The Church in Mission

THEOLOGICAL STATEMENT

As members of the Church of Jesus Christ, we believe in and trust in the Triune God: the steadfast love and grace of God, the redemptive and reconciling work of Jesus Christ for the salvation of the world, and the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. As an entity of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and part of the Reformed tradition, we understand ourselves to be part of the larger Body of Christ in the world, the ekklesia: we are called, led and empowered by the Holy Spirit to walk together with God and each other in covenant relationship as we participate in God’s mission in the world God so loved and loves (The Book of Order, G3.0000-0401,“The Church and Its Mission”).

STRATEGIC STATEMENTS

VISION STATEMENT

God’s people connected in effective mission: a compelling witness to Jesus Christ in a globalized world.

MISSION STATEMENT

To engage with U.S. Presbyterians and global partners for faithful and effective participation in God’s mission in a globalized world, growing together as communities of mission practice.

CORE VALUES

Dignity

Created in God’s image and forgiven by God in Christ, we are all called to treat each person with dignity and respect, following the model of Jesus, standing together with those who are marginalized.

Empowerment

We will focus on long-term relationships, building the capacity of each member of the Body of Christ to engage in God’s mission in sustainable ways. We will strive to be aware of issues of power and context as well as the gifts and hopes of others.

Holistic Ministry

We seek to bring about the realization of God’s vision for our fallen world: the redemption of the whole creation, including both personal sinfulness and the unjust structures of society. A Christ-centered proclamation of the gospel requires that we share the gospel through evangelism, minister in compassion, and advocate for justice.

Partnership

Our work with partner churches and organizations around the world and with U.S. Presbyterians is based on mutual respect and trust leading to common prophetic witness and to mutual transparency and accountability. Whenever possible, we work in God’s mission with other members of the ecumenical family and with partners of other faiths.

Relevance to God’s World

We embrace the call of God to respond with creativity and integrity to a rapidly changing and interdependent world where local and global concerns converge in new ways. We will maintain our centeredness in Christ as we follow the example of our spiritual ancestors: “The church reformed, always reforming” (Book of Order G-2.0200).

Stewardship

From the beginning God has called humankind to care for the created order; therefore we will strive to restore God’s creation and to use its resources respectfully and responsibly. We, as individuals and as an organization, with all that we have belong to God; therefore we place under the Lordship of Christ our time, talents, and financial resources; our political and economic choices; our relationships; and our very lives.

DIRECTIONAL GOALS

Communities of Mission Practice

Presbyterian World Mission, in collaboration with U.S. Presbyterians and global partners, will inspire, equip and accompany each other in communities of mission practice to engage in God’s mission.

Faithful and Effective Mission

Presbyterian World Mission will increase faithfulness and effectiveness in our shared participation in God’s mission as we learn and act together with U.S. Presbyterians and global partners.

Strategic Engagement in Critical Global Issues

Presbyterian World Mission, in partnership with U.S. Presbyterians and global partners, will strategically focus on critical global issues that adversely affect God’s creation and the human family.

Achieving Organizational Excellence

Presbyterian World Mission, as a learning community, will achieve organizational excellence through resource and knowledge management, strategic thinking, staff development and healthy work-life balance.

COMMUNITY OF MISSION PRACTICE CONCEPT PAPER

Presbyterian World Mission

February 2010

Historical Background

Beginning in 1837, the Presbyterian Church’s Board of Foreign Mission sent mission workers into the world to preach, teach, and heal. Our mission workers worked in Brazil, Congo, Egypt, China, and other countries to plant the church and help it to grow into a witnessing, serving community. Thousands of women and men came to faith in Jesus Christ and the churches grew. This direct mode of mission was a good and faithful response to God’s call to our church at that time.

In the 1950’s and 60’s, as Presbyterian communities in these nations multiplied and matured and as the developing world’s clamor for self-determination in the waning years of the age of colonialism grew, our church discerned a movement of the Spirit and reformed its mission policy to recognize and respect the role of national Christian communities and their leaders in the nations we had considered to be “the mission field”.  Our more direct mode of mission to communities around the world was transformed into an equipping mode of work, focused in large part on empowering the national churches to grow in membership, leadership and capacity to serve their communities through ministries of education, health, development, and evangelism. The PC(USA) was one of the early pioneers in working in partner-ship with national Christians and the results have been a noteworthy growth in membership, leadership and capacity, as well as a powerful multiplier effect that resulted from shifting the work of our mission workers from an exclusive focus on direct feeding, healing and proclamation to equipping the local church to feed, heal and proclaim the Gospel. This paradigmatic shift from the direct mode of mission to working in partnership characterized by mutuality was not an easy one. But the fruits of the last half century of mission in partnership have proven that our forbearers rightly discerned the Spirit’s call.

