History of Missions

Karl Edvard Laman (1867-1944) appartient à la première génération des missionnaires suédois établis dès 1881 dans l’État indépendant du Congo. Il y séjourne durant plus d’un quart de siècle, de 1891 à 1919. Laman s’affirme peu à peu comme une grande figure savante, linguiste et fin connaisseur de la culture Kongo qu’il documente, y compris dans ses expressions matérielles, au moment où ses fondements se disloquent sous les chocs de l’entreprise coloniale. L’œuvre scientifique se double d’un projet humaniste : l’émancipation des populations par l’éducation populaire dont les deux vecteurs sont pour lui l’accès à la Bible en langue kikongo (sa traduction parait en 1905) et la promotion des valeurs culturelles kongo. Cette valorisation de la langue et de la culture Kongo est au fondement de son activité savante.

For 300 years, Franciscans were at the forefront of the spread of Catholicism in the New World. In the late seventeenth century, Franciscans developed a far-reaching, systematic missionary program in Spain and the Americas. After founding the first college of propaganda fide in the Mexican city of Querétaro, the Franciscan Order established six additional colleges in New Spain, ten in South America, and twelve in Spain. From these colleges Franciscans proselytized Indians in frontier territories as well as Catholics in rural and urban areas in eighteenth-century Spain and Spanish America.

To Sin No More is the first book to study these colleges, their missionaries, and their multifaceted, sweeping missionary programs. By focusing on the recruitment of non-Catholics to Catholicism as well as the deepening of religious fervor among Catholics, David Rex Galindo shows how the Franciscan colleges expanded and shaped popular Catholicism in the eighteenth-century Spanish Atlantic world. This book explores the motivations driving Franciscan friars, their lives inside the colleges, their training, and their ministry among Catholics, an often-overlooked duty that paralleled missionary deployments. Rex Galindo argues that Franciscan missionaries aimed to reform or "reawaken" Catholic parishioners just as much as they sought to convert non-Christian Indians.

“In the year 1901 the latter rain began to fall in different parts of the
world,” trumpeted the Missionary Manual of the Assemblies of God
published three decades later. More importantly, the evangelistic zeal of
“waiting, hungry-hearted people,” who had been baptized in the Holy
Spirit, signaled the resumption of “the Lord’s Pentecostal missionary
movement.” It had been halted at the end of the first century when the
Holy Spirit was “largely rejected and His position as leader usurped by
men.” Consequently, Spirit-led missions ceased and the Dark Ages
commenced.2 Now, in the remaining days before the imminent return of
Christ, Pentecostals would jubilantly carry the apostolic banner down the
parade route of modern mission.

This article appears in _Asian Missions Advance_ 35 (Jan. 2013): 3-7. It describes perhaps the largest "denomination" (which never will become due to their theological conviction) in Asia, perhaps double the combined membership of all Christendom/denominations (incl. Roman Catholicism) in Asia!

This study for the sake of space will limit its scope to the book of Acts. We will look at Paul’s missionary theology and practice as seen through Luke’s writing in Acts. Thus this paper will be a sort of biographical sketch of Paul’s development of a biblical theology of mission. There are two questions I aim to answer in this paper. First, what impact do we see that Paul’s Jewish background had on his missiology? Second, and related to the first question, we will look at what Paul’s mission and method to find out what they were. Through an overview of Luke’s account of Paul and his mission, we will see that Paul was sovereignly prepared and chosen to be a witness to the nations by preaching Jesus as the Christ and planting churches that would carry on the mission in their local context.

Despite their numerous similarities, Marranos in inquisitorial Spain and Recusants (and the so-called ‘Church Papists’), English Crypto-Catholics, in the wake of the English religious reforms, have rarely been studied concurrently. In this paper I will argue that secrecy was a central feature of the daily lives of both these minorities, and it helped them function as groups despite their internal diversity, experiencing a wide array of expressions of belonging. The elasticity of the groups’ religious practices clearly contributed to the rise of new forms of worship and to the creation of new ritual objects which could be validated by diasporic belief systems. As a consequence, beyond criticisms, these communities functioned as significant vectors of change in how their entire religious groups practiced their faiths. Ultimately, it appears that both Crypto-Jews and Crypto-Catholics existed as cohesive groups as much because their members shared religious practices as due to the diasporic culture of martyrdom.

