Graceful Evangelism

The word evangelism evokes strong reactions among Christians. Conflict about what it is, whether to do it, how to go about it, and the desired results divides churches, demonstrating the need for new theologies and methods that address today's religiously pluralistic and secular contexts. This book offers a comprehensive treatment of evangelism, from biblical models to contemporary practice. Frances Adeney shows that understanding different contexts and approaches to evangelism and accepting the views of others on this crucial topic can help replace the "evangelism wars" (social action vs. proclamation) with a more graceful approach to sharing God's good news with the world.

Introduction: What This Book Is About
Part 1: Where Did We Come From?
1. What Is Evangelism? Perspectives and Problems
2. What Does the Bible Say? Biblical Models of Evangelism
3. Patterns of Evangelism through the Ages
4. The Western Missionary Movement in the Nineteenth Century: An American Perspective
Part 2: Where Are We Now?
5. The Situation for Evangelism in the Twenty-first Century: Two Sides of a Coin
6. Today's Mission Trends
7. Contemporary Theologies of Evangelism
Part 3: Where Are We Going?
8. Abundant Life
9. A Mission Statement for Evangelism
10. Changing Context: Transforming Mission
Part 4: Can We Craft a Graceful Evangelism?
11. Insights from Contemporary Theologies of Evangelism
12. Challenges to Crafting a Graceful Evangelism
13. Changes: New Movements and Institutional Re-visionings
14. Seeing through Their Eyes: A Spiral of Knowledge Acquisition
15. Radical Habits: Practices for Evangelism Today
Appendix: Constructing a Congregational Timeline
Indexes