Friends, I have discovered a goldmine!

While I was overseas and teaching on this very topic but not very in-touch with new books being published, W. Jay Moon gave Christians around the world an incredible resource: Intercultural Discipleship: Learning from Global Approaches to Spiritual Formation.

When we think that our own culture’s form of discipleship is simply “discipleship,” we miss the fact that every culture emphasizes certain areas of the faith while deemphasizing others. Every cultural expression of Christianity has strengths as well as weaknesses, areas of exceptional insight as well as blindspots.

Moon explains: “We have…overlooked options that are available for discipleship by limiting ourselves to approaches from our own culture alone…An intercultural approach combines the strengths of various cultures over various time periods in order to overcome the limitations of individual cultures and generations.”

I plan to use insights and examples from this book in all my future classes/workshops related to Intercultural Studies. It’s that comprehensive!

I appreciate the intensely practical nature of the book. Not merely theory (theory is good but not sufficient for effective crosscultural interaction), Moon also includes:

• numerous case studies with open-ended discussion questions inviting readers to think through application of the ideas shared
• sidebars broadening the discussion, pointing out resources, and questions for reflection
• activities for discipling at suggested at the end of each chapter, to help readers move from simply understanding the material to actually applying it in relationship with people from other cultures
• summaries at the end of each chapter, helpful for busy people who need to prioritize which chapters they read fully
• an “Activities for Teaching” appendix with dozens of suggestions

With an educator’s thoroughness and a practitioner’s heart, Moon urges us to make sure of “the entire toolbox,” by exploring “multiple cultures across the globe and many generations across time in our search for intercultural discipleship practices that produce spiritual growth.”

Intercultural Discipleship: Learning from Global Approaches to Spiritual Formation is an essential resource for anyone who is involved in encouraging and empowering others to follow Jesus, whether within one culture or crossculturally.

Thank you to Baker Academic for the review copy!

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