Category / missiology

by daviddawson462742281

Lessons from Latin America on Secularism and Religious Pluralism

Towards an Ecumenical Vision?

Escobar (2012) describes the Crisis of Christendom in Latin America during the 20th century in which “vigorous minorities committed to evangelize” have challenged the Catholic status quo (p. 175). Dillon (2015) describes a similar situation in the U.S., where religious affiliation in the U.S. has declined in its “social desirability, or, and, in the actual relevance of religious affiliation” (p. 346). Although the historical foundations of US-America and Latin America are different, they share the common experience of a decline in Christendom. The first wave of challenge to Catholic supremacy in Latin America came with elites who favored the influence of Protestant missionaries as a means of promoting democracy and pluralism (Escobar, 2012, p. 176). The second challenge to the Christian status quo in Latin America came through the growth of Pentecostals, especially among the poor. Escobar (2012) describes Pentecostalism as “a movement coming ‘from below’, with its own religious and social dynamism and great expansive power” (p. 178). The rise from 5% to 15% of the US-American population affirming Pentecostal affiliation (Jacobsen, 2015, p. 208-9) since the 1950s shows the dynamism of this movement in that nation as well. 

The growth of Protestantism in Latin America during the second part of the 20th century was part of the larger phenomenon of a “massive exodus” from the Catholic Church whose centuries old form was “unable to cope with the challenges of the fast pace of social change” (Escobar, 2012, p. 177). And although the Catholic Church tried to these demands, such as with an emphasis on the marginalized poor, the poor themselves opted for Pentecostalism (Escobar, 2012, p. 178). Jacobsen (2015) describes the waves of growing Pentecostalism in US-America as reflecting the “increasing emphasis placed on experience instead of theology in almost all American churches” (p. 209). 

The growth of Pentecostalism in Latin America and the Catholic church’s response indicates the nuanced approach needed when Christianity attempts to follow the culture. While some adjustments of theology and practice have been fruitful throughout church history, some have not. Another way to view the matter of adjusting to culture is to be realistic about the results that may come. Whereas some Catholic faithful welcomed the new focus on the poor, others still found it to be too institutionally centered. This is perhaps an example of where a particular church must realize that its attempts at contextualization cannot impede people from opting for another church’s approach. An ecumenical vision that accepts God’s work through the diversity of Christian expression helps the different churches avoid discouragement and competition. 

Lessons from a Marginalized Christianity

The trend in US-America shows a different type of individualism since the 1960s expressed in a “culture of freedom and critique rather than of conformity and deference to external authority” (Dillon, 2015, p. 351). And more recently, the millennial generation has been described as “a generation of tinkerers” that adhere to a “mosaic of diverse beliefs and practices that is characteristic of the religiously affiliated and non-affiliated” (Dillon, 2015, p. 354). Particularly among younger US-Americans, the preference to be called spiritual than religious or to embrace double belonging to multiple religions indicates a “newly diverse and spiritually fuzzy landscape” (Jacobsen, 2015, p. 212). 

The challenge of the Christian status quo is present in Europe, North and South America regarding Catholic and Protestant opposition to same-sex relations (Dillon, 2015, p. 357-8). In contrast, although abortion attitudes vary much within the US-American Christian population, they have proven to be “highly stable over time” showing little variation among generations. Dillon (2015) interprets this phenomenon as indicating that “moral issues raise moral and value questions for individuals irrespective of religious identity and affiliation status” (p. 361). 

It seems that the Latin American Christian situation can inform the similar US-American situation of reduced centrality of Christianity in culture and society (Dillon, 2015, p. 363). There are significant demographic differences, such as the Latin American division between rich and poor versus the US-American fragmentation of diverse ethno-political interests. But the Latin American Catholic church’s two-pronged approach to cultural change is a lesson for US-American Christianity. Latin American Catholicism has attempted to change where necessary at the same time as it retains many foundational doctrines of the Christian faith. The decline of mainline US-American denominations can be interpreted as resting in part from the undermining of biblical authority which gives a sense of security and identity to its members.  

References

Dillon, Michelle. (2015). Christian Affiliation and Disaffiliation in the United States: Generational and Cultural Change. 

Escobar, Samuel. (2012). Christianity in Latin America Changing Churches in a Changing Continent. In C.E. Farhadian (Ed.), Introducing World Christianity (1st Ed., pp. 171-185). Blackwell Publishing. 

Jacobsen, Douglas. (2015). North America. In Global Gospel. 

by daviddawson462742281

Challenges to an African Christianity Today

Caleb Oladipo (2016) describes Africa as a “continent of contrast” where a high percentage of the population is poor even as the continent abounds with natural resources. Africans suffer from socioeconomic inequality, ineffective governments, and armed conflicts. One of the historic challenges of African Christianity has been to resist Western notions of the faith that emphasize “acceptance of the knowledge of God, rather than a meaningful experience of God” (Oladipo, p. 86). 

African “bureaucratic monotheism” proposes that God “empowers other beings to work in collaboration”, associating some providence and evil with lesser deities (Osalador, 1985, p. 25). The benevolent of these deities carry out their responsibilities through ancestors known as the “living-dead” (Oladipo, 2016, p. 90). Jesu Kristi is an understanding of Christ as a radical critic of the version of the gospel presented by Western missionaries (p. 91). Whereas the Western conception of Christianity centered on intellectual knowledge, Jesu Kristi is the “epiphany of God in the Spirit” who embodies the “fluidity between the spiritual and the physical worlds”. The Jesu Kristi teaching also recognizes the action of ancestors who guide their living relatives through visions and dreams serving as intermediaries between the empirical and spiritual worlds. The Scriptures are seen a book of reference but of “power to order human lives”, seen as rekindling the love of God already present in traditional African religion. These and many other phenomena of African Christianity represent sources of fruitful theology and practice as well as potential pitfalls of error. Just with every other area of the global church, the African church is challenged to effectively share and receive counsel in relation to the rest of the body of Christ (Oladipo, 2016, p. 91-93).

In the African revivalist churches which emerged at the end of the 19th century, the dynamism of African Christianity is manifest as well as some questionable developments. On the positive side, many of these churches strive for “institutional and doctrinal independence” from the form of Christianity imported by Western missionaries (Ngalula, 2017, p. 231). This has led to the creation of thriving theology schools, organizations and confederations (p. 231). On the negative side, the “divination of the founding prophets” has been a phenomenon which presents these men as “‘incarnations’ of God” (Ngalula, 2017, p. 231). 

How these Current Challenges Relate to the History of Christianity in Africa

When the Christian faith arrived in Africa through Western missionaries, the converts “Africanized and crafted” the faith into “indigenous idioms” leading to its explosive growth across the sub-Saharan nations (Oladipo, 2016, p. 86). An unintended consequence of the spread of Christianity in Africa was a “recovery of their existing religious heritage” where the values of the new religion were “complementary, if not congruent” with African religions life (p. 87). 

