An Unfinished Quest: David J. Bosch’s Legacy Concerning the Relationship between Evangelism and Service

Abstract

David Bosch calls the relationship between evangelism and service “one of the thorniest areas” in Missiology. He analyses and criticises Western dichotomic thinking, which tends to contrast evangelism and service, word and deed, soul and body. This is the source of what Bosch calls “a battle for supremacy” between evangelism and service, and during his own life, he committed himself to “a personal quest” for a non-dichotomic understanding of evangelism and service. The present article presents Bosch’s reflection of the relationship between evangelism and service over a period of more than two decades. It analyses his approaches in overcoming the Western dichotomic thinking in this regard and argues that Bosch’s “personal quest” remained an unfinished quest, which we are invited to join. This can be seen as his legacy concerning the relationship between evangelism and service.