Book Review: Larsen, Timothy 2014. The Slain God: Anthropologists and the Christian Faith.

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werner [at] forschungsstiftung.net

 

Timothy Larsen teaches as professor of Christian philosophy (Christian thought) at Wheaton College. He received his doctorate in history from the University of Stirling (Scotland) in 1997. In this work, Larsen explores Christian thought in the burgeoning science of secular Anglophone anthropology (engl. ethnology). The basic scholarly tenor, whether this is true or not, is that anthropology is “anti-religious” and hence exhibits an “anti-faith” attitude (p. 9). With the title ” The Slain God” he shows which theoretical-philosophical worlds of thought developed among critics as well as among proponents of Christian-ethical values. Of interest to missiologists is the apologetic thrust as it emerges in the scientific discourse with the discipline of anthropology (ethnology).

The discipline of anthropology, which has been developing since the mid-19th century, is underestimated in its overall scientific influence and often reduced to evolutionary Darwinism and cultural anthropology. Larsen limits his study to British social anthropologists because, in his opinion, they exhibit the broadest diversity of thought (p. 2). Left untouched are the research fields of applied, biological-physical, evolutionist, sociocultural, or linguistic anthropology, as well as archaeology.

Larsen begins with a historical review, pointing to the early initial ethnographic research of C. Prichard (1786-1848). Also, explicitly Christian ethnographers, such as the method. Revd. Edwin William Smith (1876-1957), and also nonreligious freethinkers, such as Edmund Leach (1910-89), are mentioned. However, to give an overall outline of developments in anthropology, he chooses the following anthropologist/s: E. B. Tylor (1832-1917), James Frazer (1854-1941), E. E. Evans-Pritchard (1902-1973), Mary Douglas (1921-2007), Victor (1920-1983), and Edith Turner (1921- ).

The anthropological-scientific discourse leads through the initial social-evolutionist approach (Tylor, Frazer), to functionalism (Malinowski), from there to functional-structuralism (Radcliffe-Brown), and to modern approaches (p. 6).

“Religion” is often regarded as “superstition” in anthropology. Because of this critical-rejectionist attitude, it was negotiated from a sociological point of view as “projection” or “compensation,” at the level of “maintaining social solidarity” (p. 10; Evans-Pritchard). Personal faith or membership in a faith community was viewed critically, such as the charge to Mary Douglas that “No sincere anthropologist can be a Catholic” (2005:105). How did such thinking affect anthropology?

E. B. Tylor built his anthropological approach on August Comte (1798-1857). The latter, in turn, used an evolutionist approach and viewed all human processes under a higher evolving triad: theological-fictional, metaphysical-abstract, and scientific-positive (p. 21). Tylor introduced the “comparative method” based on “similar stages of development” in all peoples. “Primitive stages” were thereby already passed through by the “more highly developed” ethnic groups (p. 22). “Animism” is with him the “science of the savages” (savages), “magic” the “incomplete approach to science” and “religion” has the “aim to explain nature” (pp. 23-25).

James George Frazer introduces another evolutionary three-step, namely the socio-logical phases of “magic”, “religion”, and “science” (p. 41). Every culture passes through these. For him, this is also true of Judeo-Christian doctrine, as a transitional form, reflected in the biblical stories. Jesus Christ’s death becomes the later “Haman of the year.” A cycle that recurrently defines itself as either “salvation history” (believers) or “superstition” (critics) (ibid.). Nonetheless, he engages with theologians and later even fears that his views might strengthen the same in their beliefs (pp. 78-79, according to Larsen).

Edward Evan Evans-Pritchard (1902-1973) brought ethnography to bear as a comparative or descriptive discipline. His goal was to trans-port “them” to “us” (English culture) (p. 84). At the same time, he went through personal experiences (2 world wars, death of parents, suicidal death of wife in 1959, early death of first son in 1941; pp. 115-16) that led him to the Catholic faith, but as a critical, but convinced, Bible-reading believer (1941; pp. 95, 102). With Franz Steiner, he calls for “religion” to be treated as an independent anthropological rather than an evolving object of research (p. 127). He was well aware of the anti-religious and anti-faith attitude of his discipline (1947; pp. 80, 96). Undeterred by this, he spiritually followed his father, who was a reverend in the Church of England (p. 82). His fame (chair of anthropology at Oxford University; honor of knighthood 1971; p. 82) is attested in the eulogy on him, as “the most brilliant anthropological thinker of us all” (Firth; p. 81).

Mary Douglas was overwhelmed by the impact of religious food rules and their implementation (p. 120). She studied spontaneous responses to rituals from the standpoint that formal, written, and structured “natural symbols” are better than informal, personal, and timeless ones (Purity and Danger; p. 135). In contrast to Evans-Pritchard, who calls “magic” flawed, Douglas equates “magic” with religious sacraments or basic Christian statements (pp. 144-145). Her studies of Leviticus, in Purity and Danger, show her openness to biblical content, which did not prevent her from interpreting the Bible allegorically (pp. 151-155). At the same time, she rejected the historical-critical approach of theologians to the Bible as inadmissible for anthropologists, since research material should not be arbitrarily dissected by the scientist (p. 153).

Victor Turner (1920-1983) and Edith Turner (1921- ; married 1943) are known for their atheistic beginnings and later conversion to Roman Catholicism (1958; p. 182). Negative childhood experiences pushed both of them out of the Christian space. Only “faith experiences” in Africa (initiation rites, religious rituals) brought them together anew with the Roman Catholic ecclesiastical “world of experience” (pp. 183-185). Her research on “pilgrimages,” based on her own religious experience, the infant death of her daughter in 1960, made her famous since 1968 (p. 194). Edith Turner continues to be active in anthropology today.

With this historical outline, Larsen offers a fascinating study of a human discipline that feels pressured to have to logically explain everything transcendent. As a result, it develops methods that approach transcendence only insofar as they displace it into the realm of experience. Larsen, as a convinced Christian, does not necessarily remain objective himself, which he should justify more clearly in the preface. For this reason, one gets an insight into the “how” of rejecting attitudes, but misses “objective” reasons of the “why”.

 

Anthropology ; Ethnology ; Apologetics ; Church criticism ; Faith ; Christianity

Book Review: Morton, Jeff 2012. Insider Movements: Biblically Incredible or Incredibly Brilliant?

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Morton, Jeff 2012. Insider Movements: Biblically Incredible or Incredibly Brilliant? Eugene: Wipf & Stock, 126 Seiten

werner [at] forschungsinstitut.net

Jeff Morton is a professor at Biola University’s Cook School of Intercultural Studies. As in his previous works Two Messiahs (2011) and as co-editor of Chrislam (2011), in the present work, within the framework of 12 succinct articles, he has explored so-called “Insider Movements,” also called “Jesus Movements.” Inspired by movements that follow Jesus as the “Messiah” (Messiah Movements) (e.g. Messianic believers of Jewish background), he examines those from the Islamic realm. Morton goes into the – for the whole discussion very helpful – division into a theological understanding of religion, biblical foundations and the understanding of conversion. He sifts through these three areas using statements made in Evangelical Missions Quarterly (EMQ) and the International Journal of Frontiers Mission (IJFM) by key proponents Kevin Higgins (Global Team; IJFM 2004-2009), Lewis Rebecca (Fron-tiers; IJFM 2007-2010), Dudley Woodberry (Fuller Seminary; 1989; 1996; 2007), and Rick Brown (SIL International; IJFM 2004-2010). Because of its timeliness, the World Evangelical Alliance’s (WEA) denying position regarding Islam-contextualized terminology in Bible translations, published in April 2013, is not addressed. He answers questions about the identity of Muslim messiah followers, the understanding of church, and the translation of terminology objectionable to Islam in Bible translations or scriptural material in his other publications.

Right from the introduction and in the first chapter, Morton makes it clear that he views Islam as a “false religion with a false message about a false hope delivered by a false prophet, and written in a book filled with false claims” (p. 9; emphasis in original. EW). To demonstrate what he sees as the serious differences between the biblical and Quranic understandings of God, Morton uses the proper names Yahweh and Jesus in contrast to the Islamic Allah. In doing so, the anti-Christian orientation of Islam becomes clear to him above all in the Quranic textual content, which he points to as evidence throughout.

Chapter two illuminates the idea of an, according to Higgins, original orthodox Islam, which is renewed from within by Messianic Muslims and has not removed far from Original Christian views (p. 14). On the basis of the central event of the incarnation of Jesus, he shows the “anti-Christian spirit” (p. 17) of Islam, which rejects it. Morton goes on to discuss his three main arguments (see above) on the basis of selected biblical textual evidence from proponents of the Insider Movement.

He further discusses Gen 14:17-20, the appearance of Mechizedek, king of Salem (chapter three). Higgins sees in this pericope an action of God (El in v. 18 in reference to Semitic Elohim and Allah) in other religions, namely the religion of Melchizedek, which is a foreshadowing of the Messiah. Morton rejects this. The latter assumes that Melchizedek’s religion, similar to Abraham’s, worshipped the true God Yahweh at its core, and therefore took heed with Yahweh.

In chapter four, Morton discusses 2 Kings 5:15-19. According to Higgins, the story of Naaman and his cure of leprosy by the prophet Elisha is another indication that a believer should remain in his religious-cultural environment. The fact that Naaman took to Aram from Israel’s earth shows that he was to remain in his cultural-religious tradition with the prophet’s permission. Through the biblical linkage of the possession of Israel’s earth and the God of Israel now worshipped by him (v 15, 17), this story shows that one can worship Yahweh even as a non-Israelite. At the, end Morton rejects such, as an argument from silence, since no qualitative statement would be made about Naaman’s position in relation to the God of Abraham.