Generations of scholars have studied the multifaceted experiences of the Franciscans in Mexico and how the Franciscan order shaped New Spain and the early Mexican republic. Recent scholarship has given long-overdue attention to the evangelized natives. Most of these works focus on a specific region or period, or on a particular aspect of Franciscan ministries in New Spain. A comprehensive account of the Franciscans in Mexico over the long term has been missing, until now.

This book analyzes the Franciscans’ engagement with native peoples, creole populations, the viceregal authorities, and the Spanish empire as a whole in order to offer a broad picture of Catholic evangelization in North America while keeping the Franciscans at the center of the story. Published in 2021, during commemoration of the quincentenary of the Spanish—and thus the Franciscan—presence in Mexico, the book brings together the research of junior and senior scholars from Mexico, Spain, and the United States on the long-enduring and far-reaching Franciscan presence in Mexico.

The Protestant Reformation was the 16th-century religious, political, intellectual and cultural upheaval that challenged Catholic Europe, setting in place the structures and beliefs that would define the continent in the modern era. In Northern and Central Europe, Reformers like Martin Luther, John Calvin and others challenged papal authority and questioned the Catholic Church and their practice.

In the same manner in Kerala in the 19th century among the St. Thomas Christians belonging to the Independent Jacobite Church of India (those who did not accept the Roman Catholic authority) Christians were impressed by the theological and doctrinal tradition of Anglicanism and decided to accept some principles of Reformation and decided to revive the Church. Abraham Malpan a Jacobite priest initiated a Reformation Movement.

The discovery of the New World offered European civilisation the chance to generate a process of circulation of its own cultural values – the “spiritual conquest” – that has no comparable precedents. The missionary orders played an important role during this “Westernisation of the world,” not only as key players in the spread of Christian values, but also as mediators between different worlds. Indeed, missionary practices imposed the dominating culture’s values and institutions on the vanquished peoples. At the same time, they also promoted the circulation of new knowledge and the negotiation between different cultures during the age of a global integration of space. This book looks at the vast field of study concerning the history of missions from a specific viewpoint. Firstly, it focuses on “local” processes, singling out specific case studies to be used for a general reflection. On the other hand, it refocuses the attention on the Indigenous cultures – which the missionaries helped to bring to light in the field of Western history – showing how they succeeded in entering the areas of negotiation created by missionaries, and in producing their own cultural subjectivity.

Undoubtedly, Churches of Christ were not as significantly active in foreign missions before World War II as were many other Christian bodies. Certainly, some members did serve outside the boundaries of the United States, but on the whole, the commonly accepted narrative that the early noninstrumental branch of the Stone-Campbell Movement focused evangelistic efforts at home in North America and did not become a significant force of cross-cultural missionary effort until after 1945 is in fact true. Among the relatively small number of early voices in Churches of Christ that did advocate foreign missions endeavors, few recognized the need for specialized missionary training.1 Little evidence exists that pre-World War II Churches of Christ supported focused missions training or pointed missionary candidates to the emerging missions literature from other missions-sending organizations and denominations at that time.2 Indeed, before 1936 (the generally accepted beginning point of Churches of Christ missionary training by George Benson at Harding College), Churches of Christ paid scant attention to missions training and specialized preparation for the overseas missionary.3 Yet one very early example of sophisticated and energetic missionary training, one that predates the 1936 Harding College effort by nearly two decades, represents the earliest example of missionary preparation among Churches of Christ. This grand experiment at Abilene Christian College provides a glimpse into the growing missionary consciousness of pre-World War II Churches of Christ. Early Missions Training in Churches of Christ For the most part, Churches of Christ in the earliest part of the twentieth century were unaware of the growing discipline of missiology and missions studies and 1 Shawn Z. Daggett, "The Lord Will Provide: James A. Harding, J. M. McCaleb, William J. Bishop, and the Emergence of Faith Missions in the Churches of Christ 1892-‫״,3191‬ DTh diss., Boston University School of Theology 2007. Daggett notes that Churches of Christ have produced many missionaries "who have been very strong on faith, devotion, and dedication, but weak in preparation, cultural training, and strategy‫״‬ (12-13).

