I have only recently felt obliged to take issue with an essay published in 2004, entitled ‘Towards a new paradigm in the mission theology of the FABC’, in which the author, Jonathan Tan, argues that, in the light of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conference vision of mission, the ‘traditional paradigm’ of missio ad-gentes should now be replaced by a new one defined as ‘missio inter-gentes’. Since 2004, the paper has since reappeared in various forms. However, it was initially published in the FABC Papers series, having been originally presented as a guide for work-shop discussion at the Eighth Plenary Assembly of FABC (17-22 August, in Taejeon, South Korea). At that time I missed it. I had just arrived in the Philippines, as a young missionary priest, after a three-year assignment in the UK to pursue studies in Missiology and the Theology of interreligious dialogue, in preparation for missionary work in Asia. I was focused on learning the Filipino Tagalog language and adapting to an entirely new life. Some years later, I came across the essay, but did not give it much thought. However, only recently, on listening to a number of lectures on the topic of mission from Asian perspectives, I have had a sense of how much popularity the idea of inter gentes as a replacement for ad gentes has gained, influencing the thinking of Asian scholars and missionaries in the last two decades. …
