Rose Dowsett’s lifetime of faithful service in cross-cultural mission, sharp analytical mind and great way with words, alongside her passion for Christ and for people make her almost uniquely qualified to have written this helpful little book - which traces changes in world mission in her lifetime.
In a world which forgets all too quickly how things were even very recently, Dowsett reminds us how much has changed in recent years and asks, "In the midst of so much change, are there continuing and unchanging realities?"
She reminds us that "The Living God … longs for women, men and children everywhere to know, trust and love him and to come to know themselves to be in harmony with him."
"To God’s people, his church, is entrusted the privilege and calling to embody the good news of his love, to tell of his supreme intervention in human history in the person of his Son, Jesus Christ and to live, individually and collectively in ways that display his loveliness."
Though written from a British perspective, the lessons Dowsett draws, questions she asks, and applications she makes have much wider application, as she raises issues of colonialism, mission and "reverse" mission, migration and ethnicity, pluralism, rapid urbanisation and job mobility, local churches and mission agencies, creation care, poverty, dignity and materialism, the authority of the Bible, the uniqueness of Jesus, insidious racism and cultural superiority, contextualisation, suffering as the expected norm, patience and perseverance in an "instant results" world.
Drawing on moving personal stories, and a wider understanding of global realities, Dowsett applies lessons learnt early in her ministry to life today: "We knew the good news of Jesus had to impact every dimension of life – personal, communal and social – to have authenticity."
"There is no blank canvas. There is always a history, and we need to study and understand it if we are to live fruitfully in the present."
With historical, geographical, pastoral and biblical perspectives, Dowsett asks: "In what ways can the Church and Christian communities better demonstrate God’s design for men and women to live in harmony rather than in competition on the one hand and in unequal power on the other?"
She reminds the reader that God "has global eyes and heart" and encourages us to "grow those too". She quotes (favourably) several challenging questions from a pastor in Glasgow, among them "If I am teaching the Bible, whose commentaries inform my study and words? Am I only hearing the voices of white people like me, based in rich and powerful parts of the world?"
Dowsett is well qualified to have written a complex academic work. Instead, she’s chosen to write a personal potpourri whose cultural analysis is anecdotal, accessible and astute.
Towards the end of the book, Dowsett shares how she became a follower of Jesus (‘when I was sixteen, I fell in love with Jesus’) and applies all that she’s written evangelistically. Wonderful.
"Our mission is one of truth, grace and love in a world that has turned its back on these all too often."
She concludes with a short chapter entitled simply "Changing World, Unchanging God" and writes: "God’s mission always takes place in a context." "As we live in the here and now, and whatever the future may hold, we are called to live in faith, hope and love……. Until he comes, we share in his mission, in the power of the Holy Spirit. What a calling! What a privilege!"
Mission: Now, Then and Next: Exploring Trends in Mission Today, Rose Dowsett, OMF International, Manchester, UK, 2024. ISBN 978-0-85363-209-2 (print); ISBN 978-0-85363-210-8 (e-book)
