DEVELOPING A CHURCH IN A THAI BUDDHIST SETTING

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INTRODUCTION

In the minds of many people, missions is just something that happens – as long as the “calling” is there, people must go and God will do the rest. It comes as a shock to many to realise that missions is actually a highly specialised task that requires training and preparation, if it is going to be done successfully. Obviously, we cannot take away the spiritual dynamic which is very real, but it would be short-sighted to think that we can bumble along and God will do the rest. When a target group of people have been identified, it is necessary to do extensive research and prepare a strategy for reaching that group. Various factors, unique to each people group and the circumstances they find themselves in, need to be considered. Failure to do so will almost undoubtedly lead to failure. This paper is an attempt to start this process. A people group has been selected, the cultural and religious background will be considered, as will their unique and particular circumstances. Then a strategy will be formulated.

THE TARGET GROUP

The target country is Thailand and the target people are urban Thai speaking Buddhists. According to the Joshua Project 2000 – Least Reached Peoples List, the name of this people group is “Central Thai” and it is regarded as an unreached people group. They number 18 300 000, of which 1 % are Christian adherents and 0.25% are Evangelical Christians. The Bible is available in their language, as is radio broadcasting of the gospel. Audio recording of the gospel is also available, as is the “Jesus” film. There are church planting teams within this people group and according to statistics, there at least 100 Christians in one or more growing churches (1999: 95). This latter point is significant, as any attempts at evangelism and church planting should be in close co-operation with the existing local church.

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE GROUP

Robb reminds us that it is crucial to understand the target people group before planning any ministry to reach them – “start with a people to be ministered to rather than a program to be administered” (1994:15). With that in mind, lets take a closer look at the urban Thai Buddhists of central Thailand.

The religion of this people group is Buddhism. Buddhism traces its origin to Siddhartha Gautama, the man who is revered as the Buddha or “the awakened One”. From a historical point of view, Gautama is the Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. The word, however, denotes not just a single religious teacher who lived at a particular time, but a type of person - an exemplar - of which there have been many since the beginning of time. “Buddha" is thus actually a spiritual office, applying to all who have attained the state of Buddhahood. The Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, is simply the latest member in the spiritual lineage of Buddhas.
The Buddhist belief is that what has been created is impermanent and that whatever is impermanent is inherently bad and thus causes suffering. No permanent bliss or happiness is to be found in what is impermanent, only pain.

There are many different types of Buddhism practiced in the world. The particular type practised by these people is called “Theravada” Buddhism. This form of Buddhism is the purest form of Buddhism. It is most closely connected to the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama. Theravada means “The teaching of the elders”. It is also known as “The Lesser Vehicle”, or “The Narrow Path”. In Theravada Buddhism, it is believed that enlightenment is available only to the few committed individuals who, through merit in past lives and effort in their current life, are able to become monks and live lives devoted to the Buddha and his teachings.

The Buddhism that these people practice is highly syncretistic. The reason for this is because it is easy to incorporate various cultural and religious practices into Buddhism. When these people accepted Buddhism, they merely adapted it to fit with their existing practices. Their religion can thus best be described as “Folk Buddhism”. Folk Buddhism mixes Buddhist thought with animist practice. This produces a spirit-based worldview and a lifestyle based on rituals, superstition and fear.

The following are areas where Buddhism conflicts with Christian beliefs:
A belief that there is no God: According to Smith, Buddha rejected all supernatural beings, including angels and demons (1999:5). From this it follows that Christ’s deity is denied. The existence of Christ is not denied – he is thought of as good man, the founder of the Christian religion and the younger brother of Buddha.
A denial of man’s spirituality: Smith writes that Buddha did not believe that man had either a soul or personality (1999:4). Buddhists see people as impermanent and transitory. This reinforces the Buddhist worldview that all of life is meaningless.
The iron law of Karma: Buddhists believe that life is a series of reincarnations or transmigrations. Eckel tells us that Buddhists picture human life as a continuous cycle of death and rebirth (1995: 141). A person can rise on the scale of transmigration as far as the gods in heaven or fall through the realm of animals to one of the lowest hells. Any "being" that does not resolve to attain self-enlightenment will continue to be reborn. Every successive life will be good or bad, happy or unhappy, pleasure or pain, or a combination of these, all according to good or evil past deeds done. It is thus clearly a very fatalistic worldview.
Sin has no consequences: Due to his view, or non-view, of God, the Buddhist does not understand sin in the sense that it is disobedience to God. Desire, or killing life in any form is popularly regarded as sin (Smith 1999:5). At best, sin is an illusion, though the karmic consequences will accumulate for those who fail to break the endless cycles of reincarnation. There is thus no sense of need for forgiveness in the Buddhist mindset.
Salvation through self: The emphasis in Buddhism is not on believing in faith. Buddhism is rational and requires personal effort, stating that only by one’s own efforts can “Perfect Wisdom” and Nirvana be attained. Each individual is responsible for his or her own release and freedom from anguish and suffering. Karma must be overcome by one’s own efforts. Buddha was not a saviour – he could only point the way.
The conflicting ideas of life and death: For the Buddhist, Nirvana is attained when the endless cycle of reincarnation is finally broken and one ceases to exist. There is no eternal life for the Buddhist, no hell, no heaven. The Christian message of eternal life is thus somewhat repugnant to him. Life is suffering. Hope lies in ending the cycle of reincarnated life and suffering. Hope lies in attaining Nirvana, in non-existence.
“If you want to escape permanently the pain, anguish and suffering, and continuous cycle of rebirth, struggle, anguish, decay, dying and death, and all the future pain and peril that go with it, you follow the exit sign. Buddhism is the sign that says: this is the way to safety, this is the way out of anguish. the choice of when to escape is the decision of each Being.”
(http://www.fundamentalbuddhism.com/buddhism.htm)

