Jonathan Phillips serves as a missionary on sponsored deployment with the Church of the Nazarene in Romania.

Jonathan grew up in a Christian family in York, Pennsylvania and accepted Christ as Savior as a young child. He was active in the children's and youth ministries of his local church, Stillmeadow Church of the Nazarene. When he was in high school, Jonathan began to feel God calling him into ministry. 

As a student at Eastern Nazarene College (ENC), Jonathan spent 6 months studying abroad in Sighisoara, Romania, with ENC's Romanian Studies Program. This cultural immersion experience included serving in the local Church of the Nazarene, living with a Romanian host family, and learning the Romanian language, culture and history – all while taking academic courses. Through this experience in 2001, he felt God leading him into cross-cultural ministry. Two subsequent return visits to Romania in 2002 confirmed that this was where God was leading him to minister long-term.

Following his graduation from ENC in 2003 (B.A., Religion), Jonathan returned to Romania to spend a year serving as a Nazarene volunteer missionary. In 2004, he moved to Kansas City to attend Nazarene Theological Seminary so he could be better equipped for ministry. He graduated in 2008 with a Master of Divinity and Certificate in Cross-Cultural Ministries. In 2012, he was ordained on the Mid-Atlantic District as an elder in the Church of the Nazarene.

Since September 2009, Jonathan has been living in Sighisoara, Romania. He has been active in the area of ministerial preparation – focusing on training and equipping Romanians for ministry. He served as Romania Learning Centre coordinator for European Nazarene College (EuNC) and currently serves as EuNC faculty member. He has been part of the effort on the Central Europe Field to develop boards of ministry on each district, which guide ministerial candidates through the ordination process. He also serves as literature coordinator, overseeing the translation and publication of Wesleyan-holiness resources in the Romanian language. In November 2021, Jonathan was appointed Romania district superintendent, which sees him now also engaged in the area of church development – leading the churches and the Romania district toward long-term health and sustainability.

As Jonathan continues to minister in the country where God led him over 20 years ago, he is grateful for the support and prayers of the global church family.