Paradigm Wars: The Southern Baptist International Mission Board Faces the Third Millennium

by Keith Eugene Eitel

The Gospel Mission Movement (1892-1910) branched out of the North China Mission of the Southern Baptist Convention's (SBG) Foreign Mission Board (FMB) to try bold new things. Their innovations have been lost to most Southern Baptists because of the tendency historians have had to associate them with the Landmark movement that threatened the SBC's existence earlier that century. While there is indeed some overlap of emphases, it is now apparent that there's more to the story. The rest of the story sheds light on the Board's continuing missiological sojourn, even as it engages a new millennium. Gospel Missioners held together around three core values; indigeneity, incarnation, and responsible autonomy. These were not innovative in and of themselves, but woven together in the tapestry of a mission philosophy at the turn of last century constituted a prelude to an evangelical version of what David Bosch would term a postmodern missiology. Traces of their direct influence are evident from the time of survivors reentering the FMB's service to about 1945. Their core values have always been part of the Board's ongoing discovery process, but they were reintegrated in the formation of Cooperative Services International (CSI) in 1985. Yet, the FMB reconfigured itself in 1997 with hopes of being poised for effectively engaging the future and CSI was dissolved. This study investigates the evidence for a more favorable perspective on the Gospel Mission Movement as a set of pioneers that held to missiological values that were likely a century ahead of their own time. It interprets the recent reconfiguration of the Board in light of these historical patterns.

150 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2002

Reviews

[Wes F · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read to get more on the background of the IMB's shift to focusing on World A & the unreached--and the genesis of CSI.