September 01, 1986 by John Holzmann

There have been indigenous cross cultural Asian mission agencies for more than a hundred years; they have met in larger conventions; they have sponsored larger conventions. But never before AMA '86 has there been a meeting that brought together top Third World mission leaders from around the world. The fact that this historic meeting was convened in the United States and that it was initiated by Third World leaders themselves only adds spice to the story.

AMA '86, the Fourth Triennial Convention of the Asia Missions Association, was held on the campus of the U.S. Center for World Mission and in the Pasadena Civic Auditorium October 6th though 12th. Convention participants included representatives from more than 30 countries and 70 mission agencies not only Asians, (including representatives from the Indian sub¬continent and the People's Republic of China), but also South, Central, and North Americans. Africans, arid Europeans.

The largest single contingent of participants was Korean speaking, but the convention as a whole was a powerful evidence of the growing vitality of the entire Third World mission movement  wherever the missionaries come from and wherever they are going.

In a paper presented Thursday morning, W. Harold Fuller, deputy general director of SIM International, commented on a reality that Darrell Dorr of the U.S. Center for World Mission and the key host staffer for the convention, said was "perhaps the most powerful impact of the convention?'

During a recent trip to South America, Fuller said, "among our missionaries working in Bolivia and Pens. I met 14 nationalities including a Malaysian Chinese, a New Zealander, a Filipino, a black Jamaican, a Bolivian, a German, a white from Zimbabwe, and an Indoblack from South Africa All were MM members. A Korean was on the way via Australia!

"The exciting fact of our generation is that peoples of the ends of the earth are now among Christ's disciples taking the Gospel around the world," he concluded.

Dorr commented, "Today you can find missionaries coming from everywhere, going to everywhere, and doing so with everyone. Choose your options —country of origin, destination, and agency and you're likely to find a missionary to match."

His observation was backed by breathtaking examples at the convention itself. In attendance was a gentleman from Norway, serving under an Indonesian mission society, working in Thailand. There was a Japanese girl working among the deaf in Korea.

There was a Korean working in Thailand among the lepers. ("Sometimes the ugliest problems of society can't be dealt with by those who are right there. They need outside assistance" said Dr. Winter.) There was an Indonesian working in Surname. A Japanese working in Pakistan. A Japanese woman born in Tokyo who works with Africa Inland Mission in Newark, NJ among the blacks.

But while many participants exhulted in the growing vitality of mission vision and activity among Third World Christians, others had mixed emotions. Many were clearly struggling with their fears of possible or continued dominance by Western missionanes, and with the options of total independence from Western missionaries and interdependence with Western missionaries.

For some, there was an expressed desire to work with Westerners, yet a fear of being controlled. One South Asian participant said, About a fifth of those in our group are of the opinion that Westerners should play no part in future mission efforts in our part of the world. Others are willing at least to receive Western money' A Taiwanese pastor commented. "If Asia is to be evangelized, we (Asians) must do it without Western interference!"

Ed note: The Friends Missionary Prayer Band, one of the largest, strongest agencies in India, will not accept any foreign funds, and the India Mission Association will not accept into membership any mission agency that receives more than half its support from abroad. In both these cases, however, this is a healthy commitment and should be interpreted in that light. It is far from an evidence of fear of the West.

On the whole, however, the third World participants expressed an appreciation for their Western brothers. Convention leaders invited several Westerners to speak. Among them, Dr. Larry Keyes of OC Ministries, W. Harold Fuller of SIM International, and Dr. Ralph Winter of the U.S. Center for World Mission.

Of special interest to USCWM host/ observers to the convention was the admission on the part of Third World missionaries that simply because they are what have come to be called "native" missionaries, doesn't mean they are better equipped for the cross cultural missionary task than Westerners.

Hong Shik Shin, a Korean missionary to Thailand admitted that when he first went to Thailand, he thought he'd have none of the cultural difficulties Western missionaries have experienced  "After all, I an, Asian. The people to whom I am going are Asian. We should understand each other."

"I couldn't have been more wrong," he said. He illustrated some of the difficulties he had learning the intricacies of a total language (where the sounds the phonemes may be identical for eight different words, but the tone in which they are spoken differentiates the meanings).

"I wanted to express my appreciation to the church choir one evening," he said. "But it turned out that instead of saying, 'The choir sang marvelously,' I said, 'The choir sang miserably.'

"It wasn't until after the service that I found out why the choir had looked so hurt when I 'complimented' them!"

Third World missionaries are coming face to face with the sane issues and questions that have plagued Western missions for years. The baggage of the past and the realities of today affect everyone Asians. Africans, Europeans, North and South Americans. Dominance, arrogance, superiority, dependence, racial prejudice, ethnocentrism all of these words were used at one time or another to describe the actions of Westerners and non Westerners alike at the AMA.

Asians, Third World, "native" and Western missionaries are the same. They live within the bounds of their cultural heritage. Some are reserved, some bald and brash: some are quiet and deferential, some asserlive: some laugh easily and others maintain a stoic silence. When two cultures meet, there is bound to be a certain amount of tension. How one deals with it is the key.