Today, we believe the Spirit is calling our church to a deeper understanding of partnership. As globalization has increased international communication, travel and awareness and seen the convergence of global and local concerns, U.S. Presbyterians have responded by increasing their participation in international mission. If, in 1960, Presbyterians worked primarily through one, centralized international mission agency (COEMAR in the UPCUSA and the Board of Foreign Mission in the PCUS), today there are thousands of Presbyterian “mission agencies” making mission decisions every day: the Validated Mission Support Groups and other Presbyterian mission organizations, presbytery international partnerships, congregational mission committees, congregation-to-congregation “twinning” relationships, etc. This seismic shift in the understanding and practice of mission has opened the door to direct involvement of U.S. Presbyterians at unprecedented levels. Greatly increased involvement and giving and the opportunity for personal and congregational transformation have been some of the positive effects of the change. But our global partners note that our mission efforts have become highly uncoordinated and, in some cases, less responsive to the needs as perceived by the local community.

This shift, from one highly centralized agency to thousands of highly decentralized agencies, is a massive one and invites Presbyterian World Mission to reform its self-understanding and the focus of its work to include many U.S. Presbyterian mission constituents—congregations, middle governing bodies, validated mission support groups and other mission organizations– as partners in mission, and to continue its commitment to engaging in God’s mission in a spirit of humility and mutuality. This deep change invites us all to consider new ways of being a connectional church. In the last century, our church did an excellent job of including the voice of global partners in our mission reflection and action. The new context requires that, in addition to maintaining our close and mutual partnership with global partners (because we believe that God speaks with particular clarity to God’s people in each place) and ecumenical partners (because of our understanding of the linkage between mission and unity), we are called to discern and engage in God’s mission with U.S. Presbyterians. The Dallas Invitation, signed by 64 mission leaders from across the PC(USA) and affirmed by the GAC and General Assembly in 2008, affirms this movement and invites Presbyterian World Mission to support “new patterns involving new cooperation and partnerships within the PC(USA)”. In order to accomplish this deepening of partnership in mission, Presbyterian World Mission proposes to work intentionally in “communities of mission practice”, creating and nurturing spaces of prayer, reflection, discernment and discipleship which

transcend national borders and allow global partners, U.S. Presbyterians and Presbyterian World

Mission to come together as partners in God’s mission. The concept is described below.

Veja AQUI!

Recently the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) put together two more useful resources for the reflection of local churches partnering with our overseas partners in mission. They are:

An Invitation to Expanding Partnership in God’s Mission, the results of a consultation held in January 2008, and…

Doing Mission in Christ’s Way, created in a workshop held in October 2009.

I think you will find them both very thought provoking, especially helpful for local church mission committee’s and groups preparing to for an overseas mission trip.

We’ve added some videos from the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) website (ww.pcusa.org) that are helpful for promoting mission in your local churches. You can find the videos below or on our “Resources” page above.

Media Resources from Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

PCUSA World Mission Director’s Challenge

General Assembly Council Overview: Offering the World a Visible Witness of Jesus Christ

