Review: "Solving the Immigrant Church Crisis: The Biblical Solution of Parallel Ministry" by Ronald M. Rothenberg. (original) (raw)
Related papers
Verbum et Ecclesia, 2017
This article critically assesses some theological-ecclesiological responses and approaches to migration challenges in order to ascertain lacunae within Christian ministry engagement. Although other academic disciplines such economics, politics, geography, demography, sociology, psychology, law, history, anthropology and environmental studies shape the discourse of migration, theology boarders the migration debate as if it does not have anything to offer. However, this does not necessarily mean there are no existing theological-ecclesiological responses and approaches to migration challenges. Thus, this article proceeds to categorise the theological-ecclesiological responses to migration challenges into four approaches: (1) the approach that focuses on practical responses from pastoral care that is limited to particular social contexts, (2) the approach of theological motif and ministry praxis from narrow and single biblical texts, (3) the response that focuses on Israel as a paradig...
Biblical Perspectives on the Role of Immigrants in God’s Mission
2018
1 First published as the English translation of the original Spanish-language article, Van Engen, Charles. 2008. Biblical Perspectives on the Role of Immigrants in God’s Mission. Journal of Latin American Theology: Christian Reflections from the Latino South 2:15-38. An adapted form of this chapter was also published in 2009 in Logos for Life: Essays Commemorating Logos Evangelical Seminary 20th Anniversary. Edited by Ekron Chan, Jeffrey Lu, and Chloe Sun, 285-318. El Monte, CA: Logos Evangelical Seminary and in 2010 in Evangelical Review of Theology 34, no. 1: 29-43. The text was expanded and modified for presentation to the Midwest Mission Studies Fellowship, Andrews University, November 11, 2017. Biblical Perspectives on the Role of Immigrants in God’s Mission Charles Van Engen
In the early fall months of 2019, a massive throng of men, women, children, and whole family units, made their way up from Central American countries such as Honduras, Nicaragua, Belize, and Panama towards the United States-Mexico Border. This unprecedented migratory movement stirred a global response as cameras and news outlets from around the world followed the group’s journey North. Many voices called for aid, declaring this a humanitarian crisis, while still others shouted cries of “build the wall!” in the name of national security and sovereignty. Some evangelical leaders took to public declarations of prayer and lament , while others remained deafeningly silent. Those of us who saw it will not likely ever forget the visceral, heart-wrenching image that circulated the Internet of a young girl and her father, drowned in the Rio Grande, precious victims of a failed attempt to cross over the US border. In all this, one could not help but ache and wonder: “what is the church’s role in this?” How indeed, should the people of God respond to the brokenness and utter depravity of the world abroad? Due in part to recent events like the Central American migration, and the Syrian refugee crisis of 2014, many have been spurred on to “re-evaluate” and examine the mission of the church as a means of addressing these complex sociocultural issues. What is the church’s role? Should the church be a primary force in lobbying the government for more humanitarian-based immigration policies? Should the church be the primary entity standing in the breach between the government and the marginalized? Is part of the church’s role to alleviate human suffering? Is not the church, as the people of God, “blessed to be a blessing to others?” If the Bible commands us to love our neighbor, shouldn’t that include the refugee and migrant? Did Jesus not positively warrant a ministry based on the fulfillment of both spiritual and physical needs in saying, “for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came me…[indeed] as you did it to one of the least of these, [so] you did it to me”? These and many others are important questions that arise in conversations surrounding the seemingly undefinable, and ever-expanding category of “social justice.” And it is within this arena that the church is in desperate need of Biblical clarity. It is helpful to recognize that many of these efforts to evaluate the responsibility of the church come from a good desire to address the dire and complex issues currently facing our modern society. However, it is also essential to recognize that these are conversations which must be addressed with great care and caution; particularly so as to not place upon the church certain burdens it was never meant to bear, and thus condemn it for failing to uphold those responsibilities. To understand the role of the church with regard to the topic of social justice, we need to understand the Biblical definition of the mission of the church—that is, we need to answer the question: what was the church as the people of God sent into the world to accomplish?
MIGRANT MINISTRY IN THE NEW EVANGELIZATION SETTINGS
PAROC Explorations, 2023
The article “Migrant Ministry in the New Evangelization Settings” explores the connection between migration and the Church’s mission in the new era. Migration can be seen as a natural chance for evangelizing and spreading the Good News to those who have not heard of it. In some cases, the host community can play a crucial role in evangelization, through their witness, dialogue, and charitable actions towards migrants. In other cases, where there is no Christian host community, migrants themselves can become evangelizers. The article advocates for establishing a migration ministry that incorporates host communities and migrant populations. By working together in a “New Evangelization” framework, the Church can more effectively address the challenges faced and opportunities offered by migration.
The Asbury Journal, 2016
At any given time, three percent of the world’s population is on the move. These migrants travel across regions and continents due to various push and pull factors, and do so with their systems of belief. With approximately 106 million of the 232 million global migrants being Christian, churches in the twentyfirst century recognize that the church continues to expand not as it crosses new frontiers to new lands, but as it crosses personal boundaries to include all people. As the number of Western Christians decline, so will their influence in global missions. Consequently, it will become necessary for people living in diaspora to be in Christian ministry to, through, and beyond the diaspora. This paper discusses the need to create Kingdom communities among immigrants in the United States of America (USA) by being intentional about understanding immigrants so as to include them in an existing congregation, or by planting new congregations with, for, and by immigrants. It also seeks t...
In die Skriflig/In Luce Verbi
Migration is posing a huge challenge globally. Within this context, one of the challenges of theology is to develop theological approaches that respond to the situation in meaningful ways. There is increasing scepticism about some theological frameworks that attempt to consider the Bible and theology as a unified whole to provide coherence. In the midst of vexatious life challenges, people require coherence, logic and guidance in their existential situations. Notably, the notion of logic and coherence could be pathological in chaotic global situations where cause and effect seems not to hold. In such situations, the article argues that a responsive theological approach, which draws from the Bible, should engage a panoramic and systemic schema that take into account the various dynamics of people’s situations. In consideration of the subject of migration, a biblical redemptive historical theological schema is applied to Ezra-Nehemiah to discern a constructive and coherent understandi...