The International Missionary Council and Mission Cooperation in Tanzania’s Southern Highlands, 1916–28

Abstract

AbstractHealthy mission cooperation between Scottish and German missions around the northern end of Lake Malawi was a feature of the period from 1891, when the German missions were establishing themselves in the Southern Highlands of Tanzania. This happy collaboration was shattered by the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, which led to the internment of the German missionaries and the cream of the local church leadership. In this context, the Continuation Committee of the Edinburgh 1910 World Missionary Conference, which took permanent form as the International Missionary Council (IMC) from 1921, played a critical role as broker. It first negotiated a caretaker role for British missions in regard to the “derelict” German missions and later facilitated the return of the German missionaries. While European missionaries held centre stage in the international discussions, on the ground, the decisive role was played by Malawian evangelists and Tanzanian church leaders – a case of mission from the margins. At the same time, the supra‐national understanding of mission championed by the IMC enabled it to exercise a highly influential role in facilitating the mission cooperation that ultimately overcame the division, suspicion, and mistrust that had arisen during the war.