Mission of the Church 2000 in Asia and the Pacific

In my reflection on "Church’s Mission" 2000 I will emphasise on our understanding on Mission from an East German perspective.
I will describe the process we entered years ago to search for a new definition and for a new understanding of what mission means.
The meaning of mission and the interdependence of Gospel and Culture or Gospel and Context seem to me important.
Lastly I will speak on the results and consequences of our debate in Leipzig on mission.

1.

Since 1995 the Leipzig Lutheran Mission (LMW) participated in an international debate on mission, hoping to find relevant definitions for our own situation.
Through participation in the international debate on mission we gained not only new experiences and new insights, but we were enabled to formulate for us a kind of policy in regard to mission in our situation.
A provisional result of this process is the conviction that mission no longer is a one-way affair. It is rather a worldwide issue referring not only to Asia, Latin America or elsewhere, but refers to our cultural, social, political or economical situation in Germany as well.
We concluded that, "Mission Today" is an extremely complex issue which needs further deep discussion.
In order to learn from others, my colleague and I participated in the following international and national consultations:

• 1996 - "European Forum on Gospel and Cultures." (Hamburg)
• "World Conference on Mission and Evangelisation"(Salvador da Bahia)
• "Consultation on Mission and Life" (Rangoon)
• "Consultation on Gospel and World Responsibility" (Singapore)
• 1997 - "Consultation on Gospel and Culture" (Bossy)
• "German Conference on Gospel and Culture in the German Context" (Hannover)
• 1999 - till 2000 annual consultations on the German-German context, "Gospel and Culture in East and West Germany" were held at Leipzig.

2.

I will speak to you from the background of results of such debates. I will try to outline what we understand by mission for our new millennium, that means for our present time. It is clear that we have to approach the world with new measures in mission together.
Mission today is neither mission from North to South nor mission from North to East, but it is a task of the Church worldwide.
That means, carrying out mission today concerns the whole Christian communion. The challenges of today's globalisation and secularisation is last not least an ecumenical call and task.

Now what do I mean by saying: "Mission"?
The classical starting point for a debate on Mission is known from Matthew 28,18-20 :
"Go forth therefore and make all nations my disciples; baptize men everywhere..."

Another starting point for a debate on mission is the recognition of God’s own Creation. It is the joyful recognition that God Himself is a missionary God, who is doing His Mission with passionate love, not only for His own purpose, but also for His Creation and His People.

He is seeking man, gives him a task and stands on his side. God interferes in concrete situations of nations and people. The whole Bible tells us stories of such events. E.g. God met His People in the slavery of Egypt as a loving and liberating God who stood on the side of the oppressed nation of Israel. He lead them to the Promised Land. This very experience is not only limited to the people of Israel, but is also extended to those who suffer under oppression, discrimination, injustice and war. God turns to people and has made a new covenant in Jesus Christ. God did not like to be locked up in a particular place, like at Jerusalem. God went to Jericho, Nazareth until the end of this world.

The fact that God did not like to be locked up in a particular place, but established Himself to be the Lord of His world and His Creation, gives hope and salvation for the hopeless and lost.

Lastly, it is Jesus himself in whom God manifested His everlasting love and saving mission towards man. We recognise that God seeks man and He wants him to participate in His mission. God wants man to get involved in His task. The Old and New Testament is full of stories, telling us how people were called and how they carried out the call.

What happened in the past is still happening today. People are called to participate as God’s co-workers in His mission. In His Church and in His community the living God is not only proclaimed, but experienced and we can say:" His Kingdom is present, visible, not fully as promised, but it exists, it is there.

From this perspective it is understood, that not the Church, neither a mission organisation nor a congregation is carrying out mission, on their own desire, but they do so by being called. Therefore it is not a question whether a church or a mission organisation or a congregation or an individual desires to do his own mission, but it is rather a question whether a church or any other individual is prepared to allow him-or herself to get integrated into God’s Mission; in order to become part of God’s task.