The missionaries left a positive legacy by “imbuing African Christians with dignity by educating them” despite their desire to “undermine indigenous traditions” (Oladipo, 2016, p. 89). The churches in Africa today that were born from Western missions include Catholics, Orthodox, and Mainline Protestants (Ngaulula, 2017, p. 229). Although these churches are predominantly Africanized in membership, leadership, and methodology they continue to be in communion with Western mother churches. The Pentecostal churches descend from US-American missions at the end of the 19th century, maintaining close links with mother churches in doctrine, methodology, as well as funding (Ngalula, 2017, p. 229). 

The denominational fragmentation of African Christianity through the indigenous revivalist churches has created a “religious market” which is detrimental to ecumenism (Ngalula, 2017, p. 239). The response of multitudes of Africans to the gospel can be seen as ambiguous, being born of a “deep desire for God” as well as “extreme poverty” that makes unscrupulous prosperity preaching attractive (Ngalula, 2017, p. 235). 

The Western missionaries who brought Christianity to Africa sought “immediate and total change rather than a process of transformation that would take a long time” (Ayanga, 2017, p. 301). The women of the emerging churches were the exception, showing mor interest in “discipling and in the gradual but more in-depth transformation” that embodied the Christian vision. As had been in most of the world, African churches were slow to invest in theological training of women. Since the crises in Africa of disease, war, and violence tend to hit women hardest, the churches should recognize that women should be promoted in “finding and formulating appropriate theological responses” to this suffering (Ayanga, 2017, p. 299-301). 

Some possible ways forward

The African church rightly resisted replicating the “Quasi-Scientific worldview” of the Western missionaries by continuing to embrace the “primordial world” of spiritual interventions both good and evil, that of possession, prophecy, healing, and miraculous provision (Oladipo, 2016, p. 88). This intuitive response to and incorporation of Christianity by Africans should be sustained into the future. Oladipo (2016) recommends that missionaries and Africans develop partnerships today of mutual openness that reaffirm each other “in the spiritual world of the primordial universe” (p. 89). The African church can share with Global Christianity the needed reaffirmation of the fact that God is at the center of existence which is manifest in the sphere of mundane life, in addition to the rational and transcendent.

As the African church has come into its own, several areas of fruitful contribution to global Christianity are present. The African church’s strong sense of community expressed in the sentiment that “I am because we are” is helpful in an age that needs greater human interdependency (Oladipo, 2016, p. 95). The view that nature is sacred to the worship of God and connection to the infinite has much to teach a Western world that created the current environmental course of destruction. And the African posture of openness towards other faith traditions can help put the divisive and dogmatic tendencies of Western rationalistic religion in perspective as the global church recognizes the need for interfaith dialogue and partnership for the common good (Oladipo, 2016, p. 96-97). 

Ngalula (2017) argues that the condition of being Christian or a church in the Global South will increasingly affect the church worldwide (p. 229). As African Christians go overseas as students, refugees, or missionaries they bring the dynamism of the African churches to the new countries they meet. Many young Westerners have come to faith in Christ for the first time in churches established by African missionaries in Europe and North America. But the African church risks becoming isolated in its perspective due to the lack of missionary presence since the end of colonialism (Ngala, 2017, p. 237-8, 296). 

References

Ayanga, Hazel O. (2017). Contextual Challenges to African Women in Mission. International Review of Mission, Vol. 106(2)

Osadolor, Imasogie (1985) African Traditional Religion. University Press.

Ngalula, Josée (2017). Some Current Trends of Christianity in Africa. International Review of Mission, Vol. 106(2)

Oladipo, Caleb O. (2016). African Christianity: Its scope in global context. Review and Expositor, Vol. 113(1)

by daviddawson462742281

How Protestant Missions Contributed to Democracy and Education in Africa 

A constructive response to critiques of Colonial Era Missions

Missiologist Robert Woodberry (2004) lists the emergence of religious pluralism, democratic theory, civil society, mass education, the public sphere, economic development, and reduction of corruption as mechanisms that explain Protestantism’s tendency to promote democracy over time (p. 48). These phenomena derive from the foundations in Luther that Protestants are independent from the episcopal ecclesiastical structures of the Catholic and Orthodox churches, the doctrine that a believer receives saving faith through individual appropriation of Scripture, and a tendency towards independence from political authorities (Woodberry, 2004, p. 48). The lack of a method for resolving doctrinal divergencies in Protestantism resulted in a pluralism that fostered the mutual independence of church and state which is essential to democracy (p. 50). Since there can only be one state church, Protestant denominations without political privilege had to struggle to obtain and preserve their rights and encourage voluntarism and giving among the congregants (p. 52). Education flourished under Protestant missions because all believers needed to read the Bible in their native languages (p. 53).

This is still reflected in the educational development of non-Western nations that received Protestant missions (p. 54). In comparison to Catholic missions that were connected to colonial powers, Protestants could more effectively fight for social justice, even if specifically motivated primarily for creating openness to evangelism (p. 56). Newer Protestant groups today are lay supported that tend to “develop and promote organizations, skills, and resources among non-elite citizens” which promotes civil society and leads to “stable democratic government” (p. 59).

Woodberry (2006) also argues politically independent missionaries moderated the harmful effects of colonialism. And positively, their work in the 19th and early-20th centuries still bears positive fruit in “levels of educational enrollment, infant mortality, and political democracy in societies” (p. 3). Although missionaries of the 18th and 19th century reflected to pervasive attitude of Western civilizational superiority, their critique of other societies was “cultural, not racial” (p. 4). They believed that the cultures they went to could be transformed the same way pre-Christian barbarian peoples were (p. 4). In education, missionaries “wrote and translated books, built buildings, and trained teachers, which made future educational expansions easier” having long-term effects (p. 6). Evangelical missionaries fought for religious liberty which ended up being extend to anti-missionary groups who developed “identifiable leaders, newspapers, extensive memberships, and cross-regional networks” which led to indigenous nationalism (p. 6).

It was not Enlightenment intellectuals that reformed colonialism, but field missionaries who had personal knowledge, vested interest, and a broad non-state power base (p. 10). It can effectively be argued that the negative effects of colonialism would have been much greater without the presence and activity of non-state missionaries (p. 11).

