THE CHANGED HEART OF THE GENERAL SECRETARY.

This article focuses on Bernard Thorogood’s role in the restructuring of the Council for World Mission (CWM) during the 1970s. Thorogood, General Secretary of both the (Congregational) CWM and the United Reformed Church (URC), facilitated a significant shift in CWM’s mission approach following a 1975 consultation in Singapore, where churches from the Global South demanded greater leadership and partnership in mission work. This led to CWM transforming from a Western-led missionary society into a partnership of member churches worldwide, emphasizing mutual cooperation rather than one-way missionary sending. Thorogood’s leadership style was characterized by openness, listening, and adaptability, and he supported the inclusion of diverse staff and multi-directional missionary exchanges.