Project Title Remembering the past: Redefining the future (A study on Edinburgh 1910)

1. 0 Study group summary

1.1 Overall goal

To re-visit and evaluate Edinburgh 1910 in relation to the contemporary mission challenges in the global south (with particular reference to India)

1.2 Duration of the study project: 2008 – 2009

1.3 Critical Trend/needs

The world mission conference held in Edinburgh in 1910 is considered ‘symbolic’ in the history of missionary movements. John R. Mott the Conference chairman called it: “the most notable gathering in the interest of the worldwide expansion of Christianity ever held, not only in missionary annals, but in all Christian annals.” There had been earlier major conferences (London 1888 & New York 1900) but the first steps towards an institutionalized cooperation were taken at Edinburgh.The conferees took stock of the gains made since 1810 in

Evangelism
Bible translation
Mobilizing church support
Training indigenous leaders.

In all, eight Commissions worked to produce reports on the following topics:

1. Carrying the Gospel to all the non-Christian World.
2. The Church in the Mission Field.
3. Education in Relation to the Christianization of National Life.
4. The Missionary Message in Relation to Non-Christian Religions.
5. The Preparation of Missionaries.
6. The Home Base of Missions.
7. Missions and Governments
8. Cooperation and the Promotion of Unity.

Looking to the future, conferees worked on strategies for worldwide evangelism and cooperation. Protestant denominations and missionary societies from around the world sent representatives to Edinburgh, Scotland. A majority [ USA (500), UK (500)] of them were from the Western world. However, out of the 1200 participants, 17 came from the global south (India, China, Korea, Burma, Ceylon and Japan). Interestingly, there were no participants from Africa.Edinburgh 1910 is heralded as the reference point for strategic Mission thinking. The year 2010 marks the hundredth anniversary of Edinburgh 1910. We now live in a world which is markedly different. Today,

1) Missions conducted by Christians from the non-western world are bigger both scale and significance.
2) Church growth in Europe and much of North America has receded, at the same time it has exploded in Africa and other parts of Asia.
3) Over 60 percent of all the world’s Christians now live in Global South.
4) The movement of people, particularly from global south to the West, has made old territorial division between the Christian and non-Christian world redundant.
5) Regions that appeared to be ‘fully missionized lands’ (in 1910) have now become prime mission fields of the world.
6) Mission discourse since 1910 have changed due to the contextual needs of missions in global south.

While we celebrate our cherished memories of Edinburgh 1910 and its place in history, there is a need to re-visit 1910 to (un)learn lessons from history so as to explicitly commit to the evangelization of the whole world and to multi-directionality of mission given the contemporary challenges. This study attempts to evaluate Edinburgh 1910 in the light of contemporary challenges for Mission in (and through) global South.

1.4 Anticipated results:

The missiological study group would

1) Re-visit Edinburgh 1910
2) Study the Global South’s (particularly Indian) contributions at Edinburgh 1910
3) Evaluate the proposals in the light of contemporary mission challenges in the global southp bring proposals that would impact missions in (and through) global south
4) Bring local missiological thinking/practice to bear on global discourse on missions

1.5 Innovation

The missiological study group is an innovation

2.0 External Rationale

2.1 Critical Issues/trends

1) The shifting of the loci of needs and challenges
2) The need to revitalize missions with innovative ventures
3) The need to understand the changing context/s
4) The need for strategic thinking in Missions
5) The urban challenge

2. 2 Relevant Agencies:

2.3 Team Involvement

Team involvement includes all those involved in the planning, study programme design and study project

3.0 Internal Rationale

3.1 Fit within Mission: The Missiological study group fits with the overall mission

3.2 Fit within Strategic Plan: The Missiological study proposals would impact local and global discourse on Missions

3.3 Fit within capabilities: The study group members have exposure, experience and expertise in Missiological thinking and practice.

4. 0 Programme design

4.1 Study Themes

1. Edinburgh 1910: History, Memory and strategic mission thinking
2. The contributions of the global south in Edinburgh 1910
3. We need Friends: Sharing Resources for World Evangelization
4. Reverse Missions: Carrying the Gospel to the Post-Christian West.
5. The Missionary Message in Relation to Non-Christian Religions: Towards a relevant theology of religions
6. The role and significance of women in Missions: What Edinburgh 1910 missed!
7. The tale of a thousand cities: Facing the urban Challenge
8. The challenge of young Global South and the aging West
9. The view from the other side: Mission Perspectives and Proposals for World Evangelization from Global South
10. Business in Relation to the Christianization of National Life.
11. Preparation of Missionaries for today’s challenges: The missionary makeover.
12. Thinking Globally, Acting Locally: Bridging the global and the local perspectives for world Evangelization