Daniel Im

Pastor + Author

Church Multiplication

changing the perception of church in Quebec (radio appearance)

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I just came back from discussing, ‘Conversations with the Homeless,’ in a radio interview with Jeffrey Mackie on CKUT 90.3 FM. If you missed it, you can listen to it here. I come up a few minutes after the clip begins.

In the interview, I also mentioned the church that I am currently serving as a Youth Pastor in River’s Edge Community Church. At River’s Edge, part of our core mission is to change the perception of Church in Quebec. This isn’t some randomly chosen mission statement, but it is uniquely tailored to our situation here in Quebec because of all the past church-related hurts and scandals that have affected and misconstrued the perception of church in Quebec.

As a result, rather than following the line of many churches today in constructing a modern facility to house our church gatherings, Lorenzo DellaForesta (our Lead Pastor) decided to go the route of obtaining and meeting in an abandoned Catholic Church. River’s Edge is not Catholic, and it is in fact the Catholic Church that many Quebecers have been hurt by. As a result, why we would we meet in a Catholic Church? Isn’t that the stupidest thing to do? Sure, maybe it would have been stupid to do it 10-15 years ago. However, considering the times we are in now, it is actually one of the most strategic things to do.

Why? Because there is an overriding sense of spirituality that pervades our post-modern culture. As a result, what many individuals crave for isn’t a modern version of Christianity, but a post-modern, spiritually-oriented community of faith that meets in a designated sacred space.

the 21st century north american church (part 3)

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The New Testament and Multi-Ethnic Groups

When examining the incarnation, the apostles, the early church, and the eschatological vision in the New Testament, the ethnic picture is unambiguously multi-ethnic. This is best portrayed by looking at the very first multi-ethnic church.

The Church in Antioch as a Model for the Multi-Ethnic Church

The very first multi-ethnic church in the history of Christianity was not established by the Holy Apostles, but it was a handful of “Christians” (Acts 11:26) who, obeying Jesus’ words in the Great Commission and the Ascension, traveled to the “ends of the earth” – Antioch – to “make disciples of all nations.”

Antioch, the “religiously pluralistic and pleasure seeking” urban port city was “the provincial capital of Syria,” and “the third largest city in the Graeco-Roman empire after Rome and Alexandria.” As a result of the city’s multi-ethnic demographic, there was constant interaction between “Syrians, Romans, Greeks, Arabs, Persians, Armenians, Parthians, Cappadocians, and Jews,” which created a cultural ethos of “hatred and fear rooted in intense ethnic antagonisms.” Thus, in this global and urban port-city, the first multi-ethnic church was formed.

The church in Antioch was multi-ethnic because it was a community of faith that was composed of more than two different ethnicities, where not one ethnicity held a significant majority. For example, the leadership of the church consisted of one Jew from Jerusalem (Barnabas), another Jew from Tarsus that was also a Roman citizen (Paul), a black African (Simeon who is called Niger), a man from “the capital city of Libya in northern Africa” (Lucius of Cyrene), and the step-brother of Herod Antipas, a Roman tetrarch (Manaen).

Not only was the leadership of the church multi-ethnic, but so was the congregation. And not only was the congregation multi-ethnic, but so was the city.

Obviously, a multi-ethnic church isn’t something that can be realized everywhere, but should they not be much more evident in multi-ethnic metropolitan cities?

(Sources Cited: Ken Shigematsu, Thomas V. Brisco, Michelle Slee, Crutiss Paul DeYoung, Michael O. Emerson, George Yancey, Karen Chai Kim)

the 21st century north american church (part 2)

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Is the debate between mono-ethnic and multi-ethnic churches merely a twenty-first North American phenomenon, or is there wisdom to glean from the Israelites and the early church?

The Old Testament and Multi-Ethnic Groups
Despite the assumption that God developed a multi-ethnic vision in the New Testament when the risen Christ commanded the apostles to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19), God was actually concerned with all cultures from the moment he created the first one!

Even though God chose Abraham and his lineage to be the specific nation to bring about his redemptive plan (Genesis 12:1-3), nowhere does God state that this nation should be exclusive or ethnocentric. This specific nation, later named the Israelites, had always been multi-ethnic in makeup, beginning with the patriarchs. For example, Jacob’s family had “Aramean, Amorite, Canaanite, and Egyptian elements within it.” Also, Moses and many of the other Israelites married non-Israelite women (Moses married a Cushite). Even when studying Jesus’ genealogical history (Matthew 1), one notices that non-Israelites, such as Ruth and Rahab, were incorporated, not only into the nation of Israel, but also specifically into the genealogy of the Messiah.

In addition to being a multi-ethnic nation, one notices that God is deeply concerned for all cultures in the Old Testament, just as much as he is in the New Testament (Psalm 24:1; Isaiah 66:18-19). This multi-ethnic vision in Isaiah 66:18-19 is very reminiscent of the biblical vision in Revelation 7:9-10. Ergo, it is evident that God, as described in the Old Testament, is a multi-ethnic God, and his chosen nation is a multi-ethnic nation

the 21st century north american church (part 1)

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When reflecting on the magnificent vision that John had regarding the Church in Revelation 7:9-10, I cannot help but wonder if contemporary twenty-first century North American churches are embracing this future eschatological revelation.

If God gathers individuals “from every nation, tribe, people and language,” (Rev. 7:9) into his Kingdom, then why are mono-ethnic churches increasingly prevalent in a North America that is progressively becoming multi-ethnic?  Why does segregation, violence, and hate amongst people of different ethnicities, races, and cultures exist?  If it is truly the People of God being described in this biblical passage, then why is there not more harmony and reconciliation amongst the People of God here in North America?

Do mono-ethnic churches, perhaps, add to the existing disunity amongst the People of God, or are they merely indifferent to this biblical vision?  Maybe multi-ethnic churches are the answer to fulfilling this biblical vision in twenty-first century North America, but what exactly does a multi-ethnic church look like?

another attempt

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another blog?

no..

…it’s an attempt to challenge the norm

…it’s an attempt to encourage all people their journey

…it’s an attempt to introduce new theories and models for doing ministry

…it’s an attempt to be transparent

…it’s an attempt to awaken others 2 change just as I have been awakened2change

this is the blog of Daniel Sangi Im

thanks for reading