Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Ron and Nancy's Golden wedding anniversary. A celebration for the Kingdom

“QUR’AN IN THE LIGHT OF CHRIST”
A SEMINAR CELEBRATING THE GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY
in 50 cities.
OF RON AND NANCY GEORGE 2014





In 1962 Ron and Nancy met on Operation Mobilisation and after marriage have served the Lord in many lands, in a variety of ways and learned much that can be shared with the church today to give insight and perspective to its missionary mandate.

Their mandate by the trustees of World In Need is to teach and train the churches in UK and other places more about Missions, cultural awareness and bring together a multi disciplinary approach to evangelism. This is to create an atmosphere of learning, humility and communication between peoples of other faiths.

2014 is our Golden Wedding anniversary. We plan to  launch a “Golden Seminar Year”to help churches, our own supporting friends and WIN overseas bases to celebrate God’s great goodness and faithfulness over 50 years. We expect to promote the seminar amongst their own community and the other churches in their area ( this is essential for success). Either through their contacts or through Churches Together in the locality.

How Long is the seminar? These will be either a 1 hour short presentations ideal for mid week Bible studies or a full seminar of 9 hours using 2 hours on a Friday and 7 hours on the Saturday. Other options can be worked out.

Content. Outline of Muslim Awareness Seminar.
1.      1. Various attitudes  must change if Muslims are to listen to what we say and we communicate clearly to them.
      2.  Three forms of history, what they are told, what Orientalists have written and modern  study on the origins of Islam. The Biblical implications of discoveries by cultural anthropologists.
3.       3. The Biblical Basis of Islam, two children, Isaac and Ishmael and the result of their family background.
4.       4.Sects and divisions within Islam.
5.       5.Sources of knowledge in Islam, Usual al Fiqh.
6.       Felt needs with the community and the Biblical equivalents.
7.       Incorporation within a faithful community. The Hebrew concept of Faithfulness since Abraham had the gospel preached to him Gal. Historical discoveries in the origins of Islam and its Biblical contacts and roots.
8.       8. Changing missions awareness as a result of over 200 years of practice.
9.       9.Abraham, Sarai, Hagar, Isaac and Ishmael, a family of faith being God’s model and His covenant to them as it appears today.
       10..    What the future holds and God’s plans for the world and understanding the Gospel in the Old Testament.
 Locations for venues are as follows: 

CAN YOU OR YOUR CHURCH HOST A SEMINAR FOR THE CHURCHES AROUND YOU ?

England.
 Ashford, Birmingham,  Bradford, Brighton, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Eastbourne, Gillingham, Gloucester,  Hastings, Ipswich, Leeds, Leicester, London, Manchester, Newcastle,  Northampton, Nottingham, Oldham, Oxford, Preston,  Rhyl, Rochdale, Romford, Salisbury Sheffield, Sheffield, Southampton,  St.Helens,  Swansea, Swindon, Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells, Wrexham,
Overseas: Canada, Kenya, India, Moldova, and other places. Please call us to learn more
In Northern Ireland this will coordinated by Terry Harkness in Kells, Co Antrim. 
TEL. 07850 444146 E Mail: tharkness@craigfoods.com

In England, Wales and Scotland contact Ron George, 
Tel: 01892 663391 E mail: Ron@worldinneed.co.uk

 

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Water Buffalo Theology

Water Buffalo Theology, written by Kosuke Koyama,
Click to show "Water Buffalo ploughing" result 2

is an expression of an Asian theology, rooted in the Thai Buddhist culture that has developed through Koyama’s missionary experience in Thailand.  While the book itself discusses contextualization, the discussion is rooted in Koyama’s development and contextualization of Christian theology in the Thai Buddhist society.  In the development of his theology, Koyama opposes syncretism, while also opposing a veneer Christianity, or what is exemplified in the book as “kitchen” theology. In other words, theology must be able to culturally express Christianity in terms that carry both the form and meaning of the Gospel message, while rooting itself within the culture, and thus allowing the Gospel to prophetically interpret, challenge, and change that culture and be fully understood by the believers.  In the preface, Koyama defines contextualization as a two step process, “First, to articulate Jesus Christ in culturally appropriate, communicatively apt words; and second, to criticize, reform, dethrone, or oppose culture if it is found to be against what the name of Jesus Christ stands for.”

