‘Reset’ and ‘Reboot’ are words we hear frequently these days as we move through the covid pandemic and its consequences. We recognise there will be a ‘new normal’. Such terminology could well be applied to the content we were exposed to at the excellent Unreached Network ’21 Conference held online at the end of June.
The conference was privileged to have as its keynote speaker Dr Harvey Kwiyani from Liverpool University. Harvey has a special interest in contemporary mission in Europe and North America, including intercultural theology, migrations, and African Christians in the diaspora.
Decolonising mission
Harvey opened our eyes to the rapidly changing profiles of Christianity and the church across the world today, and the urgent need in mission to be aware of the different cultural expectations and interpretations of Christian theology if we are to help people become followers of Jesus. Recognising that over the past centuries, much mission accompanied colonisation with all its trappings, we must break free of any sense of there being a unique western interpretation and life-application of theology brought about by the spread of Christianity in this way.
We learned that according to the World Christian Encyclopaedia, there is an on-going shift of the centre of gravity of Christianity happening (much of which may be ‘cultural’ rather than ‘born again’). For instance, Africa currently represents 26% of the world population of Christians but this is forecast to rise to 45% by 2050. The centre of gravity is moving south. English is the first language for only 10% of world Christians; nearly twice that number speak Spanish! One thing is certain: the belief by some that Christianity is a white, English-speaking religion is far from the truth. While Christianity is spreading worldwide, Europe is the exception. Relationship with secularism in Europe is unique. It has become a dark continent.
Migration as a vehicle for mission
Migrant populations are also changing. During many years of colonisation there was a major outward flow from the ‘west’ to other nations. That trend is now reversed with a significant impact on the church in the now-receiving nations. For instance, in London the immigrant communities represent 14% of the population, but they comprise 60% of total church attendance. Yet existing churches have not done well in welcoming and integrating these newly arrived people and in embracing diversity. Hence, many new monoculture churches have been planted by diaspora groups. If we allow this trend of segregation to persist, we all miss out from benefitting from the diversity of gifts that are represented in the different parts of the Body of Christ and we demonstrate to the world a fractured church.
Diversity and Relationship
Harvey presented us with a new beatitude: ‘Blessed are those who embrace diversity for they shall see the future’. He went on to say, ‘Homogeneity in the Church leads to slow death. We have to mix the gene pool’. The tradition of exporting, say, English church life and practice and pre-packaged western theology to another nation is a recipe for death. A clone of an ‘English’ church in the heart of Africa is anachronistic. Our missiology must allow people to live in the culture God has given to them and to create and share the theologies that emerge from their specific contexts, which are gifts for the Body of Christ around the world. As we give and receive our God-given, unique gifts, the Worldwide Church will be enriched and will more faithfully reflect the ‘one new man’ that God intends. As Dr Kwiyani warned, ‘The health of the Body depends on the exchange’.
Other contributions
Much of the rest of the Unreached Conference illustrated how God is at work through his people in unreached nations and those living on the margins. Inspiring stories of transformed lives were shared by those living and working on the cutting edge with unreached people on our doorsteps and in regions across the world. Opportunities to join with God in his mission in different nations were highlighted.
David Devenish is well known in Newfrontiers’ circles for his particular passion for cross-cultural mission. His rich experience gave deep authenticity as he spoke on fostering a sense of family in mission among the unreached and the need to learn what family means in the culture that we are working into. So much of what he shared dove-tailed with what Dr Kwiyani had taught, such as the importance of keeping in our vision the autonomous and indigenous reproduction of culturally relevant churches.
Back to the Reboot!
During a passionate time of prayer, a word was shared at the conference that when it comes to building diverse, multi-cultural churches, there is no room for tokenism. As Jesus said in Matthew 9:16, we cannot stick a new patch onto old cloth. We need to allow the Holy Spirit to renew the whole fabric and fibre of the Church.
The message came across loud and clear: we need to reset our thinking about mission. We sometimes talk about mission as it was 200 years ago, but God is doing a new thing, and we need to keep up with him! What does this mean for Newfrontiers? This is the key question for this day that needs to be intentionally grappled with, prayed about and acted on across the Newfrontiers Spheres. Let us yield to the working of the Holy Spirit. Let us ask him to change our hearts and thinking. Let us pray that he will weave us together and create in us a new pattern for our churches that will be rich and vibrant, like a beautiful tapestry that will authentically show to those around us His intentions for mankind.
Footnote:
I am grateful to Susie Howe who shared the authorship of this blog with me.
Further Reading:
Multicultural Kingdom: Ethnic Diversity, Mission and the Church -Harvey C. Kwiyani
Mission-shaped Church in a Multicultural World – Harvey C. Kwiyani
To watch the three main talks (Harvey x2 plus David x1) and also hear the moving ‘Let the Nations be glad’ in a multi-lingual remix by Evan Rogers click here.