10/40 window

Area focused on in Christian missions September 2012 thumb|upright=1.5|The nations in the 10/40 window The 10/40 window is a term coined by Christian missionary strategist and Partners International CEO Luis Bush in 1990 to refer to those regions of the Eastern Hemisphere, plus the European and African part of the Western Hemisphere, located between 10 and 40 degrees north of the equator, a general area that was purported to have the highest level of socioeconomic challengesThe World FactBook The World FactBook 1990 At the time, the authoritative source for socioeconomic and political metrics for every nation. Extreme poverty was denoted as under US$500 per capita GNP (in 1990 dollars). Human suffering was measured by the Quality of Life index, precursor to today's Human Development IndexSee the Analysis section of this article for research-based details and cited references. and least access to the Christian message and Christian resources "Access" is generally defined using a variety of metrics. What is least controversial is those areas with least access throughout history, as all metrics for such areas are zero or close to zero. Examples of metrics used include the presence of (Christian) work and workers (of any kind, whether community development, health, business, child care, house servants, etc.), media in an appropriate language (print, TV, radio, web, etc.)Operation World provides a concise well-researched/cited data summary for each nation Barrett David B. Kurian George T. Johnson Todd M. World Christian Encyclopedia 2nd http://www.oup-usa.org/isbn/0195079639.html Oxford University Press 0-19-507963-9 2001 https://web.archive.org/web/20030206213312/http://www.oup-usa.org/isbn/0195079639.html February 6, 2003 1739 pp. Much of its data is available online at the http://worldchristiandatabase.org/wcd/ World Christian Database Brill March 1, 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070304152957/http://worldchristiandatabase.org/wcd/ March 4, 2007 dead mdy-all Mind-numbing in its details (with some areas of unique value), but the introduction and definitions in the paper edition are quite helpful to understanding. on the planet. The concept behind the 10/40 window highlights these three elements (as of data available in 1990): an area of the world with great poverty and low quality of life, combined with lack of access to Christian resources and unreached non-Christians. The window forms a band encompassing Saharan and Northern Africa, as well as almost all of Asia (West Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, East Asia and much of Southeast Asia). Roughly two-thirds of the world population lives in the 10/40 window, and it is predominantly Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, animist, or atheist. Many governments in the 10/40 window are officially or unofficially opposed to Christian missionary work of any kind within their borders. Origin This region of the world was previously known to Christians as the "resistant belt", as noted by Luis Bush at the 1989 Lausanne II Conference in Manila.Mark A. Lamport, Encyclopedia of Christianity in the Global South, Volume 2, Rowman & Littlefield, USA, 2018, p. 451 In 1990, Bush's research led to a meeting with Pete Holzmann, a leader of the team developing the first PC-based geographic information system (GIS) software. http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101030630/map/ The 10/40 Window Time June 30, 2003 March 1, 2007 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20070428234833/http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101030630/map/ April 28, 2007 The link is to the map, which is part of an extensive cover story.Atlas GIS, produced by Strategic Mapping Inc., was the first PC geographic information system.http://www.gismonitor.com/news/newsletter/archive/040501.php ESRI Retires ArcCAD and Atlas GIS September 21, 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070925180632/http://www.gismonitor.com/news/newsletter/archive/040501.php September 25, 2007 They analyzed the region using a box between 10 and 40 degrees north latitude, and called it the "10/40 box". A few weeks later, Bush and his wife Doris were inspired to rename it the 10/40 window, stating that this region ought to be seen as a "window of opportunity".Jaffarian Michael The computer revolution and evangelical mission research and strategy: An historical overview 2014-11-16 The Internet and the Google Age: Prospects and Perils 88–90 James Jonathan D. Dublin Research-publishing.net 10.14705/rpnet.2014.000179 978-1-908416-17-9 free The analysis and concept was a generalization that focuses on a region, not a sharp boundary defining what is a priority, and what is not. For this reason, many missiologists prefer to use the phrase "10/40 window region".August 2024 Before being called the "resistant belt", the Islamic portions of this region, as well as selected unreached Buddhist and Hindu areas, were