Comparisons of British and French colonies in Africa show that the former provided a basis for stable democracies while the latter’s legacy was authoritarian governments and internal strife (Palplant, 2014, p. 36). Extensive statistical analysis has demonstrated that missionaries were central to the development of key aspects of democracy such as inclusive education, printing, and grassroots nationalist mobilization (p. 38). A key indicator of a missionary legacy in postcolonial African nations is the level of involvement in nongovernmental organizations, which is much higher where Protestant missionary activity occurred (p. 39). The Protestant doctrine of the priesthood of all believers motivated literacy projects that brought old hierarchies down and fostered democracy (p. 41). Most of the early African independence movement leaders had been educated in Protestant mission schools (p. 41).

Impact of current research postcolonial critique of Christian Missions

Church history scholar Derek Cooper (2016) analyses the development of the church in Asia and Africa before Western colonialism. Cooper’s research motivates me to spread awareness of Christianity’s Eastern roots. At the same time, the demise of the churches of the East is a cautionary tale against the subtle dangers of political affiliation and the overt dangers of severe persecution. The Western church’s centuries of political privilege over a vast empire caused it to focus on catechization and hierarchy. The Orthodox churches of Europe and the East also affiliated with political powers but eventually in an extremely fragmented way.

Philip Jenkins (2008) effectively argues against a history of Christianity focused on Europe and the Mediterranean, recommending a return to the medieval maps of a Christian world as “three continents as lobes joined together in Jerusalem (…) the center of the world, the natural site for Christ’s act of self-sacrifice and redemption” (p. 13). And … sadly describes the degradation of Christian habitus which was not adopted by Constantine at his conversion. We can only imagine what Western Christianity could have been if he had done so (p. 266).

These observations make me open to new conceptions of Christian mission that display the glory and the shame of its legacy. However, I still believe in the missionary nature of the Christian faith and am hopeful that a motif of intercultural reconciliation can provide a more attractive vision in the 21st century.

References

Cooper, D. (2016). Introduction to World Christian History. IVP Academic.

Jenkins, Philip. (2008). The Lost History of Christianity: The Thousand-Year Golden Age of the Church in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia—And How It Died. Harper Collins.

Palplant D., Andrea (2014). The World the Missionaries Made. Christianity Today.

Woodberry & Shaw (2004). Christianity and Democracy: The Pioneering Protestants. Journal of Democracy, Volume 15, Number 2

Woodberry, Robert D. (2006) RECLAIMING THE M-WORD: THE LEGACY OF MISSIONS IN NONWESTERN SOCIETIES, The Review of Faith & International Affairs, 4:1, 3-12, DOI: 10.1080/15570274.2006.9523232

by daviddawson462742281

Different Legacies of Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox Colonial Missions 

Catholic Counter-Reformation Missions

During the 15-16th Catholic Spain and Portugal became the richest kingdoms in Europe (Cooper, 2016, p. 86). They were given papal authorization to appoint priests and bishops in the Americas, Africa, and the Asian colonies. The Italian church also greatly enriched from treasures coming from Spain and Portugal, even as it reeled from the effects of the Reformation. But through all the changes during and after colonialism, Catholicism still thrives and expands across world till the present (p. 86). 

The Treaty of Tordesillas pope divided all newly discovered land between Spain and Portugal, separating the West and East respectively (p. 94). The main Christian influence in Latin America to this day is Spanish and Portuguese Catholicism. In the Caribbean, exploitative colonization led some Spanish monks to criticize settlers treatment of native peoples. But many priests benefitted from slavery, which only ended with the coming of English and Dutch colonies. The coming of Protestantism fragmented the Islands along national and ecclesiastical lines. In Cuba, the enduring presence of African cults, the failure of Catholicism to connect with locals, and the church’s association with Spain lead to a very low percentage of Christians in Cuba today (p. 94-96). 

The Catholics dominated Central America during colonialism, building banks, convents, churches, schools, and towns. The Catholic church became the largest landowner through tithes and taxes, but this changed after individual nations gained independence and the separation of church and state (p. 98). Protestant missions established a church that favored liberalism versus Catholics conservatism. But in the 20th century the Catholic Church made peace with liberalism and was able to minimize Protestant influence (p. 100). 

In South America, the Spaniard Pizarro conquered the Aztec and Inca Empires. Religious orders flooded the continent and the Catholic Church amassed huge wealth at the same time it was manipulated by totalitarian regimes. However, some prophetic voices of critique emerged from within the church having “marginal success” at curbing exploitation (p. 101); Protestantism came in the 19th century, gaining converts primarily among the middle class. Pentecostals followed with greatest response from the poor, and together with liberation theology these movements have been most influential in Latin American Christianity. The colonial connotations among Pentecostals are limited because in countries like Brazil the emergence of independent native leadership was almost immediate (p. 101-102). 

Protestants Enter the Scene

In Oceania British colonists constructed a modern world in Australia and New Zealand in which Christianity was initially foundational (p. 114). Among the natives of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia are some of the highest percentages of Christians in the world. This is remarkable since these island regions comprise one of the least evangelized parts of the world. Protestants were the first to send missions to Oceania n the 18th century followed by Catholics in the 19th century. Amidst a backdrop of historical isolation and warfare among diverse native peoples, Oceania is now united by Christianity, albeit influenced by rivalries of Protestant denominations (p. 114-115).

The end of slavery deprived Europeans of forced labor outside Africa, but within the continent colonial powers imposed forced labor upon indigenous peoples during the “Scramble for Africa” (p. 124). When the end of Western colonialism came, the church in Africa unexpectedly grew and spread once the Europeans left. Christianity reentered Africa in the 15th century with Islam already present. From the 17th to 20th centuries European (and later North American) Protestants came, with Portuguese missions in 16th century. But in the 20th century Africans dispossessed Europeans and established independent countries (p. 124-125). 

Formerly Christian Northern African is the region of greatest Muslim dominance in Africa today, but this transition occurred over centuries (p. 132). Western missions of the 19th century were seen as bringing a foreign, Western religion. Missions, however, were a small factor in the larger colonial project in North Africa, and those that did succeed were largely abandoned during decolonization after World War II (p. 132). 

Southern African countries today with Christian majority are those colonized by the English (p. 134). The Dutch Boers resented the English overlords when slavery abolished in the early 19th century. The Boers then embarked on the “Great Trek” out of British controlled areas seeing it as a form of biblical Exodus “leaving Egypt”. But those lands were inhabited by African tribes, and subsequent discovery of diamonds added to conflicts in the region. Afrikaners and British fought during the Boer Wars in late 19th and early 20th centuries, leading up to the establishment of an apartheid state with Dutch Reformed church approval. Western Africa is divided among Islam and Christianity because of Muslim conquest followed by Christian missions in the 15th century. The first Christian missions were the Catholic Portuguese along the coast, followed by the Spanish, Dutch and English (p. 135-136). 

