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Hypothesis
The overall purpose of this study is to utilise the South African Baptist faith heritage as interlocutor (dialogue partner) with a view to retrospective and prospective Baptist ecclesiology. Special attention will be paid to the contribution of emerging Afro-centric missional ecclesiology within the current South African context.
The focus of this study will be directed towards a biblically-based, Afro-centric approach toward missional leadership with BUSA churches in mind.
The aim of this study is to gauge the overall significance of an Afro-centric missional ecclesiology in the specific context of present-day BUSA ecclesiology and praxis. Taking into consideration both local and global trends which influence, in some or other way, ministry within the South African setting with all the challenges and opportunities it poses. The focus of my thesis is the local BUSA church within the broader missional conversation – understanding historical shifts within BUSA to engage present-day challenges with the unchanging missio Dei. This has various implications for local church ministry and leadership in moving toward an Afro-centric missional ecclesiology.
Goals and Objectives
Missiologists are often accused of lack of practical aids for the practitioner on the ground and have not, in many respects, not won the confidence of the local church leader regarding the vital role and reorientation of what can be termed missional church. Far too much of the missional conversation is restricted to academia. Thus, equipping local church leaders for missional change needs to take priority if any sustainable growth is to take place in the foreseeable future. Leading towards missional change, in this context, should be an important focus throughout my dissertation. In order to achieve this goal there are a number of enabling outputs that are of great importance (figure 2 below graphically illustrates my process). Toward missional leadership within BUSA churches I intend to:
5.1 Uncover the importance of an Afro-centric missional ecclesiology taking into consideration both local and global trends and conversations.
5.2 Uncover a retrospective view of Baptist Ecclesiology within the Southern African context, with its relevance to the history and present-day context of ministry within BUSA.
5.3 Analyse existing statistical data found within the Baptist Annual Handbook, to establish denominational trends since 1994, with a view to identifying significant ministry trends operable within BUSA.
5.4 Collect, analyse and interpret data from a number of churches from within the Baptist Union of Southern Africa, that stand out as significant in three or more ‘missional indicators’ in the first tier of research and analysis.
Rapid change
Over the last five decades or so we have seen a world unfold that is unlike any we could have imagined, and for which no one could have completely prepared us (Cole 2010). The sociologist, Manuel Castells, certainly agrees with the above sentiment expressed by Cole. His three-volume series, ‘The information age:
Economy, society and culture’ (2004) is just such an attempt to describe this complex world- one that he defines as the network society, a world where many suffer from an acute identity crisis. The following quote from Castells (2004:1) helps to put into more concrete focus what the researcher claims is taking shape:
This is indeed a time of change, regardless of how we time it. In the last quarter of the twentieth century, a technological revolution, centred around information, transformed the way we think, we produce, we consume, we trade, we manage, we communicate, we live, we die, we make war, and we make love. A dynamic, global economy has been constituted around the planet, linking up valuable people and activities from all over the world, while switching off from the networks of power and wealth, people and territories dubbed as irrelevant from the perspective of the dominant interests (Castells 2004:1).
Within this relatively short period of time, there have been quantum leaps in technology that constantly change the ‘face’ of the world. We are entering into an era of unprecedented, rapid and dynamic change that Cole describes as paradigmatic. Describing the importance of this shift (or upgrade as Cole metaphorically suggests): “There have been two major upgrades in church formation, since Acts, that have changed the entire system. The first occurred dramatically during the rule of the Emperor Constantine…. I believe the second is occurring now” (Cole 2010:5). Cole (2010) suggests that this upgrade may even allow the church of the future to rise above the early church. After all, would God not want us to grow and develop in better ways as His people? Did Jesus not say we would do greater things than he did (cf. Jn. 14: 12)?
With the advent of the internet and the growing global village even third-world, emerging economies in the Global South have felt the need to accelerate their growth to compete globally, and keep up with the trend. Today, we have easy access to more information, research, products and ideas than at any point in history. We have undergone what many are calling an information revolution, where we can research the most complex topic, plan an entire vacation online, inclusive of flights, hotel bookings and car-hire, and still have time to sift through information regarding tourist hotspots to visit while on vacation. Imagine the impact the Apostle Paul might have had if he lived in our Global Village today.
PART ONE- THE SOUTH AFRICAN BAPTIST FAITH HERITAGE
CHAPTER ONE SOUTH AFRICAN BAPTISTS
1.1 A Brief History of the Cape of Good Hope
CHAPTER TWO THE SOUTH AFRICAN BAPTIST HERITAGE
2.1 A brief history of South African Baptists
2.2 The formation of BUSA
2.3 Historic Baptist structures and policy
CHAPTER THREE UNDERSTANDING BUSA’S MISSION DEVELOPMENT
3.1 Waves of Baptist Mission and Development
3.2 Chapter Conclusion and Questions posed
PART TWO- TOWARDS AN AFRO-CENTRIC MISSIONAL ECCLESIOLOGY
CHAPTER FOUR THE IMPORTANCE OF THE AFRICAN CONTRIBUTION
4.1 Africa- the world’s powerhouse
4.2 Africa’s enriching heritage
4.3 Africa in the twenty-first century and beyond
CHAPTER FIVE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF AFRICAN CHRISTIANITY
5.1 Historical paradigm shifts and African Christian dominance
CHAPTER SIX A SUMMARY OF THE TIMES WE LIVE IN
6.1 Rapid change
6.2 Ever-changing contexts
CHAPTER SEVEN THREATS TO AFRICAN CHRISTIANITY
7.1 Threats to the African situation
7.2 Important global trends impacting Africa
PART THREE- THE NEED FOR AN AFRO-CENTRIC MISISONAL ECCLESIOLOGY
CHAPTER EIGHT THE ROLE AND IMPORTANCE OF AN AFRO-CENTRIC MISSIONAL ECCLESIOLOGY
8.1 Setting the record straight
8.2 Missional’s menacing and misunderstood meaning
8.3 Missional makeover
8.3.1 What does the missional church look like?
PART FOUR – CONTEMPORARY BAPTIST WITNESS IN SOUTH AFRICA
CHAPTER NINE MINISTRY AND MISISON IN THE RAINBOW NATION
9.1 Understanding South Africa’s urban tribes
9.2 Brief outline of the 12 urban tribes
9.3 Implications of Chang’s approach to BUSA
CHAPTER TEN BAPTISTS TODAY
10.1 Denominational trends since 1994
10.2 Implications and importance of the trends in BUSA
10.3 Current trends in BUSA churches
CHAPTER SUMMARY
CHAPTER ELEVEN PHASES OF MISSIONAL TRANSITION (PERSONAL CASE STUDY)
CHAPTER SUMMARY & CONCLUSION
