Second-Generation Diaspora and Mission in Europe
Yes, Our Sons and Daughters Shall Prophesy in This Strange Land
Welcome to my newsletter, “Global Witness, Globally Reimagined,” where I dream here about mission in a postcolonial world. Every week, I share one thought that has spoken to me in the week, two resources I trust will be helpful to you, and three exciting quotes about mission. I pray one of these will energise you in the coming week.
1. Thought I Can’t Shake Off
From where I stand, it is very plausible that the future of Christianity and mission in Europe will depend, to a fair extent, on the faith and ministries of children of migrant Christians from around the world who are currently living in Europe. Thus, ministry to what has come to be called the “second-generation diaspora” is critical. The question is, “who is discipling the younger generation diaspora?” Or, indeed, who is doing this well? The challenges facing the Black Christian community in London, for example, affect all of us. They are not a black-church problem that white churches can avoid. We cannot be well when one part of the Body is suffering. Of course, there is always a cost to migration. A friend of mine says, “Migrating to the UK has been a double loss for me. I lost my community back home (in Jamaica) and I lost my children here.” Growing up a child of a migrant means living with all the nuances that make every migrant’s life; the contradictions between belonging and being a perpetual strange ‘other,’ negotiating the space between being an insider and an outsider at the same time, and the conflicting identities of who they really are and who their people are. It also means trying hard to fit in at school while watching parents struggle with their own cross-cultural maelstrom. For some, this means having to maintain perfect grades at school while helping out in their parents’ hustles, be it a church, a catering or a cleaning business. Oftentimes, it means being their parents’ language and cultural interpreter while also trying to make sense of their own new cultural context as well. For many, it means not only watching but internalising the impact of the racism and marginalisation that their parents have to negotiate (often from fellow Christians). If you really believed that these migrant children are the future missionaries in the West—that they will disciple your children and grandchildren, would you treat them and their parents differently? Would your posture to migrant churches change a little?
2. Resources I am Enjoying
Book: Joshua Bowman, Cross-Cultural Partnerships: Mediating Relational, cultural, and Hermeneutical Tensions for Mutual, Faithful Missional Engagement. (Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications, 2023).
Partnership in mission is not a new concept. Joshua Bowman explores, in this new book, a history of partnerships dating back to Edinburgh in 1910. Understandably, missional partnerships have historically been surrounded by tensions because of Western paternalism. The kind of partnership that Joshua advocates for is one of equality and interdependence. He seeks to avoid past paternalism and engages in complementary ministry. To forge this new kind of partnership, Joshua highlights critical key principles such as interdependence, complimentary gifts, and joint participation.
The central question of the book is: How can partnerships leverage inherent relational, cultural, and hermeneutical tensions in cross-cultural relationships to encourage mutual and faithful participation in the mission of God? Joshua is cognisant that the kind of partnership he calls for is in the context of cultural differences and a broken world. Therefore, cultural, relational, and hermeneutical tensions present barriers to a fruitful partnership between those engaging in God's mission. He goes on to describe actual and potential dangers which might result from unmediated tensions. He calls for collaborative theological exchange and diverse cultural relationships that balance insider and outsider perspectives to reduce errors and tensions. Trusting relationships can be built across cultural borders to diminish conflicts and overcome hindrances and tensions. True worship and mutual engagement in the mission of God may emerge in these kinds of mutual relationships. This is a solid book that comes out of Joshua’s doctoral thesis. All of us interested in cross-cultural partnerships will learn something from it.
Video: Arthur Kay and Jonatas Bragatto: On the Decline of Christianity in Britain.
In this episode, two well-known church leaders, Arthur Kay and Jonatas Bragatto, discuss the decline of Christianity in Britain. They reflect on how and why Christian values have faded in homes and public space. They link the rise of social problems to the neglect of Christian standards and values. They propose that any repair or correction of the above trend would have to start “first, primarily with Christians and with the church itself [for] the church is the alpha form of the kingdom.” Kay and Bragatto suggest that each Christian and church must become a faithful witness by upholding biblical truths, standards and values for any missionary endeavour to be productive and the society transformed.
3. Quotes I am Pondering
God’s mission is beyond the confines of the churches’ interests of stability and expansion but is directed towards the transformation of the world through the values of justice and love. Such transformation is not possible through mere acts of charity but only by exposing the sinfulness of the world … — Deenabandhu Manchala.
Mission is participation in the self-giving action of God. This disposition underscores a fundamental Christian stance. God breathes into human conditions and they become life-giving. — Beatrice W. E. Churu and Mary N. Getui
Mission transcends being an enterprise which can solely be in the service of the church. Rather, understanding mission as creating the conditions for liberation helps us to understand mission as a process which offers itself to further the liberative agendas of other organisations, groups and bodies which may have their base outside the church but yet are involved in the issues of justice. — Joseph Prabhakar Dayam and Peniel Jesudason Rufus Rajkumar
I pray that you have a missionally faithful week.
Very true and undeniable facts from this in-depth exegesis about the misconception of the individual lifestyle in society and who should be blamed. But far as it's concerned, the home is the pivot of any true reflection of individual behaviour and character displayed in society today therefore if Christian homes can lay up standardized values for bringing up their children and not deviating from them, It will go a long way affecting positive lives in the community. As confirmed in the scriptures,
"If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?"(Psalm 11:3).
This a heartfelt and prophetic piece. Thank you.