The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) reached a critical juncture in its restructuring efforts with the unprecedented elimination of all mission co-worker roles and the closing of the World Mission ministry area at the end of March.
According to talking points sent to all World Mission staff, “the new expression of global ecumenical engagement will be housed within the Office of the Stated Clerk and Executive Director of the Interim Unified Agency (IUA).” This move, first announced in January, has sparked significant concern and backlash, including among international mission partners.
Some mission co-workers who were laid off have been invited to consider new roles as global ecumenical liaisons. Those not retained in the new structure received severance packages covering the next six months, followed by a continued salary for a limited time based on their tenure of service.
Mission co-workers have been a foundational aspect of the PC(USA)’s global ministry for nearly two centuries, dating back to the denomination’s early involvement in international missions in the 19th century. Historically, these co-workers have lived and served alongside or embedded with international partners, engaging in education, health care, social justice, evangelism and community development ministries. Their presence has often symbolized the denomination’s commitment to partnership and mutual accompaniment rather than mere outreach or aid.
The National Hispanic Latino Presbyterian Caucus has expressed deep concern about the decision. In a strongly worded open letter to the IUA, the caucus emphasized that the abrupt dismantling of the mission co-worker model undermines decades of relational and collaborative ministry built between the PC(USA) and global partners.
The [The National Hispanic Latino Presbyterian Caucus] emphasized that the abrupt dismantling of the mission co-worker model undermines decades of relational and collaborative ministry built between the PC(USA) and global partners.
The caucus letter stated, “[W]e are deeply disturbed by this action; we lament the decisions. … When we received word of the decision, we felt deep sadness at the disconnectedness and lack of consultation demonstrated toward us by the current authorities of the PCUSA.”
As part of the Alliance of Presbyterian and Reformed Churches of Latin America (AIPRAL), the caucus notes that it has “received with grave concern news from sister churches, theological seminaries, and ecumenical institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean. They understand these as being imposed actions, taken without consultation, colonial in nature.”
When asked about the World Mission changes in a recent interview with the Outlook, Jihyun Oh, stated clerk of the General Assembly and executive director of the IUA, said there is a years-long timeline to consider, and some discussions around world mission began as early as the late 2000s.
“I think this is the piece that is really hard,” Oh said, “in our current context where everything is much more immediate. And our timelines are so compressed.
“When the folks who … have been involved with World Mission talk about consultations (with global partners) starting, they go back to what they call ‘the Dallas one’ in 2008. That’s when they started some of these conversations (about global mission). The next round of consultations happened in 2018. So that was seven years ago that they were doing these conversations with global partners,” Oh said.
According to a 2022 story published by Presbyterian News Service, in 2007, “World Mission put on its World Mission Challenge, sending 48 mission co-workers to 144 presbyteries and more than 900 congregations over three weeks to talk about mission and ministry and what God was doing in the PC(USA).”
In January 2008, a story in the Outlook noted that “60 people instrumental in Presbyterian mission met in Texas and signed a covenant to work together in what they call a ‘new collaborative model of Presbyterian mission.’”
That covenant called for “doing mission together in trust and humility,” and it highlighted a commitment to work collaboratively. The gathering brought together a varied group of PC(USA) staff, congregation members, and outreach and global fellowship staff along with global partners from Ghana, Colombia, Peru, India and Vietnam. The story referenced tensions around the mission funding system that was set up at the time, and “with the amount of money and resources Presbyterians at the grassroots are sending to mission efforts outside of the PC(USA).”
The PNS story from 2022 notes that the 218th General Assembly in 2008 adopted the covenant, which included prioritized goals “to coordinate and collaborate in the sending of mission personnel, and to expand Presbyterian funding for mission personnel.
In response to concerns about rationale and timing, the IUA stated in the talking points given to staff, “We hear and understand your concern. The deep relationships formed through World Mission have been a source of joy, transformation, and faithful service. These changes are not a reflection of diminished commitment but rather a response to a vision for mission that empowers our global partners in new ways as well as a commitment to financial sustainability.”
Sara Lisherness, retiring consultant for global partnerships and former interim director of World Mission, defended the shift away from the traditional mission co-worker model, stating, “The legacy of God’s world engagement through the PC(USA) is massive and filled with blessings, profound courage and faithfulness, as well as missteps and harm. … This new approach won’t be perfect, yet we are confident it will demonstrate mutuality with our global partners.”
“This new approach won’t be perfect, yet we are confident it will demonstrate mutuality with our global partners.” — Sara Lisherness, retiring consultant for global partnerships and former interim director of World Mission
The Rev. Dr. Dan González-Ortega, co-moderator of the National Hispanic Latino Presbyterian Caucus, highlighted the threat this transition poses to longstanding partnerships in the U.S.
