Andrews University Digital Commons @ Andrews University Books World Mission 2006 Adventist Responses to Cross-Cultural Mission: Global Mission Issues Committee Papers Volume 1, 1998-2001 Bruce Bauer Andrews University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/missions-books Part of the Missions and World Christianity Commons Recommended Citation Bauer, Bruce, "Adventist Responses to Cross-Cultural Mission: Global Mission Issues Committee Papers Volume 1, 1998-2001" (2006). Books. 1. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/missions-books/1 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the World Mission at Digital Commons @ Andrews University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Books by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Andrews University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. TO CROSS-CULTURAL MISSION Global Mission Issues Committee Papers Volume 1 1 1998-2001 B r u c e L. B a u e r , Editor J Adventist Responses to Cross-Cultural Mission Global Mission Issues Committee Papers Volume I 1998-2001 Bruce L. Bauer E ditor To order additional copies of Adventist Responses to Cross-Cultural Mission, Vol. I compiled and edited by Bruce L. Bauer Call 269-471-6505 or write Department of World Mission Andrews University Berrien Springs, MI 49104-1500 ANDREWS UNIVERSITY MISSION STUDIES-III Adventist Responses to Cross-Cultural Mission Volume I Bruce L. Bauer Editor Other Books in the Series A M an with a Vision. M ission: A Festschrift Honoring Russell L. Staples Faith Development in Context: Presenting Christ in Creative Ways Department of World Mission Andrews University Berrien Springs, Michigan 2006 Copyright © 2006 by Department of World Mission Andrews University The authors assume full responsibility for the accuracy of all facts and quotations in this book. Editor Bruce L. Bauer Copy editors Linda Bauer and Kathy Ekkens Layout Marcus Erey Cover Design Marcus Frey Printed at LithoTech Andrews University Berrien Springs, Michigan 49104 Contents Introduction ix Mike Ryan Section I. January 13-14,1998 Chapter 1 Mission Outreach and Biblical Authority William Richardson 1 Chapter 2 The Church, Structural Organization, and Acculturation 27 B. B. Beach Chapter 3 Developing New Church Structures for More Effective Mission, Nurture, and Growth of New Believers 33 Jerald Whitehouse Chapter 4 Adventist Use of Non-Christian Scriptures 53 Clifton Maberly Chapter 5 The Boundaries of Contextualization in Mission: How Flexible Are They? What Principles Should Guide the Church? 91 Bertil Wiklander Chapter 6 1998 Recommendations and Approved Statements 131 Adventist Responses to Cross-Cultural Mission Section II. January 13-14,1999 Chapter 7 Bridges Not Walls 139 Luka T. Daniel Chapter 8 Contextualization, Church, and Confessions 145 Russell L. Staples Chapter 9 1999 Recommendations and Approved Statements 173 Section III. February 5-7,2000 Chapter 10 2000 Recommendations and Approved Statements 179 Section IV. April 11-12, 2001 Chapter 11 The Centrality of Christian Community to World Mission 187 Walter Douglas Chapter 12 Spiritual Powers 195 Luka T. Daniel Chapter 13 Syncretism 205 Erich W. Baumgartner Chapter 14 Connected to Culture, Conformed to Christ: Exploring Alternate Forms of Worship 219 G. T. Ng vi Contents Chapter 15 The Relationship Between Adventists and Adherents of Animistic Religions 231 Russell L. Staples Chapter 16 2001 Recommendations and Approved Statements 235 vu INTRODUCTION MICHAEL RYAN Mission has always been a foundational value of the Seventh-day Adven­ tist Church. Even prior to 1844, those who studied, prayed, and were led by the Spirit to the distinctive beliefs of the Adventist Church were passionate about sharing those truths with neighbors and countrymen. By the 1870s, the Church’s definition of mission had grown to include the whole world. Seventh- day Adventists believed they were a special part of God’s great plan to invite every person in the world to know Christ and the saving truths of the Bible. By the year 1900, a small number of missionaries were serving in selected countries around the world. Over the next ninety years the number of mission­ aries increased and the Church grew rapidly in the Americas, the southern part of the continent of Africa, selected countries in Asia, and the Pacific islands. By 1990, there were 6 million members and the Church had a presence in more than 200 countries—all but 28 countries. A network of schools, hospitals, clin­ ics, publishing houses, food factories, and radio stations served the Church in countries around the world. In 1990, every day, one new church was established and more than 1,000 people were baptized into church membership. God be praised, the growth had been remarkable and a worldwide