Antecedentes para la definición de la agenda

— 1Ô2 —

1. The Renewal of th e M in istry o f th e La ity

and th e S tru c tu re s o f th e Local C ongregation

Each con g reg atio n must know that i t is put in to th e world by th e Lord as His re p re s e ntativ e , and that i t must th e re fo re be c h ie fly concerned not w ith i t s e l f , b u t w ith th e w orld, concerned to send i t s members out as w itn e sse s, and to in v ite a l l men into th e fam ily o f God. I t s m in is te r should be one who i s seeking to t ra i n every member fo r t h i s m in is try in th e w orld. ^

This was th e ca l l contained in th e o f f ic ia l message from Kuala Lumpur to

a l l member churches and c o u n c ils o f the EACC. A sian C h ristia n s were

to ld that th e ir "inward-looking" and " s e lf-c e ntre d " lo ca l con g reg atio n s "must be s tir r e d by a fre sh r e a liz atio n of t h e i r ca llin g as the people of God and th e i r r e s p o n s ib ility towards th e whole lo ca lity " . For " i t i s th e la it y who a re th e church in th e w orld, extending the boundaries of C h r ist's Kingdom." ^

Takenaka agreed that th e re was a " re a ffirm atio n of th e m in is try of th e la ity " at Kuala Lumpur. He hoped that i t "might not become ju s t an empty slog a n ".^ However, th e EACC le a d e rsh ip , Takenaka in c lu d ed , was determ ined to see that th is should not be the ca se . Indeed, i f the Gospel was defined at Kuala Lumpur as "redem ption of th e vfhole human race and o f th e whole c reate d w orld", the m issionary ta sk of the A sian m in o rity churches could not be f u l f i l l e d u n le ss the whole A sian C h ristia n people were to "go into every pa rt o f th e l i f e o f our peoples . . . to be w it­ n esses fo r C h rist in a l l th e se realm s".^

The rea ffirm atio n o f th e m in istry of th e la it y was indeed c a rrie d forward w ith much atte n tio n at th e enlarged C ontin uatio n Committee m eeting 1. Kuala Lumpur 1999 R ep o rt, p. v i .

2. I b id . , pp. 108-109.

3* M inutes of th e M eeting of the Enlarged C ontin u atio n Committee of th e East A sia C h ris tia n C onference held a t B angalore, In d ia , 7-12 Nov-

^ b e r , 1961 (Bangkok: E A C C p . 57 [henceforw ard r e f e î ^ e T 't o ^

B angalore 1961 M inutes) .

- 163 -

o f th e EACG h eld at Bangalore, In d ia , in November I96I . The second s e r ie s of John R. Mott L e c tu re s, d e liv e re d d u ring th i s m eeting by

Takenaka, A lford C arleto n and Kyaw Than, was la rg e ly concerned w ith th is theme. They d ea lt w ith is s u e s of communication of th e G ospel,

in h e rite d patte rn s o f c o ng reg atio nal l i f e , the narrow c l e r ic a l view of

th e m in is try of th e Church, and ghettoism in A sian co n g reg atio n s.

Takenaka pressed hard upon th e m eeting h is c o n v ictio n that th e m in istry o f the Church in East A sia could be f u l f i l l e d only w ith the c reatio n o f "a new C h ristia n sty le of liv ing " . The p resen t s ty le was "by and la rg e in d iv id u a listic and p i et i s t i c " and th e re fo re "not re le va nt to th e

complex r ea l it y of modern s o c ie ty " . He b e lie v e d th e new s ty le should be based on a re c o g n itio n o f "th e Church as the community of th e f i r s t f r u i t s of th e new humanity". Quoting Pa u l's say in g , "C h rist has been ra is e d from th e dead, the f i r s t f r u i t s of th o se who have f a lle n a sle e p "

( l Cor. 15*20), he held that C h rist " is the f i r s t f r u i t s of th e new c reatio n and th e new Adam and th e new humanity. A sm all m in o rity o f C h ris tia n s in A sia a re c a lle d a ls o the f i r s t f r u i t s , re p re se n ting th e new humanity in t h e i r pa rtic u la r p la c e o f l i v i n g ." Takenaka claim ed that t h i s concept would "somehow tran sce n d the n o tio n o f a m a jo rity or m in o rity s ituatio n " . I t would give "a re a l q u a litativ e re -p re s e n tatio n rath e r than one determ ined by q ua ntitativ e number . . . r ea l stre ngth and support to C h ris tia n presence and involvem ent in a c o n c rete p la ce o f work and liv in g in our A sian s etting " .^ S im ila rly , Kyaw Than held that " in th e contem porary s ituatio n / o f East A s ia / th e la it y i s THE CHURCH IN DISPER­ SION— d isp ersed among th e va rio u s se ctio n s o f s o c ie ty . . . They a re placed

th e re by God, to enable them to r ea liz e th e ir tru e ca llin g and v o c atio n ." 1. Masao Takenaka, "The F i r s t F r u its in A sia," in J.R . Fleming ( e d . ) ,

C h r is t'8 M in istry — And O urs, The John R. M ott Memorial L ectu res d e liv ­ ered b efo re th e Enlarged C o ntin uatio n Committee of EACC at Bangalore, November, I96I (Singapore: Tien Wah P re ss, I962), pp. 11, I5.

