Who Are You, and Who Am I?

In this book, Hannes Wiher, a renowned evangelical missiologist in the French- speaking world, has developed an in-depth study of culture with the aim of equipping the body of Christ with an understanding of societies, religions and worldviews, in order to communicate the gospel to different communities in a way that is faithful to Scripture and relevant to multiple cultures. Based on an interdisciplinary study that navigates through cultural anthropology, psychology, philosophy, theology and Bible translation, Wiher develops five models of cross-cultural communication that help the missionary to share the good news with a deeper understanding of people's identities so as to win the world for Christ with effectiveness, conscience and love. George P. Atido, PhD Rector and Professor of Missiology and World Christianity, Shalom University of Bunia, Democratic Republic of the Congo Veteran missiologist and author Hannes Wiher provides the global church with a text that is interdisciplinary, drawing on communication theory, philosophy, anthropology, theology and missiology. The text is not merely about anthropological theory and cultural description - it has as its stated purpose the goal of improving relationships that enable faithful gospel transmission. One outstanding feature that separates this work from others like it is how Wiher consistently brings to the forefront the critical global issues of honour and shame. This work is biblically grounded and would serve as an excellent introductory text for the study of culture and mission, especially for those who wish to pursue an approach that focusses on worldview. Christopher L. Flanders, PhD Professor of Missions, Graduate School of Theology, Abilene Christian University, Texas, USA A must for all those who teach cross-cultural workers. A book that I myself as a lecturer wish I had known much earlier. Why? Because the so-called short-cuts, simplifications and generalizations, at first glance hard to accept (for myself), are not arbitrary but the result of decades of teaching. They lead to concise and practicable grids, which can be used in various teaching and ministry contexts. At the same time, they help teachers to not get lost in the virtually infinite realities of cultures, religions and worldviews. Martin Heiẞwolf, ThD Dean of Missiology, BibelStudienKolleg, Germany Chairman of missiotop This book presents an introduction to the modern understanding of culture in the comprehensive sense, as understood by cultural anthropology and ethnology, as a primarily mental system of rules, attributions, understanding of the world, instructions for action, etc. The author works strictly according to the layered model of mental deep structure adopted from linguistics in recent anthropological research. The deep structures generate then surface structures of human behaviour accessible to the senses. The author conclusively proves that knowledge of this connection is essential for understanding people of other cultures. Lothar Käser, PhD Emeritus Professor of Ethnology, University of Freiburg, Germany Communicating effectively requires a better understanding of a person beyond appearances, as several dynamics come into play, including personality, culture and religion. Hannes Wiher's book, although conceived through a theoretical framework of Western literature, is a goldmine for researchers and communicators of any doctrinal tendencies and sociological contexts for a transformational engagement and a contextual theological discourse. Fohle Lygunda li-M, PhD Professor of Missiology and Contextual Theology, North-West University, South Africa