Perspectives on the World Christian Movement: A Reader Paperback – Aug 2003

This book completely blew my world view apart! It ended up propelling my family to the wilds of Outer Mongolia for three years during which time we planted a church movement among the Mongols - all by using principles learned thru Perspectives! A MUST READ FOR EVERY ONE WHO PROFESSES TO LOVE CHRIST!

I first bought this book as a required text for my seminary class "Intro to Global Missions," and I can honestly say that out of the many many books I've had to buy for my seminary career, this book remains as one of the single most important.
The book is broken into four major sections, labeled:
The Biblical Perspective
The Historical Perspective
The Cultural Perspective
The Strategic Perspective
Each of these then has dozens of articles written by authors such as Brother Andrew, Walter C. Kaiser Jr., Greg Boyd, John Piper, John R. W. Stott, Hudson Taylor, and many other excellent authors.
Not to use a cliche, but you'll both laugh and cry as you read through this volume and read incredibly diverse accounts of the Christian experience around the world like you can in no other book I know of. This book definitly helped me break out of my very limited frame of reference, and really opened my eyes up to the state of the world...

Back in 1981 when this book was compilled at the US Center for World Missions. My class reviewed and help determine which articles would be in the final copy. This book changed my life. I went to India as a missionary and applied the information in this reader. Anyone who wants to truly understand missions and the World Christian movement this book is a MUST. If you read with an open mind it will change your life as well.

Jack Eller, "Anthropologist, Author, Rationalist," seems to have forgotten some major points in his argument about this book. First, although he correctly points out that the book does an excellent job about doing what it's designed to do - that is sharing about what's going on in the Christian missional realm - he argues that Christianity ought not to be spread at all, and that the whole book is just wrong. He says that "[from] a cross-cultural and anthropological point of view ... [i]t is arrogant, ethnocentric, and culturally destructive to spread a culturally-relative and almost certainly false ideology and belief system where it is not needed or wanted." That's all well and good, but since the book isn't about SHOULD people be missionaries or not, his review is instantly irrelevant. Any review of a book that rants about what the subject matter of the book is not is really not even a true book review - Jack should realize this if he's truly a writer.

Second, being a self proclaimed Rationalist, Jack ought to realize that his own "rational" worldview is also a religion, religion defined as 'a set of beliefs.' This book is most assuredly about the Christian Missionary Experiences of many people across the globe - not an exhaustive apologetic of the Christian faith. If Jack really believes that no one ought to push their beliefs, he should have never published his review in the first place.

Third, people like Jack who tend to think of "Christianity" in terms of "people who do things that I don't like or agree with, and they're always pushing pushing pushing their beliefs on me and others" should take the time to check out some of the many positive things that Christians have done throughout the world. One example is hospitals: both in the US and abroad. Ever notice how many, if not most hospitals involve Christian denominations in the name? For example, here in New York City we have New York Presbyterian and New York Methodist Hospitals which are some of the most sophisticated hosptials in the world. Why do they have Christian denominations in the titles? Because they were founded by Christians who believed that sick people can be helped through medical means. But we never hear about this - it's always "Christians pushing their ways." This book shows how missionaries have helped many across the globe both spiritually AND physically. Jack says that people don't want or need what missionaries have, but nothing could be further from the truth. Christianity properly understood is the most love and human care centered belief system in the world, and this book highlights that well.

This book opens your eyes to the theology, history and strategy of missions. It will help you to understand the Bible and your place in this world like never before. You will understand WHY Jesus is the ONLY "way, truth, and life". You will be excited to work and pray to see people brought out of bondage and suffering, and into a life that glorifies God and offers peace, hope, and healing. Be warned - the book changes lives! Even if you cannot take the Persp. course, it is worth it to read the book.