Spontaneous Expansion of the Church
Roland Allen published his second-most popular work in 1927: The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church and the Causes which Hinder It. Next year marks the 100th anniversary of the book’s publication.
Yesterday, my friend, The Very Rev. Dr. Steven Rutt, and I met to discuss details for what we hope to do next year in recognition of this historic moment. Please pray for us and stay tuned, we may soon announce a writing project.
While I have written extensively on Allen since my dissertation in 2001, Steve is the world’s leading expert on Allen. You should read his biography and missiology and check out our conversation at Strike the Match. Spontaneous Expansion has influenced many people over the past century. In fact, the modern origins of movement missiology are traced to Allen.
Though most refer to the book as Spontaneous Expansion, Allen assigned the irreverent nickname, Sponx, to this publication. However, he was sober-minded regarding the subject matter:
“This then is what I mean by spontaneous expansion. I mean the expansion which follows the unexhorted and unorganized activity of individual members of the Church explaining to others the Gospel which they have found for themselves; I mean the expansion which follows the irresistible attraction of the Christian Church for men who see its ordered life, and are drawn to it by desire to discover the secret of a life which they instinctively desire to share; I mean also the expansion of the Church by the addition of new churches” (7).
In the 1963 reprinted US edition, Lesslie Newbigin wrote the following in one of two Forewords:
“I have thought it right to enter these two words of caution, because the reader should be warned that he is embarking on a serious undertaking. Once he has started reading Allen, he will be compelled to go on. He will find that this quiet voice has a strange relevance and immediacy to the problems of the Church in our day. And I shall be surprised if he does not find before long that many of his accustomed ideas are being questioned by a voice more searching than the word of man” (iv).
You have at least ten months to plan any events or conferences. If interested, I have some speaking dates available in my calendar; let’s talk. Regardless, now is the time to read, or re-read, Sponx before next year. I think this would be a worthy goal for all of us. But here is a Public Service Announcement if you pick up the book: heed Newbigin’s warning.