Copyright 2007 By Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City ISBN 978-0-8341-2341-2319-9 Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Contents Preface 5 Introduction Jerry D. Porter 7 Major Shifts in Immigration Patterns Oliver R. Phillips 9 The Biblical Foundation for Multicultural Ministry Ken Baker 27 Future Cultural Trends in the United States: A Historical Perspective Dale E. Jones 42 The Multi-Congregational Church in the North American Context Roberto Hodgson 51 The Walls Have Come Down in Christ Jesus Ron Benefiel 71 Who Moved My Church? Oliver R. Phillips 86 The Immigrant Churches: Toward a Stranger’s Theology Sam Vassel & Gabriel Salguero 112 The History of the Black Church in America Love Henry Whelchel 132 The Multicultural Church Russell Begaye 166 Signs of Pentecost and Heaven Tom Nees 183 What Kind of Ministry Leaders Ought We to Be in this New Diverse Cultural World that Confronts Us? Fletcher Tink 195 Multicultural Concepts and Models Richard Houseal 219 Starting Healthy Congregations Jim Dorsey 230 No Easy Answers Russell Begaye 250 Preface This is a compilation of essays. It is, as the title suggests, an interpretation of the challenges and opportunities the immi- grant population brings to the evangelical community in terms of its missional strategies. The book does not promote any par- ticular strategy, but every effort has been taken to expose mis- sional challenges and to suggest that God may be expecting us to be diligent in the strategies we use to take advantage of our ever changing cultural demographics. E Pluribus Unum is the result of a God-given necessity that was laid upon me to encourage the Church of the Nazarene to create a climate of inclusion and opportunity. To be involved in multicultural evangelism is exhilarating and sometimes haz- ardous. My hope is that these essays will help you clear the land mines that are present in the multicultural landscape and encourage you on this exciting journey. The Church of the Nazarene has some excellent leaders in the field of multicultural ministry. The experiences and insights they share throughout the book will help you fulfill the min- istry God has given you, and I express my thanks to them. The book also includes the wisdom of three non-Nazarene contributors because of their long standing involvement with multicultural issues within the evangelical community. I am grateful for their willingness to be partners in this initiative. These authors are: Ken Baker was a church-planter and missiologist in West Africa for twenty-four years, serving primarily in Islamic regions, both urban and rural. Last year he became director of Culture ConneXions, a ministry focused on helping churches toward multiethnic outreach and inclu- sion. Russell Begaye is the Chairman of the Ethnic America Network. In 1997 to 2002, Russell served as the Manager of the MuIti-Ethnic Church Planting Unit of the North 5 American Mission Board. Over the years, Begaye has initi- ated the planting of scores of multi-ethnic and Native American Churches in the U.S. He is a Navajo Indian. Love Henry Whelchel, Jr. is Professor of Church History at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia. He is the author of several books on the African American religious experience including Hell Without Fire: Conversion in Slave Religion (Abingdon Press, 2002). A special word of thanks is in order for Rhonda Kyncl who helped edit each of the essays. Additionally, from the USA/Canada Mission/Evangelism Department, Rich Houseal and Bryon McLaughlin ably assisted as liaisons with Nazarene Publishing House. To all who have been daring enough to share their reac- tions to these essays either with constructive criticism, simple gratitude, or searching questions, I give my eternal gratitude. I invite readers of the book to respond by e-mailing me at [email protected]. Oliver R. Phillips USA/Canada Mission Strategy Director Church of the Nazarene 6 Introduction Jerry D. Porter E Pluribus UNUM … Out of many ONE The “holiness folks” who gathered at Pilot Point, Texas in 1908 to launch what is today the Church of the Nazarene, were astounded at the work of God’s grace that allowed post-Civil War Southerners to embrace Northerners! The bitterness and “separateness” that followed that tragic bloodbath ran deep in the soul of the nation. Overcoming that hatred and distrust was symbolic to them of the Kingdom of God that was tearing down the walls of hostility and building a grace-bridge of acceptance, mutual respect, and love. Our church was born in the crucible of reconciliation and unity in Christ. There were, however, no Native Americans, Blacks, Latinos, or Asians at Pilot Point that day. The delegates repre- sented emerging churches among the poor with minimal, if any, ethnic diversity. It probably did