Controversies in Mission

Controversies in Mission

CIU Intercultural Studies professor Dr. Chris Little discusses "The Case for Prioritism" at the EMS conference.

“Controversies in Mission” was the theme as dozens of missiologists, theologians, professors and students from around the Southeast gathered on the campus of Columbia International University March 28 for the annual meeting of the Evangelical Missiological Society – Southeast Region.

Among those who made presentations were CIU professors of Intercultural Studies, Dr. David  Cashin and Dr. Ed Smither.

Cashin spoke on “Seven Types of Insider Movements.” What is an Insider Movement? For example, in the Muslim context it means that you can still call yourself a Muslim even though you believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior. Cashin notes that there are also Insider Movements in Hinduism, Buddhism, African tribal religions and “probably any religion.” He has discovered seven types of Insider Movements in Christian history. Read Cashin’s paper on the topic at:

http://www.ciumissionofgod.org/uploads/5/6/4/6/564614/seven_types_of_insider_movements.pdf

Dr. Ed Smither spoke on “St. Patrick: Bishop, Missionary, Monk, or All of the Above?” Smither writes:

“There is probably no figure from the early church so well know to the modern world (especially in the West) as Patrick of Ireland and, at the same time, no leader with so many legends associated with this name. It may come as a shock to some that Patrick was not actually Irish; rather, he was most likely British and spent much of his adult life as a missionary-bishop among the Irish.”

Hear more from Smither on St. Patrick in this podcast:

https://www.jdpayne.org/2015/03/who-was-st-patrick/

Other CIU Intercultural Studies professors making presentations were Dr. Chris Little on “The Case for Prioritism” and Professor Trevor Castor on “Does ‘people groups’ tell the whole story? The need for missiologists to rethink our categories.”