선교 공동체로서의 농촌교회와 통전적 선교 가능성 연구 - 농촌교회의 통전적 선교를 위한 필수요소

Abstract

The rural community in Korea today is emerging as the mission field where despair/hope, crisis/opportunity, and hopelessness/possibility coexist. The aging and declining phenomenon gives despair, crisis, and hopelessness to the rural community today, but the growing number of the peasantry returned to farming and environment-friendly agriculture product provides hope, opportunity, and possibility both to the rural community and to the rural church. This study begins with the following questions: “Are there some rural churches that carry out the holistic mission successfully in this mission field in Korea?” “If so, what are their motivation, purpose, characteristics, and problems that should be resolved?” “What kinds of insights and lessons can be gained from their common characteristics?” “How can those common characteristics be applied to other rural churches as a principle?” To answer these questions in the perspective of the holistic mission, the writer first discusses ‘the theology of holistic mission,’ ‘the missional church,’ and ‘John Wesley’s holistic mission practice.’ After studying six case churches that effectively exercise holistic mission in rural area, the writer sorts out seven essential characteristics from them. They are (1) the permanent resident rural pastor; (2) the missional ecclesiology (missional self identity); (3) the understanding of the needs of the local community; (4) the incarnational mission; (5) the holistic mission; (6) the valance of the inside and the outside mission of the church; (7) the organic solidarity among the rural church, the urban church, the seminary, and the headquarters of the denomination. The writer contends that these seven characteristics are the essential factors for rural churches to carry out the holistic evangelizaiton more effectively in the rural community in Korea