Russian Orthodox Expansion

In Central Asia expansion of Russian empire brought Orthodox faith from the years 1500 to 1900 followed by era of religious repression under the USSR (p. 143). Eastern Asia saw the “Christian century” in Japan with Catholic missions from 1549-1650. This, however, was followed by expulsion of missionaries as the church was accused of being involved in political subversion. During this time from 5 to 6 thousand Christians were massacred. In Southeastern Asia the Portuguese, Spanish and French brought Christianity in 16th century with the Dutch and Germans bringing Protestantism in the 19th century. The pope granted Portugal religious jurisdiction over the East and Spain in West with the treaty of Tordesillas. The legacy of colonialism and Christian missions in Western Asia includes the domination of the church by foreign rulers for centuries – Islamic, Western Christian, and Ottoman. Many Christians ended up converting to Islam because of religious oppression. Although Christianity in Asian continues to grow consistently, it still largely bears association with Western imperialism (p. 144-154). 

References

Cooper, D. (2016). Introduction to World Christian History. IVP Academic.

by daviddawson462742281

Short-term Missions in a Postmodern, Postcolonial World

Various social institutions and sociological theories influence cross-cultural engagement. A postmodern anthropology looks at economics, development, religion, and social class. In this text, I will look at some sociological theories examining short term missions (STM).

Economics and Development

Christian anthropologist Mike Rynkiewich (2011) analyzes postmodernism and postcolonialism in his book Soul, self, and society. Attempts to provide a form of international assistance engage dynamics of reciprocity and exchange. A gift gives symbolic representation to a relationship, having “value and meaning beyond its appearance” (Rynkiewich, 2011, p. 81). Colonialism embodied the category of exchange known as redistribution, where goods move toward a center and then out from it. Globalization has brought the market exchange model where individuals bring their wares to a common market – physically or online – and seek exchange. Anthropologists have increasingly critiqued the notion that development and modernization are equivalent, and that advances in technology represent the most important aspect of development (Rynkiewich, p. 82-84). 

Practitioners of STM should be sensitive to each one of these paradigms of economics and development. Attempts by richer nations to help poorer ones as an expression of Christ’s love must not ignore the cultural dynamics of reciprocity and exchange. STMs runs the risk of inadvertently using colonialism’s paradigm of redistribution by acting as if Christ’s kingdom is centered in the sending country. This colonial association of Christianity with a particular culture – most notably the West – has been so destructive and yet runs the risk of being reproduced in the Global South. What makes students of church history think that the temptations of power will not affect the megachurches of the Global South. Why wouldn’t new emergent poles of Christian power assume that they are now the true people of God, as did the Portuguese and Spanish, Christened by the pope in the 15th century to colonize the New World (Coben, 2015)?

Perhaps the most accessible starting place for STMs in addressing cultural perspectives on economics and development is reciprocity and exchange. The giving of gifts is a universal mode of interaction between groups potentially symbolizing and communicating “the value of a relationship between groups” (Caillé, 2013). Reciprocity generally emerges through the “obligating social indebtedness” created by participants independent of the “coercive power of an external social institution” (Carrier, 1991). The spiritualization of reception is a process that “converts unequal material gifts from foreign hosts into spiritual understanding among STM travelers” (Addler & Offutt, 2017, p. 600). What is perceived as repayment takes the form of “spiritual gifts of self-understanding, growth, and awareness”. For example, American travelers in foreign countries become “aware of the blessing or bounty of their current life”. This is a hopeful example of how international partnerships can be done in a way that is “made meaningful across inequality” (Addler & Offutt, 2017, p. 612-617). 

Concept of Religion

STM must also consider the prominence of the Western concept of religion in the development of modern missions. It can be argued that the concept of religion as a belief system chosen by the individual is a Western construct. What Westerners conceived of as religion when they met with spiritual practices and traditions overseas was, for the indigenous peoples, a “way of life” consisting of many beliefs and practices that cannot be separated from each other (Rynkiewich, 2011, p. 99). For most peoples in human history, beliefs and rituals were understood as part of everyday experience, connected to land and community. To these premodern civilizations, spiritual forces were more conspicuous and evident than to the enlightened Westerners (p. 99). And contra the secularization hypothesis of the 20th century that predicted the demise of religion, the everyday reality of spiritual forces continues to be the majority opinion of the world population (Riesebrodt, 2000). Thus, STMs must account for the disruption that can occur when integral aspects of an individual or community’s identity are denigrated by the proclamation of the Christian gospel.

In a postcolonial world, STMs must abandon old paradigms of cultural development from simple to complex, used to justify Europe’s position “at the top of the ladder” (p. 99), simply because of their military superiority. Evolutionary theories of religion that posit progression from animism to polytheism and ultimately monotheism depict primitive peoples being benevolently guided to enlightenment by Western tutors (p. 101). But Western theories of the function of religion as a means of social cohesion and facing adversity negate humanity’s deep connection to spiritual belief and practice. Many in the West are content with explications of religion that provide a pretext to ignore it. But practitioners of STM must recognize the importance of the “middle range of religion” (Rynkiewich, 2011, p. 106) – the immanent, mystical experience of spiritual phenomena in the daily life of most Majority World cultures. 

The encounter of different cultural groups can cause the social constructions of each to come undone (Offutt, 2011, p. 805). As STM practitioners engage in the local world-building activities of indigenous peoples, they much take care not to cause harmful disruption. Hosts and travelers can mitigate against such damage by seeking “common stocks of knowledge” shared between them. What is shared can begin at the level of global culture such as international sports and then move to shared Christian beliefs. Once rapport is established between traveler and host, more profound dialogue can ensue as trust has been established (Offutt, 2011, p. 805). 

One ambitious STM model that has emerged is multicultural joint teams which recognizes that mission is now truly “from everywhere to everywhere”. This strategy mobilizes teams from two different cultures and perhaps different denominations. The two groups are then sent to a third cultural context where it is hoped that new forms of missional engagement may emerge. Another aspiration is that this practice bring reconciliation to cultural and denominational differences (Mulieri, 2020). 

Caste, Class, and Ethnicity

Rounding off this analysis, STMs must take account of caste, class, and ethnicity in its cross-cultural endeavors. Westerners may sneer at the concept of caste in Asia, but the idea of hierarchy is found in the West as well. The difference is that in most societies religion is used to provide the explanation and justification for social inequality (Rynkievich, 2011, p. 115). Ambiguity related to the conversion of indigenous peoples to Christianity for social advancement is something STM participants should be aware of. Since most STMs have come from richer countries endeavoring to serve poorer ones, the reality of class difference must also be considered. The influence of Western concepts of class associated with income, residence, profession, and education has come into stark conflict with non-Western communities concepts of identity. The Western concept of ethnicity has arisen in the colonial confrontation between different cultures, languages, and customs. Ethnic identity has been formed not within a community with certain biological, linguistic, and geographical connotations, but through this community’s interaction with others. As STM participants go into the world, they must consider how the context of caste, class, and ethnicity can undermine cross-cultural relationships (Rynkiewich, 2011, p. 117-123).

