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S ome E uropean N otes 1
Author(s) -
Hollander Jet
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
international review of mission
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.118
H-Index - 11
eISSN - 1758-6631
pISSN - 0020-8582
DOI - 10.1111/j.1758-6631.2005.tb00497.x
Subject(s) - reinterpretation , globalization , faith , distrust , modernity , postmodernity , praxis , sociology , environmental ethics , political science , political economy , law , aesthetics , theology , philosophy
What role do theological colleges and faculties play in the way churches understand and give shape to mission, and what may be in need of transformation in the case of western Europe, or more precisely, in the Europe region of the Council for World Mission? These questions raise a prior one: ‘What constitutes a relevant mission praxis for European churches today for which the theological colleges should be equipping people?’ In order to answer this question, the article begins with a short analysis of the mission legacies left by two centuries of western missionary involvement in the South. In particular, since the 1950s the legacies from this era have undergone some changes under the influence of global developments. However, the international mission scene remains dominated by bi‐lateral North–South relationships, and this has implications for how mission is understood and practised in both hemispheres. Two contemporary features of the present era are forcing the churches to deal with their mission legacies, and thereby might be stimulating the emergence of a new mission élan and praxis. The first is post‐modernity. Its distrust over meta‐narratives intensifies the crisis of faith the West is experiencing and, in so doing, highlights the urgent need for a radical reinterpretation of the “What?” of our faith and mission. The second is globalization and the various ways in which economic and ecological degradation, mounting conflicts and demographic changes likewise necessitate mission reinterpretation. Thus, it is argued that aspects of globalization and postmodernity are forcing the churches finally to deal with the unhelpful aspects of their mission legacies, and in this way are unwittingly fostering the emergence of a new mission élan and praxis in Europe. This suggests a two‐fold role for theological education for mission. First, it should nurture “a second missional naivity” in theological students, and train them so that they can, in turn, nurture thy among congregations. Second, theological education for mission should critically assess and address the extent to which theological schools in Europe are themselves part of oppressive structures inherited from the past and that continue in the present.