Lesslie Newbigin: A Postmodern Missiologist?

Abstract Particularly through his study of the postcritical philosophy of Michael Polanyi, Lesslie Newbigin engaged in a critique of postmodernity and a Christian postmodern apologetics before postmodernity ever "arrived" in contemporary missiological thought. The purpose of this article, says British missiologist Paul Weston, is to explore Newbigin's engagement with postmodern thought, to discover the roots that lie behind it, and to suggest as well two facets of Newbigin's thinking that merit renewed attention in the context of postmodernity. First, says Weston, Newbigin can be shown to have developed a missiological approach that effectively anticipates many of the questions raised by contemporary postmodern perspectives. Secondly, the way in which Newbigin harnesses this approach to the practice of mission can be said to be both appropriate and applicable within a postmodern environment.