In chapter five, Morton discusses Jonah 1 and the position of the prophet and the ship’s crew as evidence of non-Jewish Yahweh worship. In his opinion their relationship to Yahweh, based solely on the prayers mentioned, cannot, in his view, be considered evidence of a real relationship to God.

John 4 and Acts 8 are further passages that are considered by proponents as evidence of non-Jewish followers of the Yahweh cult and are supposed to prove that these people groups remained in their religious-cultural environment (chapter 6). The conversions from the Samaritan people are often seen by proponents as examples of Insider Movements (pp. 36-37). Morton, however, again rules out such a derivation from the argument from silence. Since there is no mention of a detailed conversion of the Samaritans, nothing can be said about it.

Acts 15:19-21 (chapter 7), Acts 17:22-23, 28 (chapter 8), 1 Corinthians 7:17-20 (chapter 9), and 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 (chapter 10) round out the considerations, though the argument remains similar.

In chapter 10, Morton takes up a comparison by Woodberry that is noteworthy here. The latter sees similarities between the Decalogue of Exodus 20 and the same commandments in the Qur’an. Morton compares the two and concludes that (1) the Sabbath commandment was not taken up in the Quran because Muslims use Friday as a holiday (p. 74), (2) that there are two commandments that are not clearly answered in the Quran (no other gods, do not kill), but (3) that the other commandments also appear in the Quran. Muhammad remains a plagiarist for Morton. Interesting at this point is that Morton traces Woodberry’s remarks on an approach to Islam back to John Wilder’s 1977 article: Some Reflections on Possibilities for People Movements Among Muslims (Missiology 1977). The whole represents for Morton what has become a long-running and dangerous paradigm shift in evangelical theology.

Morton then moves on to an understanding of return and conversion and Christianization (chapter 11). He sees the main concern of the proponents of Insider Movements as wanting to avoid at all costs Christianization or, in the worst case, Westernization of faithful followers of Jesus from Islam (pp. 88-90). Morton makes it clear that this basic assumption is wrong, since a convert does not become a Christian by name, but a true Christ follower who can call himself anything he likes, but who belongs to “Christ”. In this context, cultural-religious arguments play only a minor role. Finally, Morton concludes with a clear rejection of the Insider Movements as part of true Christhood (chapter 12).

Also worth mentioning are the two appendices. Appendix 1 contains a policy statement by Bassam Madany against the initialization of Insider Movements as a Western product. Appendix 2 is an examination by Roger Dixon of Insider Movements in West Java, Indonesia. Roger Dixon has been partly involved in the movement (also in Bangladesh) and concludes that it is a false gospel and a false approach that has opened many rifts instead of closing them.

This book is helpful in getting a picture of the theology and missiology of proponents and opponents of the Insider Movement approach. It is ironic, or sarcastically negative, in places, which is consistent with the author’s “evangelical biblical” and “conservative” understanding. If a theological approach to Islam – and this is the crux of the matter in this discussion – is not desired, then one comes to such conclusions. Above all, the contention between Scripture and the Quran make this study a tool for apologetic inquiry. Finally, it should be said that the overemphasis on a Western influence in the formation of Insider Movements does not represent the whole truth. In part, Christian development workers in the Islamic world encountered pre-existing circles of messiah followers whom they took on. The latter development, however, does not appear in Morton’s work.

Book Review: Rispler-Chaim, Vardit 2007. Disability in Islamic Law

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Vardit Rispler-Chaim is a professor of Arabic studies (language and literature) at the University of Haifa. Her field of research includes the legal provisions of Islamic legislation and their ethical implications. Her publications relate to practical areas of law such as human rights (1992), medical ethics (1993), women’s rights (1995), genetic research (1998), abortion (1999), and people with physical or mental disabilities (2007). As a yield for missiology, her research broadens the view on other religions with regard to the social position there and the ethical ideas on this latter group of persons.

In 96 pages, she describes Islamic jurisprudence with regard to people with disabilities. It subdivides into the exercise of religious duties by people with limitations (pp. 19-40), the position of the same with regard to jihad (pp. 41-46), the moral-ethical opinion on marriage with regard to people with physical or mental limitations (pp. 47-68), the legal perception of intersexual people (hermaphrodites; khunta; pp. 69-74), and finally the deliberate or unconscious injury/mutilation by people (pp. 75-92). A detailed appendix contains all the important fatwas (binding legal information) on the above-mentioned areas (pp. 97-134). An index to disabilities, to the Islamic-Arabic terminology used, and to the personalities mentioned in the book (pp. 163-171) are rounding up her research.

In her introduction, Rispler-Chaim addresses the perception of people with physical or mental disabilities in the public sphere and their social position with regard to human rights. She relates Islamic terminology used in religious Arabic to currently known limitations (pp. 3-5; e.g., marid pl. marda “sick person” vs. marad “disease”). Her ethical-medical debate is based on the widely used medical model in disability studies, but she is aware of the social and cultural model (pp. 16-17). Her research also includes AIDS and intersex people (see below; pp. 10, 17), two areas on which there are a lot of fatwas. Homosexuality and AIDS are considered in Islam as a consequence of ethical and moral rejection.

World religions are similar in their social structure. There are the insiders and outsiders, the pious laity and the religiously responsible leaders (monks, clerics, etc.). Besides, people with physical or mental limitations generate in religious people the overall question of the meaning in life (theodicy). God, gods or divine powers have to be brought in line with the deviation from the normal (as also for diseases and catastrophes). In Islam, the cause of all deviation is causally founded in Allah; at the same time, it is up to the believer to seek blame not in Allah, but in himself (pp. 8-9). Reason (kafa’a, ‘aql) plays the basic prerequisite for meeting the religious demands of the religious communities (p. 20). Lack of reason excludes from or limits religious responsibility (e.g., leadership responsibility; p. 25).

Ritual purity (tahara) performs the foundation of the five Islamic religious obligations/pillars: the confession (not discussed), prayer five times (30:17; pp. 23-27), fasting (pp. 27-33), pilgrimage (pp. 34-37), alms tax (pp. 37-38).

Ritual ablutions for prayer are based, among other things, on the Qur’anic saying “In it [the Moschee. EW.] are people who like to purify themselves, and Allah loves those who purify themselves” (9:108; p. 19). People with limitations often cannot comply. Islamic jurisprudence therefore provides for exceptions. Rispler-Chaim emphasizes that each Islamic school of law has its own interpretation on this. The violation of the ritual purity commandment concerns above all the contamination by body fluids (urine, saliva, blood, menstruation, and sperm). Natural or also artificial exits are to be kept pure and closed during the prayers, e.g. by tampon, bandage, medical closures. Generally exempted are people with mental impairment, epileptics and unconscious people (p. 20). The Hanafites equate the former with children and enjoin them from the cleanings. If a person with disabilities (e.g., mobility impairment) finds help for ablution, he may use it. Alternatively to water sand is possible (special clay, dirt; p. 21, Fatwa 1996 of Mufti ‘Atiyya Saqr; 4:43; 5:6 and 2:267). There are also exceptions and recommendations for the prayer movements of kneeling, standing, lying (rak’as), such as leaning against the wall or objects. The obligatory prayer with its movements is recommended by fatwa as a rehabilitation measure (p. 27). Sheikh Muhammad Sayyid Tantawi (2000) ordered the translation of the Friday prayer for the deaf through sign language, which triggered fierce backlash as it distracted all believers (p. 2).

A role as imam is only possible to a limited extent for people with physical or mental disabilities (p. 25). Conceivable, but not preferred, are imams with limitations for the group of people they belong to (blindness, deafness, incontinence, castration).

Fasting is generally not recommended for people with paralysis in order to spare the heart. People with skin impairments, on the other hand, are advised to fast as a rehabilitation measure (p. 33).

The pilgrimage is recommended only for people who have no mobility impairment and no psychological impairment (e.g., 2:196). For those who perform the pilgrimage with assistive devices, become ill in the process, or overcome their impairment after the journey, it is not valid and should be repeated (Mufti ‘Atiyya Saqr and ‘Abd al-Qadir in 1993).

People with impairments are partially exempted from alms tax. They are compared to children who are also exempt (p. 38). As recipients, mentally impaired people in particular benefit from the tax under the aspect of poverty and need of help (9:60).

According to the interpretation, “the blind, the sick and the crippled” (24:61) are excluded from jihad, as are the mentally ill (pp. 42-43). The legislation provides exemptions for non-Muslims under Islamic rule for the disabled, as they fall under “the weak” and are considered harmless.

Rispler-Chaim discusses marriage requirements for people with disabilities, infertility, and genetic impairments (pp. 59-61). In Islamic soteriological terms, beauty, wealth, and childbearing capacity are especially rewarded (health remains unmentioned; pp. 49-52), which often generally excludes people with limitations. Since adoption is forbidden in Islam, Rispler-Chaim argues, medical methods for determining infertility or genetic defects are particularly sought after in Islam (p. 60).

Rispler-Chaim discusses intersexual people in great detail (pp. 69-74). Gender reassignment surgeries are approved by many fatwas if the “benefit” has been examined by experts (pp. 73-74). What is left open is what constitutes a “whole” man or woman.