In the first section Koyama specifically evaluates the history, theological situation and past missiological issues in Asia.  The section starts with a brief overview of the theological situation, and important historical issues on a country-by-country basis.  The author highlights some deeply rooted cultural beliefs and practices, which highlight some of the challenges in understanding Christianity.  Koyama insightfully includes not only the importance of history, but also nature.  He writes, “Theological thinking must hold both history and nature to be equally important.” (1999:20) Nature is cyclical (rainy season, dry season, rainy season, etc.) and encourages a cyclical view of human history as well.  This stands in stark contrast to the “once-for-all” historical action of Christ.  Koyama writes that, "God is not cyclical.  God is linear.  God is not many-times, but is once-for-all." (1999:20) Theological thinking must include consider nature, and the rain must be seen as “His” rain and understood in the linear history of God.  Koyama continues by highlighting how the Western missionary presence in Asia has been both “gun and ointment” or had both a wounding and healing presence.   (1999:32) 
 Beginning to mold thinking towards the receiving culture, Koyama points out that the “fragrance” of the missionary presence, is dependant upon how it is received.  "The missionary ointment itself, then, can be fragrant only insofar as the fragrance of Christ is in it and the same fragrance is appreciated by the ones who repent." (1999:42) The chapter finishes with an unanswered question, whose answer will either justify or challenge this presence.  "Is it possible… for the Christian mission to be 'the salt of the earth' (Matthew 5:13) unless it lives in the confusion of history of 'guns and ointments?'" (1999:42)  In this historical review of mission, Koyama also presents the “inefficient” God who challenges missionaries, and modern culture, in their valuation of “efficiency” as an important personal, cultural and structural attribute. 

 This first section is a preface to what Koyama defines as the first section of contextualization, which is to express the Gospel in culturally appropriate means.  In order to be able to make an evaluation on how to appropriate express and communicate the Gospel, one must first know and understand to whom it is being communicated.  Therefore this should be considered a critical step in the contextualization process.  One must risk being considered “inefficient” in presenting the Gospel, and first understand to whom they minister, before beginning to minister to them.  One might be anxious to begin their ministry of evangelism and start off with an evangelistic outreach to Hindus by serving hamburgers, and wonder why the Gospel was so offensive.

The second section is rooting the Gospel, which Koyama defines in the preface as the first component of contextualization.  In the process of rooting the Gospel one makes use of the information gathered, and relationships formed while getting to know the culture and people with whom one lives.  Koyama provides a great example of a failure to root the Gospel culturally in what he describes as “kitchen” theology.  In this example, he shares how one might sit and drink tea with the missionaries in the living room, expressing proper theology, but their real life is in the dirt floor in the kitchen.  Hiebert provides one such example of going to a Christian preacher for help, but then also turning to the local magician afterwards.  In other words, they share what they are “supposed” to talk about with the missionary, but their real conversations happen afterwards.  Koyama writes that, “Their theological activity goes on while they squat on the dirt ground, and not while sipping tea with missionary friends in the teak-floored shiny living room.”  (1999:60).

This results in the Thai people “seasoning” the Gospel with some of their own Buddhist understandings in order to make it more palatable to their beliefs.  The challenge in rooting the Gospel is finding the cultural means in order that the Gospel is understood, without the Gospel simply appropriating other terms in a syncretic manner.  Koyama writes that, “Our dilemma is this: if we say 'salvation through the blood of Jesus,' our Thai audience is completely lost.  If we say 'salvation through the dharma,' they would see no difference between the Christian faith and Buddhism.”  (1999:59)  Koyama continues with the presentation of neighborology, which highlights the importance of how the Gospel is presented.  This also reflects Samuel Escobar’s presentation of the other Great Commission in John 20:21, which is that it is not only important that the Gospel is presented (Matthew 28:19-20) but how the Gospel is presented (John 20:21.)  Koyama presents the material through an example of visiting a sick woman, who ultimately responds,”you missionaries are always trying to teach people while you really do not understand the people.  The Buddhist monks are much better than you missionaries… He will understand me.”  (1999:65) Such responses are the result of looking at others “in my own terms” (1999:65) and a failure of “exegesis of the life and culture of the people among whom he lives.”  (1999:65)  The section concludes with discussions on key theological issues in Asia, and the example of re-rooting the Gospel through the theology of pain.

