Theology of Mission

John Howard Yoder (1927-1997), author of The Politics of Jesus (1972), was best known forhis writing and teaching on Christian pacifism. He studied theology and served as a Mennonite mission staff person in post-war Europe from 1949-1957 and continued in overseas mission administration from the agency's base in Elkhart, Indiana, from 1959-1965. He received his doctorate from the University of Basel. During the 1960s he began teaching at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminaries, leaving it in 1984. He continued his teachingand scholarly work as professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame until his death at the age of 70.

Andy Alexis-Baker (M.A., Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary) is general editor with Tripp York of the Peaceable Kingdom series from Cascade Books. He recently published an essay on Christian pacifism in A Faith Not Worth Fighting For: Addressing Commonly Asked Questions about Christian Nonviolence edited by Tripp York and Justin Barringer (Cascade, 2012). He is currently finishing work on a Ph.D. in systematic theology and theological ethics at Marquette University.Alexis-Baker holds memberships in the International Jacques Ellul Society, the North American Patristics Society, the Mennonite Historical Society and the American Academy of Religion.

Gayle Gerber Koontz (Ph.D., Boston University) is professor of theology and ethics at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. Among her many published essays is "Unity with Integrity: John H. Yoder's Ecumenical Theology and Practice," which appeared in the 2010 book Radical Ecumenicity: Pursuing Unity and Continuity after John Howard Yoder (edited by John C. Nugent).