New Calvary Baptist

NEW CALVARY BAPTIST

CHURCH PROFILE

New Calvary Baptist Church is proudly entering its 66th year (founded in July, 1949) of service to its members, community and residents in Detroit and the greater Metropolitan Detroit area. New Calvary has sought to engage in ministry by a simple motto: To serve, rather than be served. We’ve also adopted the following tag line to compliment our motto, A center for life: sharing love and saving souls.

Through our founding pastor, Rev. Joseph T. Thomas, New Calvary was affiliated with the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc., where Rev. Thomas served as chairman of the National Stewardship Committee of the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. Rev. Thomas initiated a tithing program at New Calvary which serves as a proven way to finance God’s church. With the death of Pastor Thomas, Rev. Dr. Charles William Butler was called to the pastorate of New Calvary in 1962 and served for the next thirty-four years. Rev. Butler was a founding member of the Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc. Pastor Butler became president of this convention. Two years after the retirement of Dr. Butler, Rev. Dr. Michael C.R. Nabors was called to pastor New Calvary Baptist Church. Rev. Nabors served as President of the Michigan Progressive Baptist Convention. To this date, New Calvary continues to serve in the Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc. Rev. Nabors served as pastor of New Calvary for sixteen years before he resigned.

Under the leadership of these three dynamic pastors, New Calvary has had many student interns and several ministers who have been licensed and ordained into the Christian ministry. Many have gone on to become pastors in their own right.

New Calvary is located on the east side of Detroit. Current members are residents of Detroit, Southfield, Grosse Pointe, Belleville, Bloomfield, West Bloomfield, Rochester Hills and other suburban towns near the city. Although the demographics in the city of Detroit have markedly changed; it is our earnest plea that our community may be transformed as God grants us a spirit for building the kingdom of God, where we are, to his glory!

OVERVIEW

Our Faith What we believe

We believe in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

1 Our two ordinances are Baptism and the Holy Communion.

We are an autonomous body led by the Holy Spirit, looking to God for our direction.

Who We Are-Our Vision, Mission, and Core Values

Vision

“New Calvary seeks to be an alive, vibrant, bible-teaching, missions-focused body of believers dedicated in mind and body to serve rather than be served.”

In addition to the above statement, the congregation approved the following mission statement as presented by the 2013-2022 Strategic Plan Committee:“New Calvary…a Center for Life”

Mission

“The spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Luke 4:18-19

The congregation also approved the following vision statement as presented by the 2013-2022 Strategic Plan Committee: “Showing Love…Serving Souls.”

Core Values

Love of God Strength of Fellowship Obedience Sacrifice Missions Christian Education Spiritual Growth and Development

2 In addition to the Deacon Board and the Trustee Board New Calvary Baptist Church have various auxiliaries, ministries and committees. Per the by-laws of the church, all Deacons, Trustees, Auxiliary and Ministry Leaders must tithe.

The New Calvary Baptist Church unit system is a division of the church membership into small groups to afford better administration and membership services. It is divided by the geographical areas where members live. Some areas may be larger than others, depending on the density of church member households. Presently there are fifteen units.

DEMOGRAPHICS

This section shall provide statistical data about attendance, membership statistics, growth, (or lack thereof), where the congregation lives and mobility. This information has been taken from the membership data base located in the church office.

Attendance

Attendance for the past year (2014-2015) at the 10:30 A.M. service averages about fifty percent. The fluctuation of attendance is of significant concern. Variations occur from week to week. Generally, the 1st Sunday of each month is most strongly attended. This is primarily related to the fact that it is the Sunday where Baptism and Holy Communion are observed. In addition, attendance is often increased on second Sunday if there is a baby to be dedicated. Typically, a baby dedication will increase the overall attendance in worship service by twenty to thirty persons.

We have various Bible Study classes and Church School classes; however, we must acknowledge that attendance is inadequate and woefully low. The future of our congregation lies in our capacity to meet this challenge, increase church attendance and attendance at all Christian Education courses. In addition, there must be full attention given to increasing our current membership.

Where We Live

New Calvary Baptist Church members live all around the Detroit Metropolitan Area. Generally speaking, those living outside of the city have some connection to New Calvary, causing them to have joined or remained members over the years. The connection is usually traced to the

3 east side of Detroit where a preponderance of persons grew up, attending the church as children. The vast majority of members remain residents of the city of Detroit. The majority of church activities, focus, energy and resources must presently go into the city of Detroit because of the outstanding percentage of members who reside in the city. At the same time, there should be some attention given to potential growth in the other areas in which our members live.

Detroit and the state of Michigan are hard hit economically and have lost a significant portion of population base. However, indicators suggest the immediate and mid-term future will see a growth in population base, employment rates, and real estate in the city of Detroit and the state of Michigan.

New Calvary must plan for its future. Membership growth must begin to take place immediately. Focus upon the immediate geographical area and those living short distances must be a serious goal of present outreach and mission work. Additionally, the church must begin to set tangible and realistic goals for retaining members who live long distances away.