Holistic Mission in a Wounded World

Abstract

Holistic mission, while widely used as a helpful articulation of the missio Dei, contains within itself a dilemma: if everything is mission, then nothing is mission (Anglican Bishop Stephen Neill). In its adoption of development studies language and practice of diakonia and development, contemporary holistic mission runs the ironic risk of not being holistic enough. To the extent that holistic mission “flattens” a holistic view of the scriptural, narrative arc of salvation into an immanent dimension, to the extent that it focuses on human injustice and structural manifestations of evil at the expense of personal, cosmic, and spiritual evil, to that extent holistic mission runs the risk of oversimplifying the challenge facing missions and risks offering a Band‐Aid to deep, life‐threatening wounds in a dying world. Miroslav Volf's distinction of primary and secondary, ultimate and penultimate flourishing is helpful in maintaining a clear vision of the whole arc of Christian salvation, including creation, sin, fall, redemption, and final consummation. Martin Luther's pastoral theology of holistic evil is helpful in delineating the breadth of personal, structural, and cosmic evil which Christian mission hopes to address.Missiology has responded to the deep trauma of the 20th century by emphasizing missio ad vulnera, mission to the wounded. In the construction of an adequate mission to the wounds, the interweaving of a spiritual imagination, robust Christology, and theology of holistic evil are needed. Using Luther's insights into holistic evil can serve the construction of a robust missio ad vulnera, a missiology sufficiently rigorous in breadth and depth to face the multifaceted wounds and extensive evil in today's world. Holistic mission desperately needs a holistic vision of evil. Luther will serve as an unexpected, helpful ally in this regard.