SCM Studyguide: Christian Mission - Stephen Spencer

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      SCM STUDYGUIDE TO CHRISTIAN MISSION

      Historic Types and Contemporary Expressions

      Stephen Spencer

      All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, SCM Press.

      © Stephen Spencer 2007

      The Author has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the Author of this Work

      Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

      British Library Cataloguing in Publication data

      A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

      978 0 334 04108 5

      First published in 2007 by SCM Press

      9–17 St Alban’s Place,

      London N1 0NX

      www.scm-canterburypress.co.uk

      SCM Press is a division of SCM-Canterbury Press Ltd

      Typeset by Regent Typesetting, London

      Printed and bound in Great Britain by Biddles Ltd, King’s Lynn, Norfolk

      Contents

       Preface

       Part 1 Orientation

       1. Mission in Crisis

       2. Origins of a Word: Mission as Missio Dei

       3. Digging Deeper: Mission as Participation in the Trinity

       4. In Human Terms: The Prophetic Mission of Christ

       Part 2 Types and Expressions

       Introduction

       5. Filling the Ark: Apostolic Mission

      Background: Jewish Christianity (c.40–100 AD)

      Jewish-Christian apostolic mission

      Case study: Paul’s calling

      Some more recent expressions of the type: Protestant and Catholic

      Debate

       6. Radiating Eternal Truth: Hellenistic Orthodox Mission

      Background: the rise of Platonic philosophy within Christianity

      Christian mission within the Hellenistic paradigm

      Case study: Antony of Egypt and the founding of monasticism

      Some recent expressions of the type: Michael Ramsey’s theology and Taizé

      Debate

       7. Establishing Christendom: Medieval Catholic Mission

      Background: the impact of Constantine and Augustine of Hippo

      Mission within the medieval Catholic paradigm

      Case study: Pope Gregory VII and Roman supremacy

      Some other expressions of the type: the establishment of the Church of England

      Debate

       8. The Conversion of Souls: Protestant Reformation Mission

      Background: Augustine’s awkward legacy and Luther’s doctrine of justification by faith

      Mission within the Protestant Reformation paradigm

      Case study: the awakening of John Wesley

      Some recent expressions of the type: Pentecostalism

      Debate

       9. Building the Kingdom on Earth: Enlightenment Modern Mission

      Background: the Enlightenment and Hegel

      Mission within the Enlightenment modern paradigm

      Case study: William Temple and the founding of the welfare state

      Some recent expressions of the type: liberation theology and Faith in the City

      Debate

       10. Finding Hope in Local Communities: Mission within Postmodernity

      Background: twentieth-century crisis and Karl Barth’s theology

      Mission within postmodernity: Bonhoeffer’s legacy

      Case study: Vincent Donovan and the Masai

      Other recent expressions: the emerging church movement

      Debate

       Conclusion: Which Type of Mission?

       Epilogue: The Coming of the Rains

      Preface

      This is not a history of missionary work or a guide to the practicalities of being a missionary but an introduction to the predominant ways the Christian community has understood and practised mission. It does this by identifying a number of ‘types’ of mission which have emerged through Christian history and which continue to be influential in different parts of the Christian world today. In adopting this approach it follows in the tradition of Max Weber (1864–1920) who developed the notion of ideal types, which he described as ‘analytical constructs that enable us to simplify a set of social relationships, to detail what is relevant and exclude misleading complexities’ (in Graham, Walton and Ward, Theological Reflection: Methods, SCM Press 2005, p. 11). A type, then, is a concept which helps to identify and understand the essential features of a more complicated phenomenon. Ernst Troeltsch used this approach to describe the life of the churches, identifying two basic types – the church type and the sect type. A number of other writers have followed his example, adapting and extending it, most recently Elaine Graham, Heather Walton and Frances Ward in relation to theological reflection (ibid., especially pp. 11–12). This book uses this approach to introduce Christian mission. It draws on the work of Hans Küng and David J. Bosch, especially on the six historical paradigms of Christian life and mission that they describe, and out of these it develops and presents six ‘types of mission’. It does this through a number of historical portraits which are indicative and exemplary of the development of each type.

      This Studyguide, then, seeks to provide an overview of different approaches to mission, an overview in which contemporary views and practices can be located and understood. It does this especially for those working at undergraduate Levels 1–2, though the book is also aimed at a wider audience of any in the Church or society who wish to gain an understanding of the varied and

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