The book explores the emergence and evolution of German missiology, focusing on the contributions and perspectives of German scholars in the field of mission studies. It delves into the historical context, key figures, and significant movements that shaped missiological thought in Germany, highlighting the interplay between theology, culture, and mission practice. Through critical analysis, the author examines how these developments influenced global mission efforts and the broader understanding of Christianity in a changing world.
The Christian experience in modern Europe is fragmented. It shows great diversity in various geographical contexts and, historically, a considerable alternation of extremes, high or low tides of engagement. One aspect of the Christianity in Europe’s past is its mission history. The spread of Christianity from the West – as one of its most important results – into the continents of the Global South has been deeply ambivalent in character. On the one hand, the mission from the West helped to build the historical foundations for Christian education, “adolescence” and maturation to responsible “adulthood” in a global, diverse, segregated and pluralistic world. As a mature global player, Christianity was in a prime position to contribute to peaceful conflict resolution, in the religious, social and political fields. On the other hand, the darkness and utter insufficiency of the encounter between the European, Christian “self” and the many “others” worldwide brought along problematic projections of different beliefs attacked in a hostile way as “alien” and, inevitably, as “conquered”. The consequences, particularly for the “primal other” – the indigenous people – were often disastrous. Werner Ustorf has been a leading missiologist worldwide for thirty years. This book not only analyses the interaction between mission and individual, the construction of the “self” and the “other” in a mission context, but also proves the analytical strength of theology in conceptualizing future Christian experiences in Europe. Ustorf illustrates that apart from traditional dimension of faith, a non-religious interpretation and critical trust in transcendence, is crucial for the formation of the new interculturation of Christianity in Europe. Thus, this book demonstrates how mission history can be transformed to a research concept for a global and pluralistic Christianity.
The rethinking of Christianity has a long tradition in Asia. This volume explores current theological trends and shifts in the perception of Christianity, mainly in China, Japan and Korea. The contributions come from east and west alike and address the question of the emergent shape of Christianity in the light of the experience of marginality and the search for identity. The theologies that play on the streets (for example Korean folklore and the Minjung Congregation Movement, the Buraku of Japan, the Confucian Christ in China and its so-called Culture Christians) are represented as well as programmatic theological discourses struggling with globalization and hegemonic images of Christ. Some of the contributors such as Kim Yong-Bock and R. S. Sugirtharajah are themselves exponents of new ways of Christian thought.
In der Person von Franz Michael Zahn (1833-1900) fand die 1836 gegründete, später in Bremen beheimatete Norddeutsche Mission ihre prägende Gestalt. 1862 wurde er zum Inspektor der Norddeutschen Mission berufen, die seit 1847 an der Goldküste, später auch in Togo tätig war. 1866 wurde er Mitbegründer und Schriftführer der Kontinentalen Missionskonferenz; mit Gustav Warneck war er Herausgeber der Allgemeinen Missionszeitschrift. Werner Ustorf hat sich in seiner Habilitationsschrift mit Leben und Werk dieses Mannes befasst, der nicht nur für die Mission generell wegweisende Bedeutung hatte. Sein Ziel war die Entstehung einer eigenständigen afrikanischen Kirche, die Heranbildung eines bodenständigen Mitarbeiterstabes und eine klare Distanzierung von Kolonialinteressen sowohl der Briten als auch später des Deutschen Reiches in Togo. Ustorf untersucht „Das missionarische Modell“ Zahns, fragt nach der „Integration afrikanischer Mitarbeiter in den europäischen Missionsbetrieb“, der „Interaktion von europäischen und afrikanischen Mitarbeitern“ und „Zahns Beurteilung und Beantwortung des afrikanischen Aufstiegs- und Bildungsanspruchs“; er lässt den Leser an seinen intensiven Archivstudien teilnehmen und entfaltet selbst noch in Anmerkungen Aspekte des damaligen Missionsverständnisses.
The first part of the book examines the active and self-determined process of Aboriginal appropriation of Christianity, situating it within the global conversation of contemporary Christianity. Chapter One explores the earliest Aboriginal interpretation of Christianity through the figure of Moses Tjalkabota, comparing him to two indigenous leaders from Black Africa. Chapter Two revisits the missionary efforts among the Arrernte, highlighting the unexpected outcome of Black creolisation of the faith. The second part critiques Western scholarship's attempts to define “primal man” in Central Australia, revealing that scholars can exhibit a missionary zeal akin to evangelists. Chapter Three discusses the cognitive violence involved in addressing the contentious issue of the concept of God among Aborigines. Chapter Four illustrates how encounters in Central Australia can transform scholarship, exemplified by Theodore Strehlow, an anthropologist who embraced a dual religious identity as a member of the Arrernte people. Although the volume lacks a formal conclusion, it includes a final discussion on Aboriginal art. Ultimately, the universality and peaceful nature of Christianity stem not from its doctrines, but from its capacity to integrate primal religions like Aboriginal traditions. This ecumenical platform allows Black Christianity to enrich humanity and expands Christianity's repertoire, leading to new expressions of the sacred,