Rispler-Chaim’s research provides deep insights into ethical and moral aspects of Islam, which are particularly evident in the treatment of people with disabilities as social indicators.

Book Review: Rynkiewich, Michael A. 2011. Soul, Self, and Society

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werner [at] researchinstitute.net

 

Prof. Michael Rynkiewich is an anthropologist at the faculty of Asbury Theological Seminary and the E. Stanley Jones School of Mission and Evangelism. His scholarly anthropological activities in the context of Christian Development Assistance go back well into the 1970s.

In this publication, Rynkiewich processes his observations on the application of anthropology as an auxiliary discipline of missiology. He works slowly through an overview of anthropology before venturing into a “Christian anthropology” (chapter 13; pp. 243-250). His assessment is self-critical and reflects on the current state of anthropological (in German-speaking countries: ethnology) research in missiology. In his opinion, a deep gap opens up, with regard to the scientific discipline of anthropology and the application of the auxiliary discipline of anthropology in the context of missiology. But more on this later. How it came to this and what ways out are provided, he presents a historical review and short overview of anthropology.

In his introduction (Chapter 1; Anthropology, Theology and Missiology), Rynkiewich describes the life of a worker named Lakan from Papua New Guinea and his economic migration. As the narrative unfolds, it becomes clear that Lakan, like most modern people, is a member of many different social networks. With regard to these developments, the concepts of culture, “mother” language, diaspora, and religion become relative in the anthropological context. In what Rynkiewich calls the “standard model of anthropology” in missiology, the above terms are assumed to be static (p. 65). This corresponds to the state of anthropology in the 1950-1960s, but since then humanity has changed significantly due to migration, diaspora, transnationalism, urbanization, and globalization. As human societies have changed, anthropological research has also evolved. However, this development did not find its way into missiology. Rather, it stuck to the static image of the family, the individual versus collective society, and the people as a homogeneous unit (common origin, common language, and homeland).

In 12 chapters, Rynkiewich works his way through the areas of culture, ethnocentrism, and contextualization (chapter 2; pp. 11-44); language, symbols, and intercultural communication (chapter 3; pp. 45-63); the self, society, and behavior (chapter 4; pp. 64-77); marriage, family, and kinship (chapter 5; pp. 78-99); economics, development, and mission (chapter 6; pp. 100-120); politics, power, and law (chapter 7; pp. 121-133); religion, faith, and ritual (chapter 8; pp. 134-154); caste, class, and ethnicity (chapter 9; pp. 155-168); colonialism, neocolonialism, and post colonialism (chapter 10; 169-197); migration, diaspora, and transnationalism (chapter 11; pp. 198-213); urbanization and globalization (chapter 12; pp. 214-242); and a Christian anthropology (chapter 13; pp. 243 – 250). With this outline, Rynkiewich embarks on a journey through the history of the fledgling scientific discipline of anthropology.

Chapter 2 begins with the self-image of a society and how it is reflected externally as “culture”. In ethnography, cultures are described externally, in ethnology (comparative anthropology; not to be confused with the German term Ethnologie) they are compared with each other. In the course of the developments of cultural descriptions (ethnographies) a “cultural relativism” has formed. This assumes that a “culture” would be unique, delimitable and homogeneous in itself (p. 27). The basis of such assumption is ethnocentrism. Such thinking led in its consequence to racism and the racial ideological expression of anthropological ways of thinking. As a result, parts of anthropology came to a dead end with the racial ideological accompaniments of both world wars. At this point, Rynkiewich interpolates a somewhat off-kilter section on “culture shock” that describes the challenges of the anthropologist and missiologist in foreign environments. He then examines the relationship of biblical message (gospel) to “culture” within the framework of contextualization (Niebuhr, Carson, Menuge, Yoder). He contrasts contextualization with ethnocentrism. His result, the message must be brought to the people in their context, that is, one’s own ethnocentrism must be broken through in favor of an enculturation of the message. The incarnation of God in the person of Jesus of Nazareth is the theological basis for this. Unfortunately, he does not explain this thesis in more detail, which would be very welcome missiologically (p. 41).

In the third chapter Rynkiewich gives an overview of linguistics in anthropology and missiology. The most important insight is, the ever faster progressing linguistic extinction of languages, which are exposed to dominant national and lingua franca. Otherwise, it is a general overview of the disciplines of linguistics and their importance for intercultural communication [this would have been better studied separately. EW.).

In the fourth chapter, Rynkiewich then breaks down the static understanding of culture within the framework of deconstructuralism (p. 65). He shows that “culture” is a product of human enculturation by means of the different and multifaceted roles and the associated status that an individual holds in different social contexts. The construct “culture” is a relative and not fixable concept, even less are “cultures” comparable with each other. Similarly, he also negates the distinction of a cultural orientation to honor and shame or sin and guilt as introduced by Ruth Fulton Benedict (1946). Nevertheless, he uses the image of the “theory to the face” (p. 74; also “name”) and describes it in the categories he criticizes (!). He therefore recommends in his summary (p. 77) that a description of society should be made from cultural, social, ecological, and historical perspectives.

In the fifth chapter on marriage, family and kinship, Rynkiewich describes various family and kinship systems that have been extensively studied around the world (Iroquois, Hawaiians, Marshallese, Americans). Polygamy, as polygyny (man – several women) and polyandry (woman – several men), he devotes to the church in the contexts where few men are accessible and where women are oppressed. He concludes that the church has developed different strategies to deal with this form of human cohabitation. The motivation for the church is purely practical. He sees a theological defense of a monogamy-heterosexual relationship anchored in the Western cultural context and not as a generally valid postulate in view of the many different social systems (pp. 95-97).

At this point, for reasons of space, we turn to the seventh chapter on politics. In this chapter, the normal zeitgeist influence in anthropology is particularly evident. The interaction of law and politics is usually treated from the inadequate viewpoint of better or less developed “public institutions” (p. 129). However, every society has effective systems to regulate dispute and conflict and thus to guarantee internal and external order (Hoebel). These institutions and their interactions should be the subject of contextualization when biblical legal systems are introduced into a new cultural context in Christian Development (p. 130). Moreover, this process is in itself deeply political and must be seen as such by the church as well.

In the tenth chapter on colonialism, neo- and post colonialism, Rynkiewich points to the close and indissoluble interlocking of anthropology and missiology as colonialist activity in history and the present (p. 169). Whether one would want to go so far with him as to accept the Western creation narrative – the search for Eden and the Promised Land – as the cause of colonialism remains to be questioned. He makes clear, however, that Christian biblical hermeneutics have been consistently flexible over the centuries in justifying colonialism (pp. 186-188). Political and ecclesiastical interests can hardly be separated in retrospect. A kenotic (kenosis = self-emptying) approach seems to him a means out of the dilemma (p. 197). As mentioned in the beginning, due to the urbanization of mankind, the globalization due to the swelling mobility and the increasing nor-mal case of the “diaspora” that goes along with it, some things become questionable. Whether people migrate within a country or worldwide (who still lives in his “homeland”), “diaspora” now describes people outside their ancestral “homeland”. A static understanding of “culture”, “mother tongue”, the individual as a “person” and even objectivity in the science of anthropology is no longer tenable today. Rather, intersubjective and deconstructive features come to the fore in describing society. First, one’s subjectivity must be named, then the object of inquiry deconstructed, and then constructed again in terms of anthropological description (Derrida).

In conclusion, the criticisms of the misuse of anthropology within missiology touched upon here are very central but not new. It weighs heavily that, against better judgment, missiology does not move here and dissolve its static view. Rynkiewich in this short outline on the coexistence of anthropology and missiology has touched on problems, but in my opinion has not pointed out alternative methods that enable the missiologist now to work anthropologically. Here anthropology itself is already quite a bit further, as the approaches of intersubjectivism and deconstructivism show. Bernard in Research Methods in Anthropology (2006) and Barnard in History and Theory in Anthropology (2000) are approaching missiology more closely in their accounts. It is the practice-based “applied anthropology” that thrives on the comparison of social and cultural idiosyncrasies, for which a structuralist perspective is necessary.

Book Reviews

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We aim to provide current contributions around evangelical missiology and its auxiliary disciplines on the topics of:

  • History, approaches, hermeneutical and exegetical research in the field of missiology
  • Anthropology
  • Theology
  • Sociology

Presentation and discussion in reviews. We would love to engage in discussion through this and welcome contributions, suggestions, or ideas.

Christian aid in times of political change – The »Orient« at the Turn of the Century (end of 19. – 20. century)

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A historical postcolonial view from the Disability Studies on social and scientific achievements

 

Eberhard Werner

 

Abstract

In this essay the historical discourse about the Christian-Islamic rapprochement in the Orient around the turn of the century to the 20th century regarding the tasks for Christian development aid organizations is considered. The power conflicts that arise represent the Christian-Islamic discourse of this time. The so-called “contact zones” of these encounters took place at different epochs and in different spheres of life, which is why the historical analysis of the “contact zones” is significant. It examines the development and influence of Christian development aid organizations and their actors on the political and religious developments of that time. The following focuses and developments are limited and considered: * Printed matter and Bible translations, * Education and research priorities, especially of scientific societies of Oriental Studies, * the importance of transnational focal points, so-called mission-stations, schools, hospitals, and lastly * the discourse around marginalized strata of the population and the maintenance of orphanages, homes and institutions. In the context of Disability Studies, the integrative and inclusive participation thoughts of the actors are of particular interest. The Christoffel Blindenmission (CBM) with its pedagogical-diaconal approach, founded in 1907/1908 as the Christian Mission in the Orient, is an example of the reflections. The ethnographic approach used here shows diachronic-postcolonial discourses on this region known as the Orient. It includes eastern Anatolia, western Iran, northern Iraq and northern Syria.