The third section turns to the second part of contextualization, which is an evaluation of culture in light of the Gospel.  In this section, Koyama reminds the reader that we do not interact with Buddhism, but with Buddhists, and encourages a very personal interaction.  One might extend this to also say that we don’t work with Bolivia, but Bolivians.  In other words, this is not a theoretical exercise that can take place within the study, but must take place within actual relationships and within dialogue with real people.

The fourth section describes the process of interpreting the Christian life.  While one might be quick to be a “prophetic” voice to a culture, the Church is often slow, and reluctant, to search for its own cultural personality, in fear of syncretism, or possibly simply in the fear of loosing control.  One must be reminded that any worship, any theology, any expression of our beliefs, are only a partial representation of the truth.  Koyama speaks of developing a “personality” of theology.  Too often, theology is itself considered as the truth of the Gospel, while Koyama reminds us that “Theology can only stammer about the person and work of Jesus Christ."  (1999:134)  For Koyama, theology must have a starting point in history, and in the reality of the world.  He writes that, “"third world theology begins by raising issues, and not by digesting Augustine, Barth, Rahener.  I must say, though, that they do help in raising theological issues."  (1999:15)  If Theology must start by raising issues, which differ by each culture and within cultures, one must assume that the resulting theology will explain these issues within the framework of the core Christian beliefs.  In other words, theology is a human understanding and expression of God, and God’s work in history, and therefore these understandings may safely differ in expressing the same core truths of God’s work in history. Extending this “personalization” of history, Koyama asks “Is Christ Divided?” in discussing differing denominational views.  The existence of differing theologies across denominations, while retaining core Christian beliefs, is an example of how theologies have been personalized over the years.  Koyama reminds the reader that we must understand that the theological differences expressed through denominations are minute in comparison to the core theological beliefs that are shared.  "But it is of great importance for us to remember that these theological insights are humble theological insights.  They are servants, not masters, to the 'inexpressible gift' of God in Christ (2nd Corinthians 9:15.)"  (1999:142) 

 In the end, the Church is the Church of Christ, who holds all things together, was crucified for us, and into whom we were baptized.  Such an understanding requires an appropriate humility, and a crucified mind.  Koyama reminds us that the life of Paul, and the life of a missionary must not be theoretical, must not simplify human history, or human nature, and must be able to recognize God at work throughout the world.  The communication of the Gospel, is not simply the communication of a news cast, or an information bulletin.  "What is to be communicated, however, is something more than an idea.  It is life, history, hope, and love… This communication is only possible through the medium of a living person, the communicator himself or herself.  The God who says 'Your problem is my problem' cannot be made real through 'communication-logy,' but only through the life of the communicator… If the message is incarnated in the messenger and produces a messageful person, the message will be communicated."  (1999:155)

One must use great care in reading and understanding the message and principles of Koyama and Water Buffalo Theology.  One core understanding is that Koyama does not advocate for a simplification of the Gospel, nor a watered down Gospel.  Whether talking about presenting the Gospel in palatable terms, or “personalizing” theology, it would be a great misunderstanding to assume that Koyama is talking about creating a “palatable” Gospel.  Explaining the Gospel in “palatable” terms is vastly different from adopting the Gospel to cultural beliefs.  There is a vast difference between the recognition that theology is a human expression and creation, is also vastly different from assuming that a theology only must respond to culturally relevant questions.

One might argue that through contextualization Koyama distinguishes between the work of the missionary and the work of God, the Gospel.  The heart of contextualization is allowing the Gospel to be communicated through a crucified mind, and Christ providing a prophetic voice.  Through so doing he is able to focus on how a missionaries work, style of communications, and words must be chosen in a way that is culturally palatable and understandable.  This must be balanced with the Gospel retaining its full message, and being able to challenge the beliefs and the culture.  In other words, the Gospel must be understandable, but in its full reality.  Syncretism must be avoided.

One example, of a failure of this balance, experienced in my own life is what I discovered on a visit to Huatulco, Mexico.  Hautulco, I am told, means “people of the wood” in an ancient language in the region.  Huatulco was originally evangelized by the Catholic Church, where the missionaries found a people who worshiped a wood pole.  In their attempts to help the locals convert this worship towards the one Lord, they converted this wood pole into a wooden cross, in the same place, which proved to be a palatable form of worship to the people. Today, a Catholic church exists on the beach in that same place.  Yet, in an example of “kitchen” theology, with a short hike one can find a place where those same people offer another type of prayer for their wellbeing.  About a 30 minute hike from that same location one can find a stone, where the tradition continues to offer requests to the divine by placing miniature objects around the stone and offering an animal sacrifice.  During our visit there we were able to see clear examples of recent animal sacrifices.  While the Catholic missionaries where able to present the Gospel, in this case, in a very palatable form, the Gospel was failed to be understood in a manner that would lead to a complete contextualization, where the Gospel is able to prophetically speak to the cultural traditions.

