by Elliott Wright

Image by: Cassandra M. Zampini Source: GBGM Administration Image by: Cassandra M. Zampini Source: GBGM Administration

Stamford, Connecticut, October 13, 2009--The United Methodist Church formally commissioned 40 persons to mission vocations in a powerful service of celebration and commitment on the night of October 13 in Stamford, Connecticut.

Thirty-one missionaries were blessed and sent, along with seven new deaconesses and two home missioners, who form a special office of mission commitment. They were commissioned in the presence of an on-site congregation of 300 and a worldwide community taking part via a live internet broadcast--the first such occasion for the commissioning of United Methodist missionaries.

The service took place during the annual meeting of directors of the General Board of Global Ministries, the mission agency of the denomination.

Eight of the 31 missionaries are international missionaries and six mission interns who initially go to assignments outside the United States. The others work in the US in a variety of ministries. Countries or regions of the international assignments include the Caribbean, Southeast Asia, Cambodia, Japan, Liberia, Mongolia, Southern Africa, and Ukraine.

Those commissioned come from 24 United Methodist annual (regional) conferences of the church in the US and will serve in about that same number. One international missionary has roots in the Methodist Church in the Caribbean and the Americas, one person is originally from Colombia, South America, and one was born in Liberia and has now returned there in mission.

"Become the Gospel"

Bishop Bruce R. Ough of West Ohio, president of the mission board, officiated at the service of commissioning. Bishop Peter Weaver of New England, a director of the board, preached. Using as his biblical text verses from the first chapter of the New Testament letter of I Thessalonians, he urged those being commissioned and all Christians to not only proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ but "to become the gospel." Paraphrasing scripture, he said, "It is clear that God not only loves you very much but has his hand upon you for something special."

In the formal act of commissioning, missionaries, deaconesses, and home missioners are charged to "take the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ into all the world." Bishop Weaver noted that certificates of commissioning in former times "authorized" missionaries to take the gospel into the world so long as "your spirit becomes the gospel."

Some of those commissioned will work as church developers, others as educators. Many will work with the poor, the homeless, neglected children, migrants in the US, Africa, and Asia, and still others in health-related ministries. (A list of those commissioned and their assignments appears below.)

Meaning of "Commission"

To "commission" a missionary or deaconess (or home missioner, the male counterpart) is for the church to recognize God's special call and to bless and "send" that person to carry the good news of God's love into the world. It takes place through prayer and the "laying on of hands" in an ancient Christian ritual.

The term "commission" reflects the Great Commission of Matthew 28, a passage in which, in English translation, Jesus tells his disciples to take the gospel into all the world. It comes from a Latin root meaning to bring together and, also, to bestow permission to conduct certain work.

"What we are doing is confirming the commitment made in your baptism, your commitment to Jesus Christ," Bishop Joel N. Martinez, interim general secretary (chief executive) of Global Ministries, told the candidates for commissioning at an earlier luncheon in their honor. He also said that the commissioning of missionaries is not a "Global Ministries moment alone but is a church-wide missional moment."

"The Holy Spirit called you, we are saying 'Amen' over you in the name of the church," Bishop Bruce R. Ough told the candidates at the lunch.

Solemn and Joyful

Like the ordination of clergy, the commissioning of missionaries is an occasion both solemn and joyful. In the context of worship, candidates are questioned on their call to mission. They promise to be diligent in prayer, Bible reading, and study to increase their skills. They make pledges to work in sincerity, love, and cooperation with coworkers under the direction of the church.

Candidates are then presented individually to a small group of commissioners, representing both the laity and the clergy. They kneel, receive the imposition of hands, and hear the presiding bishop officer say: "I commission you to take the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ into all the world." After arising, each person commissioned receives a cross in the shape of an anchor, which is the symbol of United Methodist mission service.

Deaconesses and Home Missioners

Deaconesses and home missioners also receive special pins designating their role as women and men devoted to mission under the guidance of the church. While persons in these categories find their own employment, they are lay members of annual (regional) United Methodist conferences and have a special relationship to the General Board of Global Ministries. As each is formally commissioned, family members and friends in the congregation stand to represent their support and unity of purpose.

Categories of Service

Persons in seven categories of mission service were commissioned on October 13. The groupings, the persons, their home annual (regional) conference, and their assignments are:

International Missionaries cross national borders, may come from anywhere and go to anywhere. About 40 percent of the United Methodist Church's 185 or so international missionaries are from countries other than the US:

• David Goran, Champaign, Illinois, pastor and director of student Ministry, Lviv, Ukraine.
• Shannon Goran, Tomball, Texas, in the Texas Annual Conference, associate director of student ministry, Lviv, Ukraine.
• Jonathan McCurley, Orlando, Florida, in the Florida Annual Conference, Asian Rural Institute, Japan, a ministry of the United Church of Japan.
• Haewon (Cindy) Moon, Los Angeles, in the California-Pacific Annual Conference, program director, Children's Orphanage, Chonburi Province, Thailand.
• Sungchul (Gary) Moon, Los Angeles, in the California-Pacific Annual Conference, director, Children's Orphanage, Chonburi Province, Thailand.
• Helen Roberts-Evans, Evanston, Illinois, in the Northern Illinois Annual Conference, associate director/superintendent for education, United Methodist School, Monrovia, Liberia.
• Serna Samuel, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Methodist Church of the Caribbean and the Americas, regional missionary for ministries with women and youth in the English- and French-speaking Caribbean.
• Charles Tran, Fairfax, Virginia, in the Virginia Annual Conference, ministry with migrants in Southeast Asia.

