Kingdom Without Borders: The Untold Story of Global Christianity [Paperback]

Miriam Adeney (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 18, 2009

The twenty-first century has opened with a rapidly changing map of Christianity. While its influence is waning in some of its traditional Western strongholds, it is growing at a phenomenal pace in the global South. And yet this story has largely eluded the corporate news brokers of the West. Layered as it is with countless personal and corporate stories of remarkable faith and witness, it nevertheless lies ghostlike behind the newsprint and webpages of our print media, outside the camera's vision on the network evening news. Miriam Adeney has lived, traveled and ministered widely. She has walked with Christians in and from the far reaches of the globe. As she pulls back the veil on real Christians--their faith, their hardships, their triumphs and, yes, their failures--an inspiring and challenging story of a kingdom that knows no borders takes shape. This is a book that coaxes us out of our comfortable lives. It beckons us to expand our vision and experience of the possibilities and promise of a faith that continues to shape lives, communities and nations.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Anthropologists don't often write books that wrap around their own lives, yet the newest book by Seattle Pacific University professor Adeney stops short of memoir and opts instead for a visceral call to Christians worldwide to engage in something bigger than their own culture and church. Adeney's travel and teaching have taken her to many countries, and she weaves stories from African countries, China and primarily Hindu and Muslim countries with piercing insights into the heart of global cultures. Her work can be read by adherents of any religion as a primer to a new view of world Christianity. She acknowledges that Jesus' teaching and discipleship can grow within Hindu, Muslim and Buddhist cultures without missionary methods that bring cultural baggage that can detract from the gospel. She instances a Korean missionary group in Afghanistan that practiced methods of evangelism known to provoke angry responses; they were taken hostage. Best practices for particular cultures can prevent such disasters. Not primarily a book about American Christians and what they should do, this is a humble and complex anthem to the diverse kingdom of Christ found in worldwide cultures. (Dec.)
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Review

"Kingdom Without Borders invites us into a magnificent tapestry of the glory of God alive in the peoples and nations of our world. Miriam Adeney weaves the dominant designs of God's global mission with and through countless stories of people and friends. We meet sisters and brothers in Christ in contexts of joy and profound sadness; in China, Latin America, the Islamic and the Buddhist worlds; in the arts and persecution, in the Word and the Spirit. I cannot recommend any book higher than Kingdom Without Borders as the introduction to worshiping the God on mission." (William D. Taylor, Global Ambassador, World Evangelical Alliance, and coauthor of Global Mission Handbook )

"Miriam Adeney has once again written a powerful and accessible book on a topic of profound importance. Readers will be humbled and inspired by what they find in these pages--testimonies that show how the gospel is changing lives all over the world." (Dana L. Robert, Truman Collins Professor of World Christianity and History of Mission, Boston University School of Theology )

"A delightful and accessible introduction to global missions--God's foreign policy among the nations. A masterful storyteller, Miriam introduces us to her multicultural family, from Cesar in the Philippines to Ruth in Rwanda, in this flyover perspective on the move of the Spirit through the peoples of our world. Bible teaching, economic theory, comparative religions or insights on intercultural communication provide lively connecting tissue you will not find in dry missions texts. It is a bold call to serve vulnerably, sharing in suffering until Christ's resurrection power is released among all peoples!" (Steve Hoke, vice president of people development, Church Resource Ministries )

"Kingdom Without Borders is a fresh look at the question, What is God doing in the world? In this book, Miriam Adeney again combines the work of a scholar with the skill of a writer. She draws us into the story of the global Christian family, while introducing us to the trends and theological conversations so vital to our understanding. Between Adeney's mastery of storytelling and the profound insights she reports, the reader gains a greater appreciation for God's greatness. This creative combination of voices from many sources is an important contribution to the growing conversation surrounding globalization." (Doug McConnell, dean, School of Intercultural Studies, Fuller Theological Seminary )

"Miriam Adeney takes us on a richly illustrated journey in order to teach us how to (re)think globally while loving and acting locally. Moving with creative ease between narrative and dialogue, she tells fascinating stories with a sensitive crosscultural touch, crossing all given and imposed borders and barriers with passion that inspires." (Dr. Peter Kuzmic, Eva B. and Paul E. Toms Distinguished Professor of World Missions and European Studies, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary )

"The fact of the vibrancy and growth of the church around the world is one many of us have come to learn in the past few decades. Like no other account I've read, Miriam Adeney compellingly weaves individual stories from every nook and cranny of the globe into a tapestry that reflects God's burden and passion for every person and community. She takes what others report as data and brings it to us through the lives of the people who have been transformed by encountering the living Christ, and ultimately paints a masterpiece of God at work across our planet. Reading the journeys of brokenness, trauma, pain, hope, sacrifice, joy and redemption will change your perspective on how God is at work--and just maybe your life." (Scott Moreau, professor of intercultural studies, Wheaton College, and editor of Evangelical Missions Quarterly )

