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Integral Mission (also known as transformational development, Christian development or holistic mission) is a term coined in the 1970s by Evangelical Christians in Latin America (as Misión Integral) to describe an understanding of Christian mission which embraced both proclamation and demonstration of the Gospel. It has since grown in popularity in Evangelical groups in all the other continents of the world.

The word integral is used in Spanish to describe wholemeal bread; theologians use it to describe an understanding of Christian mission which affirms the importance of expressing the love of God towards humanity through every means possible. Its proponents (eg René Padilla, Samuel Escobar) wanted to emphasise the breadth of the Good News, and used the word integral to signal their discomfort with conceptions of Christian mission which prioritised only part of it – whether this was evangelism (the traditional emphasis of Evangelicals) or social involvement (as advocated by Liberation Theology).

The proponents of integral mission argue that the concept is nothing new; it is only that a distinct vocabulary for a holistic understanding of mission has become important in the past forty years in order to distinguish it from widely held but more dualistic approaches.

A commitment to integral mission is often reflected in particular concern for those living in poverty and a commitment to pursuing justice.

Although strongly influenced by Liberation Theology, the concept of Integral Mission is advocated largely by Evangelical Christians.

History

The process of defining integral mission and the journey of its acceptance by significant numbers of Evangelicals has taken place over a period of just over 40 years. Its progress can be observed through a number of significant international Evangelical congresses.

In 1966, the Congress on the World Mission of the Church, held in Wheaton, Illinois, brought together Evangelicals from 71 countries. The Wheaton Declaration confessed that “we [Evangelicals] are guilty of an unscriptural isolation from the world that too often keeps us from honestly facing and coping with its concerns” and the “failure [of the church] to apply scriptural principles to such problems as racism, war, population explosion, poverty, family disintegration, social revolution, and communism.”

That same year the World Congress on Evangelization in Berlin continued to emphasise a traditionally Evangelical conception of mission, as articulated by Billy Graham: “if the church went back to its main task of proclaiming the gospel and people converted to Christ, it would have a far greater impact on the social, moral and psychological needs of men than it could achieve through anything else it could possibly do. However, the question of Christian social involvement came up repeatedly during the ensuing regional congresses.

The International Congress on World Evangelization in Lausanne in 1974 is regarded by some as “the most important world-wide evangelical gathering of the twentieth century”. The Lausanne Covenant affirmed that

God is both the Creator and the Judge of all men. We therefore should share his concern for justice and reconciliation throughout human society and for the liberation of men from every kind of oppression…we express penitence both for our neglect and for having sometimes regarded evangelism and social concern as mutually exclusive

Following the Lausanne Congress, support for the concept of integral mission grew amongst evangelicals, particularly in the Two-Thirds World. A number of declarations which emerged from international evangelical conferences in the ensuing years revealed similar concerns for a holistic understanding of mission. (eg International Consultation on Gospel and Culture in Bermuda, 1978, the Second Latin America Congress on Evangelism in Peru, 1979).

In the UK, the International Consultation on Simple Lifestyle in 1980 resulted in a document entitled An Evangelical Commitment to Simple Lifestyle, again affirming a commitment to justice within an Evangelical conception of mission.

In 1982 the International Consultation on the Relationship of Evangelism and Social Responsibility concluded that the latter is a consequence of, a bridge to and partner of the former. The document published maintained the primacy of evangelism however, despite its affirmation that the two are, in practice, “inseparable”.

In 1983, the Consultation on the Church in Response to Human Need in Wheaton, Illinois, led to the publication of ‘’Transformation: The Church in Response to Human Need’’, perhaps the strongest evangelical affirmation of integral Mission. It is explicit in its denunciation of injustice, and churches and Christina organisations who “by silence giVinay Samuel and Chris Sugden, The Church in Response to Human Need, Oxford 1987ve their tacit support” to “the socio-economic status-quo”.

The last decade

In 1999 a global network of evangelical Christian organisations committed to Integral Mission was established and christened the Micah Network because of the centrality of Micah 6:8 to the concept of Integral Mission:

What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.

Their members represent Evangelical Christians from 360 organisations in 81 countries.