| DR Congo | Liberia | Honduras|

This week's staff briefing at the General Board of Global Ministries (GBGM) featured updates from the offices of Mission Personnel and Community and Institutional Ministries.

Curtis Grund, Assistant General Secretary of Personnel Services gave an update concerning the status of missionary personnel serving in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Liberia. The Rev. German Acevedo Delgado, Assistant General Secretary for Community Ministries, briefed the staff on the development of growing United Methodist ministries in Honduras.

The Congo: Missionaries Return

Curtis Grund announced the return of specific missionaries to their places of assignment within the Democratic Republic of Congo. Because of civil unrest in the northeast area of the country and under the advisement of the U.S. State Department, all missionaries of the General Board of Global Ministries were evacuated to Zambia in August.

In consultation with the Congo's United Methodist episcopal leaders, Bishops Fama Onema (Central Congo), Kainda Katembo (Southern Congo), and Ntambo Nkulu (North Katanga), Dr. Randolph Nugent, GBGM General Secretary, and the Rev. John McCullough, Associate General Secretary for Mission Personnel, authorized the return of missionaries to Lubumbashi, Likasi, Mulungwishi, and Kolwezi. Specific missionaries who returned to their assignments included: Elizabeth and Tom Ryder, Roberta and Glenn Hupprich, Vivian Woodyard, Ellen and Jeff Hoover, Joan and Don Woodward, Delbert and Sandy Groves, and Lori and David Persons. The ongoing struggle in the Congo has caused the GBGM to evacuate missionaries twice in recent years. Grund emphasized the hardship this has brought to the church and the people of the region and solicited prayer for all concerned as the GBGM and its missionary community continue efforts to be in partnership with the people of the Congo.

See Also: GBGM Authorizes Return of Mission Personnel to the Congo (September 25, 1998)

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Liberia: Missionaries Temporarily Reassigned Because of Unrest

Curtis Grund also announced the temporary reassignment of missionary personnel assigned to serve in the country of Liberia. Five missionaries and two mission volunteers have been temporarily assigned to the Cote d' Ivoire (Ivory Coast) because of increasing civil unrest. Intensified military conflict between Charles Taylor, Liberia's president, and Roosevelt Johnson, an opposition leader, escalated in recent weeks. Following consultation with Bishop Arthur F. Kulah of The United Methodist Church of Liberia, GBGM relocated all non-essential mission personnel to the Ivory Coast. Those evacuated were: Loretta Gruver, Lydia and Joseph Templeton, Marsha and John Ritter, and mission volunteers Linda Bergum and Chuck McGill.

The State Department advised US citizens to leave the country on September 19 when Liberian government troops began firing on the US Embassy in Monrovia in an effort to prevent Roosevelt Johnson from receiving the embassy's protection. Johnson was airlifted and taken to Freetown, Sierra Leone. The GBGM estimates that missionary personnel will be able to return to Liberia by October 1. Grund acknowledged that almost two decades of conflict in the region have caused long term devastation to the country and to the church and its work. He pointed out that whether or not there is a continuous missionary presence, there is a great need for aid to the Liberian people to help restore their lives and their communities.

See Also: Hope for the Children of Africa (Bishops' Appeal)

Next Story: Honduras: Rapid Progress of Evangelization

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