Huduma ya Kichungaji, Uhubiri na Misheni ya Kireformed — Sehemu ya 7: Misheni za Kireformed: Kutoka Geneva hadi Brazil, Korea na AfrikaReformed Pastoral Ministry, Preaching, and Missions — Unit 7: Reformed Missions: From Geneva to Brazil, Korea and Africa

Mstari MkuuKey Verse

"Basi, enendeni, mkawafanye mataifa yote kuwa wanafunzi, mkiwabatiza kwa jina la Baba na la Mwana na la Roho Mtakatifu; na kuwafundisha kuyashika yote niliyowaamuru ninyi; na tazama, mimi nipo pamoja nanyi siku zote, hata ukamilifu wa dahari." (Mathayo 28:19-20, SUV)"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20, NKJV)

Malengo ya KujifunzaLearning Objectives

Utakapomaliza kipindi hiki, uweze:When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

1. Kueleza kichocheo cha Kireformed cha misheni na njia ambazo utamaduni huu umezitumia.1. Explain the Reformed motive for missions and the means the tradition has used.

2. Kueleza jinsi Geneva ilivyotuma wachungaji kwenda Ufaransa na Brazil, na kueleza mjadala juu ya kama hii ilikuwa "misheni."2. Describe how Geneva sent pastors to France and Brazil, and state the debate over whether this was "missions."

3. Kutaja watu na matukio makuu katika misheni za Kireformed na Kipresbiteri huko Brazil, Korea na Afrika.3. Name the main people and events in Reformed and Presbyterian missions in Brazil, Korea and Africa.

4. Kueleza kanuni za Nevius za kujieneza, kujitawala na kujitegemea kifedha, na mahali pake huko Korea.4. Explain the Nevius principles of self-propagation, self-government and self-support, and their place in Korea.

5. Kueleza kwa haki ukosoaji kwamba misheni zilitumikia mamlaka ya kikoloni au ziliunga mkono dhuluma, na kutoa jibu la Kireformed.5. State fairly the criticisms that missions served colonial power or supported injustice, and give the Reformed answer.

Sauti ya Kipindi HikiThe Voice of This Unit

Kipindi hiki kimeandikwa kutoka ndani ya utamaduni wa Kireformed, kwa wanafunzi wa Kireformed. Hakirudii historia iliyosimuliwa katika Kozi ya 1, "Historia ya Matengenezo ya Kanisa na Makanisa ya Kireformed," hasa Kipindi cha 9, "Misheni na Makanisa ya Kireformed katika Amerika ya Kilatini, Afrika na Asia." Hapa tunauliza makanisa ya Kireformed yamefanyaje misheni, yamefundisha nini, na mchungaji anaweza kujifunza nini. Tunakuwa waaminifu juu ya kushindwa, kwa sababu kanisa linalokiri dhambi katika maisha yake mwenyewe linaweza kuikiri katika historia yake.This unit is written from inside the Reformed tradition, for Reformed students. It does not repeat the history told in Course 1, "History of the Reformation and Reformed Churches," especially Unit 9, "Reformed Missions and Churches in Latin America, Africa, and Asia." Here we ask how Reformed churches have done missions, what they have taught, and what a pastor can learn. We are honest about failures, because a church that confesses sin in its own life can confess it in its history.

Kwa Nini Makanisa ya Kireformed HutumaWhy Reformed Churches Send

Kichocheo cha Kireformed cha misheni kinategemea imani nne.The Reformed motive for missions rests on four convictions.

Kwanza, utukufu wa Mungu. Katekisimu Fupi inafundisha kwamba kusudi letu kuu ni kumtukuza Mungu na kufurahia kuwa naye milele. Bwana ameahidi kwamba utukufu wake utaijaza dunia, na mataifa yatamwabudu (Zaburi 67). Pili, amri ya Kristo katika mstari wetu mkuu. Mfalme wa kanisa, mwenye mamlaka yote, analituma kanisa lake kwa kila taifa. Tatu, nguvu ya Neno. Imani huja kwa kusikia, na kusikia kwa Neno la Mungu (Warumi 10:17). Kwa hiyo wamisionari wa Kireformed siku zote wametafsiri, wamefundisha na wamehubiri Maandiko. Nne, enzi ya Mungu, ambayo Kipindi cha 6 kilionyesha kuwa msingi wa uhakika. Bwana alimwambia Paulo kwamba ana watu wengi huko Korintho. Ana watu wake katika kila taifa (Ufunuo 5:9).First, the glory of God. The Shorter Catechism teaches that our chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. The Lord has promised that His glory will fill the earth, and the nations are to worship Him (Psalm 67). Second, the command of Christ in our key verse. The King of the church, who has all authority, sends His church to every nation. Third, the power of the Word. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17). So Reformed missionaries have always translated, taught and preached Scripture. Fourth, the sovereignty of God, which Unit 6 showed to be a ground of confidence. The Lord told Paul that He had many people in Corinth. He has His people among every nation (Revelation 5:9).

