,2S

Chapter 2

mastcry of language, but of thc propcr understanding of that which takes place through the medium of language." 10. David J. Hesselgrave (1993) also uses the terrn hermeneutic in thisscnse. Hcstates that a "missionary hcrmeneutic" grows out of the tcaching of many Bible texts so that thc texts in tum may become foundational for undcrstanding the whole of Scripture. It functions as a prcunderstanding for the interpretation of the whole Bible. 11. Sucl~ a procedure is similar to tlic Hcrmencutic Spiral advocatcd iri Grant R. Osborne (1991). 12. Of course this is not a new idca in Old Testament interpretation. Lconard Hodgon, writing in the Chrcrch Quarterly Reuiew in 1942 (quoted in Walter C. Kaicr, jr. 1983:16) stated that in preChristian Judaism the will of God was the sourceof obligation. It was this tindcrstanding of obligation, in other words, that the New Tcstamcnt clurch took over in intcrpreting and obeying thc OId Tcstamcnt as wcll.

Hermeneutics and the Missionarv Im~erative

Q, d The age of discovery, initiated by Columbus in 1492, redirccted rcjuvenated Christian missions in ways unforcscoi during the
I

I I 1

I I

previous 1000 years.' Explorers discovered new continents, new lands, and thousands of new ethnicgroups without knowlcdge of thc Christian religion and morc importantly, unrelated to aiiy o h c r major religion such as Islam or the ethico-religioussystcms of tlle Far East. These new discoveries impacted the way people would come to interpret theScriptures with regard t o missionsas well. In thc Roman atholic church at the time, the conquest theo ~ f 3 h . wash~ In fact Columbus,.in . n (lohannes V d a l r e a d v in o addition to h = t for new t r a d e d g s F d sct IPS SI i o u T d - a & h ~ s % _f i -... e b o tnc_wnndS an (ianized, F s u r c h , then, it w a z y a matter of immediately acccpting the challenge of plan ting the church in ncw lands and among non-Chnstian peoples. Bctwcen 1493 and 1820, for example, Spain sent over 15,000 missionaries to thc Arnericas and in Mexico alone baptized 5,000,000 native Amencans (Thomas S. Giles 1992). Meanwhile back in Europe, a revolt against the Roman Catholic church was takine dace. The Protestant Reformation led by Martin Luthcrand othe&irred thecontincnt. Unlike m t j q q s in thC Roman Catholic church, Protestants wcre initially unaffectcd by tlie age o r to iscoverv. - -Gome Zscove r a i im- o i m X G mtss . _. onsin I= the ProtestantReformation. In fact, it would bc % more t i a n 206yearsbefore theProtcstant Rcformation finally "caught up" with thege of discovcry and succceded in cvangeliringnon-chriitiansin

__

-e _

1 3 -

othcr lands.

2 . 5

Chapter 3

Herrneneutics and the Missionarv Imperative

29

Mlsslons And T h e Protestant Reformatlon In thc carly days a conspicuous lack of mission activity charactcrizcd Protestaritism. Scveral reaons accounted for this. Not least amorig tlicm was thc way thc Scripturcs had come to be interpretcd. First, biblical studies were not primarilv - to discover whauhe --_ _ -Scriptures say about missionsbut tostsngthen the Protestant theological position on issues such as the pricsthood of a 1 1 believcrs, thc Lord's Supper, salvation by faith, the all-sufficiencyof the Scriptures, ctc. As a rcsult thc missionary intcnt of the Scriptures was ali but lost in tlic midst of othcr theological conccms of the Refonnation. Sccond, from a hcrmencu tical perspective, many believed t h ~ t tlic .C~cat Commission was givcn only for-the Apostles ---.. of Ncw Tcstn_mer!t &ws.Some cvcii interpreted the Scripturcs to mcan 6X itii~khris to n .o-n ----- ~ l i r i s..t i a ~~ l c san insult to the sovcreignty --.-..------..wcre o who w~,uld sa-vc thc Iicathcn witliout human intervcnhon. -l$ssi6tiSll;crcfore -wouid - _. be pr~s~m~ I.-_. t1. 6 _ . . . r - s ~ sinful ~ T__-. n olor t. . . the ,,__ _.__ cliurch to initiatc. ---A tliird reaon was thatrnany R c f o ~ ! i e v c d that t h c s d coming of Chrig was,imgimt. In othcr words, there would not bc 'cnougli time in tlic history of thc world to start obcying thc Great Commission by scnding forth missionarics to recently discovercd lands. A foiirth rcason for tlie lack of a e u r m ts i --- . intcrprchtion was tliat ortliodox ~ r o G i a n t (thoe_w&believc&lic s Grcat ~ o m 6 i s s i o n was given ony t o - t r i ~ s t l e s ) opposcd and _T soinc[inics pcrsccuted otlicr ~rotcsktrits who Llicvcd that thc % j p tiircs still niandatc thc cliurch to scnd missionaries to evangelizc noiiCliristians. Ncvcrthelcss, in spitc of this initial bad showing, a mission consciousncss eventuallv d c v c l o d in thc Protestant Rcformation. Iei~ie 17th C~IILII* l o ~ ~ ~ ~ u ~ c ~ m i ~ follo~yed i o n a the r i e s

