christian theology.' Many that can make some sense in a monoreligious situation but is less of these authors find the earlier discussion of syncretism in this useful elsewhere. We need to come to an understanding of culture and the Christian faith that is responsible to both. The Robert J. Schreiter, C.PP.S., is Professor of Theology at Catholic Theological syncretism discussion, both past and present, occurs at the very Union in Chicago. An earlier version of this article was presented at the juncture of culture and Christian faith. To let go of either results International Association for Mission Studiesmeetingin Honolulu in 1992. in an uncritical treatment of both-naiveunderstandings of how Hismostrecent book isReconciliation: Mission and Ministry in Changing cultures work and cultural identities are formed, and naive Social Contexts (Maryknoll, N.Y.: OrbisBooks, 1992). understandings of how the Gospel is transmitted faithfully from 50 INTERNATIONAL BULLETIN OF MISSIONARY RESEARCI-: generation to generation and from culture to culture. International Bulletin Third, we are clearly in a time of considerable change within Christianity. This is so not only because of where and how of Missionary Research Christian faith is taking root but also because of both general Established 1950 by R. Pierce Beaver as Occasional Bulletin from the globalization and acute particularization of the world's cultures. Missionary Research Library. Named Occasional Bulletin of Missionary We seem truly to be coming into the age of the world church, to Research 1977. Renamed INTERNATIONAL BULLETIN OF MISSIONARY RESEARCH borrow Karl Rahner's much-quoted phrase." If so, we will see 1981.

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