GLUE

Tips for Building Healthy Multi-ethnic Churches

Join me for a free online webinar hosted by my good friends at Leadership Network on Thursday, November 13, from 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm CST. At that time, I will be responding to questions live as well as others posed to me in a similar forum we conducted this past summer. Due to the overwhelming response to the first webinar, this second session has now been scheduled. I hope you'll tune in and/or spread the word to those you know who might be interested.

Dr. Warren Bird asks, What Have You Learned?

Warren Bird, Ph.D., is Research Director at Leadership Network, and co-author of nineteen books on various aspects of church health and innovation. This week, he posted the following article on Learnings@Leadership Network, a blog featuring "first-hand reports of what innovative churches are doing." I discussed the post with him a couple of weeks ago and affirmed my own belief that mergers and campus plants (via multi-siting) are ways in which healthy, but otherwise homogeneous churches can expedite their pursuit of transition. In addition, I believe such a church would do well to consider launching a multi-ethnic venue within their existing weekend worship schedule.

Warren's entire post is repeated here (in bold) for your convenience. And after reading, please let me know what you think by commenting below.

What have you learned about launching an ethnic or multi-cultural site?
By Warren Bird

People like Mark DeYmaz have written about and modeled what he calls "the biblical mandate for the multi-ethnic church" -- see his book, Building a Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church (San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass/Leadership Network, 2007).

Yet this is not the case for most churches. According to research conducted by sociologists Michael Emerson, Christian Smith, George Yancey and others, 92.5% of Catholic and Protestant churches throughout the United States can be classified as “mono-racial.” This term describes a church in which 80% or more of the individuals that attend are of the same ethnicity or race. The remaining churches (7.5%) can be described as “multi-racial,” i.e., churches in which there are a non-majority, collective population of at least 20%. By this definition, approximately 12% of Catholic churches, just less than 5% of evangelical churches and about 2.5% of mainline Protestant churches can be described as “multi-racial."

Early research by Dr. George Yancey, published in his book, One Body, One Spirit (Downer’s Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2003), identified general “principles of successful multi-racial churches.” Mark DeYmaz then adapted and restated them as follows, each a chapter in Building a Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church:

1. Embrace Dependence
2. Take Intentional Steps
3. Empower Diverse Leadership
4. Develop Cross-Cultural Relationships
5. Pursue Cross-Cultural Competence
6. Promote a Spirit of Inclusion
7. Mobilize for Impact

Interestingly, the most multi-racial churches at present are the largest ones. Beyond Megachurch Myths by Scott Thumma and Dave Travis reports on a major 2005 study of very large churches. It asks, "What is the total percentage of attenders in your church that are not of the majority racial/ethnic group?" The average was 19%. Some 36% have 20% minority presence or more. The response to the next survey question was even more telling: "Is your congregation making efforts to become intentionally multi-ethnic?" A surprising 56% said yes.

What about churches that are multi-site? Are they placing much emphasis on launching ethnic or multi-cultural sites? I suspect it's a low priority for many. In Leadership Network's 2007 release named "Survey of 1,000 Multi-Site Churches," we asked for participants' primary motivation for doing multi-site. The overwhelming reply was evangelism" (63%), although 1% did say "cross language or ethnic barriers." we next asked their secondary motivation for doing multi-site. Of the same seven answers, there was a two-way tie for first place: solve overcrowding (27%) and bring our church closer to a target area (also 27%). This time 4% said "cross language or ethnic barriers" -- and those churches were different from the ones who said 1% earlier. So a total of 5% of the churches indicate it's a top motivation. That's 1 out of 20 cases.

Interestingly, another set of questions asked "To what extent are you reaching the same kinds of people on each campus in terms ofrace?" Only 12% said yes. When asked, "To what extent are you reaching the same kinds of people on each campus in terms oflanguage," only 5% said yes.

What's your sense between multi-ethnic churches and multi-ethnic campuses of multi-site churches? Which is more likely to take the lead, and why?

My prediction is that it will happen through mergers. Our multi-site survey also asked, "Have you used your multi-site approach to assist (or take responsibility for) a declining church?" Of 197 churches that replied to this question, 30% said yes, plus 10% more said "no but we plan to in the future." I think those mergers will open the way to more multi-ethnic congregations.

