Muslim Cultures see Extraction Evangelism as Abhorrent!

A case for family conversion & methodologies

"Note also the remarks of Michael Youssef, who says, “As a Christian Arab, I know that Arabs do not like alienation. Their whole life is centered upon family, friends and peer groups. We, therefore, have put unnecessary barriers before them in emphasizing the individualistic approach in evangelism.”

This last point is of greatest importance. Up to the present, the most common form of evangelism employed by Westerners has been to win individuals to Christ. This has, in group-oriented cultures, led to extraction from society and, often, to total alienation. This approach should be repudiated. In Western culture, which sees individualism as a positive trait, this is an acceptable form of evangelism. In Muslim countries, however, it is abhorrent. New approaches must be probed that allow for whole groups to come to Christ at once. The high value given to the interrelatedness of society must be retained. This is a good and positive sociological characteristic that must be appreciated and preserved.

(Muslim Evangelism: Contemporary Approaches to Contextualization. Phil Parshall. Gabriel Publishing. 2003 p. 90-91)