Strengthening Unity for the Missional Church

Abstract

The church, sent by the missional God, participates in God’s mission through both its deeds and its being. The church’s witness is directly related to the unity of its believers. Racism disrupts unity in the church and can be countered only through intentional effort. This paper discusses how theological education can help to counter racism in the church. By “theological education” I refer to learning for all Christians, centred on individual and community formation. The cultivation of belonging is described as key to this formation, based on the fact that humans are created to live our lives together. Two relevant aspects of belonging are further described: our limited situational understanding as creatures and the community we foster together. The acceptance of our limited situational understanding takes a non-foundationalist view to theology and realizes the need to broaden one’s theological syllabus. As a community, it is important that relationality is fostered. Effort should be taken to recognize one’s personal bias and also to understand the other on their own terms.