The Bible and The Church

Missiology, 2003

It is often stated in the historiography ofthe faith mission enterprise that early faith missions focused almost exclusively on evangelism, whereas denominational missions invested heavily in schools, hospitals, and the like. This article explores the experience of Cameron Townsend in the Central American Mission during the I 92Os, and argues that conservative evangelicals infaith missions were every bit as concerned as the more liberal denominational missionaries with schools and hospitals. That historians have paid such attention to the "evangelism only" focus offaith missions indicates that they have attended closer to the rhetoric ofhome councils and conservative home constituencies than to the missionaries themselves. W hen historian Dana Robert (1990:32) spoke of the faith missions' "singleminded emphasis on evangelization," she voiced what has become both a truism and a somewhat misleading stereotype in the literature about early evangelical missions. As Robert (1990:41) pointed out, faith mission theorist A. 1. Gordon "explicitly rejected educational, industrial, or other 'civilizing' forms of mission work," feeling that Western education hindered, more than helped, evangelization. Many of the evangelical missions were founded on this basis. The Christian and Missionary Alliance, established in 1887, declared that it was "an evangelistic movement, not aiming to build up elaborate institutions, but to preach the Gospel immediately to every creature and give one chance for eternal life to every member of our fallen race" (Rupert 1974:136). The council of the Africa Inland Mission (Sandgren 1989:19) announced to the Christian public, "In view of the many untouched millions, we feel called to do a thorough evangelistic work, rather than to build up strong educational centers." C. 1. Scofield (1898:184) decreed that the purpose of the Central American Mission was "to carry the Gospel to every creature in Central America (not] to plant Christian Institutions, or even churches.... The entire time of the missionaries, and all the funds contributed, are devoted to evangelization." By the turn of the century, the "evangelism only" faith missions were having such an effect on the discussion about mission policy that Frank Ellinwood Bill Svelmoe is Assistant Professor of American and Latin American History at Saint Mary's College in Notre Dame, IN. His interest in missions comes from growing up in the Philippines as the child of missionaries with Wycliffe Bible Translators.

The Maronite Voice, 2020

Methodist Review, 2012

In 1910, 1200 representatives of Protestant missionary societies met in Edinburgh, Scotland, to consider the meaning of Christian mission for their generation. In 2010, we gather as part of a worldwide network of meetings asking the same question. What has been the shape of Christian mission over the past century, and what is its future? Because human beings are God's hands and feet at work in the world, we must also ask the related question: What has it meant to be a missionary over the course of the last century? And most relevant to our gathering today, what does it mean to be United Methodist missionaries today? To "rethink mission" requires that we also "rethink missionaries," both for our own generation, and for those who will follow. Although apostolic vocation is a timeless calling, the work of mission takes its cue from its contemporary sociocultural context. Nobody expressed this as well as the great 20 th century Methodist missionary E. Stanley Jones, who wrote in The Christ of the India Road, "Evangelize the inevitable." In other words, the missionary must bring the Gospel into contact with whatever is going on in the world. To "evangelize the inevitable" requires crossing boundaries to witness to Jesus Christ. But the nature of those boundaries changes according to the circumstances of each age. In this address, I will reflect on a few of the changing definitions of " missionary" from 1910 to today. "Rethinking missionaries" means asking what it means for us to "evangelize the inevitable." Except for the proverbial death and taxes, what seemed inevitable a century ago does not seem inevitable a hundred years later. And yet, the accumulated decisions of past generations continue to shape our understanding of the missionary vocation today. I. The missionary under colonialism. A. Missionary as Professional A century ago, the 1200 delegates who gathered at the World Missionary Conference knew exactly how to define a missionary, and there was no doubt in their minds about their importance. Study Commission Five on the Preparation of Missionaries stated as follows: "the word 'missionary' must be taken in its widest signification to include all those European and American agents whom the Missionary Societies directly appoint and use on the mission field in any capacity connected with the work of a station. Hence we must think of ordained missionaries, medical missionaries, educationists, nurses, industrial teachers, Bible readers, zenana visitors, secretaries or business agents, etc." 1 The report described the core functions of the "missionary force": 1. Presentation of the Christian message, i.e. direct evangelization and the making of converts. 2. Manifestation of the Christian life, e.g. "medical, educational, and industrial work." While such work was seen as acts of Christian love, the report noted that in some countries promoting Christian life would require introducing "elements of civilization." 3. Organization of a Christian church and nation. "A living and effective Church in a Christian nation is the end of missionary work." 2

