The Gospel and Pluralism Today

Hearts Minds Bookstore's Best Books of 2015, Theology Toward the end of the twentieth century, Lesslie Newbigin offered a penetrating analysis of the challenges of pluralism that confronted a Western culture and society reeling from the dissolution of Christendom. His enormous influence has been felt ever since. Newbigin (1909-1998) was a longtime Church of Scotland missionary to India and later General Secretary of the International Missionary Council and Associate General Secretary of the World Council of Churches. The first installment in the Missiological Engagements series, the essays in this volume explore three aspects of Newbigin?s legacy. First, they assess the impact of his 1989 book, Gospel in a Pluralist Society, on Christian mission and evangelism in the West. Second, they critically analyze the nature of Western pluralism in its many dimensions to discern how Christianity can proclaim good news for today. Finally, the contributors discuss the influence of Newbigin's work on the field of missiology. By looking backward, this volume recommends and advances a vision for Christian witness in the pluralistic world of the twenty-first century. Contributions from leading missiologists and theologians, including: - William Burrows - John Flett - Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen - Esther Meek - Wilbert ShenkMissiological Engagements charts interdisciplinary and innovative trajectories in the history, theology, and practice of Christian mission, featuring contributions by leading thinkers from both the Euro-American West and the majority world whose missiological scholarship bridges church, academy, and society.

Amos Yong (PhD, Boston University) is professor of theology and mission and director of the Center for Missiological Research at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. He is the author or editor of over two dozen books, including Spirit of Love: A Trinitarian Theology of Grace, Afro-Pentecostalism: Black Pentecostal and Charismatic Christianity in History and Culture (coedited with Estrelda Alexander), Science and the Spirit: A Pentecostal Engagement with the Sciences (coedited with James K. A. Smith) and The Spirit Poured Out on All Flesh: Pentecostalism and the Possibility of Global Theology.Yong is a member of the the American Academy of Religion, the Christian Theological Research Fellowship, and the Society for Pentecostal Studies. He is also a licensed minister with the General Council of the Assemblies of God. Scott W. Sunquist (PhD, Princeton Theological Seminary) is a professor and dean at the School of Intercultural Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary. Previously, he taught missiology and Christian history at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and also lectured as a Presbyterian missionary at Trinity Theological College in Singapore.Writing frequently about Asian Christianity, global Christianity, and missiology, Sunquist is the editor of A Dictionary of Asian Christianity, co-author of A History of the World Christian Movement, Volume I and Volume II, and co-editor of a volume of A History of Presbyterian Missions, 1944-2006, with his daughter. More recently, he is the author of an introduction to the study of mission, Understanding Christian Mission: Participation in Suffering and Glory, and a history of twentieth-century global Christianity, The Unexpected Christian Century: The Reversal and Transformation of Global Christianity, 1900-2000.