Rev. Motoe Yamada Foor to Join Discipleship Ministries as Director, Adult Discipleship

NASHVILLE, Tenn. January 12, 2023/Discipleship Ministries/ – On March 1, 2023, Rev. Motoe Yamada Foor will join the Congregational Vitality & Intentional Discipleship Team as the new Director of Adult Discipleship at Discipleship Ministries.

Rev. Foor is passionate about moving churches toward a more missional and spiritual focus and has a wealth of experience at a variety of different organizational levels of The United Methodist Church. Rev. Foor is currently the Senior Pastor at Sacramento Japanese United Methodist Church in Sacramento, California. She has represented the Western Jurisdiction to the Discipleship Ministries Board of Directors and serves on the California-Nevada Annual Conference’s Committee on New and Vital Congregations. She is the founder and former chair of the National Asian American Pacific Islander Clergywomen (AAPIC) and continues to support the organization as its adviser. Rev. Foor currently serves on the Discipleship Ministries Board of Directors.

Rev. Foor was one of four United Methodist members on the World Council of Churches Central Committee (2006-2013). Her ecumenical experience has included stints on the Council for Ecumenical Student Christian Ministry and the North American Regional Committee for the World Student Christian Federation. She was a co-chair of the US Conference of the World Council of Churches – Young Adult Task Force, vice chair of the Ecumenical Networks Committee for the National Council of Churches, and has participated in two World Council of Churches consultations.

She holds a BA in international relations with a psychology minor from the University of Toledo, Ohio; a master’s in educational administration/student affairs administration/multicultural education from Michigan State University; and a Masters of Divinity from the Pacific School of Religion/Graduate Theological Union.

She is one of the contributors of “Nevertheless She Leads: Postcolonial Women’s Leadership for the Church.”

Rev. Foor is married to Andy and has two children. She will work from the California-Nevada Annual Conference and will begin her position as Discipleship Ministries’ staff starting on March 1, 2023. Rev. Foor comes to this position as Rev. Dr. M. Scott Hughes completes the transition into the role of Associate General Secretary at Discipleship Ministries.

The mission of Discipleship Ministries is to support annual conference and local church leaders for their task of equipping world-changing disciples. An agency of The United Methodist Church, Discipleship Ministries is located at 1908 Grand Ave. in Nashville, Tenn. For more information, visit www.UMCdiscipleship.org, the Press Center at www.UMCdiscipleship.org/about/press-center or call the Communications Office at (877) 899-2780, Ext. 1726.