Book excerpt: What does "holistic" mission really mean? If you are engaged in Christian mission, this question is extremely important to you. Chances are, you have already embraced a definition of holism and applied it to your ministry. In this groundbreaking book, the author brings you several examples of holistic mission from Asia, Europe and Latin America and encourages you to compare these cases against your own ministry. We often limit our understanding of holistic mission to a linking of evangelism and social action. If this is true of you, then this thought-provoking book will broaden your idea of holism and challenge you to reflect on a wide range of issues relating to mission. McAlpine seeks nothing short of reframing the way in which the question of holism is put and expanding the range of issues it involves. He also skillfully analyzes studies from the journal "Transformation," which has pioneered much of today's thinking on holism. Through the exciting cases and analyses presented in this new work, we begin to see the emerging shape of holistic mission.