Not Half the Man

The earlier missionaries made a lot of mistakes. I remember learning about those mistakes in school. The earlier missionaries did not take classes in anthropology, cross-cultural communication, and linguistics before going to the field. That is a shame; they might have avoided many of the mistakes that they made. They carried their prejudices with them and sometimes taught the basics of Americanism rather than the basics of Christianity.

I am so glad that I am a member of the more enlightened generation of missionaries. I am so glad that I took classes in anthropology and cross-cultural communication before going to the field. I am so glad that I was challenged to distinguish between what is essential to the gospel and what is merely our cultural tradition. I have not always applied that training as well as I should have, but it has saved me from dozens of serious errors.

I have my faults as a missionary. Some of them are serious. But let me dwell on my strengths just a little more.

Unlike some of the new generation of missionaries, I can still work with my hands. I am not just a bright “missiologist” who knows all the latest theories. I can build furniture and repair cars. Being willing to work hard is important when trying to communicate to people who must work hard.

Today I needed to drill a big hole; actually, I needed to drill four big holes. I did not think that my electric drill would turn a bit large enough for the holes I needed to drill. So, I got out the old “brace and bit” hand drill and drilled the first hole. After one hole I was tired, so I decided maybe the electric drill could do it after all.

Will Short

That got me thinking about an earlier missionary, Will Short. I suppose he was one of those unenlightened missionaries with little understanding of the role of culture. I never met Will Short; I know him only second-hand. I remember a few stories others have told about him. The one that came to mind today was about the time in the 1920s when a load of 2 by 12 was delivered to the mission where he worked. Will was not at home. Someone else accepted the delivery. Will had ordered 2 by 6, not 2 by 12. But the house needed to be built, or the work could not go on. It had taken weeks to get that lumber. It would take weeks longer if they reordered.

Each 2 by 12 was 24 feet long. By the time Will finished resawing them to the proper size he could tell how many strokes of his handsaw it took to saw 24 feet of two-inch lumber. Will did not have the option of switching to a power tool once his arms were tired. He did not have a power saw; and there was no electricity.

Forgive Me

My generation of missionaries may know more about communication than Will Short’s generation. We may know more about anthropology than Will Short’s generation. We may have overcome more of our prejudices than his generation. I work hard, but when it comes to carpentry, I am not half the man Will Short was. He lived in a tent until he could build a house for his family; and to build that house he had to burn the brick and saw the lumber. He did it all without electricity. Trips home came up every decade or so, not every couple of years.

I know that he had his imperfections, but I thank God for men like Will Short. And I pray to God that he will raise up a new generation of workers with the dedication, persistence, and faithfulness that those earlier workers displayed.

I know that it is popular to belittle those who went before us. They made mistakes, sometimes very serious mistakes. Guess what? So do we. If we want future generations to be kind to our memory, maybe we need to be a little kinder to earlier generations.

The next time you think you are better than the workers who went before you, order a load of 2 by 12 and resaw it into 2 by 6.

“Dear Lord forgive me when I whine.”