Category Archives: Dr. Wan’s Writings

Wandering Jews and Scattered Sri Lankans

Enoch Wan and Ted Rubesh. Viewing Sri Lankans of the Gulf Cooperative Council through the Lens of the Old Testament Jewish Diaspora. Diaspora populations are now significantly reshaping many parts of the globe. Behind these moving millions however, is the hand of a sovereign and gracious God whose purpose is to draw the nations andContinue reading “Wandering Jews and Scattered Sri Lankans”

Social Sciences and Mission

Enoch Wan. Specialization and integration in the “social sciences” are relatively recent developments in the academic disciplines as compared to classical studies of the humanities (e.g. philosophy, literature, etc.) and the natural sciences (e.g. physics, chemistry, etc.). There are different ways of classifying and categorizing disciplines in the “social sciences;” only five (i.e. anthropology, psychology,Continue reading “Social Sciences and Mission”

Global Status of Diaspora Ministry

Enoch Wan. About 3% of the world’s total population live in countries in which they were not born and can broadly be characterized as Diaspora peoples. This does not take into account the many millions who have experienced significant transition inside their country of birth, such as migrant workers in China, who in 2009 numberedContinue reading “Global Status of Diaspora Ministry”

Ethnic Receptivity Factors

Enoch Wan. In this paper, we will look at informative cases or situations for contextualized evangelism of different ethnic groups, followed by the interpretive analysis of cultural integration/variation factors and concluded by instructive suggestions for our evangelism and church-planting strategies within these new Canadian cultures.

Critique of Functional Missionary Anthropology

Enoch Wan. In the last three decades, “missionary anthropology” has “remained synonymous with functionalism done by Christians” (Krass 1979:28). According to functionalism, “culture is not a mere lifeless heap of unrelated parts: it is a system more like a living organism or a complicated operation” (Luzbetak 1970:141). The organismic analogy and organic/equilibrium perspective of functionalismContinue reading “Critique of Functional Missionary Anthropology”

The Future of Globalizing Missions: What the Literature Suggests

Marty Shaw. Jr. and Enoch Wan. A great deal of change has and continues to take place in the world of missions even within the few short years of the 21st century. One of those areas of change is the reality that missions no longer emanates from a few centers of the west, but trulyContinue reading “The Future of Globalizing Missions: What the Literature Suggests”