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The Church of the Nazarene and Urban Missions


“Church of the Nazarene and Largest Cities of the United States”

Research Center, Church of the Nazarene Int’l Headquarters. June 19, 2003

“The Nazarene Founders’ Vision for Urban Ministries: Excerpts from Historical Documents”

Compiled by Neil B. Wiseman
Chapter 4 of To the City with Love: A Source Book of Nazarene Urban Ministries, editor Neil Wiseman (Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press, 1976)
(A copy of the book is either in your department library or Nazarene Archives. Also, NTS library may have a copy or contact Neil Wiseman)


“Urban Cross-Cultural Church Planting Models"
Jerry L. Appleby
presented to Association of Nazarene Sociologists in Religion, 1986
http://www.missionstrategy.org/missionstrategy/urbanchurchplanting/tabid/205/Default.aspx

“Nazarenes in the City: The Strategy for Los Angeles”
Paul Benefiel
Presented to ANSR, 1986
http://www.nazarene.org/ansr/articles/Nazarenes%20in%20the%20City.pdf

“Bresee Institute for Urban Training”
Ron Benefiel
presented to ASNR, 1986
http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/Nazarenes%20in%20the%20City.pdf

“Boston: A Case Study”
Donald Brickley
presented to ASNR, 1986
http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/Boston_A%20Case%20Study.pdf

“Training Urban Leadership: An Incipient Program”
Charles Gailey
presented to Association of Nazarene Sociologists of Religion, March 22, 1986)
http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/Training%20Urban%20Leadership_An%20Incipient%20Program.pdf

“Nazarenes and the Urban Ethos: An Exploratory Essay”
Stan Ingersol
Presented to ANSR Conference, 1986
http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/Training%20Urban%20Leadership_An%20Incipient%20Program.pdf

“Ohio’s Major Cities: An Interim Report of An Ongoing Research Project"
Dale Jones
Presented to ANSR, 1986
http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/Ohio%27s%20Major%20Cities.pdf

“The Educated Urban Bi-Vocational Pastor: A Model of Adaptation to a Two-Third World Social Phenomenon-Rural to Urban Migration”

Charles K. Morrow
presented to ANSR, 1986
http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/The%20Educated%20Urban%20Bi-Vocational%20Haitian.pdf

“Impacting Chicago for Christ Through the Church of the Nazarene: The Chicago Thrust”
Joseph F. Nielson
presented to ANSR, 1986
http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/The%20Educated%20Urban%20Bi-Vocational%20Haitian.pdf

“It Was God’s Idea, First"
Joseph F. Nielson
presented to ANSR, 1986
http://media.premierstudios.com/nazarene/docs/It%20was%20Gods%20Idea%20First.pdf

“Plans: Thrust to the Cities”
International Headquarters Church of the Nazarene

“Best Named L.A. ’88 Compassionate Ministries Director”
News article in Herald of Holiness, April 1, 1987. p. 21

“Paris/Sao Paulo/Toronto Selected as Thrust Cities”
News article in Herald of Holiness, April 1, 1987, p. 21

“Financing Your Urban Vision”
Conference at Loyola Retreat House, Faulkner, Maryland. October 5-7, 1987
sponsored by Thrust to the Cities and Nazarene Compassionate Ministries

"Thrust to the Cities with Love"
Herald of Holiness January 1, 1988

"Church Growth Flourishes in the Big Apple"
Grow Summer 1991

“Church of the Nazarene Concludes ‘Thrust’ Effort in New York”
News article in Decision, April 1992 p. 21

"Celebrating Our Victories in the Cities"
Grow Spring 1993

"100 Years for 'Nazarenes West'"
Herald of Holiness
, October 1995

“A Church for All People”

by Ron Benefiel, Senior Pastor Los Angeles First Church of the Nazarene

“Antioch, Los Angeles, and Tomorrow”
by Roger E. Bowman, superintendent Los Angeles District Church of the Nazarene

“Sunday Morning at Los Angeles First Church”
by Glen Van Dyne

“The Faces of Los Angeles First Church”
by Glen Van Dyne

“Mother’s Day at Central City Church of the Nazarene”
by Glen Van Dyne


What the Church of the Nazarene Denominational Leaders Say About Urban Ministries

“When will the Church begin to understand that the great cities comprise a very needy mission field at home?”
-- Neil B. Wiseman, editor/educator
(p. 7 of To the City with Love: A Source Book of Nazarene Urban Ministries. Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press. 1976)

“If the church is ever to bring the gospel to the city, it will require massive investment of effort and money. If we win the city to Christ, it will happen only as we listen to the creative leadership of the Holy Spirit.”
-- Tom Nees, then pastor/director, Community of Hope, Washington, DC
(pp. 15,16 of To the City with Love: A Source book of Nazarene Urban Ministries. Neil B. Wiseman, editor Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press, 1976.)

“I was so concerned as a young man when I saw our churches were abandoning the cities. We will not save our cities until we get a missionary vision for our cities. We left the cities. Then, the new America moved to the cities. The mission field decided to come to us, and it came to stay.”
-- Paul G. Cunningham, General Superintendent, Church of the Nazarene Sermon, “There’s Room at God’s Table for Everyone.” September, 1994 Multicultural Ministries Conference, Nashville, TN

“The Church is called to minister where the people are, and that means the urban areas.”
Bill Sullivan, former director of Church Growth Division
(p. 24 in The Changing Face of the Church: From American to Global. Thomas G. Nees. Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press, 1997)

"With the urbanization of society, the Church will need to move from a concentration of town-and-country ministries to urban ministries.”

Tom Nees, Director USA/Canada Mission/Evangelism Department
(p. 30 in The Changing Face of the Church: From American to Global. Thomas G. Nees. Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press, 1997)

“As a result of immigration and inevitable global population changes, the cities of the United States and Canada have become as foreign as any so-called foreign country to the English-speaking white people who make up 90 percent of the members of the Church of the Nazarene in these countries. It is not an exaggeration to describe these urban areas as ‘mission fields.’”
Tom Nees, Director, USA/Canada Mission/Evangelism Department
(p. 83 in The Changing Face of the Church: From American to Global. Thomas G. Nees. Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press, 1997)

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