He said, “Our relationships, our missional relationships, needed to be a relationship between equals … the historical importance of the exchange was the emphasis [by mission partners] as the exchange of personnel. There’s no substitute for actually having, on the ground, lived experience to be able to share, especially with constituencies in the United States.”
González-Ortega added, “We received a one-paragraph announcement that the decision had been taken [to let mission co-workers go and restructure World Mission]. There has been no consultation.”
Similarly, Francisco Javier Dominguez, general coordinator of the Mexican Communion of Reformed and Presbyterian Church, expressed surprise and concern over the cuts, stating, “We really didn’t expect it. This kind of restructuring seems to be very deep and very severe.”
Dominguez and other partners have stated that the only recommendations they made to the PC(USA) were that the mission co-worker model be maintained and that any proposed changes not affect the relationships they have built with partner congregations in the U.S. He noted that communication “remains fluid so that we can also collaborate and continue participating [in our partner relationships].”
Despite assurances, the dramatic restructuring has left many mission co-workers feeling abandoned and international partners perplexed and troubled. The Presbyterian News Service reported on shifting patterns of global engagement, noting the new structure will emphasize short-term, project-based partnerships over long-term, embedded mission co-workers.
As mission co-workers and World Mission staff concluded their employment on March 31, the church community continues to grapple with uncertainty and anxiety. Critics assert that meaningful ministry requires deep relational commitments that short-term projects alone cannot achieve.
Below is the letter from the National Hispanic Latino Presbyterian Caucus in its entirety, originally published on Facebook:
Open Letter to the Interim Unified Agency of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A)
From the National Presbyterian Hispano Latino Caucus of the PCUSA, we address you with profound respect and love in Christ.
We feel that we must express our growing concern and profound sadness at the recent decisions taken by the governing structures of our denomination that led to the significant reduction in the number of Mission Co-Workers in Latin America.
As the official Hispano Latino constituency of this denomination, we are deeply disturbed by this action; we lament the decisions taken because they are fundamental and strategic for the life and mission of our church. When we received word of the decision, we felt deep sadness at the disconnectedness and lack of consultation demonstrated toward us by the current authorities of the PCUSA.
As the Hispano Latino body of the PCUSA, we are a member of the Alliance of Presbyterian and Reformed Churches of Latin America (AIPRAL) which means that this situation impacts us directly. At the same time, we have received with grave concern news from sister churches, theological seminaries, and ecumenical institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean. They understand these as being imposed actions, taken without consultation, colonial in nature, since their relationship had been built with great effort over many decades, having also acted as a prophetic and evangelizing seed in many US communities, always based on the exchange of personnel and working together toward transforming and collective mission.
For these reasons, we respectfully request clarification of the biblical and theological arguments used as a basis for these decisions. How do these decisions align with the Missio Dei that the PCUSA share with partner churches and institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean? We fear that these decisions can inflict irreparable harm on the relationship of mutual respect and interdependence we have built over the years.
Thus, we ask that you provide us with the strategy, actions and processes that will be implemented in the global mission work of our church after these recent decisions. We stand ready to join in all initiatives that will move toward a positive exchange in collaborative mission with our counterparts in Latin America and the Caribbean, including all actions that assist in repairing the spiritual, material, or other harms now being experienced by our Mission Co-Workers who have been dismissed from their responsibilities.
We deeply believe in the importance of honest and open dialogue. We are fully convinced that we can find ways forward that both honor our shared mission and strengthen our fraternal bonds through listening to one another from the perspective of equity between the many persons and ethnic collectives that make up a single church: PCUSA.
In the Christ of Missio Dei,
By the Coordinating Council of the Hispanic Latino Presbyterian National Caucus
Co-Moderadora – Rev. Dra. Carmen Rosario
Co-Moderador – Rev. Dr. Dan González-Ortega
Secretaria – R.E. Keren Díaz-Orozco
Tesorero – Rev. Dr. Jesús (Jesse) González
Synod of the Mid – Atlantic – Rev. Julio Ramírez-Eve
Synod of the Northeast – R. E. Letty Heredia
Synod of the Southwest – Rev. Martha Ester López
Synod of the South Atlantic – Rev. Nelson Donado
Synod of the Sun – R.E. Ruth Roman-Mesa
Sínodo Presbiteriano Boriquén (P.R) – R.E. Mirna Rivera Rodríguez
Synod of Lakes and Prairies – Alma Miriam Montalban E.
Synod of the Pacific (Region Norte) – Rosa López
Mujeres Hispanas Latinas Presbiterianas – R.E. Janira Colón
Hombres Hispanos Latinos Presbiterianos – R.E. Ángel M. Cardona
