Multicultural Church Planting

I have been touched by the cover article of this month’s Christianity Today (April 2005). The cover article is entitled “All Churches Should Be Multicultural” (pp. 32-35) reflecting on the book Divided by Faith: Evangelicals and the Problem of Race in America (Oxford 2000) and its sequel United by Faith: The Multiracial Congregation as an Answer to the Problem of Race (Oxford 2003).

The article illustrates the changing landscape of the United States.

According to the 2000 Census, people of color as a percentage of the United States population have more than doubled to 31 percent since 1960, and the growth of non-Europeans is expected to continue at an accelerated rate. In just the last 20 years (1980 to 2000), the African American population grew by nearly 30 percent, the Native American population by 75 percent, the Latino population by 142 percent, and the Asian American population by 185 percent. In absolute numbers, the United States had well over 35 million more people of color in 2000 than it did in 1980. This is more people than lived in the entire United States during the Civil War period of the early 1860s (p. 33).

The authors of United by Faith, sociologists Karen Chai Kim and George Yancey with theologian Curtiss Paul DeYoung, define a multicultural church as “a congregation in which no one racial group accounts for 80 percent or more of the membership.” Of the “Christian” congregations (excluding gatherings of other world religions) in the United States only 5.5 percent are racially mixed. This is why Michael O. Emerson and Christian Smith Dived by Faith say in 11:00 a.m. on Sunday morning is the most racially segmented time of life in North America (Christianity Today, Oct. 2000, p. 36).

This article says, “The 21st century must be the century of multicultural congregations.” (p. 34). These multicultural churches will play an important role in reducing racial division and in equality that “should be the goal of Christian people” (p. 34). The article then gives a biblical rationale for multiculturalism and today’s challenges in becoming multicultural.

A companion article, “Harder than Anyone can Imagine,” gives responses of four church leaders to the article. Of note is the statement of Bill Hybels,

Willow Creek started in the era when . . . the church growth people were saying, “Don’t dissipate any of your energies fighting race issues. Focus everything on evangelism.” It was the homogeneous unit principle of church growth. And I remember as a young pastor thinking, That’s true. I didn’t know whether I wanted to chance alienating people who were seekers, whose eternity was on the line, and who might only come to church one time. I wanted to take away as many obstacles as possible, other than the Cross, to help people focus on the gospel.

So now, 30 years later, as I read this book, I recognize that a rue biblically functioning community must include being multiethnic. My heart beats so fast for that vision today. I marvel at how naïve and pragmatic I was 30 years ago.

I remember the days that our daughter Rebecca was a student at Abilene Christian University. One semester her house mates were from Japan, South Africa, Panama (a Chinese girl that they called a “Panamese”), and Rebecca, an American citizen born and raised in Africa. Each Friday evening dozens of international students would crowd their home for FND (Friday Night Devo) and many people including our eventual son-in-law Ravi, who is from India, came to Christ in this community of students. It became evident to me how international our culture was becoming.

This weekend my wife Becky and I and Becky’s sister Jeanette are going to California to visit our daughter Rebecca and Ravi and our 7-month old grand-daughter Anjali. Oh, the joy of grandchildren! We are looking forward to holding little Anjali and being with Becca and Ravi. As a multicultural family, they desired to be a part of a multicultural community of faith and searched until they found one.

Becoming multicultural, however, is more than a cultural issue. It reflects the nature of God, who desires to reconcile the nations together through Christ. Paul writes that Christ is “our peace” who has brought Jew and Gentile together into one body (Eph. 2:14). A united church is a testimony to the principalities and powers of that their power has been broken (Eph. 3:10). I recall Berkhoff’s quote about this 3:10. He said that the unity of the body of Christ is a “proclamation, a sign, a token to the Powers that their unbroken dominion has come to an end” (1977, 51).

The theologies and strategies of Mission Alive thus focus on multicultural church planting for such a focus is of the will of God.