Pingamizi: Je, Wanamatengenezo Walipuuza Misheni?An Objection: Did the Reformers Neglect Missions?

Wanahistoria wengine wa misheni wamesema kwamba Wanamatengenezo wa karne ya kumi na sita, wakiwemo Calvin, walionyesha wasiwasi mdogo kwa misheni nje ya Ulaya. Makanisa yao yalikuwa yakishambuliwa, hawakuwa na meli wala falme, na nguvu zao zilienda kwa kulifanyia kanisa marekebisho nyumbani. Wengine wameongeza kwamba mafundisho ya Kireformed juu ya uteule yalipunguza bidii ya misheni.Some mission historians have said that the sixteenth-century Reformers, including Calvin, showed little concern for missions beyond Europe. Their churches were under attack, they had no ships and no empires, and their energy went to reforming the church at home. Some have added that Reformed teaching on election lessened mission zeal.

Kuna ukweli katika sehemu ya kwanza. Wanamatengenezo hawakuandaa jumuiya za kazi ya ng'ambo kama karne za baadaye zilivyofanya. Lakini hukumu hiyo ni kali mno. Geneva ya Calvin ilifunza wachungaji na kuwatuma, wakati mwingine kwa hatari kubwa. Wanamatengenezo walihubiri injili kwa wote, walitafsiri Maandiko, na walilifundisha kanisa kuwa shahidi. Kama Kipindi cha 6 kilivyoonyesha, uteule umelisha bidii ya misheni, haukuifa njaa. Misheni katika ulimwengu wa Kireformed zilikua mara makanisa yalipokuwa huru na yalipokuwa na njia. Hatupaswi kuficha ucheleweshaji wa miaka ya mwanzo wala kusoma misheni za kisasa nyuma katika karne ya kumi na sita.There is truth in the first part. The Reformers did not organize societies for overseas work as later centuries did. But the judgment is too harsh. Calvin's Geneva trained pastors and sent them out, sometimes at great danger. The Reformers preached the gospel to all, translated Scripture, and taught the church to be a witness. As Unit 6 showed, election has fed missionary zeal, not starved it. Missions in the Reformed world grew as soon as the churches were free and had the means. We should neither hide the slowness of the early years nor read modern missions back into the sixteenth century.

Geneva Inatuma: Ufaransa na BrazilGeneva Sends: France and Brazil

Kufikia miaka ya 1550 Geneva ilikuwa imekuwa uwanja wa kufunza wachungaji. Chuo cha Geneva kilianzishwa mwaka 1559 na Theodore Beza kama mkuu wake wa kwanza. Wahudumu waliofunzwa Geneva walikwenda Ufaransa, ambako makutaniko ya Kireformed, yaliyoitwa makanisa ya Huguenot, yalikuwa yakikua chini ya mateso. Baadhi ya wahudumu hao walihatarisha maisha yao. Hiki kilikuwa kielelezo cha Kireformed katika umbo lake la mwanzo: funza wachungaji katika Neno, na uwatume kukusanya makanisa. Kozi ya 1, Kipindi cha 4, "Imani ya Kireformed Inaenea," inasimulia hadithi hiyo.By the 1550s Geneva had become a training ground for pastors. The Genevan Academy was founded in 1559 with Theodore Beza as its first rector. Ministers trained in Geneva went to France, where Reformed congregations, called Huguenot churches, were growing under persecution. Some of those ministers risked their lives. This was the Reformed model in its early form: train pastors in the Word, and send them to gather churches. Course 1, Unit 4, "The Reformed Faith Spreads," tells that story.

