Shaping Unity in Diversity: A Missiological Approach to Theological Education in Asia

Christianity has had a long history in Asia. Although it is generally assumed that it took a very long time for the Gospel to reach Asia because Christianity moved westward since the time of Paul’s missionary journeys, Christians might have arrived in China as early as the end of the first century.1 There is also evidence of St. Thomas’s mission to India, Armenia’s declaration of Christianity as the state religion, and the strong missionary movement of the Syrian Orthodox Church (Nestorian Church) to the East.2 Regardless of this long history, Asia was known to the West only as a mission field. From the latter part of the twentieth century, however, dramatic changes began to occur in Asia regarding its relationship to Christianity. This is especially significant because we have seen in the last century Christianity breaking out of its Western cultural boundaries. Today, Asia have become an important center of the Christian faith and is rapidly emerging as a significant force for missions. For instance, the Chinese Church is continually growing amidst persecution, and the Korean Church has become the most influential presence among Asian churches. Furthermore, waves of revival are spreading across the borders of Cambodia and Vietnam, while Protestant churches in the Philippines are growing fast. Despite such remarkable growth, the Asian Church is still struggling to provide quality theological education and is lagging behind in theological research. As some scholars have pointed out, Western patterns of thought and theology still dominate Asian theological discourse