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The New Shape of World Christianity: How American Experience Reflects Global Faith

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The Christian church is not American, demographically speaking. More broadly, it is not western. It may have been predominantly western at the beginning of the twentieth century, but at the beginning of the twenty-first, it no longer is. As Dana Robert wrote in April 2000: "The typical late twentieth-century Christian was no longer a European man but a Latin American or African woman."

This southward demographic shift requires a new historiography of Christianity, one less focused on events and personalities in North America and Europe and one more focused on events and personalities in South America, Asia, and Africa. Writers--both western (Philip Jenkins, Andrew Walls) and southern (Ogbu Kalu, Lamin Sanneh--have already begun to do so.

But there is a connection between the Christian church in the west and the south: missionaries from the former (especially Britain and America) performed their work among indigenous people in the latter. How should these missionaries' influence be characterized? More specifically, as American historian Mark Noll asks in The New Shape of World Christianity, "What...has been the American role in creating the new shape of world Christianity and what is now the relation of American Christianity to world Christianity?"

Noll suggests three possible answers: "First is to assume that Americans control events." On this reading, Christian mission is a form of cultural imperialism. "A second view is to affirm that a strong relationship does exist between Christianity in the United States and Christianity around the world, but also that this relationship is defined much more loosely than simply active American cause and passive global effect." On this view, it is better to speak of American "influence" than American "manipulation." Noll goes on to identify a third option: "newer expressions of Christianity around the world, despite many differences with each other, often do share many characteristics of Christianity in the United States" because of "shared historical experience." Noll's answer to the question of America's role in the new shape of world Christianity is a combination of the second and third answers.

Building on the insights of Andrew Walls, Noll argues that American Christianity in the nineteenth century was characterized by two major developments: "the successful adaptation of traditional European Christianity to the liberal social environment of the United States" and "the emergence of the voluntary society as the key vehicle for Protestant missionary activity." European Christianity was implicated in Christendom, the explicit, legal, and formal alliance of throne and altar. The American churches, in all their riotous variety, were disestablished, even if culturally pervasive and influential. As voluntary institutions, they were quite entrepreneurial about winning converts to their way of thinking and living.

Broadly speaking, social conditions in the global south were more similar to frontier America than European Christendom, and the seeds of a voluntary, entrepreneurial religion grew better in that soil, just as it had on the American frontier. Of course, there are tremendous social differences as well. The settlers of the American frontier were of European stock and therefore familiar with the Christian message, whereas the indigenous people of the global south were converts from other religions. But one should not let these differences obscure the power of Noll's insight into the similarities.

One of the benefits of Noll's thesis is that it allows for the integrity of American missionaries while at the same time upholding the agency of indigenous peoples. In other words, American missionaries are not necessarily cultural imperialists, and indigenous peoples are not necessarily passive victims of American hegemony. Rather, American--and, more broadly, western--missionaries brought the gospel to indigenous peoples who, in turn, shaped Christian faith and practice into a culturally pertinent form.

In chapter 6, Noll tests his theory against sociological and anthropological criticisms of American Christian missions. Chapters 8 and 9 further test the thesis against two specific test cases: the rise of Protestantism in Korean and the East African Revival of the mid-twentieth century. I think his thesis withstands scrutiny well. Sociological and anthropological criticisms are shown to be biased and historically ill-founded in many cases, while the Korean and East African revivals are shown to be indigenously directed affairs.

This does not mean that Noll is above criticizing American missionaries or the American shape of Christianity. Instead of either simple affirmation or critique, Noll presents an ambivalent portrait of American Christianity and American missionaries. The American practice of Christianity--characterized by individualism, revivalism, cultural dominance, and cultural adaptivity--has both strengths and weaknesses. American individualism, for example, focuses the believer on God's personal love for him. At the same time, however, it hinders the same believer from seeing the social form and implications of the faith.

In the end, perhaps the greatest similarity between American Christianity and the new shape of world Christianity comes down to this: Like Jesus Christ, the gospel comes to us in the flesh of a particular culture. The message of God's redeeming power is transcultural but it must be expressed in the form of a specific culture, beginning with its language. Nineteenth century Americans did this with their inherited European faith--indigenizing it, Americanizing it. Christians in the global south are doing the same today. To the extent that Christianity in the global south has been shaped by American Christianity, it is not so much through the direct influence of American missionaries as through the similar social context of freedom from the constraints of Christendom, which aligned altar and throne and obstructed the development of indigenous Christianities.

The author's main point of the book is "American Christianity is important for the world primarily because the world is coming more and more to look like America. Therefore, the way that Christianity developed in the American environment helps to explain the way Christianity is developing in many parts of the world. But correlation is not causation: the fact that globalization and other factors have created societies that resemble in many ways what Americans experienced in the frontier period of their history does not mean that Americans are dictating to the world. It means, instead, that understanding American patterns provides insight for what has been happening elsewhere in the world" (pg. 189).