1. Islamic-Christian Discourses in the Orient – Historical Observations

This article is written from a Christian-Western perspective. As part of an intersubjective approach, personal experiences, observations and research from the field of research supplement the historical facts.

In the 19th century, the Orient regains its magic for the European and American powers. A similar fascination is reported by the 11-12. century. It was mainly inspired by the political-religious church-directed military campaigns (“crusades”) and some adventurous pilgrims to Asia (e.g. the Italian Marco Polo * 1254- † 1324). From this time, the encounter of St. Francis (* 1182- † 1226) with the Egyptian Sultan Al-Kamil Muhammad al-Malik (* 1177- † 1238) in 1219 is handed down to us. Their talks represent the beginning of the interreligious dialogue between Christianity and Islam. Contrary to this positive event, this epoch must also be regarded as the first wave of colonial aspirations of the West in the East. They were preceded by Islamic-colonial aspirations in the eighth century, which extended across North Africa to Western Europe. The “reconquista,” the liberation of the Iberian peninsula, ended the 780-year Islamic rule over Spain and Portugal. It began in 711 and ended in 1492. After the fall of Constantinople and the Byzantines in 1453 by the Ottoman Emperor Sultan Mehmed II the Conqueror (* 1432- † 1481), turned the covetous view of the Western powers on the world discovery or -conquest. The Italian Christopher Columbus (Genoa, ~ * 1451-† 1506) became the most famous face of the time.

Above all, the anti-Ottoman mood of the Reformation, triggered by the Ottoman sieges of Vienna in 1529 by Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (~ * 1494- † 1566) and 1683 by Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa Pasha (~ * 1634- † 1683), who went down in history as the “Turkish wars”, represented the low point of European-Ottoman relations. With King Frederick I (* 1657- † 1713) came as an Ottoman honor gift twenty Turkish lancers into the army of the “long guys”. In favor of this, they were allowed in Berlin in 1739 an Islamic place of worship, a cemetery and an Islamic mosque planting. With this step, preceded by diplomatic relations, the political bridge was breached to Constantinople.

In the 19th century, the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM)1Founded in 1810 in Massachusetts as a result of Second Awakening. This institution went on from 1957 on in the United Church of Christ. and the British and Foreign Bible Society (BFBS)2Founded in 1804 in London by William Wilberforce of the Clapham Saints or Clapham Cleavage . Today based in Swinton / UK. began to focus their attention and work on the Orient. During this time developed

the general interest of Christian-diaconal organizations in China (Hildesheimer Blindenmission) and the Near East3The Hildesheim Blind Mission has this focus and needs China Inland Mission (Overseas Missionary Fellowship Today) be seen in connection to Hudson Taylor (1905 * 1832- †). Detailed Ortmann, Bernhard 2017. The Hildesheimer Blindenmission in Hong Kong: Blind and visually impaired children in the factory and perception of a women’s mission, ca. 1890-1997. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner. (Christian Mission in the Orient, today Christoffel Blindenmission),
furthermore the Christian service by single women and
the medical orientation and education Christian development aid organizations.
This article looks at Eastern Anatolia, the West-Iran, northern Iraq, Lebanon and northern Syria. At that time, political and economic forces as well as American Christian developmental forces had discovered the Orient as an operative-diaconal sphere of influence.4Uta Zeuge-Buberl names the year 1819 as the beginning of the activity of the ABCFM in the eastern part of the Ottoman Empire. 80 Christian workers and their families settled there for a long time (2017: 13-14). At that time, the Ottoman authorities opened to the Western powers, with France under Napoleon Bonaparte cooperating with the Ottoman rulers, Germany as a military protector and America as a new nation, especially for inventiveness and new developments. The Orient stepped in the foreground in Western literature, science and politics as a strategic research and action object.5Karl May’s fictional travel narratives reflect this time. According to this epoch he glorifies the Orient in the wilderness of Kurdistan [1881 final 1892]. Interestingly, he collapses under the weight of the realities of the Orient during his later travels in 1899-1902. As will be shown, Western academic Orientalism, Egyptology, Iranian Studies, and Islamic and religious studies have their origins in this historical period.

The Basel Mission was asked in 1829 by Robert Pinkerton if she wanted to start a work in the Orient under “Kurds”6The terms “Kurdish”, “Kurdistan” or “Kurdish” refer to a political, ethnic and religious conglomeration of peoples and language groups. They gather around the Taurus and Zagros Mountains, the West Iranian plateaus, the northern Syrian desert area and northern Iraq. One theory is that the name derives from the crunching noise “kurr, kurr, kurr” as it passes through the snow. The decisive factor is that neither the international community nor the »Kurds« themselves call a state entity their own or that they would be able to rule autonomously, except in northern Iraq (the Sorani region).. He himself was a member of the Russia British and Foreign Bible Society (founded 1804). The employees Christian Gottlieb Hoernle (*1804-†unknown, Ludwigsburg / Southern Germany) and F. E. Schneider arrived in Tabriz in 1834. Later, Christian Friedrick Hass [*1801] and Asahel Grant joined them. They belonged to the ABCFM. This was founded in 1810 and since 1870 a congregational body, which integrated in 1957 in the United Church of Christ. From the beginning the ABCFM was closely associated with the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Mission (founded 1837), today Presbyterian Mission Agency. Hoernle, after two trips through the Kurdistan region, abandoned the project due to linguistic, racial ideological7The ideological race did its peak in the 19th and 20th century. Due to the National Socialism and the associated abuse it became scientific off. It is only because of the scientific possibilities of the 1980s of the last century, especially DNA and genes to analyze, finds the genetically-related race and descent theory in the scientific world, especially in cultural anthropology and archeology and forensics again new hearing (D ‘Andrade 1995: 1-2 biological anthropology). and logistical challenges. He named the following, in his opinion, unsolvable challenges:

·         the diversity of peoples, languages ​​and dialects of Eastern Anatolia (Armenian, Turkish, Kurmanji, Zazaki, Domari, Lazic, Lom, etc.).

·         the historical powers and their influence. In particular, the following political constellations: the great empire of Armenia, the Kurdistan region, the Russian occupation and the colonial occupation of Italy, France and Great Britain.

·         the peculiarity of tribal Kurdish peoples who roamed their environment within their tribes and clans as nomads and robbers. They were considered ineducable. Last

·         the geographically difficult and climatically challenging operational area: high mountain ranges (e. g. Taurus, Nemrut), deep river and stream runs (Euphrates, Tigris, Pulumur, Murat) and plateaus with dangerous caves, incisions and morays (Blincoe 1998: 37 refers to Waldburger 1983).

At the same time, in 1830, the Christian development workers Eli Smith and Harrison Gray Otis Dwight (ABCFM) traveled from Smyrna (today’s Izmir) to the interior of Anatolia and to eastern Anatolia (30). Immediately after this discovery of the Orient, a whole wave of Western Christian development workers came into the area. They understood themselves as “ambassadors of Christ”(ambassadors for Christ) following 2 Corinthians 5:20 and are now referred to as “cultural brokers” or “cultural mediators” in historical research because they mediate between cultures (reciprocal cultural information exchange Zeuge-Buberl 2017:16). The Ottoman authorities and the leaders of the local ethnic groups called them Christian “missionaries”. From then on, the term found a negative connotation that continues to this day, which goes hand in hand with “imperialist, fascist, invader, public enemy, spy” or similar.8Interestingly, in public space in Turkey, the English term “mission” dt. Mission is value neutral in the sense of mission / task. Website appearances or descriptions of Turkish institutions use the term together with engl. »Vision« “German vision / objective. In contrast, the election propaganda of Turkish politicians uses and defines the Turkish term “missionarlar”, or missionaries, on their billboards as anti-state elements (own observations). This is a significant difference to the African or Far Eastern context, where the perception of Christian-Ecclesiastical Aid Services and their actors has been received rather positively (Sanneh 1992:105, 115). Emic (insider perspective) and etic (perspective from outside) postcolonial studies are very different at this point. They are represented by Christian actors in the context of the historical clerical development service by cultural imperialism. This is regarded in postcolonial research as Western-Christian arrogance, which relies on Western economic, military and humanitarian superiority.

The initial interest in Islam was not lost, but escaped through several valves. This had different, but at least two main reasons: Firstly, the self-perception of Muslim rulers and their population as superior to the West, challenged the Christian workers deeply in their cultural-imperialist approach. The own superiority of Christian values ​​was shaken in its foundations. Second, the harsh conversion ban on Islamic rulers was a huge hurdle. Thus, the focus moved to the Jewish as well as the non-Islamic population and especially on the Christian peoples (Armenians, Aramaeans) and ethnic groups (Nestorians, Russian Orthodox, Georgians) in the area of ​​eastern Anatolia, present-day Lebanon, northern Syria, Iraq and Persia. The initial dialogue with the Jewish population remained fruitless as well as with the Muslims. Hope was risen for liberation from the yoke of Islam, in particular the burdening tax, which Christian peoples and ethnic groups had to pay in regard to their dhimmi status, as tolerated fellow citizens in the area of the dar as islam “house of Islam”. They therefore first opened up to the Western cultural mediators. But from early on, the church leaders feared the collapse of their own structures. Referred to as “(New) Nestorians,” local churches formed in a Western pattern. They distinguished themselves from their ancestral churches (Blincoe 1998: 33, 35). In particular, the Armenian Orthodox Church, the Assyrian churches and the Nestorians took defensive measures to the invocation of the Ottoman authorities. At the same time, the Islamic peoples (Kurds, Lazens, Zaza) were cautious by the increase in power of their Christian neighbors.

