Sending The Son – A Fundamental Aspect Of The Gospel Christology And Basis Of
The Christian Mission
Orthodox missionary theology supports the idea that the Christian mission
has its foundation in the communion and the work of the Holy Trinity. But at
the same time it states that the mission of the Church is based on the mission
of Christ. This assertion states that the saving work of Jesus Christ is the
starting point and criterion of any missionary activity of the Church, the work
of God – the Holy Trinity being the framework of understanding the mission of
Christ. The mission of the Apostles and the Apostolic Church is inherently
connected with the mission of the Son and the Holy Ghost in the world, and is
founded on the fact that Christ Himself is sent by the Father in the Holy
Ghost: As the Father has sent Me, I also send you. And when He said this, He
breathed on them, and said unto them, Receive the Holy Ghost! (John 20: 21-22).
Thus, the Christian mission is intimately connected to the Work of Salvation
and Perfection of the World initiated by the Father, worked by the Son sent
into the world and consecrated by the Holy Ghost in the Church until the end of
time. The mission of the Son, as a foundation for the mission of the Church, is
testified by the writings of the New Testament, especially by the Holy Gospels.
That is why, for a better biblical foundation of the contemporary missionary
theology that implicitly seeks to improve the missionary practice in present
days, this testimony needs to be thoroughly explored.
SIMEON PINTEA
|
|
