"Mission History Revisited: An Asian Theological Perspective"

D. Preman Niles

There is today the need to revisit the history of Christian mission from an Asian perspective. When the history of Christianity is traced from the period of the early church, it becomes obvious that an Asian perspective is the major paradigm shift in mission in the 20th century.

Jesus proclaimed the good news. By challenging the Roman empire, he provided an alternative mission. The authorities found him to be dangerous and crucified him. We need to remember that the God we worship was executed as a convict.

Through the centuries, right from the vulnerability of the early church, through the institutionalised church of the Constantine era to the Reformation of the sixteenth century and the evangelical awakening of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries till the present period, in each age, Christianity represented a new understanding of mission. While Reformation was a movement against the corruption in the Papal Church, the missionary movements arose as a protest against the lack of an "outreach" dimension among the traditional churches. The Western missionaries in countries like India were not evangelists alone but also social reformers. Mission was understood by them not only as proclamation but also as participation in the lives of the people.

At the outset itself, we need to define the meaning of the key words involved in Christian mission. 'Evangelism' is a term that has come into Christian usage following the Western missionary and colonial interventions. It is interesting to note that while for most Christians today, evangelism is the primary form of Christian witness, the word "Evangelism" is not seen anywhere in the Bible. "Salvation" is another term that is often wrongly understood. Zealous Christians often encounter others with the question: "Are you saved?" Salvation in this sense is understood as a passport to heaven. What is important, however, is to live out our salvation.

At each historical period, therefore, Christian mission was understood differently. All through history, there have been seeds of change blowing across the missionary movement. William Carey represented the shift of mission from Euro-centricism to World Christianity. Mission is the holistic term that includes the totality of the Christian mandate. Our Christian mandate is to bear witness to the salvation and liberation inaugurated in Christ Jesus.

An important contribution of Asian theology to Christian mission is the focus on creation as an integral part of salvation. Salvation divorced from creation will be detrimental to both. In the pluralistic context of Asia, there is the need to understand all people as the people of God, not as potential Christians. The many nations and cultures of Asia are a blessing to Christian mission, not a curse. The experience of Pentecost is that our diversities and differences become meaningful and can contribute richly to the mission of God. Mission, in the ultimate analysis, is the people of God in the midst of all people.

(Excerpts from Dr. Niles' thought provoking lecture are produced above. The full text of the lecture will later be published as part of the Volume on the Endowment Lectures Series. This lecture is delivered on 19th January 2005 on the occasion of The Kunchala Rajaratnam Endowment Lecture Series)