The Church in Mission

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.

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.

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 »

Over the last 30 years as a missionary I have learned that the most exciting ministries we established or seen established are those which were self-reliant from the beginning. Self-reliance in terms of material resources translates into instant local “ownership” in terms of the personal and spiritual dynamic that governs the ministry and that is one of the most important keys for the emergence of long-lasting ministries with deep impact.

Westerners often assume, however, that overseas projects just cannot get along without us and consequently, faithfulness in world mission becomes a matter of writing checks. Glenn Schwartz of World Mission Associates, in his recent book, gives good insight and offers sound advice to churches who seek to encourage self-reliance and curb dependency in their desire to further God’s rule throughout the world. Check it out:

• When Charity Destroys Dignity. Overcoming Unhealthy Dependency in the Christian Movement. by Glenn J. Schwartz (World Mission Associates) available through www.wmausa.org

There is so much interest in short term mission trips, at least on the receiving end. I’m not so sure this is generating as much interest on the sending end. I am including one more for those who are interested. It comes from missionary and theological educator, Archibald Woodruff, working in Brazil some 20 years partnership with the Independent Presbyterian Church in Brazil. Here is what he has to say:

These are my reflections on Missiology, 34/4 (2006), a special issue devoted to Short-Term Missions (STM’s). The journal is published in Wilmore, Kentucky, and the guest editor of this issue is Robert J. Priest. I was sent a copy by the PCUSA in Louisville, and reflections were invited. I will share these reflections also with my Brazilian church and with Joe Small, both for reasons that will emerge in this paper.

The strong concerns about the all-too-vigorous STM movement did not exactly come out of the blue. Fairly recently I received, from María Arroyo, an eloquent paper (or grito) on the subject by Dennis Smith (By the way, Dennis has had significant professional contact with Leonildo Silveira Campos, a sociologist of religion who belongs to my Brazilian church). Brazil is blessed by distance and high air fares and has thus been spared the tidal wave of STM’s with which Central America and the Caribbean have had to deal. Nevertheless, we do have experience here with mission visits. Personally, I find these articles painful to read in places, because I was part tourist and part STM myself before, at the age of 45, I became a long-term missionary. This part of my history has made me a bit more patient with mission visitors, perhaps, than some of the other long-term missionaries are. Continue Reading »

Here is another reflection on short-term mission trips by local churches from the perspective of who goes. Hope this is helpful…

Are Short-Term Mission Trips Worth It?

by Dale Meador

Are short-term mission trips worth it? That question has again been much on my mind, inasmuch as I have just returned from one. Along with six other friends from our church, my brother Gil and son Stephen and I went for two weeks to Santarem, Brazil. In the heart of the Amazon River basin, Santarem is home to Project Amazon (PAZ), an effective church-planting ministry to which Bear Creek Church has enjoyed warm ties for five or six years. In support of PAZ’s diverse ministries (medical/dental boats, water filters, health education, Bible teaching, leadership development, and the planting of more than 300 churches, to name a few) we built 31 heavy wooden seats to be used in a leadership training facility (built by another, earlier team from BCC) in the small river village of Prainha, to which we sailed and where we assembled the seats.

Are short-term mission trips worth it? The question is reasonable and one I struggled with myself, before I had ever been on such a trip. After all, this trip was grueling and not inexpensive. Figured one way, it was 8 people x 64 hours of air travel (round-trip) each, including 18 take-offs or landings + 17 hours of boat travel (again, round-trip) to cover just 110 miles of ocean-like river. The total cost of the trip itself was about $16,000, a figure that includes the material used in the manufacture of the 31 benches (really, more like pews than benches). Continue Reading »

Recently. I received the following review from the World Mission Program Unit of the PCUSA concerning mission trips taken by local congregations. It may be of some use to your group, if you are considering a trip. I will post another view as well, but here is this one from the former president of the Evangelical Presbyterian and Reformed Church in Peru, Rodrigo Maslucan:

Short Term Missions in Peru: Analysis and Proposals

Introduction

Five years ago, I had the desire to meet foreign missions groups that were coming to help our church. The Evangelical Reformed Presbyterian Church of Peru (IEPRP), of which I am a pastor, began to have a relationship through personal contacts with the PC(USA) in 1997, developing in the city of Iquitos and the church of Moyobamba.

As a result of a negative experience in Iquitos, the church felt the need to communicate with the PC(USA). It was regarding a problem that happened because of inadequate missiological principles, and the inadequate guidelines that were used by some short-term missionaries sent by an NGO independent of the PC(USA).

Thanks to the invitation from Dr. Paredes, director of the Andean Amazon Evangelic Center of Missiology, to participate in a case study on short-term missions under the direction of Dr. Robert Priest, director of the doctorate on missiology of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, I was able to take an up-close look at what short-term missions are, and what impact they have in Peru.

