Workshop / General Assembly

Through Her Eyes Workshop

Yesterday, at the EPC General Assembly, I did my workshop on what life is like for missionary women in the Muslim world. It was very well attended even better received. Everyone seemed to 'connect.'

I tried to really keep things moving along - introduced myself, got everyone to laugh, then gave my overview of what I'd learned about the issues most missionary women face. I told them that it makes no sense to treat women in missions as an interesting minority; they make up 60-70% of the mission force, and get less press, training, or support than their husbands and teammates do. I read a chapter from Through Her Eyes about raising kids overseas. Then I led the group in praying for women in missions (using this - http://www.calebproject.org/userfiles/PMW.pdf) .

Instead of telling more stories at that point I brought up a panel of three experienced missionary women attached to the denomination's mission agency. Wendy (who works in the country where my Aussie mate Tom now lives) was the first to speak.
"I have never heard a better presentation on this topic," was the first thing she said, "I've never heard anyone do such a good job explaining what my life is like!"

I'd like to get together with Wendy and hear more of her story. (Just so happens her family's home-base on furlough is right here in our area, so I should be able to do this.) That's actually one of the things I really like about my life, how many opportunities it provides to say to different kinds of people, "Hey, I hear you. And I'm fascinated. Your life, your story, your soul - they matter."

Each of the women on the panel shared the issues she's faced with things like learning language, raising kids, and adjusting her expectations for herself in the various seasons of life. For example, Wendy used to get her sense of identity and gratification from her language ability, but as kids came along she had to accept that she might fall behind for a long, long time, and to let that be OK. (Although she's now conversant in three languages besides English). One thing they all brought up was how hard it was to get the help they needed to educate their kids, and how precious the (chronically understaffed) MK schools and nanny/home-school teacher positions are for helping families stay on the field. It's so tragic that our churches and Christian colleges have so many young women who love kids and teaching and are eager to be used by God, and all these families who want their help; they rarely connect.

Here's the best part. After the workshop a young mother who works in the Arabian Peninsula came up to me and said, "Until I heard what you had to say, I didn't realize how much I longed to be understood." Later, between 20 and 30 of the women who attended the workshop sought me out throughout the day to say how much they appreciated the workshop.

[Of course, that's one of the perks about speaking to groups made up entirely of Christian women: being on the receiving end of the affirmation and encouragement they are socialized to give other people... It doesn't mean I =really= did a better job than I would have in another context, just that I'm more likely to hear about it!]

I really wish I knew where to go to find other people who would be interested in having a workshop like this, though. I did it once at my church, when we were celebrating the book being published. I also did a workshop at a gathering of churches and individuals focused on the people group where I did the biggest chunk of my research. There are maybe 20 networks like that which get together annually, so maybe I could offer to do the workshop at some of those, though I'd probably have to pay my own way. And I did something like this workshop for the women's ministry of a large church, during the church's mission conference, which was focused on responding to the Muslim world. That one didn't go so well for a variety of reasons, but one may be that it was that the audience was made of mostly of people who see missions as something that doesn't touch their lives. Well, I'll pray about it, and keep my eyes open for opportunities to teach on this topic again.

No idea how book sales went. The church has a bookstore and they wanted to be the distributor for this. I will check in with them after the meetings are over and see if the book sold.

New Wineskins?

I really didn't know what was on the agenda for the General Assembly, but was wondering if there were any big issues facing the denomination which might be discussed or voted on during this week's meetings. Surely they would not be dealing with the wrenching issues that threaten to destroy the larger Presbyterian denomination the PC(USA) to which my home church, Wabash Presbyterian (and I) belong?

In a (somewhat) indirect way, they are. The EPC was originally formed mostly of churches that left the PCUSA and continues to receive churches following that path. Official reports I was handed on registration show that of the nine churches that have been added to the denomination's rolls in the last year, three were new church plants, one was previously independent, and five came from the PCUSA.

Now, as I understand it, New Wineskins (a network on more-evangelical churches in the PCUSA) has approached the EPC to ask if there was a way to receive a larger number of their constituent churches into the EPC denomination en masse. Perhaps 40 in the next year, and maybe as much as 200 in the years to come. That would double the size of the EPC! So this year a committee has been exploring the constitutional issues that would allow or prevent the creation of a new temporary (five year) 'Presbytery' structure that would stretch across the nation and facilitate the addition of interested churches even before they are able to develop relationships with the existing, geographically defined Presbyteries. Looks like this will go through. There's a vote on it tomorrow. (I won't be present but will check in with those who are).

Even if the structures are approved, there might still be some big hurdles - economic, legal, cultural, and theological issues to deal with. There could be some great reasons for PCUSA churches to say no to this option, as well as great reasons to say yes. I'll be interested to see how this unfolds. (dm, I'm of course interested to hear from you on this!)

I was surprised to see the EPC less conservative on the issue of women in leadership than I had supposed. The church hosting this gathering has several ordained women on its staff. One of the women who spoke during the day I was there was introduced as a long-time 'ruling elder,' and leads the high-profile 'Women in Ministry' commission for the denomination. Congregations have the freedom to ordain women as teaching elders (pastors) and ruling elders or to choose not to. Rather than this being decided at the denominational level they have 'agreed to disagree.' So there are probably very few women ordained and serving as pastors and not many as elders, but it is not ruled out and clearly there are some.

My own church in Denver, which is independent, is led by an EPC-ordained pastor and is often listed in the phone book and elsewhere with EPC churches because its name is 'South Evangelical Presbyterian Church.' 'South Fellowship' as it is usually known came out of the PCUSA, like many of the EPC churches. I've often thought it was too bad we didn't join the EPC denomination. But the feeling at the time was (or so I hear) 'we've had =enough= of denominations!' ... and I'm pretty sure that many of the old-timers at South still feel strongly that it is flat-out wrong for women to be pastors and elders. Women can teach adult Sunday school classes (as I have) and the like, and there are women leading some of the ministries, but there would be trouble if we had a woman 'preaching from the stage on Sunday morning!' Our pastor, who as I mentioned, is a member of the EPC, submits to the elders on this issue - though I believe his personal views on the matter are less conservative.

Well, we'll see. Maybe someday South - and/or Wabash - will end up with this little denomination... Tomorrow's vote may make it feasible sooner rather than later.