20th Century Missionary Memoirs - What We Did and What We Learned
No comprehensive effort has been made to record the post-World War II mission works of the churches of Christ. As we enter the third millennium, we are witnessing the pioneers of missions for the last half of the 20th century entering the retirement years of their life, and some have already died. We believe it is vital for future generations of mission efforts that this period be documented in the actual words of its major participants. We want to record the vision that guided this generation, its victories, its struggles, and the lessons it has learned. Our efforts will focus on gathering the unedited raw data of this post-war generation, and we leave it to future generations to edit and/or summarize our documents. Post-World War II evangelism by members of the Church of Christ has its own story to tell, but at least two generations of the church do not know this story. As we enter the third millenium, we note that many of the leaders in missions are in the retirement years of their lives or have already gone to their reward. Their stories are as varied as they are numerous, but regrettably, little of the history of the work they did has been preserved. A group of missionaries and interested individuals at the Sunset Church of Christ in Lubbock, Texas, is committed to the preservation of that history for present and future reference on mission work. The group plans to interview the men and women whom we now consider pioneers in taking the gospel to many parts of the world. The efforts of the group will focus on gathering the unedited raw data of that generation. Plans call for the participants to be interviewed and their oral history to be recorded in digital format. How Will This Be Done?- Missionaries throughout the brotherhood will be invited to record their evangelistic history.
- Recording centers will be set up across the U. S. so that missionaries can travel to a nearby site.
- The recording will be in a digital format.
- Recording sites will follow a consistent format.
- Copies of this missionary material will be made available at cost.
- The gathering point for all data will be the 20th Century Missionary Memoirs Task Force in Lubbock, Texas.
- Become an endorser of this effort. An endorser is one who adds his name to a growing number of brethren who share in the desire to see this project succeed.
- Host a recording site. We need recording centers across the nation. Being a recording center entails (1) the purchase of a digital camera (set-up estimated at $1,000); after the project is complete, the camera stays with those who bought it (2) designating a few brethren who would be willing to conduct and film the missionary interviews (3) sending the recorded digital material to the base task force in Lubbock, Texas.
- Recommend to us missionaries who might be invited to participate in this project.
- Make a contribution to this effort. All funds are tax-deductible and are to be sent to the attention of the 20th Century Missionary Memoirs Task Force at the Sunset Church of Christ. Funds will be used to help with missionary travel to a site, production and recording expenses, and to assist some recording centers to purchase a digital camera.
| Brethren, please count me in: Name: Address: Phone: E-mail: I will endorse this effort. Here is my endorsing statement: Call me about hosting a recording site. I will recommend a missionary for possible inclusion in the project: Here is my contribution of $ |
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By Jay Jarboe | Mission Resources
