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Program Helps Missionaries Adjust to Itineration
SKOKIE, IL (August 4, 2004) - After years of missionary service in a foreign
land, re-adjustment to the North American culture can represent quite a
challenge for many missionaries, including those of the Evangelical
Covenant Church.
To assist missionaries returning for itineration – usually a year spent
traveling to local Covenant churches to discuss ministry opportunities –
the Department of World Mission operates a re-entry orientation program
designed to help these individuals become re-acquainted with their home
culture.
Eleven returning missionaries participated in a four-day re-entry
orientation that began last Friday at the Skokie Holiday Inn, with some
sessions conducted at Covenant offices in Chicago. David Stockamp,
coordinator of church relations, helped lead sessions while Curt
Peterson, executive minister of the Department of World Mission, hosted
a barbecue at his home during the five-day event.
"The first priority was to care for missionaries as they came home and
give them support that's very much needed," said Peterson as he assessed
the event. "We also wanted to prepare them to be able to spread the
message to churches and give them a cultural context, letting them know
what the Department of World Mission is doing. They go out as a
representative of both the denomination and World Mission to share that
story."
Day one of the orientation focused on allowing missionaries to share
updates on their ministries and the emotional highs and lows of their
work. For some, the reunion with longtime friends was a welcomed
opportunity. For others, it was a first-time meeting with
other missionaries known only by photographs in a world mission prayer
calendar. The stories were as varied as the missionaries themselves,
Stockamp reports.
"Some missionaries faced multiple evacuations during a period of
political strife in Africa," he noted. "Others dealt with theological
issues pertaining to their churches. Still others had family issues
pertaining to unexpected illnesses and changes in ministry focus. And
the 'reverse culture shock' - the reality of re-entering an entirely
different culture than the one they had previously lived in - was also a
very real issue to discuss."
Peterson observed that "the purpose of this is for those missionaries
coming from their term of service, to care for them, give them an
expression of their joys and pains. We spent the first half a day giving
people an opportunity to express what lifts their heart in joy and what
weighs them down in pain or challenge. That expression needs a place."
On Monday, the group toured Covenant offices and met with the Department
of World Mission staff, Executive Vice President Donn Engebretson and
other administrators. They also spent time at Covenant Resource Center
to learn how to effectively use existing resources and services.
Stockamp led a meeting Monday night that centered on
ways missionaries can tell their stories more effectively at the
churches, including use of PowerPoint presentations and tips on how to
use the materials most effectively during the coming months of itineration.
Before leaving the Chicago area, missionaries were interviewed
individually by member care personnel and itineration coordinator
Barbara Fisk worked with missionaries to develop their fall schedules.
More about the Department of World Mission and its orientation program
can be obtained by calling world mission staff at 773-907-3316.
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