It is crucial to understand the Buddhist religion and hence the worldview. As can be seen from the discussion above, the typical Buddhist worldview, even of nominal or non-practicing Buddhists, is radically different to Christianity. Any form of evangelism and church planting, to be even remotely successful, must engage that worldview. To further complicate the issue are the uniquely Thai cultural practices of “saving face” and having a “cool heart”. The former has to do with avoiding embarrassment for others. It is regarded as impolite to put another person in a situation where that person may look bad or be embarrassed. In our western culture we are also often acutely aware of someone else’s embarrassment, and we in a sense, feel embarrassed for them. The difference in our culture is that we may sometimes “put someone on the spot” on purpose, for varying reasons. If not on purpose, it is because we said something without thinking. Thai people on the other hand would never do such a thing on purpose and will almost never cause someone to lose face by speaking out of turn. What this means to the Christian missionary is that a Thai person will almost always respond in a very polite and accepting manner towards any presentation of the gospel. To reject what a person is saying or to appear to ignore it, would, in their mindset, be causing that person to lose face.

Keeping a cool heart is possibly linked to the eighth part of the Buddhist Eightfold Path. Part of the Eightfold Path is right thinking or intention. To be free of all desires and cravings and to do no harm. Also to develop dispassion, total detachment, absolute renunciation, and self-surrender. This means that a Buddhist should never show emotion. (I witnessed this first-hand in Thailand – in a busy street a car turned in front of a speeding vehicle, causing it to veer across the road with smoking and screeching tyres. The driver seemed totally unruffled. He merely glanced at the offending driver and proceeded with his journey). The implication from an evangelism point of view, is that a Thai Buddhist will not engage in an argument or debate regarding the merits of Christianity or Buddhism. He will not enter into a passionate debate about the merits of Buddhism or the flaws of Christianity, thus denying opportunities for missionaries to enter into discussions on Christian dogmatics. There is thus little or no opportunity to engage a Buddhist at his point of disagreement with the gospel. This makes it vital for relationships to be formed so that with time, as relationships deepen, the missionary’s right to be heard is developed and questions can be asked by the Buddhist without the risk of causing the missionary to lose face.

The Urban Environment
As our target group is urban, we need to understand the urban mindset and draw up our strategies accordingly. In this regard Hiebert and Meneses point out that our understanding of church planting in urban settings is still so new and incomplete that any generalisations we make now will soon be revised (1995:327). The following are some common features of urbanites:
• There is a lot of diversity in terms of tastes, styles and methods used to arrive at decisions. This must be taken into account and diversity must be incorporate into the local church.
• According to Hiebert and Meneses, they “window shop” (1995:330). When a person wants to find out more about a product, he enters the shop and invites sales talk and persuasion. It may be argued that this is more of a western cultural trait. However, due to globalisation and the rapid dissemination of information, even Thailand has become consumer orientated and the materialistic “shopping” culture has invaded there. Churches thus need to provide an opportunity for spiritual window shopping. Few people will enter a church to start a discussion because it is not neutral territory. A neutral territory to “check out” Christianity must be created.
• The “window shopping” concept also needs to be balanced with the need for sacred space. Without sacred places and times to give expression to God, the danger exists of being drawn into the secular world of the city and forgetting God’s magnificent presence amongst us (Hiebert and Meneses 1995:333). The sacredness of church also acts as a witness to the world of the presence of the church.
• They are commuters. The church faces the challenge of building a sense of community.
• Social organisation in the city is through networks. Hiebert and Meneses point out that the church must develop and use networks in reaching the city (1995:337). Home fellowship groups consisting of three or four families provide that “shop window” for non-Christians to see the outworking of Christian relationships. Special interest groups formed along the lines of vocation, age, sport or specific needs are effective networks for growing and discipling Christians and exposing non-Christians to Christianity in the city.
• The city fosters individualism. On the positive side, this often means that a Buddhist will be loosened from the ties of the Buddhist community and be more open to the gospel. On the negative side, the stress on individual freedom cuts people off from relationships and community and leaves people alienated.

