MissionalChurch_DDawson

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Plan for Missional Engagement

Igreja Vivendo em Cristo (Living in Christ Church)

By

David James Dawson

MC506: Leading a Missional Church

Spring 2014

Fuller Theological Seminary

Dr. Karen Parchman


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction.......................................................................................................................4

Section 1 - Who: Historical and sociological analysis of IVC............................................5

Section 2 - Where: Description of IVCs socio-cultural and religious context of

mission............................................................................................................................10

Cultures and religions present in context of Curitiba, Brazil................................10

Personal Evaluation of attitudes of IVC towards those of other cultures and other

faiths....................................................................................................................14

Section 3 - What, Locally: IVC as a missionary people of God in its local contexts.......15

Social mosaics that are natural bridges of outreach of IVCs surrounding

communities.........................................................................................................15

Congregation's missional orientation to its communities, state whether

introverted, extroverted, or a combination of both...............................................18

Suggestions about those positive and negative elements found in both the

congregation's and the communities that affect the ministrys missional outreach

.............................................................................................................................20

Geographic Community.............................................................................20

Program Community..................................................................................21

Relational Community...............................................................................21

Section 4 - What, Globally: IVCs partnerships: church-to-church connections,

organizational standards relating to partnerships, and ecumenical relationship............21

IVCc inter-church and inter-denominational, cooperative endeavors.................21

How IVC cooperates in its denominational mission partnership..........................24

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Section 5 - Where do we go from here and why should we go there?: IVCs Missional

Ecclesiology....................................................................................................................26

Theological: A Missional Ecclesiology for IVC.....................................................26

Praxeological: Congradulations and recommendations.......................................31

Conclusion......................................................................................................................34

References Cited............................................................................................................36

Appendix A......................................................................................................................39

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INTRODUCTION

This paper is a a Plan for Missional Engagement for a Igreja Vivendo em Cristo 1,

as it represents the people of God. IVC is located in Curitiba, population of 3.5 million2,

a bustling metropolis with the typical civic energy of a large Latin American city.

Located on the high costal plateau of Southern Brazil, Curitiba has a subtropical climate

where it rains half the year3. But what it lacks in agreeable climate the city makes up for

with culture and infrastructure, being considered the cultural and ecological capital of

the country. The goal of this paper is to help this faith community comprehend its

current role in the missio Dei. Practical ideas will be presented to encourage this

church to engage in Gods work in the world in a more holistic way.

IVC is currently in the middle of a challenging six month struggle since our former

rental building was put up for sale. Since then we have moved to provisional facilities at

a Youth With a Mission base. Holding our meetings at lent classrooms has taken its toll

on our already small membership, bringing us from an average of 70 to 40 participants

for Sunday Worship services. About half of these are from the YWAM base itself, so our

congregation has significantly dwindled.

At the same time we have seen a remnant committed to meeting together for

prayer and communion during the week and we are holding on to a prophetic word

given to our church at the beginning of this transition. The word stated that our church

was going to pass through a situation where we would feel like we were losing ground

1 i.e., Living in Christ Church, hereafter referred to as IVC2 G1 Brasil, August 29, 2013, "Populao brasileira ultrapassa marca de 200 milhes, diz IBGE",(Brazilian Population Passes 200 Million Mark), http://g1.globo.com/brasil/noticia/2013/08/populacao-brasileira-ultrapassa-marca-de-200-milhoes-diz-ibge.html(Accessed March 18, 2014)3 Cesca, Heliberton, "A cada dois dias, um choveu em Curitiba no ltimo ano" (Last year it rained inCuritiba one out of two days), Gazeta do Povo, December 25, 2011,http://www.gazetadopovo.com.br/vidaecidadania/conteudo.phtml?id=1205428(Accessed March13,2014).