A missionary Church and missionary communion is judged upon the role she plays in her particular context, which lifestyle she prefers, how she is witnessing and confessing the living Lord. Lastly she will be judged upon whether she is going to involve herself in her concrete, socio-economic and political context in order to follow God’s call.

A missionary Church and a missionary communion are established on almost every place on earth. The responsibility for mission rests on those who call themselves God’s children. They act always in a particular community and whatever they do; they do it on behalf of the Church worldwide.

A local Christian communion always participates in events of the wider community. She is doing so by. E.g. taking up relationships with other communions in other parts of the word, by sharing resources, by exchanging personnel, by praying for one another etc.

The call for mission therefore does not apply only to places, "where the palm trees grow." Mission happens where people take advantage of a missionary situation. It happens when a Christian Community is no longer afraid to be in the middle of the storm of our times. Mission is always a task and a challenge for the Christian Communion locally and worldwide. Mission locally and worldwide is interrelated; otherwise the picture of one body and many limbs, as described by Paul, does not fit.

3.

If I consider the situation of the people in the part of the world I live in, then I am convinced it is time for us to take up mission in our country, in our own city.

In Leipzig only 16% of the population are Christians, the others don’t have any faith. Today we ask the question:" What is the relationship between Gospel and culture? Our culture is completely secularised and does not have a Christian background anymore. There is a tension between secularised culture and Christian faith, because our culture roots in Christianity and we worry seeing that the Christian impact has vanished.

Our serious problem is, how to find the right entry into a non-Christian secularised culture. We need new points of orientation and new points of departure in order to get ourselves involved in a new mission approach in our society. What concerns us in our society concerns also our partners abroad. It is biblical conviction that when one part of the body suffers, the whole body is affected. We are suffering, because we have to solve so many problems at once.

• Church-membership is decreasing fast, our income as well in our Church.
• The development in East Germany affects our partners abroad as well.
• Resources are no longer available as they were in the past.

In other words, we have to start a new mission approach in our own society .We need the worldwide experience of others in regard to mission. We try hard to find a new mission concept for ourselves. We therefore work on issues, which are essential for us, hoping to find a solution. Essential are questions like this:

• What means "cultural imprisonment" of the Gospel?
• What is the function of language and how did language change? E.g. do we speak a different language in the Church, which no outsider is able to understand?
• What is our image and what is expected from the Church today?>
• Which symbols and which rituals have to be renewed, and which are essential for our life and faith today in our context?
• Lastly, which promises of God made to His people are comforting, strengthening and blessing us and which are enabling us to grow in faith, to win people for Christ.

As far as our partners in Asia are concerned, we are willing to help them to carry out their mission in their context, with even limited resources. We want to participate in their experiences also, in order to be enabled to carry out our mission

Exchange of experience can happen in very different ways, e.g. by exchange of personnel, through visits, through consultations etc.

We know that the Churches in Asia belong to the fastest growing Churches of today. What makes them to grow so fast is a very interesting and important issue? We learned from our Indian partners, that not only the propagation the Gospel adds to Church growth, but also the huge mass of Bible readers, who want to join a Christian group.

We learned from Asian partners that they try to be the voice of the poor. That they involve themselves in a change of society, trusting that God is a God of justice and liberation. The present situation in Asia calls for mission in the particular cultural context. From Asian Churches we learn anew how culture can be used as a vehicle for carrying the Gospel. From them, we learn how culture is integrated in a Christian community.

For me it is clear that Asians Churches do have similar problems like we, but the method to tackle the problems is different. I am sure that secularism combined with globalisation is a power force attacking all parts on earth and will dramatically change the lives of the people.

The open question remains, are you in PNG prepared to face this force?

Does the Church in PNG see the first glimpses of this power forces?

We can tell you what it means to be attacked unprepared. Jesus himself comforts us by promising: "Look, I will be with you until the end of world."