There have been few book-length explorations of the theological and practical issues that bear upon the relationship between church and parachurch. It was a sense of this lack that led to the composition of my The Vine Movement: Supporting Gospel Growth beyond Your Church (Sydney: Matthias Media, 2023). Angie Ward’s Beyond Church and Parachurch also aims to address this need and is a welcome addition to this field.

In two introductory chapters, Ward surveys current realities of church, parachurch, and the broader dynamics of not-for-profit participation to demonstrate that we are “clearly living in a time of major redistribution, a transitional period, a liminal space with no clear idea of where everything—including perhaps our own organizations, even ourselves—will land” (pp. 27–28). In other words, the world is in flux, the church is in decline, and we are at a time in history when a reassessment of everything, including parachurches, is needed.

In animated prose, Ward provides a rich overview of the topic, proposes her own terminology and theological framework for parachurch ministry (“missional extension”), and lays out many practical recommendations. Her concern is integration: to bring together various disciplines of study and various perspectives and agendas. Her desire is that we might see ourselves “as part of a larger, interconnected ecosystem” (p. 15).

The book surveys the history of church and parachurch ministry from the apostolic age to today (chs. 3–4); considers ecclesiology (chs. 5–6); discusses the issues and challenges for church and parachurch partnership (chs. 7–8); and then offers a proposal and works out its implications in the final three chapters (chs. 8–10).

Ecclesiology is complex because theological considerations are entangled with conceptions of social and political order, which in turn are influenced by economic and technological factors. In chapters 3 and 4, Ward describes the apostolic bands in the book of Acts, the monastic movements of mediaeval Christianity, and then the new Protestant organizational forms that emerged after the Reformation disestablished monasteries and other Roman Catholic organizations. Her overview corrects Ralph Winter’s overly positive portrayal of a “medieval synthesis” between modality (local congregations) and sodality (missional structures) within Christianity (pp. 43–46, 62; see Winter, “The Two Structures of God’s Redemptive Mission,” Missiology 2.1 [1974]: 127–30).

Ward points to factors that help explain why parachurch ministry has proliferated rapidly since the last quarter of the twentieth century, including technological developments, world war disruptions, and global population mobility. Ward argues that an isolationist and pessimistic outlook stimulated by premillennialism led to a shift in emphasis in evangelical activism, away from charitable and social voluntary societies, towards church and evangelism. A 1936 change to the United States’ tax code, allowing tax-deductible gifts to not-for-profits, also incentivized the founding of parachurches. The swelling number of megachurches since the 1970s also strengthened non-denominational identity and parachurch organizations (pp. 51–57).

Ward’s work lacks some theological precision, however, even while insisting “the people of God suffer from a fundamental deficit in ecclesiology” (p. 6). At the end of two chapters on ecclesiology, she defines the church as “the divinely established, called out, and sent collection of all the people of God around the world, animated and united by the work of Christ and guided by the Holy Spirit, who gather regularly in locally embodied community to re-center their lives around God and who seek to live out kingdom values in their relationships with one another and with the world” (p. 89).

This definition and its exposition invite critique at several points. First, the earthly church is not sufficiently grounded in the heavenly church. Ward incorrectly identifies the visible church as the “‘big C’ or ‘universal’ church” (p. 72). In the same chapter, she critiques and seems to dismiss the concept of the universal church as a later theological development—again defined by her as “the church … throughout the world as a whole.” While recognizing that “Paul and the writer to the Hebrews speak of the idea of the church consisting of all believers across time and space” (p. 72), the theological primacy of the heavenly assembly gathered around Christ is not made foundational. Before quoting from Donald Robinson’s entry on “Church” in the New Bible Dictionary, she writes “the collection of assemblies constitutes the one ekklēsia,” thus misrepresenting his view that the heavenly church is manifested in local assemblies, not comprised of them (p. 74).

Second, regarding how the church is sent, Ward follows David Bosch’s broad conception of mission, “far broader than just evangelism or conversion. It is all-encompassing redemption, and it is rooted in the very nature of God” (p. 78). Bosch’s missiology can be critiqued for conflating providence and salvation, soteriology and missiology, the local church and the people of God, and the great commission and the greatest commandments.

Third, there is little attention given to local churches as divinely-ordered human institutions with recognized membership and leadership, and so requiring discipline and ordination. The centrality of the ministry of the word and sacraments is also insufficiently emphasized.

Nevertheless, Ward rightly critiques narrow definitions of parachurch ministry that see them as necessarily not-for-profit, non-denominational, independent of local churches, or single-purpose (pp. 95–98) and, as noted earlier, helpfully challenges Ralph Winter’s influential essay, “The Two Structures of God’s Redemptive Mission.” Her criticisms of Winter’s framework include its lack of biblical support, its primary focus on missionary societies, and its neglect of the functional complexity of denominational structures (pp. 104–5).

The book argues that questions of structure and authority ought not dominate our parachurch theory and practice but instead aims to put “apostolic [missionary] function” at the center (p. 105). The church has been entrusted with a holistic mission, and “that mission can and must be accomplished through a wide variety of activities, forms, and organizational structures” (p. 107). However, while this functional emphasis is welcome, it does not alleviate the need to explore traditional questions of polity, such as ordination and church discipline.

Ward finally proposes her own term and corresponding framework to replace the term parachurch: “missional extensions.” This conceptualizes individuals, local churches, denominations, and missional organizations all with respect to the mission of God. The term, she believes, “gets rid of the institutional framework and communicates relationship in continuity: not side by side with walls between but as nodes on a global network, the whole church for the whole world” (p. 114).

This proposal assumes a unique place for the local church in God’s purposes. It does not conceive of churches and parachurches as simply different kinds of essentially the same entity. However, when seen from the perspective of God’s mission, they are each necessary elements of the mission.

Ward’s model encourages a holistic, collaborative approach to ministry and mission, over and against undue concern for control and recognition that interferes with fruitful work. While focusing on functional matters, Ward also upholds the distinct importance of local churches. However, the missional extensions framework relies on a broad definition of mission which, as I’ve argued above, ought to be questioned. Furthermore, while the word “extension” implies some source from which the extension comes, it neither makes clear that local churches are not always the origin of these extensions nor does it explain why congregations are not themselves extensions.

The closing chapters of the book move to many practical recommendations and case studies. In seeking healthy collaboration, chapter 8 urges a move from confusion to clarity, from scarcity to generosity, from institution to movement, from empire to kingdom, from control to freedom. Chapter 9 gives case studies of the kind of practice she envisions. Chapter 10 concludes with five practical encouragements: to elevate ecclesiology, to update our vocabulary, to equip and release laity, to redesign structures, and to commit to collaboration.

Beyond Church and Parachurch makes a valuable contribution to a crucial area of ecclesiology, drawing together key issues from history, sociology, theology, and missiology, and offers some insightful critiques of alternative paradigms. While not beyond criticism itself, its practical proposals and gospel-hearted outlook makes it a useful and inspirational work.