Geneva pia ilituma wachungaji kuvuka Atlantiki. Mwaka 1555 koloni la Kifaransa lilianzishwa kwenye kisiwa katika Ghuba ya Guanabara, karibu na jiji la sasa la Rio de Janeiro, chini ya Nicolas Durand de Villegagnon. Baadhi ya walowezi walikuwa Waprotestanti, na kiongozi aliiomba Geneva wahudumu. Calvin na kanisa la Geneva walituma wachungaji, waliofika mwaka 1557. Jaribio hilo lilikuwa fupi. Kiongozi aligombana na wachungaji wa Geneva, kwa sehemu juu ya Meza ya Bwana, na koloni likasambaratishwa na majeshi ya Wareno mwaka 1560. Baadhi ya walowezi waliandika ungamo la imani, na baadhi ya waliokuwa wameshikilia imani ya Kireformed walilipa kwa maisha yao. Baadaye, mmoja wa kikundi, Jean de Léry, aliandika kitabu juu ya nchi hiyo na watu wake.Geneva also sent pastors across the Atlantic. In 1555 a French colony was founded on an island in Guanabara Bay, near the present city of Rio de Janeiro, under Nicolas Durand de Villegagnon. Some colonists were Protestants, and the leader asked Geneva for ministers. Calvin and the Genevan church sent pastors, who arrived in 1557. The enterprise was brief. The leader quarrelled with the Genevan pastors, partly over the Lord's Supper, and the colony was broken up by Portuguese forces in 1560. Some colonists wrote a confession of faith, and some who held the Reformed faith paid with their lives. Later, a member of the party, Jean de Léry, wrote a book about the land and its people.

Wanahistoria hawakubaliani jinsi ya kueleza hili. Wengine wanaliita misheni ya kwanza ya Kiprotestanti katika Amerika. Wengine wanasema lilikuwa uchungaji wa koloni la Wazungu, ukiwa na wakati au juhudi kidogo kwa watu wa asili, na kwamba koloni lenyewe lilikuwa mradi wa kisiasa. Tunafikiri pande zote mbili zinapaswa kusikilizwa. Wachungaji walikuja kulitumikia koloni la Wazungu, si kuwainjilisha Watupinamba (Tupinambá). Hata hivyo tukio hilo linaonyesha kwamba Geneva ilikuwa tayari kutuma wahudumu kuvuka bahari. Pia linatuonya jinsi madhara makubwa yanavyoweza kutokea kazi ya injili inapofungamana na mpango wa kikoloni.Historians disagree about how to describe this. Some call it the first Protestant mission in the Americas. Others say it was a chaplaincy to a colony of Europeans, with little time or effort given to the native peoples, and that the colony itself was a political project. We think both points should be heard. The pastors came to serve a European colony, not to evangelize the Tupinambá. Yet the episode shows that Geneva was willing to send ministers across the ocean. It also warns us how much damage can come when a gospel work is tied to a colonial scheme.

Wapuritani na Wenyeji wa AmerikaThe Puritans and the Native Americans

Katika karne ya kumi na saba mhudumu Mpuritani John Eliot alitumika miongoni mwa mataifa ya Wenyeji wa Massachusetts. Alijifunza lugha yao, aliwahubiria, na alitafsiri Biblia katika lugha ya Kimassachusett; Agano Jipya lilichapishwa mwaka 1661 na Biblia nzima mwaka 1663. Waongofu walikusanyika katika vijiji vilivyoitwa "vijiji vya maombi" (praying towns).In the seventeenth century the Puritan minister John Eliot labored among the native peoples of Massachusetts. He learned their language, preached to them, and translated the Bible into the Massachusett language; the New Testament was printed in 1661 and the whole Bible in 1663. Converts gathered in villages called "praying towns."

Wakosoaji wanabainisha kwamba vijiji vya maombi vilidai waongofu wachukue desturi za Kiingereza na kwamba, vita vilipozuka mwaka 1675, Wahindi wa maombi waliteseka sana. Haya ni ukosoaji mzito na tunapaswa kuyakubali. Kazi ya Eliot pia ilikuwa ya ajabu kwa kuweka Maandiko katika lugha ya watu wenyewe, na kwa matumaini yake kwamba wachungaji wenyeji wangeyaongoza makanisa ya wenyeji. Katika karne iliyofuata David Brainerd aliwatumikia mataifa ya Wenyeji katika miaka ya 1740, na maisha yake, yaliyochapishwa na Jonathan Edwards mwaka 1749, yalichochea wengi kuomba kwa ajili ya misheni.Critics note that the praying towns required converts to take on English customs and that, when war broke out in 1675, the praying Indians suffered greatly. These are serious criticisms and we should accept them. Eliot's labors were also remarkable for putting Scripture into a people's own language, and for his hope that native pastors would lead native churches. In the following century David Brainerd served native peoples in the 1740s, and his life, published by Jonathan Edwards in 1749, stirred many to prayer for missions.

