The church creates and reinforces marginality when it institutionalizes its preferred cultural boundaries from which it then derives its identity. The church must rediscover its own marginality and identity in the person and work of Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus serves as model of and model for mission. Identity with Jesus propels the church into mission through intentional kenosis and planned liminality by presence and service at the margins. By sharing in the world of the marginal, by forming personal relationships in small groups, and by becoming bi-cultural, missionaries provide means of overcoming the boundaries that create and sustain marginality and build bridges into welcoming, caring churches.
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