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http://g1.globo.com/brasil/noticia/2013/08/populacao-brasileira-ultrapassa-marca-de-200-milhoes-diz-ibge.htmlhttp://g1.globo.com/brasil/noticia/2013/08/populacao-brasileira-ultrapassa-marca-de-200-milhoes-diz-ibge.htmlhttp://g1.globo.com/brasil/noticia/2013/08/populacao-brasileira-ultrapassa-marca-de-200-milhoes-diz-ibge.htmlhttp://www.gazetadopovo.com.br/vidaecidadania/conteudo.phtml?id=1205428http://www.gazetadopovo.com.br/vidaecidadania/conteudo.phtml?id=1205428http://g1.globo.com/brasil/noticia/2013/08/populacao-brasileira-ultrapassa-marca-de-200-milhoes-diz-ibge.htmlhttp://g1.globo.com/brasil/noticia/2013/08/populacao-brasileira-ultrapassa-marca-de-200-milhoes-diz-ibge.html


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and moving backwards. The positive aspect of this prophecy was that this situation

would be like the pulling back of a catapult. We are standing on the word that through

this difficult time God is launching us into a new season of vision, fruitfulness and

influence in our city and beyond.

Section 1 - Who: Historical and sociological analysis of IVC

IVC was planted by pastor John Hwang who was sent out in 2003 with a team

from a church in Corvallis, Oregon associated with the Calvary Chapel Association

based in the U.S. The church was launched through several weeks of street

evangelism and weekly Bible studies in a rented facility in downtown Curitiba. Thus,

the initial thrust behind the birth of this community was financially backed by one

North American sponsor church.

Initially my wife and I had moved to Curitiba to work with another churchplant.

But within the first months of the Calvary Chapel teams landing in Curitiba we joined

the work. During the first two years a community of mostly youth was formed around

the founding pastors strong teaching gift and frequent street evangelism

outreaches. In 2005 when an opportunity to pioneer a new Bible College in a

neighboring city arose, the founding pastor gave me the opportunity to take over as

senior pastor.

At the time I took over there was a church membership of around 30 with weekly

sunday service attendance averaging 50. My leadership style was extremely

different than the founding pastor. The founding pastor was an exceptional expositor

of Scripture who attracted lots of youth and university students. Often he would hold

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question-and-answer conferences regarding Scripture which would be open to

participants of all denominations. Within the two years he was in Curitiba our

founding pastor had already gained notoriety as one of the best Bible teachers in

town. I also have passion and gifting for teaching but use a much more interactive

and participatory style, i.e., pedagogical. Instead of crafting masterful sermons, my

abilities lie more in developing environments which are conducive to collaborative

learning.

In the subsequent years IVC has been characterized by a membership made up

mostly of young families. Economically our congregation is mostly middle-class with

a quarter coming from the Non-profit religious sector, mostly working with Youth With

a Mission. My wife and I have worked with YWAM ourselves for twenty years.

Consequently, there has always existed a strong level of participation and

partnership between IVC and this parachurch organization.

A few times our church has come close to creating a local community base. For

the most part, however, the members of IVC come from various parts of the greater

Curitiba area commuting to Sunday services. That said, from 2006 to 2013 IVC did

move towards a somewhat more cohesive local presence. About a third of our

congregation live in neighborhoods on the north side of of downtown.

Over the years most of IVCs membership have migrated from other evangelical

churches, predominantly Pentecostal. This is not to say that there havent been any

conversions. We have consistently attracted members from other churches (without

any form of soliciting) and a handful of new converts annually.

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I believe there are two primary points of attraction which draw the majority of

those who come from other denominations to IVC. The first motive is our churchs

informal membership policy. Many members of our congregation come from what

they consider to be a legalistic church culture. In these contexts service, attendance

and financial contribution were coerced from the pulpit. Tabs were kept on who was

fulfilling these obligations and those who was not.

I consider IVCs second point of attraction to be our less aggressive and public

approach to the exercise of Spiritual Gifts. The largest Christian demographic

besides the Roman Catholic Church in Brazil is the Pentecostal movement. The

majority of transfer growth to IVC has come from this movement. IVC identifies itself

as Pentecostal regarding the existence and exercise of spiritual gifts as present

realities in the Church. That said, in public worship services at IVC spiritual gifts are

exercised in a more personal and private than typical Brazilian Pentecostalism.

Those who need prayer for healing or other needs can receive prayer before or after

service times by individuals from IVCs leadership team.