founda­ tion had been established. And yet, it was as though God, in his all-knowing and caring wisdom, then began to move the Church to understand more fully the mission challenge that still remained. World population had exploded to 5.4 billion people. Several studies conducted by non-Seventh-day Adventists and data coming from inside the Church strongly suggested that the mission challenge was far greater than previously understood. Adventist Responses to Cross-Cultural Mission The Church initiated a study to discover where the presence of the Church was located across the countries of the world. Membership and church loca­ tions were compared with populations in the context of territories that had been organized into groups of one million people. Of 5,400 segments (the world population in millions) data revealed that the Church did not have a presence in 2,300 of those million population segments. Quickly it became apparent that the Adventist Church was best represent­ ed in rural, island, Christian, animistic, and poor areas in our world. In 1990, nearly half the Worlds population lived in cities and the vast majority held val­ ues represented by Islam, Communism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and a growing secular/postmodern generation. These world religions, governments, and ide­ ologies held more than 70 percent of the worlds population. These territories were becoming known as the 10/40 Window—the great Christian mission field of the world. In these areas the Seventh-day Adventist Church had only a small presence. In 1990, the highest authority in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the General Conference in session, voted an initiative called Global Mission. Glob­ al Mission was mandated to establish a church in every segment of 1 million people. The action of the world church called for the establishment of religious study centers to develop methodologies and materials for advancing the mis­ sion of the Church into those great unentered areas of the world. By 2005, world population had increased to 6.3 billion adding another 900 segments of one million beyond the 1990 total of 5,400. The data indicated that of 6,300 segments of one million, the Adventist Church now had a presence in all but 430 of them. Every day, 11 new congregations are being established somewhere in the world. Every day, somewhere in the world, 2,800 people are joining the Church. While urban and 10/40 Window mission advances seem considerable, the church has really only just begun. Without question, the early pioneers’ strug­ gle to establish a foundation from which to initiate mission was both testing and considerable. However, the Church of 2006 may possibly face the Church’s most challenging years. Rapid growth in the 10/40 Window has forced the Church to look at the interface between members and a population who come from different world­ views and religious backgrounds. While the Church’s doctrinal message remains biblical, mission methodologies and the logistics of providing language and culture-relevant literature, radio, television, education, nurture, and training Introduction have stretched the Church into unfamiliar territory. Additionally, the Church is challenged to keep alive the interest and vision for mission in the hearts of those whose support is critical—3rd, 4th, and 5th generation Adventists. As the Adventist Church has advanced into vastly diverse cultures, tribes, and peoples, a wide array of issues have arisen that must be addressed if the Church is to remain a unified world community. The biblical principle of unity is vitally important to the mission of the Church. The Administrative Committee at the world headquarters established a Global Mission Issues Committee (Issues Committee) to meet each year at the time of the Church’s Spring Council. The Issues Committee s immediate task is to prepare an agenda of current mission issues that have potential to advance or disrupt the mission of the Church or challenge world unity. The search for contextualized methods provides a wide array of issues for discussion and reso­ lution. The agenda of the Issues Committee is often expressed through papers that present the context and history of an issue and that then suggests a rationale and lists values to serve in developing solutions or resolutions. Committee membership includes a wide spectrum of administrators, biblical scholars, and those training frontline workers. The Issues Committee has no constitutional authority. After the presentation of informative papers and lengthy discussion, repre­ senting a wide discipline of experience and academia, a small writing commit­ tee is appointed for each issue to express the consensus of the wider committee. The position paper is brought back to the