This cmphasis on picty in the pcrsonal life led people to undcrstand that while the Great Commission was indeed given first to the Apostlcs, an interpretation of thc Grca t Commission requird tha t thc Christians of every age should obey its commands of going and making disciples of a 1 1 nations. The earliest examplc of pietism combincd with missiotiary ou trcacli was thc Moravians. In 1727 thc Moravians x n t out Clicir first missionaries and by 1760 a total of 226 missionarics was xrvitig in iioii-Europcan lands.

New Beglnnlngs
Tlic early explorcrs wlio followed Columbus to the ncw world discovercd not only ncw lands but also ncw pcoplcs. At first, thcsc pcoples with thcir strangc customs,languages, and sometimes lack of clothing according to Europcan standards of the timc, wcrc objccts of curiosity. Bcfore long scholars of lhe time began to suggcst thcorics of how and wherc tlicsc people fit in thegencral schcmc of social and Iiuman cvolution. omc callcd them savagcs, othcrs callcd thcm primitivc or heathcn. A fcw saw in thcm a noble humanity unspoilcd by modcm ways of life. Hut as more -.-- repqrts and data filtcrcd in from faraway--placcs, - - - - it bccamc apparcnt tliat tlicx pcoplc, whlc cxotic from a E w p c a n crspcctive, w e r e ~ t i l l ~ h u m a ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ T h i s . mca_nt-eo ,con~~nsus f;!ings to thc Protatant pictist, Thcsc rcccntly dirovercd p x l c wcrc 1) sinncrsalong witli tlic rcst of humanity and 2) thcrcforc G r t l i y of salvation>arid winniuglo-the Kiiigdom of Jcsus Christ.. Two English clergymcn wlio rcalized thcse implicationsand who wcnt on missions to thc Amcricas and preached to tlic lndians were Gcorge Whitefield (1714-1770) and John Weslcy (1703-1791). Thesc two also carne in contact with Moravian missionarics. Con-qucntly whcn the great English rcvival occurrcd as Lhe resul t of thc prcaching of tliesc mcn, a concem witliin England for tlie need to scnd missionarics to non-Christians soo11followed. ~ r c a ~ h i n & q ~ ~ ~ y p o m ~ , w a s - n x > ~ ~jus_l-~oiivbtio!?~?!,. ~~ati Iiowcvcr, Iii tlicir-prcacliing tlicy alo providcb-a hcrm~!icutjcforiritcrprcting tiic wor- (now including botli Europc atid thc discov-,-. cries of ncw ~a"ds.andp p l q ) 6 5 1 ~a-&?yA!ha> ~3 a ~ b & @ , . Gto b~~ sce that preaching to iioil-Cliristians-muld i n d e b-proc&cjivc. --That is, t h c x n c of ~ o d ' sovcrcignty s did not of ncccssily cxcludc undcrstanding on tlic part of tlicsc ricw world p p l c s . Thcy, too, wcrc ablc to dccidc oii tlicir owii wlictlicr to bccomc Christiiin or nnt.
__C

I -

C . .

