a BRIEF HISTORY of CHRISTIAN MISSION

By Mark Barry (in consultation with Bruce Dipple & Greg Anderson) 2008 AFES www.afes.org.au Please do not republish without permission, but feel free to copy for personal use.

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0-400 > JERUSALEM to ROME

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400-1500 > ROME to EUROPE

H H H
28-30 33 34 48-57 60 64-311 313 324 364 380 Jesus earthly life, death & resurrection Pentecost & the birth of the Christian church Persecution of the church the gospel spreads from Jerusalem to Judea & Samaria Pauls missionary journeys to Asia-minor, Macedonia & Greece Paul reaches Rome Despite severe persecution, Christianity spreads throughout the Roman Empire Edict of Milan granting tolerance of Christianity Christianity becomes the state religion of the Roman Empire Mission to the Vandals (East German tribe) Christianity becomes the only permitted religion in the Roman Empire 432 589 596 622-750 675 722 740 828 900-1000 Patrick sent to Ireland Christianity reaches the Visigoths in Spain Augustine sent to England Palestine, Egypt, North Africa & Spain lost to Islam Christianity reaches Belgium & the Netherlands Boniface sent to the Germanic tribes Irish monks reach Iceland Missionaries sent to (modern-day) Slovakia & Czech republic Denmark, Norway, Sweden & Iceland accept Christianity

1095-1272 Crusades undertaken as mission to the Saracens (Muslims) 1015 1382 1462 Russia & much of eastern Europe converted to Christianity Bible translated into English by John Wycliff Gutenberg produces the first printed Bible

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1500-1800 > EUROPE to the WORLD

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1800-2000 > the WORLD to the WORLD

1493 1501 1517 1527 1600-1800 1620 1698 1644 1731 1792

Columbus takes priests to the New World Pope Alexander VI enlists Spain to take Christianity to the Americas Luthers 95 theses ignite the Reformation & the re-evangelisation of Europe First protestant missionary conference in Augsburg Roman Catholic mission explodes across the world The Puritans arrive in America The Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK) founded John Eliot sent to North American indians The Moravians begin to send missionaries throughout the world William Carey forms Baptist Mission Society and takes the gospel to India

1800+ 1806 1812 1846 1865 1886 1890s 1910 1946 1950-60s 1974 2000

Protestant mission explodes across the world Haystack prayer meeting (for American mission) First American missionaries sent to India World Evangelical Alliance founded Hudson Taylor founds China Inland Mission Student Volunteer Movement launched Penetration of African interior by European & American agencies World Mission Conference in Edinburgh First Inter-Varsity convention (Urbana) Non-western mission agencies & tent-maker ministries commence & expand First Lausanne Congress on World Evangelisation Local alliances of mission agencies & sending churches active on every continent