Missionaries or Field Personnel

[Devita Parnell]

I received the following email from a church member and thought that many of you might have a similar question. I will attempt to answer in a subsequent post but will also get others to weigh in.

One of our teachers asked why CBF Missionaries are referred to as Field Personnel? I don’t have the exact answer for that one. Could you explain the reasoning behind this change? We have batted around a number of reasons but wanted you to weigh in.

[Devita Parnell]

CBF denotes "field personnel" as anyone commissioned as career, Global Service Corps, or affiliates to serve among the most neglected and least evangelized around the world.

For many, including those around the world, the word "missionary" has negative connotations. "Missionaries" have often exploited others and their culture in their attempts to share the gospel (in many cases this was subconscious). Missionaries (mostly from the West) were seen as colonialistic and imperialisitic.

CBF's intention in mission in not this at all. We seek to be holistic, to partner with those among whom we minister, to establish reciprocal relationships, etc.

[Paula Jean Settle]

Devita's answer was excellent but for younger children especially, they can be told that it is very dangerous to
use the term"missionary" in some parts of the world and therefore another name has to be used.

[Karen Grubb Gilbert]

Both Devita and Paula have given good information regarding this question. CBF has tried to use a term that can be used with all our personnel regardless of where they serve. The "M" word as it is often referred to is not a good word in many places in the world and so we have made a deliberate attempt to use another phrase to refer to those persons who are our personnel. I hope we can continue to teach adults and children this phrase and encourage them to use it when referring to CBF personnel.

[Carrie Veal]

For me, it makes it sound more exciting. You are a PERSON on the FIELD. You are serving in a variety of ways on the field and in the field. You serve on the field in that you are given a place to serve. But you also serve in a field that you are called to: medicine, education, arts, etc. For me, this much more than the traditional missionary term that denotes filling a mission. The term Field Personnel indicates that anyone who feels compelled to show Christ's love can do so. Where is your field? What is your passion... your field of choice? And imagine how many people can feel like they are doing missions if they are not saddled with the term missionary, a term that might frighten someone for one reason or another.

[Rev. Brittani Massey]

Our younger ones don't really understand the term "Field Personnel". We let them say "missionary" and even though we use the "Form" curriculum, we still call that class the "Mission Friends" because the kids understand that and are excited to learn about missionaries. While the term may not be well received in other places, I think it is important that we see ourselves as part of a tradition that has been sending missionaries for many years. Although we don't want to repeat the colonialization style of missionary work, I think it is important not to forget it either, lest we doom ourselves to repeat it.
I don't think people really appreciate a distinction in the terms until the adult level. I don't think our teenagers would understand "Field Personnel" either. For teaching purposes I think it's important to admit, "yes, we mean Missionaries when we say Field Personnel." That expands their view of who can be a missionary when they see all the different things that CBF Field Personnel do. It helps them see themselves in the mission of God.

[Susan Leftwich]

I teach preschoolers and use the "Form" curriculum. My experience is the same - we call it Mission Friends and they have some concept of the word "missionary", rather than Field Personnel. I think as they get older and understand "dangers" (rather a scarey word for a 4 yr. old) the term Field Personnel is fine.
Their understanding is basic and they understand that missionaries help people and share Jesus' love with them. The children say that they can be missionaries, too.

Rev. Brittani Massey said:

Our younger ones don't really understand the term "Field Personnel". We let them say "missionary" and even though we use the "Form" curriculum, we still call that class the "Mission Friends" because the kids understand that and are excited to learn about missionaries. While the term may not be well received in other places, I think it is important that we see ourselves as part of a tradition that has been sending missionaries for many years. Although we don't want to repeat the colonialization style of missionary work, I think it is important not to forget it either, lest we doom ourselves to repeat it.
I don't think people really appreciate a distinction in the terms until the adult level. I don't think our teenagers would understand "Field Personnel" either. For teaching purposes I think it's important to admit, "yes, we mean Missionaries when we say Field Personnel." That expands their view of who can be a missionary when they see all the different things that CBF Field Personnel do. It helps them see themselves in the mission of God.