Webinar Now Scheduled by Leadership Network

Join me on July 9 for a webinar sponsored by the folks at Leadership Network entitled, Why You Should and How You Can Build a Healthy Multi-ethnic Church. Participants will be linked live by phone and able to participate with the interactive screen observed from their own computers. Reserve your seat now!

During this webinar, I’ll be sharing my vision of a healthy, multi-ethnic church with participants. I’ll also share what I’ve learned from scripture about how to articulate the New Testament vision, discuss current needs, and define the mission of a multi-ethnic church in a clear and concise way for others. In addition, I'll unpack the seven core commitments of a multi-ethnic church, generate practical ideas toward their implementation, and discuss common obstacles and ways to overcome them if the dream is to become reality.

This Leadership Network webinar will be useful for church planters as well as pastors seeking to revitalize churches in decline or to transform healthy but otherwise homogeneous churches around the multi-ethnic vision. Like the men of Issachar (I Chronicles 12:32), participants will leave with a better understanding of the times and more fully comprehend why I believe the most effective way to advance the Gospel in the 21st century will be through healthy multi-ethnic churches. Involvement will inspire those who believe the kingdom of heaven is not segregated to create local churches on earth that will not be either.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.3.9 (Panther®) or newer

Book Awards and Finalists Announced

Recently, I learned that Building a Healthy Multi-ethnic Church has been selected as a finalist for annual awards sponsored by two of North America's leading Christian magazines.

First, the book has been selected as one of four finalists for a 2008 Christianity Today Book Award in the Church/Pastoral Leadership category. According to CT's website featuring award winners in 2007, these awards are given to "titles that bring understanding to people, events, and ideas that shape evangelical life, thought, and mission."

In addition, the book has been selected as one of five finalists for a 2007 Outreach Resource of the Year Award in the Leadership Training category. These awards reflect "a reader-chosen survey of the best products that change the way churches and individuals build relationships with the unchurched." Past winners of these awards can be found on their website.

You Tube Promo w/ Dr. George Yancey and Senator Mark Pryor

Here's an informative, three-minute media piece featuring myself, Dr. George Yancey and U.S. Senator Mark Pryor, recently put together by Leadership Network for distribution among pastors, educators and church leaders throughout North America and beyond. In fact, I have already heard from ministry leaders in Australia and New Zealand!

Following your own review, I would greatly appreciate you forwarding the link to those within your own sphere of influence. And thanks in advance for doing so!

Outreach Magazine Just Called ...

Seems my book is reviewed in their cuurent issue. Read Tamara Rice's review from the November/December 2007 edition of Outreach Magazine.

A Lessson in Cross-Cultural Competence

The following story is exerpted from the book, Building a Healthy Multi-ethnnic Church. I'm certain this is one you'll want to pass along to others!

"Not long after Mosaic moved into the old Wal-Mart building, we recognized that the time had come to buy chairs for the congregation. Having met for eighteen months in the sanctuary of an existing church, we had never needed chairs. Following the move, however, members of our church were asked to bring their own chairs to worship each week; and this they did, carrying them in one way or another like parents to a soccer game or families to a picnic. Most often, these chairs were the kind that easily fold open and break down, the ones that are carried in a little bag or stuff sack. Some of them even had footrests and cup-holders. I’ll never forget one woman who was pregnant at the time; she lay back in a chair, listening to the sermon with her feet propped up, sipping water from a large container through a straw!

"Having determined to buy four hundred chairs, we ordered one chair as a sample to show the congregation. One Sunday morning, I put it up on the platform and explained that we would need to collect $25 from every person in order to cover the cost of the chairs. I added that our staff liked both the look and the feel of the chair and had even tested it out earlier in the week. “You know,” I said, settling comfortably into the chair, 'it feels pretty good to my buns!' When I did, the congregation laughed a bit, so I went on to milk the moment. 'In fact, not only have I sat my buns in the chair, but most of the staff has sat their buns in the chair. And they, too, think it feels pretty good!' More laughter. 'Now some on our staff have bigger buns than others,' I said, “but even the biggest buns among us agree. So after the service, why don’t you come and sit your buns, big or small, in the chair and tell us what you think!'

"By this time, the congregation was fully animated, as I probably used the word buns six or seven times for comic effect. Yes, everyone in the room—the Hondurans, Guatemalans, and Cubans, those from the Middle East, Europe, and Africa—were all fully engaged and laughing—everyone, that is, except the Mexicans. No, they were not at all amused. Although my comments had been simultaneously interpreted into Spanish, apparently something had been lost in translation!