Promciling Cfrristian Knowlcdge, wcrc established. Tlic rnaiii rcason that a missioti consciousness cmcrecd. howjsm. 'c$~>ictists hlicvcd tha t a&c,pcronac&&~ o- d was riiorc t i i i ~ r t ~ ~ ~ t ~ c l olr r i ca &~ r& ~~ ~ u ~~ t cd d doctrinc. ~ ~ -~ ~ t ~
7 C
. . V

____

-___I-

Hermeneutics and the Missionary Imperative

For cxarnplc, Whitefield klicvcd in predestinatl~,Yct he preaclicd tha--t cvcn wi thin God's sov~~gjgnty to predestine tu heaven - ----or hcll, --.-a p r w n s t i l l h ~ ~ h c - ~ lirten ~ ~ - .a-ndspent, to to wait for ...-... that -sign of ~>redcstination. Upon this basis Whitefield callcd the masscs - -*----to rcpiitancc Iiclping to spur the English world to rcvival during his lifctimc. Joliii Weslcy, on thcothcr Iiand, was an Arminian believing in tlic pcrsoii's frcc will to decidcor reject. Sincc humans had freedom to act upon what was Iieard, Wesley likewise called the masses of the English counhyside to repentance. Whi tefield and Wesley disagreed and for a time parted ways ovcr thc issues of predestination and frce will. Yct cach, on his respective basis, went on calling the English world to rcpcntancc and revival. Wcslcy found support for his tliinking on human free will from a 1r6atir o- h u . ~ a ~ . k n ~ w r i tqarlier t c n by the Eneud, emvincai philowpher]ol~n&ocke (1632-1704) (BernardSrnmel1973, ~ich-.--- ard E. Brantlcy 19841.-1n thistrcatise Locke rejected the theory of irinatc idcas whicli I ~ a d been a widely acccpted theory since Plato (third ccntury B.C.). In its place ~ock_su~~es~ed.-@ed.~at --..".a rson ir born without iiuiatc idc&-&d thit all knowledge is gaincd - -...- ,,._.. .k r i c n c c . L_-Onc line of cvidciicc that Lockc uscd to support his theory was the idca of God. Since this idea was considered basic in human knowlctlgc it followcd that cveryonc should have some idea about God. Howevcr, wc do not find this to be the case. Therefore, any pcron who lias an idea about God has obtained such from learning and cxpcriencc. I11 otlier words, if humans arc indeed born without innate ideas and lcarn of God by experiencc, then thc hcathen in other lands were alo bom in thc =me manner and could similarly learn of Cod and comc to faith in His on Jesus Christ. Indeed, Locke's theory showed thc impcrativc for mission work in a way that Platonic innate idcas cotild ~iof. Tlw writiiigs of Lockc on languagc wcrc also influcntial. Borrowing froni tlic humanists of tlic ~enaissance, Locke taught that lanovcrned by tlie rules of grammar @ . -na y languagc is to beintcrprcted and understood bythesamc rulcs. I l l ~ m ~ ~ thcrc ~ i irano t sa&Jww as many thou& GrWkaiid I,a~in-w~re.~iat is, Grcck and Latin wcre no different tlian Englisli, Gcrman, or any othcr known lanpiage of the time. It also mcant tliat tlic intcrprctation of Scripturc as rccorded in G r t ~ k and
/ v
+

31

Latiii sliould follow tlic riilcs of ordiiiary languagc?and i101 nccordiiig to special thcological or ccclcsiastical dictatcs. Wesley incorporated thcsc insights into his stratcgy for prcacliing tlic Gospcl among tlic rnasses of thc English countryside. E t , it pobably can be sai$ thgj Weslev was Lockels intcrvrcter in. thc pictistic movcment of tlic Protcstant Rcformation._Through Wcslcy's prcaching, Locke's ideas pcnetrated the religious masse, thc segmcnt of English society wlicrc William Carey (1761-18341, a slioc cobblcr, wa a member.