Contextualization raises questions within the Latin America context.  In particular one must analyze the rise of the “Faith and Prosperity Gospel”, which is experiencing tremendous popularity.  This is coming as a result, largely, of the charismatic church (in particular the Assembly of God) having largely local leadership, and through the great expansion.  Is this an example of contextualization of the Gospel or simply bad theology?  What about Liberation Theology? Is this a contextualized expression of the Gospel responding to the experience of cyclical poverty in Latin America?  What about the division between the Catholic and Protestant Churches in Latin America?  Is Christ divided?  Is the global Church allowing structural sin in creating such a division?  If one argues that Christ cannot be divided, how does one express this great division in the Church?
Kosuke was a Japanese, Protestant Christian theologian. After teaching at a theological seminary in Thailand, he was the executive director of Association of Theological Schools in Southeast Asia with his office in Singapore from 1968 to 1974, and the editor of Southeast Asia Journal of Theology. To his close friends and family, he was known as "Ko". he is considered one of the leading Japanese theologians of the twentieth

Monday, November 7, 2011





I have just received this blog which highlights the needs for biblical teaching regarding Islam and knowledge instead of hatred and ignorance.


Jack Van Imp was an evangelist in Detroit Michigan and refused to work with people that appeared in a photo that had a young man with long hair in it. The other commentators evidence deep ignorance of the issues and the deep seated inability to be both biblical and  intelligently informed.

None of them seem to understand that the loss of identity is a major drawback in Muslims coming to Christ and making them "Christlam" people does not solve the problem Biblically or socially. Again it brings out the problem that often interpreters of the Bible do so within a rarified atmosphere that limits their ability to constructively see the principles behind the Biblical stories or statements thus the hermaneutic is skewed in favour of their own culture and not God's intentions.

This raises the question of whether God intended the Bible to be used as a yard stick or as a pointer to the Kingdom of God, certainly Paul spent his time teaching the Kingdom to gentiles that did not have a Kingdom framework Acts 28 v 31, Peter expounds the Kingdom 1 Pet 1 v 3,4 and in 2Pet 1 v 3 how to be unified with the King of the Kingdom and Jesus shows forth the Kingdom and his role in that Kingdom.

Ron

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Kingdom values and Muslim extraction



The major problem world mission is facing today is that of the outdated church structures which no longer accommodate new peoples from other ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds. The wineskin got old over time and new one is needed for cross-cultural mission in our time.
                                 Muslims can trace their origins from Hagar's life with Abraham

The lesson that can be learned  is that any church that neglects the role of history of mission and ignores reviewing relevant structures for expansion will definitely become irrelevant in cross cultural mission as was the case of Churches affiliated to WCC that saw a serious decline in their role in world mission, due to theological and structural deficiencies. Today and in our own time, it is our responsibility to review those structures so that they can fit the fresh wine (Mark 2: 22).  M. Warren asserts that, “we need structures specifically focused on cross-cultural evangelism”. Cisse

Usually Muslim Background Believers (mbbs) face psychological challenges of being extracted from the culture and community they are familiar with. Their post conversion experiences from Christians frustrate and make them feel returning back to the culture they feel at home. This is because they only mimic what they have learned, from those who converted them,  to a Western version of Christianity thus imbibing Greco-Roman cultural concepts totally foreign and irrelevant to their cultural contexts and expressions.

       “If however, they discover Christ, not of American, Indian, Roman, or Greek roads but  
       of the Islamic route, the Sirat al-Mustaqim, then they can  be  Christ centric (Isa’iyya)  
       rather than Ecclesio-centric. They can stay as insiders in their communities, love
       God, obey Christ and transform their Islamic culture and relevant structures into what
       God originally intended for the Muslim peoples. Muhammad moved people along
       the continuum from the worship of many gods to the worship of  only   one God”.                  
                                                            Main Mosque in Kabul

