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Statement of Multi-Cultural and Multi-National Competencies and Experience

A curiosity and intense interest in cultures and nations has characterized my life and is an area of ministry to which I have been drawn for a long time. 

I have traveled and/or participated in ministry in a number of locations throughout the world:  Ireland, England, France, Italy, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxemburg, Mexico, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and Belize.  I have always felt drawn to learning from and living in other cultures. 

This multi-cultural, multi-national interest began during my high school years when my family hosted a series of exchange students.  We had students from Brazil, Japan and Ecuador living in our home.  In college, I sang in a show choir whose members included Venezuelan and Danish people.  We traveled around the US and the world as ambassadors of the university.  And as an adult, I hosted a business intern from France for nine months. 

These experiences of travel and living around those from other cultures not only enriched my life and broadened my perception of ways of living, they – more importantly – expanded my understanding of human perception.  I learned early in my life that my way of seeing and doing was a way among ways and that my view was determined by a set of assumptions which were not common to the world.  In effect, I learned that I (and my family, community, economic status, race or nation) was neither the center of the universe nor the standard by which anything else could be given value.

I have been privileged to work with a variety of cultures within the United States as well:  those who are homeless and poor, those in prison, African-American communities, refugees from Russian and Bosnia, and Jewish and Buddhist people of faith.  I have ministered among congregations in radically different geographical/cultural regions of the United States:  the Southeast – with its history of racial conflict and growing integration; the Midwest with its Scandinavian free-church and social freedom roots; the Southwest and the pioneering individualism which characterizes this culture; and the Pacific Northwest with its politically liberal and yet religiously apathetic character.

From all of these, my concept and experience of God has grown deeper and fuller; my passion for people has expanded; and my call to ministry continues to reach beyond the boundaries of the United States and has become more profound and filled with humility.  I am encouraged and excited about the growing understanding in our denomination of a global consciousness and international ministry which strives to be more than singularly informed by the ministry values and assumptions of the US. 

As Regional Elder for Region Four, I would bring my curiosity and passion for learning to the exploration of the intersection of the unique ministry of MCC and the particular spiritual and cultural needs of each location.  

I consider the capacity and desire for multi-national ministry a spiritual gift that I’ve been given.  I bring an eagerness for and love of working with people who are different from me; a desire to see from different perspectives, understanding that my insight and ability to serve will only increase; an ability to cross boundaries of race, class and culture with relative ease; and something of an aptitude for language.  Although I am not fluent in any language other than English, I studied Latin for two years in high school, enabling me to have a little reading ability in German, Italian, Spanish and French.  Additionally, I took two years of Italian in college.  I look forward to the opportunities to learn and stretch myself in regard to both culture and language.