EVANGELISM METHODS AND STRATEGY

A strategy for missions is vital. Unfortunately many Christians feel uncomfortable when we start using words such as “strategy” and “vision”. There is a feeling that we are being too secular and not spiritual enough. Wagner correctly points out, however, that missionary strategy is never intended to be a substitute for the Holy Spirit (1978:15). That must thus be our starting point. It is God’s mission and we are merely part of it. We need His guiding hand and the outpouring of His Spirit to enable any missionary activity.

As for the missionary strategy itself, it should be bible-centred, efficient and relevant. An important part of the strategy is being sure what we want to accomplish. Hesselgrave discusses the dangers of having an understanding of mission that is too broad. The danger is that we get bogged down in “every conceivable type of good work from feeding the hungry to immunizing populations against disease to introducing new strains of corn and cattle” (1997:31). If our understanding of mission is too narrow, on the other hand, we place too much emphasis on multiplying converts and not enough emphasis on multiplying congregations. Our target and focus and vision should thus be to plant viable churches.

A valuable tool for developing a strategy is the Søgaard scale (Robb 1994:43).






X

Negative Positive
Attitude toward Christ

If X is our target people, with a negative view of Christianity on the x-axis, coupled with little knowledge of Christ measured on the y-axis, the goal is to move them to a point where they accept Christ as Lord. That can only be done by changing negative attitudes to positive ones and increasing their knowledge of Jesus. Negative attitudes are changed, not by preaching, but by living the gospel and practically being involved in the lives of people. Wright correctly observes that “it is often the proclamation in deeds that validates and authenticates the proclamation in words, and vice versa” (1998:21). Therefore, a strategy must focus on practical areas where the gospel can be demonstrated through the lives of the missionaries. This need not necessarily be in the form of some kind of aid or relief, although that may be a possibility depending on the circumstances. Rather missionaries need to create opportunities through relationships where the gospel can be reflected in their lives. In a sense, they need to create space for God to work.

As part of the strategy, it is important to take into account cultural differences. In this regard, contextualisation is absolutely vital. So, as Smith points out, the goal is not only to express the biblical message in the basic language of the people, but also in the thought forms, the idiom, and the emotional expressions (1998: 217). Accordingly, part of the strategy must be to understand those aspects of the culture which are necessary to make contextualisation possible.

Smith outlines some ways in which contextualisation can take place. These are:
• Transformation – this is where individuals are guided towards personal change – unbiblical and un-Christian practices are transformed in to the ways appropriate within Biblical Christianity. “The most creative aspect to the missionaries’ task is deciding what must be changed and what can be retained, then helping local believers discover those needs and respond to them”
• Possessio – this refers to the methodology of selecting a cultural trait from the culture that can be assimilated and permeated with biblical, Christian meaning. According to Beyerhaus, the German missiologist who advocated this method, “proper possessio’ is achieved by proper selection, rejection and reinterpretation”. An example of possessio would be to use the Thai concept of having a “cool heart” and linking it to James 1:19 “everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry”. As life speeds up for the Buddhist, impatience grows and breeds anger, which is a state of hot heart. By being slow, taking time and not rushing, the heart is kept cool. “Slow” is linked in the Buddhist mind to a well-known Buddhist tradition;
“Suppose O Monks, there was a huge rock of one solid mass, one mile long, one mile wide, one mile high, without split or flaw. And at the end of every hundred years a man should come and rub against it once with a silken cloth. Then that huge rock would wear off and disappear quicker than a world-period” (Koyama 1974:164).