Research indicates that STM can help foster a “thicker global civil society within Christianity” (Offutt, 2011, p. 810). STM still currently consists of most Western teams and long-term missionaries going into the Majority World. But those Majority World churches that do send STMs feel enabled to engage in missions themselves locally and internationally. STMs result in the establishment of “overlapping networks that criss-cross the globe” establishing “higher levels of trust” between cultures. Unfortunately, research also indicates that STMs from the new non-Western centers of Christianity often have little or no intercultural training resulting in cultural misunderstandings and offenses (Offutt, 2011, p. 810). 

Other research, however, indicates that harmful attitudes about ethnicity are hard to mitigate against in the context of STMs (Huang, 2019, p. 55). International travel offers helpful challenges to the identity of STM participants. However, the inherent privilege of STM participants is often invisible to themselves. This level of privilege has led some to the conclusion that STM has little potential to reduce participants’ prejudice. More optimistic voices suggest STMs seek to be aware of the power and privilege of its participants and the “invisible ways” these “penetrate their organization”, intentionally embracing “ways that counter these tendencies” (Huang, 2019, p. 68-70). 

References

Adler, Gary J. & Offutt, Stephen (2017). The Gift Economy of Direct Transnational Civic Action: How Reciprocity and Inequality Are Managed in Religious “Partnerships”. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 56(3):600–619

Caille ́, Alain (2013_. Anti-utilitarianism and the gift-paradigm. In Handbook on the economics of reciprocity and social

enterprise, edited by Luigino Bruni and Stefano Zamagni, pp. 44–48. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Carrier, James. 1991. Gifts, commodities, and social relations: A Maussian view of exchange. Sociological Forum

6(1):119–36.

Coben, L. A. (2015). The Events that Led to the Treaty of Tordesillas. Terrae Incognitae, 47(2), 142–162. Complementary Index. https://doi.org/10.1179/00822884.2015.1120427

Huang, Lindsay A. (2019). Short-Term Mission Trips: Developing the Racial and Ethnic Consciousness of White Participants. Journal of Sociology and Christianity, Volume 9, Number 2

Mulieri Twibell, Simone (2020). Contributions, challenges, and emerging patterns of short-term missions. Missiology: An International Review, Vol. 48(4) 

Offutt, Stephen (2015). The Role of Short-Term Mission Teams in the New Centers of Global Christianity. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 50(4):796–811

Riesebrodt, M. (2000). Fundamentalism and the Resurgence of Religion. Numen, 47(3), 266–287.

Rynkiewich, M. (2011). Soul, self, and society: A postmodern anthropology for mission in a postcolonial world. Cascade Books.

by daviddawson462742281

How Europe Became the Center of Christianity Over 15 Centuries

In his book Introduction to World Christian History, Derek Cooper (2016) explores the underappreciated history of the church beyond Europe and North America. At the turn of the first millennium, Christianity began to fade in the eastern and southern Mediterranean world while it simultaneously grew in its western and northern parts (Cooper, 2016, p. 66). The crowning of Charlemagne by Pope Leo III in 800 marked was a watershed moment in the fusion of the Germanic and Roman cultures through a common faith and an imperialistic mindset. The other great part of European Christianity was the Byzantine Empire which had evangelized Belarus, Bulgaria, Greece, Malta, Macedonia, Moldavia, Serbia, Romania, and Russia. But as the Byzantine Empire declined it became vulnerable to the Muslim threat. Western Catholicism in contrast would expand into Africa, Asia, and eventually the Americas by the 15th century (p. 66). 

Eastern Europe was either Catholic or Orthodox based on the link to the Holy Roman or Byzantine empires. Further east in Belarus, Bulgaria, Moldova, Romania, Russia and Ukraine was mostly Orthodox while the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia were Catholic (p. 67). Internal missionary battles existed between Catholics and Orthodox along the fault lines, particularly intense in Bohemia (p. 68). Although this competition could be seen as undermining Christianity in Europe, I believe it contributed to the intensification of its influence. 

Northern Europe was the last part of the continent to be evangelized, except for the British Isles (p. 69). The last areas to convert were Scandinavia and the Baltics, and in the latter all nations had adopted Christianity as the state religion by the 14th century. The conversion of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden came through the conversion of their kings who then instituted religious authoritarianism opposing religious diversity. Thus, in the North the influence of Christianity flowed from its connection to political power (p. 69-70). 

Christianity had been in Southern Europe since the 1st century. In the Southwest Catholicism was supreme, holding the sword in the left hand and Scripture in the right uniting conquest and evangelization (p. 71). The Franks and Romans wed their powers under Charlemagne who, along with his successors, employed pious but violent imperial missionary efforts. From the 8-14th centuries Many Balkan kingdoms adopted Eastern Orthodox as official religion even as Byzantine Empire collapsed. In Serbia, the presence of Catholics and orthodox were grounds for future conflicts, eventually becoming predominantly Serbian Orthodox. The Balkans today are roughly one third Orthodox, Catholic, and Muslim. Serbian association with Orthodox Christianity made them not convert as willingly as groups with weaker national churches, such as Bosnians. Again, here in the South the evidence of the power of church survival and its connection to political power is evident (p. 71-73). 

The battle between Christianity and Islam continued in Western Europe decades after the Battle of Tours. The Carolingian Dynasty was blessed by the papacy, thus guaranteeing the survival of the Franks. This alliance became the basis of the Holy Roman Empire and led to crusades in Holy Land and Europe. But later, struggles would arise in the West between the papacy and monarchs (p. 74). Medieval monastic reform movements such as the Cluniacs and Cistercians spread from France across Europe playing a central role in education and evangelization. Fringe Christian protest groups emerged which were either suppressed or eventually approved by Rome, such as Dominican and Franciscan orders that invigorating the church. Urbanization and the decline of feudalism led to the creation of secular Christian universities derived from the cathedral schools Charlemagne had established. Scholasticism emerged in Paris with figures like Aquinas and other “spell-binding professors”, which some thought was “rotten” but eventually developed into the liberal arts education. The Black Death caused “widespread religious anxiety and despair” and the papal controversies contributed to the Hundred Years War between England and France in the 14th century (p. 74-77).

Thus, despite internal and external challenges, Europe became center of Christianity after second millennium, congealing by the 15th century into respective religious borders: Catholic Southwest, Northwest, and West versus Orthodox in the Southeast and Northeast (p. 77). 

