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A wealth of substantive engagements with and responses to contemporary trends in the theology and practice of mission and evangelism are featured in the newest issue of International Review of Mission (IRM).
Edited by Commission on World Mission and Evangelism secretary Jooseop Keum, the new issue includes 25 key presentations and reports from the 10th Assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC), held in Busan, Republic of Korea, from 30 October to 8 November 2013.
The 10th Assembly featured a plenary session on mission for the first time in a generation, and important “ecumenical conversations” engaged hundreds of participants in rethinking both mission and evangelism for the contemporary world.
According to participant missiologist Kenneth Ross, “Possibly what will be remembered most about Busan is that it was an assembly at which the missional mandate of the church took centre stage.”
Along with systematic presentations from the assembly’s Mission Plenary of key themes and convictions in the new mission affirmation, Together towards Life: Mission and Evangelism in Changing Landscapes, the IRM issue highlights responses from various cultural and religious contexts (e.g., Eastern and Northern Europe, Latin America, South Asia, as well as Orthodox, Pentecostal and Roman Catholic perspectives). Important missiological concepts and questions addressed by the articles include mission in the Spirit, biblical and Trinitarian and “communion” pillars of new mission thinking, the practical import of “mission from the margins”, feminist theological reflection on mission, implementation of the new affirmation and leadership formation.
Two of the 21 “ecumenical conversations” held at the assembly centred on topics of concern in mission and evangelism, each consisting of four sessions, and extensive narrative reports of each are provided in the issue.
A special section of the issue delves into issues and insights in contemporary evangelism, especially discipleship as evangelism, and it reflects on conversion and proselytism in light of the recent WCC, World Evangelical Alliance and Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue statement on “Christian Witness in a Multi-Religious World.”
Among the dozens of contributors to the issue are Ross, Kirsteen Kim, Roderick Hewitt, Eva Christina Nilsson, Atola Longkumer, Stephen Bevans Cecilia Castillo Nanjari, Metropolitan Geevarghese Mor Coorilos, Peter Cruchley-Jones, Wonsuk Ma, Volha Aleinik and Opoku Onyinah.
Latest issue of International Review of Mission
New mission and evangelism affirmation, Together towards Life