Petros Octavianus, president of the Indonesia Missionary Fellowship, provided a positive example. He was scheduled to give a talk Thursday morning. As with all speeches, his paper was typed up, duplicated, and handed out to delegates before he spoke. The Korean organizers of the convention, with their attention to detail and discipline, had established the policy that participants were to hand over a "passport" in order to receive their papers.

Octavianus presented himself at the desk Thursday morning in order to acquire a copy of his paper. An easygoing man, he burst into laughter when he was required to hand over his "passport" by the Koreans behind the desk. "Imagine!" he said, "I need apassport to receive a copy of my own speech!"

As with any conference its size, it is difficult to assess the full meaning of what really transpired at AMA '86.

A Korean delegate working in Thailand said, "This convention is an encouragement to us (non¬Westerners). It helps us that we can do what Westerners have done before; our work is worthwhile."

Another participant commented, "If there was any doubt about it before, this convention is a tangible sign of the existence of Asian missions and of (our) aspiration to speak not only for ourselves and to ourselves, but also to the world, and especially to our Western brothers."

But was the convention merely a symbol, a sign of Third World mission vitality? At least one participant went so far as to make the comment:

"The most important aspect of this meeting, I believe, is in the photos that are being taken, the book that is sure to be published, and the preparations for the next meeting,"

"In Asia, that we accomplish something is not as important as the fact that the event happened. If there are many meetings; if all the delegates are busy; if they are pushed to exhaustion; if they can all go home waving pictures and saying, 'See! We had a wonderful time! The Lord is at work!' that is what is important."

"If you notice where most of the evening meetings are being held," said another delegate, "I believe it is clear that one of the main reasons this convention was brought to America was for the purpose of mobilizing KoreanAmerican churches for involvement in missions," (Four out of the seven evening meetings were held in KoreanAmerican churches.)

Dorr said that though such interpretations of the convention were valid as far as they went, he did not believe they give a full picture of the significance of the convention,

"This convention has dealt with several significant items,' he said. He pointed to two of the four resolutions that were passed by the assembly one "to establish a Mutual Fund for Third World Mission Advance" and the other "to form a Joint Commission of Third World Missions"

The Mutual Fund is intended to "provide a development fund for mutual help among newly¬emerging Third World missions," specifically, to "allow crossfertilization and the development of inter cultural world mission among Third World missions."

The Joint Commission is intended to "take all convenient and prudent actions" necessary in order for Third World missions to cooperate in "transcontinental joint action"; to speak with a unified voice "for defence and protection of the advance of the Gospel when faced with crisis situations" (Ed: meaning, among other things, "government opposition"); to "provide mutual assistance in developing missions and (exchanging) personnel": and "to establish mission research, development, and training centers, to hold seminars to explore mission strategies. (to) instruct candidates, and (to) encourage local churches in missions."

Though neither of these proposals will lead to instant change, their potential significance is awesome.

Dorr also called attention to opportunities delegates had throughout the convention to stimulate one another with new ideas. For instance, Panya Baba, head of the Evangelical Missionary Society (EMS) of the Evangelical Churches of West Africa, mentioned his agency's policy of requiring its missionaries to anise half (hew support from churches, and to earn the other half through "lentnraking." This plan enables EMS missionaries to enjoy the best of both worlds the emotional and prayer support of their home churches ("where your treasure is, there will your heart he also") as well as the social Stability and cultural approval of a paying job.

Larry Keyes, who, besides being the director of Overseas Crusades, is probably the foremost Western authority on Asian missions, dieassed the need for partnership or "international networking." "Traditionally, partnership agreements have been made between Western missionary sending societies," he said. "Later, as Western workers planted churches, the agreements were made between the Western sending societies and the national church members. Now, as the non Western churches mature in their witness and begin to send out their own missionaries, these non Western  societies (are becoming) involved in informal partnership agreements between themselves."

Keyes mentioned the experience of a C&MA missionary couple from the Philippines who are working in Bolivia as a result of a partnership agreement between the Philippines Missionary Association and MM International. Due to government regulations, the Philippines church is unable to provide monthly support, but they were able to provide "the outfit and travel expenses" As government regulations, the realities of financial ability, or any one of a hundred different factors come into play, Keyes suggested that partnership agreements should involve everything from "research, missionary training, loaning personnel, (and) fund exchanges" to "disseminating information in each other's publications"

Thursday evening, Kerygma Canta (see MF cover story. June 1986) presented a well received mini concert of indigenous Peruvian music, Some of the same ideas that were mentioned in the June Mission Frontiers article were mentioned at the evening meeting. The question that had to be left in the mind of any mission leader who was half way attentive was, "Could we also use a contemporary indigenous music group to mobilize and fund a mission movement of our own?"

Non Western missions, and Asian missions especially, are clearly on the move. This is tremendously encouraging. As Keyes pointed out, "Though much is written about he growth of the church in Africa, few have noted that the church in Asia is growing at almost the same rate (Christianity grew by 38 percent during the last tO years in Africa, 37 percent in Asia)."

Further, "Asian missions are growing at a pace of 15.4 percent per year. At this rate of growth, them will be a phenomenal 67, Asian missionaries by the year 2000! This should represent over half the total non Western missionary force by that time."

If AMA '86 is any indication, Ralph Winter summed it up best when he said, "We in the West will have a strategic role, but missions in the remaining part of this century will clearly be dominated by the Third World. not the West."