Brazil: Kanisa la KipresbiteriBrazil: The Presbyterian Church

Waprotestanti wanaosema Kireno wana deni kwa João Ferreira de Almeida, mhudumu wa Kireformed aliyezaliwa Ureno aliyetumika Asia. Agano Jipya lake lilichapishwa mwaka 1681, na matoleo ya tafsiri yake bado yanatumika sana miongoni mwa Waprotestanti nchini Brazil.Portuguese-speaking Protestants owe a debt to João Ferreira de Almeida, a Portuguese-born Reformed minister who served in Asia. His New Testament was printed in 1681, and versions of his translation remain widely used among Protestants in Brazil.

Kazi ya Kipresbiteri nchini Brazil ilianza kwa dhati na mmisionari Mmarekani Ashbel Green Simonton, aliyefika Rio de Janeiro mwaka 1859. Alihubiri na kufundisha, alikusanya kanisa la kwanza la Kipresbiteri huko Rio mwaka 1862, na alianzisha chuo cha theolojia mwaka 1867. Alikufa mchanga mwaka huohuo. Wengine waliendeleza kazi yake. Wamisionari wa Kipresbiteri pia walifungua shule, na kanisa likaenea bara kwa wachungaji na wainjilisti Wabrazili. Sinodi iliundwa mwaka 1888.Presbyterian work in Brazil began in earnest with the American missionary Ashbel Green Simonton, who reached Rio de Janeiro in 1859. He preached and taught, gathered the first Presbyterian church in Rio in 1862, and founded a seminary in 1867. He died young in that same year. Others carried on his work. Presbyterian missionaries also opened schools, and the church spread inland with Brazilian pastors and evangelists. A synod was formed in 1888.

Mwaka 1903 kanisa liligawanyika. Viongozi Wabrazili chini ya Eduardo Carlos Pereira waliunda Kanisa Huru la Kipresbiteri (Independent Presbyterian Church). Wanahistoria wanataja sababu kadhaa: tamaa ya uongozi wa Kibrazili badala ya wa kigeni, na mzozo juu ya kama washiriki wa kanisa wangeweza kuwa wa Ufreemason. Mgawanyiko huu ni wa maumivu, lakini unafundisha somo muhimu. Uongozi wa Kipresbiteri huweka mamlaka katika wazee wa kanisa la mahali, na wazee hao watataka kulitawala kanisa lao wenyewe. Misheni isiyojiandaa kwa uongozi wa kitaifa itakutana na swali hili mapema au baadaye. Leo Wapresbiteri wa Brazili pia hutuma wamisionari wao wenyewe kwenda nchi nyingine.In 1903 the church divided. Brazilian leaders under Eduardo Carlos Pereira formed the Independent Presbyterian Church. Historians name several causes: a wish for Brazilian rather than foreign control, and a dispute over whether church members could belong to Freemasonry. This division is painful, but it teaches an important lesson. Presbyterian government places authority in elders of the local church, and those elders will want to govern their own church. A mission that does not prepare for national leadership will meet this question sooner or later. Today Brazilian Presbyterians also send their own missionaries to other lands.

Korea: Kanuni za Nevius na Uamsho MkuuKorea: The Nevius Principles and the Great Revival

Hadithi ya Kipresbiteri nchini Korea ni miongoni mwa zinazovutia zaidi katika historia ya kanisa.The Presbyterian story in Korea is among the most striking in the history of the church.

Maandiko yalifika Korea kabla ya wamisionari wengi. Katika miaka ya 1880 wasaidizi Wakorea na mmisionari Mskoti John Ross, aliyefanya kazi Manchuria, walitafsiri sehemu za Biblia katika Kikorea, na wauzaji vitabu Wakorea wakazibeba kuvuka mpaka. Wamisionari Wapresbiteri Wamarekani walifika katika miaka ya 1880, wakiwemo daktari Horace Allen mwaka 1884 na Horace Underwood mwaka 1885.Scripture reached Korea before most missionaries did. In the 1880s Korean helpers and the Scottish missionary John Ross, working in Manchuria, translated parts of the Bible into Korean, and Korean colporteurs carried them across the border. American Presbyterian missionaries arrived in the 1880s, including the physician Horace Allen in 1884 and Horace Underwood in 1885.