Product Details

• Paperback: 295 pages
• Publisher: IVP Books (November 18, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 083083849X
• ISBN-13: 978-0830838493
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #97,986 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entering the Larger Picture, March 27, 2010

By 

Tyler McCabe (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Kingdom Without Borders: The Untold Story of Global Christianity (Paperback)

Research and scholarship are clearly Adeney's strengths, but Kingdom Without Borders is far more than a factual recounting of Christianity around the globe. What could simply fall flat as a contemporary update on religion blooms into something more through Adeney's moving stories and unforgettable characters. Kingdom Without Borders gives us a taste for what God is doing in China, Latin America, the Middle East, India, and Africa, and the ways in which his Spirit is communicating with humanity--as well as the practical and economic realities that followers of Christ face in their corners of the world. By the end of this book, you will be realizing along with Adeney that "the worldwide church is built from a thousand thousand communities of grace, one story at a time."

This book will graft you into that complex and beautiful global church, reshaping how you perceive God's love for people and His work among them.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great stories, dull information, January 9, 2010

By 

Almelle (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kingdom Without Borders: The Untold Story of Global Christianity (Paperback)

I was excited to pick this up at the Urbana '09 conference, and remained interested in what the author had to say throughout the book. Miriam Adeney has a great story-telling voice, and I only wish that I had heard more of it in this work. I didn't find it as compelling as Daughters of Islam: Building Bridges With Muslim Women, her earlier book, which gives Christian women guidelines for discussing faith with Islamic women.

In this work, however, some of the factual prose about organizations seemed hastily written and unenlightening. The book as a whole felt to me like it was rushed and written quickly, and with so many good stories, I found that a bit sad.

BUT... the stories alone are worth a read, and overall, Adeney gives a strong picture of some parts of Christianity around the world, through personal the narratives of people in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Worth a read!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Global Glimpse into Global Christianity, July 12, 2011

By 

Ron Coia (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Kingdom Without Borders: The Untold Story of Global Christianity (Paperback)

In preparing for our trip to Cambodia in August, our team is reading through a stack of books related to missions, and this is one of them. Of all the books, this is the one I looked forward to least. Reading a book on missions harkened me back to my Multnomah days, and I'd rather read something else. Even the subtitle sounds dull: "The Untold Story of Global Christianity." I'm pleased to say that I was wrong.

Miriam Adeney, a professor at Seattle Pacific University, takes readers on a tour of Christians around the world, ones often under persecution for believing in Jesus. She highlights believers in China, Afghanistan, Iran, Philippines, India, Latin America, and in several African countries. In each, she offers stories of how the Gospel spreads in that culture, and gives a few stories of the believers there. The accounts are powerful, and they show two things: one, the Word of God goes forth in every tribe, tongue, and land; two, even the newest Christian in this book has more faith than I live like I do.

I really enjoyed this book because it offers me a picture of what God is doing outside of America. I am guilty of thinking that somehow America is the main sender of missionaries, and this book shows how Christians from all over the world are missionaries, often in their own culture and town. Adeney seems to be intentional in leaving out Americans in this story, not because we don't send out workers to the harvest, but rather because we must see that God is doing a good work all over the world. Often, it is the American missionaries' stories that are told and published. The subtitle now makes more sense.

There are some features of the writing that annoyed me and obstructed the clarity of her message. Adeney was uneven in the narratives and connected stories that did not need connecting. She also started chapters and major sections with dialogue from the middle of a conversation. It felt a bit gimmicky. She also has unnecessary section titles with cutesy names embedded in many paragraphs. These criticisms are minor in light of the entire book, and they go to show that God's story will be told, regardless of the vehicle telling it.

Kingdom without Borders further opened my eyes and heart to Christians around the world and how they interact and witness to their kinsmen who are Hindus, Muslims, or Buddhists. It also raised my awareness of the persecuted church that still exists all over the globe. We take our religious freedom far too lightly with our air-conditioned buildings, PowerPoint sermons, and ample parking.

I highly recommend this book to help you see the movings of God in proclaiming the majesty of Jesus Christ in all the countries of the world. It showed me that

"Jesus' church will be alive, blossoming in a million places in several thousand languages, "salting" the earth, lighting neighborhoods, blessing broken people and connecting them with the God who made them and loves them and can empower them to live with meaning and joy in this terrifying and beautiful world" (39).