The document discusses the history of missions and contextualization of the gospel across different eras. In the pre-World War II era, Christianity was seen as conquering heathen cultures and converts had to reject their own culture. Post-World War II saw a shift towards contextualization where local cultures were valued more. The post-Cold War era critiqued the traditional Western-centric view of missions and recognized a two-way exchange between the global church.

1. COACH Institute of Intercultural Studies, Hyderabad
Gospel & Culture
Dr. Pothana

2. Culture and the History of Missions
A. Pre World War II: Age of Conquest
• Gospel and Western culture
were bound up in the concept of
Christianity.
• Missions was understood as a
religious conquest that resulted
in the “Christianizing” of heathen
nations.
• Converts were expected to
reject their culture along with
their former religion and take on
a “Christian way of life.”

3. Culture and the History of Missions
B. Post World War II: Age of Contextualization
• Due to de-colonization and the
building up of independent nations,
there was increasing sensitivity to
the value of other cultures.
• There was much talk of the need
for missionaries to contextualize
the gospel.
• The imposition of Western
customs on the part of missionaries
was criticized as cultural
imperialism.

4. Culture and the History of Missions
B. Post World War II: Age of Contextualization
The World Council of Churches
agreed that:
• The gospel needs to root itself in
each culture.
• Identification between Western
culture and Indigenous culture
• Sensitivity to cultures is crucial.
• Gospel transforms culture, and
yet is also transformed by it in its
expression.

5. Culture and the History of Missions
C. Post Cold War: Age of Critique
• Missions has been traditionally
understood as a one-way activity of
spreading Christianity from the
West into other parts of the world.
• The Christian West was home
base and the non-Christian, non-
West was the mission field.
• Mission was carried out by an
organization or department within
the church that was responsible for
this activity.

6. Culture and the History of Missions
C. Post Cold War: Age of Critique
Several developments have caused this
view to be challenged:
• The dramatic growth and vitality of
the church in the non-West paralleled
by the marginalization of the church in
the West.
•People groups, not geographical
territories, have become the means of
evaluating missionary needs.
• Mission was defined as the nature and
responsibility of the whole church.

7. Culture and the History of Missions
C. Post Cold War: Age of Critique
one of which the Churches have been – on the
whole – so little conscious.” Newbigin’s
subsequent work brought serious attention to the
“missionary problem” of the West and spawned a
developing missiology of Western culture.
In the 1980’s Lesslie Newbigin, a
returned British missionary to India
declared Western culture to be “the
most difficult missionary frontier in
the contemporary world” and “the

8. Culture and the History of Missions
C. Post Cold War: Age of Critique
This movement is marked by several key
features:
• A thorough critique of Western culture.
• Reflection on “What is the gospel?” and
“How does it address us in this culture?”
• An openness to the insights of non-Western
Christians.
• Renewal of the missionary calling of the
Western church to its own culture.
• A reapplication at home of methods used to
reach other cultures.

9. Dr. Pothana
bhaktapothana@gmail.com
+91-8309511427