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New Disciples congregations
start in record numbers as individuals, INDIANAPOLIS, IN, July 9, 2002 -- It's hard for Rick Morse to keep from smiling these days. The team leader for Disciples New Church Ministry has been tracking recent growth among new church starts -- and the lines all go up. In fact, Morse told the Church Extension Board of Directors, meeting in Indianapolis in June, that new church launches for 2002 are well ahead of projections, averaging more than one per week. As of the mid-year Board meeting, 33 churches had a new church planter in the field gathering a community of faith. Meanwhile, another eight groups are in the "visioning" or planning stages of starting a new church, he said. The 2002 goal for new church starts is 38 congregations. The current pace of new church starts not only promises to best the 2002 goal, but it also may put Disciples ahead of 2001's 50-year record of 40 congregations launched. Further, fund-raising for the New Church Ministry Annual Fund is also ahead of projections with 46 percent or $122,545 of the $265,000 goal already met as of May 1, according to Ellen Mitchell, Church Extension vice president for development. These numbers look good and we are making progress, but we have to be vigilant and intentional about this," Morse said of the fledgling movement. "The pace we set in the next five years will carry us for the next 15 years. The effort is well worth it, according to Judy Turner, NCM team member. The 173 congregations five years old or younger have reached as many as 10,000 people with the Disciples witness," said Turner. "Each of those 10,000 lives has changed significantly due to the Holy Spirit's presence. This movement is about being part of God's work in the world." NCM intentionally has developed a "permission-giving" attitude toward congregations and individuals as initiators of new congregations. The movement, once fueled almost solely by regions, now relies more on congregations and individuals as initiators. That approach is paying off, Morse said. Fourteen percent of the 33 congregations started this year were initiated by regions. Individuals and congregations were responsible for about 35 percent each -- representing nearly all the increase in growth of the movement. The remainder joined Disciples ranks by affiliation, rather than by initiation. "People are feeling the passion. They are finding ways to answer the call," said Gilberto Collazo, NCM team member. "We are really inspired by the personal commitment of individuals who are stepping out in faith to answer the call from God to start new churches. These people are setting the pace for the rest of the church." But Disciples will need the help of congregations as well to sustain growth. So, the New Church Ministry team is focusing on helping existing congregations -- first to recognize the call to reach new people with the gospel of Jesus Christ; and second to learn how to launch new communities of faith. In response to a letter from the current and all four past General Ministers and Presidents, Disciples pastors are opting into the movement by committing to support new churches through prayer, funds and even by leading their established congregations to help start new churches. Nearly 70 pastors have responded already, toward a goal of 1,000 ministers who pledge their support by the time of the October 2003 General Assembly in Charlotte, N.C. Meanwhile, congregations that already see themselves as new church starters are the new churches themselves. The movement, Morse said, is begetting itself. "Many new churches in 2002 are being started by congregations younger than five years old themselves," Morse said. He cited Shalom Community Christian Church; a 4-year-old, multi-cultural congregation of 380 members in Greensboro, N.C. Shalom is launching three new churches now, with plans for two more starts soon. Last fall, a Hispanic congregation with 60 members started in Enid, Okla. Already, Iglesia Cristiana El Shaddai is starting a sister congregation. At 43 percent of this year's new churches, Hispanics continue to be the fastest growing group among new Disciples congregations. In fact the movement's growth is marked by an expansion of congregations that reach particular ethnic groups. For example, a new Korean congregation, A Church in Christ, has started in the Northeast region. It is the first, but certainly not the last, Asian Disciples congregation in an area heavily populated with American Asians. In fact, three more Korean congregations are currently considering affiliation with Disciples due to the Disciples new church start, Morse said. A Vietnamese congregation in Raleigh, N.C., expects to be worshiping in September. Its presence will double the number of Disciples Vietnamese congregations in the United States. Vietnamese communities also have a good deal of promise for exponential growth, Morse said. "Several Vietnamese pastors are looking to be placed. They just need sponsoring congregations to help get things moving." To participate in this movement, contact Morse at 1-800-274-1883, or write to New Church Ministry; c/o Church Extension, P.O. Box 7030, Indianapolis, IN, 46207-7030; e-mail: rmorse@churchextension.org -- end -- Church Extension 02-65 |