The Missionary Movement in Christian History: Studies in the Transmission of Faith

by Andrew F. Walls

The collected lectures and articles of the noted missionary and historian Andrew Walls, professor emeritus of Edinburgh University and founder of The Center for the Study of Christianity in the Non-Western World. This book makes the full range of his thought available for the first time to scholars and students of world mission, theology, and church history.

Genres: History, Theology, Christian, Church History, Faith, Nonfiction, Africa

288 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1996

About the author

A former missionary to Sierra Leone and Nigeria, Andrew Walls taught for many years at the University of Aberdeen before founding the Centre for the Study of Christianity in the Non-Western World at the University of Edinburgh. The Andrew F. Walls Centre for The Study of African and Asian Christianity has recently been founded in his honour at Liverpool Hope University. In 2007 he received the Distinguished Career Award of the American Society of Church History.

Honorary Professor in the University of Edinburgh and Professor of the History of Mission at Liverpool Hope University, and Professor in the Akrofi-Christaller Institute for Theology, Mission and Culture, Akropong, Ghana.

Reviews

[Alex Strohschein · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really informative book that sheds light on the missionary movement throughout history. Although other regions are mentioned, Andrew F. Walls spends considerable attention on Africa. Interestingly, Walls states that the sacraments have not played a central role in African Christianity because both Roman Catholicism and Protestant denominations typically insisted that only ordained clergy could officiate over the sacraments but the sheer lack of available ordained clergy led to very infrequent participation in the sacraments; however, the Bible, immediate personal experience, and the communal meal have taken a central place in African Christianity (p. 100, 115). The first section on "the transmission of the Christian faith" was particularly helpful. Walls explains that the two main methods of transmitting the Gospel has been the "indigenizing" principle (the Christian is at home in a unique cultural context) and the "pilgrim" principle (concerned with universalizing Christianity) (p.7-9). Walls sees both methods as rooted in Scripture. However, Walls also points out that Christianity's very versatility and translatability inherently leads to diversity so that there can be no universal "Christian culture." This is especially stark when compared to Islam; whereas Bibles have been translated into all manner of languages, Islam insists that the Qur'an must remain in the original Arabic (p. 22-23). Another interesting essay was "The Western Discovery of Non-Western Christian Art" (p. 173-86).

This book is comprised of gathered articles and essays. Thus, there is quite a bit of repetition and no cumulative argument that links everything together. Given that these pieces were written before the advent of the Internet, I wonder how the latest innovations in computer and communications technology have affected Christianity in the Global South. Still, a fine collection by a former missionary that invites readers to think how Christians have historically transmitted and translated the Gospel in a variety of contexts.

[Joyce del Rosario · Rating 3 out of 5]

Walls describes this book as a “collection of fragmants” (Walls 1996 xiii). He encourages the reader to hear it is a symphony divided into three movements. The first movement is a “reflection of the nature of the Christian faith” (Walls 1996 xiii) and the relationship with transmission of faith. In the second movement, Walls focuses on Africa and it’s special place in Christian history. The third movement moves the discussion forward to the missionary movement of the West.

[Bob Ayres · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding, academic read of the movement of Christianity from one epoch to another through missionary efforts... highly recommended for any serious student of religious history or missions.

[Jim Darlack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Walls is one of my favorite theologians to read. This is a foundational collection of Walls' essays that provides an excellent entry into his thought on missiology and global Christianity.

[Luke Creighton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Foundational to the World Christian Movement. Buckle up! This will help you see the broader picture of how God is using people of many nations to take the Gospel from anywhere to everywhere.

[Vijay Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the book I want

[Cole Shiflet · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection of essays from Andrew Walls has been consistently cited over and over by Timothy Tennent and other missiologists so I had to add it to my list.

[Joshua Reinders · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really significant and engaging book if you are interested in the history of Christian mission, or even in understanding how different peoples over the course of history have experienced becoming Christian. Mysterious, strange, and wonderful are the works of God.

[Hilary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the few books that I can say with absolute sincerity changed my life. Incidentally, my boss saw it sitting on my desk the other day, and out of the blue said, "that book changed my life!" Apparently it tends to have that effect on people.

Probably my top takeaway is the paradigm that the gospel is always translated/contextualized, whenever and wherever it is. He uses the metaphor of a play: everyone in the audience watches the same play ("The Jesus Act" he calls it), but depending on where you're sitting, you'll see different things more or less clearly. And the more you talk with people who sat in different parts of the theatre, the closer you'll get to understanding the whole story. With staggering insight, artful narration, and a truly remarkable breadth of knowledge, Walls tells the story of the Church as it has existed across time and space, crossing borders and entering new realms of thought and culture, transforming and being transformed as it travels, growing more and more into the fullness of Christ. It's a beautiful story, and has the capacity to make sense of so many historical and contemporary tangles, uncertainties, and anxieties.

I first read this book just before embarking on a Master's degree in history of Christianity, and I can't think of any better preparation. This book has shaped my thinking, my curiosities, and my priorities, both personal and intellectual. In short, I owe Prof. Walls a great debt of gratitude!

[Andy Hickman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good book.

Wallis, Andrew F. The Missionary Movement in Christian History: Studies in the Transmission of Faith. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1996.

The history of the interpretation of the Bible … church history .. should not be regarded as mere objects of intellectual interest. They are, instead, raw materials for case studies which illustrate in concrete ways, for the sake of Christian discipleship, God's dealings with his people and the response of God's people to biblical revelation throughout the centuries. … (1 Cor 10:11) Could we not say the same regarding multiple episodes in the history of the church? From this perspective, the study of tradition becomes one more tool to enable the contemporary reader to let Scripture provide instruction for practical life. As Andrew Wallis has put it, “The full-grown humanity of Christ requires all the Christian generations, just as it embodies all the cultural variety that six continents can bring.” (xvii)

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is what happens when a first-rate mind and passionate heart submit to the discipline of secular university strictures and sensibilities: superb scholarship, penetrating insight, startling revisions, and even the occasional practical and devotional insight (albeit judiciously rendered). He clearly feels no pressure to please any ecclesiastical or ideological masters: that's what tenure in a fine university is for, and Walls uses it gloriously.

There is the usual overlapping of content and phrasing endemic to books of this sort, but not to worry: Walls never lingers long over anything and instead tends to hurry onward to the next interesting thing he has to offer. If you haven't encountered him before, this is an excellent introduction to both his main messages and to his bracing, provocative style.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is great depth and breadth of scholarship in this collection of essays, and also practical value for anyone who is invested in the health of the church or the pursuit of the Great Commission. Walls also exposes the self-centered ignorance of most of today's Western churches and their most educated leaders, who seem intent on ignoring the central role of missions in the growth, health, relevance, and power of the church during the last 2000 years. Essays are somewhat dated as they don't deal with the current major shift toward supporting indigenous workers as opposed to sending cross cultural Western missionaries.

[Jay Risner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating

[Dwight · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of essays on the history of missions. The third to last chapter on U.S. christian culture is especially awesome.

[Rabih]

The first chapter is an excellent framework for understanding missions: translation and indigenization. This is a key to a deeper understanding of the whole issue of contextualization.

[Jeff Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good selection of essays. I didn't make it through all of them, but the early ones are foundational and very though-provoking.

[Jay Risner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great.