The Kurdish leaders also came into political conflict with the Ottoman rulers in Constantinople (officially Istanbul in 1930). Since 1840, the High Gate (dynasty in Constantinople) has directly asserted its influence in the East by telegraph and strategically placed military bases. The self-enrichment of Kurdish (»mir«) and Armenian (»raya«) tribal rulers was curtailed. The oppression of Christian minorities by the Kurds, which was often slavery-like, was opposed (Kieser 2000: 120), as a result of the tanzimat reforms of 1839. The non-Islamic people groups fell under the state-sovereign institutions of millet and thus under the protection of the Sublime Porte (Problem area see below). The resulting “contact zones” (contact zones) formed areas of friction of various interests and power potentials (Pratt 1991:34)9Pratt, Marie Louise 1991. Arts of the Contact Zone. Profession. Modern Language Association of America 19, 33-40. New York: MLA..

2. Crashes between Political Forces – Political-Ethnic Discourses

It is astonishing that despite political instability in these regions, Christian cultural brokers in the Church’s development service were concerned with inclusive pedagogical approaches. Pastor Ernst Lohmann (*1860- †1936, German auxiliary federation founded 1896), Dr. med. Johannes Lepsius (*1858- †1926, German Orient Mission – DOM founded in 1895 and Lepsius German Orient Mission – LDOM founded in 1917) and the Swiss Aid Association had already founded orphanages in the Ottoman Empire out of a pedagogical interest. In this time and interest also falls the work of the sisters Christoffel. The political discourse surrounding the mission of the Christian Mission in the East (founded in 1908), which was renamed after the death of Ernst Jakob Christoffel (*1876- †1955) to Christoffel Blindenmission (CBM), can not be understood without the ongoing conflict potentials of these days. In particular, the developments around the decaying Ottoman Empire from the middle of the 19th century are significant. These include the so-called political “Kurdish question” and the religious problem area of ​​the “Alevis”, a Zoroastrian-Gnostic faith that is made up of Turkish, Kurdish and Zazaan followers.
These two, until today unresolved challenges from Ottoman times, form the starting point for the encounter of the power parties in Eastern Anatolia. Both questions become political-religious as they demand ethnic differentiation and religious freedom. To give these freedoms, the authorities in the Ottoman Empire (Constantinople), with the solution  of millet separation (see tanzimat -Reformenbelow), as well as in the modern centralized Turkish Republic (Ankara), were only partially prepared. How it came about and how the Christian development aid worked out there should now be considered.

The numerous “Kurdish” uprisings help to understand the power encounter. It is above all the Christian cultural mediators who reported biographically as contemporary witnesses of these events, namely the ABCFM, which cooperated closely with the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Mission (see above), the BFBS and later those German Christian aid agencies that focused on the Orient.10For the positive effect of Christian services worldwide and historically see Kieser (2000: 24) in 7 theses or also witness Buberl (2017: 16-17, 26).

The modern period of rebellion begins with Bedr Khan (Bedri Khan / Bedr Khan / Bedir Khan, *1803-†1868). He became famous for developing an alphabet of the Kurdish languages ​​Kurmanji and Sorani. His efforts were purely political in nature, less Kurdish-nationalist than tribalist power and influence (Heper 2007: 44-45). In consultation with the Ottoman leadership, he is responsible, together with Nurallah from Hakkari and Agha Ismael Pasha from Amadiya, for two massacres against the Christian Assyrians in the Mosul area and north of them in what is today the Turkish Mardin. First in 1843 and then in 1846 over 10,000 Christian Assyrians were executed. The Presbyterian development report from this period demonstrates that by Justin Perkins and Asahel Grant (Blincoe 1998: 15).

In 1880, Sheikh Ubeydullah (*1826- †1883) called for the establishment of an Islamic caliphate under Kurdish leadership in the area around Şemdinan, Hakkari province (Kieser 2000: 127-132). His national-Kurdish insurrection was based on a religious eschatology of near healing fulfillment (Olson 1989: 1-2).11Eschatological judgments of judgment and salvation are part of Abrahamic religions. Immediate expectations, promises of salvation and the appearance of charismatic leaders who appear as messiahs, mahdi or prophets can be found in Jewish, Christian and Islamic historiography. More recently, it was ISIS / Daesh who took political promises of salvation politically to their advantage. These movements do not always have to be bloody or military, but they are always exclusive in their appearance (eg, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Jesuits, Hasidim, Mewlana, Ahle Haqq). He was a reaction to political power changes. sultan MahmudII.(* 1784- † 1839) and his reform-inspired son Sultan AbdulmejidI.(*1823-†1861) generated by the reconnaissance moved tanzimatclass (Turkish “reorganization”) with a view to modernization. They were from 1839 to 1876 and ended with the first constitutional epoch. Sultan Abdulhamid II. (Abdul Hamid II, Renz 1985: 66) directs her to an Islamic-religious course (Kieser 2000: 120-121, Heper 2007: 44). The sphere of influence of Ubeydullah ranged from today’s Hakkari, Van and Urmia lakes to the northern provinces of Iraq.12This region was performed in the transition from the Ottoman Empire to the Turkish Republic from 1919 to 1920 by the Kurdish separatists Simko shekak and proclaimed in the aftermath of World War II for a few months of the year 1946 as a Kurdish Republic of Mahabad. He was a leader from the still influential Sunni Nakshebendi Order. This can be traced back to the 15th century, but it reached its heyday in the 19th century (Bruinessen 1992: 273-274, Levtzion 1997: 150-151). In 1881, Sheikh Ubeydullah surrendered to the Ottoman authorities and came to Western exile to Istanbul and elsewhere (Olson 1989). The Christian medical development aid dr. Joseph Cochran, of the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Mission, testified about this time, as he was in close contact with his personal physician, although he did not agree with Sheikh Ubeydallah’s policy (Kieser 2000: 129). It was usus for the rulers Usus and also had a certain fate to use foreign or non-Islamic professionals for personal assistance. To compensate for conflict between Kurdish and Ottoman forces,the Ottomans  founded under Caliph Abdulhamid II (*1842- †1918) from 1878, the “light cavalry.” They were named “Hamidiye” units based on the name of the caliph. As elite units, they could appeal directly to him. They were organizationally assigned to larger Ottoman units, but consisted in part of relatively autonomous Kurdish military (Olson 1989: 7-13, 18-19). It was also these units who essentially coordinated and initiated the massacres of the Armenians, the Christian and non-Islamic ethnic groups (Aramaeans, Greeks, Yezidis, Alevis).

In Iran from 1918-1922, the first politically motivated “Kurdish” so-called Simko Shikak revolt took place west of Urmia Lake. At the same time started, in the not yet established Turkish Republic, in the provinces of Sivas, Tunceli (formerly Dêsim / Dersim), and Erzincan, the Alevi Triangle, a conflict with the ruling Sunni Islamic Muslims. As a result of the vacuum of the ended colonial occupation13Detained in the Treaty of Sèvres on 10 August 1920. it came to political instability. In 1921, the religiously motivated Alevite flared there Kızılbaş Koçgiri Revolt, also called Ümraniye Hadisesi (German: Ümraniye incident) (1989: 32, 35-38).14Türk. Kızılbaş is called “red head” and is said to come from the red Alevite headgear. She had the political wrangling in the transition to the Turkish Republic (1923) as background. Nuri Dersimi , was her best known representative (Olson 1989: 28-29).

This uprising, initiated by Zaza’s Alevis, was bloodily crushed and formed the basis for the so-called zaz. Tertele , which in 1938 led to the destruction and devastation of countless villages and entire tracts of land around today’s Tunceli. It was followed by mass deportations from 1938, the establishment of state-paid “village guards” (locals) and permanent local Turkish and military presence. This rebellion burned into the collective memory of the Alevi Zaza and was under Pir Reza / Rıza executed (Kieser 2000: 20; zaz. Pir dt. “Elder”). Politically ended the era of the founder of the state Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (*1881- †1938) and uncertainty spread.

In between, there was the Sunni Kurdish-Zaza Sheikh Said Uprising in 1925. This religiously initiated uprising must be understood as a showdown with the newly established Turkish republic and the sunken Ottoman Caliphate. The Caliphate should be reintroduced under Kurdish leadership.15The most recent parallel is found in the territorial foundation of the now defeated the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) by the same organization as DAESH known. Their territorial claims in the border region of northern Iraq to eastern Syria also include settlement areas of the Kurmanji and Sorani-speaking Kurds. Here, too, had used its influence to the Nakshebendi Order. The rebellion was also bloodily suppressed. He was essentially based on Zaza forces that allied with other Kurdish tribes, but which turned away towards the end of the revolt (Olson 1989: 35). For the Sunni Zaza (Hanifi, Shafi) the uprising became a symbol of resistance and defeat. Foreign reporters and Christian cultural mediators were not present due to the events of the World War or could not comment publicly. The travel ban in eastern Anatolia had also met Ernst Jakob Christoffel, who then moved towards Tabriz and Isfahan. He had started with his younger sister Hedwig Christoffel, she moved with him as a substitute for a then required wife, with a more than 2-year mission in an orphanage in Sivas (1904-1907), which was under the direction of the Swiss Hülfsbund. From 1908, both focused their attention on visually impaired orphans in Malatya. All pedagogical tools for the education of this group of people, such as a Turkish or Armenian braille alphabet and reading material were developed by them.

