Book Review: R. Daniel Shaw and Charles E. Van Engen, Communicating God’s Word in a Complex World

Shaw, R. Daniel and Charles E. Van Engen, Communicating God’s Word in a Complex World

R. Daniel Shaw and Charles E. Van Engen, Communicating God’s Word in a Complex World, New York: Royman & Littlefield Publishers, 2003. Pages: 258, Rs. 1024.95, ISBN: 0-7425-1447-1, Paperback.

Authors

R. Daniel Shaw is on the faculty of the school of world mission at Fuller Theological Seminary. He holds a Ph.D. in anthropology and served as a missionary in Papua New Guinea for twelve years. He is the author, co-author, or editor of ten books.

Charles E. Van Engen is a professor of Biblical Theology of mission at Fuller Theological Seminary. He is an ordained minister in the reformed Church in America, holds a Ph.D. in missiology, and twelve years as a missionary in Mexico. He is the author and editor of many books.

The book entitled communicating God’s word in a complex world is foreword by Lamin Sanneh who is a professor of mission and world Christianity at Yale University Divinity School.

The Communicating God’s Word in a Complex World is appropriate title for the book as it has structured in systematic form class by. The authors have well explored what means by “complex world.” They say, “Despite the predictions of hopeful missionaries and the best guesses of mid-twentieth-century linguists, languages and the people who speak them are multiplying, not dying out, and diversifying, not homogenizing. Many countries around the world are establishing government departments that focus on ethics populations. These departments specialize in cultural and linguistic preservation, bilingual education, celebrating local customs, and affirming the right of native people” (pp.1 and 2). 

The contents of the book briefly penned down in to the three parts including an introduction, conclusion. Part I, faithful communication, Part one has three chapters devoted respectively to faithful communication: the intent of faithful communication, the source of faithful communication and the message of faithful communication. The three chapters of part two are devoted respectively to appropriate communication: theologically appropriate communication, communicationally appropriate communication, and culturally appropriate communication. This is the more theological section of the book in which they demonstrate the synergy of multidisciplinary input that allows for appropriate communicability. While the communicator is in focus the Biblical and receptor audience are by no means ignored. And finally part three devoted respectively to relevant communication: seeking relevant communication, enabling communication, and pursuing relevant communication. Here they are exploring that, what is going on when new audiences come to understand God’s intended meaning in their context.

Authors have raised three issues and their solutions, which can be seen as following: textual issues-God’s intention in communicating to human being or understanding the nature of God’s presentation through the text, theoretical issues-the communicators’ of God’s intended message, and contextual issues-the receptors’ understanding of God’s intended message. 

The complexity of the some major issues has been figured out in to 26 tables in order to concise the size of the book.

This book is a good example of what it means to serve the cause. The authors take us into the numerous ways and byways of communication theory, deepened often with theological observation and insight, but all of that done with the single intention of serving the purpose of faithful and effective communication of the word of God

The book is aimed at the Church in its engagement with the world on terms the world finds congenial.

The language of the book is modern, simple, and comprehensive readable to anyone.

Criticism: As the book entitled Communicating God’s Word in a Complex World, it suppose to be more concentrated dealing with the complexity in the world in the contemporary world rather handling much about historical, hermeneutical, and theological exposition on the concept of mission.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is willing to involve in the mission field as missionary, this book will be a very useful tool to have a basic missiological doctrines’ understanding which are thoroughly rooted in the scriptures.