Current phenomenon of missionary movements from the non-Western world

Describe the current phenomenon of missionary movements from the non-Western world

     The current phenomenon of missionary movements from the non-Western world is exploding at a rate unlike ever before seen. Whereas most missionaries have originally emerged from the west, such as Europe, the rise of global mission is now advancing from many fronts in other foreign countries. The CSGC reports that "of the ten countries sending the most missionaries in 2010, three were in the global South: Brazil, South Korea, and India."[1] While the United States leads the mission field of sending missionaries to foreign countries, the advancement of the global south has risen at an unprecedented rate.   

     Current global missionary movements are a result from the seeds planted by other missionaries many generations prior to our current era. Huneycutt gives us three eras of modern mission movements that planted the seeds for future harvest. The first era, “to the coastlands”, marked by William Carey was of European dominance and geographic strategy – who “was convicted by the Church’s mission responsibilities regarding the Great Commission being limited to the 12 disciples, led a movement spreading the gospel to every continent in the coastlands.”[2] From this, Huneycutt reports that a transition took place into the second era, “The Untouched Inland Areas”, ushered in by Hudson Taylor, whose heart was broken for the unreached millions in the interior of China. Taylor’s appeals to send missionaries to this untouched region were resisted and in turn, he formed a new mission that was called, China Inland Mission”[3] From these two eras, seeds were planted and harvest was soon to sprout in areas never once thought could be penetrated. The third era, called, “To Unreached Peoples,” Huneycutt states, “… is now in full swing. The mission force is rapidly changing to a more non-western face.”[4] After generations of seeds planted with a European/American dominance, and a geographic strategy, this new era is non-Western dominance, and non-geographic strategy focused on people groups – a phenomena of rapid gospel advance among socio-ethnic populations.[5]

      The current phenomenon is a result of fertile grounds prepared by missionaries from past eras – through prayer and support among other believers and a unification of Christians as a result. Johnson and Lee state, “Global Christianity is a phenomenon, not of uniformity, but of ever-increasing diversity.”[6]

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     [1] "Christianity in Its Global Context, 1970–2020 Society, Religion, and Mission." Christianity In Its Global Context. June 1, 2013. Accessed April 6, 2015. http://wwwgordonconwell.com/netcommunity/CSGCResources/ChristianityinitsGlobalContext.pdf.

[2] Yvonee Wood Huneycutt, “New Pioneers Leading the Way” In Perspectives on the World Christian Movement: A Reader, edited by Ralph D. Winter and Steven C. Hawthorne, 377-378

[3] Ibid., 378

[4] Ibid., 379

[5] Ibid., 379

[6] Todd Johnson and Sandra S. K. Lee, "From Western Christendom to Global Christianity" In Perspectives on the World Christian Movement: A Reader, edited by Ralph D. Winter and Steven C. Hawthorne, 392