The nirnlng Polnt

Tlic real turning point in Protcstant missions camc with William Carcy wlio latcr spcnt his lifc as a missionary in India. In 1792 Carey first publislied a pamphlct titled An Enquiry inlo lhe Obligation of Christians ! o Use Meatis for tlie Conversion of fhe Heathen. It is gcnerally rccognized that tliis pamphlet changed tlie Protestant Rcformation from bcing only an inward-looking reformation of an existing condition in thcchristian religioii to thatof an outward-Iookitig movcmcnt to convcrt and incorporate iion-Christian populations into thc Kingdom of Christ. Of interest to us herc arc tlic biblical rcasons whicli Carcy gavc to support the argumcnt tliat Christians still had thc obligation to cvangclize non-Christians. Hc divided his pamphlet into fivc sectioiis designcd to counter objcctions to missions whicli wcrc prcvalent in his time. In the first ection, Carcy argued against the belicf that the Grcat Commission wasgiven oiily to thc Apostlcs. In other words, thcGrcat Commission was still obligatory for thc church in every age, including the church of the eightcenth century. Scction two gave a bricf overview of mission history bcginning with A c k to show that thcexpansionof thcchurchinto non-Christian lands was and sliould still bc nonnativc for the church. Scction thrcc was a survcy of thc world and il population. It c n d d witli thc asscrtioii tliat tlic Iicathcn or non-Christiaii peoplcs wcre as capable of leaming as (Europcan) Christians; tliat is, thcy werc as capable of faitli and tlierefore should be evangclized. cction four was a practical survcy of how missions could be succcssfully accomplishcd. For cxamplc, ships wcrc rcgularly travcling to nll parts of tlic world, thiis making transportation possiblc for thc missionary. Becausc cxplorcrs and tradcrs had gonc and livcd, and morc importantly survivcd in primitivc conditions, missionarics

j(

r . -

" I .

v--

3?

Chapter 3
In otlicr words, a comnioii scnsc approach was ucd wlicii iiitcrpreting thc Scripturcs. For the first time the comrnon persoti posscsscd a herrneneutic for arriving at the mcaning of thc Grcat Commission and making a pcrsonal decision about missioiis and fcclitig right by that dccision. Thcre was no necd to dcpciid on thc expcrt from church or tlic thcological univcrsity. niis approach to missions reached its most productive phase in Hudson Taylor (183219%) when he first wcnt as a missionary to China, aiid latcr on cstablishcd the China Inlaiid Mission based on tliex samc coninioii scnsc valucsl To the Protestant missionary of thc ninctccnth ccntury, tlicsc vicws had other, more far-rcaching implications. If Grcck and Latin wcrc not sacred in and of thcmsclves, for example, thcn the Scriptures could bc communicatcd by mcansof any otlier languagc of thc world. Morc importantly, transla ting and printing the Scripturcs in another languagc would not be blasphcmous. To the contrary, Scripturc translation would be a tlicological neccssity if thc full copc of thc Great Commission was to be obeyed, for aftcr making disciplcs of other nations, there was tlie additional task of tcaching thcm to obcrve a 1 1 things that Jesus Clirist has commanded (Matthcw 28:19201, a task that could not bc succcssful without thc Scripturcs first bcing translated into the languagc of thc new disciples. Consequcntly, during thc 100 years of the ninctccnth ccntury alone, thc criptures were translated into a total of 446 ncw languages. This averages out to more than 44 languages cvery tcn ycars rcceiving translation. Morc rcvcaling, though, are thc sta tistics tha t during thedccade of 1800 to 1810 tlic Scripturcs wcrc translatcd into 26 ncw languages while from 1890 to 1900 thcrc wcrc 100 h-anslations (William Smalley 1991). From a11 thc advanccs iri missions of iiinetccnll~ ceiitug& is -thc - _ . - - ---.----a-?--surprisinp: to note that no dcfinite tlicolow of mission was formu. 177). Evid~ntlv -- - wcirc - - too busv doine latcd (Carl E. Braaten 19. ,. . - mu>nlc m x n s & do much rcflcctigon -thcJ&iptkal b s i s for thcir w o r t -Tliis frrilurc, I bclicvc, won provcd disastrous for tlic missioii outrcacli of thc ~rotestant ~ c f o Atioii. a For in rctrospcct wc now scc tliat no thcological direction was givcn to prepare this missioiiary niovcmcnt for the upcoming twcntictli ccntury. The ninctccntli ccn tury was an age of progtcss aiid optirnism. It was Iiard to cc tliat lifc would bc any diffcrcnt iii tlic futurc.

