This work reassess the role of the missions in South Africa and provides contrasting overviews of the ways in which missions have been, and should be, treated in South African historiography. It discusses the relation between religion, politics and gender issues, and the ways in which the original message was internalized, adapted and then taken over by African converts. The book explores such topics as: how far were the early foreign missionaries responsible for this massive conversion process?; what was the nature of the interaction between missionaries and South Africans of different backgrounds?; and how did the theologies, political ideologies and social philosophies of all concerned affect this interaction and the final interpretation of the Christian message?