A Buddhist tradition such as this one could be used very effectively to teach Buddhists about the Christian teaching of being slow to speak and slow to anger, using their own traditions and appealing to their own cultural norm of calm, or cool heart.
• Felt need, power encounter and functional substitute – missionaries must discover and raise the felt needs of the people in the culture, lead them to a power encounter which marks a clear break with the old way of life and a turning to the new, and then help them provide a functional substitute for those cultural items that had to be discarded. Thais live in fear of spirits whose land they have occupied by building houses. To appease the spirits, a spirit house is erected outside every single building in Thailand and daily offerings of water, coldrink, fruit or flowers is brought to the spirit house for the pleasure of the spirits thought to be occupying it. If the spirits are kept happy, good luck will prevail. When the Thai becomes a Christian, his faith and worship must be directed towards God and away from the spirits. Stopping the practice of sacrifice to the spirits is the power encounter, a definite and public break with the old and commitment to the new. To merely insist that the new believer must chop down the spirit house and cease sacrifices to the spirits, leaves a vacuum in his life that must be filled. The element to fill this vacuum would be the functional substitute – maybe a daily time of prayer and dedication to God. In this way the Thai’s need for peace and well-being can be directed away from the spirits to the living God.
• Dynamic equivalence – not just in translation, but in churches. As dynamic equivalence in language translation reflects the feeling, the force and the inner communication of the original language, so the dynamic equivalent church should produce the same impact on the society and its people that the New Testament church had on its members (1998:272-277).

Friendship/relationship verses crusades and campaigns.
On the issue of evangelism, we need to be careful that we don’t fall into the trap of counting our success by the number of converts we make. The commission given in Matt. 28:18 is to make disciples, not converts. Furthermore, the instruction is to teach these new disciples all that Christ has commanded – v 20. It implies a longer and slower process, where results are measured in terms of quality not quantity. We submit therefore, that for purposes of establishing the first few believers who are to form the core of the new church plant, relationships need to be formed with the local non-believers. These relationships need to be nurtured and built until the right to share the gospel has been earned. Hesselgrave and Rommen quote Kosuke Koyama, a Japanese who served as a missionary in Thailand:
“The Thai are not interested in Christology, but they are concerned about neighborology. The message of Christ, then, must be put in neighborological language – in the discipline involved in knowing Thai neighbors immediately and straightforwardly (1989:82).

A crusade type form of evangelism will thus most probably be ineffective in the initial stages. Once a core of local believers has been formed, then a crusade or street evangelism by the local believers may have more impact and be an effective tool for evangelism. Furthermore, open air type evangelism is only appropriate if there is ample opportunity for follow-up work and discipleship. It stands to reason that only as the planted church gets bigger and people become better equipped and trained, can the church provide the necessary follow-up required for new converts.

With regard to forming relationships, Elmer makes some interesting points regarding perceptions that people often have regarding missionaries which need to be guarded against (1993: 155). He points out that without realising it, missionaries have a lot of power. This is because they have knowledge and education, technology and money. The danger is that missionaries easily slip in to a controlling mode if the power that comes with their cultural baggage is not managed and shared. According to Elmer, generosity may also carry complications (1993:156). Giving is power and without reciprocity, a relationship will develop where one is the donor and the other the receiver. Westerners also tend to fail to develop friendships that are deep to a level of sharing the heart. Few people are ready to expose their frailties and weaknesses. The result, however, is that relationships in the body of Christ are superficial and the masks we wear, which are the norm and acceptable in our culture, will only serve to alienate us in cultures where there is less emphasis on individuality and more “openness”.

Communicating the Gospel
It must be a great temptation to think the work has been done and for complacency to set in once relationships have been formed with local non-believers. A vain hope may also set in that with time this person will naturally want to follow the Christian religion. The truth, however, is that the development of a relationship with a local or locals, is only the beginning of the process of evangelism. That merely gets one to the point of being able to be heard. The hard work of confronting a radically different worldview needs to be tackled. In this regard, it is very difficult to have one or two prescribed methods of approaching Thai people. Each situation and friendship must be treated on its own merits and the Lord must be asked to provide both, opportunities to share the gospel, and wisdom to do so meaningfully. In this regard, Koyama, came up with a theology for his own mission field of Thailand and called it “Waterbuffalo Theologising” (Hesselgrave and Rommen 1989:80). He attempted to root theology in Thai history. This involves a recognition that each history has that which is true, honourable and just and which should be incorporated into our theology. The tension points that exist between God’s history and the Thai history, “are creative in that they prepare Thai spirituality for a realization of the new creation in Jesus Christ” (Hesselgrave and Rommen 1989:81). Koyama also roots his theology in Thai cultural thinking and in Thai Buddhist life. Koyama thus illustrates the need to be creative in finding points of tension and commonality in the history, culture and religion of the target group. It is only when we are able to engage them in these areas that we can effectively grab their attention with the gospel and challenge their ingrained worldview. “..the beginning of faith must contain some universally valid and relevant factor which can erase religious, cultural and political demarcations” (Hesselgrave and Rommen 1989:84). The aim and goal is to find that “universally valid and relevant factor”. It requires hard work, creativity, inspiration and no small amount of divine intervention. Koyama’s final point is that our theology should be rooted in a Christian lifestyle. “Identification with Christ expresses itself in involvement in a suffering world. The Christian is attached to the Lord’s table and is free from the “saving messages” of other tables such as secularism, technocracy, communism, and the world’s great religions” (Hesselgrave and Rommen 1989:83).