Noll goes on to prove his main idea by: looking at the identity of Evangelicals in the Nineteenth-Century , looking at what western missionaries have accomplished all over the world, and by looking at three case studies, that being, American Evangelical trends from 1900-2000, Korean believers and East African revival. Also, he draws some of his ideas from Andrew Walls, Lamin Sanneh, Dana Robert, David Martin and Philip Jenkins.

The strengths of his work are that he is very careful and cautious in his research, he comes to his careful conclusions after he has labored diligently, he has very board knowledge of the works of Protestants and Catholics, he walks a good line in describing how American Missionaries have influenced other countries but not dictated to them, he has a forward, yet gentle and accurate critique of American Christianity, and does a very good job at summarizing some complex ideas.

If you are someone interested in having a greater understanding of how American Christianity has influenced the Christian world and how the Christian world at large can draw insights from the patterns of American Christianity, this book is for you.

Noll argues that global Christianity looks a lot like American Christianity because it has expanded in conditions similar to those in which American evangelicalism expanded earlier in US history. While Noll grants that American Christianity does wield influence, he points out that non-American national Christian movements are largely free of pressure from America and have chosen the shape Christianity has taken in their region. Noll includes many facts and perspectives on the global expansion of the faith and demonstrates that in the future major developments in Christianity will take place largely beyond the shores of North America. He makes a strong case for why American Christians need to listen to and partner with their brothers and sisters in other lands. It is refreshing to hear a scholar like Noll speak without disparagement or disdain about revival movements and the work of the Holy Spirit. As always, Noll writes with humility and balance and a broad perspective rooted in Scripture. Anyone who is interested in global Christianity (which should include all believers) should read this book.

The New Shape of World Christianity is unlike the books that I normally read and review. As a self-proclaimed lover of history, it drew my attention as a way of sharpening my knowledge of not only the historical progression of Christian history, but also modern movements around the world. After reading a few chapters, I realized that the thesis of this book focuses on the image and dispersion of American influence on global Christianity. I was intrigued.

Taking us through the significant changes that Christianity as a worldwide phenomenon has had over the years, Mark Noll flips stereotypically Western understandings of the faith on its head. The subtitle to this book gives its content away: "How American experience reflects global faith." In this book, Noll asserts that its no longer the West (Europe and North America) that dominates Christian religious progression, but that the field has changed---"world Christianity has taken on a new shape."

This book takes a mainly historical look at the progression of the North American church and its missionary ventures, its innovations in church organizations up to its current state. One of the main questions that Noll asks is, "What, in fact, has been the American role in creating the new shape of world Christianity and what is now the relation of American Christianity to world Christianity?" The answer to his question has many different positions. The best answer, says Noll, is that American Christianity and world Christianity has a strong though ill-defined relationship and that the historical progression of Christianity in each culture is indeed what draws the relationship closer. He recognizes that the U.S. is indeed a great world power and that global Christianity is beginning to parallel the historical development of American influence.

By taking us through the historical influences of the American church, Noll shows the reader how the rest of the world Christianity is correlated to U.S. Christianity. Still, though the actions of Americans has a heavy influence on the world, "American actions by no means dominate or simply ordain what is happening elsewhere."

I would recommend this book to those who are looking to better understand the Christian faith from a historical perspective. Though this book is more academic than it is personally edifying, it's important in making distinctions about Christian movements and broadening the scope of our faith. So, if you're tired of living and breathing in your own little bubble of Christendom, this book will help you realize what's going on globally. It'll pop your personal bubble for sure.

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Mark Noll delivers a fine treatise on the transformation of universal Christianity in "The New Shape of World Christianity: How American Experience Reflects Global Faith." The Noll's central position is that the world is adopting much of Americana, therefore global Christianity will look to their American brethren as an essential source for belief and practice. This implies that American Christians should be aware of its potent influence and guard the faith with diligence and vigilance.

The author provides overview and analysis of:

- The Growth and maturity of American Evangelicalism in the last 100 years
- Church growth in Korean, China, and Africa
- Evangelical Christianity in the US composed of a broad range of theological positions (too broad for me)
- Commercialization within the Church
- The importance of missionary work
- The proper application of various cultures within Christianity and how Christianity can change a culture.