'\

L.

coiilil do tlic sinc. Evcn Uic yossibility of missionarics bcing killcd sliould k w no obstacle as the church has had martyrs throughout Iiistory. And siiicc traders wcre Icarning other languages in order to do biisincss, missionarics could also Icarn languages in ordcr to prcncli tlic Cospcl. llic fiftlicction ct forth thc dutics of tlie church and Christians in mobilizing to scnd missionarics. The first duty was to pray. Then an orgnnization should bc formcd, a socicty, composed of mcmbcrs from diffcrcnt dciiominations. n i c ocicty should be supported by individual contributions and from the budgets of churches. At this point inissionarics could be sent out. I i i sliort, Carcy dared to say tlirough his Enquiry that the slogan of thc Protestant Rcformation, sola scriptura, had been subverted by having becn tumed into a "gag rule" on the Great Commission, for whilc thc slogan gave a correct exegcsis of the Great Commission, it prcvciitcd an intcrprctation for thc church of the eighteenth century and Iryoiid. Excgcsis of tlie Great Commission was not enough, for excgcsis alone produced only an ultra-literalness (or orthodoxy, as it , was terrncd in Carcy's day) of this final command of Christ. An intcrprctation of the Great Commission was needed to show its mcaiiing for Christians.
c

The Great Century 011 tliis basis, to use Kcnncth Scott Latourette's tem, tlie Great Ccntury of missions was launched. Jndeed, Protestant missions over thc ncxt 100 ycars succccdcd bcyond thc dreams of William Carey and tlic fcw wlio first joincd him to forma missionary socicty in 1792. I i i sliort, thc idcas on human knowlcdge and language which Wliilcficld and Wcsley put iiito practice during the eighteenth century found compatibility with thc hcart of the Protestant pietist of thc ninctccrith cciitury, for tlicsc idcas gavc rcason and respcctability to wliai (s)lic fclt about tlie pssibility-iiidced the imperative-of doii~g niission work among thc noii-Christian ethnic groups of tlic world. Morc spccifically, thcsc vicws wcrc an affirmation of tlie missionary's own intuition and feelings about what truth is, and abovc all, wliat God's will is today as rcvealcd through an undcrstaiidiiig of ihc Grcat Cornmission. Tliey allowed tiie misionary to cogcntly cxplain what was btiming in thc soul, thus leadingothcrs to go a l x ~and , inspiring cliurchcs to support them.

34

Chapter 3

Hermeneutics and the Misslonarv Irnuerative

33

Mlsslons And Hermeneutlcs In the Wentleth Century

Not all was positive throughout the ninetcenth century. 73cre was also a ncgativcsidc. Other,darkcr movementssoon impacted thc missions of thc Protestant Reformation. During the eighteenth ccntury thc Enlightcnmcnt came into being, a varicd social and political movcnicirt wliow followers estccmcd human reasoning as the final critcrion for knowing truth. As tlic ninctmnth century dawncd, a gcncration of philoophcrs emergcd who expanded the ramifications of Jolin Lockc's idcas oii human rcason and knowledge in ways that cxcccdcd tlicir original application. For Locke, reason and rationalism wcrc tools to help Christians justify belief in the basic core of Cliristiariity. Now their role was to staid in judgment over tlic rcasonablcncss of thc Christianity that Locke had defended. D m t o t h c h r i s t i a c r$tgions in othcr p?rts,gf the y~dAinqsgil_,Stories of myths and lcgcnds filtcrcd in from diverx lands and peoples. These stories, while diffcrcnt in content, were of the samc genreor type as found in contained crcation and ancicnt biblical litcraturc. Othcr rcligions also .flood storics, mytlis of gizk, licrocs and s a v i o r s , m a t ' victorics, ctc. Tiiis siiilarity raixd scvcral questions.What was the difference, if any, htwecn thc Bible and the sacred stories, myths, and legends from other rcligions? Was there any rationale for accepting the Bible as uniquc among the religious literature of the world? By what autliority did modcrn individuais accept tlie Bible as unique? - - - - .-__ _ n i i s b s t question wascspccially p&tinent because __-_...- the Enlightenmcnixad arcady rejccid$ny hfion thaf-&iesiastical or traditional au tliority as found in Roman Catliolicism wasreasonable for acccpting thc ~ h r i s t i a n . ~ i ~ & ~ ~ s --. . ~ ~ (;od. ue~*from Without any such authority t & c c o n c ~ ~ n n e e m e d obvious. Ncithcr in its contcnt or-ijtcrary construction was @eBible-uniyc or cv=~tid;irlppecial. l%at is>llc G b ~ a n d , critbj. wliicli to cornrncnd itrlf as God's only word t m a y cxpanding ,__-. -in knowT~gc&I"t~r%IT$OF----. I.L_.-.- Suvh a conclusion Icd to Lhe dcstruction of confidence in the tcxt o( tlie niblc. Of courx, exegcsis of tlic Scripturcs could still bc donc, but now it was a mcanitigless excrcisc. Tlic only way that thc Bible cotlld IJC studicd with any promisc of bcing meaningful for the modcni age was from a historical and critical viewpoint. By this mcthocl thosc prirts of the Scriptiircs critically considercd more
L

mythical in nature could be climinatcd. The remainder would then h the true core of the Bible which could be rationally accepted.

