Regaining a perspective on holistic mission: An assessment ofthe role ofthe Wolaita Zone Kale Heywet Church in Southern Ethiopia H.T. Wotango, Rev. Student~o.210694l7-2007 Mmi-dissertation submitted in Partial fulfillment ofthe requirements ofMasters of Arts (Missiology) in the Faculty ofTheology ofthe North West University .... Supervisor: Prof. Dr. T.D. Mashau Co-Supervisor: Dr. ~adine Bowers Du Toit Potchefstroom Campus. ~ovember 2009 Acknowledgements The involvement of various people in the process of -writing this dissertation needs to be acknowledged. First, I would to extend my appreciation to Prof. T.D. Mashau who was my supervisor at the North West (NWU) and contributed an invaluable part in the structure and over all supervision ofthe work. Secondly, my warm and deep appreciation goes to Dr. Nadine Bowers Du Toit who is my co-supervisor. She has been involved in my work extensively making both grammatical and conceptual corrections with vigilant and inspiring approach. She worked with me almost each and every big and small steps and has been a source of great encouragement to me to work to its final stage. Thirdly Mrs. Lorraine Seccombe's commitment in editing this dissertation is a noteworthy input. She contributed a significant part to add flavor to the work language wise. I am also indebted to George Whitfield College (GWC) faculty and administration who have been involved in one or the other way in the course ofthis work, especially Dr. David Seccombe, the principal of the college, who closely followed up the process of the -writing in order to it on time and made possible my whole education through the financial support from sources related to the college. Getting necessary current information on W olaita Heywet Church's mission work was not an easy task. My wife Rachel Mena and my Eyob Denio played a significant role in gathering information and sending it by email. They to be credited. Further, I would like to extend a special appreciation to my wife for her sacrificial commitment to take care of our four children and fulfIll all social responsibilities in my absence. Finally, my recognition goes to the Wolaita Kale Heywet Church leaders and missionary u.uj:;'-'-C;,OCO who were cooperative in delivering information on the interview questionnaire. The goodness of God is indescribable. He has been the source of knowledge wisdom and strength throughout my work .1 wish to praise Him for and grace and sincerely hope that this dissertation will bring due glory to His name. Acronyms AIDS- Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome CCFC- Christian Children's Fund of Canada CMA- Christian and Missionary Alliance CMS- Church Missionary Society EKHC- Ethiopian Kale Heywet Church EOTC- Ethiopia Orthodox Tewahido Church EPRDF- Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front GWC- George Whitefield College HIV- Human Immunity deficiency Virus LMS- London Missionary Society MDGs - Millennium Development Goals NIV- New illtemational Version NT- New Testament J\TWU- North West University OT- Old Testament PLWAS- People Living With AIDS SEM- Swedish Evangelical Mission SIM- Serving ill Mission WZKHC- Wolaita Zone Kale Heywet Church ii Abstract Based on the missional experiences of the Wolaita Zone Kale Heywet Church (WZKHC) in Southern Ethiopia, this dissertation argues the indispensable nature of the holistic approach to mission in order to fulfil the missional responsibility of the church effectively. Balance must be kept between the two aspects of mission (evangelism and social concern) and they need to be integrated as working towards a single goal ofproclaiming the Kingdom of God. In other words, neither of the two aspects of mission may to be magnified at the expense of the other nor should they be dichotomized as two unrelated parts. J\1ission emerges from the nature of God. Ever since the creation ofthe universe God has been at work and the church takes part in what he is doing. God's mission is holistic. Through Jesus Christ, He is working towards the redemption of the whole creation to its originally intended state. The research attempts to give attention to this concept as the Kingdom-oriented (Messio­ Dei) mission versus church-centered mission in light ofholistic approach. To weigh the experience of the church (WZKHC) from the perspective of the Scripture, OT and NT analysis will be done in detail. Furthermore, the eschatological views pertinent to the final state of the creation and millennium will also be assessed in order to find out their contribution as a root ofimbalance or polarization between evangelism and social concern. The aim the study is to frod out the factors that contribute to the imbalanced and non integrated approach to mission in the WZKHC in order to help the church regain the holistic perspective. This would be done mainly through qualitative research method, although quantitative approach is also employed rarely. Key terms- Church, Gospel; Holistic mission; Integral mission; Shalom; Kingdom of God; Missio Dei; Transformation; End time. iii Table of contents Acknowledgement.......................................................................................... Acronyms......................................................................................................ii Abstract........................................................................................................................................ .iii Chapter 1 Introduction............................................................................................... 1.1 Introduction...................................................................................................1 1.2 Background and problem statement.....................................................................................1 1.2.1 Backgrolllld....................................................................................................1 1.2.2 Problem Statement ............................................................................................6 1.3. Aim and Objectives..........................................................................................11 1.3.1 .Aim..............................................................................................................11 1.3.2 Objective.......................................................................................................11 1.4. Central theoretical argument............................................................................11 1.5. Methodology.................................................................................................11 Chapter 2 Reflections on the historical background of the WZKHC and its involvement in missions............................................................................................................14 2.1 Ethiopia...................................................................................................14 2.2 The introduction of Christianity to Ethiopia................;....................................15 2.2.1 The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church.........................................................15 2.2.2 Evangelical mission history in Ethiopia.............................................................17 1 Swedish Evangelical Missions (SEM) ......................................................... 2.2.2.2 Society ofInternational Missions (SIJ\1) .........................................................18 2.3 Wolaita people and their former religious experience.......................................... 19 iv Contents (continued) 2.3.1 Briefbackgrol.IDd on Wolaita........................................................................19 2.3.2 The primal Religious experience .....................................................................20 2.4 Ground-breaking work of the SThI in Wolaita and the opposition faced by Believers.................................'" ...............................................................21 2.4.1 The birth ofWZKHC.................................................................................21 2.4.2 Persecutions endured................................................................................... 23 2.4.3 Ministry ofSlM in light of contextualization..................... " ........................23 2.5 The Role ofthe Wolaita Zone Kale Heywet Church (WZKHC) in lVIission...................24 2.5.1 Evangelism....................................................................................................24 2.5.1.1 The First Phase (1928-84) ............................................................................25 2.5.1.2 The Second Phase (1985-2008) ..................................................................27 2.5.2 Social Concern ..........................................................................................30 2.5.2.1 Period one (1928-73) ................................................................................31 2.5.2.2 Period two (197 4-91 ) ........................................................................................................34 2.5.2.3 Period three (1992- 2009) ............................................................................36 Chapter 3 The biblical view ofholistic mission and its implication for the WZKHC.. .40 3.1 Biblical basis ofMission...................................................................................40 111ission in the Old Testament.............................................................................................. 40 v Contents (continued) 3.1.1.1 God's