“July 27, 2048″ by Dave Gibbons

eric posted on November 11, 2009

FORECAST: JULY 27, 2048

I intersected with a group of people called TEDsters from around the world this past week in Mysore, India. Much of the current rage of new conferences have been influenced by the ideas, style and ethos of this unique group of minds. If you haven’t heard of them check out TED.com. Their moniker is “Ideas worth spreading.” The TED acronym stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design.

The first speaker spoke for 18 minutes and still has me ruminating over the future implications of his talk. His name is Hans Rosling, 61 year old professor global health at Sweden’s Karolinska Intsitute. He’s a brilliant statistician and an entertaining communicator. He shared with us the rise of India and China on the economic landscape. He had a prediction that given the current rate of growth for India and China and the moderate or declining growth of the West, that by the year 2048, China and India average income of their citizens will have surpassed the US and the UK. . . July 27, 2048 to be exact.

The fundamental questions that arose out of this prediction are what will the shift of power mean for the countries who are LOSING their status as the ones who currently hold the reins of power in the global village and what does it mean for those who will GAIN new power?

Professor Hans fear is inequalities and war.

What are your fears or hopes in this historic shifting of powers?

When it comes to the church, what does this mean for those of us in America, the UK and the West? Are we prepared for the shift that has already occurred and will continue to become more pronounced. In fact, cities in China like Shanghai has already surpassed the average income of those in the states. Korea now sends out more missionaries than any other country than the US. They will soon be the number one country. In a 2006 CT article, the writer pens:

The global majority (5.2 billion people) live in less developed nations. Of the world’s 6.4 billion people, less than 18 percent live in developed nations. Scholars say the church’s future in large measure rests in the hands of the global majority.
“The day of Western missionary dominance is over, not because Western missionaries have died off,” says Scott Moreau, chair of intercultural studies at Wheaton College (Illinois), “but because the rest of the world has caught the vision and is engaged and energized.”

Moreau says Americans must come to realize that “missions is a two-way street on every continent.” Today’s missionary is as likely to be a black African in Europe as a northern Indian in south India or a Korean in China. In addition, mission leaders are placing a new focus on Asia, where 60 percent of the global population lives. Samuel Hugh Moffett, the elder American statesman of Asian Christianity, told Christianity Today that Asia represents “the future for missions.” (Rob Moll, CT, march 1, 2006)

Shifts in power are not easy for many. Inequalities are likely, war may be inevitable, and paralysis of organizations common. But when it comes to the church how are we preparing ourselves when it comes to the leaders we are currently developing, the culture and ethos we’re creating in our communities, the theologies we are contemplating and emphasizing and the resources we are allocating?

Looking ahead my hope is that theologies of suffering and discomfort, mystery, and the outsider will be more greatly developed in partnership with nations like Korea, Africa, Brazil, Mexico, China and India who can teach us. Also, given the nature of the spirits that are naturally embraced by much of the world, how will we develop in our understanding of the role and work of the Holy Spirit and the gifts that are necessary to engage in this realignment of power? For me, I’ve had to lean into the role, power, gifts and work of the Holy Spirit more. For some reason this originally was more natural for me living in Bangkok than in the US but it’s changing. I believe there will be a continued unleashing of his gifts for the church in this new world order. I don’t want to miss out what He wants to do through the church as we serve these emerging nations.

What are your thoughts about this shift of power? What are you now doing about it?