Is It Okay for a Missionary or Minister to Retire?

I serve as a professor of missions in the Philippines, and administrate a Christian counseling center. Some would say that this makes me a “missionary.” Others might say that this makes me a “cross-cultural minister.” I don’t really care what term one wants to use— I hardly care about the term that I myself use.

It is also true that in 3 months I will be turning 60. My wife, who serves in the same role (whatever one chooses to call it) is somewhat older than me and so already well into the age where people often plan for (or are traditionally forced into) retirement.

But is retirement Biblical? I have certainly known Christians who idealize those missionaries who live, serve, and eventually die in the field. Is what they idealize actually ideal? Others suggest that the calling of God is forever, and so if one was called to be a missionary, and change plans later in life, well that is a rejection of that call. Some suggest that Peter and Paul did not retire, so who is to say that it is okay for us? (Of course, they were martyred before that option really came up so that argument is really weak.) Sometimes, the disapproval of retirement even extends to changing ministry roles. Calling is to an office, and that does not change (in their view). Some argue that retirement is a modern idea and so should be looked on with a certain amount of suspicion.

You may think that I am setting up a strawman argument here. Most mission agencies (as far as I know) recognize and support retirement. Most people I know accept that retirement is an option— people regularly ask whether my wife and I will return to the US when we retire or stay in the Philippines (a tough decision actually). Still, I do see some of these attitudes from the previous paragraph pop up on the Web as if they express a certain godly insight that we have lost.— we lack the the godly resolve of our spiritual forebears (they suggest).

I come from a Baptist tradition. I might have said Evangelical tradition, but in recent years that term seems to have become a political movement, so I guess I am no longer on that train. Regardless, both groups tend to ask the question ‘Is it Biblical?’ A second question often asked is whether it was a practice of the early (primitive) church or not. So I would like to look at these.

#1. Numbers 8:23–26. This passage speaks of the “retirement” of Levites. Those Levites that reach the age of 50 can assist their younger Levites but must not do the work themselves. Some would argue that this is not retirement because it speaks of Levites still being active after “retirement.” However, limiting retirement only to “stopping all things that is productive or ministerial” seems a bit too narrow.

#2. I Kings 19. Her we see an example of the “retirement” of a Israelite prophet. Elijah is burnt out and travels to the mountain of God and hides in a cave there. Elijah is tired, feels defeated, and wants to quit (or even stronger… wants to die). God instead gives him three tasks. The first and second are anointing two people as kings of their respective countries. This is not a particularly strenuous pair of tasks. The third was to find Elisha to be his replacement. I would argue that this implied moving to a role of mentorship. For some people, they might see Elijah retiring with his being taken up into the heavens. I would argue that his retirement started in that cave on Mount Horeb.

#3. The Didache speaks of several roles in and around local churches. One role was Apostle. This appears to be a church planter. Another role that is outside of the established local church was Prophet. This appeared to be a traveling preacher. In the Didache, there is a section where there is a process given for allowing a Prophet to stop being a prophet and become an Elder in a local church. This may not sound like retirement. However, it shows that the early church did not see ministerial “offices” as permanent. Why might a Prophet want to be an Elder in a local church? An obvious reason is that being a traveling preacher is wearying as one ages. At some point in being elderly, it may make a lot of sense to become an Elder in a church, where one does not have to move around.

#4. St. John. We know of John as an Apostle— a proclaimer of the gospel and planter of churches. We believe he was never martyred and had a full lifespan. We also have some confusion about his later life. Was he the Apostle John who eventually resided in Ephesus and wrote Revelation? Or was it a person known then as John the Elder? One possible answer was that in his later years, he retired from being an apostle and became an elder in the church of Ephesus. This would be consistent with what the Didache described regarding prophets. This last point is speculative but consistent with the previous points.

Putting these things together, what might one say?

God recognizes we are limited human beings. We age, we change, and we die. Ministerial success involves passing the torch. Change of life certainly may necessitate change of roles. I have heard people talk fondly and proudly of W.A. Criswell, a Baptist pastor, who rejected retiring and served as senior pastor for over 50 years. But is that something to applaud or condemn? I have seen missionaries fail to hand over their leadership to others. Did they think they were immortal? Did they not care what happened to God’s work after they died? I don’t know… but failing to transition and pass the torch is not necessarily virtuous. Retirement does not mean stopping ministry. It does, however, mean changing the nature (quality and quantity) of ministry. Retirement does not necessarily mean a once in a lifetime event. There may be multiple changes of roles and changes of scope in ministry. I have a friend who “retires” about every two years. He sheds some more work and responsibility each time. I THINK he finally went through his last retirement about three years ago, but we will see.