"Anthropology for Christian Witness serves as a thorough, basic introduction to the study of anthropology that has been designed specifically for those who plan careers in mission or cross-cultural ministry. The work of Charles H. Kraft, author of the classic Christianity in Culture, and widely acknowledged as one of the foremost Evangelical missionary anthropologists, this new work represents the synthesis of a lifetime of teaching and study. Kraft treats the very basics, including theories of culture and society; an assessment of the various anthropological schools; kinship and family structure, and cross-cultural communication."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

In this revision of a long-enduring classic, Kraft draws upon faith experience and the social sciences to make pastors, preachers, missionaries, and religious educators aware of the mystery of human communication in the service of God who calls all into communion. The question is how to communicate with these other cultures so that the message is effectively transmitted and received? How to we recognize the gaps--of language, tradition, life experience--that separate us and build bridges over them.

What is the role of culture in human experience? This concise yet solid introduction to cultural anthropology helps readers explore and understand this crucial issue from a Christian perspective. Now revised and updated throughout, this new edition of a successful textbook covers standard cultural anthropology topics with special attention given to cultural relativism, evolution, and missions. It also includes a new chapter on medical anthropology. Plentiful figures, photos, and sidebars are sprinkled throughout the text, and updated ancillary support materials and teaching aids are available through Baker Academic's Textbook eSources.

In Worldview for Christian Witness, Charles Kraft invites readers to understand REALITY as God sees it by learning to take seriously the insights of other societies. The diversity of cultures can seem obvious, but to really understand the significance of those surface level differences, one needs to understand the deep level assumptions on which they are based.

If there is one book you are going to read to understand the deep currents affecting Christian life and witness today, this is it. Paradigm Shifts in Christian Witness enlists the world's foremost observers of global Christianity in the task of discerning in short, incisive essays the most important patterns and paradigm shifts as the Christian movement matures beyond both colonialism and post-colonialism as a world faith translated into every culture on earth. It also celebrates the life and work of Charles A. kraft, one of the foremost cultural anthropologists, a man whose insights have helped a generation of cross-cultural missioners and church workers understand the processes involved in mission and the growth of world Christianity.

This volume on cultural anthropology presents a Christian perspective for Bible school students of conservative evangelical backgrounds. The hope is that a sympathetic approach to the problems of cultural diversity throughout the world will help young people overcome typical North American cultural biases and bring understanding and appreciation for the diversities of behavior and thought that exist in a culturally heterogeneous world. Grunlan and Mayers take the position of "functional creationism"; and though they discuss some of the problems implied in traditional interpretations of the age of the world and especially of the creation of the human race, they do not attempt to deal with either physical anthropology or the origins of man. They do, however, attempt to deal meaningfully with the problems posed by biblical absolutism and cultural relativism, and their practice. Concluding chapters with a series of thought-provoking questions should prove to be of real help to both the professional and nonprofessional teacher of anthropology.

This comprehensive text shows that despite different views and contexts, Christians can craft a grace-filled approach to sharing God's good news with the world.