Reflections on the tentmaker and the tentmaking
movement.
by Michael Roemmele
- Interserve
(Being a concern that the
Christian tentmaker be a fully integrated person in his own view and that of
others, and that the tentmaking movement be understood in the context of renewal
movements in the church worldwide)
Preface
There is a vast lack of
understanding in the home churches which have been accustomed to sending out
missionaries, regarding tentmaking. Worse, there are those who, given a little
understanding and information, are negative and suspicious about tentmaking. It
is too readily identified with “covert operations”, and it is difficult to
understand why “sending churches” should anyway be involved with someone who is
going to be self-supporting, and who indeed may be earning more than the
majority of those who stay at home.
Just as there is a great need
for clearer understanding at the home end, so amongst those who are practicing
as tentmakers there is an urgent need for a clear self-understanding. Many
problems arise for the individual tentmaker through the attempt to combine in
the one person a “missionary” and a “secular person”. Problems can arise from an
inner conflict, in the area of conscience. They can also arise because of
tensions between the demands which relate to the job being done and the place in
society with which this is associated; and the constraints of being associated
with a Christian organization.
Section 1: THE
TENTMAKING MOVEMENT
We truly are referring to a
movement. All round the world today, men and women are moving cross-culturally
to use their professions and trades in the cause of world mission. There are
several ways of looking at this movement. Each of these may have some truth in
it, but if taken alone can be misleading or even damaging because they are only
partial. For example:
·
Tentmaking is a substitute for
explicit missionary work, necessary because of reduced freedom to enter
countries as “missionaries “.
·
Tentmakers are just Christians
who are simply part of the worldwide movement of people in trade, service
industries etc.
·
Tentmaking is a cheaper means of
world evangelism, because self-supporting.
Each of the above distorts
the true picture of what tentmaking is. We go further, to say that it is
inadequate to view tentmaking as simply a new response to the Great Commission
of Matthew 28. It is something more. Tentmaking is one facet of renewal in the
church worldwide, essentially a renewed understanding of the priesthood of all
believers. Whereas in the Reformation this doctrine was perhaps emphasized as an
antidote to sacerdotalism and the dominance of the clergy, now it is being
expressed more as a statement ‘of the responsibility of every believer to be
active in bringing God’s grace to men and women everywhere. This ministry is not
for “specialists”, but for every Christian. This applies at home and abroad.
Enter the tentmaker!
Further, there is no false
distinction between the sacred and the secular. Work (“secular” work) is
ministry. The “full time Christian worker” is not spiritually superior to the
lay Christian. All Christians are called to plan their lives in fulfillment of
God’s purposes. That includes decisions about the where and how of work, For
some, it means leaving home and going abroad. Some of the latter equip
themselves with training (language, theological etc.) for effectiveness in
cross-cultural witnessing. Enter the tentmaker!
There is also no false
distinction between work and word. Neither is superior as a means of witness:
rather, they are different aspects of it. The work expresses and agrees with the
word of testimony; the word explains the witness of the work. Work is not just a
means to an end, a necessary activity so that one can live
·and
witness. Work is part of witness. Tentmaking is a movement of worker-witnesses.
As the church awakens to the responsibility that all Christians are to be
meaningfully involved in witness through life, work and word, for some this
involvement means crossing into other cultural groups to make Christ known among
them. They do not leave their church, but go out as an extension of it. This is
the tentmaking movement.
Section 2: THE
INDIVIDUAL TENTMAKER
A. The Period Of
Preparation
Once abroad, the tentmaker
will need to have a healthy self understanding: he is not a “missionary in
disguise”, not “an agent of a foreign organization,” not “an evangelist using a
job as a cover”. The period of preparation should help, rather than hinder, the
development of an integrated, consistent view of himself.
He needs to develop an
integrated view of work, life and missionary. He should be actively involved in
the life of his church as a lay person, not because of having a label like
“missionary candidate” or “missions internee”. He should work hard on shaping
his home life according to Biblical principles, not just the norms of his own
culture. The same applies to his relationships within society, and to
recreation.
Biblical and cross-cultural
studies will help him develop a truly Biblical understanding of integrity. We
easily accept the norms of integrity from our own society, and react against
practices which differ from these, in another culture. The tentmaker needs to be
able to live with such differences or ambiguities without these disturbing or
distorting his own (Biblical) worldview. Examples are how a person responds to
personal, investigative questions; how one views “secrecy and openness”. The
worst thing the tentmaker can do in his adopted culture is to take his stand on
such things on the basis of his own cultural norms.
Relationship with the home
church needs to be clearly established and understood. Probably a smaller
support group is advisable, one which understands the Kingdom of God in terms of
values like faithfulness and obedience. Such are the values the tentmaker needs
to center on, rather than “success”. The church and support groups need to
understand that communications from their tentmaker will not be in the familiar
style of the “missionary” and they should not pressure him by their expectations
of explicit success stories.
If a relationship with a
mission-type support group is established before leaving home, this needs to be
the kind he can comfortably handle as a “secularly employed” person. Probably
that rules out being a member of any such group, and some other kind of
relationship needs to be formulated.
It will be preferable that
the tentmaker himself be responsible for job-seeking and contact-making, even if
he uses facilities (like a Christian placement agency) offered by Christian
groups. Once there, he will have to demonstrate that he is “autonomous” and not
an agent, so this should be the case from the beginning, in the interests of
consistency and training.
B. Once On Location
We consider seven factors
involving choices to be made in the interests of maintaining integrity before
others and within the tentmaker’s own consciousness.
