Pragmatism - CPM Critic | Critical Church Planting Movement (CPM) Resources

“Exposing and Fixing Pragmatism in Movements” on The Missions Podcast

In June 2021, The Missions Podcast interviewed an anonymous missionary who serves in Southeast Asia about what he has witnessed regarding movement practices in his own organization. This podcast addressed pragmatism, relationships with other missionaries, and insider movements among others. The questions included (paraphrased): Tell us a little about who you are, where you are serving, and…

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June 7, 2021

Pragmatism

“Faithfulness or Pragmatism?” The Mission Podcast Hosts Andy Johnson

The Mission Podcast hosted Andy Johnson, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. and author of Missions, How the Local Church Goes Global. The podcast was posted June 2, 2019. Major topics included pragmatism, prioritism, and how local churches can do a better job of sending missionaries. Questions that the hosts asked included (paraphrased): How…

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June 2, 2019

“A Missiology of Excluded Middles” by George Terry

When this article was published, George Terry was serving as a professor at Malaysia Baptist Theological Seminary in Penang, Malaysia. This article, which critiques T4T methodology, recalls Paul Hiebert's famous 1982 article named "The Flaw of the Excluded Middle." Terry writes that T4T "undervalue[s] the influence of context" (p. 335) and contains too many false dichotomies (thus…

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August 1, 2017

Pragmatism / Rapidity

“Reaching and Teaching” by David Sills

David Sills critiques church planting movements in Chapter 7 of his book Reaching and Teaching: A Call to Great Commission Obedience. He addresses issues of pragmatism and rapidity, but one of his main points is that movements and revivals are acts of God and no one can force them into existence. He ends the section with, "[T]he…

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April 1, 2010

Numbers / Stats / Pragmatism

“Pragmatism, Pragmatism Everywhere” by Andy Johnson

Andy Johnson, associate pastor at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., wrote this excellent article on pragmatism in February 2010. Using David Garrison's CPM book as an example of a "pragmatic approach to missions," Johnson argues that pragmatism ultimately leads to liberalism. He encourages biblical faithfulness over results and raises a number of questions that challenge…

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February 26, 2010

Book Reviews / Ecclesiology / Pragmatism / Rapidity

Book Review of David Garrison’s “Church Planting Movements” (by Ed Roberts)

Ed Roberts, a church planter in Central Asia for over twenty years, critiques David Garrison's book Church Planting Movements: How God is Redeeming a Lost World (2004, WIGTake). The critique includes issues of rapidity, pragmatism, and ecclesiology. The book review was written on July 25, 2009. Read it here.

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July 25, 2009

Definition of Church / Ecclesiology / Pragmatism / Rapidity

“Is Church Planting Movement Methodology Viable?” by Hoyt Lovelace

In this article, Hoyt Lovelace (PhD, Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary) critically examines several controversies over church planting movement (CPM) methodology. These controversies include: a rapidity requirementbiblical controversies:strategic problemsevangelistic problemsecclesiological problemsmissiological problemsa universal solution I'd say that this is one of the top articles critiquing Garrison-defined church planting movements. Perhaps the cheapest and easiest way to read this…

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March 21, 2007