This is a paper about the role of religion in the practice of humanitarian/devel- opment work, and the role of humanitarian/development work in the practice of religion. It contends that these are overlapping and indeed mutually constitutive categories. Two arguments are developed in support of that proposition.

The first main argument concerns twentieth century shifts in the Christian con- cept of mission, in particular its transformation from the salvation of souls (conver- sion) to the betterment of people’s temporal lives (social service and humanitarian action). This includes the cessation of proselytization in favour of corporeal works of mercy, as well as the secularization of missionary societies and movements into development agencies and NGO’s, many of which downplay their religious origins. Sœur Emmanuelle (the paper’s case-study) is an exemplary figure in this evolution : she both propelled and was propelled by mission’s evolution toward the secular materialist priorities around which religion, humanitarianism, and development have converged.

The second main argument concerns the blurring of lines, the overlapping of identities between institutionally separate actors, and the dissolving of distinctions between the categories of religious and non-religious. That boundary is prob- lematized as Christian faith reveals itself to have been an important catalytic and federative force in development projects with Cairo’s garbage collectors, including at the level of « non-religious » actors like the World Bank and its consultant engineers. In fact, Christian connections could be most effectual when least conspicuous – and become on the contrary a barrier to cooperation when too explicit. For instance, some overtly secular but sociologically Christian associations supporting sœur Emmanuelle play their religiosity up (in private) or down (in public) depending on the audience (of donors). An overtly « religious » group (Catholic Relief Services) refused to fund Zabbaleen development projects because supporting projects spearheaded by a nun and targeting a primarily Christian group would lend itself to accusations of sectarian favouritism.

History of Christian Missions in Sources-an Overview of Editorial Projects in Recent Decades and Further Perspectives.

The study of the sources related to the history of missions has evolved methodologically over the past decades and has attracted growing interest of scholars both related and unrelated to missionary institutions. The article attempts at an overview of chosen contemporary editorial projects, among them some anthologies presenting history of missions from various broad perspectives-e.g. theological , institutional (documents published by the authorities of the Catholic Church) or that of global Christianity. Subsequently attention is paid to more particular subjects-histories of individual missionaries or given missionary regions, etc. Finally the study focuses on examples of important contributions aimed at systematic presentation of the whole archives conserving important missionary sources.

Karl Gützlaff bekam seine erste Ausbildung als Missionar an der Missionsschule von Johannes Jänicke an der Berliner Bethlehemskirche. Die Kirche wurde für böhmische Glaubensflüchtlinge gebaut. Neben seinem pastoralen Dienst gründete Johannes Jänicke unter dem Einfluss der Erweckungsbewegung und inspiriert durch Freiherrn von Schirnding eine Bibel- und Traktatgesellschaft und eine Missionsschule. Die Ausbildungsprinzipien der Missionsschule lagen gemäß ihres Ortes in einer Migrantengemeinde in dem Erlernen von Sprachen, Übersetzen und im biblischen Unterricht. Die Adressaten der Schule waren Handwerker. Gützlaff trat 1820 als Stipendiat des Königs in die um 1800 gegründete Missionsschule ein. Es sind vor allem vier Aspekte des Missionskonzeptes Karl Gützlaffs, die sich auf die Missionsschule Jaenickes zurückführen lassen: die Bemühungen um die Sprache, die Verbreitung von Bibeln und Traktaten, die Bekehrung des Einzelnen und der Unterhalt einer Missionsschule für untere Bildungsschichten. Alle Aspekte entwickelte Gützlaff zu einem besonderen Typ der Akkomodationsmission weiter.