Elmer makes the point that a mistake Westerners are prone to make with their strongly individualistic mindset, is to individualise the gospel (1993:138). This caveat is particularly important in group-orientated cultures. Furthermore, many cultures, such as the Thai Buddhist culture, which do not have a strong concept of God, and thus of sin and forgiveness, do have a strong sense of shame, or “face” or honour, which can be built upon to share the gospel. “Shame … is the disruption of harmony between the Creator and the creatures, and the creatures’ attempt to secure their destiny in a place other than the Creator” (1993:139). In a shame-based culture shame is bad enough, but to cause shame or to be shamed before a father, elder or sovereign is exceedingly worse. The duty lies on the one causing the shame to restore the relationship. We, however, are helpless to do so. In this regard, the gospel offers hope to such a culture, because Jesus in dying a shameful death on the cross, is our shame bearer. Hebrews 12:2 tells us that Jesus was willing to die a shameful death on the cross, in order that he would be raised afterwards and seated at God’s right hand. Because of Christ’s death and exaltation, we can trust in him and not be put to shame (Rom. 9:33; 10:11). Closely linked to the concept of shame, is the fact that Christ suffered and experienced pain for sin which wasn’t his. Its an insult to be blamed and carry the punishment of another. It is cause for huge “loss of face”. But Christ did that, he suffered a grave insult and it was through his suffering, that he was made perfect (Heb. 2:9-10). Because of that, we need never “lose face” before God, because the relationship between us and him has been restored permanently.

The point is, when attempting to communicate the gospel in another culture, tried and tested (and familiar) methods will probably not work. The vital and challenging task of contextualising the gospel must take place. Creative methods, such as the use of stories and parables, songs, poems and symbols, need to be employed to bring the gospel message home to people of other cultures. Steffen argues that stories are the most effective way of communicating the gospel (1999:404). Stories are a universal form of communication, they connect with our imagination and our emotions, Jesus used stories to teach and approximately 75% of the Bible is story. In the words of Patterson, “…formal pulpit preaching is ineffective in many of today’s remaining unreached fields. You can preach the Word with power in many other ways, if you know your people” (1999:597).

As part of the Thai culture and tradition, Thai men take time off from their work to spend some time at monasteries in order to gain merit. This felt need to take time out for spiritual purposes could be utilised by evangelists to arrange for weekend or week long retreats where relationships can be formed and the gospel presented over a period of days in a comfortable and calm environment away from the bustle of the city. According to Hiebert and Meneses, the church throughout history, has made extensive use of retreats, not only as places for spiritual formation but also for people to explore faith (1995:332). This is particularly effective amongst younger folk. Some young Thai Christians whom I am in contact with, reported three new converts at one such youth getaway some months back.

Another unique aspect of urban Thais which can and is in fact used for purposes of forming relationships and sharing the gospel, is English as a language. The urban Thai is more and more exposed to English and although English is a school subject, very few Thais are able to speak very well. There is, however, a growing desire amongst city folk and university students especially, to speak the language. Churches which run English courses are able to attract people, as are missions which use English language learning as the tool for forming relationships. Furthermore, Christian concepts such Christmas, marriage, church, Christianity, etc., can be introduced to Thai people as part of language learning, thus creating opportunities to share more on a personal level.

PLANTING THE CHURCH

Wagner points out the importance of not merely making existing churches bigger, but of planting new churches as a specific goal (1978:157). He states that the very minimum goal that should be set is for each participating church to plant one daughter church during or within a year. “This is not impossible if proper orientation and aid are given to the existing churches” (1978:158). It crucial that the team works in co-operation with the existing local church. We do need to be cautious when expecting the existing local church to help us. It seems a bit arrogant to expect to come from the outside, move into the existing church and foist a church planting programme upon them. The local church may not want intervention from foreign missionaries. Over time a relationship of trust may develop whereby the missionary has earned sufficient respect and trust to influence the teaching within the existing local church. Up until that point however, the best that can be hoped for is the approval and support of the local church in any outreach/evangelistic endeavours. Smith makes a good point when he says that the outsider can only advocate change and only an insider can innovate change – the one with cultural authority can bring about actual change (1998:273).