References

Cooper, D. (2016). Introduction to World Christian History. IVP Academic.

by daviddawson462742281

Generalizations About the Poor Overshadow Innovation and Agency

Lisa Cliggett’s Grains From Grass (2005) studies the Gwembe Tonga people of Zambia. This research reveals diverse socioeconomic strategies developed to deal with the complexity of globalization (p. 3). We see development among the Tonga as happening through labor migration, negotiating kinship paradigms of assistance, and religious practice. These forms of finding sustenance can be studied statistically looking at groups but are employed and altered by individuals. Indeed, the individualism demonstrated in various forms of socioeconomic self-preservation counter romantic Western notions of such societies being inherently collectivist and altruistic (p. 2). 

It may seem like a stretch, but this situation made me reflect on my own socioeconomic experience as a missionary from the West. I have spent most of my life outside Southern California where I was born, in two countries – Brazil and Portugal – where supporting myself and my family are much easier with my vocation than back home. Although I come from a Pentecostal tradition that emphasizes divine guidance and prophecy, I believe that my wife and my choice of location has been affected by economic realities. After 16 years in Brazil, my wife and I moved back to Southern California for 3 years but eventually moved on to Portugal. The cost of living in that part of the U.S. was a very real part of our decision to move. We could have stayed in the U.S. but our vocation as missionaries meant this would likely result in a loss of financial support. 

For most missionaries, donations are the main source of income, but increasingly other forms of financial sustainability are sought. This should be done with supporters’ knowledge to preserve accountability and not undermine the validity of a missionary’s appeal for donations. Again, I realize the great different in the Gwembe Tonga experience and my own, but the reality of individual agency versus oversimplified generalizations is shared. I feel that long-term missionaries today are not helped by being given only a few legitimate options for financially supporting their work. 

Cliggett (2005) promotes using a “framework of vulnerability that highlights difference in terms of a group’s resources and its ability to control those resources” that “forces us to develop a more complex vision” of such societies (p. 16). Again, I blush at trying to connect the economic situation of the Gwembe Tonga to my context in Portugal, but I do see some relevance. The Portuguese media constantly discuss the exodus of young people to other parts of Europe looking for better wages (Portugal at a risk of poverty below the EU average, n.d.). A tradesperson, for example, can make 3 or 4 times more in a country like France or Germany. However, diverse groups of immigrants to Portugal are thriving as they compare its economic opportunities to those of former Portuguese colonial nations which they come from (Monteiro, 2024). More recently, increased amounts of immigrants to Portugal are coming from South Asia, who find the country an easier port of entry than other European nations. 

At the same time, Portuguese economists constantly criticize the culture of nepotism and “amigismo” (closing economic circles among friends) as the prime source of its relative poverty and underperformance in Western Europe (Pimentel, 2021). There is no other nation I know in Europe that has an economy like Portugal’s in comparison to its powerful neighbors. As I think of my children’s economic future here in Portugal, I am forced to think of where there are thriving sources of innovation and opportunity. As I look around the metro area of Lisbon where we live, it is obvious that economic prosperity exists here. This is like my experience living in large cities of Brazil. The Brazilian media constantly spoke of the lack of economic opportunities in the nation in comparison to other countries. However, in these huge, teeming metropolises I was aware of millions of people who were finding a way to survive and often thrive. Cliggett’s work encourages me to look beyond the media portrayal of national economics which always makes money off bad news. As a missionary, I believe Cliggett’s work provides encouragement towards a rejection of negative economic stereotypes of the nations we serve. 

Now I will proceed gears to the second discussion prompt regarding gendered land ownership and accusations of witchcraft. I believe it is possible that Gwembe Tonga women may be accused as bulozi(witches) because of increased access to land inheritance from husbands. Elderly men are believed to engage in sorcery to “manipulate the supernatural world for human goals” (Cliggett, 2005, p. 131). Sorcery is believed to be the cause of sickness and death to their relatives (p. 134), and land inheritance disputes are common to so many cultures. Elderly men’s use of mystical powers sometimes backfires, resulting in witch hunts aiming to cleanse the community of evil and unfair practices (p. 136). Therefore, I think it is reasonable to assume that elderly women’s empowerment related to land makes them vulnerable to accusations of witchcraft like elderly men. 

References

Cliggett, L. (2005). Grains from grass: Aging, gender, and famine in rural Africa. Cornell University Press.

Pimentel, A. H., Marina. (2021, December 23). Maria José Morgado: “Cultura de impunidade, nepotismo e amiguismo tem feito de Portugal um país pobre e atrasado.” PÚBLICO. 

Portugal at a risk of poverty below the EU average. (n.d.). Retrieved October 9, 2024, from https://www.portugal.gov.pt/en/gc23/communication/news-item?i=portugal-at-a-risk-of-poverty-below-the-eu-average

Monteiro, C. (2024, April 16). Migração: Factos e Números 2024. EAPN. https://www.eapn.pt/centro-de-documentacao/migracao-factos-e-numeros-2024/

by daviddawson462742281

Anthropology has Moved on, Should Missiology?

Claude Stipe’s (1980) analysis of anthropologists’ negative attitudes towards missionaries is based on two prevalent assumptions. These are that “primitive cultures are characterized by an organic unity and that religious beliefs are essentially meaningless” (p. 166). Based on functionalism, the organic-unity concept sees primitive cultures as possessing an internal equilibrium and integrity. Therefore, unless internally motivated, cultural change amounts to “upsetting a delicate machine” (Colson, 1976, p. 267). This anthropological perspective posits that options are bad for pristine ancient cultures. But inconsistently, options are good for the West to “free ourselves, and our peers, from constraining tradition” (Colson, 1976, p. 276). 

The religion as meaningless concept can be connected to the experience of most early anthropological writers on religion. Not surprisingly, this was negative, and probably led to their subsequent attitudes towards religion (Stipe, 1980, p. 167). By discrediting primitive religion as “outmoded superstition” of a prescientific age (Evans-Pritchard, 1972, p. 205), higher religions can also be dismissed (Stipe, 1980, p. 167). The religion as meaningless position holds that its study should focus “on the rites rather than the beliefs” (Radcliffe-Brown, 1952, p. 155). Since religion does not produce an integrating theory of the world, human experience of the divine can be dismissed as a manifestation of the “supreme archetypal social relationship” (Horton, 1971, p. 96). This would explain anthropologists dislike of missionaries, who take seriously the religious beliefs of the cultures they encounter which anthropologists have rejected (Stipe, 1980, p. 168). 

A more helpful attitude today on the part of both missionaries and anthropologists has been proposed. Since both hold positions regarding truth and a desire to protect the people they work among, missionaries and anthropologists can build relations based on these similarities (Salamone, 1977, p. 409). 