referred to as the "unoccupied fields" by Samuel Zwemer, in his book by that same title, published in 1911.Zwemer Samuel M. The Unoccupied Mission Fields of Africa and Asia https://archive.org/details/cu31924023021417 New York Student Volunteer Movement for Foreign Missions 260 1911J. Gordon Melton, Martin Baumann, Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices, ABC-CLIO, USA, 2010, p. 14 The concept was first published in the AD2000 magazine in 1990.Holvast 2008 71 Controversy Some researchers have objected to such a broad-brush term which seems to imply a unifying characteristic of the 10/40 window, when in fact no large area of the planet is completely homogenous in cultural attributes.Holvast 2008 193 The 1990 research data states: this part of the world was home to the largest populations living in deep poverty and lowest quality of life; this part of the world did have least access to Christian resources. Note the emphasis on access not percent Christian. The West has ubiquitous access to such resources; this area of the world did and does not. This research deals in overall population characteristics. "10/40 window" is a term that helps people visualize the general area of the analysis, where the above characteristics are generally true, but with exceptions proving it is only a generalization. Some examples of the exceptions: The 10/40 window article refers to the "poorest of the poor" living in that region (based on late-1980s per-capita GNP under US$500). Of the three billion people living in such poverty-stricken nations, 82% lived in the 10/40 window. Yet the window also includes nations such as South Korea and Japan. In the late 20th century, Japan boasted the world's third largest economy, and South Korea the eleventh. Such nations were strong throughout the late 20th century. Geographically, the 10/40 window includes the Philippines and Portugal, which both have a Roman Catholic Christian majority; Greece, where almost 98% of the population belonged to the Greek Orthodox Church; Cyprus, where Christianity accounts for over 70% of the population;Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project: Cyprus. Pew Research Center. 2010. South Korea, which is home to the largest single congregation church in the worldThe largest congregation is in Seoul (Yoido Full Gospel Church) http://mondaymorninginsight.typepad.com/monday_morning_insight_we/2005/05/the_top_10_chur.html The Top 10 Churches in the World (by size) August 20, 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070927162953/http://mondaymorninginsight.typepad.com/monday_morning_insight_we/2005/05/the_top_10_chur.html September 27, 2007 and is also the second largest missionary-sending nation in the world;http://www.ctlibrary.com/ct/2006/march/16.28.html Missions Incredible CT Library https://web.archive.org/web/20061107083606/http://www.ctlibrary.com/ct/2006/march/16.28.html November 7, 2006 dead and Ethiopia, which is a majority-Christian country. The 10/40 window does not encompass Indonesia or Sri Lanka, nations that had very little access to Christian resources. To address these concerns, the list of 10/40 countries has been amended in recent years to omit Greece, Portugal and the Philippines.July 2026 Additionally, the concept has been critiqued as "[reflecting] a US Evangelical worldview" which may not be shared by other Christians.Holvast 2008 193 Use Over the years, the 10/40 window has evolved from a specialist term used by Christian missiologists to assumed vocabulary for Christians in the West. http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=792 Becoming Global Christians in the 21st Century Justin Long Charisma Magazine 2001 November 20, 2011 February 15, 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080215210838/http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=792 dead http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=1575 Islam and China's Christmas David Aikman Charisma Magazine 2002 November 20, 2011 February 15, 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080215210833/http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=1575 dead http://www.christianitytoday.com/tcw/2003/001/11.12.html Marli Spieker Today's Christian Woman 2003 Christianity today November 20, 2011 It is an emerging term in the secular press and can be found in press style glossaries.ANN http://news.adventist.org/styleguide/glossary.html https://web.archive.org/web/20111107162909/http://news.adventist.org/styleguide/glossary.html dead November 7, 2011 Glossary Adventist November 20, 2011 Non-western writers and organizations also refer to the 10/40 window.http://www.macsa.co.za/faq.html FAQ Macsa November 20, 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20120402100039/http://www.macsa.co.za/faq.html April 2, 2012 dead mdy-all http://www.opendoors.org.za/content/view/239/21/ Open Doors South Africa March 1, 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070213040807/http://www.opendoors.org.za/content/view/239/21/ February 13, 2007 dead mdy-allko Srilanka, Society for world mission/mission network. In addition, those opposed to the idea of evangelism make use of the term. http://csindy.com/csindy/2003-04-03/cover.html Guerrillas for God : Inside Colorado Springs' modern day missionary boot camp Colorado Springs Independent https://web.archive.org/web/20040117125117/http://csindy.com/csindy/2003-04-03/cover.html 2004-01-17 May 21, 2018 Lightman Alan http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2003/04/15/in_touch/index_np.html?pn=2 https://web.archive.org/web/20061210204511/http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2003/04/15/in_touch/index_np.html?pn=2 2006-12-10 Onward Christian soldiers Salon November 20, 2011 http://www.otherwise.net/?page_id=296 https://web.archive.org/web/20080215220934/http://www.otherwise.net/?page_id=296 2008-02-15 Otherwise November 20, 2011 The concept has also been a part of spiritual warfare theology. It is linked to spiritual mappingde Korte Hannah Onnekink David 2020-05-28 Maps Matter. The 10/40 Window and Missionary Geography Exchange 49 2 110–144 10.1163/1572543X-12341558 0166-2740 free Holvast 2008 193 of territorial spirits (demons believed to control regions of the globe and prevent Christian conversion), as promoted by C. Peter Wagner, founder of the New Apostolic Reformation.DeBernardi Jean https://books.google.com/books?id=9MmNaNebFD8C Religious diversity in Singapore 2008 Institute of Southeast Asian Studies 978-981-230-754-5 Singapore Global Christian Culture and the Antioch of Asia Google Books Ted Haggard's New Life Church was at the vanguard of the spiritual mapping movement through its close ties to and support of Wagner and Bush. It and Wagner helped initiate the "Praying Through the Window" events in the 1990s, which had tens of millions of participants.Wilson Bruce 2009-06-22 Fighting Demons, Raising the Dead, Taking Over the World https://religiondispatches.org/fighting-demons-raising-the-dead-taking-over-the-world/ 2024-09-08 Religion DispatchesGilbreath Edward October 1995 Millions to Pray in Worldwide Rally Christianity Today 106 39 11 New Life Church's spiritual warfare center, the World Prayer Center, opened in 1998 and primarily focused on the 10/40 window.Kovach Caldwell Deborah September 19, 1998 Evangelical Christian soldiers plan to wage spiritual warfare https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-francisco-examiner/102210955/ September 15, 2024 The San Francisco Examiner 6 Newspapers.com Analysis The original 1990 GIS 10/40 window analysis produced several insights, among them showing that the nations of the 10/40 window represented (as of the research date): 82% of the poorest of the world's poor (per capita GNP less than US$500 per year),AD2000 The Poorest Countries & The 10/40 Window August 1, 1990 GMI/GRDB 84% of those with lowest quality of life (life expectancy, infant mortality, and literacy),AD2000 Quality of Life & The 10/40 Window August 1, 1990 GMI/GRDB the hub of the world's major non-Christian religions (Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, etc.,)AD2000 Three Religious Blocks & The 10/40 Window August 1, 1990 GMI/GRDBAD2000 Islam & & The 10/40 Window August 1, 1990 GMI/GRDB close to 100% of those who were both most-poor and had least-access to Christian resources (two-dimensional analysis)AD2000 The Poor, The Unevangelized, & The 10/40 Window August 1, 1990 GMI/GRDB The least Christian resource investmentWell below 10 percent in any of the study populations. Each of the cited maps provides side data on population, Christian involvement, etc. in the various study populations (poor, low quality of life, non-Christian, etc.) and least sharing of the Christian messageAD2000 The 55 Least Evangelized Countries & The 10/40 Window August 1, 1990 GMI/GRDB The GIS analysis utilized country-level data from the Operation World almanac, the World Christian Encyclopedia, and The World Factbook. Non-Christians in the 10/40 window by religion The first edition GIS analysis maps highlighted the three major religious blocks in the 10/40 window, specifically the majority Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist nations. Population estimates at the time for the year 2000 (from Operation World) were given as: 28 Muslim countries, 1.1 billion population est. (2000) 2 Hindu countries, 1.1 billion population est. (2000) 8 Buddhist countries, 237 million population est. (2000) Later updates have been based more on census data and other estimates rather than forward-looking population estimates.https://home.snu.edu/~hculbert/1040.htm The cited reference provides the following estimate of "unreached" non-Christian populations in the 10/40 window: 865 million Muslims 550 million Hindus 275 million Buddhists 140 million in 2550 tribal groups (mainly animist) 17 million JewsThis number is higher than the census-based world total of 14 million. However, even authoritative Jewish sources state that many Jews do not identify themselves in population censuses. Nations in the 10/40 window The 10/40 window originally encompassed the following 54 countries. 