Missionalia

Contains abstracts of missiological contributions, book reviews, and articles.

An exploration of the rapid development of African Christianity, offering an analysis and interpretation of its movements and issues.

The emergence of an indigenous African theology, especially since the 1960s is well-documented. A wealth of literature has been published in the context of African theology, especially over the last two or three decades. This indexed bibliography contains a number of publications in and for the African context specifically relevant to the fields of systematic theology and ethics.

This volume comprises case studies of five centuries of European encounters with and imaginations of Africa encompassing her triple religious heritage: African Traditional Religions, Christianity and Islam. The introductory chapters outline the challenges and present overviews; some of them also analyze the early accounts of European travelers and missionaries. The following contributions examine the lasting legacy of the European Enlightenment in employing an ambivalent language of human equality and universalism, while in actual fact consigning Africa to an inferior position. It has been difficult for western scholars to divorce themselves wholly from the perceptions thus established. However, there have been quite different approaches. This is indicated in the papers discussing the role and impact of influential European academics (scholars of religion, theologians, historians and social scientists) during the colonial and postcolonial period. Other contributions examine specific institutional centers of African religious studies in Europe. The concluding chapters critically assess European approaches and their use for the study of religion in Africa from an African perspective.

An in-depth look at Christian theology through Hispanic eyes. It weaves the doctrinal formulations of the early church on creation, the Trinity, and Christology into contemporary theological reflection on the Hispanic struggle for liberation. This volume offers a major theological statement from a respected theologian and author. Richly insightful and unique, Manana is one of the few major theological works from a Protestant representative of the Hispanic tradition. Justo L. Gonzalez offers theological reflections based upon unique insights born of his minority status as a Hispanic American.

Winner of The 2018 Saidi-Sirjani Book Award In The Western Christian Presence in the Russias and Qājār Persia, c.1760–c.1870, Thomas O'Flynn vividly paints the life and times of missionary enterprises in early nineteenth-century Russia and Persia at a moment of immense change when Tsarist Russia embarked on an expansionist campaign reaching to the Caucasus. Simultaneously he charts the relationship between the new Persian dynasty of the Qājārs and missionary activity on the part of European and American missionaries. This book reconstructs that world from a predominantly religious perspective. It recounts the sustaining ideals as well as the everyday struggles of the western missionaries, Protestant (Scottish, Basel and American Congregationalist) and Catholic (Jesuit and Vincentian). It looks at the reactions of diverse tribal peoples, the Tatars of the North Caucasus, the Kabardians and Circassians. Persia was the ultimate goal of these missionaries, which they eventually reached in the 1820s. Altogether this study throws light on the troubled course of history in West Asia and provides the background to politico-religious conflicts in Chechnya and Persia that persist to the present day.

Since the end of Vatican II, in 1965, more active involvement of the laity has led many people to wonder about the priestಙs place in the Church. In this masterful work, theologian Jean Galot, S.J., clarifies the nature of the priesthood. He explains how the Jewish priesthood, the perfect priestly ministry of Jesus, and the role of the Twelve help us understand the ministerial priesthood. He considers how the ಜpriesthood of the faithfulಝ and the ministerial priesthood relate to each other, and how the latter is, by Godಙs design, necessary for the former. Theology of the Priesthood carefully examines the priestಙs role as minister of sacrifice and the sacraments, prophet of the Word, and leader of the Church. These and other aspects are summed up, according to Galot, in the priestಙs ministry as shepherd. This ministery is itself a sharing in Jesusಙ role as Shepherd: ಜThe priest does not draw the inspiration for his pastoral zeal from his own feelings, from his own personal resolve to create a better worldಝ, Fr. Galot writes. ಜHe is shepherd on the strength of Godಙs pastoral intention and represents specifically Christ the shepherd. Consequently, he is called upon to fulfill his pastoral mission not according to ideas of his own and his own personal ambitions, but in keeping with Godಙs own dispensation and the design of salvation devised by the Father and carried out by Christ. Like Jesus himself, the priest is at the service of the Father.ಝ The book also explores the spiritual life of priests, including the role of celibacy. It concludes with a discussion demonstrating that the male character of the ministerial priesthood is based on the will of Jesus and is not contrary to womenಙs dignity on their role in the Church.

Many people in Christian ministry are tired of simplistic certainties; what they need is permission to live with uncertainty, with mystery, ambiguity, and paradox. Because we live in a world that is far removed from the modernist version of reality,with its rational, clinical, and superficial presentation of life, we need the courage and wisdom to embrace the presence of uncertainties in the midst of certainty. In this book, the author offers snapshots of a number of central Christian topics-God, the gospel, the church, salvation, ministry-inviting us to treat them as features of a landscape to explore rather than a set of propositional statements to sign up to. Each chapter-short enough to provoke interest and curiosity-will be a catalyst for deeper reflection and enquiry, inviting us to discover a new freedom in ministry as we embrace a more generous both-and perspective in place of a more narrow either-or interpretation of the Christian faith. In the process, we may find ourselves rediscovering the Life we have lost in living as we imaginatively participate in the life, ministry, and mystery of the triune God of grace in our midst.

Christians are often tempted to encapsulate God in their own little boxes, as if God could be tied down to our finite way of thinking. But we can neither domesticate nor fully understand God, for theology has a lot to do with coming to terms with the mystery of God. This revised edition of Dancing in the Dark--shaped, as in the first edition, by the two overarching themes of God as Trinity and a theology of participation--embraces the notion of mystery in presenting a compelling vision of seeing all things finally united within the inner life of God. As we engage in Christian ministry, we are summoned to participate as grace-filled faith communities in the triune God's immeasurably loving and healing work in the world, leading those who are in darkness into an awareness of the God who imparts life in all its glorious abundance, that which is so . . . and a journey into the mystery of that which is to come. The liberating ministry of the gospel is both a declaration and an invitation--an invitation to the dance!