Introduction and Overview (Gordon Cotterill)
Discussion Point #1
Reference is made to Myers and his opinion that there exists a blind spot within our understanding of mission based upon the fact that there are:-
“Those who see evangelism (restoring people's relationship with God) as spiritual work, while social action /transformation (restoring just economic, social, and political relationships among people) is not. Those who see loving God as spiritual, while loving neighbours is material. (Myers, B.L 1999)”
What ways do you see this blind spot or false dichotomy in our understanding of mission? Do you see dangers to the contemporary communication of the gospel if such a false dichotomy exists? Or do you disagree with Myers statement?
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posted by ETLnetwork at 3:01 AM
22 Comments:
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I wonder if this Blind spot that Myers talks about is created by the general misunderstanding of Mission in the Christian Church. Within the SA many see practical mission as being more about fund raising than Kingdom values . We constantly need to ask ourselves what is the purpose of what we are doing? Is our Jumble sale purely to raise funds or is it to engage with our communities as Christ engaged with those in first century Palestine . I realise fund raising is important but it must never be our main goal. We sometimes also are guilty of undervaluing those engaged in practical mission . Are those who make tea and coffee for the lonely and vulnerable as valued as evangelists who fill large gatherings and lead people directly to Christ. Jeff Lucas speaking at ROOTS said there is no such thing as the secular world for Christians . Christ would never have divided Evangelism from Mission as to Him all were Spiritual . We must do the same if we are to be Christ in the World.
Chris Hall
I can identify with both Deborah and Chris as they suggest possible blind spots and yes, I can see too easily a truth within Myers statement.
Could it be that perhaps poor teaching on scriptural understanding of mission and evangelism in itself creates a blind spot? The ‘Reaching People’ module last year certainly opened my eyes to a greater understanding of mission and evangelism which Moltmann helped me to conclude, “Evangelism is mission but mission is not merely evangelism”.
Missio Dei in both the Old and New Testaments emphasises God’s plan for creation and His reconciliation with man. Toddler group workers or jumble sale workers are part of the kingdom workers to bring about God’s mission. Paul writes, “It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up,” (Ephesians 4: 11, 12). This is not diminishing the responsibility proclaiming the Gospel but it does confirm that all gifts work together to continue the furtherance of God’s Mission.
Reading the book ‘Mission in Christ’s Way’, Newbigin clearly states that ‘words without deeds are empty, but deeds without words are dumb’ (pg 11). I believe we need both to ultimately work out the Missio Dei.
Carol Skene
Good points Chris and Carol - I agree that mission is very much misunderstood in the contemporary church. Great Newbigin quote which made me smile the first time I read it as I misused the word dumb! But actually the quote still works with that emphasis - deeds without words are stupid!!
If our actions are 'irresistible' questions will be asked which is key in contemporary evangelism - check out 'ambiguous evangelism' (in the library).
Questions to ask of ourselves how do we ensure our actions are irresistible or as Tomlin suggests provocative?
Gordon
hello testing
I do think there is truth in Myers statement. I know my own understanding of evangelism and mission was limited. I am sure that could be said of a lot of Christians.One of the ways this false dichotomy of mission can be seen is where mission/evangelism is perceived as the province of the clergy since it is spiritual work. One of the dangers to the contemporary communication of the gospel where such a false dichotomy exists is it reinforces the secular / sacred divide. It undermines the importance of living out our faith in all areas of life,of being salt and light e.g. within the office, school, business settings, nieghbourhood etc. Our mission needs to be as Christ's, holistic, in order to avoid this. Yvonne
I think that the false dichotomy stems from a lack of understanding of what mission is.
Part of this, I think may come from the view that mission is something that we 'do'. I have heared people say in conversation 'are we going to do mission?'. Mission, to me is not something that we 'do', but Missional is something that we are. It's holistic - it encompasses every aspect of life. If Jesus is truly at the centre and soaking into every area of our lives, then how can spiritual work be isolated from anything else. It has to be holistic.
Great point Catherine - the difference between doings and being - or essence and form is a real live issue to be thinking through because of its impact on function.
Gelder, C. (2000). The Essence of the Church: A Community Created by the Spirit. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books.
I would certainly agree with all that has been written previously and a great quote found by Carol from Newbigin - I believe that we must be practical but be ready to explain why we do the things that we do. Often in the SA we see money raising as the most important issue. As necessary as money raising is we should ensure that the real reason we have parents and tots, a luncheon club or whatever programme we have at our corps, it is because we want to show God's Kingdom here on earth. I also agree with Catherine who suggests that mission is what we are than what we do.
Sandra Hall
Most of the comments posted above are from a few years back. I see a sense of renewal with regards to the idea of not splitting up words and deeds. I think it is a matter of authenticity.
Sometimes I feel a little apprehension when I'm enjoying the company of my non-christian friends to tell them why I do the things I do and why I am the guy that I am followed by a sermon about the Prodigal Son.
Interestingly enough the same non-christian (bad word!) friends ask me all kind of questions about my faith. They are deeply interested, like I am deeply interested in their lives.
