Publishing for God’s Global Church
This article first appeared in the magazine ‘Together’, which resources Christian retailers, suppliers and church leaders. You can read it by clicking here and selecting the July/August 2017 edition.
Langham Creative Projects, a relatively new ministry of Langham Partnership, publishes its 100th title, encouraging us all to listen to our brothers and sisters in the Majority World.
Langham Creative Projects
Langham Literature began publishing in 2011, under the banner of Langham Creative Projects. So why did Langham start to publish? To give Majority World believers a voice! 61 per cent of the world’s believers reside in the non-Western world, yet the majority of the resources that these Christians will use in their seminaries, sermon preparation and spiritual development will have been written in, and for, a Western context.
Pastoral Preaching, by Conrad Mbewe was published under the ‘Langham Preaching Resources’ imprint.
Langham Creative Projects publishes significant works that speak to issues faced by local believers in Majority World contexts, so that they can grow deeper in their understanding of the Bible and in their relationship with God. They do this under three major imprints: Langham Preaching Resources, written at an accessible level, helping preachers in their role; Langham Global Library, featuring textbooks, biographies and commentaries; and Langham Monographs, an academic imprint focusing on doctoral research by evangelical scholars from the Majority World.
Langham Literature’s already established global distribution network means that these resources are available across the Majority World, ensuring books reach readers in the most effective and cost-efficient way. Langham offers free international shipping, and works with theological institutes and local booksellers around the world.
But these perspectives can bless us here in the West too! These authors can give new insights to British readers, helping us understand the global church, which is predominantly made up of Christians from the Majority World.
Resourcing our preachers for transformation
The Langham Preaching programme has exploded in growth over the last 15 years, training thousands of pastors around the world. As it has grown, so has the need for books to help preachers faithfully and clearly share the Scriptures in a way that is relevant to their audience. Langham Preaching Resources is dedicated to the creation of such books.
Conrad Mbewe invited a team of eight African pastors to meet weekly while he was working on his book, Pastoral Preaching: Building a People for God.
It is always the hope of an author and a publisher that their book will create a transformative effect in the reader, but to hear of such an effect during the writing of a book is a double blessing. So was the case with Zambian author and preacher Conrad Mbewe, who invited a team of eight African pastors to meet weekly while he was working on his book, Pastoral Preaching: Building a People for God. Each week he would share a new chapter with his colleagues and each week they would discuss, debate and feed back into his final chapters. The end result? An excellent resource for pastors, which blessed eight pastors and transformed their own ministries before it even went to press.
Contextual Commentaries
It is so vital for Christians to have access to resources on biblical interpretation that use local idioms and are also contextually relevant.
The Asia Bible Commentary Series takes this statement to heart. The series of individual commentaries is published by Langham in partnership with the Asia Theological Association. The unique selling point is that each commentary is written by an Asian author and, in many cases, supplemented further or consulted on by a fellow Asian in a different context.
Dr Gilbert Soo Hoo, from Singapore, recently wrote the commentary on 1, 2, 3 John, partnering for the first time with a ‘contextualisation consultant’ from Pakistan. For Dr Soo Hoo it was difficult at first, but he slowly began to appreciate ‘the wisdom of collaborating with a native Asian who brought in his cultural and religious experience, particularly within a predominantly Muslim context’. The end result? A contextually relevant commentary for the Asian church and the world.
Addressing current Issues
Heeding John Stott’s famous concept of ‘Double Listening’, studying both the Bible and the world around us, Langham also seeks to address current realities that affect the global church.
An example of this is Thinking Biblically about Islam by Ida Glaser who is Director of the Centre for Muslim-Christian Studies in Oxford. It was published last year and gives an in-depth analysis of the Muslim faith through the lens of the Bible
Another example is Strangers in the Kingdom by Rupen Das and Brent Hamoud. The authors apply their ministry experience to untangle the complicated global issue of migration and refugees. Their aim is to find God’s heart in the midst of the chaos caused by war, poverty and famine, and to provide readers with a biblical, theological, and missiological foundation for ministry to the displaced.
Listen for yourself
Pick up one of our books today. See and hear for yourself what God is revealing right now through his people around the world about the ongoing mission of his Son, Jesus Christ!
Learn more
To find out more Langham Creative Project’s publishing work, visit www.langhamcreative.org or email publishing@langham.org.
For UK trade information, contact Michael Welch, Langham’s sales rep on 07776047104 or email mickwel@aol.com.
Tags: Langham Creative Projects, Langham Literature, literature, Publishing
