Prokhanov’s missiology: A forerunner to Bosch’s Emerging Paradigm

This article examines the hypothesis proposed by missiologist Johannes Reimer that Ivan Prokhanov, the founder of the missionary movement in Russia in the early 20th century, anticipated and, to some extent, embodied the emerging missional paradigm articulated by David Bosch in 1991, approximately 60–70 years later. The article argues that Reimer’s intuition was largely correct, as Prokhanov significantly aligned with at least 9 of the 13 elements identified by Bosch. Furthermore, it suggests that the correlation between the views of Prokhanov and Bosch can be explained by their shared epistemological orientation towards the New Testament missional paradigm, particularly the paradigm of Matthew, Luke and Paul, as described by Bosch.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: According to this hypothesis, Bosch’s analysis of the historical development of missional theology traces the deviation from the apostolic paradigm established by these New Testament authors, with the emerging missional paradigm representing a partial return to that original framework. For Prokhanov, New Testament missiology was the foundational basis of his mission theology.