Mwaka 1890 mmisionari mkongwe John L. Nevius, Mpresbiteri aliyefanya kazi nchini China, alitembelea Korea na kuwafundisha wamisionari vijana njia yake. Misheni za Korea ziliikubali, na ikajulikana kama njia ya Nevius. Mambo yake makuu ni matatu: makanisa yajieneze yenyewe (self-propagating), maana yake waumini wapya wenyewe hueneza injili; yajitawale yenyewe (self-governing), maana yake kanisa linaongozwa na wazee wake na si wamisionari wa kigeni; na yajitegemee kifedha (self-supporting), maana yake kanisa linalipia majengo yake na wachungaji wake. Nevius aliongeza msisitizo mkubwa juu ya kila mwamini kujifunza Biblia. Kitabu chake The Planting and Development of Missionary Churches (1886) kinaeleza kanuni hizi.In 1890 the veteran missionary John L. Nevius, a Presbyterian who had worked in China, visited Korea and taught the younger missionaries his approach. The Korean missions adopted it, and it became known as the Nevius method. Its main points are three: churches should be self-propagating, meaning that new believers spread the gospel themselves; self-governing, meaning that the church is led by its own elders and not by foreign missionaries; and self-supporting, meaning that the church pays for its own buildings and pastors. Nevius added a strong emphasis on every believer studying the Bible. His book The Planting and Development of Missionary Churches (1886) explains these principles.

Mwaka 1907 uamsho mkuu ulikuja Pyongyang, uliotambulishwa kwa kuungama dhambi hadharani na sala. Mwaka huohuo wahudumu wa kwanza Wakorea walipewa wakfu, na kanisa likazidi kuwa la Kikorea katika uongozi. Japani ilipoitawala Korea, kuanzia 1910 hadi 1945, Wakristo wa Korea waliteseka. Katika miaka ya baadaye mamlaka zilishinikiza makanisa kuinama kwenye madhabahu za Shinto. Baadhi ya wachungaji walikataa, na wengine walifungwa na kufa. Wengine walikubali shinikizo, na kanisa likabaki na huzuni na mgawanyiko baada ya vita. Wapresbiteri wa Korea leo wamegawanyika katika madhehebu mengi, na wengi wao hutuma wamisionari ulimwenguni kote.In 1907 a great revival came to Pyongyang, marked by public confession of sin and prayer. In the same year the first Korean ministers were ordained, and the church became increasingly Korean in leadership. When Japan ruled Korea, from 1910 to 1945, Korean Christians suffered. In the later years the authorities pressed churches to bow at Shinto shrines. Some pastors refused, and some were imprisoned and died. Others yielded to pressure, and the church was left with sorrow and division after the war. Korean Presbyterians today are divided into many denominations, and many of them send missionaries across the world.

Wanahistoria wanajadili kwa nini kanisa lilikua kwa kasi hivyo. Wengine wanasisitiza njia ya Nevius. Wengine wanasisitiza uwezo wa Wakorea wenyewe, ikiwemo wafasiri na wainjilisti wa mapema Wakorea. Wengine wanaonyesha mgogoro wa taifa, kwa kuwa watu walitumaini kanisa lingewasaidia katika wakati wa hasara. Wengine hutoa uzito kwa utamaduni wa Kikorea wa sala na heshima kwa elimu. Tunapaswa kukubali kwamba sababu nyingi zilifanya kazi. Kama Wakristo wa Kireformed, tunaongeza kwamba Roho hutoa ukuaji kupitia njia za kawaida, na kwamba alitumia wamisionari wa kigeni na waumini Wakorea. Kanuni za Nevius ziliwafundisha wamisionari kuwatumaini viongozi Wakorea, na hili lilikuwa la hekima.Historians debate why the church grew so fast. Some stress the Nevius method. Some stress Korean agency, including the early Korean translators and evangelists. Others point to the national crisis, for people hoped the church would help them in a time of loss. Some give weight to the Korean culture of prayer and respect for learning. We should accept that many causes were at work. As Reformed Christians, we add that the Spirit gives growth through ordinary means, and that He used both foreign missionaries and Korean believers. The Nevius principles taught the missionaries to trust Korean leaders, and this was wise.

