Includes bibliographical references and index

Cedar Rapids -- Rescued by the Reformation -- First teachers -- Settling in -- Moving out I -- Looking north : a guide -- Looking north : insight -- Moving out II -- Moving out III -- Missiology helping history -- Courses and classrooms -- Experts -- By the numbers -- Looking south : a guide -- Looking south : academic insights -- China watching -- Explorations with pen in hand -- Notre Dame -- The story so far -- Appendix: Checklist of publications on world Christian themes

Christianity's demographics, vitality, and influence have tipped markedly toward the global South and East. Addressing this seismic shift, one of America's leading church historians shows how studying world Christianity changed and enriched his understanding of the nature of the faith as well as of its history. Mark Noll illustrates the riches awaiting anyone who gains even a preliminary understanding of the diverse histories that make up the Christian story. He shows how coming to view human culture as created by God was an important gift he received from the historical study of world Christian diversity, which then led him to a deeper theological understanding of Christianity itself. He also offers advice to students who sense a call to a learned vocation