  christian mission is "an organized effort for the propagation of the christian faith." mission often involve sending individuals and groups, called "missionaries," to foreign countries and to places in their homeland for the purpose of proselytism (conversion to christianity, or from one christian tradition to another). this involves evangelism (preaching a set of beliefs for the purpose of conversion), and humanitarian work, especially among the poor and disadvantaged. there are a few different kinds of mission trips: short-term, long-term, relational and ones meant simply for helping people in need. some might choose to dedicate their whole lives to missions as well. missionaries have the authority to preach the christian faith (and sometimes to administer sacraments), and provide humanitarian work to improve economic development, literacy, education, health care, and orphanages. christian doctrines (such as the "doctrine of love" professed by many missions) permit the provision of aid without requiring religious conversion. ==history of christian missions==  ===apostolic period through medieval period=== the earliest examples of christian missionary activity are those recorded in writings that would eventually come to form the new testament. early writings include the letters of apostle paul, written in the course of his missionary activity in asia minor and greece. his activities were preceded by an expansion of christianity from the first followers of jesus in jerusalem throughout syro-palestine. this is also described in the acts of the apostles. the earliest christian mission, then, the great commission and dispersion of the apostles, was active within second temple judaism, as christianity had not yet split from judaism. whether a jewish proselytism existed or not that would have served as a model for the early christians is unclear, see circumcision controversy in early christianity#jewish background for details. soon, the expansion of the christian mission beyond judaism to those who were not jewish became a contested issue, notably at the council of jerusalem. the apostle paul was an early proponent of this expansion, and contextualized the christian message for the greek and roman cultures, permitting it to reach beyond its hebrew and jewish roots. from [
Christian_missions Christian_terminology Christianity_and_other_religions Conversion_to_Christianity Evangelicalism Missional_Christianity