Paul and Mary Jeanne Buttrey

Missionaries to Taiwan

Having been in Taiwan for 24 years, Paul and Mary Jeanne Buttrey are seeing their investment in relationships with Chinese people there paying off. They first arrived in Taiwan in 1980. After two years of language study in Taichung, they moved to Taipei, where they interned in a church with strong ministries to college students and young adults. Their daughter Gail was born in 1983.

In their second term of service they were again stationed in Taichung as the supervisors for new workers, with Paul also serving as assistant to the area director. Two years later they latter position required a move back to Taipei, where they have lived ever since. This was also the beginning of their involvement at the Kang Hua Church, where they have worshiped for 17 years. It has been a privilege for them to see people there growing in the Lord. Their involvement has included occasional preaching by Paul, teaching adult Sunday school, fellowship in a number of small groups, leading Bible studies, singing in the choir for Mary Jeanne, and appreciating good biblical teaching in this fine evangelical church.

After serving as assistant to the area director for six years, Paul was appointed area director for OMF Taiwan in 1991. This position also created opportunities to meet many Chinese Christian leaders. Networking is an important concept in the West, but it is even more important in Asia. In addition to identifying key openings for the placement of OMF missionaries, those relationships also helped Paul discern some crucial spiritual needs in Taiwan. He began a process of sharpening OMF's vision and strategy in Taiwan that eventually culminated in the current focus on outreach to the working class, only 0.5% of which is Christian. He stepped down as area director in 1997, after laying the groundwork for this redirection of OMF's ministry. Since then he has been on the faculty of Christ's Disciples Training Institute, where church leaders are trained for a broad range of churches in Taiwan, including many in grassroots areas.

Mary Jeanne is a physician who has taught for many years at Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taipei. This is a Taiwanese Presbyterian hospital with an excellent pastoral care department that actively shares the gospel with patients and their families. Only about 18 percent of the professional staff members are Christians, however. Her ministry has therefore focused on doctors and medical students. Teaching basic clinical skills in the Department of Medicine allows her to model how faith in Christ informs professional practice. Increasingly she has opportunities to mentor Christian doctors and to share the gospel with non-believing physicians. The offer to introduce them to Jesus Christ is much more relevant when she has developed a friendship over time.

While neither Paul or Mary Jeanne personally work directly with working-class people, their ministries influence many who will. In addition, their performance of support roles for OMF Taiwan allows other OMF workers to concentrate their energies on the field focus. Paul is a part-time Taiwan field business manager and Mary Jeanne is the Taiwan field medical advisor.

Their daughter Gail is a senior at the University of Redlands, majoring in speech therapy. During 2004-2005 the Buttreys are on home assignment in the U.S. and are available to churches, schools, prayer groups and others interested in hearing what God is doing in Taiwan.