Abstract
Douglas Jacobsen, Distinguished Professor of Church History and Theology at Messiah College, seeks to describe a seismic demographic shift. Statistically striking, from 1900 to 2015 the locale of Christians has shifted from the Global North (80% to 35%) to the Global South (20% to 65%; p. 11). The election in 2013 of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, then Catholic Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, as Pope Francis symbolizes this reality.
The first chapter provides “a very brief history” of the growth of Global Christianity. The second introduces the major Christian traditions. Chapters 3–7 survey five continents. Concluding, Jacobsen acknowledges that Christianity is so diverse that it is difficult to write of Christianity in the singular. “Christianities” may be better but does not describe what Jacobsen characterizes as the ideal, namely “a community of mutual love and compassion in which all the followers of Jesus participate” (p. 226).
The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. similarly described his “dream” of a “beloved community.” It has remained a distant goal. Yet Jacobsen has offered examples like the Truth and Reconciliation Commission headed by Desmond Tutu in post-apartheid South Africa as efforts by Christians making such a future possible (pp. 63–65).
In his preface, Dr. Jacobsen expresses humility. As a “white, rich (by global standards), North American, male Christian writing about other Christians who bear none of these characteristics,” he can only contribute to a rich, deep, and constructive dialogue among Christians worldwide (p. xiii). Writing in a lucid style and offering attractive photographs, compelling quotes, a bibliography, and appropriate footnotes, Dr. Jacobsen paints the big picture of world Christianity in a fair and accurate manner. He does not eschew difficult topics, such as religious violence. The survey does not include groups such as the Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Swedenborgians, or newer religious groups that fuse local traditions with Christian teachings (e.g. La Luz del Mundo [Mexico]). Study questions and inclusion of Australia, New Zealand, and Polynesia would enhance a reprint edition.
Global Gospel: An Introduction to Christianity on Five Continents will serve as a reliable guide for general readers and missionaries as well as a text in post-secondary courses, especially missional education. Among the author’s previous publications, The World’s Christians: Who They Are, Where They Are, and How They Got There (2011) is a prequel to Global Gospel: An Introduction to Christianity on Five Continents.