Karl Guetzlaff got his first training as a missionary at the Mission school of Johannes Jaenicke at the Berlin Bethlehem Church. The church was built for Bohemian religious refugees. In addition to his pastoral service Johannes Jaenicke founded under the influence of revivalism and inspired by Baron Schirnidng Bible, Tract Society and Mission school. The focuss of training in mission school was according to their place in a migrant congregation in the learning of languages, translation and in biblical teaching. The addressees of the school were craftsmen. Gützlaff entered 1820 with a scholarship of the king the Mission school, which was founded in 1800. There are four main aspects of the mission concept of Karl Guetzlaffs that can be trace back to the Mission School Jaenicke: the efforts to the language, the distribution of Bibles and tracts, the conversion of individuals and the establishment of a mission school for lower levels of education. All aspects developed Guetzlaff to the particular type of accomodative mission.

After the First World War, France moved toward a clear secular education system in Senegal, with emphasis on French literacy and Republican values. Local response to the new regulations, both by missionary educators and indigenous Senegalese, revealed the competing spheres of colonial education. Protestant missionaries, in particular, asserted their own definition of the purpose of both education and empire.

Blog post: With his brother, F.F. Bosworth, B.B. Bosworth played a significant role in divine healing revival meetings and Pentecostal church history. Unfortunately, there's little known about his contributions. When he and F.F. died in 1958, the Alliance Witness reported “there were many unusual instances of divine healing" in the meetings held by the Bosworth Brothers.

For today’s Namibia the dealing with its own past is still relevant, as well as for other former colonies. In this context, the experiences of the colonial era still play an important role, which is closely related to the struggle for independence and questions of nation building. As in many former colonies there was a lack of inner connections and overarching national and cultural identities, so it was necessary to seek for commonalities or, if required, to construct them. Thereby, however, it turned out that these were often of colonial origin. In particular, the former colonial language and the Christian religion were central components of these Commonalities. But here the question arises as to what extent these elements are in fact due to the colonial era. So the changes and developments in terms of language and religion are not due solely to the colonial era, but also to the work of Christian missionaries, which reached the country decades before the colonialists and shaped the country far beyond the colonial period. In addition to these aspects of language and religion the missionaries also performed a enormous influence on the knowledge within the colonies and about them. Especially the school system and the associated access to this knowledge thus represents another essential aspect of sustainable influence of German Missionaries in Southwest Africa, which affected the further development of the country during the colonial period and beyond. The aim of this work is to show that it was the missionary work and thus the political and social influence of missionaries, which fundamentally changed the country and influenced its post-colonial history and development. The focus should thereby be primarily set on the work of the missionaries in precolonial South West Africa, because here the first touch of the Indigenous and European cultures took place, which laid the foundation for further developments in the fields of language, religion and education policy.

This article explores the attitudes and policies of the International Missionary Council (IMC) concerning Africa and African Americans. It aims to revise historical scholarship that views the ecumenical missionary movement as originating in white Western missions and guided by the goals of post-war internationalism. It argues that the IMC, founded in 1921 as the central institution for coordinating Protestant missions around the world, developed an ecumenical definition of pan-Africanism. This definition cast African Americans from the US south in the role of ‘native’ leaders in the formation of indigenous churches in Africa. With this racialized version of Christian indigenization, the IMC excluded African Christian groups that sought to form their own churches. It promoted, instead, European colonial projects and missionary societies that aimed to use African American missionaries to counter the incendiary ideas of pan-Africanism.

Sir George Williams had a profound impact on the youth and business people of the 19th century.  Out of this renewal movement was birthed the YMCA movement which has reached around the globe.  This article explores the faith and values that shaped this world-changer.

