JBTM_10-2_Fall_2013

JBTM
H. Edward Pruitt
58
in 2002 celebrated “the fact that the fruits of theological conversation that begun at Lausanne
1927 have been used by churches as instruments of internal reform and renewal.” 36
On a more practical level the transition from a salvation focused on mankind’s eternal destiny
to a more social transformation Gospel has attributed to stress and caused confusion in the local
church. One example was the church in the Philippines as early as 1962. During the late 1950s
and early 1960s new emerging leaders within the Filipino church were pressing the church to
take more responsibility concerning social transformation. However, the church was slow to
respond. Montes concludes that,
Because the church herself has not been a leader in social thought and concern, her laity, with
very few exceptions, are hardly, aware of the social implications of their faith. Therefore in
spite of their considerable social and political prestige, they can hardly be expected to influence
fundamentally the larger social order toward the realization of a more equitable and just
development of the body politic, towards better and higher standards for all, towards the redesigning
of the social structure to enable all people to achieve the abundant life. 37
The local church struggled with this shift in theological emphasis. Even in America during the
late 1960s the Western church struggled with its call to missions. Glasser recalls,
It was now 1968. Apparently, the IMC transfusion has not been successful. Uppsala [the WCC
Assembly in Uppsala, Sweden] uncovered ‘widespread defeatism in churches about the work
of evangelism and missions,’ attributed variously to the process of secularization in society, the
resurgence of non-Christian religions, and a deep confusion in the churches about the nature of
the Christian faith itself. 38
This debate concerning the biblical nature of evangelism and missions continues well into the
twenty-first century. The struggle within many churches continues to this day.
The debate at times has proved to be quite intense. Ilion T. Jones refers to the shift toward a
more social ministry as “The Church’s Defection From a Divine Mission.” 39 He states,
Among the changes taking place in Christendom in recent decades, none is more radical, or more
controversial, or fraught with more serious consequences, than the Church’s understanding of its
role in society. Traditionally the Christian Church has devoted its resources to the evangelization of
individuals. But recently a number of church leaders, both ministers and laymen, have embarked
36 Tanner, “The First World Conference on Faith and Order,” 3.
37 Valentin G. Montes, “Social Thinking of the Church in the Philippines,” South East Asia Journal of
Theology 4.1 (1962): 42.
38 Arthur F. Glasser, “What Has Been the Evangelical Stance, New Delhi to Uppsala?” Evangelical Missions
Quarterly 5.3 (Spring 1969): 131.
39 Ilion T. Jones, “The Church’s Defection from a Divine Mission,” Christianity Today, May 24, 1968, 3.