Book Notice: John Flett on Apostolicity

John G. Flett

Apostolicity: The Ecumenical Question in World Christian Perspective
Missiological Engagements
Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2016.
Available at Amazon.com

This is an interesting book on a juicy topic of apostolicity. It touches on the Catholic/Protestant divide, world Christianity, and what is continuous and contingent in the Christian message. According to Flett, a PCUSA minister living in Australia, “My central presumption is that world Christianity exists, that it finds expression in the local appropriation of the gospel and thus has a plurality of form, and that it has sufficient theological merit to inform and challenge settled elements within the received Western tradition” (158). Crucial for Flett is that apostolicity is attained by everyone discerning their place in Jesus Christ’s self-multiplying history throughout the world. We discover apostolic oneness by discovering that the Lamb is able to set the voice of every tongue, tribe, and nation into their proper harmony (336). An interesting proposal; not sure I’m with him; but a book that will hopefully contribute to future discussions of apostolicity and its global significance.