Church and Community Workers work among the poor and marginalized in the United States:

• Deborah Archie, Columbus, Ohio, in the West Ohio Annual Conference, Community Development for all People Corporation.
• Jennifer Battiest, Clinton, Oklahoma, in the Oklahoma-Indian Missionary Conference, Clinton Indian Church and Community Center.
• Steve Claris, Roanoke, Virginia, in the Virginia Annual Conference, Choctaw Mission, Mississippi.
• Alexandria Jones, New York City, originally from Illinois, National Farm Worker Ministry, Durham, North Carolina.
• Soraya Montano, originally from Colombia, South America, now in the West Ohio Annual Conference, Esperanza Viva Community Center, in Southwest Ohio.
• Rebecca Parsons, Henryville, Pennsylvania, in the Eastern Pennsylvania Annual Conference, Community Outreach Program, Roanoke, Virginia.
• Trina Scott-Zuor, Des Moines, Iowa, in the Iowa Annual Conference, Justice for Our Neighbors, Des Moines.
• Amy Spaur, Newton, Iowa, in the Iowa Annual Conference, Justice for Our Neighbors, Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas.
• Anita Tracy, Pocahontas County in the West Virginia Annual Conference, Webster County Cooperative Parish, West Virginia.
• James Pat Watkins, Richmond, Virginia, in the Virginia Annual Conference, Caretakers of God's Creation, an annual conference ministry, Richmond.

National Plan for Hispanic/Latino Ministry Missionaries serve in annual conferences and special ministries in the US through a plan authorized by The United Methodist Church:

• Jaime Nieves, Denver, Colorado, in the Rocky Mountain Annual Conference, director of Hispanic/Latino Ministries, Metropolitan District, Denver.
• Rosanna Panizo-Valladares, Durham, North Carolina, in the North Carolina Annual Conference, pastor and community developer, Durham District, North Carolina.

Deaconesses:

• Virginia Baker, New Orleans, Louisiana, in the Louisiana Annual Conference, community outreach manager at Disadvantaged Business Enterprises, New Orleans.
• Patricia Croley, Fort Thompson, South Dakota, in the Dakotas Annual Conference, elementary schoolteacher on the Crow Creek Reservation, Central South Dakota.
• Cynthia Andrade Johnson, Brownsville, Texas, in the Rio Grande Annual Conference, special education teacher in the Brownsville Independent School.
• Mary Cameron Kempson, Asheville, North Carolina, in the Western North Carolina Annual Conference, executive director of intergenerational ministries at LightShare, Inc., Asheville.
• Susan Lewandowski, originally from Beaverdam, Virginia, in the Virginia Annual Conference, a GED/ESL translation specialist in Spotsylvania, Virginia.
• Myka Kennedy Stephens, Morton Grove, Illinois, in the North Illinois Annual Conference, information specialist, Morton Grove, Illinois.
• Kyung O. Yu, Dayton, Ohio, in the West Ohio Annual Conference, chemist engaged in the investigation of chemical toxicity and groundwater contaminants at a research laboratory at Wright Patman Air Force Base, Dayton.

Home Missioners:

• Charles Barrow, Snow Hill, North Carolina, in the North Carolina Annual Conference, agricultural research specialist, North Carolina State University's Lower Costal Research Station in Kinston.
• Jeffrey Bruce Murrell, Huntsville, Alabama, in the North Alabama Annual Conference, program manager for environmental stewardship, US Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville.

Mission Interns serve half of a three-year term outside the US and half in a domestic assignment; initial assignment indicated:

• Joseph Bradley, White Oak, Texas, in the Texas Annual Conference, Cambodia Mission Initiative in Phnom Penh.
• Erin Eidenshink, Mars, Pennsylvania, in the Western Pennsylvania Annual Conference, Mongolia Mission Initiative, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
• Hannah Hanson, Alexandria, Virginia, in the Virginia Annual Conference, orphan care facilitator, SHADE (Sojourner, Help, Advocacy, Development, Education), Cape Town, South Africa.
• Rachel Keller, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, in the Central Pennsylvania Annual Conference, poverty alleviation facilitator, SHADE, Cape Town, South Africa.
• Jennifer Tyler, McCook Lake, South Dakota, in the Dakotas Annual Conference, health and spirituality facilitator, SHADE, Cape Town, South Africa.
• Holli Vining, Bessemer, Alabama, in the North Alabama Annual Conference, Mongolia Mission Initiative, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

US-2s serve in ministries of justice in the US for two-year terms:

• Bethany Amey, Turnersville, New Jersey, in the Greater New Jersey Annual Conference, Asian Women's Resource Center (Gum Moon), San Francisco, California.
• Heather Bishop, Manassas, Virginia, in the Virginia Annual Conference, Four Corners Native American Ministry, Shiprock, New Mexico.
• Jennifer Chickering from Franklin, Massachusetts, in the New England Annual Conference, Cookson Hills Native American Ministry, Cookson, Oklahoma.
• Amihan Jones, Austin, Texas, in the Southwest Texas Annual Conference, Foundry United Methodist Church, Washington, DC.
• Amanda Thrasher, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in the Western North Carolina Annual Conference, Hagar's House Women's Shelter, New Orleans, Louisiana.

Elliott Wright is the information officer of the General Board of Global Ministries.

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	See Also... Topic: GBGM events |  GBGM news |  General Conference |  Global connections |  Mission opportunities |  Missionaries |  Focus on Leadership Development |  Focus on Ministry with the Poor |  Geographic Region: Cambodia |  Caribbean Islands |  Japan |  Liberia |  Mongolia |  South Africa |  Thailand |  Ukraine |  Source: GBGM Mission News
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Date posted: Oct 14, 2009