This is a fine resource that makes an admirable addition to the work of Philip Jenkins and others. "The New Shape" is an outstanding volume for those concerned with the influence of American Christianity on the worldwide church along with the growth of global Christianity.
The Necessary Existence of God: The Proof of Christianity Through Presuppositional Apologetics

In The New Shape of World Christianity, historian of North American Christianity, Mark Noll, writes a book for his "fellow evangelicals," in which he argues that due to the massive changes in the landscape of Christianity throughout the world during the last century, a new history is required. This is not, Noll insists, to discount previous histories, but to punctuate the importance of re-narrating Christian history in light of the recent movements and developments that have reverberated throughout the world in reshaping Christianity. In this way, Noll's book seeks to mediate between old and new histories of Christianity, while drawing points of connection between the American Christian experience and the recent transformations of world Christianity.

In so doing, Noll argues that although American Christianity has been influential upon Christianity throughout the world, American Christianity is important for the world not because of direct influence, but because of "how Americans have come to practice Christian faith." To be clear: Noll is not denying America's influence on the various forms and expressions of Christianity in the world today. In fact, Noll suggests to ignore American Christianity's influence on the rest of the world would be "foolish." Instead, Noll simply believes that America's influence cannot provide the sole explanation for the reality that world Christianity increasingly reflects non-denominational, evangelical, and Pentecostal forms of Christianity. As support for this claim Noll highlights the role of local initiative and the local exercise of power and control in the development of Christianity in specific contexts. In other words, the notion of direct American influence on world Christianity obscures "local appropriation of Christianity by local agents for local reasons and in the context of local cultural realities."

As an example, Noll examines the influence and impact of Campus Crusade's Jesus Film, which has been translated into 1,005 different languages as of mid-2007, in addition to being viewed by nearly six billion people in 229 countries, according to Noll's research. Noll describes the Jesus Film as offering an account of Christianity that emphasizes the importance of making "a personal choice for Jesus Christ, followed by a life of dedicated personal service guided by Christian norms and oriented toward Christian goals." So, while notes that the Jesus Film represents the genuine impact of American Christianity, he also suggests that the way in which the film is either accepted or disregarded demands local agency. Moreover, Noll suggests that not only do locals choose to observe the film, but that in several instances locals have also distributed the film of their own volition. In reflecting on this phenomenon, Noll argues that the Jesus Film does not simply highlight American influence or local agency and initiative as mutually exclusive interpretations of the situation. For Noll, the impact and popular reception of film is also illustrative of a particular kind of appeal that connects with the rapidly changing contemporary circumstances. As such, Noll argues that there is a connection between the film's appeal and the current social and cultural circumstances occurring in the non-Western world today.

Thus, Noll wants to highlight his observation that the non-Western world is, in many ways, beginning to approximate the social conditions of 19th century America. That is, through "global economic forces," many regions and locales outside of the West are developing characteristics that in a similar manner parallel the social context in which distinct expressions of American Christianity emerged. More specifically, the non-Western world through global processes is developing into places that are amenable to "social fluidity, personal choice, the need for innovation and a search for anchorage in the face of vanishing traditions," Noll contends. As such, Noll believes that these non-Western societies are inclined "to be competitive and not deferential, open to Christian witness but not officially Christian, allowing space for entrepreneurial activity while not restricting religious expression too drastically. To the extent that these conditions have developed, it is not surprising that style of Christianity that flourished in North America's competitive, market-oriented, rapidly changing and initiative-rewarding environment would also flourish when other environments begin to look more like nineteenth-century America than fifteenth-century Europe." Thus, for Noll, American Christianity is most important for the world, because it provides the world with a form or template in similar social conditions. Therefore, Noll argues, "the way that Christianity developed in the American environment helps to explain the way Christianity is developing in many parts of the world."

However, Noll cautions the reader: "correlation is not causation." Given the broad nature of Noll's argument (i.e., how the American experience is reflected in Christianity throughout the world), Noll astutely develops a broad thesis and broad conclusions. In other words, Noll recognizes that it is one thing to build a strong case that demonstrates a strong correlation, but it is another thing to establish causation. In this way, Noll's thesis is well supported by the end of his book.

Nevertheless, I have a few questions and working critiques of his book. First, much of Noll's thesis hinges on American Christianity being an "influence," but not a "direct influence" on the rest of the world. Yet, Noll never articulates what he has in mind by "direct" influence as opposed to general influence. That is, what exactly would constitute as "direct influence," according to Noll? Moreover, I wonder if there are certain regions or locations in which American Christianity appears to have direct influence and others simply indirect. Finally, I wish Noll had mentioned the importance of Rick Warren, who is arguably the most well known American Evangelical in world Christianity during the past few years.

I read Noll's book primarily because of the fascinating statistics he shares about how 'world Christianity' has changed. Those statistics are found primarily in the first two chapters which makes them absolutely gripping. Christians need to be aware of what God is doing in the world and Noll has served us well in that regard.

Lower the price! The hardcover is just over 200 pages, and you expect us to pay $14.85 for a digital copy?