The first time I heard someone use the word "missional" I was confused. I knew about missions and missionaries, but missional? That was a new one for me. Even as I type this post, "missional" is underlined by a jagged red line. Apparently my spellchecker is confused too.
Missional was a term coined by a group of missiologists (another strange word) who were heavily influenced by the missionary and theologian Lesslie Newbigin. Upon retiring as a missionary in South India, Newbigin returned to his native England where he came to a rather depressing conclusion about western culture—it was post-Christian. As a result, he believed that Christians in the West had to start thinking like missionaries, looking for creative and authentic ways to incarnate the gospel in a culture estranged from the principles of God's kingdom.
In many contexts the usage of the term has strayed far from its original meaning. As the term gained popularity, it has been used by just about everybody to mean just about anything. Author and missional leader Alan Hirsch offers a definition that clears some of the fog. He describes a missional church as "a community of God's people that defines itself and organizes its life around the purpose of being an agent of God's mission to the world. In other words, the Church's true and authentic organizing principle is mission." Anyone can call themselves or their church missional, but if mission (outward directedness) is not a core-deep value of their life or community, the term missional is being misappropriated.
Missional has become a buzzword in evangelical circles. Buzzwords can be annoying, but I believe missional captures a valuable insight. We can no longer put our heads in the sand and carry on with yesteryear's methods. Like good missionaries, we must study our culture and live out the gospel in ways that are intelligible and compelling to our unbelieving neighbors.
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NOTE: This post is adapted from the book Missional Renaissance. In it, McNeal argues that missional churches will shift from program development to people development. In order to help people grow, we're going to need a new scorecard that celebrates i... [Read More]
Comments
Missional has been around for a while. I think there are probably three key early thinkers (in order of publication) that are most significant:
Francis Dubose, God Who Sends (1983)
Charles Van Engen, God's Missionary People (1991), and
Darrell Guder, ed. The Missional Church (1998)
Posted by: Michael | April 10, 2009 11:30 AM
In your list of books, you have omitted Newbigin's "Foolishness to the Greeks" (1986) and "The Gospel in a Pluralist Society" (1989) which predates 2 of the 3. I also have read Guder's book, but still think that Newbigin's book(s) should be listed as seminal works in this field.
Posted by: Robert C. Simmons | April 14, 2009 4:09 PM
As the church we must stay the course to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing then in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
Posted by: Shamina | April 15, 2009 12:22 AM
Actually to be precise, Newbigin resurrected the term Missio Dei in the 1950s in relation to his missiological ecclesiology in "The Household of God." The term missional arises out of the latin Missio Dei. For people who are really interested, read chapter 18 in Newbigin's "The Gospel in a Pluralist Society," the chapter is entitled "The Congregation as Hermeneutic of the Gospel." This one chapter alone will change your life. Here Newbigin in some of the most beautiful theological prose I have ever read argues meticulously that the Gospel is primarily communicated through the bodily community gathered and by welcoming people into that community and its practices, not primariy by words or doctrinal arguements. Here is where the missional church people get their missiological ecclesiology.
Posted by: Sam Andress | April 15, 2009 9:34 PM
Thanks for these comments! They've deepened my understanding of the term missional. Sam, I'll be sure to check out chapter 18 of Newbigin's "Gospel in a Pluralist Society." It sounds like some good stuff!
Posted by: Drew D | April 16, 2009 11:13 AM