In 2008, Jonathan and Beth Hall and family were asked to move to Los Angeles together with George and Nancy Cline to lead an extensive Foursquare Missions International (FMI) reorganization plan. The Halls had been serving for many years as missionaries to Brazil and as the South American Regional Coordinators. They responded affirmatively to our request and left a season of extremely fruitful ministry, having, among other things, created and led the Brazilian missions team, which is to this day one of the most effective in our global Foursquare family.
Approximately three years ago, the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel (ICFG) board made a decision to transition Jonathan Hall out of his role as director of FMI and into the position of global overseer. Jonathan Hall, George Cline and the FMI leadership team led well in several areas during his term as director; he was especially gifted at redesigning the internal FMI systems, lifting the morale among missionaries and staff, and providing care and oversight. His relationships with national leaders around the world were a major strength, and he is still highly regarded among them.
Jonathan acknowledged that I, as the newly elected president, along with the board of directors, had the authority to make key decisions concerning vice-presidential positions, and he even offered to assist in any desired transitions. However, the terseness of the process and letter announcing the change and the neglect in celebrating the many advances added to the hurt the Halls and the FMI team experienced. Jonathan did accept the new role, but after a season of working in that role, he made the decision to resign from his position with FMI.
Toward the end of 2012, Jonathan wrote a letter to the ICFG board, expressing his concerns about how we stewarded his transitions and the pain the Halls experienced. The board responded promptly, and arranged to meet with Jonathan and Beth early this year. The Halls and I experienced a significant healing of the relational breach, and a level of trust was restored between us, as well as between them and the board. An apology was offered to the Halls on behalf of the board and myself, and they graciously accepted.
Since then, we have been working to develop an avenue by which Jonathan could re-engage with ICFG. Plans are underway to place Jonathan in a role that will allow him to use his missions and cross-cultural expertise to increase the effectiveness of our global mission. Jonathan has already represented us well at several key events, and he and Beth are planning to join us in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., for Connection 2013. They will be involved with the Global Council meetings preceding convention as well as the FMI Reception.
Jonathan and I mutually agreed to share this letter with credentialed ministers, because that is the constituency to whom the original letter was sent. We believe that, as painful as the process has been, the reconciliation process is worth sharing and celebrating. Thanks for reading this letter and for allowing us to share this important update.