1. The tentmaker’s own
conscience
He needs to be able to
explain who and what he is, comfortably. He really is a carpet salesman, a
doctor, a teacher, a newspaper correspondent; not someone who has adopted a
“cover” for other activities. Contrary to some popular beliefs, he also needs to
know how to describe himself openly as a Christian (perhaps as “a follower of
God”) without feeling awkward about being one in his present position.
Usually a visa has been
granted for a stated purpose. That is then his declared, official identity in
the country, and the one to which people will expect to respond. He needs to
live consistently with this, otherwise he will have struggles with his own
conscience, others will start to question, and his testimony will be harmed.
2. The tentmaker and his
work
The tentmaker should have a
high view of his work, rather than seeing it as a necessary irritant in his
pursuit of “real ministry”. A healthy view of work includes
·
a valid expression of true
stewardship of God’s gifts
·
a ministry given and directed by
God, which can be a witness to God
·
a legitimate means of financial
support
·
an example to national believers
Therefore, the tentmaker will
perform his work willingly, responsibly, creatively and with biblical
appropriateness to the culture and his work situation.
3. The tentmaker’s profile
The tentmaker’s lifestyle and
the way in which he presents himself to others must be consistent as well as
appropriate to the cultural context. Those who have been most successful
long-term are characterized by an acceptance of their roles, with the
accompanying privileges, responsibilities and limitations. This includes
·
his social life
·
his “standard of living”
·
his management of his own finances
·
the kind of people he keeps company
with
·
time off from work
The opposite to what is
intended by this would be a tentmaker who, because related to a mission
organization, lived on a fraction of his salary and was unable to mix freely
with the people he worked alongside because of lack of finance; and who spent
most of his free time with other expatriate Christians, always insisting on
holiday dates that were in fact the annual “mission conference”.
4. The tentmaker and the local church
(where one exists)
We are not able to generalize
in this area, because the church situation in the Middle East varies greatly
from country to country, and from place to place within some countries.
One mistake to avoid is
making a unilateral decision to ignore or avoid the local church completely.
That may be seen as the right thing to do because of “security issues” as they
affect the church and/or his ministry to those outside the church. However, we
urge the tentmaker to
·
seek out information about local
churches, ahead of his arrival
·
recognize that where there is an
option of an international or a local church, there are sometimes good arguments
for associating with either
·
seek advice from national church
leaders about involvement in church life
·
make sure the local pastor
understands who he (the tentmaker) is and why he is there, in the interests of
building mutual confidence,
unless no basis for this can be found
·
remember his own need for spiritual
growth, encouragement etc.
·
let his association or
non-association with a church be consistent with his “profile” (see no 3 above)
·
be sure his decisions reflect the
fact that he is part of the church worldwide
·
consider the possible stimulus his
example may be to national believers, to accept their responsibility for lay
witness and lay ministry
·
remember that, in all likelihood,
when he has left the church will remain.
5. The tentmaker and
the host government
Governments are part of God’s
plan for the world of men. The tentmaker should understand, respect and honor
the government of his host country, and should accept his responsibility to that
government. This involves an acceptance of the conditions and expectations
attached to any visa grant, as well as the laws of the country in general,
unless these clearly contradict the commands of God.
The tentmaker should take
active steps to understand the way in which Middle Eastern governments work. For
example, it is appropriate in the Middle East always to press for a yes/no
answer. It is vital for a tentmaker to fit a category understood and accepted by
the host government and to behave in a manner fitting that category. He should
always have an identifiable “sponsor” in the country -- this may be his
employer, a friend, even a church. People with no local sponsor are suspect.
6. The finances of the tentmaker
People become suspicious if
the tentmaker’s financial situation is hard to understand or inconsistent with
his profile. If he lives above the means his local salary would allow, where
does the rest of his money come from? If he lives well below his salary, why? It
seems Important that the tentmaker be allowed to control his finances, rather
than have others (a mission board?) decide what he can or can’t do with his
earnings. Also, If he is “subsidized” from outside, that source of funding
should be explainable without embarrassment. See other comments under no 3
above.
It is also important that the
sending church and/or any “support group” understand clearly what are the
financial arrangements for the tentmaker, lest suspicions arise in these
quarters. If appropriate, there should be mutually agreed systems for reporting
and accountability re finance. The emphasis and motivation of the tentmaker lie
in God’s calling to a particular people group. Therefore the question of
financial returns are of lower priority and not a major determining factor. The
tentmaker must be flexible as regards salary. However, the salary must be
appropriate in context and fit the profile of the job.
WARNING : be alert against
becoming possessed by a materialistic lifestyle!
7. Relationship between
the tentmaker and his Support Group
Many tentmakers are related
to a support group, whether of the “mission” variety or something different. The
purpose of the support group is to encourage, support and, facilitate the
tentmaker in his ministry, while providing accountability for him. Varying
relationships may be established with the support group, but mutual commitment
must be a priority in any of them. The relationship is not that of
employer/employee, but rather of a shared commitment to a goal and mutual
commitment to spiritual responsibility and accountability. Also, perhaps,
financial responsibility and accountability. It is not a matter of
organizational membership. It is strongly recommended that the tentmaker attend
annual conferences and receive pastoral visits by the leadership of the support
group. The support group needs to be sensitive as regards mailings, visits and
publicity in order to safeguard the tentmaker and his job.
In avoiding the
employer/employee relationship, the support group may wish to “put on offer”
various support facilities such as a pension plan, education fund for children,
etc, rather than having these built into a “contract”.
|
