Social Engagement

FORWARD

In one way or another the papers that follow respond to our 2013 conference theme highlighting missiology's growing engagement with social issues. This marks a "social turn" of sorts that expands missiological reflection in the direction of social change, social justice, activism, advocacy, and related research. Such emphasis is hardly new but taking it with renewed seriousness raises fresh questions for professors of mission. Of primary importance to our members are questions about how we equip our students to concretely and practically engage social realities while reflecting on them theologically and theoretically. And in keeping with APM's mission to advance the teaching of mission studies, such educational questions were brought to the center of our discussions this year.

With this pedagogical emphasis in mind, our collection of papers begins and ends with the plenary papers presented by David Fenrick, from Northwestern College, and Al Tizon, from Palmer Theological Seminary. Both papers concentrate on service-learning or "engaged" scholarship as they explore new ways to move beyond the classroom to train missioners as scholar-practitioners. David presented a vital (even path-breaking) model for experience-based education; Al described the challenges of creating an entire graduate program rooting classroom instruction in social advocacy and activism. Both are instructive as we envision new curricula and new programs for effectively training the next generation of missioners and missiologists. In between these plenaries, twelve other papers were presented in workshops. Several of these also touch on pedagogical issues related to engaged scholarship and service-learning. Others explore theoretical, historical and social-cultural issues in missiological perspective.