Vista 48: Indigenous Mission in Europe part 2

Who are Europe’s indigenous people? It doesn’t sound like a contentious question, certainly when the context is missiological, that is: how can we best reach the peoples of Europe with the gospel? Yet the last issue of Vista generated a significant debate around the meaning of “indigenous”. The whole purpose of Vista is to come at crucial issues from different perspectives, so we decided to invite further contributions, including from those who most strongly objected to our broader definition of the term.

As it is almost Christmas, it only seems right to begin with Gerard Willemsen’s article on the Saami, the inhabitants of the frozen expanses of land in modern-day Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia, which are sometimes called Lapland. He strongly defends the convention that indigenous should only be used to describe minority peoples whose language and culture is distinct from that of the majority culture. At the same time, he provides some excellent examples of why indigenous thinking is so important in mission today.

Another people group that exists across national borders in Europe are the Roma. Rafael Nastase and Melody Wachsmuth’s article is an important contribution to the understanding of mission to and by the Roma in Europe. Theirs is a little-known yet tremendously encouraging story of revival, of indigenous mission, and of cultural transformation. Roma leaders have become cultural translators, indigenous trainers, and church planters. Their article concludes with a challenge to the broader evangelical community to build bridges with the Roma, and ultimately to move from mission to the Roma to mission with the Roma.

James Vaughton article on the Balkans argues that mission must begin with a humble listening to the local story. He considers that the lived experience of indigenous Christians must take priority over the strategic thinking of foreign missionaries. And he draws on two T.S.Eliot poems to pose a challenging question: do we see our mission fields as wastelands or rose gardens?

Vista editor Joanne Appleton’s article zooms in on one small area of Great Britain to consider if an indigenous perspective can throw light on mission there as well. Cornwall is located in the far South West of England yet it has its unique culture, identity, and traditions. What is this place, who lives there, and how might we make the most of the missional opportunities of this moment in this place?

The fifth and final article in this edition of Vista is by Máximo Álvarez from Spain. His doctoral thesis sought to answer a question that had dogged him for many years. Even though the number of evangelical churches in Spain has increased markedly in recent years, the number of indigenous Spanish believers has remained broadly the same. Why are the indigenous Spanish so resistant to the Christian gospel?

During the Fourth Lausanne Congress in September 2024, Egyptian theologian Anne Zaki challenged the participants to “restore the lost art of church discussions”.[i] These last two issues of Vista are our contribution to fostering honest debate around this vital issue.

We are proud to present these articles to you and we invite you to join the discussion.

Vista Editors

Vista 48: Indigenous Mission in Europe part 2

Read Vista 48 here

Indigenous in Europe: Lessons from the Saami

New Perspectives on Indigenous Mission: Evangelical Roma in Europe

What's the story? Wasteland or Rosegarden?

Cornwall reflections

Vista 47: Indigenous Mission in Europe