What is vital, is that the goal is not merely the planting of a church. It does need to extend beyond that. The planted church needs to launch its own mission. This, according to Wagner, is the real, if somewhat neglected goal (1978:176). In discussing Church Planting Movements, Garrison argues that it is not enough that local church planters are trained and deployed to plant multiple churches among their own people (undated: 12). According to him, although this is a highly productive method of spreading churches across a population segment or people group, the momentum remains in the hands of a limited group of professional church planters rather than in the heart of each new church that is begun. His argument is that the vision of churches planting churches must spread from the missionary and professional church planter into the churches themselves, so that by their very nature they are winning the lost and reproducing themselves.

The church must be indigenous. It must conform in every appropriate way to the local ways of living, meeting, acting, deciding and serving. The local people must feel comfortable with the church in the sense that it is uniquely theirs and not alien or foreign to their culture. They must have a sense of belonging and ownership. Thus, as Smith points out, the services must be at times and in the modes of the local culture, the music must be in the tunes and beats of the local culture and the building and décor must be in terms acceptable to and by the local culture (1998:270).

The indigeneity of the planted church must be part of the strategy and goal. Eitel points out that difficulties arise when a church has been established without due regard for indigenous principles (1998:302). To make the transition at that stage when ideas and concepts have become entrenched invariably leads to problems. Thus, even in the pioneer phase when the missionary first enters the host culture with the gospel message, the aim should be to entrust new believers with leadership rights and responsibilities. “The missionary should enter the church planting process planning to phase out external direction and control over the affairs of the newly established indigenous church as soon as possible” (1998:304). Also important in this regard is the fact that national believers ought to participate in the decision to implement indigenous concepts from the beginning. Eitel makes the point that the development of autonomy is hindered if indigenous church principles are imposed as a set of doctrinaire rules without concern for the host culture (1998:309). This underlines the need to work closely and in co-operation with the existing church and Christians.

In terms of a church planting strategy, there are various options, all of which have some measure of overlap. Hesselgrave suggests the so-called “Pauline Cycle”, based on the logical elements or steps in Paul’s master plan of evangelism and church development, as found in Acts chapters 13 to 15 (1997:58). The North American Mission Board web page (with an anonymous author) suggests a strategy whereby a church planting team is first identified (www.namb.net/root/cp/readiness/PDF/PREP_strategy.pdf). Potential partners are identified – this could be other missionaries or organisations in the target area, or a church or churches, or simply one’s own On Field mission team. This church planting team is responsible for developing a church planting strategic plan. It is thus a strategy which is arrived at by input from a few people, ensuring a higher level of buy-in and enthusiasm than if it where the preconceived plan of one person rallying the support of a team. Furthermore, this approach envisages that some of the partners in the team may have superior knowledge of the particular target area and of the unique challenges or problems found in that area.

This team should then develop a community profile. The following questions would help to give a fair idea of the community profile:
What is the primary ethnicity of the community? Is the community multiethnic? What is the primary language spoken by the people to be reached? What is the ratio of male and female in the target area? What is the median age of the target people group? At what socioeconomic level is the target group? What percentages of the target group are married, married again, or single? What recreational activities does the target group prefer? What educational level has the target group attained? How stable is the target group in this community? Do they move yearly, every five years, once in a lifetime, never? What is the primary income source for the target group? What kind of housing is characteristic of the target group? What would the target group look for in a church? What is the target group's perception of needs in the community?

A clear profile will ensure that an effective plan for church planting will be implemented. It will also aid the next step of actually making contact with the target group.

GROWING THE CHURCH

Wagner puts forward three signs of a mature church. His description, according to him, goes beyond the self-supporting, self-governing, and self-propagating categories (1978:163). His three signs, are a church that can take care of itself, that is outward focussed, and that is relevant to the cultural situation. He also cautions against making the planting of a church the ultimate goal (1978:168). He argues that planting churches is only a means to an end – the true goal of missions, according to him, is making disciples. Disciples, he argues, are made among unbelievers who are not yet members of the church. We cannot agree with this statement. The vital function of the church is to grow and disciple people to the point where they can go and make disciples, and so on.

Smalley sounds a note of caution in the desire of church planters and church planting movements to see the three “selfs” of indigenous churches come to fulfilment.
“I very strongly suspect that the three “selfs” are really projections of our American value systems into the idealization of the church, that they are in their very nature Western concepts based upon Western ideas of individualism and power. By forcing them on other people, we may at times have been making it impossible for a truly indigenous pattern to develop. We have been Westernizing with all our talk about indigenizing” (1999:475).

