Communicating the Gospel Where Power and Fear Reign Whether in New Age mysticism, occultism, Haitian voodooism, Chinese ancestor veneration, or Japanese Shintoism, animistic beliefs are widespread, even today. Gailyn Van Rheenen turns our attention to what Paul Hiebert called “the excluded middle,” the intermediate realm of spirits, ancestors, gods, and ghosts. Rather than being merely anecdotal, he presents a rigorous, biblical, theological, and anthropological foundation for ministering in animistic contexts.