Confident Witness - Changing World : Rediscovering the Gospel in North America

by Van Gelder, Craig

• ISBN13: 9780802846556
• ISBN10: 0802846556
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-04-01
• Publisher: Lightning Source Inc

Summary

How do we make the gospel clear and the church relevant to the postmodern, post-Christian culture in North America? Confident Witness, Changing World seeks to answer this question in practical terms immediately useful to educators and pastors. Written by twenty-one scholars who are also skilled in doing frontline ministry, this volume discusses the radical cultural shift that has reshaped North America, one of today's most important mission fields, and explores fresh methods for presenting the gospel with confidence amid the challenges presented by our contemporary context.

Author Biography

Craig Van Gelder is professor of congregational mission at Luther Seminary, St. Paul, Minnesota, and coeditor of The Church between Gospel and Culture: The Emerging Mission in North America.

Table of Contents

Contributors	ix
Introduction	xiv
I. Understanding the North American Context as Mission Field
The Missionary Location of the North American Churches	3	(13)
Richard J. Mouw
Wearing Different Hats: Christian Living in a Fragmented World	16	(10)
Christopher B. Kaiser
The Gospel in a Digital Age	26	(13)
Robert S. Fortner
Reading Postmodern Culture through the Medium of Movies	39	(28)
Craig Van Gelder
II. Understanding the Church in the North American Mission Context
Metamorphosis: From Christendom to Diaspora	67	(13)
Douglas John Hall
Cathedrals of Power: Engaging the Powers in Urban North America	80	(14)
Clinton Stockwell
Faith Twisted by Culture: Syncretism in North American Christianity	94	(16)
Walter C. Hobbs
Strangers but Not Strange: A New Mission Situation for the Church (1 Peter 1:1-2 and 17-25)	110	(17)
Dan Devadatta
III. Understanding the Gospel in the North American Mission Context
Hearing the Gospel Again, for the First Time	127	(14)
James V. Brownson
Living between Gospel and Context: Models for a Missional Church in North America	141	(14)
Stephen Bevans
Preaching to Postmodern People	155	(16)
Lee A. Wyatt
Hearing the Gospel with Asian-American Ears	171	(18)
Stanley K. Inouye
IV. Relating the Gospel to Ministry in the North American Mission Context