The Turkish military coups of 1960,16In 1961, the German recruitment of Turkish “guest workers” from eastern Anatolia was added. 1980 and the so-called quiet uprising in 1994 as well as the coup d’état in 2016 brought the conflict areas to the forefront again. The repressions that followed led, as before, to Aramaic, Assyrian, Kurdish and Alevi waves of emigration to Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, the USA and Australia. This order describes the popularity of the migration goals. The impact of these uprisings on Christian organizations and workers now comes into focus.

3. Three directions of Christian development services in the Orient

The printing industry (1), the research institutes (2) and the schools as pedagogical centers (3) represent the thrusts of Christian development aid organizations in the 19th and 20th centuries. The ABCFM initially focused on centrally located stations concentrated. Following the example of military-economic colonial expansion, outposts and outposts were set up. They had the tasks of medical care and the education of help-seeking locals. They were involved in a strategic supply network. Following the Jewish Law (Hebrew Bible) and the New Testament, social justice was especially important for orphans, women and marginalized groups. The network followed the Western idea of ​​the local church, which in turn came from medieval monasteries and monasteries. In Africa and Asia, this colonial expansion was established, but found littlesupport in the Orient. If one considers the social discourse of the central stations, it turns out that in the Orient the social network was fulfilled by the militarily and economically linked “caravanserai” as the center of social life. Around them developed the religious (mosque, cem-evi engl. “Community house”) and economic activity (commercial centers). The Christian approaches remained foreign bodies. Over time, the medical and pedagogical idea became locally established, but the socially permeating holistic approach was only partially effective. Here, the orphanage, the creation of institutions for people with physical or mental disabilities or the maintenance of schools met the nerve of local diaconal needs better. In particular, the Swiss, the German Orient Mission (Dr. Lepsius) or the homes of Christoffel are important because of their target group approach (Homogeneous Unit Principle according to McGavran 199017The Homogenous Unit Principle (HUP) was justified by McGavran by arguing that homogeneous groups of language, culture, traditions, customs, and customs could best be achieved with a contextualized gospel. Above all, David Bosch sensed here a hidden racism and vehemently rejected the principle (Frost & Hirsch 2004: 51-52). But nowadays, the dream of heterogeneous society-penetrating churches or churches is a dream. Except for so-called “social blurring,” which is 2-4% of the community members who leave their own social group for special occasions out of curiosity, close personal ties or also the thirst for adventure, the respective denominations reflect their peer group. Be it the middle class of established communities (Brethren, Mennonites, Baptists, Gnadauer Association, etc.) the young generation in special target group communities (ICF, Jesus Freaks) or even the national churches according to their various organizations (YMCA, Boy Scouts).).

Due to the lack of response from the local populations to the stations, only the printing industry remained to distribute (religious) printed matter, which consisted of schools and medical facilities. The schools have had a lasting impact and some have been transferred to the national school system as professional institutions in the 20th century (see below). The stimulated social, political and religious impulses can only be guessed.

Little is known of this time from the social discourse of people with physical or mental limitations. Neither, as they were perceived in the social latitude, nor as the Christian institutions and organizations encountered them, nor do we learn of handicapped Christian workers of the ABCFM, BFBS or other institutions, which would have affected the perception of the cultural brokers. For instance cultural broker Betty Warth, herself visually impaired worked in the Malatya orphanage with a huge impact (Thüne 2007: 75). Purely statistically18It can be assumed that on average 5-10% of the population live with disabilities. For this UNESCO has published statistics for years. and due to the many wars and the then limited medical possibilities, this is still a question of perhaps unconscious repression of people with impairments this interesting question remains for Disability Studies.

The inclusive view of pedagogical-diaconal development aid on people with visual, physical and mental limitations had consequences for the whole society, which, however, proved to be unsustainable due to political upheavals. From personal stories of the successor generations, the high esteem that was paid to these institutions for a long time (see the school in Çüngüş about 100 km southeast of Malatya, personal interview with M. H. 2010) becomes clear.

In Christoffel’s life’s work, we find the focus on this pedagogical line of Christian development aid. He also follows the principle of the boarding school, that is a holistic institution in the sense of a service institution. Here Christoffel is completely in the diaconal tradition of Christian development aid of the 19th and 20th centuries.

The cultural imperialism of the American institutions, which he denounced, had already opposed an anti-colonialist approach to preaching in the mid-nineteenth century (Zeuge-Buberl 2017: 16-17). But this did not seem to be obvious to their colleagues from other nations. At this point, it should not be forgotten that “American culture” is a pluralistic-heterogeneous one in its history, and that there are serious differences to the likewise multi-layered “German worlds of life” (e. g. intercultural teams in Roembke 2000: 14, 21 and others).

Considering the efforts of the ABCFM (today’s Syria), the American Bible Society (ABS), the London Religious Tract Society, the American Tract Society or the BFBS, it is initially preferred to distribute literature via printing presses, especially in Turkish and Arabic (Zeuge-Buberl 2017: 42). Slowly these printing presses are turning into native hands and form the basis for local newspapers and printed matter. It can rightly be summed up that the transcription and distribution of written material in the commercial languages ​​of the ruling peoples in the East was driven by the influence of Christian cultural mediators in the 19th century.

4. Research Societies – Preparation of Educational Institutions

Prior to the digital age, the foundation of an educational approach was the ability to transcribe and disseminate knowledge about printed matter. A condition that came to pass. From 1840, the focus of development aid organizations is on scientific research societies. These include the American Oriental Society (1842, based in Ann Arbor), Syro-Egyptian Society19Founded in 1844 in London, from 1872 merged with the Society of Biblical Archeology of 1870, which ceased its work in 1919., German Oriental Society (1845 in Leipzig, since 2006 in Halle) and the Syria Society of Literature and Arts (1847 in Beirut, Witness -Buberl 2017: 79-81). Later, the German Orient Society (1898 in Berlin) is added. The idea is to stimulate education, research and science at the local level, especially in Turkish and Arabic. At the same time, the cultures and languages ​​of the Orient should be brought closer to the Western public in the sense of an anthropological-linguistic and ethnological approach. These research institutes, which are committed to Oriental studies, Arabic studies and Iranian studies, are still active today. Also university facilities emerged during this time. For example, in 1839 founded  Robert College, which  merged in 1971 to Boğazıcı University (Kieser 2000: 101). With the late state takeover and leadership by local forces, these institutions lose their diaconal Christian orientation.

5. Focus on Disability Studies- orphans and people with

From the nineties of the 19th century on, the ABCFM  began through orphanages in conjunction with schools its work in eastern Anatolia. From 1896 on, German development workers from the German Orient Mission (Friesdorf / Harz) like Lepsius (Damianov 2003: 24) worked locally.20Dr. Lepsius was involved in founding the Hilfsbund and the German Orient Mission in 1896. In 1917, Dr. Because of the silence and attitude of the DOM, Lepsius was a member of the Armenian genocide and founded Dr. med. Lepsius GermanMission Orientation(LDOM). There was a demarcation of evangelistic aid workers like Pastor Wilhelm Faber. Its work was settled among the Jewish and Muslim population. Rather, the diaconia and the love service among the old-established churches, especially the persecuted Armenians, came to the fore. With Ernst Lohmann and Dr. Lepsius who joined in 1896, the German Help League for Christian love work in the Orient moved in the same footsteps. The Hamidian Massacre of the Armenians (1894-1896), named after the Sultan Abd ul Hamid II, moved the focus of many Western development aid organizations instantly to the needs of the fleeing, uprooted, lingering Armenian population and especially on the children, orphans and helpless persons. Tessa Hofmann describes the collective Armenian memory of this as well as the annihilations of the years 1909, 1914-1915:

The contents of our events are those events which in Armenian are called mets jererni – in English the “great crime” or the “great sacrilege” in Greek as sphagi and xerisomos and in Aramaic as sayfo or gunhe. Sphagi means massacre, xerisomos uprooting, sayfo sword (annihilation) and the gunhe equivalent to it means fatalities. (Hofmann 2007: 17).

The siblings Hedwig and Ernst Jakob Christoffel focused on visually impaired people. Her pedagogical target group-oriented diaconal approach led her first to Malatya, later to Ernst Jakob Christoffel to Tabriz and Isfahan, following the respective political developments on a regional and local level (Thüne 2007, Schmidt-König 1969). The aim of the institutions was the holistic education and social integration of orphans through occupations that guaranteed independence and training opportunities. The representation of as craftsmen (e. g. wood and textile processing), teachers with special attention to people with physical and mental limitations as well as medico-therapeutic professions belonged to the repertoire of the institutions.

Inevitably, the social refusal or incapacity to deal with this group of people included the task of development aid workers to show the social relevance of these persons. It was not until the active diaconia that the overall social significance of inclusion with regard to integration became clear. The diversity of society is reflected in its integrating function. Christoffel had this in mind, but remained a child of his time, that he did not short-circuit with the local authorities in a sustainable way, but intervened in the local structures from the outside and so his works did not survive the political transformations.

