Transcending Mission
Missio Nexus’ leadership thoughtfully summarize books, giving you the Leader’s Edge to help inform, stimulate and provoke profitable discussion.
Leader’s Edge
(Missions & Ministry)
Transcending Mission: The Eclipse of a Modern Tradition
Michael Stroope
Publisher: IVP Academic, 2017, 477 pages.
ISBN: 978-0830851676
ASIN: 06XXMWGMY
Summary
Missiology is becoming the new dismal science in that it focuses almost exclusively on deconstructionism. Michael Stroope’s, Transcending Mission: The Eclipse of Modern Tradition, is a deconstructionist tour de force. Stroope critiques the language behind mission, missions and missionary while arguing that the rhetoric, the language of “mission, missions and missionary” is fraught with polemical problems. This book does not question the existence of the Great Commission. Rather it is a critique of the language of “mission.” The author’s overall thesis is that language of mission is harmful. It lacks linguistic support Biblically and is historically compromised. Stroope’s critique is powerful in its scope, covering a great deal of ground, from the early church to contemporary mission efforts. The book finishes with a proposal that “Pilgrim Witness” with a heavy dose of “Kingdom” are possible alternatives.