In this paper I will present a simple analysis and proposal for the church regarding short-term missions, with the end of giving a detailed contribution about what is happening in Peru and what guidelines should be followed for the future, especially with regard to the IEPRP and the PC(USA), and churches from other countries. Short-term missions are a new phenomenon in the US, Canada, and European countries. How did short-term mission originate? Why did it originate? What are the positive and negative aspects that it poses for long-term career missionaries? What are the new mission ideologies and how do we understand them in the context of globalization and post-modernity? What are the challenges posed to the churches and Theological Institutions regarding missiology that are being investigated? Because of the length of such questions, I will not be able to cover all of this. May the Lord illuminate the missiologists to investigate these mission models to help the churches with the objective of improving short-term missions, and giving a challenge to the theological institutions. Continue Reading »

Last August we returned to the U.S. for seven months of visitation in local Presbyterian churches and presbyteries to share our stories on ministry in Brazil and interpret the global witness of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Our first stop was Louisville, Kentucky for a week with Worldwide Ministries Division, now called World Mission Program Unit (WMPU) office staff for general orientation. It was particularly encouraging to hear the stories of the many and diverse other mission co-workers around the world. Once again, it left us grateful to be a part of this larger group.

It was also a time of uncertainty. Worldwide Ministries office and field staff had just been drastically reduced (the latter from 300 in January to 235 in August); I think the largest proportional reduction in my 29 years of service. And more was to follow. A reorganization of the national offices was forthcoming, which furthered the climate of uncertainty. Finally, it was announced that no future assignments to the field would be made beyond June 2008, at least until the budget for beyond 2008 was established in about another year. All that uncertainty, for good or bad, came through when we were interviewed along with Melanie and Scott Smith by Presbyterians Today at the end of the week. The interview was published in October as simply, “Mission Uncertain?” and it provoked considerable reaction.

I do not think that the reporter, Toya Hill, meant to question the mission itself of the church, but rather, the current patterns of support and sending, although that clarification was never made. I’ve thought a lot about this since then, especially as we visit churches and presbyteries in North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Florida and California (with trips to mission consultations in between to Germany and Spain!). I want to share some of these thoughts—they are my own and are not necessarily the views of any official body—in the hope that this may clarify what is happening (if for no one else than myself!) and what the prospects are for the mid-range future (short-range 12-18 months planning is already in gear). They are meant to be positive and constructive, and at the same time, as transparent and realistic as possible. Continue Reading »

Recently Marta and I participated in the Third (annual) Consultation of the Brazilian Diaspora near Frankfurt, Germany, and the Third Iberian American Missionary Conference (COMIBAM) in Granada Spain (the first was held in São Paulo in 1987 and the second in Acapulco in 1997). Both were moving events and encouraging especially to the two of us as we continued to encounter Brazilians from all over the world who, at one time or another, had studied with us or read some of the material we’ve produced. My overall sense was that the Brazilian missionary movement is moving into a new phase, beyond the initial enthusiasm of the 70’s and 80’s and the discoveries of the challenges of ministries in other cultures and often lack of adequate infrastructure and support of the 90’s, to some real contributions that can happen after 20-30 years in cross-cultural ministry, as some of these missionaries now have. Of course, the “former” two phases also continue to accompany the movement and will do so simultaneous to this newest phase. I believe that will require the following responses pertinent to us:

For North American or European based mission organizations, it will require some discernment and selectivity as they seek to partner with increasing numbers of Latin American missionaries. They come to the U.S. and Europe in all stripes and sizes and I think the North Atlantic operations can benefit from careful screening and recommendations from their overseas partners and mission personnel. For some mission personnel involved in this movement, we may contribute to this movement in a number of ways. We basically need to: first, encourage the movement; second, allow room for talented Latin Americans to assume leadership positions; and third facilitate the networks of relationships that the movement needs to further their outreach.

First, we need to encourage the movement itself. When we were at COMIBAM last week, I met a Presbyterian couple with OC International who had worked in Brazil for some 20 years in the area of mission research. They have now moved to Malaga, Spain to be available to train and pastor the 300+ Brazilian missionaries ministering in Northern Africa and the Muslim world! Another couple, also Presbyterian and working with OC International, have left Brazil after 20 years and relocated to England, basically for the same purpose.

The consultation in Frankfurt of the Brazilian Diaspora was illustrative of the great need for continuing education and encouragement that this group of several hundred in Europe need and are inviting. There I connected with two fascinating brothers in this endeavor: Tomé and Fabiano. Their parents are both from India and immigrants to Mozambique where the brothers were raised. Tomé went to Brazil as a young man some 20 years ago for theological education and today is one the Baptist denomination’s top leaders in missiological education. He also coordinates the missionary work of the Brazilian Baptist Convention in Europe and parts of Africa. His brother, Fabiano, just finished his PhD in Sociology at Cambridge University and is currently the director of a Theological School in Portugal which will host the Brazilian Diaspora next year. Together we have a desire to continue a project of continuing theological education for Diaspora Brazilians. We’ll see what develops.

Second, we need to allow room for talented Latin Americans to assume leadership positions. Mission personnel need to move beyond occupying full-time positions in national institutions to one of support in the areas of greater needs.

Third, we need to facilitate the networks of relationships that the Brazilian missionary movement needs in order to further their outreach. Those are some initial thoughts that this experience provoked.

Concerning the events themselves, there were 50-60 Brazilians at the consultation in Frankfurt and over 2,000 persons attending COMIBAM (300 of them were Latin American missionaries).

Yours in Him….Tim

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