of otlier people who had However, others thought that all was not lost, for witliin Protctantism a compromiui was at hand. Evolution couplcd witli ninctmnth century progressivism (clasic liberalism) was invokcd to justify rnissionary activity. 3 r o g r e e s of ~ the Christian religion q ! h r o u p h i l r m i s s ~ a ~ ~ w - c ltied oxl to y the p m of sodeiy ' in eeneral. It made little difference if this compmmise c o x m 0 supported by ~ a i ~ t uexegesis. re This~ermcnc;tic could still explain in meaningful - . -- lan uage --the - ----.rationale an+u se ohristian mis'r=sioni in an enrg tcncd age. In othcr wor r, God's purpox in this -_ _ _-._---.--modcrii age, and wliicli tlicrcorc should be tlic commiiid of tlic modcrn church as well, was to bring Uie good fruits of wcstcrn progress to the ends of the carth. Before long, social progress took precedente and the cniphasis shifted away from evangclism to social concems in a large xgment of Protcstant missions. The rationale for missions so cloqucntly exprcssed by William Carcy in his interpretative essay on thc Creat Commission was set aside. Now it &ame more rational to iustify missions on @e basis of_cja'progrcss. Alarmsover thesedcvelopmcnts wcre raiscd by fundamcntalisls both in rnissions and mission-sending churches. Fundamcntalists, in reking to preserve the fundamentals of Christian faitli, quickly saw that these developments would eventually desiroy missions and evangelism. But the objections pmved too littie and too late. The twcntieth century had alrcady dawncd and the next forty years (19141945)of war, comrnunism, dcpression, and war again, overturncd tlic world of social progress and fundarncntalist objcction. In thoc! turbulent ycars Protestantism dividcd into two camps, liberal and fundamcntalist. On tlic libcral side tl\c biblical tcxt aiid exegesis of the text were downgraded and hcrmcncutics, now often rcfcrred to as the "new hcnncncutics," elevated. This furthcr crodcd confidcnce in thc biblical tcxt.
- A

.e-

*.

__C

..

C-_

Hermeneutics and the Missionary Imperative

Excgcsis, as a valid task iii biblical studies, was ultimately undcrmincd, setting the morc prcfcrred task of henneneutics adrift witliout any ccrtainty. This impactcd thc Great Commission in a ncgativc way and missions in thc lihcral camp suffered gradual dtrlinc throiighout tlic dccades following World War 11. Ori tlie fundamcntalist sidc scvcral devclopments took placc. First, fundamcntalists went on thc defcnsive to prexrve what was tK'iiig lost, iiamcly thc intcgrity of tlic biblical tcxt. Without a Biblc pcoplc could trust, no exegetical basis for missions existed. No gro~iiidiiigfor tlic classical hcrmciicutic of thc Great Commission would bc possiblc. Sccond, fuiidamentalism was rcdcfincd as conservativc and cvarigclical Ctiristiatiity; i.e., rcgardlcssof what changcs take place in s ~ x i ~and t y in tlie world, cvangelizing and winning the lost to Christ wcrc to bc conscrvcd as csscntial to the Gospel message. 111 tlie dccadc following World War 11, evangelical missions cxpandcd bcyond bclief: m r c s of ncw mission agencies (fonncrly callcd missioiiary ocictics) were cstablishcd and the number of ncw missionarics soarcd into thc tens of tliousands (Ralph Wintcr 1970).