Afrika: Shule, Maandiko na HuzuniAfrica: Schools, Scripture and Sorrow

Misheni za Kipresbiteri na za Kireformed barani Afrika zilitoka hasa Uskoti, Uswisi, Uholanzi na Amerika ya Kaskazini. Wachache tu wanaweza kutajwa hapa.Presbyterian and Reformed missions in Africa came mainly from Scotland, Switzerland, the Netherlands and North America. Only a few can be named here.

Katika Eastern Cape ya Afrika Kusini, wamisionari Waskoti walianzisha misheni ya Lovedale, ambayo ikawa kituo cha elimu kwa wanafunzi Waafrika. Katika eneo ambalo sasa ni Malawi, Free Church of Scotland ilianzisha Livingstonia mwaka 1875, ikiwa na kituo cha misheni, shule na kazi ya matibabu. Leo Church of Central Africa Presbyterian ni kanisa kubwa huko. Huko Calabar, katika eneo ambalo sasa ni Nigeria, mmisionari Mskoti Mary Slessor alianza kazi yake mwaka 1876 na kanisa la United Presbyterian, naye alitumia maisha yake miongoni mwa watu, akiwatunza hasa watoto na wanawake. Katika mahali hapa na pengine, wamisionari waliziandika lugha, walitafsiri Maandiko, na walifungua shule na hospitali. Wainjilisti na makatekista Waafrika walifanya sehemu kubwa ya kazi ya kila siku ya kuhubiri na kufundisha, na wachungaji na wazee Waafrika sasa wanaongoza makanisa haya mengi.In the Eastern Cape of South Africa, Scottish missionaries founded the mission at Lovedale, which became a center of education for African students. In what is now Malawi, the Free Church of Scotland began Livingstonia in 1875, with a mission station, a school and medical work. Today the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian is a large church there. In Calabar, in what is now Nigeria, the Scottish missionary Mary Slessor began her work in 1876 with the United Presbyterian church, and she spent her life among the people, caring especially for children and women. In these and other places, missionaries reduced languages to writing, translated Scripture, and opened schools and hospitals. African evangelists and catechists did much of the daily work of preaching and teaching, and African pastors and elders now lead most of these churches.

Hapa pia lazima tusema kwa uaminifu. Wamisionari wengi waliishi katika enzi ya ukoloni na walishiriki baadhi ya mitazamo yake, na baadhi ya mataifa ya Kiafrika yaliona misheni na utawala wa kikoloni kama washirika. Katika Afrika Kusini, viongozi wa Dutch Reformed Church walitoa msaada wa kitheolojia kwa ubaguzi wa rangi (apartheid), mfumo uliowagawanya watu kwa rangi. Wakristo wengine wa Kireformed, wakiwemo waumini wengi Weusi wa Kireformed, waliupinga. Mwaka 1982 World Alliance of Reformed Churches ilitangaza kwamba apartheid ni dhambi na suala la ungamo la kanisa. Ungamo la Belhar (Belhar Confession), lililoandikwa Afrika Kusini katika miaka ya 1980, lilikuwa ushuhuda wa Kireformed dhidi ya mgawanyiko wa rangi. Baadaye, Dutch Reformed Church ilikiri kwamba msaada wake kwa apartheid ulikuwa kosa. Makanisa ya Kireformed lazima yajifunze kutokana na hili. Ungamo mkononi na Biblia mezani havilindi kanisa dhidi ya kutumia vibaya Maandiko kutumikia mamlaka. Maandiko yanasema kwamba Mungu "alifanya kwa mtu mmoja kila taifa la wanadamu wakae juu ya uso wote wa nchi" (Matendo 17:26), na injili hukusanya watu kutoka kila taifa.Here too we must speak honestly. Many missionaries lived in the colonial age and shared some of its attitudes, and some African peoples saw missions and colonial rule as allies. In South Africa, leaders of the Dutch Reformed Church gave theological support to apartheid, a system that divided people by race. Other Reformed Christians, including many Black Reformed believers, opposed it. In 1982 the World Alliance of Reformed Churches declared that apartheid was a sin and a matter of the church's confession. The Belhar Confession, written in South Africa in the 1980s, was a Reformed witness against racial division. Later, the Dutch Reformed Church acknowledged that its support for apartheid was wrong. Reformed churches must learn from this. A confession in the hand and a Bible on the table do not protect a church from misusing Scripture to serve power. Scripture says that God "has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth" (Acts 17:26), and the gospel gathers a people from every nation.