A igreja já aprendeu a ir para a rua. Agora precisamos aprender a entrar na sociedade. Como? Oferecendo serviços relevantes às comunidades ao redor das nossas igrejas e instituições. Para fazermos isso, provavelmente precisaremos utilizar a internet, pois atualmente esta é a ferramenta mais usada para manter comunicação direta com as pessoas, onde quer que elas estejam. Não vamos abandonar os métodos evangelísticos que temos utilizado até aqui. Ao contrário, vamos utilizá-los ainda mais à medida que aplicarmos esta nova abordagem. O objetivo deste artigo é oferecer uma proposta de como esse processo pode ser desenvolvido.

Il catalogo del Museo Etnografico dei Missionari Cappuccini dell'Emilia-Romagna, aperto a Bologna con la collezione proveniente dall'India e ampliato in seguito alla Seconda Guerra Mondiale, dopo i trasferimenti a Faenza e a Imola, con l'acquisizione di materiali provenienti dall'Africa, in particolare da Tanzania ed Etiopia.

Edward Smither’s recent offering is a welcome contribution for those interested in a short over- view of the history of Christian missions from the perspective of World Christianity.

DOI: 10.1111/irom.12346

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/irom.12346

The Baja California Prehistory Project – San Fernando Velicatá Phase – of the National Museum of Anthropology and Baja California INAH Center, began in the year 2012 in order to conduct a series of archaeological, bioarchaeological, and interdisciplinary investigations on the only mission founded by Franciscan friars in the entire peninsula of Baja California (Figure 1, next page). There are several objectives behind the project, but the most important one has to do with the salvage of a cemetery affected by erosion caused by the San Fernando Creek. In addition, updated maps of the visible structure of the mission have been completed, and three seasons of excavations have been conducted providing archaeological evidence regarding its founding, its transference to Dominican hands, its re-use as a ranch, and finally, to its abandonment due to the lack of permanent residents.

This paper deals with a critical phase in the life of missionary and scholar Olaf Bodding: his efforts to transform the Scandinavian Santal Mission from 1910 to 1923. In this period, he was torn between the heritage of the founders, notably the juridi-cal foundation of the Mission as a Trust in Anglo-Indian law, and the demands for a more democratic organisation, from the younger missionaries and the supporters in Scandinavia and America. However, the Trust Deed (a type of founding constitution of the Mission) did not allow for any delegation of responsibility, and the newcomers did not understand the implications of the juridical situation. Thus Bodding, as sole trustee and responsible for the mission, was constantly accused of being autocratic, while he in his turn wrangled with the juridical framework to democratise the organization as far as legally possible. Perhaps it was just as well for him that his divorce made him unacceptable for mission work, for by 1920 he must have been thoroughly exasperated by his administrative work. In this paper, I wish to restore to Bodding the honour of reforms for which he was never thanked, as well as to locate this critical period of the Mission' s history within the contemporary development of Christian Missions in general.

This monograph narrates the history of catholic mission in East Africa and Germany during the colonial period featuring chapters on the missionary movement in 19th and 20th c. Germany, the negotiation of a missiony contact zone, education policies, church building and "africanisation" of the mission church in East Africa, and missionary media work in Europe.

This edited collection provides one of the most broadly reaching studies of nineteenth-century missionary periodicals through case studies of the ways in which this medium was used by various missionary societies to influence their readership, to conjure support for their missions, to construct images of the foreign 'other', and to help legitimise the missionary endeavour, especially amongst the so-called heathen of colonised lands. The collection demonstrates how politics affected the content of missionary periodicals, the role of censorship, and how missionary organisations promoted and disseminated their periodicals. The tightly focussed theme of the e-book allows a range of comparisons and analogies, which is further complimented by the concluding chapter that provides a theoretical analysis of missionary periodicals as a genre. The collection offers important insights into missionary propaganda and in doing so also contributes to the current discourse of missionaries as...

Dr. E Stanley Jones through his Kingdom of God perspective had a lasting impact on racism both in India and North America.  Through his formation in India of the Christian Ashram movement in 1930 and transplanting it worldwide, Jones modeled a christian community in which divisions of class and cash had no place.  His book on his good friend Gandhi was instrumental in encouraging Martin Luther King Jr in the formation of the nonviolent civil rights movement.