The Missional Church in Context: Helping Congregations Develop Contextual Ministry

by Craig Van Gelder (Editor)

Overview

The missional church conversation continues to make a vital contribution to thinking about congregations and their contexts, addressing the essential question What does it really mean to be church? This book offers substantial, clarifying insights into that ongoing dialogue.

Contributors:
Mark Lau Branson
James Tzu-Kao Chai 
Mary Sue Dehmlow Dreier
Terri Martinson Elton
Scott Frederickson
Joon Ho Lee
Gary M. Simpson
Craig Van Gelder

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780802845672
Publisher:	Eerdmans, William B. Publishing Company
Publication date:	10/26/2007
Series:	Missional Church Series (MCS)
Pages:	253
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.64(d)

About the Author

Craig Van Gelder is professor emeritus of congregationalmission at Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minnesota. His otherbooks include The Missional Church inPerspective and The Ministry of the MissionalChurch.,

Table of Contents

Preface     vii
Contributors     ix
Introduction: Engaging the Missional Church Conversation     1
Introduction     9
How Missiology Can Help Inform the Conversation about the Missional Church in Context   Craig Van Gelder     12
The Missional Congregation in Context   Scott Frederickson     44
A Reformation Is a Terrible Thing to Waste: A Promising Theology for an Emerging Missional Church   Gary M. Simpson     65
Ecclesiology and Leadership for the Missional Church   Mark Lau Branson     94
Introduction     127
Corps of Discovery: A Twenty-First-Century Contextual Missiology for the Denominational Church in the United States   Terri Martinson Elton     130
The Possibility of Transforming the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Korea (GAPCK) into a Missional Church   Joon Ho Lee     161
An Old New Church in the Marketplace: The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) into the Twenty-First Century   Mary Sue Dehmlow Dreier     189
A Contextual Missiology for the Southern Baptist Church in Taiwan: Reviewing the Past and Envisioning the Future   James Tzu-Kao Chai     219

Editorial Reviews

J. Nelson Kraybill
— Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary
"Here is a mother lode of theology, biblical insight, and practical application for pastors and congregations who want 'missional' to be more than clich?. By giving the concept ecclesial traction, these essays help God's people move beyond good intentions to good practice. Van Gelder and company point the way to a life-giving and hopeful future for the church in North America."

Howard J. Loewen
— Fuller Theological Seminary
"The Missional Church in Context takes a major step forward in advancing the emerging missional church conversation. . . Provides a thoroughgoing incarnational model and theological understanding of the church's mission in context, enhanced greatly by a number of excellent case studies. 'Must reading' for church leaders and theological educators alike."

From the Publisher