Letter to the editor

I’m writing to respond to the Member Care article on page 32 in Winter 2026, titled “Acclimatizing to Japan.” I disagree with the author’s suggestion that new missionaries avoid the stress of jumping straight into an all-Japanese environment by gradually acclimatizing in an environment with other expat Christians.

The author’s analogy of a fish being moved to different temperature water is physical, but changing culture and language environment is psychological. A much better analogy is a newborn baby bonding with their mother or a hatchling imprinting with whoever is present, even if it is a different species.

When new missionaries first arrive on the field, they are generally excited, eager to learn, and ready to bond—a unique period of opportunity. If they are “protected” from the stress, they will mainly bond with other missionaries (a type of third culture) rather than the people they came to reach. This will make it much more challenging to develop a true emotional connection with the indigenous people later.

This imprinting analogy and also a parallel with the incarnation are used in an outstanding booklet by Thomas and Elizabeth Brewster called Bonding and The Missionary Task: Establishing a Sense of Belonging. I wish every new missionary would read it. Unfortunately, it is out of print. It was originally published together with another excellent booklet, Language Learning IS Communication—IS Ministry! which is probably even more applicable in the Japanese context; if you can find a copy of this double booklet, I recommend it.