6. Conclusion – Christian Diakonia in inter-religious discourse

Initially addressed to the Muslim population, the service of love focused on the traditional Christian churches in the Orient in the course of disappointment.

·         Political-religious regulations narrowed the diaconal scope. These included the ban on conversion, the strict gender and ethnic separation due to the millet regulations. The latter provided official protection to the various religious and ethnic groups, but was not guaranteed locally and marginalized them in addition to their dhimmi status (citizens with special status).

·         The ethnic-religious social diversity of the region called for linguistic and cultural adaptation. These include Aramaeans, Arabs, Romanes, Armenians, Lazes, Kurmanji Kurds, Zaza-born groups, Turks. Nomadism, Yazidis, mystics (Mewlana), Alevis and the different Islamic schools of law and orientations (Hanifi, Sheikh, Hanbali, Sufi).

·         The strictly hierarchical tribal structures. Local feudal lords appear as agha (political force), pir (political-religious force), sheikh (politico-religious force), mir (dt prince, political force). These local powers are highly sensitive and quick to mobilize, so that excesses of violence are rarely prevented (eg slander, robbery, kidnapping). Activities by “strangers” are critically eyed. Today’s restructuring according to economic factors brings about a vacuum of social cohesion. The “we” gives way to an “I” feeling which prevents common endeavors. This is particularly evident in the Zaza people, who until today did not develop a uniform writing system for native-language publications.

·         The topography of eastern Anatolia with high mountain ranges, deep valleys and wide rivers. The poor accessibility requires enormous mobility and logistical effort. Aids, care and social contacts are difficult to obtain.

Except for the last observation, which plays only a minor role due to modern mobility, these observations are true to this day, albeit in a different form. The Turkish legal system, the dissolution of the tribal structures and the central educational policy play their part in shifting the boundaries of the contact zones.

The international arrangements for the participation, integration and inclusion of persons with disabilities were ratified by the US / UK / Germany / Iran / Turkey and Syria in 2009 and Iraq in 2013.21https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-15… (as of 2018-08-09). None of the initiatives started with people with disabilities survived the political changes on the ground. Nonetheless, the Christoffel Blindenmission persists in the successing organizations.

It can be concluded that the forced focus on Armenians and orphans led to a one-sided focus on the traditional Christian circles in eastern Anatolia. In addition, however, the fate of visually impaired, physically and mentally challenged people in this context was a vision shared only by Christoffels. The other Christian relief organizations in the Orient did not share this perspective. This is where disability studies begin, as this focus was not foreseeable. As with the Hildesheimer Blindenmission it remains to further research, which influences favored this focus.

Bibliography

Blincoe, Robert 1998. Ethnic Realities and the Church – Lessons from Kurdistan – A History of Mission Work, 1668-1990. Pasadena: Presbyterian Center for Mission Studies.

Bruinessen, Martin M. van [1989] 1992. Agha, Sheikh and the State – Kurdistan Politics and Society. 2nd renewed edition Berlin: Edition Parabolis.

D’Andrade, Roy 1995. The Development of Cognitive Anthropology. Cambridge: Cabridge University Press.

Frost, Michael & Hirsch, Alan 2004. The Shaping of Things to Come. Innovation and Mission for the 21st Century Church. 4th ed. Peabody: Hendrickson.

Heper, Metin 2007. The State and Kurds in Turkey. The Question of Assimilation. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Hofmann, Tessa 2007. Speaking with One Voice – Against Genocide: Opening, in Hofmann, Tessa (ed.): Persecution, Expulsion and Annihilation of Christians in the Ottoman Empire 1912-1922Lecture, 17-59. 2nd Edition. Berlin: LIT publishing house.

Kieser, Hans-Lukas 2000. The Missed Peace: Mission, Ethnicity and State in the Eastern Provinces of Turkey 1839-1938. Zurich: Chronos.

McGavran, Donald A. 1990.growth Understanding church. Lörrach: Wolfgang Simson Verlag.

Olson, Robert 1989. The Emergence of Kurdish Nationalism and the Sheikh Said Rebellion, 1880-1925. Austin: University of Texas Press.

Ortmann, Bernhard 2017. The Hildesheimer Blindenmission in Hong Kong: Blind and visually impaired children in the factory and perception of a women’s mission, ca. 1890-1997. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner.

Pikkert, Peter 2008. Protestant Missionaries to the Middle East: Ambassadors of Christ or Culture? Hamilton: WEC Canada.

Pratt, Marie Louise 1991. Arts of the Contact Zone. Profession (Modern Language Association of America) 19, 33-40. New York: MLA.

Renz, Alfred 1985. Land around the Ararat: East Turkey – Armenia. Second revised edition. Munich: Prestel.

Roembke, Lianne 2000. Building Credible Multicultural Teams. Pasadena: William Carey.

Schmidt-König, Fritz 1973. Ernst J. Christoffel: Father of the blind in the Orient. 9th ed. Casting: Brunnen-Verlag.

Thüne, Sabine 2007. Ernst Jakob Christoffel – A Life in the Service of Jesus: Ernst Jakob Christoffel Founder of the Christian Blind Mission in the Orient, The Circle of Friends, Employees on the basis of letters, writings and documents on behalf of the Christoffel-Blindenmission. Nuremberg: VTR.

Witness Buberl, Uta 2017. The Mission of the American Board in Syria: Implications of a Transcultural Dialogue. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner.

 

Dr. Eberhard Werner, Institute for Evangelical Missiology (IfeM), casting.

Institute for evangelical missiology

Rathenaustrasse 5

35394 Giessen

 

 

[1] Founded in 1810 in Massachusetts as a result of Second Awakening. This institution went on from 1957 on in the United Church of Christ.

[2] Founded in 1804 in London by William Wilberforce of the Clapham Saints or Clapham Cleavage . Today based in Swinton / UK.

[3] The Hildesheim Blind Mission has this focus and needs China Inland Mission (Overseas Missionary Fellowship Today) be seen in connection to Hudson Taylor (1905 * 1832- †). Detailed Ortmann, Bernhard 2017. The Hildesheimer Blindenmission in Hong Kong: Blind and visually impaired children in the factory and perception of a women’s mission, ca. 1890-1997. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner.

[4] Uta Zeuge-Buberl names the year 1819 as the beginning of the activity of the ABCFM in the eastern part of the Ottoman Empire. 80 Christian workers and their families settled there for a long time (2017: 13-14). At that time, the Ottoman authorities opened to the Western powers, with France under Napoleon Bonaparte cooperating with the Ottoman rulers, Germany as a military protector and America as a new nation, especially for inventiveness and new developments.

[5] Karl May’s fictional travel narratives reflect this time. According to this epoch he glorifies the Orient in the wilderness of Kurdistan [1881 final 1892]. Interestingly, he collapses under the weight of the realities of the Orient during his later travels in 1899-1902.

[6] The terms “Kurdish”, “Kurdistan” or “Kurdish” refer to a political, ethnic and religious conglomeration of peoples and language groups. They gather around the Taurus and Zagros Mountains, the West Iranian plateaus, the northern Syrian desert area and northern Iraq. One theory is that the name derives from the crunching noise “kurr, kurr, kurr” as it passes through the snow. The decisive factor is that neither the international community nor the »Kurds« themselves call a state entity their own or that they would be able to rule autonomously, except in northern Iraq (the Sorani region).

[7] The ideological race did its peak in the 19th and 20th century. Due to the National Socialism and the associated abuse it became scientific off. It is only because of the scientific possibilities of the 1980s of the last century, especially DNA and genes to analyze, finds the genetically-related race and descent theory in the scientific world, especially in cultural anthropology and archeology and forensics again new hearing (D ‘Andrade 1995: 1-2 biological anthropology).

[8] Interestingly, in public space in Turkey, the English term “mission” dt. Mission is value neutral in the sense of mission / task. Website appearances or descriptions of Turkish institutions use the term together with engl. »Vision« “German vision / objective. In contrast, the election propaganda of Turkish politicians uses and defines the Turkish term “missionarlar”, or missionaries, on their billboards as anti-state elements (own observations).

[9] Pratt, Marie Louise 1991. Arts of the Contact Zone. Profession. Modern Language Association of America 19, 33-40. New York: MLA.

[10] For the positive effect of Christian services worldwide and historically see Kieser (2000: 24) in 7 theses or also witness Buberl (2017: 16-17, 26).

[11] Eschatological judgments of judgment and salvation are part of Abrahamic religions. Immediate expectations, promises of salvation and the appearance of charismatic leaders who appear as messiahs, mahdi or prophets can be found in Jewish, Christian and Islamic historiography. More recently, it was ISIS / Daesh who took political promises of salvation politically to their advantage. These movements do not always have to be bloody or military, but they are always exclusive in their appearance (eg, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Jesuits, Hasidim, Mewlana, Ahle Haqq).

[12] This region was performed in the transition from the Ottoman Empire to the Turkish Republic from 1919 to 1920 by the Kurdish separatists Simko shekak and proclaimed in the aftermath of World War II for a few months of the year 1946 as a Kurdish Republic of Mahabad.

[13] Detained in the Treaty of Sèvres on 10 August 1920.

[14] Türk. Kızılbaş is called “red head” and is said to come from the red Alevite headgear.

[15] The most recent parallel is found in the territorial foundation of the now defeated the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) by the same organization as DAESH known. Their territorial claims in the border region of northern Iraq to eastern Syria also include settlement areas of the Kurmanji and Sorani-speaking Kurds.