"Now Inés Velasquez-McBryde, Mosaic’s Director of Cross-Cultural Ministries, is a very skilled interpreter. Having grown up in Nicaragua, she began translating English to Spanish at the age of eleven, serving alongside her father in working with North American mission teams coming into the country. She is much more than a translator; she has an excellent command of common language, as well as theological concepts. On this day, however, even Inés was to learn something new!

"Following the service, one of the Mexican women frantically approached Inés and, grabbing her by the arm, said, 'Don’t ever say that word again!' Her tone of voice told Inés that something was the matter. After some discussion, the woman fi nally calmed down but only when she realized the problem. You see, in translating the word buns, Inés had used the term nalgas, which in most countries throughout Central and South America carries, in tone and tenor, a force equivalent to the English term buns. Yet in Mexico, the term is more vulgar; it’s equivalent to the English word ass!

"Now I want you to imagine for a moment, your pastor getting up on a Sunday morning and saying, 'You know, this chair feels pretty good to my ass! In fact, not only have I sat my ass in the chair, but most of the staff has sat their ass in the chair, as well. . . . Now some on our staff have bigger asses than others, but even the biggest asses among us agree! So after the service, why don’t you come and sit your ass, whether big or small, in the chair and tell us what you think.'

"This is exactly what the Mexicans heard me say that day! For within the Spanish language, there are variations in dialect, word meaning, and usage across regions, countries, and continents. Fortunately, the Mexicans forgave us, and through this experience, we learned a valuable lesson in pursuit of cross-cultural competence.

"The understanding we need to be effective in a cross-cultural environment is gained through experience and interaction with diverse people, especially with those who are one in the Lord. To build a healthy multi-ethnic church, then, we must commit ourselves to the pursuit of cross-cultural competence, whether that means becoming profi cient in the idiosyncrasies of language or the ins and outs of customs and traditions different from our own. Once acquired, cross-cultural competence allows us to interact in a more informed and effective way with others of varying ethnic or economic backgrounds. Though the challenge is formidable, the journey to acquire it, as we have seen, is not without its lighter moments! Indeed, in many ways cross-cultural competence is more caught than taught."

Why I Wrote the Book

Advance orders of Building a Healthy Multi-ethnic Church are now shipping from the warehouse and the book will be in stores by the end of the month. Recently, I was asked to comment on why I wrote the book. Here's what I said ...

"I wrote this book with a concern that individuals, church planters and reformers establish healthy mutli-ethnic churches built on the solid foundation of the word of God, i.e., a theology (or, ecclesiology) of church planting and development through which Jews and Gentiles walked, worked and worshipped God together as one.

"For more than fifty years, however, church planters and reformers have been encouraged to establish local churches built on the homogeneous unit principle, a principle which states that churches grow fastest when they are homogeneous. And despite the integration of public schools, the workplace and neighborhoods, the local church still stubbornly clings to homogenity. Yet as America grows increasingly diverse, it will be forced to adapt in order to remain relevant and effective in the proclamation of the gospel. Good intentions will not be enough to inspire systemic change.

"So while churches do indeed grow fastest when they are homogeneous, I am not at all certain that they do so biblically.

"In the twenty-first century, I believe it will be the unity of diverse believers walking as one in and through the local church that will proclaim the fact of God’s love for all people more profoundly than any one sermon, book, or evangelistic crusade. And I believe the coming integration of the local church will lead to the fulfillment of the Great Commission in this century, i.e., to people of every nation, tribe, people, and tongue coming to know him as we do."

This, then, is the core of the book's message. This is the prayer of Christ (John 17:20-23ff.).

Endorsements

The following endorsements for Building a Healthy Multi-ethnic Church have been received to date ...

