I’m grateful to Simon Cozens for drawing my attention to this book. Following up on Simon’s book recommendations can be an expensive business at times, but in this case, it was well worth it.

Comprehending Mission: (American Society of Missiology) is an outstanding book. If you consider yourself to be a bit of a tiger when it comes to missiology or mission studies, then you simply have to read it. No ifs, no buts.

Subtitled The Questions, Methods, Themes, Problems, and prospects of Missiology, this book gives the best and most comprehensive introduction to the literature of mission studies that I have ever come across and is destined to become a standard text for students of the subject. If you’ve not read Transforming Mission by Bosch yet, then Comprehending Mission shouldn’t be at the top of your reading list – but it should be close.

The six main chapters could each form a basic introduction to their own field and are worth reading on their own merits:

• Bible and Mission
• History of Mission
• Theology, Mission, Culture
• Christian Mission in a World of Religions
• The Means of Mission
• Missionary Vocations

I’ve already quoted from this book a couple of times and I’ll probably slip in a couple of more quotes in the next week or so.