What can a Christian Missionary Learn from The Peace Corps?
About the Author
Aaron is a mission trip coordinator for a small non-profit working in Tijuana, Mexico. The organization builds homes for the poor and operates an orphanage where he can often be found helping out with the children.
A friend of mine recently returned from Mozambique after a two year stint with the Peace Corps. He brought back amazing stories of life in the African nation, some intriguing views on Christian missions in the area, and a three page document that is the focus of this article. 25 Tips for Peace Corps Volunteers is a sort of internal memo that gets photocopied and handed down informally to new volunteers in the area he was stationed. The tips are written by veteran Peace Corps volunteers and, as best I can tell, are designed to be a reality check for rookies first starting out with dreams of “fixing” Africa. Though the Peace Corps is not known for attracting Christian volunteers (quite the opposite as I understand it) it’s interesting how many of these tips can be applied directly to Christian missions. In fact, add some “Christianese” to some of them and we could have the beginnings of a new missionary handbook. Below are some excerpts of ones that caught my attention. At the bottom of this list is a link to the document in it’s entirety.
- Do not expect a smooth ride. Do not expect people to fall over their feet to listen to you… People had a life before you came.
- Appreciate the fact that you are one of many who will advocate change and then leave. Why should people trust you before you have demonstrated results?
- You will not see tangible, measurable results in 2 years anywhere close to what you hope or expect.
- There is no “us and them” Human beings are the same everywhere. Could you do it if you were in their shoes? Don’t think for a moment that because you live in a hut and don’t make much money that you are in their shoes.
- It doesn’t matter how right you think you are, if you haven’t developed a working relationship with someone, if you don’t approach your suggestion with the most sincere humility, you will not convey your message effectively.
- Pay attention to the way you feel when you spend time judging. If it feels bad, if you feel worse, then don’t do it. It isn’t pretty to watch people sit around doing the “these people syndrome”. If you find yourself doing it, it’s a sure sign that you have something to work out within yourself. Find it and work it out.
- Understand that your frustration is about you. It is about 1) your own expectations regarding tangible achievements within your own time-frame, and 2) your limitations in coming up with appropriate teaching methods.
25 Tips for Peace Corps Volunteers (PDF 100kb)
Note: I transcribed this from a photocopied version. On the top was handwritten “By RPCVs [Returned Peace Corps Volunteers] Lyle Jaffe and Kathy Gau” so I am crediting them as the authors. All punctuation and emphasis is from the same.
August 9th, 2006 at 11:54 am
Hi,
I just wanted to correct the second author’s name: Kathy Gau
Lyle Jaffe
May 29th, 2007 at 5:39 am
The last two points struck me: they describe exactly the way I’ve been feeling about the state of Massachusetts, where I attend Seminary. Unfortunately, the changes I wish to make in New England society count more as my culture shock reaction than things that they themselves would recognise as improvements. My wife and I simply don’t have enough of the missionary spirit, which is one of the reasons we’re seriously considering leaving.
August 25th, 2007 at 4:10 pm
I think anyone who is serious about missions will realize the last point. It is good to hang that list up so we could wake up to it.
Although it is somewhat justified to get frustrated, we must remember we are working for someone and if we are working hard, whatever the results, He is happy. It is not about us, it is about Him. I have to try to remember that each day. It’s difficult.
October 2nd, 2007 at 2:43 am
Good stuff! Point No. 2 is really on target . I spent 8 years in Papua New Guinea and I found it took up to two years for some to come to trust you and accept you. I also found that on the mission I was with at that time that many missionaries had come a gone and often you would find yourself scraching your head, saying What in the world did they do that way for? SO WHAT EVER YOU DO MAKE SURE THAT YOU LEAVE A GOOD FOUNDATION FOR THE NEXT TO BUILD ON.
December 8th, 2007 at 7:10 am
Interesting to see that this 25 tips are still in circulation and of use to people. Lyle and I wrote them as part of a training for PCVs in Maputo some years back.
However, I’m not sure of the value added by your comments as indicate below:
1) Though the Peace Corps is not known for attracting Christian volunteers (quite the opposite as I understand it) - as far as I can see, you really have no validity for making this rather sweeping judgement, unless of course you are God him/herself.
2) Why the suggestion - to add some “Christianese” to some of them and we could have the beginnings of a new missionary handbook - as in fact are written they speak to a broad range of people within a human rights approach (which can be called many different things by many different people, the point of course being that there is no value added in judging a person’s motivation for acting in a principle centred manner).
P.S. I would appreciate if you could correct the spelling of my surname on the PDF file - the correct spelling is GAU. Aside from that, if you find value in these 25 tips, please carry on passing around.
April 8th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
I’m currently a Junior at Texas Tech University… I’ve been going on short term missions trips every summer since I was 12 and I know I’m supposed to travel and …. be a “missionary” without being a missionary…. I’ve been planning on joining the Peace Corps once I graduate, because it just sounds exactly like something I’m interested in, always has interested me! My Christian friends are worried about me and questioning me for wanting to join Peace Corps and not a missions agency. Any suggestions?
July 23rd, 2008 at 9:07 am
This is great advice for anyone trying to make a difference! if we could just stop trying to fix each other and recognize that the true value is in caring and being there.