[16] In 1961, the German recruitment of Turkish “guest workers” from eastern Anatolia was added.

[17] The Homogenous Unit Principle (HUP) was justified by McGavran by arguing that homogeneous groups of language, culture, traditions, customs, and customs could best be achieved with a contextualized gospel. Above all, David Bosch sensed here a hidden racism and vehemently rejected the principle (Frost & Hirsch 2004: 51-52). But nowadays, the dream of heterogeneous society-penetrating churches or churches is a dream. Except for so-called “social blurring,” which is 2-4% of the community members who leave their own social group for special occasions out of curiosity, close personal ties or also the thirst for adventure, the respective denominations reflect their peer group. Be it the middle class of established communities (Brethren, Mennonites, Baptists, Gnadauer Association, etc.) the young generation in special target group communities (ICF, Jesus Freaks) or even the national churches according to their various organizations (YMCA, Boy Scouts).

[18] It can be assumed that on average 5-10% of the population live with disabilities. For this UNESCO has published statistics for years.

[19] Founded in 1844 in London, from 1872 merged with the Society of Biblical Archeology of 1870, which ceased its work in 1919.

[20] Dr. Lepsius was involved in founding the Hilfsbund and the German Orient Mission in 1896. In 1917, Dr. Because of the silence and attitude of the DOM, Lepsius was a member of the Armenian genocide and founded Dr. med. Lepsius GermanMission Orientation(LDOM).

[21] https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=IV-15… (as of 2018-08-09).

Staff Member

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Prof. Dr. Klaus W. Müller
2. Chairman of Board of Scientific Foundation of Culture and Religion;
Founder of Scientific Foundation of Culture and Religion;
Member Institute for Protestant Missiology (IfeM)

Year of Birth: 1945
Scientific career:

1964-1968: Study of theology in Bad Liebenzell.
1970-1981: Missionary Service in Micronesia.
1976-1977: M.A. studies at the School of World Mission, Pasadena / CA
1981-1998: Seminar for missionary education in Monbachtal / Bad Liebenzell; Lecturer in Missiology at the Free College for Mission in Korntal.
1985: M.A. Research Missiology “The Protestant Mission Work on the Truk Islands in Micronesia. A Missiological Analysis. ”
1985-2014: Member of the board and chairman of three ministries.
1991-2011: Chairman of the Evangelical Missiology Working Group. Editorial Journal “evangelical missiology” and Edition afem. Editor.
1993: PhD with the topic “Peacemaker. Missionary Practice of Georg F. Vicedom of New Guinea (1929-1939). Accredited by Columbia International University Columbia / SC Appointed Professor of Missiology.
1998-: Professor of Missiology at the Giessen School of Theology (FTH), Giessen/ Germany, Head of Mission and Evangelism,
2000-2007: Study mentor of the Academy for Mission and Community Building Giessen.
1999-: Visiting Professor for Missiology and Religion at the Protestant Theological Faculty Leuven / Belgium.
2010-: guest professor at the state-independent Theological University of Basel.
Dr. Eberhard Werner
1. Chairman of Scientific Foundation of Cuture and Religion;
Board Member and Deputy Head of Institute for Protestant Missiolog (IfeM);
Director Network Disability Studies and Intercultural Theology (NeDSITh)
Director Department Science of Bible Translation

Year of Birth: 1966
Scientific career:

1984-1986: completed vocational training of administartive career in middle service.
1992-1996: Training at the Theological Seminary New Life (today Theological Seminar Rhineland).
1995-1996: Study “Applied Linguistics” SIL Germany, SIL Eugene / Oregon (BA equivalent).
2002-2006: Studies at the Academy for Mission and Community Construction / Giessen, Germany (MA).
2007-2010: PhD University of Wales / across (Theology).
2010: Language Program Services SIL (Near East).
2014: SIL Consultant on Anthropology.
2013: Further Studies with MHS (Stavanger).

At the Institute for Protestant Mission, I am inspired by the idea of supporting missiological research, building networks and trying out creative ideas. German Missiology is still in its infancy and has not yet profiled itself from theology.

 

Jonathan Fröhlich
Board Member of Scientific Foundation of Cuture and Religion;
scientific assitant at Institiute for protestant Missiology (IfeM)

Year of Birth: 1992
Scientific Career:
2009-2012: completed training on worker for waste water technology
2012-2013: one year as a skilled worker for waste water technology
2013-2016: Secondary vocational schools I and II
2016-2020: B.A.- in Protestant Theology at the Giessen School of Theology (FTH), Giessen/ Germany

Command the LORD thy way, and trust in him, and he shall accomplish it. (Psalm 37:5)

 

Samuel W. Groß
Board Member of Scientific Foundation of Cuture and Religion;
scientific assitant at Network Disability Studies and Intercultural Theology (NeDSITh)

Year of Birth: 1994
Scientific Career:
2014: Abitur Weidigschule Butzbach
2014: Cultural prize winner of the city of Butzbach in the context of the exhibition “Legalisierter Raub – Der Fiskus und die Ausplünderung der Juden in Hessen 1933-1945”
2014-: Study of Protestant Theology at the Giessen School of Theology (FTH), Giessen/ Germany
2018: B.A. in Protestant Theology in the Department of Historical Theology at the Giessen School of Theology (FTH), Giessen/ Germany
since 2018: Studies M.A. in Protestant Theology with main subject Historical Theology, Giessen School of Theology (FTH), Giessen/ Germany

At the Institute for Protestant Missiology I am inspired by the motto “Research is the best strategy”. With my focus on Disability Studies and Intercultural Theology from a historical perspective I would like to contribute to the networking of different actors and thus make known the importance of the topic of disability and intercultural exchange in the German-speaking discourse.

History

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1982: Klaus W. Müller as scientific assistant of Prof. G.W. Peters, was commissioned to set up a research center for Protestant Missiology as part of the seminar for missionary training in Monbachtal.

From 1984 on: Continuous development and expansion of the stock at the private Institute of Mission (Korntal).

1994: Start of the Foundation of Culture and Religion.

1998: The research center is dissolved at the location of the Free University for Mission in Korntal. The stock was presented to the director but then handed over to Klaus W. Müller. At this time, the center contains information on more than 1,000 missionary works in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

2000: Foundation of the “Society for Education and Research in Europe” (today seated in Gummersbach).

2000: Start of the work of the new institute in Biebertal with a board of trustees of missiological experts from various denominational backgrounds in cooperation with the GBFE.

2001: The first employee works full-time as part of her retraining as a specialist in media and information services for the Institute. Some volunteers help actively. The institute takes on tasks for Working group for evangelical missiology (today missiotop), such as book series and the journal em. First bibliographic collection of journals.

2004: Start of the Scientific Foundation for Culture and Religion as legal basis.

2004: Foundation of the Institute for Asian Minorities in Hong Kong with Dr. Ing. Gerner, who founds his own foundation a few years later for his institute.

2012: Appointment of Dr. Eberhard Werner on the board of the foundation and in the management of the institute.

2013: Start of the digitization process.

2014: Restructuring of the work of the institute and renaming to “Institute for Protestant Missiology”.

2015: Appointment of new curators.

2017: Foundation of the Network of Disability Studies and Intercultural Theology (NeDSITh). Samuel Groß as academic assistant to the NeDSITh.

2020: Jonathan Fröhlich and Samuel Groß join the Chair of the Foundation. Eberahrd Werner as 1. Chair and Prof. Dr. Müller as 2. chair. Jonathan Fröhlich as academic assistant of the Institute for evangelical missiology.

2021: Dr. Tianji Ma is introduced to take over the Forum Bibletranslation and to build up a Forum East Asia.

Subjects (searchable Archive-List)

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In our database you will find following material out of these topics:

  •    General missionary journals and mission books of all kinds.
  •    Publications, journals and documents from and about: works of missiology and diakonia, evangelistic oriented associations, etc.
  •    Materials on community building initiatives from abroad.
  •    Circular letters, and letters from missionaries (from all times).
  •    Published products about mission, educational programs, courses and training on missiology, intercultural theology, mission theology, religions,             ethnology,  sociology, politics, psychology.
  •     Lectures, presentations, diploma and semester papers, dissertations.
  •     Information about prominent personalities of global Christian development aid.
  •     Documents of congresses, conferences and meetings.
  •     Archive material such as letters, pictures, also from estates of Christian workers and their friends.
  •     Objects, pictures, films from cultures, religions and practical missional work.
  •     Information material about missiological areas.
  •     Non-academic material such as narratives, stories, etc. with high informational value.

Here you can download a list of our extensive collection digitally ([Digitalised Projekt-Files]; smaller fractions [A]; [B]; [C-E]; [F-R]; [S-Z]).

Do you have a request for a specific topic or are you looking for a specific publication? Then feel free to contact us. We ask you to kindly provide a reason for your request.

Cooperation

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We offer time-limited part-time jobs. We especially like to hire student assistants.

We also offer the opportunity for training and further education or retraining for the “specialist for media and information services”. Our institute is recognized as a retraining company by the Wetzlar Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

We are also happy about volunteer support. If you care about preserving a variety of missiological content, then get involved with us. This is possible at any time and even from home.

We are looking forward to your support! If you are interested in working in our team, feel free to contact us.

Forschungs-Stiftung Kultur und Religion

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Research Foundation
 Culture and Religion
Rathenaustraße 5-7
D-35394 Gießen

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Our concern

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Staff

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