ANUARUL ACADEMIC 2003-2004 - Facultatea de Teologie "Andrei ...

The second misconception is that our engagement to God’s mission shouldnot bring us into conflict with the authorities. We have been seduced into thinkingthat Romans 13 is the only word in the Bible about Christians and secularauthority, but it certainly doesn’t seem to have been the attitude of the SaintsApostles. These chapters point out that the apostles were regularly arrested,imprisoned and hauled before the Sanhedrin on account of their engagement toGod’s mission.The third misconception is that as far as our engagement to God’s missiondoes involve helping people, it is about charity 112 . Saint Peter was clear that theApostles did not have “silver or gold” but they did have the power of God. Thispower was a power for “standing up” rather than begging. This is a very importantissue because we often hide behind our ability to give money when there is aproblem rather than being involved in the compassion that God requires, which is acompassion that demands something from us. Here lies the failure of the split wehave created between the physical and the material. Saint Peter does not usematerial means to heal but healing is very material. In its engagement to God’smission in the world, the church has this power of Christ to share 113 .The Church has now recovered the biblical insight that the mission is God’srather than the Church’s. This was not done without great theological andmissiological conflict. We have moved from an ecclesiocentric to a theocentricgenerated mission 114 , David Bosch says that:“During the past half a century or so, there has been a subtle but neverthelessdecisive shift towards understanding mission as God’s mission. Duringpreceding centuries mission was understood in a variety of ways. Sometimes itwas interpreted primarily in soteriological terms: as saving individuals frometernal damnation. Or it was understood in cultural terms: as introducing peoplefrom the East and South to the blessing and privileges of Christian West. Oftenit was perceived in ecclesiastical categories: as expansion of the church ( or ofspecific denomination). Sometimes it was defined salvation-historically: as theprocess by which the world – evolutionary or by means of a cataclysmic eventwouldbe transformed into the kingdom of God." 115112 We must not forget that charity comes from caritas ( in Greek language agape) which meanscompassionate love (ICor. 13)113 Steve de Gruchy,” Mission in Act 1-11: An Experiment in Bible Study, in IRM, 94 (373, April2005), p.231114 Namsoon Kang, op.cit., p.281.115 David Bosch, 1991, Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission, Maryknoll,N.Y., Orbis Press, p.389176