definitely worth republishing, from Carlisle Executive Presbyter

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Did you know that the Presbyterian Church in Madagascar has more members than our Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)? Did you know that we have a close working partnership with two different Presbyterian Churches in Ghana: the Presbyterian Church of Ghana and the Evangelical Presbyterian Church of Ghana? Did you know about the efforts of American Presbyterians to establish relations with the emerging house churches, many of which include people with a Reformed and Presbyterian background, in all the “stan” countries (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan)? Did you know there are new efforts to connect our church with the peacebuilding efforts which have been bearing fruit in Ireland for many years, through the work of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland? Did you know about the longstanding effort of American Presbyterians to stand with our brothers and sisters in Columbia against the violence in that nation? Our Columbia Mission Network, in a powerful ministry of compassion, has provided for the General Secretary of the Presbyterian Church in Columbia when he, his wife and young children needed to leave Columbia because of the death threats received in response to their Christian witness? Did you know that because of the influence and support of American Presbyterians, the Presbyterian Church in Honduras, after years of effort, has finally had their legal petitions with the government, which is dominated by Roman Catholic officials, approved. Now the Presbyterian Church has official standing as a religious organization in Honduras. This means, for the first time, that the Presbyterian congregations in Honduras are able to legally own their church buildings and property. Given the lack of social infrastructure in Haiti, do you know about the incessantly difficult work which American Presbyterians are doing to bring a long-term, sustainable, mission effort to that poor country? Did you know, after generations of conflict and war, the church is emerging with amazing life and vitality in Vietnam and Laos and that American Presbyterians are partnering with those congregations? All of this work is being carried and supported by the burgeoning, new Mission Networks of our Church.

http://www.pcusa.org/pcnews/2008/08718.htm

October 2, 2008

‘An enormous phenomenon’

by Pat Cole
Associate, Mission Communications

LOUISVILLE — Short-term mission trips are “an enormous phenomenon” and “central to the ministry practices of a high proportion” of Christians in the United States, according to a seminary professor who studies the trend.

In a recent address to leaders of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) mission networks, Robert Priest, professor of mission and intercultural studies at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, IL, said it is likely that more than 2 million U.S. Christians travel abroad each year on short-term mission trips. 

Participation in international mission trips is particularly high among younger people, he said. In a study of students in 60 U.S. seminaries, Priest found that 48 percent of seminarians had been on an international short-term mission trip and that 67 percent of PC(USA) seminarians had a short-term mission experience abroad. A survey of students in Christian liberal arts colleges revealed that 47 percent of them had traveled internationally on short-term mission trips.

A total of 44 leaders from 31 PC(USA) mission networks  gathered in Louisville Sept. 25–27 to share best practices and participate in training opportunities.  PC(USA) mission networks are composed of Presbyterians who come together around a particular country, region, or other mission interest.

Short-term mission experiences, Priest said, can potentially broaden the horizons of participants, deepen their faith, and contribute to the well-being of communities in developing countries. 

However, such positive outcomes from these trips, which usually last fewer than 14 days, are not automatic.  In fact, Priest noted, many participants fail to try to understand the cultures they visit, can cite little evidence of spiritual transformation as a result of their trips, and engage in giving practices that create unhealthy dependencies.

Nevertheless, in his research with pastors in Peru and Thailand, Priest has found that most pastors in those countries who worked with short-term groups had positive appraisals of them. On a trip to one Latin American city Priest witnessed a large short-term mission team help construct a Protestant church building and staff a medical clinic that offered a variety of services.

“I couldn’t find anybody in that town who thought it (the mission trip group) was anything but wonderful,” Priest said.  The economically poor townspeople appreciated their services and saw that the host congregation had connections with affluent foreigners. Those relationships, he said, raised the esteem of the congregation in the predominately Catholic town.

However, many mission pastors and youth pastors acknowledge that the strategic contributions of short-term mission trips to overseas communities are of limited value, Priest said.  They justify short-term mission, he explained, “in terms of how it positively benefits the sending congregation or youth program.”

As the short-term mission trips began to grow in popularity in the 1980s and 1990s, Priest said some leaders justified the trips by hoping the experience would nudge participants toward long-term mission service or make them more likely to support long-term mission personnel  financially. Research has shown that has not been the case, he said.

“Today the results are clear that the explosion of short-term mission trips coincided with a plateauing and decline of career missions and that short-term mission expansion reflected a redirection of resources away from career missions rather than an increase in the amount given in support of career missions,” Priest said.

Priest, who has interviewed many short-term mission participants, said they experience spiritual transformation more often when they combine international service with work in economically poor communities near their homes.  Some short-term mission participants have built relationships with recent immigrants from countries they visited on mission trips.

Yet a deepened involvement with economically poor people and lifestyle changes are not likely to happen “if you come from a church that doesn’t put justice issues front and center,” he said.

In his interviews with mission trip participants, Priest has found that many people struggle to identify ways they have changed as a result of their mission experience.

Priest recounted the story of one short-term mission trip participant who was eager to be interviewed about his experience. When questioned how he had changed as a result of the trip, the man could only say that he is now a more grateful person.