In order to grow the church, it is necessary to develop a profile of the new church. The following questions are an aid to developing such a profile:
Will the new church own property or a building within its first five years? What is the long-term plan for a meeting facility? Will it meet in a rented facility for the foreseeable future? Will the new church always meet in homes? How will the new church develop organization and ministry? Will the new church follow the basic functions (worship, witness, ministry, teaching, missions, and fellowship) but use nontraditional ministries to accomplish its mission? Will the church be primarily relation-based or program-based? What will be the new church's worship style? What times will worship services be held? Will the new church's primary worship time target believers, unchurched people, unbelievers, or secular people? What music style will be most suitable for the new church? Will the new church have a liturgical, traditional, informal, or open form of worship? How will the church organize for Bible study? Will Bible study happen on Sunday in conjunction with worship or will it happen during the week, apart from worship service? Will Bible study be planned at times other than on Sunday? Will Bible study be age-graded? How will the church organize and train for evangelism? How will the church organize for ministry? What will be the decision-making process in the new church? Will it be governed by a congregational model or will it use some other form of government?
(www.namb.net/root/cp/readiness/PDF/PREP_strategy.pdf).

In working through these and similar questions, the responsibility lies on the church planter to ensure that the new church will be truly indigenous in every aspect and not reflect the cultural background and baggage of the sending culture.

Discipleship
The constant emphasis is to be growing people to a place where they are able to disciple others. This is what spiritual growth is all about – to not always have to be fed spiritually by others, but to become a feeder of others. This requires training. People are only effectively trained if the training enhances their natural God given gifts. It is thus crucial that gifts are identified. Those with the gift of evangelism, for example, must be taught to be effective evangelists and released for ministry (Shwarz 1996:34). If another displays a gift of teaching, he must be equipped and allowed to teach.

A very effective training principle is that put forward by Barna. He speaks of creating “growth partners” (1998:154). This is in essence a personal trainer and the model of training is:
• I do, you watch;
• I do, you assist;
• You do, I assist;
• You do, I watch;
• You do it alone.
Using this system ensures that there is a measure of on the job training. On-the-job training, according to Shwarz, yields higher-quality training with a smaller investment of energy (1996:72). The missionary/church planter will, of necessity be the initial trainer. Thereafter, the trainee becomes the trainer and so on. Caution must be exercised to ensure that there is no communication loss between the trainer and the learner. The trainer must thus ensure that the learner has truly learnt and understood the principles behind what was taught. It is not enough that the learner merely learns a technique which he in turn, teaches to others.
Patterson also suggests that disciples are mobilised immediately to edify those they are discipling (1999:598). Applying the 2 Tim. 2:2 principle, he suggests that one start with just one or two potential leaders (Timothies) – train them on the job and take responsibility for their effective ministry. They will soon have disciples of their own, and so on. The caution mentioned above is equally applicable here.

Leadership training
The stated aim of the cross cultural church planting exercise is to develop a church which is local in all its functions and offices. This includes its leadership. One of the primary gaols of the team, thus, must be to ensure that locals are trained and equipped as soon as possible. In this regard, the principle, laid down by Paul in 2 Timothy 2:2 should be applied – reliable men and women, who are qualified to teach, must be entrusted with the task of teaching others. It will be necessary for the initial church planter/s to be around for a while to ensure that the new church is coping. As soon as possible, however, a trained and effective local leadership structure should be in place, freeing the church planting missionaries to repeat the process somewhere else. Garrison points out that leadership training is a vital component of church growth (undated :39). He also makes the point that if
new church leaders have to leave their churches for extended periods of time for theological training, the momentum of the church planting movement will be diminished. He thus advocates on the job training, coupled to theological studies by extension. It is important that the local church leadership is of good quality and well trained. A healthy balance must be maintained between academic/theological excellence of church leaders and practical, hands-on experience, without one being sacrificed at the cost of the other.

Garrison also makes the point that lay leaders are invaluable because they are typically bi-vocational and come from the general profile of the people group being reached (undated: 35). Furthermore, the utilization of lay leadership ensures the largest possible pool of potential church planters and cell church leaders. As Garrison points out, “Dependence upon seminary-trained - or in non-literate societies, even educated - pastoral leaders means that the work will always face a leadership deficit” (undated: 35).

Gifts analysis and utilisation
If a local leadership team is to be identified and trained and equipped to run the church, it is vital that their spiritual gifts are identified, honed and utilised. Not just the leaders, but every member of the church needs to be equipped and trained in those areas where they are gifted. This was how the Lord intended His church to function (1 Cor. 12:12-27). Only when everyone is using their gifts will the church be a dynamic, vibrant, living and multiplying organism.

