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Under the title “Pentecostal Mission Theology,” the latest issue of the World Council of Churches’ journal International Review of Mission offers contributions from Pentecostal perspectives on mission in various contexts.
“What is the role of this heterogeneous spirituality in World Christianity and in the ecumenical movement today and in the future?” editor Benjamin Simon writes in the editorial that opens the issue. “What do relationships between Pentecostals and churches of different traditions in various parts of the world look like and how might they develop? What is the role of the Pentecostal movement in mission and evangelism today?”
The Pentecostal movement, Simon notes, is a challenging development in World Christianity that has undergone phenomenal numerical growth over the past century, and in some contexts is now seen as being the “mainline” Christianity.
The movement is linked to Christians from different cultural, social, ethnic, and political backgrounds, and has been able make itself at home in almost any milieu or environment.
Most articles in the issue of the journal are written by Pentecostal theologians. Some focus on cases studies in particular countries and regions, while others discuss relationships between the Pentecostal movement and global ecumenism, and bring in perspectives from Orthodox as well as feminist theology. The issue also includes a historical survey of WCC relationships with the Pentecostal movement.
“It is hoped that this issue of IRM will inspire and increase debate among Christians still further so that the task of mission today becomes one that is shared and united,” writes Simon.
The International Review of Mission appears twice a year and is published by the WCC in partnership with Wiley, the Oxford-based books and journals publisher.
With the June 2018 issue, the colour of the cover of the International Review of Mission reverts to the traditional red used for many years and the design incorporates the image of the ecumenical ship.
Contents of the latest issue (June 2018): "Pentecostal Mission Theology" (articles may be freely downloaded)
The International Review of Mission in the Wiley Online Library
