“They talk to us because we’re light and look like Filipinos, but they hate the darks.” This is what I heard from a young woman of northeastern Indian descent who had attended the international student fellowship we were visiting in the “South Hub” of Metro Manila. Her statement was the answer to my question about…
Author: master
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT MINISTRY IN ASIA PACIFIC: Stories of and Opportunities for Mission
It is a privilege to be asked to comment on international student ministry in the Asia Pacific Region or, as many might say, international student mission. Amongst the many examples of mission available to us through the record of Scripture and the history of the church, there is a significant subset which stems from the…
LOOKING FOR GOSPEL LABORERS? DON’T FORGET THE UNIVERSITY!
For the last decade I have had the privilege of pastoring an ordinary church with an extra-ordinary opportunity. Beijing International Christian Fellowship began about 40 years ago and now 20 congregations grow in our massive capital city. BICF is an interdenominational church with members from almost 100 nations, one of the largest international churches in…
THE CALL FROM NEW ZEALAND TO MALAYSIA: Testimony of an ISM Minister
“I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” (Isaiah 49:6). This was an answered prayer concerning a call to lead ISM work in New Zealand as I was meditating by a lagoon where we live. The call took into consideration that my…
RELIGIOUS PLURALISM IN THE CONTEXT OF THE 21ST CENTURY GLOBAL DIASPORA: A Case of Canadian Pluralistic Communities and the Evangelical Response
Migration or diaspora, the movement of people from one region to another, has at least four major off-shoots. These are: urbanization, multi-culturalism, “hybridity,” and in places where cultural diversity is embraced – religious pluralism. This is true in my own country, Canada, and of our diverse nation. In this paper, I will focus on religious…
ANY WHICH WAY, BUT WIN?!
INCREDIBLE INDIA – the Journey Begins… People from India understand the challenges of a religiously pluralistic society. Most of the world’s “Great Faiths” were spawned in India, my motherland. Hinduism, the oldest of the living faiths, thrives with branches worldwide and manifests itself in the New Age Movement – the fastest growing eclectic “religion” in…
EDITORIAL: Pluralism and Mission
The message of the church cannot be changed, but the message must be preached in a way people can best understand and accept. At the Asian Society of Missiology Forum held in Bali, Indonesia, we talked about Christian mission in religious pluralist society. The ASM Forum was a productive and profitable gathering of missiologists from…
REPORT ON THE 5TH TRIENNIAL ASM ACADEMIC FORUM
The Asian Society of Missiology exists to serve churches in Asia, helping them to become dynamic missional churches through research, publication, consultation and education. In the past, ASM had four missiological forums in Bangkok, Semarang, and Seoul. In each forum, the prominent missiologists and scholars participated both from the West and the East. These were…
THE PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL IN SOUTH KOREA: How to Cope with a Changing Religious Geography
The progress of Protestant Christianity in South Korea has been dramatic during the 20th century. While the Protestant Christianity as an imported faith and practice among Korean believers, has become a familiar phenomenon in the life of the South Korean people. However, South Korea is a land that still needs evangelistic and missionary outreaches. Being…
CONVERSION AND PUBLIC CONVERSATION IN ASIA Christian Witness in Pluralistic Society: A Reflection from the Islamization of the Indonesian Public Life
The Latest controversies over the alleged defamation of the Quran by a Chinese born-again Christian Governor of Jakarta, Mr. Basuki Tjahaya Purnama/Ahok (now jailed since 2017 for 2 years), have to do with the growing intolerance toward minority in Indonesian society. For some Christians, this sentiment have made them hesitant and cautious to manifest their…