Transforming Mission: Quotes & Review

“Our mission has not life of its own: only in the hands of the sending God can it truly be called mission. Not least since the missionary initiative comes from God alone.”

“In attempting to flesh out the missio Dei concept, the following could be said: In the new image mission is not primarily an activity of the church, but an attribute of God. God is a missionary God. ‘It is not the church that has a mission of salvation to fulfil in the world; it is the mission of the Son and the Spirit through the Father that includes the church’ (Moltmann 1977:64). Mission is thereby seen as a movement from God to the world; the church is viewed as an instrument for that mission. There is church because there is mission, not vice versa. To participate in mission is to participate in the movement of God’s love toward people, since God is a fountain of sending love.”

David J. Bosch, Transforming Mission, Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1991, pp. 389-390.
A study guide is also available . . . or from Amazon.

Reviewed:
"At the conclusion of his survey of historical paradigms, Bosch emphasizes that mission is ultimately multidimensional. The contours of these many dimensions are shaped by six major "salvific events" chronicled in the New Testament: Christ's incarnation, by which he fully experienced the challenges and struggles of being human; his crucifixion, which signifies the completeness of his service and self-sacrifice; the resurrection, which conveys a message of victory and hope for humanity; the ascension, which calls Christians to work for a new order here on the earth which issues from above; Pentecost, which inaugurated the era of the church as a distinct community where social renewal is made manifest; and the parousia, which sets the sights of the church on the imminent and full realization of God's reign." - by Foster Stanback