You don’t need to choose between evangelism and social action this Christmas

We can do better than binary, divisive discussions, says Bishop Joseph D’Souza. Christians in the majority world have long understood that the gospel is good news for mind, body and soul. It’s time Christians in the West woke up to that 

There is a century-old debate in the West about the issue of evangelism versus social action. There have been disagreements that have led to compromises that have led to further disagreements. Even today, many think of these two ideas — social action and evangelism — as irreconcilable. Yet I am disheartened that we are still debating this issue.  

I believe that the story of Christmas poses an answer to this age-old argument. In the incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ, we find the seemingly impossible - fully God, fully man - reconciled into a beautiful unity. I’d suggest that something similar is possible here. In fact, it is already being lived out in the majority world and it’s time the wider Christian community observed this reconciliation.