Maybe that is what I mean by authenticity. Mission is not a strategy, but a crucial part of a Christ-centered life.
In my opinion more and more christians are starting to realise that.
I just found out that not all comments are necessary from a few years back, nor did I mean to say that they are outdated! To anyone who might feel offended: I apologise!
This blog is a nice way of adding information and thoughts about this subject! I think I agree with others about poor teaching and misunderstanding of Mission. Especially in the Salvation Army we tend to 'do' a lot, but do not take time to think and reflect a lot on our actions, based on our beliefs.
I love the remark about 'being' instead of doing. This might be the problem with mission in the contemporary church. If you see mission as an integrated part, just like evangelism, than both will be present in an 'organic' way. Sometimes the two are divided in the minds of people and therefore in the organisation as well. If I look around, I see people serving other people with good intentions, but not based on a belief in the living Christ. And I see the preaching without the action. So, how to change this? I think there are several ways. The first thing that comes to my mind is whether we could change the thoughts of people. Therefore we need to get into a dialogue with each other about this. And to me the key-question is: what is exactly evangelising and what is social action? What are the differences and what are similarities? And secondly: could we take away blind spots by pointing out 'successful' examples of mission and evangelism?
Mission is not a strategy, but a crucial part of a Christ-centered life.
I like that concept - a great thought, I wonder how we allow that to shape constantly shape our missiological thinking? Identifying what challenges that as a thought is important.
GOod point Mariska - I wonder if we in the church need to firm up our understanding and definitions of key concepts. Evangelism for instance - NT Wright, Guder are helpful.
Great! Yet another book to read! ;-) Thanks for the comments Gordon!
I think we have been guilty in the past of poor teaching on Mission within TSA, for example, lets have a ‘week of mission’. For mission to be effective it needs to be ongoing not a one week hit and then lets leave it alone for another year.
We have also boxed different activities into different categories and sadly have often kept the words and the deeds separate. We need to remember that Mission is also about relationship. Through the actions of Mums & Tots, Lunch Club, Street Pastors etc we have opportunity to build relationship. As we build relationship we also create opportunities to share our faith.
Tomlin suggests ‘without actions, no one listens; without words, no one understands’. What does James state ‘faith without works is dead’. By the same token if we constantly work without words then we may as well simply be social services. Works and words should be joined together were possible in a sensitive manner.
I agree with the comments of others. However I do not think it is just TSA who has a problem with mission it also happens within all churches whatever denomination they are. It is true as previously stated that unless we tell people about Jesus they may never hear about him, if we do not spread the gospel we have failed in carrying out the commands of Jesus. In most corps we will have people attending midweek activiites who do not know about the love of God. It is with these people that we have an opportunity to build relationships with and then to be able to spread the news of the gospel, I firmly believe that when we show an interest in peoples lives they will be open to listen to the gospel.
Welcome Angela and Suzanne.
Both good comments that get to the root of the issue of mission, that of finding the creative tension where word and deed find credibility in each other.
As you continue to reflect on mission the relationship that you speak of is important. It is also important to firm up our understanding and definitions of key concepts that shape our understanding of mission. 'Gospel'and 'evangelism' for instance often we know what we think they mean but as leaders of mission within our corps it is good to dig deep into their meanings. The reader I provided is a key resource to start you thinking about some of these issues
Mission is not a strategy, but a crucial part of a Christ-centered life.
Just read that comment from Marc Potters and I think it sums up why so many people get panicky when we speak of "Mission". It's not a seperate entity but an integral part of everything we do and only when we grasp that can we begin to achieve it.
Keeping it integral keeps us form making the mistake of 'seeing loving God as spiritual, while loving neighbours is material' which is an uncomfortable contradiction.
Dorothea Sölle suggests 'mysticism is contextual'. As I see this I would suggest loving God or connecting to God is not just spiritual. As I see It, it connects spirituality with mission.
Sölle continues by stating if Mysticism does not take account of social reality it is dangerous.’Contextuality creates a relationship between the mystical experience of others and the search for ones own experiences but also the praxis of the other and ones own practices’ I think this is about being and doing and I agree with Solle this is to be contextual. The mystical eye recognizes the liberating movement, even when pronounced in a secular way, of God working, seeing, hearing and acting. Evangelis is just more than language and telling.
I felt the gap between mission and evangelism a long time and did see it around me. When I was on my mission project serving soup for the homeless in Rotterdam I could feel this very clearly. Sometimes other people volunteered to come along and help. A lot of those people felt that same gap. We have to tell them about Jesus!
I found a good thought from Hirsch about incarnational mission: By living incarnational we not only model the pattern of humanity set up in the Incarnation but also create space for mission to take place in organic ways. In this way mission becomes something that fits seamlessly into the ordinary rhythms of life, friendship, and community and is thus thoroughly contextualized. It is stepping into the Gospel, living inside the Gospel. I agree with Marc and Catherine. Mission and evangelism are to be holistic and connnected to Mysticism. It is about being and acting on an euthentic way. As I experience it it must be incarnational.
The link with Mysticism is interesting particularly as means of maintaining mission as integral.
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