The concept of culture as “homogenous and patterned” and attempts to totalize culture “from one small community into a country and even a continent” has led missiologists to an exaggerated focus on understanding and changing worldview (Yip, 2014, p. 401). Globalization has led to a view of cultures as fragmented and non-discrete, overlapping each other resulting in a lack of clear-cut boundaries (Yip, 2014, p. 403). Postmodern missiologies are needed that focus on the multicultural and diasporic (Yip, 2014, p. 403). A helpful anthropology of religion is bricolage – that a person’s beliefs are a loose assortment of diverse sources (Vroom, 2003, p. 74). Based on postmodern concepts of instrumentalism and idealism, a missiology can be formed that recognizes the limitations to scientifically knowing the cultural “other” whether such a reality exists (Hiebert, 1999, p. 51,37,38). Yip’s (2014) polythetic and progressive contextualization helpfully recognizes the variations and exceptions present in any culture (p. 408). This approach recognizes the presence of diverse subgroups within a culture as well as its constant mutation (p. 409). 

Another helpful suggestion for missiology within a global community constantly in flux is that the field of study be placed within applied theology (Rynkiewich, 2020, p. 336). This subfield sees to “utilize anthropological knowledge and skill for practical human needs” (Luzbetak, 1988, p. 34). By observing applied anthropology in other fields such as medicine, missiologists can identify different critical phases (Rynkiewich, 2020, p. 341). Medical anthropology progressed from assuming that culture was the problem to the people are the problem. Finally, the conclusion was reached that we are the problem (Rynkiewich, 2020, p. 338). The first two phases can be seen in missiology up to present, but not the third critical phase, that we are the problem (Rynkievich, 2020, p. 340-1). Returning to Yip’s (2013) polythetic and progressive contextualization approach, postmodern missions training should focus on teaching research methods and data analysis (Rynkiewich, 2020, p. 343-4). Challenges to contextualization include migration, cultural hybridity, multilingualism, and multiculturalism (Rynkiewich, 2020, p. 345), all of which require a missiology focused on constant inquiry and adjustment of theory and praxis. 

References

Colson, Elizabeth (1976). Culture and progress. American Anthropologist, 78:261-71.

Evans-Pritchard, E.E. (1972). Religion and the anthropologists. Practical Anthropology, 19:193-206. (Originally published in Blackfriars 41[480]:104-18, April 1960.)

Hiebert, P.G. (1999) Missiological Implications of Epistemological Shifts. Trinity Press International.

Horton, Robin. 1971. African conversion. Africa 41.

Luzbetak, Louis J. (1988). The Church and Cultures: New Perspectives in Missiological Anthropology. Orbis Books

Radcliffe-Brown, A. R. (1952). “Religion and society,” in Structure and function in primitive society. Edited by A. R. Radcliffe-Brown, Free Press.

Rynkiewich, Michael A. (2020). The Challenge of Teaching Mission in an Increasingly Mobile and Complex World. International Bulletin of Mission Research, Vol. 44(4) 

Salamone, Frank A. (1977). Anthropologists and missionaries: Competition or reciprocity? Human Organization, 36.

Stipe, Claude E. (1980). Anthropologists versus Missionaries: The Influence of Presuppositions. Current Anthropology, Vol. 21, No. 2

Vroom, H.M. (2003). Bricolage and fullness: on multiple participation. In Daneel I, Engen C Van

and Vroom HM (eds) Fullness of Life for All: Challenges for Mission in Early 21st Century. Rodopi

Yip, George (2014). The contour of a post- postmodern missiology. Missiology: An International Review, Vol. 42(4)

by daviddawson462742281

The Forgotten History of the Asian Church

I have been aware that Christianity emerged through interaction with existing cultural and political systems. However, most of my study has been on the influence of Western culture and politics on Christianity. But looking at the development of the church from 1st to 7th centuries outside the West reveals other directions Christian doctrine and practice can take. East Syrian Christianity was dominant in Asia – though not tolerated by the church of the Roman Empire – and West Syrian Christians were dominant in Africa (Cooper, 2016, p. 13). These different branches of Christianity emphasized their differences rather than what they had in common. The most foundational point of contention was interpreting how Christ’s humanity and divinity related to each other (Cooper, 2016, p. 13). As we think of evangelism today, diverse forms of global Christianity should spend more energy seeking consensus that reasons to not collaborate. 

I was unaware of the interaction of Christianity with other religions outside the West. Christianity experienced intense challenges from other religions in Asia where it originated (Cooper, 2016, p. 15). By the fourth century, Christianity was thriving in several parts of the Middle East (p. 20). More theological diversity existed in Middle Eastern Christianity compared to Byzantine, Constantine’s chosen capital which became the core of church doctrine and practice (p. 17, 21). Christianity in Central and Eastern Asia was arguably “the most evangelistic of any tradition in the early and medieval church”. Unfortunately, the study of early Christianity in these regions is “still in its infancy” (p. 23). 

Although the legacy of the church’s political privilege in the West after Constantine is ambiguous, the consensus is that it helped Christianity’s survival in the region. In contrast, because Chinese Christianity was attached to the court of the Tang dynasty, it did not survive the transition to the Sung dynasty (Cooper, p. 25). Christianity spread to Africa by second half of first century, producing some of the most important Christian figures and writings (p. 28). Before 7th century Muslim invasion, several African kingdoms adopted Christianity as the official religion (p. 29,33). Bur the Ethiopian church was allowed a level of freedom by Islamic conquerors (Cooper, 2016, p. 34). The history of non-Western Christianity yields a richer resource for learning to share the gospel in our pluralistic world. These early brothers and sisters had to negotiate the expression of their faith in Christ often from the margins of society or as diplomatic emissaries. 

Because of unfamiliar terms such as Nestorian and Jacobite, we can perceive the Eastern and African churches as obscure sects of “alien religions” instead of vibrant streams of Christian faith (Jenkins, 2008, p. 20). It is well known that the spread of Christianity to the West was facilitated by Roman roads and defended sea routes as well as the widely spoken Greek and Latin languages. But the lands east and northeast of Jerusalem also had familiar trade routes, leading through Syria, Mesopotamia, to the far East (p. 21). Although the history of Christianity in Western Europe is more familiar to most, Jerusalem is closer to Central Asia than France (p. 22). The church-state alliance in Rome and Constantinople created persecution of Christians living under the rule of the rival Persian superpower (p. 23). But operating outside the purvey of Rome was beneficial for Christian sects condemned by the Catholic and Orthodox establishments. So other Christians living on the frontiers of the Empire had to flee to peripheral regions that became “fertile territory for religious innovation and interaction”. The Nestorians and Jacobites in Asia were two alternative churches that rivaled the Orthodoxy of Constantinople. The Persian Empire was happy to protect these “potential enemies to Roman power”, and. Nestorian missionaries had success in China and India (p. 23, 26-7). In the post-Christian West, the church can learn much from early non-Western Christianity on how to live out our faith from a place of humble witness. When cultural and political powers oppose the spread of Christianity, cultivating the art of religious diplomacy and dialogue can make survival, even flourishing, possible. 

