Book Review: Unless a Grain of Wheat: A Story of Friendship between African Independent Churches and North American Mennonites

Unless a Grain comprises a collection of reflections which grow out of collaborative ministry initiatives between African Independent Churches (AICs) and North American Mennonite missionaries and service workers from 1960 to 2020. The forty-six contributions are diverse, with each author sharing his or her experiences, insights, and challenges from the AIC/Mennonite encounter. Certain themes emerge: the importance of shared experiences of biblical study, a sense of mutuality between co-workers, and the significance of inter-confessional ministries of reconciliation. The editors are mission practitioners and scholars who are well positioned to bring us this volume. Two are North Americans with experience of ministry among AICs, and the third is a Ghanaian AIC member who serves as principal of the Good News Theological Seminary in Accra, an AIC institution. The collection is preceded by an historical overview of the Mennonite/AIC story by Wilbert R. Shenk, whose professional career included both mission history scholarship and supervision of Mennonite missionaries who worked with AICs. A bibliography of resources written by AIC and Mennonite colleagues is at the end of the volume.