Wakosoaji wanahoji kwamba misheni zilikuwa chombo cha utawala wa kikoloni. Jibu la uaminifu lina sehemu mbili. Ni kweli kwamba misheni na himaya mara nyingi zilifungamana, na kanisa lazima litubu kila tukio ambalo injili ilifanywa kutumikia wenye nguvu. Lakini kumbukumbu ya kihistoria pia imechanganyika kwa njia nyingine. Wamisionari waliziandika lugha za Kiafrika, walitafsiri Biblia, walifunza viongozi Waafrika, na wakati mwingine walipinga kazi za kulazimishwa na ukatili. Imani iliyofika imekuwa ya Kiafrika, na ukuaji wake mkubwa zaidi ulikuja baada ya enzi ya ukoloni kuisha. Imani inayostawi baada ya himaya kuanguka haikuwa chombo cha himaya tu.Critics argue that missions were a tool of colonial rule. The honest answer has two parts. It is true that missions and empire were often tied, and the church must repent of every case in which the gospel was made to serve the powerful. But the historical record is also mixed in another way. Missionaries put African languages into writing, translated the Bible, trained African leaders, and sometimes opposed forced labor and cruelty. The faith that arrived has become African, and its greatest growth came after the colonial era ended. A faith that flourishes after the empire falls was not merely the empire's tool.

Mafunzo kwa Wachungaji wa KireformedLessons for Reformed Pastors

Mazoea kadhaa yanaonekana katika hadithi hizi zote.Several practices appear across these stories.

Weka Neno katika lugha ya watu. Almeida, Eliot na Ross kila mmoja alitafsiri Maandiko, kwa sababu imani huja kwa kusikia Neno.Put the Word in the people's language. Almeida, Eliot and Ross each translated Scripture, because faith comes by hearing the Word.

Funza viongozi wa kitaifa na uwatumaini. Nevius, mgawanyiko wa Brazili wa mwaka 1903, na kanisa la Kiafrika la leo vyote vinafundisha hili.Train national leaders and trust them. Nevius, the Brazilian division of 1903, and the African church today all teach this.

Panda makanisa yenye wazee, katekisimu na ungamo. Misheni za Kireformed zinalenga makutaniko ya kudumu yaliyopangwa kwa Maandiko, si waongofu tu. Kipindi cha 8 kinalichukua.Plant churches with elders, catechism and confession. Reformed missions aim at lasting congregations ordered by Scripture, not only at converts. Unit 8 takes this up.

Kubali gharama. Wachungaji wa Geneva, mashahidi wa Korea na wamisionari waliokufa wachanga wanaonyesha kwamba Agizo Kuu mara nyingi limenunuliwa kwa mateso.Accept the cost. The Genevan pastors, the Korean martyrs and the missionaries who died young show that the Great Commission has often been bought with suffering.

Usifungamanishe injili na mamlaka. Mipango ya kikoloni na apartheid ni onyo dhidi yake.Do not tie the gospel to power. Colonial schemes and apartheid warn against it.

Matumizi ya KichungajiPastoral Application

Mchungaji huko Jalisco anaongoza kusanyiko la washiriki sitini. Mmisionari anatembelea na kuomba msaada wa kila mwezi ili afanye kazi katika kijiji cha mbali. Baadhi ya washiriki wana shauku, na wengine wanauliza kama kanisa dogo linaweza kumudu.A pastor in Jalisco leads a congregation of sixty members. A missionary visits and asks for monthly support to work in a distant village. Some members are enthusiastic, and others ask whether a small church can afford it.

Mchungaji analeta suala hilo kwa baraza la wazee. Wanauliza kama mmisionari anajulikana na chombo cha kutuma kitakachomsimamia, kama mpango wake unafunza viongozi wa mahali na hauufanyi kijiji kutegemea pesa za kigeni, kama atafundisha Biblia katika lugha ya wanakijiji wenyewe, na kama kanisa litamwombea kwa jina. Baraza linaamua kutoa zawadi ndogo ya kila mwezi na kumwandikia kila mwezi. Mchungaji anamwambia kusanyiko kwamba zawadi ndogo zilizounganishwa na sala siku zote zimebeba kazi hii, kama zawadi za makanisa maskini zilivyowasaidia wamisionari wengi kabla yao.The pastor brings the matter to the session. They ask whether the missionary is known to a sending body that will oversee him, whether his plan trains local leaders and does not make the village dependent on foreign money, whether he will teach the Bible in the villagers' own language, and whether the church will pray for him by name. The session decides to give a modest monthly gift and to write to him each month. The pastor tells the congregation that small gifts joined to prayer have always carried the work, just as the gifts of poor churches supported many missionaries before them.

