Having attended ILEAP training in January, I continue to be amazed and saddened at how we treat people of diversity in the name of Christianity and improving their lives. Duncan's story of his grandmother was particularly compelling. Eye witness stories usually are. She must have been a women of great strenth and internal fortitude. We have much to learn as we work with Native American communites.
I found the presentation on the Internet interresting and informative.
I do not agree that for all people this is "the newest and the best" way of reaching people, but it certainly does appeal to a huge group of people.
When we came to the section on reviewing the various churches, i was reminded of the coverage in the Minneapolis Star and Tribune's Religion section. Each Saturday there is a review of a church which was visited by a reporter from the Faith Section of the newspaper. This reporter simply "drops in" on a church each weekj, and then a review is printed in the paper for all the world to see. There is no planning in advance to "look good" or to do things in hospitality to appeal to the reporter. I find that this is a much more honest evaluation of the church as it really is to the public. The presentation on AIDS
again highlighted the importance of this public and church health issue to all of us.
As Group A, on May 1st we shall be presenting on the Mission of the Episcopal Church to Native Americans. Two of us will present the history of the Mission and two of us will concentrate on the current mission to Native Americans. Focusing on the current mission, as an example I shall be focusing on the a Mission to a particular group of Native Americans.
Project proposal:
Northern Christianity as a mission field from a Southern Christianity perspective will be examined in this paper. We are taking a three-pronged approach to this perspective. We will examine, in humility and from as close to an original view as possible, a view of the North from three major geographical areas of Southern Christianity. The first area will be Southern Americas from Mexico to Terra del Feugo. The second area will be Africa. The final area we hope to present views from will be India.
The geographical divisions presented here are arbitrary and certainly reflect the cultural bias and context of the students involved. Also, this paper is not adequate to fully explore the views of the rest of the Southern Christian world and is remiss in taking into account other important areas such as China and Southeast Asia, Korea, Japan and Australia. This paper also will deal with discreet overviews of the areas that are covered, recognizing that Southern Americas, Africa, and even India hold remarkably diverse and rich cultures and expressions of Christianity.
The view of mission work within the Western European/North American(WENA) church has been traditionally coupled with colonialism and power. The Southern Christianity still faces a North that is historically colonial and certainly in a position of world power in nearly every measure. This asymmetry of power inherently places Southern Christian mission work in the north on a totally different historical footing than previous and current WENA mission work in the South.
We will examine also, how each of these three Southern Christian churches view both North America and Western Europe.
I. Southern Americas
a. Europe
b. North America
II. Africa
a. Europe
b. North America
III. India
a. Europe
b. North America
It is our hope that the views presented here are as genuine as possible, knowing full well that we bring our own cultural contexts to the table. It is also hoped that we are able to accept the views presented by the Southern Christian Church as being as fed and propelled by the Holy Spirit as any movement of the Church in history. We hope to learn from our Southern sisters and brothers how better to serve Christ?s mission, both far and near.
Note to group:
I suggest that we meet soon to develop a research plan and set goals for completion of the project. I thank God that we are involved in this particular project and look, in prayer and humility, for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Dear friends in Christ,
Here is a list of proposed research/topics that we might be able to use to develop this project. Please offer direction and shape to the research and to the very character of the project. These are just off the top of my head ideas. There appears to be a dirth of information on the internet about our topic. I have also dropped Philip Jenkins a short email asking for his input on the project.
Potential Topics of research
Church statistics for North America and Europe as a function of population
Church statistics for South America and India and Africa as a function of population
Any literature of Southern Christian origin that focuses on WENA mission
Current state of Southern Christian missions in the North.
Projected mission goals of Southern Christianity in the North.
Comparison of theology of Southern Christianity with that of the North
Influence and effect of Islam on development and spread of Southern Christianity
Statistics of Southern Christianity missions in WENA