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I had a friend who seemed fixated on "saving souls." I never heard him talk much about the people he encountered except for counting them when they repented of their sins and accepted Jesus as their Savior. The only thing that seemed to be on his "to-do" list was making sure people got saved and had a ticket to enter heaven.
Do not misunderstand me: Being passionate about people receiving salvation is not a bad thing . . . unless all you think about is making sure their "souls" are going to be saved.
As I read the gospels, I see Jesus concerned about more things than "saving souls." He did not separate people into bodies and souls like my friend seemed to do. Jesus saw individuals as whole persons, and He treated them as such. He spent time with them. He ate at their tables. He welcomed their children. He went to the synagogue with them. He laughed and cried with them. And He announced: "I came so that everyone would have life, and have it in its fullest." (John 10:10, CEV).
Jesus did ministry in a holistic* way. That means He did not see people's physical and emotional lives as completely separate from their spiritual lives. He proclaimed forgiveness while also healing diseases. He helped people become spiritually whole while feeding the hungry.
In Jesus' holistic modus operandi, He saw people in the context of the society in which they lived. For that reason, He talked about ways to build healthy relationships. Jesus' response to a question about the "greatest commandment" reveals a holistic way of thinking. His response addressed our horizontal dimension (loving others) as well as our vertical one (loving God).
Throughout Christian history, effective world missions outreach has often been holistic, like Jesus' earthly ministry was. For instance, in the early 1800s British missionary William Carey set the pattern for Protestant missionary work. One reason Carey is called the "Father of the Modern Missionary Movement" is his holistic approach to missions.
To be sure, Carey did evangelistic outreach ministry, including open-air preaching, but he also combined evangelistic work with efforts in education, publishing, economic development, and social reform. He joined Indian reformers and others in opposing the practice of burning widows on their husbands' funeral pyres.
If missionaries today want to minister in the name of Jesus Christ, they must follow the holistic example of our Lord and Savior by meeting human needs as well as saving souls.
*Some dictionaries say "wholistic" is a variant spelling of "holistic." Others give slightly different shades of meaning to each of the two words.
-- Howard Culbertson, hculbert@snu.edu
This article on Christlike attitudes and actions that should be present in cross-cultural missionary service was one of a dozen articles published in the series "Missionary Ministry That Reflects Christ" in Engage, a monthly online missions magazine produced by the Church of the Nazarene.
H - Healing hearts and souls through the love of Christ
O - Opening doors to faith and fellowship
L - Living out the gospel with compassion and grace
I - Integrating faith into every aspect of life
S - Serving others with humility and joy
T - Teaching truth and wisdom from God’s Word
I - Inviting all to experience God’s transformative power
C - Caring for both spiritual and physical needs
Like acrostics? Here are more of them
"Holistic ministry" refers to an approach to serving people that tends to their physical, emotional, social, and spiritual needs in an integrated manner. Instead of focusing solely on one aspect of a person's well-being, holistic ministry considers the whole person and seeks to provide support and assistance in all areas of their lives.
In practice, this involves providing not only spiritual guidance but also food and shelter, emotional support, counseling, and educational opportunities. Those involved in holistic ministry believe that people's needs are interconnected and that addressing one aspect of their lives often means attending to other areas as well.
Many people and organizations involved in world missions outreach use a holistic approach to their work. They know that lasting transformation and empowerment often involve attention to all aspects of a person's life.