Book Review

Samuel Escobar
A Time for Mission: The Challenge for Global Christianity
(Leicester: Inter-Varsity Press, 2003, pp. 192)

A Time for Mission is a self-confessing introductory resource to be used as we seek to face the challenges of doing mission in our global context of the twenty-first century. Samuel Escobar covers much in this 192 page volume: a brief history of mission, the influential post-Christian atmosphere, postmodernism; theological themes such as our missionary God, the role of Christ and the Holy Spirit in mission, the function of Scripture in mission; and issues in missiology including globalisation, poverty, partnership and social justice. The author draws on historical, sociological and personal material founded in solid biblical reflection.

A Peruvian writer and theologian, Escobar writes from Lima. He is currently Professor of Missions at Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, President of the United Bible Societies, and Contributing Editor of the International Bulletin of Missionary Research. In this book Escobar brings useful insights from his involvement in mission in a variety of different cultural settings, including the Americas and Europe. Escobar draws eloquently from documents of the Lausanne Conference, of which he was a leader. He frequently mentions evangelicals Lesslie Newbigin and John Stott, also citing numerous non-Western missionaries and theologians. Escobar does not hesitate to highlight his conviction that when missionaries reflect on first-hand experience they become the best theologians.

This book is one of a series entitled The Global Christian Library published by a partnership between Langham Literature and Inter-Varsity Press. The vision for this series is firstly to supply theological texts to pastors, students and lay readers in the southern hemisphere written by non-Western authors from a non-Western perspective, and secondly for books by non-Western writers that reflect their own cultures to be made available for Western readers as well. A Time for Mission clearly fits the desired criteria. I will now discuss some of the biblical and missiological issues raised by the author, adding my personal response to these issues.

In the opening chapter Escobar speaks of many in our global church today having come to faith in Christ away from their homelands, often through the trans-cultural witness of other internationals. My experience fits this phenomenon; reinforcing the fact that Christian mission in this new century is indeed influenced by migration patterns and refugee movements. Furthermore, we are witnessing an increasing shift of Christianity to the south and a rise of ‘mission from below.’ Escobar discusses how changes in the practice and theory of mission are inevitable as missionaries from Asia and Latin American bring a new set of questions about Christian mission to challenge the old.

In the chapter titled “A Brave New World Order” the author raises the issue of whether or not Christianity should ride the crest of globalization. For example, should churches discuss how they ‘market’ themselves? Should they be concerned with constantly updating electronic and technological equipment in their offices? Escobar cites a warning given at the Lausanne Congress of Evangelism in 1974 which said that globalization might end up changing the very nature of the gospel. Hence, respect and sensitivity for the local and indigenous are indispensable to foreign missionaries, themselves carriers of globalization. It was fascinating to reflect on how Bible translation has often served to empower local and indigenous peoples to defend themselves against globalization through the preservation, recognition and evaluation of native languages and cultures.

Reading the discussion on “Post Christian and Post-Modern” I was provoked to ponder for the first time about the honour and influence that Christianity once had in societies where it was the official religion. It startles me to think of the arrogance many of the missionaries from “Christendom” must have had as they sought to see Christian ideas and principles dominant within the social life of nations they evangelised. Today we cannot expect our post-Christian post-modern society to function based around Christian ethics. As Escobar describes, ritualized sports or television dramas have replaced church services as a way to relieve routine work and duty, and most live with the attitude Paul quotes from Isaiah when describing the dominant attitude of his day: “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we will die” (1 Cor 15:32). Even many confessed admirers of Jesus find it difficult to believe “the scandal of the cross” and their personal need for a Saviour and Lord. I appreciate Escobar’s encouragement to believers to make compassion and prayer a priority over self-righteous and aloof apologetics. Intellectual faith is not enough; spiritual formation through disciplines such as prayer, Bible reading and fasting are vital in mission today.

In the fifth chapter the author acknowledges that there may be a human side to mission perceived in the collection of funds, the planting and growing of new churches, the development of new missionary organizations and so on. Yet, we are cautioned against forgetting that mission is God’s mission, and not just a human enterprise. “Mission begins in the heart of God and it is his initiative to which we humans respond” (p. 92f). Escobar reminds us of the image Paul used to describe the frail, powerless human condition of the messengers of the gospel, that is, “jars of clay” (2 Cor 4:7-9). This calls for an attitude of humility and dependence on the glorious power of God. When discussing that God is a missionary God who both chooses and sends, Escobar speaks of the mission as always “Mission Impossible,” only made possible because God acts in order to accomplish his purpose. We must rediscover this biblical vision with all the wonder of being invited to enter God’s plan. Like Peter or Paul we may be called to witness in unknown territory, and even to lead the discovery of new ways of sharing the gospel potentially rejected by our contemporaries.

