Key Terms

We at Pasifika Mobilization want to provide clear definitions for certain key terms that are commonly used within our organization. Many of these terms are well-known terms but often have different meanings within different organizations, churches and cultures. We want to ensure that these terms are articulated clearly and consistently across Pasifika Mobilization and to eliminate any confusion that might come from the use of these words.

Contextualization: We believe that the gospel transcends culture. This means that the biblical truth of the gospel does not change within different cultures. But we do believe these biblical truths should be adapted (without compromise) to the given culture it is being presented in.

Culture: "Culture is the product of inherited values, which—either explicitly or implicitly—inform and shape the lives of the members of a particular society. An individual culture is produced by ideas developed over time that belong to a subset of the human population. These inherited ideas and values give form to the way members of a particular society interpret and develop their knowledge and attitudes about life. Cultures include traditions and values informed by a worldview and presented in symbolic acts and dispositions. Art, literature, music, architecture, language, and customs are all essential parts of the culture of a particular society." (Ligonier Ministries Definition)

Disciple: A disciple is a person who follows Jesus Christ, having accepted the free gift of salvation. They have turned from their sins, and now live a transformed life because of the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in them.

Discipleship: Discipleship is not merely the process of someone becoming a Christian, but the daily, ongoing process of the Christian becoming more like Christ. It is the growth and maturing of their faith.

Ethnicity: Ethnicity is simply a group of people who share a common culture and language.

Indigenous: In today's world, the word Indigenous has many different meanings. We define indigenous simply as someone who is native to a particular region. They are from that particular region and understand the language and culture of that region. We don't define the term Indigenous as synonymous with the term "First Nations". We separate these terms because we believe it is not always helpful from a missiological standpoint to see Indigenous people as the first from a region. We are concerned about supporting churches that are suited to the local culture and led by local Christians.

Missions: Missions is the sending out of missionaries to preach Christ crucified where He has not been proclaimed. It is directly based on scriptures like Mathew 28: 19-20. It encompasses all aspects of sending including the supporting of career missionaries. The term missions is not directly used in the Bible, but the ideas behind the word are all throughout scripture.

Missionary: "A missionary is a disciple of Jesus set apart by the Holy Spirit, sent out from the church, to cross geographic, cultural, and/or linguistic barriers. Their focus is on making disciples and multiplying churches among unreached peoples and places." (Borrowed from the IMB)

Near-Culture Missionaries: Near-culture missionaries are missionaries who are from a people group that is similar in culture. There are still many barriers these missionaries must overcome, but these barriers are often easier to overcome.

Pasifika: The term Pasifika refers to the cultural region of the South Pacific. This includes the three major cultural groupings of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. The term Pasifika is also used to refer to the ethnic people from this region.

Pasifika Lotu (church): The term Pasifika Lotu or Pasifika Church simply refers to local evangelical churches within the Pacific Islands. It does not refer to a specific denomination.

People Group: "For evangelization purposes, a people group is the largest group within which the Gospel can spread as a church planting movement without encountering barriers of understanding or acceptance." (Joshua Project Definition)

Unreached: "Unreached refers to peoples and places where Christ is largely unknown and the church is relatively insufficient to make Christ known in its broader population without outside help." (Borrowed from the IMB)

Unengaged: Unengaged refers to people and places that are not only unreached but there is also little to no gospel-advancing work being done among them. Put simply, an unengaged people group or place is not only unreached but also has no missionaries actively trying to reach them.