The Holy Spirit in a Cramped Upper Room

I had traveled to Tokyo, Japan with Derek Duncan, the Global Relations Minister for East Asia and the Pacific, for a brief 24-hour period en route to Taiwan precisely for this reason. Our task: to transfer title to our last remaining property in Japan over to the Kyoto District of the United Church of Christ in Japan (UCCJ). Since at least the 1920’s, the United Church of Christ and our predecessor mission bodies had gradually amassed a significant number of properties in Japan, nearly all of them purchased or constructed to house mission co-workers. Owning so many properties in another country is an administrative and costly burden. More importantly, though, we gradually realized that holding on to such properties represented an old model of mission we were no longer willing to support. Our Global Ministries adheres now to a model of mission based on mutuality with our partners around the world. Our partners in each country define their needs and their priorities for themselves; we don’t impose our opinions and priorities on them. Our partners inform our witness and our advocacy; we center their voices and experience and take our lead from them. And we understand that local resources in each of our partners’ contexts —including property — are for their use and not for us to consume or exhaust. Divesting ourselves of properties, then, is an act of de-colonizing our ministries. De-colonizing is a strategic priority Global Ministries has explicitly named in our work together as the United Church of Christ and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).

Our last remaining property in Japan was the Clapboard Inn, a residence that was named after the three mission co-workers it once housed. In this particular case, we didn’t sell the property but deeded it over to the Kyoto District of the United Church of Christ in Japan, which will continue to use the house for their inspiring ministries. The Bazaar Cafe’ already operates out of the Clapboard Inn, for example, providing training, support, and jobs to migrant women who have few other places of welcome. And the Clapboard Inn also serves as safe space for LGBTQI+ siblings and other marginalized persons in the area.

Yesterday, Derek Duncan and I sat in a cramped upper room of a small office with other members of the “shadan”, including our long-serving mission co-worker in Japan, Jeffrey Mensendiek, and Rev. Yoshida Kimura, the Chair of the Kyoto District of UCCJ. It was a tedious process with lots of paperwork and endless signatures. But it was anything but ordinary. As I watched it all unfold, and saw the mix of joy and relief on Rev. Kimura’s face, I was surprised by tears welling up in my eyes. This was history in the making. This was partnership at its best. This was good and faithful ministry. The Holy Spirit was most definitely in that room. Praise be to God!

The Reverend Shari Prestemon began her service with the national ministries of the United Church of Christ in January 2024. As the Acting Associate General Minister & Co-Executive for Global Ministries she has the privilege of supporting several teams: Global Ministries, Global H.O.P.E., Public Policy & Advocacy Team (Washington, D.C.), our staff liaison at the United Nations, and our Gender & Sexuality Justice Team. She previously served as a local church pastor in Illinois and Wisconsin, the Executive Director at Back Bay Mission in Biloxi, Mississippi, and the Minnesota Conference Minister. Her call to ministry grew, in part, from early Global Ministries experiences, especially service as a Peace & Justice Intern in Dumaguete City, the Philippines.