Escobar speaks of a Japanese missionary formerly unknown to me: Toyohiko Kagawa (1888-1960). Inspired by “Christ: God’s Best Missionary” (the title given to chapter six), Kagawa served the poor in a slum in Kobe, preaching, writing poems and going to jail for his convictions. Escobar cites him as representative of those captivated by Jesus to follow him on a sacrificial life of service. I have since spoken with Japanese friends who shared that Kagawa is still widely known amongst Japanese Christians as a social reformer, and I have also found numerous books written by and about Kagawa which I will reference in the future. Moreover, the author speaks of New Zealander Viv Grigg being inspired by Kagawa to move to one of the most depressed areas of Manila in the Philippines. Grigg is quoted speaking of his experience of “incarnation among the poor opening for him a world of biblical understanding he had not seen before” (p. 107). One of the first things involved in evangelical missionary practice is the translation of the Jesus story into the language of the people being witnessed to; God’s best missionary, Jesus, continues to inspire billions around the world today.

I enjoyed the comparison Escobar gave of Roman Catholic and Protestant missions in his discussion entitled “Text and Context.” Whereas Protestants have always sought to supply believers with a Bible in their native language at the earliest possible date, Roman Catholics have traditionally focused on producing books of devotion and catechisms rather than the translation of Scripture. It was also interesting to learn that in the sixteenth century the Bible was instrumental in both evangelizing nominal Christians and renewing genuine Christians spiritually and morally. Songs, hymns, art and preaching witness to the experience and thoughts brought to peoples’ lives through the unlocking of Scripture during this era. As a further positive influence on society, the new centrality given to the Bible in Protestant faith prompted literacy and public education.

Escobar brings it to our attention that despite Protestant missionary work stretching over several centuries it is only recently that theology has developed amounting to “reading the Bible with new eyes” (p. 134). Sadly, this is due to missionary movement over the nineteenth and twentieth centuries being intermingled with cultural imposition from the west. With the Bible was transmitted a way of reading the Bible heavily conditioned by the culture of the missionaries. Today, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Third World Christians are reading Scripture with new eyes. Unfamiliar pastoral and missionary situations are bringing new challenges with these living communities.

Jesus’ mission was truly holistic. Through teaching, preaching and healing he reached and transformed all areas of peoples’ lives. Escobar highlights social transformation also evident within the missionary action of Paul and Silas. For example, in Acts 16:16-40 Lydia’s conversion results in her household (which would have included her family, business and slaves) coming to Christ. Social transformation occurs as all of her relationships and resources are consecrated to the service of Christian mission. Escobar elaborates on the necessity of word and deed going hand in hand. He offers a threefold relationship of evangelism and social concern within holistic mission: social activity as a 1) consequence of, 2) bridge to, and 3) partner with evangelism. To conclude the chapter on “Mission as Transforming Service” Escobar says “mission as service in Jesus’ name involves proclamation of the gospel of salvation; life in fellowship in the body, which is the church’ worship and prayer in Jesus’ name; as well as the multiplicity of tasks Jesus’ disciples perform in response to human needs” (p. 154).

I was grateful for Escobar’s warning in his chapter “A New Way of Looking at the World” to missionaries to be on guard against depersonalising others. I myself have fallen into the trap of viewing people as ‘un-reached’ entities and targets for evangelism. As the author discusses, biblical missionary work seeks to establish reciprocal relationships. Missionaries must be respectful of the freedom and dignity of those to whom they share with, all the while open to God transforming them through interaction within missionary action.

In the same chapter Paul Hiebert is quoted regarding new partnerships necessary in mission brought about due to resistance of the gospel in Western culture: “any long range vision for missions must include not only the planting of new churches but also the renewal of old ones” because “the former without the latter eventually leads only to lands full of dead and dying churches” (p. 167). The church I attend, St Pauls in the centre of Auckland City, is going through a term of renewal due to global partnerships between churches. Missionaries from several churches in England have come to New Zealand to ‘church-plant’ and revive a dwindling congregation struggling to remain spiritually alive. Phenomenal results are being achieved.

In the final chapter “For Further Study,” Escobar identifies the book’s aim as he sees it: “an effort to inform those interested in questions posed by the practice of mission and contemporary trends in reflection on that practice. It suggests but cannot go too far in developing an agenda” (p. 170). This section provides useful information for further mission studies. As the author later implies, while missionaries may feel sceptical about academic mission studies, they can learn from such research; and academics can and should draw from the practical experience of missionaries to ensure fruitful research results.

This book has a global and appealing voice which demonstrates the author’s vast knowledge, experience and sensitivity. Despite some parts of this book having too much information or feeling too rushed, Escobar succeeds in presenting a clear overview of issues in mission today. A Time for Mission is an easy read, with content that goes deeper than to be purely motivating or inspiring, thus demanding that the reader engages with it. I was certainly challenged in my understanding of the history of mission and the contemporary challenges for our global church in mission today. For these reasons, I highly recommend A Time for Mission to those interested in mission studies and evangelical missiology.