“Is gratefulness an adequate response to human need?” Priest asked.

by David Dawson*

This article appeared in the The Presbyterian Outlook on September 8, 2008, and was re-printed in the Presbyterian Cross-Cultural Mission Newsletter Email Group Posting #23 – October 2008 with the permission of the author and The Presbyterian Outlook. www.pres-outlook.org  There are footnote references in the article indicated by parentheses ( ).

You may be surprised that missionary could be in need of rehabilitating, but some readers will have a visceral aversion to hearing this word. It is time to reconsider what we call those who represent the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in international cross-cultural mission.  The recent General Assembly unanimously approved the Dallas Invitation (Expanding Partnership in God’s Mission) and affirmed the General Assembly Council’s proposal to reverse the half-century decline (from 2,000 to 200) in the number of mission co-workers serving internationally.  These are very significant defining moments for the PC(USA) and they provide us an important opportunity to review our beliefs and actions regarding mission.

Many readers will be surprised that using “missionary” is a no-no for some in the PC(USA).(1)  Officially we have preferred “fraternal worker” (1960’s – 1970’s) and “mission co-worker” since then. Presbyterians are far more influenced in their thinking about missionaries by James Michener’s Hawaii and Barbara Kingsolver’s Poisonwood Bible than they are by mission education provided by the PC(USA). In addition to popular literature this bias is also deeply influenced by western scholars.(2)  It seems that some in the PC(USA) defer to popular literature and academic writers for a critical understanding of missionaries. Maybe we should listen to international partners such as world-renowned missiologist Lamin Sanneh who twenty years ago labeled this lack of nerve “the western missionary guilt complex.”(3)

Have missionaries been paternalistic? Have they cooperated with imperialism and economic colonialism? Have they imposed western theological and Biblical understandings as normative Christian expression? Yes (with emphasis) to all of the above! However, missionaries are no better at sinning than the rest of us. They just get to do it cross-culturally in a foreign language more carefully scrutinized than most of us have had to endure.  Robert D. Woodberry (among many other serious mission historians) reminds us that the knee-jerk, emotional, negative reaction to “missionary” is ill-founded. Woodberry writes: Continue Reading »

Tags: Add new tag, missiological terminology, missionary, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Mission Co-workers of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) just received some good news of a decision of General Assembly to increase the number of long-term mission personnel thus reversing a 50 year trend of decreasing personnel. Better yet is the explanation given by the current Director of World Mission, the General Assembly level mission sending structure located at denominational headquarters in Louisville. It demonstrates both sound missiology and diplomatic recognition of previous missionaries hard work to “work themselves out of a job”. I find this especially significant as it gives a good response to a statement often made by well meaning mission thinkers that decreasing numbers is good, while increasing numbers is not. Hunter’s nuanced repose is worth noting. Here is the letter:

2 June 2008

Dear colleagues in mission,

I want to share with you an historic decision by our Church’s General Assembly Council (GAC). Last month, the Council voted unanimously to reverse a 50 year downward trend in the number of PCUSA mission coworkers by approving a budget for the approval of the 2008 General Assembly that will increase the number of long-term, fully compensated mission personnel. Due to attrition, by this year’s General Assembly in June, we will have just under 200 mission coworkers (this does not include our nearly 70 long-term mission volunteers). The GAC voted to increase the number of our mission coworkers to 210 in 2009, and to 215 in 2010. We are thanking God for this remarkable decision.

But you know how U.S. audiences are tempted to focus on the 7 second sound-byte. Let me go a bit deeper about this important decision and the on-going conversation from which it emerges.

First, let me say what the decision does not mean: Continue Reading »

here it is!

http://www.pcusa.org/missionchallenge07/#

http://www.pcusa.org/missioncelebration/ 

The World Mission people in Louisville have developed great resources for interpreting mission, in preparation for the nationwide (144 presbyteries) campaign. These include:

• a video narrated by Hunter Farrell available online at: http://www.pcusa.org/missionchallenge07/index.htm
• Mission Challenge ’07 materials are you can see now at http://staging.pcusa.org/mc07
• a new “simplified giving” Web site went live a week ago: www.pcusa.org/mission so you can trully designate your funds to specific missionaries and projects

Take full advantage of these resources and let’s promote God’s great mission, also in this way!