Each Christian tradition that emerged offered their adherents experiences that appealed to the senses, with Monasticism as the highest form of spirituality (Jenkins, 2008, p. 29). Mystical practice, however, declined in the West as the institutional church grew in the Roman Empire (p. 29). The Eastern churches opposed dependence on mere human reason, although they were enthusiastic about learning (p. 30). Eastern Christian scholars admired and credited the contributions of other cultures, and they highly influenced emerging Islamic science and philosophy (p. 31). Whereas Roman and Byzantine Christianity adapted to mainstream culture distancing itself from Semitic roots, Eastern Christianity was “founded in a Semitic tradition” closer to the apostles (p. 32). The latter were keenly aware that Biblical events had occurred in the part of the world where they lived (p. 33). The Eastern churches had to engage with diverse cultures and religions which they accommodated in various ways and degrees. There Buddhist and Christian monasteries were often located next door to each other, and often collaborated. Contrary to popular conceptions, the written record of Eastern Christianity shows a conservative approach to Scripture and a “distinctively Christian message”, despite drawing upon interactions with Buddhism and Islam (p. 35). 

I believe that recuperating the diversity of Christian devotion and service is key to making our message more attractive to the world in the third millennium. After 2000 years of church history, many adherents of diverse Christian traditions are fatigued with the rote practice and doctrine they have grown to take for granted. As we discover the variety in the historical body of Christ, I believe we will be inspired to express the vision of his kingdom in innovative and compelling ways. 

References

Cooper, D. (2016). Introduction to World Christian History. IVP Academic.

Jenkins, Philip. (2008). The Lost History of Christianity: The Thousand-Year Golden Age of the Church in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia—And How It Died. Harper Collins.

by daviddawson462742281

How the Church Grew Without Evangelism and Missions?

The “Patient Ferment” of Early Christianity

After Constantine’s conversion in 312 CE, the growth of the church is easy to explain, but not before (Kreider, 2016, p. 9). Up to that decisive point, Christian writings focused on church order with the theme of evangelism practically nonexistent (p. 10). Leadership structure was elaborated but didn’t include apostles or evangelists, and worship services were not used to attract new adherents (p. 10-11). Kreider refers to the mysterious, decentralized, uncoordinated spread of Christianity during that time as “patient ferment” (p. 12). Cyprian, Justin, Origen, and Tertulian emphasized the effectiveness of Christian witness as depending on their lifestyle, how their patience intrigues and attracts people to faith (p. 14-29). 

The growth of Christianity was more accelerated, whose characteristic patience became degraded (p. 245, 251). Constantine “Christianized” the law, but without abandoning his “unreformed habitus” (p. 263.1-2). Ge governed according to the traditional Roman approach, favoring the church and suppressing dissidents (p. 267, 269). Constantine offered Christians control over missions endeavors (p. 274), power of state for conversion (p. 275) and suppression of dissidence (276). And the emperor was in a hurry to implement these changes to Christian practice (277). 

By the 4th century, “the papacy and the imperial court seemed wobbly” and Augustine (354-430) felt “out of control” (p. 281). Augustine failed to see the corrective in the Christian habitus of patience to Roman habitus of impatience (p. 290), Augustine shifted focus in his teaching emphasizing the inward Christian life rather than on praxis (p. 290). In the 5th century Augustine’s increased anxiety leads him to shift hears encouraging political powers to use “top-down methods for Christian ends” (p. 295). 

Rewiring the Convert’s “Habitus”

While after Constantine’s conversion Christianity offered social benefits, before this catechesis and worship were the two means Christian communities sought to rewire convert’s habitus (p. 41). This term refers to the deeper motivator linked to socioeconomic and psychological realities coined by Pierre Bourdieu, “corporeal knowledge” we carry in our bodies (39.2). 

The heroic witness of Christian victims of persecution before the reign of Constantine demonstrate that they had allegiances that didn’t fit the Roman structure (p. 45). The Christians were of different social classes (p. 46). They could not control their surrounding circumstances but “they could be themselves” (p. 47). Christians used public persecution as an opportunity to witness to crowds regarding impending judgement (p. 48). Thus, such heroic Christian habitus was transmitted through role models who embodied the message (p. 50). Habitus was transmitted in the repetition of powerful phrases for context of suffering (p. 50), and the kinesthetic effects of worship (p. 51). 

In the Roman world during the emergence of Christianity, private associations provided adherents with face-to-face relationships and sense of participation and responsibility (p. 52). These associations “sustained the life of local people” and “formed their habitus” (p. 56). Christianity offered an alternative association which offered some preferable conditions (p. 56). Contribution was voluntary and members saw themselves as a family which transcended gender and class boundaries (p. 59). However, Christian associations were secretive, leading to rumors of “cannibalism and sexual license” (p. 58). 

The growth of Christianity before Constantine happened despite a lack of planning and control (p. 74). They believed God’s sovereignty was involved, and thus didn’t seek to discern and record strategic insights. Christians prioritized developing Christian habitus over evangelism, and believed the main agents of change were marginal members of society – the humble and anonymous (p. 74). Even during this period, however, increased numbers led to a degradation of habitus which precipitated more vigorous preaching and catechization (p. 125). Evangelization shifted in some contexts from the witness of the community to that of individual piety of monks (p. 126). Inflated communities led to a greater presence of lukewarm members (p. 135), and full meals were replaced by symbolic liturgies (p. 136). 

Is Christian Habitus Attractive Today?

In my context of secular, nominally Roman Catholic Latin Europe – Portugal, Spain, and Italy – a focus on Christian practice versus doctrine has been an emphasis for some time now. The Catholic Church has taken strides to emphasize involvement in social justice and assistance of the poor. I have been impressed by the number of social projects that are present in the dioceses in the Lisbon metro area. 

At the same time, my informal inquiries inform me that the number of young Portuguese Catholics doing formal catechism is low. Much more popular are small group models like Alpha Course which has been used to introduce many nominal churchgoers to a deeper understanding of the faith. 

The pre-Constantine Christian emphasis on the habitus of the humble and anonymous as the primary evangelistic strategy can be restored as part of Catholic tradition. Within the Catholic Church the hierarchy’s influence is powerful and evident. But in the wider secular society, the witness of servant-hearted Christians who seek the common good is a welcome change. The predominant caricature of the church is an institution only concerned with defending the leverage of its doctrinal positions on issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and Christian religious supremacy. 

References

Kreider, Alan. (2016). The Patient Ferment of the Early Church: The Improbable Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire. Baker Academic.