Following the recent OCMS Board meeting and Graduation celebrations in Oxford, one of our long serving Trustees Dr Ruth Padilla DeBorst travelled to the US, to participate in this year’s Annual Meeting of the American Society of Missiology (ASM), one of the leading international gatherings for mission scholars and practitioners.
The conference explored the theme “From ‘the rest’ to the ‘West’: Global justice, de-coloniality, and mutuality in Gospel witness, examining how the changing centre of world Christianity is reshaping mission, theological education and the life of the global Church.
The event provided an excellent opportunity for Regnum Books to introduce its publications to a wide international audience. Through the generosity of INFEMIT (International Fellowship for Mission as Transformation), Regnum resources were featured on their exhibition stand, where conference delegates could learn about a specially produced selection of titles chosen to complement the conference theme. Alongside promotional material introducing Regnum’s wider catalogue, Analzira Nascimento’s book Evangelization or Colonization? was on sale at a special conference price. After 17 years serving as a missionary in Angola, Analzira, from Brazil, reflects on Christian mission in contexts of colonialism and conflict. Challenging models that assume outsiders know best, she calls for listening, dialogue and understanding ‘“the other” also has something to say.’ The featured titles reflected Regnum’s longstanding commitment to publishing scholarship that amplifies voices from across the Majority World and explores Christian mission through diverse cultural perspectives. Books addressing mission, power, colonialism, contextual theology and local agency resonated strongly with the conference’s emphasis on mutual learning and shared witness across the global Church.
Dr Ruth Padilla DeBorst, a longstanding friend and Trustee of OCMS as well as a key leader within INFEMIT, gave the presidential address in her role as the President of the American Society of Missiology. Through her ongoing work with INFEMIT she continues to encourage conversations that promote contextual theology, challenge inherited assumptions, and foster deeper collaboration between Christian leaders from different cultures and traditions.
INFEMIT itself has become an increasingly significant international network, bringing together Christian scholars, practitioners and church leaders from around the world to promote contextual theologies, create spaces for mutual learning, and champion voices that have often been underrepresented within global theological conversations. Through conferences, online forums, publications and collaborative initiatives, INFEMIT seeks to strengthen the global Church by encouraging relationships marked by justice, hospitality and shared learning.
For OCMS, the conference highlighted the close relationship between scholarship, publishing and global partnerships.