Exiles on Mission

January 13, 2020
Williams (Recent Developments in Economics and Religion), a professor of marketplace theology and leadership at Regent College, addresses in this cogent but largely theoretical work Christians in the West who feel their place in society is increasingly marginal. Encouraging Christians to embrace cultural shifts, Williams calls readers to reevaluate their cultural contexts and reboot their sense of identity and mission. To do so, he employs several biblical and cultural metaphors—namely exile (living outside cultural hegemony), ambassadorship and diplomacy, translation, and pilgrimage. Williams also considers recent jolts to Christianity, including developments in science and technology, postmodern identity (particularly the “dehumanization” of being “defined by productive efficiency”), the environmental crisis, and secular pluralism. However, he falls short of his stated goal of helping Christians integrate their faith more readily into their daily lives. While his steadfastness is encouraging and optimistic, and many Christian readers will agree with the stances that Williams proposes, there isn’t enough guidance to balance out the heady analysis.