Madang Journal [Vol 10, December 2008]

Abstract

"Global Empire as the context of global ecumenical (intercontextual) mission of Faith Community The emergence of the Global Empire provides the new global context of theology. This context is ecumenical and universal. No theological reflection can avoid this context. All faiths and religions are bound to deal with this context. There may be different starting points, depending upon locus of the faith community. Whether one is at the seat and center of the empire or at its periphery, one is not outside of the Empire. In 2001 the Manila Conference on the War on Terror and Globalization focused the issue of the global empire, with a publication of the “War on Terror”(Ninan Goshy, DAGA, 2001). The issue was not to revive the old ideological concept of the imperialism. It was to deal with concrete and empirical reality of the global empire, which enveloped the whole globe. This was one of the beginnings for Asian theologians to treat the issue of the global empire. In the Latin America the issue of global empire has a long historical root, but it becomes a focus in recent decades (An example: Nestor Migues’ treatment of the Book of Revelation). In the United States a several theologians and writers has begun to deal with this issue. The Drew Conference on the Empire (Drew University, 2003) is an example. Our African friends are increasing take up the issue of global geo-politics as a question for“ new ecumenical space.” A major debate on the issue of the global empire has taken place at the 23rd General Council of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches. It has adopted the emergence of the Global Empire as the sign of our time, which calls all the member churches and ecumenical community to take confessing stance on the issue of life, especially on economic injustice and ecological destruction. It also set the Global Empire as the context of global ecumenical (inter-contextual) mission of faith communities."(pg 4)