The Oxford Handbook of Mission Studies

The Oxford Handbook of Mission Studies represents more than a century of scholarship related to the theology, history, and methodology of the propagation of Christian faith and the engagement of Christians with cultures, religions, and societies worldwide. It contains more than 40 articles by experts from different disciplinary and ecclesial perspectives, who are from all continents. It not only offers a broad overview of key approaches and issues in mission studies but it also highlights current trends and suggests future developments.

The Handbook builds on renewed interest in mission studies this century generated by recent key statements on mission from ecumenical, evangelical, Catholic, and Orthodox sources, and by a spate of academic works on the topic. Western church leaders now apply insights from foreign missions (such as, inculturation, liberation, interfaith work, and power encounter) to today's multicultural societies. Meanwhile, there are new initiatives in mission from the Majority World, where most Christians live, so that sending is not only 'from the west to the rest' but 'from everywhere to everywhere'. Therefore, this volume aims to reflect the voices of the receivers of mission as well as its protagonists and to raise awareness of new movements.

In a time of growing recognition of 'religions' more generally, this work examines and theorizes the missional dimensions of the world's largest religion: its agendas, growth, outreach, role in public life, effect on cultures, relevance for development, and its approaches to other communities.

Kirsteen Kim, Paul E. Pierson Chair in World Christianity and Associate Dean, Center for Missiological Research, Fuller Theological Seminary, USA,Knud Jørgensen, ,Alison Fitchett-Climenhaga, Research Fellow, Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry, Australian Catholic University, Australia

Kirsteen Kim first taught mission studies at Union Biblical Seminary, Pune, India (1993-1997). She also taught in the Cambridge Theological Federation, University of Birmingham, and University of Leeds before becoming a full professor at Leeds Trinity University in 2011. Since 2017 she has been
professor of World Christianity at Fuller. She has published five monographs, several edited works, and 150 chapters and articles. She has been a consultant for the World Council of Churches and other organizations, edited the journal Mission Studies (2012-2020), and currently edits the book series,
Theology and Mission in World Christianity (Brill).


Knud Jørgensen (1942 - 2018) was a journalist and theologian. He was Dean of Tao Fong Shan, Hong Kong until 2010 and then adjunct professor at the MF Norwegian School of Theology. He published several books and articles on journalism, communication, leadership and mission, and was one of the editors
of the Regnum Edinburgh Centenary Series. He also had a long career as a broadcaster in Europe, Africa, and Asia, including for the Lutheran World Federation, Geneva.


Alison Fitchett-Climenhaga is a Research Fellow in the Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry at Australian Catholic University in Melbourne, Australia. Her research focuses on Christianity in Africa, missiology, and world Christianity, with emphases on popular religion, lay leadership, and
conflict and peacebuilding. She has published on the history and anthropology of mission, and she serves on the American Society of Missiology's board of publications and Scholarly Monograph Series editorial committee.

1. Introduction to Mission Studies: Analyzing Missiology's Current Configuration and Charting Future Prospects, Kirsteen Kim and Alison Fitchett-Climenhaga
2. The Changing Face of Mission Studies since the Nineteenth Century, Brian Stanley
3. Defining Mission Studies for the Third Millennium of Christianity, Paul Kollman
4. Theory and Method in Mission Studies/Missiology, Dorottya Nagy
II. Mission Studies and Theology
5. Mission and Biblical Studies: Convergences, Challenges and Prospects, Thanh Nguyen, SVD
6. Mission and Evangelization in Christian Doctrine, Sandra Mazzolinivan
7. Theologies of Mission, Stephen Bevans, SVD
8. Mission and Ecclesiology: An Orthodox Contribution, Gheorghe Petraru
9. Mission Studies as Intercultural Theology, Henning Wrogemann
III. Studies of Mission Practice
10. Practical Theology and Mission Studies, John Mansford Prior
11. Structures and Agents of Mission, Michael W. Goheen
12. Spirituality, Mission and Liturgy: A Sacramental Perspective, Edmund Kee-Fook Chia
13. Proselytism in Christian churches: Insights from the European scene, Marie-Hélène Robert
14. Ears still tingling? Mission Communication Explored, Val Ogden
15. Christian Mission and International Development, Tomas Sundnes Drønen
16. Christian Mission and Social Action, Lap Yan Kung
17. Mission and Healing: Witnessing in the Aftermath of Trauma, Septemmy E. Lakawa and Alison Fitchett-Climenhaga
IV. Christian Mission and History
18. Christian Mission in World History: Out of Sight, out of Mind, Seija Jalagin
19. Christian Mission and Colonialism, Kyo Seong Ahn
20. Christian Mission and Postcolonialism: Re-reading the Bible, the Theology, and the Call, J. Jayakiran Sebastian
21. Christian Mission and Communism: A Protestant Perspective from Former Czechoslovakia, Pavol Bargár
22. Mission Studies and World Christianity, Dana L. Robert
V. Christian Mission and Cultures
23. Mission and the Anthropology of Christianity: Africanist Perspectives, Karen Lauterbach
24. Mission As Inculturation: Contextualizing God's Message in Local Cultures, Peter C. Phan
25. Christian Mission and Indigenous Peoples, Gina Colvin and Rosemary Dewerse
26. Christianity in Chinese Soil, Miikka Ruokanen and Chen Yongtao
27. Christian Mission and African Traditions, J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu
28. Christian Mission and Secularism, Mechteld Jansen
VI. Christian Mission and Religions
29. Christian Mission and Religious Studies: The Case of Indigenous Religions, Atola Longkumer
30. Christian Mission, Religious Pluralism and Inter-religious Dialogue, Annemarie C. Mayer
31. Christian Mission and the Jewish People, Edward Kessler
32. Christian Missions and Muslims, Samuel Nwokoro with John Azumah
33. Christian Missionary Constructions of Hinduism: Issues and Implications for Contemporary Mission Studies, Mika Vähäkangas
34. Christian Mission and Buddhists, Pan-chui Lai
VII. Christian Mission and Society
35. Christian Mission and the Social Sciences: A Latin American View, Joanildo Burity
36. The Protestant World Mission and Race Discourse: Edinburgh 1910--Ghana 1958, Nico A. Botha and Eugene Baron
37. Women in Mission, Gemma Tulud Cruz
38. Mission and Migration: Mapping Methodological, Historical and Theological Perspectives, Martha Th. Frederiks
39. Mission, Money, and Power, Mika Vähäkangas
40. Christian Mission and Ecology Amidst Global Warnings, Kapya J. Kaoma
41. Appendix: Global Mission Statistics and Religious Demography, Gina A. Zurlo and Todd M. Johnson