SELF-SUPPORTING

This is one of the greatest challenges facing the development of new churches in cross-cultural setting, especially in a poorer countries such as Thailand. If one is starting out with a handful of new converts, there is not a huge resource base from which to fund the church. In this regard, Garrison warns against outside subsidies which may create dependency (undated :51). He points out that any time the gospel is introduced to a new people group, external support is required. When, however, well-intentioned outsiders prop up growth by purchasing buildings or subsidizing pastors’ salaries, they limit the capacity of the movement to reproduce itself spontaneously and indigenously .

Smalley points out that although self-support is the soundest method of church economics and healthy for the church and mission, there may be situations where it is not possible (1999:475). In certain circumstances, where self-support can make church growth nearly impossible, it may not be advisable to be self-supporting. This, according to Smalley, does not necessarily imply the lack of an indigenous church. A church may thus be fully indigenous, yet not be self-supporting. Of importance, says Smalley, is the way in which changes take place in the church, not the source of income.

SELF-THEOLOGISING

Smith discusses this issue as part of the process of contextualisation. He says that the process of contextualisation, or “accommodation” as he calls it, is not complete until the people in the culture formulate their own expression of the message and begin to guide another culture to do the same (1998:270).

According to Eitel, if the church is to become self-propagating, self-supporting and self-governing, it has to be self-theologising (1998:311). The whole issue of self-theologising is closely linked to the concept of contextualisation. A danger facing any cross-cultural missionary seeking to contextualise the gospel and teach the church to be self-theologising, is syncretism (Kraft 1999:384). The integrity of the gospel must be maintained whilst communicating effectively and relevantly within the culture. Unfortunately there is no formula for doing this – each cultural norm practice and each situation must be assessed as and when it arises.
“How to accomplish the task of establishing healthy indigenous churches that reflect an ongoing, biblically balanced contextualisation process is still the point of much debate and requires serious analysis in any modern mission context” (Eitel 1998:313).

Lingenfelter also warns of the danger of contextualisation and indigenisation (1998:14). He refers to the situation that occurred in the early churches, as reflected in Acts 11:1-3, 15:12, 21:20, where the gospel had become completely conformed to Jewish culture, and the church had drifted to a particular, rather than a universal, vision of evangelism. Lingenfelter refers to the contradiction between the pilgrim principle, with its emphasis on the universal church and other-worldliness, and the indigenous principle, with its emphasis on self-support, self-government and self-propagation in independent this-worldliness (1998:15). Indigenous churches do result from effective contextualisation. The danger is just that they may become a vehicle of compromise and death. Lingenfelter believes that an effective counterbalance to this, is connecting local believers to the universal church with a vision for outreach to the world.

SELF-PROPAGATING

Garrison, when looking at Church Planting Movements worldwide, noticed that one of the common characteristics of churches that were successfully planting other churches was the rapid incorporation of new converts in to the life and ministry of the church – he mentions an elderly man in India, who after coming to the Lord, planted 42 churches in one year. “In an effort to keep the movement growing outward, CPM-oriented missionaries typically encourage new believers to join or help start new churches, rather than simply adding larger numbers to existing congregations” (Garrison undated: 38).

The challenge is thus clearly to get the newly planted church mobilised as quickly as possible and involved in the outreach to and evangelism of the local people and churches planted. A common mistake, in the interest of ensuring sound doctrine, may be a reticence on the part of missionaries to let new coverts loose on their countrymen. It is the new convert, however, who is filled with the joy and awe of his conversion, and has a boldness and freshness which may be most effective amongst his relatives, friends and colleagues.

CONCLUSION

Although the entire Bible is a book calling God’s people to the task of proclaiming his love and pointing the lost to redemption through Christ, the classical passage, or “great” commission is Matthew 28:18-20. Here Jesus commands his followers to make disciples of all the nations. The emphasis is and should be, on the command to make disciples. Often this is confused with proclaiming the gospel, or making converts. The command is also to teach the nations all that Christ had commanded his disciples. This clearly involves dedication and commitment over a period of time, especially when cultural and language barriers have to be crossed in order to do so. We have seen in this paper that the approach is multifaceted. There are many challenges and obstacles to be overcome. Clear strategies need to be in place and need to be continually evaluated and changed if necessary. And most important of all, the power of God needs to be employed through prayer and lives lived in such a way that the host culture can see God made manifest in those who purport to represent him. The task is a huge one. But we need not be daunted, because the promise of Jesus Christ to be with his disciples always as they carry out his mandate, is as valid to us today as it was to that first group whom he commanded to go.

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