CROSS-CULTURAL LEGAL RESOURCESVineyard Missions is not attempting to provide legal advice; however it recognizes that it is helpful to Vineyard churches engaged in missions to have some idea of what types of risk may be present in their ministry and potential options to address them. We hope to provide ongoing assistance with this important task. You can click here to access two sample release forms from other churches. These documents are designed to alert participants to the nature of the trips or experiences they will be embarking on and any particular risks that may be prevalent. Once adapted for your particular situation, they can be used for short-term trips, work projects and other types of experiences. Most of us are frequently initiating or signing agreements of some kind or another. One concept that can be helpful, especially among Christians, is the use of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) clauses similar to the one that is provided here. You can find out more about ADR and the inclusion of ADR language from Peacemaker Ministries at: http://www.peacemaker.net. We have listed below a number of legal resources that may prove helpful to you as you encounter various challenges in your missional activities. You may know of many other potential dilemmas which create risk and which are shared among those involved in missions. Please let us know what these might be. We are particularly interested in hearing from you if you have found resources helpful to address these needs.
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