The Oxford handbook of Christianity in Asia

Abstract

The Oxford Handbook of Christianity in Asia. Edited by Felix Wilfred. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014, Pp. 684. $160.00 cloth.)Felix Wilfred's edited volume, The Oxford Handbook of Christianity in Asia, is a substantial resource that should be on the shelves of every library serious in its research of theology and religion. Unlike a dictionary or an encyclopedia that seeks breadth in its scope but potentially delivers a work that lacks depth, the Oxford handbook achieves the latter through insightful and clearly written essays on a range of issues related to Christianity in Asia. The editor offers in the general introduction that the handbook intends to provide a hermeneutical reading of Christianity in Asia and not necessarily a comprehensive study through an alphabetical accounting of the topic. The handbook unapologetically delimits the conversation as a way to shape the discourse of Christianity in Asia. Some may take issue with this approach arguing that the editorial decisions are rather limiting. Others, however, will find that this method provides much more than a cursory glance.The handbook divides into five overarching parts: Mapping Asian Christianity (Part I); Cross-Cultural Flows and Pan-Asian Movements of Asian Christianity (Part II); Asian Christianities and The Social-Cultural Processes (Part III); Asian Christianity in Interaction with Asian Religious Traditions (Part IV); and Some Future Trajectories of Asian Christianity (Part V). Each of the five major sections consists of its own introduction which frames the section's conversations. Part I provides an informative survey of Christianity in Asia throughout five separate regions including West, South, Central, Southeast, and East Asia. In this part, one can appreciate the interpretive flow of the section moving from the birth of Christianity in Western Asia (Middle East) to interreligious work. It sets up the overall text to make a compelling argument with regards to the hybrid nature of Asian Christianity and the reason Asian Christianity appears so readily to incorporate interreligious dialogue and ways of being unlike some of its Western counterparts. Part II moves from regional expressions of Christianity in Asia to an exploration of particular characteristics that help to form general patterns and movements in Asian Christianity. Here, the contributors identify Asian theological trends and scriptural hermeneutics, critically reflect upon ecumenical, missionary, Pentecostal and charismatic movements, introduce regional indigenous Christianities, and offer a cogent piece on the Christian feminist movement in Asia. …