Abstract
This book is a collection of theological essays written by scholars from the majority world. The contributors are from Africa, including Chad and Central Africa; from South America, including Jamaica, Peru, Ecuador; and from Asia, including China, Malaysia, and Singapore. Although the contributors come from the majority world and their essays are presenting theological voices from their home contexts, most of the contributors received their doctoral education in the West.
Among the essays, some have emphasized the religious, cultural or social context. Some appear as works of inculturation, contextualization or systematic theology. They employ theological/philosophical approaches in presenting their theological concerns. These include comparative studies between African religious beliefs and Christian beliefs by Abel Ndjerareou, as well as Islamic beliefs and Christian beliefs in Malaysia by Ng Kam Weng. Carver Yu describes the current social and cultural corruption in Mainland China and suggests how Christianity may bring about redemption and transformation to the country. Wu Dongri and Chen Yuehua discuss recent development of sino-theology and the phenomenon of cultural Christians who engage in doing sino-theology without relating their work to the Chinese church, therefore doing sino-theology as outsiders to the Chinese church.
Some of the contributors first provide insight into the biblical text and Christian tradition before applying such to their respective contemporary contexts. Dario Lopez, for example, gives a brief survey on the church in the New Testament and then proposes suggestions for the evangelical churches in Latin America. According to Lopez, evangelical churches in Latin America have no part with the well-known liberation theology mainly developed by the local Catholic Church. However, Lopez suggests that such evangelical churches should take responsibility with regard to social concern and justice. In another important essay, Tony Siew provides a study on the topic of prophesy from scripture, especially from the book of Revelation, and brings reflection on ministry and mission in Malaysia and Singapore.
Some contributors focus on dialogue with local contexts from theological/socio-cultural perspectives while others provide brief studies on scripture before applying exegetical insights to their local contexts. Whatever the method, the contributors to this volume collectively offer a set of fresh theological voices from the majority world.