not occur to the early lead- ers of the merging streams of the American holiness movement that the call for unity in diversity would go far beyond an embrace across the Mason-Dixon Line. The groups that came together had limited missionary work in a few “foreign” fields. The same Lord God who called this fellowship into existence a century ago multiplied that vision, propelling the church from Pilot Point to every continent, nation, and people group around the globe. We obediently and passionately embarked on the mission of sharing Christ in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth. From Pilot Point to Pakistan, from California to Colombia, from New York to New Zealand, from Alabama to Algiers, the Church of the Nazarene has proclaimed God’s transforming grace to everyone regardless of culture, color, nationality, edu- cation, language, race, or social standing. We have all met as equals at the foot of the cross! Being many peoples . we are 7 becoming one people of grace! We celebrate the centenary mis- sionary fervor and effectiveness of the Church of the Nazarene in almost 160 world areas. Now we have an even greater privilege! We not only have the quadrennial joy of coming together as a multicultural, mul- tilingual, global holiness family at our general assembly … we also thrill with the awesome satisfaction of experiencing this international unity each year at our district assemblies and even each week in our local communities of faith! The Kingdom of God has come and is coming. We who have been so missionary minded are now given the delight of demon- strating, not the forgiving embrace of a Yankee holiness white man and a Dixie holiness white man, but rather the reconciling embrace of people from every tribe and nation who gather in our churches and assemblies as ONE family. Whether our local congregation is richly diverse or whether we orchestrate multi- ple opportunities for our children, students, and adults to come together across racial and cultural lines, we all proactively demonstrate that out of many … God is making ONE! The extraordinary compilation of essays that Dr. Oliver Phillips has brought together in this book is an inspiring mis- sional call for the church to truly be “the Kingdom come” in our communities. These authors call us to embrace with new enthusiasm the unity in diversity that is the body of Christ in our local churches, on our districts, across this continent, and around the world. As we read these passionate chapters, we will renew our commitment to making EVERY CHURCH … an inclusive church … a missionary church … a unique church … a compassionate church … a culturally sensitive church … a reproducing church, and … a holiness church TO THE GLORY OF GOD! 8 MAJOR SHIFTS IN IMMIGRATION PATTERNS Oliver R. Phillips The Facts Without a doubt, immigration to the United States is bur- geoning beyond imaginable proportions. By the term “immi- grant,” we mean “residents”, both legal and undocumented, that were born outside of the United States, who now number, according to the 2003 Population Size and Composition Statistics, 33.5 million persons. The number of immigrants living in American households has risen 16 percent over the last five years, and increasingly, immigrants are bypassing the traditional gateway states like California and New York, settling directly in parts of the coun- try that until recently saw little immigrant activity — regions like the Upper Midwest, New England and the Rocky Mountain States. By far the largest numbers of immigrants con- tinue to live in the six states that have traditionally attracted them: California, New York, Texas, Florida, New Jersey, and Illinois. The fact still remains true: immigrants continue to flood the country in unprecedented numbers. America has failed to come to grips with the stark reality of this increased immigration. Forrest Gump was right, “Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get.” More to the point, the American church has not come to grips with what opportunities and challenges are presented by this giant shift in people groups, guided wittingly by God’s hands. The box of chocolates begins to unravel and surprises abound. Feelings vary about this new phenomenon. What most Americans are not willing to admit is that immigration is the 9 key to current economic growth. Additionally, immigration is also central to future growth, not only because immigration will continue, but also because the children of immigrants today are the labor force of tomorrow.1 Immigration might also be the key to sustained membership growth in the U.S. congre- gations. Research has shown that in my denomination, the Church of the Nazarene, from 1993 to 2003, 820 new churches were started. Of that number, 429 or 52.3% were among ethnic groups, mainly immigrants.