37

Fortunately this grcatcr cmpliasis o11tlic Grcat Commissioi~ lias not hindcred an ever incrcasing number of new missionaries from going to do mission work in other nations. But this should come as no surprise, for thisis the function of thc Grcat Commission. On tlie otlicr Iiaiid. Iiowevcr, thcre is at Icast one bad side cffcct. With few exceptions missions have becomc a dcpartinciit -that is, compartmentalized- iii thc church and are &r hcr u u r p in tlic world. Morcover cvangclical tlicology has rciiiforccd tliis -.-,-com~artmentalization by focusing on other topics and issues. Oiicc morc tlic missionary dimciisiori of biblical intcrprcb tion gocs unnoticcd i11tlic midst of othcr tlicological concerns. This rciiiforccmcnt filtcrs down to theological cducation and thc training of Christian workers, finally settling as a miiidsct in tlie local congregatioti. Thc comparhnentalization of missions in the lifc of thc ciurcii is an untcnable position, both in theological interprctaiion and in practicc. How then can Uiis practicc bc correctcd? It is said that bad thcology makes for bad practicc. theology ~ rnakcs forgood Thc converse thcn should bc tmc. G Q Q

*-i-.---

L ,

Wc can re' icc in tlic ex~losive of evangelical missions iii -growth tl!e c o n d ialf of.-.v.. tlic- twcnticth -ccntu~,.&owever, -in making a dccpcr analysis - - o? . . this_gtowtf . --- - A -__. wc scc thatjtsmtivation . is derived from lhc Grcat Commissioii and not b a d on the 0ld"~estamcnt -- - mandntc for --.-mission. Sincc hemencutics i -. s -- - - l ~ e s c to t cxegcsis, a missionary intcrp&tation of the Qid Testam-t js prehgfull. d . --and --

---?---

h -

--

Testament that the church will nccd for the twenty-first century. This wil1 require, in Lois McKinneyls words (19931, a rcintegration of tlimlogical disciplines tliat will d c n ~ n da radical departurc from tlic dcparhnentalizcd and compartmcntalizcd curricula wliich charactcrizc o much of theological cducation today. The disciplinary strcams relatcd to the study of hcrmcncutics will convcrgcas undcrstandings of I~istorical backgroundq litcrary gcnrc, and broadcr biblical contcxts flow into tlicgrammatical analyscs of specific Bible texts.. .lC)oirrsa...will bc interdisciplinary, intcractivc, and dialogical. Spccialization will give way to intcgration...hthe process, missionarics will bc bettcr prepared to livc a i d scrvc in a post-Enlightenmcnt world.

la cbooks on the biblical basis for iiiissions kgiii with tlie Ncw Tcstamcnt, Ihc Great Commission, or tlic pcrsoii nnd mission of Jcsus Clirist as tllc main starting point. The 01J 'rcistnmcnt is givcn no role cxcept by occasional refercnce to tlic niissioiinry implications of tlie book of jonah or the instruction in thc Mosni Larv to takc carc of tlic goyim, alicns or Gcntiles, who livcd in Israel.

38

Chapter 3

Hermeneutics and the Missionary Imperative

39

Thc cliurch and her missions will no doubt face incrcasing diiculty both in recmiting new missionariesand funding their work. T i ~ fui1 c rnotivational and mobilizing power formissionscontained in thc Old Tcstamcnt will be n d e d in churches and theological instit i i i i o t t s to ncc.onplish Ilic task of cvangclizing the world in thc ncxt ccntiiry. A missionary impcrative runs throughout the Old Testarnent. A hcrmcncutic or inlerpretation of tlie Old Testament that does not show this is inadequate at best, or simply false at worse.

Questlons For Dlscusslon

1. Wliy was a mission consciousness slow to devclop iri tlic first two cciilurics of tlic Protrstii~t Hcformaiion? 2. Iiow did the pictisls diffcr from thc orthodox Protcstiiiils in tlicir respective henneneutic of thc Great Commission? 3. How did the predestiiation tlieology of George Whitcficld,thc -Arminiantheology of John Wesley, and mmrnon senc philoophy a11 work togethcr to create a more open climate for missiotrs iii thc England of the late eightcciith ceiitury? 4. Beginning with John Locke, how did the Enlightcnmcnt at first hclp, tlien later hinder and ultimately undermine mission outreach? 5. What type of curriculum would you recommend for training missionaries for the post-Enlightenment future?

40

Chapter 3

Endnotes
1. For a niore dctailed airalysis of thc liistorical period up to circa 1914 i i i tliis chaptcr, sce Kenneth cott Latourette (1970).

2. As an aside to the above discussion, it perhaps should come as no surprise that England, being the birthplace of common sense philosopliy, providcd so many missionarics for the nineteenth cen-

try.

Section I1

The Mysteries of God