MuhtasariSummary

Makanisa ya Kireformed hutuma wamisionari kwa utukufu wa Mungu, kwa amri ya Kristo, kwa nguvu ya Neno, wakiamini kusudi lake la enzi. Shutuma kwamba Wanamatengenezo walipuuza misheni ni ya kweli kwa sehemu, lakini Geneva ilifunza na kutuma wachungaji kwenda Ufaransa na Brazil, ambako mwaka 1557 wachungaji walifika kwenye koloni la Kifaransa. Wanahistoria wanajadili kama hii ilikuwa misheni au uchungaji. Mpuritani John Eliot alitafsiri Biblia katika Kimassachusett, na wakosoaji wanaleta kwa haki gharama ya vijiji vya maombi. Huko Brazil, Ashbel Green Simonton alianza kazi ya Kipresbiteri mwaka 1859, na viongozi wa kitaifa waliunda Kanisa Huru la Kipresbiteri mwaka 1903. Huko Korea, kanuni za Nevius za kujieneza, kujitawala na kujitegemea kifedha ziliumba kanisa lililoona uamsho mwaka 1907 na kuteseka chini ya utawala wa Kijapani. Barani Afrika, misheni za Kiskoti na za Kireformed nyinginezo zilianzisha shule na kutafsiri Maandiko, huku msaada wa Kireformed wa Afrika Kusini kwa apartheid ukionyesha jinsi kanisa linavyoweza kutumia vibaya Biblia, na Ungamo la Belhar likionyesha ushuhuda dhidi yake.Reformed churches send missionaries for God's glory, by Christ's command, through the power of the Word, trusting His sovereign purpose. The charge that the Reformers neglected missions is partly true, but Geneva trained and sent pastors to France and to Brazil, where in 1557 the pastors came to a French colony. Historians debate whether this was a mission or a chaplaincy. The Puritan John Eliot translated the Bible into Massachusett, and critics rightly raise the cost of the praying towns. In Brazil, Ashbel Green Simonton began Presbyterian work in 1859, and national leaders formed the Independent Presbyterian Church in 1903. In Korea, the Nevius principles of self-propagation, self-government and self-support shaped a church that saw revival in 1907 and suffered under Japanese rule. In Africa, Scottish and other Reformed missions founded schools and translated Scripture, while South African Reformed support for apartheid shows how a church can misuse the Bible, and the Belhar Confession shows the witness against it.

Usomaji ZaidiFurther Reading

• John L. Nevius, The Planting and Development of Missionary Churches (Kupanda na Kuendeleza Makanisa ya Misheni; 1886).• John L. Nevius, The Planting and Development of Missionary Churches (1886).

• Jean de Léry, History of a Voyage to the Land of Brazil (Historia ya Safari ya Kuelekea Nchi ya Brazil; 1578).• Jean de Léry, History of a Voyage to the Land of Brazil (1578).

• David Brainerd, shajara, katika Jonathan Edwards, The Life of David Brainerd (Maisha ya David Brainerd; 1749).• David Brainerd, diary, in Jonathan Edwards, The Life of David Brainerd (1749).

• William Carey, An Enquiry into the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for the Conversion of the Heathens (Uchunguzi juu ya Wajibu wa Wakristo wa Kutumia Njia kwa Ajili ya Kuwabadilisha Watu wa Mataifa; 1792).• William Carey, An Enquiry into the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for the Conversion of the Heathens (1792).

• John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion (Misingi ya Dini ya Kikristo; tafsiri ya Beveridge, 1845).• John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion (Beveridge translation, 1845).

• The Westminster Shorter Catechism (Katekisimu Fupi ya Westminster; 1647), Swali la 1.• The Westminster Shorter Catechism (1647), Question 1.

• Kozi ya 1, Kipindi cha 9: "Misheni na Makanisa ya Kireformed katika Amerika ya Kilatini, Afrika na Asia."• Course 1, Unit 9: "Reformed Missions and Churches in Latin America, Africa, and Asia."

Wasilisha mtihani na uone kama umefauluSubmit Exam & Check Pass Anza upyaReset