Therefore, perpetuating the extraction of the mbbs out of their culture and isolating them from their communities makes them both irrelevant to their people, ineffective and incapacitated to evangelize their own folks.
               “If the holy Spirit is moving and speaking to people outside the Church, We must    
                    listen, learn and re-evaluate what we are doing lest  in our  enthusiasm to preach
               the gospel, preach our own worldview and what is appropriate in our own culture
               and damage other peoples”.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Moldova

When Nancy and I stared our work together our vision was to help Muslims living under Communism. The result was that the closest we could get there was Iran. For the past few years I have been teaching in Moldova and fulfilling (finally) that vision. This month I was there teaching in the CTE college with Uzbeks, Karakalpaks, Kazakhs, Tajiks, Azeris, Georgians and other nationalities on average 6 hours per day. Exhausting but thrilling to see the level they are committed to.
The problems many will now face is that their churches are often run by people that have no training and no ability to be culturally sensitive. The result is obstruction, rejection and distrust of them coming home. One on fire young girl told me that then only qualifications her pastor had was a driving license!
It will take wisdom and patience to affect the next generation.


  

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Missions


This next two weeks Nancy and I are visiting Northern Ireland and hope to make a visit also to dear friends in the south as well.
The Bangor missions convention is 75 years old this year and they have gone through a renewal and attracted many young people, have great vision for the future and offer excellent networking for all those who participate. Bishop Michael Nazir Ali gave the first address on the persecution of Christian minorities around the world. This led to the observation of the growing marginalisation of Christians in the UK at this present time. History may well repeat itself if we do not stay alert. However his message was sobering, has it not been like this since the time of Christ and that he called us all to take up our cross and follow Him in suffering and persecution. Watch this space!

A New Survey: Read more on: On the webhttp://www.cardus.ca/research/education/
Protestant Schools Focus on Faith; Catholic Schools Focus on Intellect.
A new study of K-12 Christian schools shows that Protestant Christian schools do a better job of developing their students' spiritual formation while Catholic Christian schools do a better job developing their students' intellect.
These are among the findings of a two-year study of Christian schools in the United States conducted by Cardus, a Christian think tank.
Catholic school students have better academic outcomes, are more likely to attend prestigious colleges, more likely to achieve an advanced degree and have higher income levels as a result. This is consistent with the goals of Catholic schools. Catholic school administrators place much emphasis on academic achievement and Catholic schools have more rigorous course requirements than Protestant schools.


Could it be that whilst protestants are successful in teaching their children they have not given them the academic tools to deal with a post modernism, biased scientific arguments and rampant agnosticism?
A good place to start is to watch the You Tube lectures by John Lennox.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Who is to blame?

This is the new mantra that is spewing out of the media, politicians and man on the street here in UK. Who is to blame for the madness and terror unleashed on UK streets this week?


For a change they cannot blame God. That's one option not mentioned.  I think that we have to go back to the David Hume in 1779 who espoused  the primacy of secularism, this was regurgitated by A T Robinson the Bishop of Woolwich who wrote a best seller called "God is Dead" in 1963. Out of that foundation a whole raft of initiatives have given way to this  position of primacy. Secularism has had a place in society but with God dead anything is valid and "every man does what is right in his own eyes". These people on the streets were driven by a culture whereby those in positions of leadership and example have let them down.  Churchmen have compromised themselves on gay issues and the breakdown of family life and being irrelevant to many ordinary people. They have become ecclesiastically motivated and not Kingdom based. These young people were led by hooligans but many came from normal backgrounds. If Sportsmen can take drugs, cheat and be paid enormous salaries why can't they have a piece of the pie. If Politicians can put in false expenses why can't they get a piece of the pie. If newspaper men (who only want the truth) can hack into peoples phones to make a scoop to raise circulation figures why can't they get a piece of the pie. They are beset by greedy people all around them and the lines of accountability have been torn down and opportunities are far out of reach for them.
Liberals using human wisdom sought to restrict parents from correcting their children, as one man put it "I can't slap my kid, send him to his room or act against his behaviour for fear of the social worker being called.

Today I was told of one child in my own peaceful town who was queuing with her mother in a shop. When she was pulled back into the  line and she turned on her mother saying "leave me alone bitch! Liberals in the media, school boards and seats of power must take responsibly for the fruits of their interference in society.

Its time for another renaissance, a radical overhauling of just where secularism has got us and the high cost of individualism still to be paid. Human wisdom is foolishness with God and we must return to a re-evaluation of
whether we have understood the message of Christ and His Kingdom and depart from a church-ianty that is toothless and mediocre.

Ron George