Mission in the Context of Empire

The creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God. … The creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay. Romans 8:19–21Introductory Remarks Since the launch at M anila, the P hilippines, in D ecember 2008, of O ikotree[1][, ] – a joint initiative of and sponsored by the C ouncil for W orld M ission ( CWM ), the W orld C ommunion of R eformed C hurches ( WCRC ) and the W orld C ouncil of C hurches ( WCC ) – founding members, commissioners of the C ommission on W orld M ission and E vangelism, mission specialists, women and men, I ndigenous P eoples, and people from the four corners of the world, representing different C hristian traditions, took part in the O ikotree study process toward a new WCC ecumenical mission affirmation. I would like to express my wholehearted thanks to all involved for their collaboration and common efforts that led to the present text. The document starts with “faith and empire” and examines the meaning of evangelion, a term with its origin in the R oman E mpire. Then follow deliberations on the development and implications of the issues of “mission and economic justice” and “mission and ecological justice”, from the past centuries of the C hristian era till today. In its last part, the paper points to “alternative visions: from a life‐destroying to a life‐enhancing culture for the twenty‐first century”. What can churches from the S outh, the E ast, I ndigenous P eoples, contribute to addressing the crisis and ecological disasters of this age, which scientists call the anthropocene age, in which human beings have become a central global force and to which (as the document notes) “the worldwide expansion of Western civilization through Christian mission” is seen as one of the major contributors? The text refers to recent ecumenical initiatives, such as AGAPE , the A ccra C onfession, T ransforming E conomic G lobalization, M ission in the C ontext of E mpire, as well as the B uddhist “ I nternational N etwork of E ngaged B uddhism”. It introduces peoples' wisdoms: the A frican culture of U buntu (“I live because you live – you live because I live”); the A sian concept of S angsaeng (“living inter‐supportive”); the A ndean el buen vivir (sumaq kawsay in Q uechua, “living well”); as well as M artin B uber's “ L ove your neighbour – it is yourself!”. “ A s we move into this new C reation C ommunity, based on G od's upside‐down evangelion , an alternative epistemology, both holistic and inclusive, is needed. … We must understand, with M ercy A mba O duyoye, that we need to expand the human vision of neighbourliness … to include all creation, seen and unseen. … The earth is, willy‐nilly, our common neighbourhood'. We must abandon the capitalistic, divisive, egocentric, independent ideology of consumerism and competition.” As stated by “the C ouncil of T hirteen I ndigenous G randmothers, … ‘There is an order and a structure to the universe … All things are dependent upon each other. This is why reciprocity and remembering to hold the relations among all people, and all things as sacred balances the universe. Any actions that destroy life lead to imbalance, which is what we are facing in today's world'”. Seong‐won PARK