Early modern Christian missionaries often learnt about other cultures in remarkable depth, and made an extremely important contribution to the writing of ethnog-raphy and to the global circulation of knowledge. While their cultural insight was usually built upon linguistic expertise, missionary writings were of a complex nature , often combining scientific observations and historical speculations with wider rhetorical aims. In fact, issues such as accommodation to local customs became complex ideological battlegrounds. Whilst an earlier historiography may have been tempted to emphasize either the pioneering character of the Christian missionaries as proto-anthropologists, or – in a more critical fashion – their Eurocentric ideological agendas, there is growing awareness of the crucial importance of the native mediators who acted as knowledge brokers, and who also had their own personal agendas and cultural biases. However, the cultural interactions did not end here: in parallel to these complex acts of local translation, missionaries also 'translated' cultural diversity in another direction, to the European Republic of Letters, where they increasingly had to defend religious orthodoxy in the context of a rapidly changing intellectual landscape.

2009

The following texts are eBooks that are used in the course on Theology of Missions. These topics are vital for the missionary to be solidly grounded in as he seeks to invest his life in the greatest purpose known to mankind: fulfilling the Great Commission of our Savior -- building and establishing the Church through the Gospel among every people group on earth.

2017

On the 31st October 1517 Martin Luther published his Ninety-Five Theses in which he criticised the sale of indulgences by the Roman Catholic Church. This date is considered the beginning of the Reformation. While the Protestant Reformers are widely praised for the rediscovery of the biblical gospel, they have come under fire regarding their views on mission. There are church historians and missiologists who argue that the Protestant Reformers were not interested in mission and, in fact, ignored the mission mandate which Christ had given to his Church. However, a closer study of Luther, Calvin, Bucer, and Melanchthon, shows that the critics miss both the Reformers’ commitment to practical mission work and their missiological contributions. The critics seem to overlook the fact that cities, such as Geneva and Wittenberg, in which the Reformers lived, studied and taught, served as hubs of a huge missionary enterprise. Thousands of preachers went out from these centres of the Reformation to spread the gospel all over Europe. Leading Scandinavian theologians, such as Mikael Agricola, Olaus Petri, or Hans Tausen, had all studied under Luther and Melanchthon in Wittenberg before they began their reform work in their home countries. Furthermore, with their re-discovery of the gospel of justification by faith alone, their emphasis on the personal character of faith in Christ, their radical re-interpretation of the priesthood, their recognition of God’s authorship of mission, their reminder that the witness to the gospel takes place in the midst of a spiritual battle, and their insistence that the Bible has to be available in common languages, the Protestant Reformers laid down important principles for the mission work of the church which are still valid today.

Foundations: An International Journal of Evangelical Theology, 2024

This article discusses the meaning of the word “missionary” and its use in today’s church. It looks at the biblical, historical and contemporary understandings of a phrase which triggers a variety of responses even among Christians. While some insist that “missionary” has become a discredited term others hold that it no longer reflects their broader understanding of mission. However, those who still use it find support both in the Scriptures and mission history. Given the similarity of the phrase “missionary” and the biblical term “apostle” one can argue that missionaries are followers of Christ who are sent to continue with the apostolic task without claiming the same authority as the Twelve or the Apostle Paul. Therefore, the preaching of the gospel, the planting of churches and the training of church leaders lie at the heart of their mission. This work might be accompanied by other activities, such as social, educational or medical programmes, but, as demonstrated by the early representatives of the Protestant mission movement, it should always be carried out with sensitivity, respect and humility.

N/A, 2018

This is the third chapter in the book that I am preparing for publication, "The Advancement of the Missio Dei in the 21st Century".It contends about old habits of even specialists (Theologians) in the past regarding the marginalization of the discipline of Missiology. However, nowadays, missiology not only was accepted at the round table of theology, but also it is in many colleges understood like the middle part that spins the wheel and its spokes. The chapter is trying to answer this dilemmatic question, "Is there a Biblical basis of mission or a missional basis for the Bible, which is itself a by-product of mission. The concept of mission of God is defined and the illustration comes from the Abraham missionary paradigm, that remains forever the link that assembles most of the big topics of the Bible.