Abstract
Transcending Mission sets out to establish and then fill the need for a concept to replace “mission” in describing the “church’s encounter with the world” (28). Stroope begins in part I (“Justifying Mission”) by challenging the work of dozens of writers (I stopped counting at 80), making a strong case against using “mission” to describe any activities of the church before the official founding of the Jesuits in 1540. In part II (“Innovating Mission”), Stroope ably shows a strong link between the Crusades and the missionary orders, beginning with the Jesuits, as well as between early European colonialism and mission. In part III (“Revising Mission”), he continues the colonial story into the Protestant period and then discusses attempts to “revise” mission, beginning in the 1930s. He argues that all have failed. He then goes on in his epilogue to suggest “pilgrim witness” (355) as a way forward, and specifically witness to the reign of God (371).
Stroope’s concept holds promise—sojourners (another way to describe Stroope’s “pilgrim”) do not create empires; and showing and telling what one has “beheld” (371—Stroope’s “witness”) does not involve any element of coercion. However, “pilgrim” and “witness” have also been tainted by historical usage: “pilgrim” is most often thought of as someone going on a journey to a holy place rather than living somewhere in a particular way; and “witness” in many Christian circles carries a hint of pushy evangelism as “witnessing.” Thus, I find the concept compelling but the choice of words less so.
No doubt many of the authors Stroope challenges will take issue with his thesis, but few responses have been published. Of these, all are favorable; Robert Morris and Jonathan Fuller (2018) confirm Stroope’s thesis of a need for change. They mention a consultation of mission practitioners in Canada in June 2018 where a majority of delegates agreed with Stroope that mission should be “transcended,” and many who would not go so far did agree that new models of mission were needed. The number of delegates is not mentioned but the chapter shows that at least in certain circles there is significant agreement with Stroope’s diagnosis, if not with his prescribed cuy