Timeline of Christian missions

In addition to church history or history of Christianity, the history of mission dealt with as part of the field of missiology, especially with the spread of Christianity.

Mission in the Roman Empire from 30 to 500

Early Christianity

In the Gospel according to Matthew is the oft-quoted mission command:

Jesus of Nazareth had two to three years in the Jewish environment, in his Jewish disciples. After Jesus' death, the Jewish Christian community held at the remembrance of his in the " Lord's Supper ", taken from the messianic commemoration of Pessachhaggada, firm and awaited his return. An important guide was the " Lord's brother James ." At that time there were Jews not only in Palestine but also in the Diaspora in Asia Minor, Greece and Italy, and there was a brief period of Jewish Proselytenwerbung. It is estimated the proportion of Jews in the population at the time of the Roman Empire to 7%.

Your knowledge of the Tanakh, which was called by Christians the Old Testament, the understanding of the Christian faith was a great advantage, and so do the leaders of the young Christian movement were mostly Jews, as well as Paul. A stronger separation from Judaism began with his theology and mission ( around 50 AD ) a - so that the decisive phase of the independence of Christianity began.

The great Jewish war against the Romans ( AD 66-70 ) enhanced an eschatological mood; by the catastrophe of the destruction of the temple also lost bound to Jewish traditions Jewish Christianity in importance in the context of the Christian movement. Among the authors of the nachneutestamentlichen texts about the Church Fathers, there were hardly any Jews, and few were able to Hebrew ( Origen, Jerome).

Gentile Christianity

Important for the propagation of the Christian faith was the use of the Greek language, which was the most important trade language in the Roman Empire. All the books of the New Testament were written in Greek. A major center for the propagation of the Christian faith, even under non-Jews (or " Gentiles " ) was Antioch in Syria. There the followers of Jesus ( Christianoi ) ( Acts 11:26 EU) were first called "Christians". From there, Barnabas and Paul began their first missionary journey. Initially, individual cities have been achieved, and from there began a gradual spread also in the rural environment.

The propagation of the Christian faith was rapid: To 55 AD. was a significant part of the population in Ephesus Christians, so that the suffering sales decline silversmiths protested against Paul (Acts 19.23 to 29 EU), and Paul contacted the church in Rome because he wanted their support for a mission in Spain, because he had in the Eastern Roman Empire no longer working field ( Rom 15.18 to 24 EU).

Mission in the Middle Ages

In Europe the 6th to the 8th century, the spread of Christianity was particularly driven by the Celtic- Irish and Anglo-Saxon Mission. Originally introduced by Gregory the Great were subsequently held various influential individuals, such as Columbanus the Younger, Gallus, Kilian, Willibrord and Boniface.

→ For the evangelization of the Germanic peoples see: German Mission.

→ The missionary Saxony is described in the article Saxony mission.

In the Christian Orient some Catholic religious order (for example, Cistercians, Benedictines ) were active during the time of the Crusades. Some offices as such as the Monastery of Balamand bear witness about the presence of the Cistercians in the 12th century in what is now Lebanon.

The Catholic Mission from 1500

In the Spanish colonial empire and the Portuguese colonies, the missionary of the indigenous populations takes in America, Asia and Africa, an important place in the general Kolonialpolitk. In Mexico, are active since the early 1520s missionaries of the Franciscan ( OFM) to the missionary. Later other Catholic orders are added ( Augustinian Hermits and Dominicans ). Particularly well known is the mission of the Jesuits in Paraguay. They are also available in other parts of the Spanish colonial empire operates, particularly in the today belonging to Bolivia regions Mojos and Chiquitos, in Chile on the island of Chiloe, in the Amazon region ( here especially at the headwaters of the Amazon ), but particularly in the northeast of Mexico, at the Pima and Seri, Jesuit missionary areas are founded. In the historiography is debatable how much these areas were from the actual colonial system independent. Both the Jesuits and the other orders were active in remote areas, which have not been controlled in part by the colonial powers. So the Dominicans worked example of the Orinoco ( Alexander von Humboldt has its work towards ). How ambiguous the relationship of mission and colonization must be assessed, it is clear from the example of Bartolomé de Las Casas ( 1484-1566 ). Although he is a posted by the Spanish State Catholic missionary, but developed into one of the most prominent opponents of the exploitation of the Indians.

The Jesuits were also active in the colonial empire to another important Catholic colonial power, France. Particularly well known is her work among the Iroquois and Hurons in Canada. Among the known martyrs include John de Brébeuf and seven of his companions, whose story is processed in the movie Black Robe.

In addition to the areas in America, the missionary orders were also active in the Philippines. Especially on the main island of Luzon, but also on Jolo, Mindanao and Zebu there are Jesuits, Augustinians and Dominicans. In other parts of Asia they had less success.

An important area of the Catholic mission was established in 19th century Africa. In addition to the Jesuits, for example, operated the White Fathers, but increasingly - by Protestant model - Catholic lay missionary societies at the.

In the Christian East it was from the 16th century, a wave of proselytizing by several Catholic orders, which from Armenia to Sudan ( Comboni Missionaries ) and Lebanon ( Jesuits, Franciscans) and Anatolia were employed to Iran. They usually set up schools (1875 university of Saint Joseph in present-day Lebanon ) and hospitals. The proselytizing usually led to new start-ups or spin-offs church of the Orthodox and Eastern Churches ( Syrian Catholic, Greek Catholic ( Melkite ), Armenian Catholic ( Mechitarists ), Catholic- Coptic churches, the so-called Uniate churches ) or Eastern Catholic Churches and attempts at latinization eg with the Maronites.

The Protestant mission from 1600

Justinian of Welz published in 1664, several writings on importance and feasibility of the world mission, but came under Lutheran theologians to strong opposition. The Protestant missionary movement starts 1705/ 06 with the posting of Bartholomew Ziegenbalg and other missionaries to Tranquebar, India by the Danish - Halle mission. Stronger than at the Catholic mission, the missionary work of the Protestants was focused on areas already colonized. The early Protestant colonial powers (England and United Kingdom and the Netherlands) but did not show the same and privileged interest in the evangelization of the conquered populations.

From the 16th century it was connected to the colonialism of the world powers and a link to the spread of Christianity. Missionaries attracted by traders and soldiers were involved and in some cases also in the exploitation, subjugation, destruction of crops, violation of human rights and human dignity.

Only in the 19th century missionary work was conceived as an instrument of state policy of colonial British side. Thus was founded the late 18th century missionary societies operate under state protection. These companies included the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (SPG ), the London Missionary Society, the Church Missionary Society, the Scottish Mission Society in Germany and the Berlin Missionary Society or the Leipzig Missionary Society. Mission areas were particularly colonial expansion following, Africa and India. There have been concluded between the individual missionary societies contracts, so that German missionaries were allowed to go in English protectorates or colonies. However, individual Caribbean islands, the Philippines by U.S. companies and China aim of proselytizing.

Mission scientists - Subject Mission History

• Klaus Fiedler
• Frank Hinkelmann
• Joseph Schmidlin
• Andrew F. Walls
• Klaus Wetzel