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Dave Datema

Dave
Datema

PhD Candiate, Intercultural Studies

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Kirsteen Kim

About Dave

I grew up as a missionary kid in Sierra Leone, West Africa. It was glorious. After high school and college in Indiana, I pastored for 10 years in northwest Ohio. In 1999 I joined the US Center for World Mission in Pasadena and have served here ever since. I am married and have four children. My wife and I serve as caregivers for our disabled son and as for my three daughters, well, let’s just say we also raise divas.

Education

Winebrenner Theological Seminary

1997

Master of Divinity

Huntington University

1988

BA in Bible and Religion

Research Interests

Unreached people group paradigm, African American history, African-American missions, frontier missiology

Publications

Datema, David Earl. “Defining ‘Unreached’: A Short History.” International Journal of Frontier Missiology 33, no. 2 (2016): 45–71.

This article traces how the term “unreached” was coined and how the percentage criteria for being unreached was determined. In doing so, it serves as a basic history of the entire unreached people group paradigm in missiology.

Datema, David Earl. “The Universal Particularism of Panta Ta Ethne: A Biblical Case for the Continued Viability of the People Group Concept in Mission.” Missiology: An International Review, April 3, 2021.

This article is a response to the idea that the people group paradigm is a twentieth century invention and is no longer viable as a strategic concept in Christian mission. It focuses on the biblical understanding of the concept of people groups.

Fuller Seminary hosts these profiles as a courtesy to our doctoral students. Their views are their own and do not necessary reflect the views of the seminary.