20em Afghanistan Algeria Bahrain Bangladesh Benin Bhutan Burkina Faso Cambodia Chad China Cyprus Djibouti Egypt Eritrea Ethiopia Gambia Guinea Guinea-Bissau India Iran Iraq Israel Japan Jordan Korea (North) Korea (South) Kuwait Laos Lebanon Libya Mali Malta Mauritania Morocco Myanmar Nepal Niger Oman Pakistan Qatar Saudi Arabia Senegal Sudan (at the time including South Sudan) Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Thailand Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Vietnam Western Sahara Yemen These were all Old World nations (mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere) with at least 50 percent of their land area falling within 10 to 40 degrees latitude as of 1990. (The list also included Gibraltar and Macau, which are not independent nations.) Related concepts The terms "40/70 window", referring to Europe and Russia, and "4/14 window", referring to the ages between 4 and 14 for child evangelism, were also coined based on the 10/40 window concept. See also 1040 (film) Great Commission Human Development Index, which followed from the Quality of Life Index used in the 10/40 window researchOctober 2024 Notes References 30em Bibliography 30em Aikman David http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=1575 Becoming Global Christians in the 21st century Charisma Magazine March 1, 2007 January 2002 February 15, 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080215210833/http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=1575 dead Allen John L http://ncrcafe.org/node/438 Evangelicals Look To 10/40 Window National Catholic Reporter March 1, 2007 September 2006 https://web.archive.org/web/20070927213817/http://ncrcafe.org/node/438 September 27, 2007 dead mdy-all Blumenthal Max http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2003/04/15/in_touch/index_np.html Onward Christian Soldiers Salon April 15, 2003 March 1, 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20061210204511/http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2003/04/15/in_touch/index_np.html?pn=2 December 10, 2006 Dicker John http://csindy.com/csindy/2003-04-03/cover.html Guerillas for God CS Independent April 3, 2003 March 1, 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070203145217/http://www.csindy.com/csindy/2003-04-03/cover.html February 3, 2007 Han, Ju Hui Judy http://www.otherwise.net/?page_id=296 Geography PhD Dissertation Summary Comix 2007 2007-03-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20070930191914/http://www.otherwise.net/?page_id=296 September 30, 2007 dead mdy Hillman Os http://www.christianitytoday.com/workplace/articles/issue9-faithatwork.html The Faith At Work Movement Christianity Today 2004 March 1, 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070219071456/http://www.christianitytoday.com/workplace/articles/issue9-faithatwork.html February 19, 2007 Holvast Spiritual Mapping: The Turbulent Career of a Contested American Missionary Paradigm, 1989–2005 University of Utrecht https://dspace.library.uu.nl/bitstream/handle/1874/29340/holvast.pdf?sequence=2 978-90-393-4829-1 René 2008 Long Justin http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=792 Islam and China's Christmas Charisma Magazine March 1, 2007 January 2001 February 15, 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080215210838/http://www.charismamag.com/display.php?id=792 dead http://news.adventist.org/styleguide/glossary.html Style Guide Glossary Adventist News Network 2007 March 1, 2007 http://www.macedonian.org.za/info.html Macedonian Project Information Macedonian Project 2007-03-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20010203120100/http://macedonian.org.za/info.html February 3, 2001 dead mdy-all http://www.opendoors.org.za/content/view/239/21/ Open Doors Serving Persecuted Christians Worldwide 2007-03-01 https://web.archive.org/web/20070213040807/http://www.opendoors.org.za/content/view/239/21/ February 13, 2007 http://mission.swim.org/srilanka/leesh/ Society for World Internet Mission Sri Lanka 2007-03-01 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20010702020031/http://mission.swim.org/srilanka/leesh/ July 2, 2001 mdy Walker J Gary http://www.christianitytoday.com/tcw/2003/001/11.12.html Marli Spieker, Broadcasting Hope Christianity Today March 1, 2007 https://web.archive.org/web/20070215022533/http://www.christianitytoday.com/tcw/2003/001/11.12.html February 15, 2007 April 2003 External links Updated statistics, including some relating to 10/40 Window, SNU. 10/40 Window Maps, GMI. Updated data from the original GIS analysis Category:Applications of geographic information systems Category:Christian missions Category:Evangelical Christian missions Category:Geographical neologisms Category:Religion and geography