Reviewed by Walter McConnell
Mission Round Table 20:2 (May-Aug 2025): 48
To read articles in this edition, visit this post on Mission Round Table 20:2
Karl Dahlfred’s book, Conservative in Theology, Liberal in Spirit, should be read by many reflective practitioners of mission. I say this for three reasons. First, it examines an aspect of mission history that few modern missionaries understand though they should. The fundamentalist-modernist controversy that substantially impacted church life and mission practice in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries has never really gone away. This book addresses the issue by considering how and in what ways American Presbyterian missionaries serving in Thailand were impacted by the divergent theological understandings prevalent at the time. Though the American Presbyterian Church along with the church in China would split from the collision of orthodox and modernist understandings of Scripture, the Thai church stands out for not following suit. Missionaries in Thailand and elsewhere can learn much here about why this happened and gain a sound footing for thinking through similar disagreements in church doctrine and practice.
Second, the book shows that mission work done in the past two centuries, by both orthodox and liberal workers, has frequently aimed to help countries and cultures become more modern or civilized. Dahlfred rightly asserts that this goal produces nebulous ends because definitions of “modern” are extremely subjective. He also demonstrates that, from the nineteenth century onwards, the Thai elites chose those elements from the West (and elsewhere) they believed could help modernization and rejected those that didn’t. Their almost universal rejection of Western religion serves as a warning to anyone who desires to see a society come to Christ through “modernization” or “development” beginning from the top down. Many evangelical readers will be surprised to find that arguments they now use to promote social ministries closely parallel their “modernist” counterparts of a century ago. As some missionaries to Thailand from the period noted, schools, hospitals, and other means of social uplift can be evangelistic, but only when they are used evangelistically.
Third, the book’s careful and sympathetic assessment of the beliefs of various missionaries should halt (or at least slow down) our making blanket statements about a person’s theological, political, or other beliefs without warrant. Where they remain silent, we should remain silent. As the author states: “Sometimes it is possible to uncover a connection between a missionary’s theological convictions and his actions. Sometimes it is not. Not all smoke is evidence of fire, and ambiguity in the historical record must be acknowledged as theological leanings are considered as one of multiple factors in missionary thinking and actions” (187). The same is true today. Some of our missional decisions are based on our theological convictions, but many aren’t. Acknowledging this truth could help reduce tensions between and within mission agencies.
Despite these positive reasons for delving into the book, many readers will not find it an easy read. In part, this is because the study began as a PhD thesis and the issues addressed are not well known. This should not, however, be seen as a deterrent, as these are ideas that missionaries should get to know. Readers may find the book to be quite repetitive, as the chapters examine a limited number of ideas and practices from different angles.
Who then should read it? Christians in Thailand will discover a slice of their history to be found nowhere else. Evangelical missionaries engaging in educational and service ministries will gain new perspectives on the relationship between their work and evangelism and discipleship. Mission leaders will find that the response of earlier leaders to historical issues will give them insight as they face new or similar issues today. My hope is that many will read this book, reflect upon what it says, and seek to work it out in their setting.
Paperback copies can be ordered from Kanok Bannasan (OMF Publishers Thailand) for 700 Thai baht. https://eng.kanokbannasan.org/product/conservative-in-theology-liberal-in-spirit-modernism-and-the-american-presbyterian-mission-in-thailand-1891-1941/