- 164 -

B ut, he observed, "The g re at tim e fo r C h ris tia n m issio n is st i l l ahead, when we ta lk about the w itn ess of the la it y ." The urgent ta sk was to s t i r up th e A sian l a it y to an u n d erstanding o f t h i s s ig n ific a n c e . With th e same concern as Takensilca' s , Kyaw Than b e lie v e d that "the Church as

th e s catte re d community may a lso p revent us from co n tin u ing w ith th e

attitu d e s of a m in o rity group th in k ing always that we must s tic k tog eth e r in th e church as th e gathered fe llo w sh ip , in th e m idst of n o n -C h ristia n s o c iety ." ^

But th e ca l l to th e A sian l a it y and lo c a l co ngregations to go out in m ission in to th e world d id not only come out as a r e s u lt o f a renewed u nderstan d in g o f the cosmic natu re of C h r is t's redem ption, but was a lso

conceived as one o f th e ways to a renewed u n d erstan d in g of "being th e church" w ith i t s own selfhood in East A sia.

(a) The in teg r a l re late d n e s s between w orship, m issio n and renew al

The q u e stio n of selfhood would never a r is e u n le ss th e la it y of each con g reg atio n went out in to th e world in m issio n . For only th en would th ey lea rn w hether o r n ot t h e i r p resen t church s tru c tu re s , attitu d e s ,

forms o f w itn e ss and se rv ic e were re le v a nt to the changing needs and s ituatio n s of th e lo ca lit y and o f East A sia as a whole. When th e y were c lea r about t h i s , renewal would th en become p o s sib le . But r ea l renew al must be more than ju st changing c e rta in forms and methods o f communicating

th e Gospel to th e people of a new A sia; it must be f i r s t o f a l l a renewed d isco v ery by church people them selves of th e meaning of bein g th e church w ith i t s own selfhood in th e lo ca lit y . Such fundam ental renew al could

only begin in w o rsh ip — " at the only p o in t p o s s ib le — at th e p o in t where i t stands b efo re God". For only stan d in g b e fo re Him,

U Kyaw Than, "The Ghxûstian La ity in Asia" in

1. C h rist '8 M in istry — And Ours ( j. R. Mott Memorial L e c tu re s), ed. J.R . Flem ing, p. 55*

- 165 -

/ca n / th e o b s ta c le s of s e lf-c e ntre d p ietism or r e lig i o s it y or th e dead end o f a re lig io u s tra d iti o n , vfhether W estern and C h ristia n , or A sian and B u ddhist, Hindu or a n im istic . . . be overcome . . . I t i s in such a moment of tr u th that men know what th ey a re c a lle d to be and meant to be. Only t h e n can they con­ fe s s in p e n ite n c e th e f u t i l i t y of what they a re and have been, re c e iv e th e fo rg iv e n e ss promised to th o se who tu rn and re p e nt,

and in tha nk fu ln e ss and joy o f f e r them selves in worship and obedience to th e Lord who i s making a l l th ing s new, to be made new them selves, and to share in His renewing work in the w orld.^

Thus, N ile s s a id , w orship i s r e a lly "the ba s is of a ch u rch ’s s e lf - 2

hood . . . On it a l l growth in selfhood depends." Worship can never be an a ct by i t s e l f . I t must lead to m ission; and m ission le a d s to the renewal and growth o f th e selfhood of the church and th e ex ten sio n of th e boundaries of C h r ist’s Kingdom on e a rth . Takenaka agreed;

We p a rtic ipate in w o rldly a f f a i r s because we open our h e a rts to the Word of God which d ir e c ts us to se rv ic e and to w itn e ss in th e w orld. In our t o ta l m in istry o f the Body o f C h ris t, th e re is

a rhythm ic movement between lis te n ing to th e Word o f God and going out in to th e co n crete p la ce of response in th e world.

Only in th is "rhythm ic movement" would A sian C h ristia n men and women be "rooted in C h ris t, and rooted in A sian s o il at th e same tim e". Takenaka shared very much the concern o f the tim e about in d ig e n is atio n o f th e C h ris tia n f a it h in East A sia. However, he arg u ed , "The s ta rt ing p oint

. . . i s not so much in the f ie ld o f a r c h ite c tu re or music o r a rt , not even in th eo log y , b ut in th e f ie ld o f th e C h ristia n sty le o f liv ing in con­

tem porary A sia . . . In d ig e n iz atio n w ill a r is e from w ith in . . . from th e