“Following Brown v. Board of Education, the integration of Little Rock’s Central High endures as a major milestone of the civil rights movement, and it is fitting that this book, written by my friend Mark DeYmaz, is being released in the fall of 2007, the very season in which the nation will mark the fiftieth anniversary of that historic event. His church, the Mosaic Church of Central Arkansas, is influencing a systemic rethinking of things and setting an example that few churches to date have been willing to address.”
From the prologue by U.S. Senator Mark Pryor

“We cannot ignore the topic of multi-ethnic churches as we live in a multi-ethnic world. Mark DeYmaz writes extremely practical insight, not from theory but from leading an extremely strategic multi-ethnic church that is paving the way for so many others.”
Dan Kimball, senior pastor, Vintage Faith Church, Santa Cruz, CA, author of the book, They Like Jesus But Not the Church

“Mark DeYmaz has provided the body of Christ with the answer to one of its most embarrassing dilemmas: Sunday segregation. Building a Healthy Multi-ethnic Church is a very simple and biblical plan for church leaders committed to building a church that looks like the world in which they minister.”
Miles McPherson, senior pastor, The Rock Church, San Diego, CA

"Drawing from years of invaluable experience as a multi-ethnic church pastor, Mark DeYmaz writes with keen practical insight and foresight. For those committed to building multi-ethnic churches for Christ in an increasingly diverse culture, this is a must read."
Dr. Paul Louis Metzger, Professor of Christian Theology and Theology of Culture, Multnomah Biblical Seminary, Portland, OR, author of Consuming Jesus

“This book unpacks theological and practical principles for local churches interested in truly serving their neighboring communities in an increasing diverse America. It paves the way for the future of the local church and the next generations of its leaders.”
DJ Chuang, Director of Asian American Church Research at Leadership Network and Executive Director at L2 Foundation

“Here’s the book many of us have been looking for—a book that lays a solid biblical foundation for the multi-ethnic church and includes the building plans! Whether seeking to plant a multi-ethnic church or transform a homogenous congregation, this book will inspire and show the way.”
Jonathan Seda, senior pastor, Grace Presbyterian Church, Dover, DE

“In Building a Healthy Multi-ethnic Church, Mark paints a picture, with his own story and the story of God, that will inspire and equip people to join with God in fulfilling the vision of a faith of all colors.”
Doug Pagitt, senior pastor, Solomon’s Porch, Minneapolis/St.Paul, MN, author of An Emergent Manifesto of Hope

“This captivating book describes the fascinating story, including the biblical basis, behind Mark’s passionate quest to develop a church which is truly multi-cultural and multi-ethnic. It fosters hope that the future can be different.”
Dr. Warren Bird, Research Director for Leadership Network

“I am so excited to see the concept of cross-cultural local church ministry so thoroughly articulated by Mark DeYmaz. I encourage every pastor, parishioner and even non-Christians, as well, to read it in order to see where the local church is heading in the 21st century, and why.”
Dr. Ken Hutcherson, senior pastor of Antioch Bible Church, Kirkland, WA, author of the book, Enough Faith

“The North American Church is hemorrhaging through the ethnic and economic segregation of her people. Jesus Christ is using men like Mark DeYmaz to bring healing to His bride and to build authentic communities of faith that reflect the love of God for all people. This is an excellent book."
Dr. Greg Kappas, D.Min., Director, Grace Global Network

“The fact that Sunday morning is the most segregated hour in the land is challenged biblically and experientially with this book. Mark DeYmaz offers hope for the local church to become a picture of heaven on earth, a place where all races can worship the same God in the same church at the same time.”
Rodney Woo, senior pastor, Wilcrest Baptist Church, Houston, TX

The 21st century will be increasingly characterized by local churches that reflect the ethnic and economic diversity of the Body of Christ, just as they did in the 1st century. Mark’s book makes a profound contribution toward the development of these churches, the kind of churches Christ most surely desires on earth as it is in heaven.”
Ali Velasquez, Hispanic Task Force, North American Mission Board

Building a Healthy Multi-ethnic Church

My new book from Jossey-Bass / Leadership Network is scheduled for release in October 2007. Building a Healthy Multi-ethnic Church presents the biblical (New Testament) mandate for the multi-ethnic church and the seven core commitments required to bring it about. In addition, three chapters are focused specifically on the practical application of these commitments and have been provided for those who are either planting a multi-ethnic church, revitalizing a dead or dying church or transforming a healthy but otherwise homogeneous church around the multi-ethnic vision. And each chapter features a personal story of life-change involving the people and the passion of Mosaic. This book was written to articulate the theology of the emerging Multi-ethnic Chruch Movement and to provide practitioners with the understanding they'll need to turn the vision into reality. Please join me in helping to create some pre-release momentum and, in time, let me know what you think.