Reverse Mission? Missio Dei and the Spread of African Pentecostalism in the West

What is it about?

Although mission is no longer a linear stream that flows from north to south, rarely are southern missionaries in the west construed as participants in God’s mission. Using missio Dei, this article contests the claim that southern missionaries in the west are on a reverse mission. Beginning with a brief overview of missio Dei, it discusses the meaning, uses and limitations of the various models of reverse mission. Assessing the spread of African Pentecostalism in the west, it contends that mission cannot be reversed if it is of God. The paper concludes that mission is simply a continuum of what God has done in Christ for the oikos throughout the ages, and to which humanity are privileged participants.

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