Missiology

Definition and Meaning

Missiology is a branch of theology that studies mission, the church's work of carrying the gospel to other regions and cultures. It examines the foundations, history, and methods of mission. The field encompasses theology of mission, which addresses the meaning of mission as taught in Scripture; the history of missions, which traces the course of missionary activity; and cultural anthropology, which seeks to understand other cultures. The study of contextualization, which concerns how to communicate the gospel in language and forms suited to a particular culture, also belongs to missiology. In academic classification, missiology is sometimes placed within practical theology and sometimes regarded as an independent discipline.

Biblical and Historical Background

The principal passages that missiology cites as its biblical foundation include the following:

• Jesus' Great Commission to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:18-20)
• The command to be witnesses "unto the uttermost part of the earth" (Acts 1:8)
• The promise that in Abraham "shall all families of the earth be blessed" (Genesis 12:3)

In Protestantism, missiology began to take shape as an academic discipline in the nineteenth century, when overseas missionary activity expanded. The German scholar Gustav Warneck is commonly regarded as having laid the foundations of Protestant missiology. The 1910 World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh became the starting point for discussions of missionary cooperation across denominational lines, a current that later led to the ecumenical movement. From the mid-twentieth century onward, the concept of missio Dei ("the mission of God"), which regards God rather than the church as the primary agent of mission, gained wide acceptance. Among evangelicals, the 1974 Lausanne Congress provided an occasion for articulating an understanding of mission. Also widely read are Donald McGavran's writings on church growth and David Bosch's study of paradigms of mission.

Practice in the Korean Church

In its early period, the Korean church adopted the Nevius Mission Plan, emphasizing self-support, self-propagation (evangelizing on its own), and self-government. It began sending out missionaries of its own at an early date; in 1907, for example, the Independent Presbytery commissioned Yi Ki-pung as a missionary to Jeju. Today Korea is known as one of the countries that send out large numbers of missionaries. Missiology is taught at the theological seminaries and graduate schools of mission of the various denominations.

Denominations place different emphases in their understanding of mission.

• Ecumenical denominations: Denominations belonging to the World Council of Churches (WCC), such as the Presbyterian Church of Korea (Tonghap), the Korean Methodist Church, and the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea, generally take a broad view of mission under the concept of missio Dei, including social justice and service within its scope.
• Evangelical denominations: Denominations in the evangelical tradition, such as the Presbyterian Church in Korea (Hapdong) and the Presbyterian Church in Korea (Kosin), tend to place evangelism for individual salvation and church planting at the center of mission. While they also speak of social responsibility, they regard evangelism as taking priority.
• Pentecostal denominations: Pentecostal denominations such as the Korea Assemblies of God place particular emphasis on mission carried out through the power of the Holy Spirit and prayer.