The role of bicultural people in the missio Dei: Creating a model from bicultural Bible characters

Abstract

Most models of missions assume a monocultural person encounters another monocultural environment when they begin mission work, but in a globalizing world, more people grow up with sustained engagement in multiple cultural settings before their formal ministry begins. People with mixed and multiple identities include adoptees, immigrants, refugees, children of intercultural marriages, people who schooled in a different setting, and children of diplomats, missionaries, military parents, or international businesspeople. In order to form a model for what characterizes the role of bicultural people in the missio Dei, this article surveys the biblical examples of Joseph, Moses, Daniel, Esther, and Paul. These people encountered multiple cultures before the age of 18, and later ministered in cross-cultural or hybrid settings. Drawing from Scripture, commentaries, and missiological literature, this article finds that bicultural people in the Bible share four characteristics: (1) They identify with more than one culture as a result of circumstances outside their control, lacking full awareness of the missional purposes of cultural adaptation. (2) They experience rejection from at least one culture because they are seen as different. (3) Despite this, they continue to identify with these cultures. (4) Their missional purpose is fully realized when they assume a mediator role that involves communicating between parties and sometimes securing benefits for each side.