On this note, I believe it is worth mentioning that regarding the exercise of

spiritual gifts IVC is substantially less conservative than the Calvary Chapel

Association to which it belongs. Within the Calvary Chapel churchplanting

movement there is a level of diversity regarding doctrine and practice. Some warmly

debated issues in the Calvary Chapel Association at present are the exercise of

spiritual gifts, female leadership and the emergent movement. I do not believe that

our church is at odds with Calvary Chapel doctrine and values, but I would

characterize our community as on the liberal side of this spectrum.

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Our church leadership consists of three teams. First, IVC has a board which

deals mostly with financial decisions. Second we have an eldership which

supervises all other ministry decisions and departments such as childrens ministry,

hospitality, cleaning, etc. Third is our discipleship group leaders team made up of

couples and individuals who organize and conduct small groups in homes or other

venues.

As senior pastor my role consists mainly of presiding over the board, leading the

eldership and discipleship teams, crisis counseling for the general congregation and

teaching Sunday services. The assistant pastor supervises the worship ministry and

together with his wife oversees financial and legal logistics. The church provides a

salary for both pastors - full time for senior and part time for assistant - and all other

ministry is performed by unpaid volunteers.

We have no missions department because we see Gods Mission to reveal

Himself and redeem all of Creation as the center of who we are as a community and

all we do. Although we develop practical projects to manifest Christs Kingdom, our

main focus is forming disciples - individually and collectively - who understand and

endeavor to fulfill their missional vocation.

Over the past three years the public worship ministry of IVC has made a

substantial move towards decentralization. Teaching and worship ministry have

been delegated on a consistent basis. At least once a month someone from the

congregation or an outside speaker does the Sunday service teaching.

It has always been my goal as senior pastor to develop an egalitarian church

culture which emphasizes the priesthood of all believers4. The core of ur

4 I Pet. 2:9

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programmatic vision is intimate, informal meetings during the week and a general

meeting on Sundays. However, it has been with difficulty that we have formed

leaders for small-group ministry and growth has been slow.

Currently we are looking for a new rental location. Our primary vision for this

facility is a new Arts and Language center5. Our purpose is multifaceted but there

are three primary factors. First, our church believes that it is called to Curitiba city

proper which is an expensive property cost area. By forming a for-profit business

our community will be able to establish a permanent physical presence in a central

neighborhood of the city.

Second, our church wants to effectively influence the greater metropolitan area

as well as the local neighborhood. So often a local church is seen as an economic

dead zone by neighborhood dwellers as well as city government. By creating a

business we contribute to the local economy as well as providing a service for the

city at large. The proceeds from the classes would be divided between the teachers

and the rest reinvested into the center itself. As far as the church use of the facility,

this would occur primarily on Sundays because our main emphasis for meeting as a

community during the week is at home fellowship groups. We don't envision

financial profit beyond the developing of the center itself and providing a part-time

income for the teachers.

Third, our community is made up of many members whose creative abilities are

underused in the ministry our church seeks to operate. By creating and Arts and

Language center we provide a context for more members of our community to

engage in addressing a social need of our city. Primarily, the social need we

5 See Appendix A-i

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desire to address is the sedentariness and isolation of children in metropolitan

Curitiba. We desire to provide a space where children and parents can interact with

other families while participating in educational and otherwise enriching activities.

We have begun to communicate with potential investors but have done so along

philanthropic lines. So far we have only solicited pro bono investments but we are

open to soliciting investment for profit in the future.

Section 2 - Where: Description of IVCs Socio-Cultural and Religious

Context of Mission

Cultures and Religions Present in Context of Curitiba, Brazil

The Portuguese were the first Europeans to immigrate to what is now Brazil

during the seventeenth century. The social institution which formed the Brazilian

people more than any other was cunhadismo, the indigenous custom of

incorporating foreigners through intermarriage6. Diverse european colonial powers

used this practice to recruit labor and establish their claim to territories where

specific tribes were located. Both the europeans colonizers and the indigenous

population also mixed with the African slaves7.

Curitibas demographic constitution is the result of the multiplication of those

three basic ethnic groups of which the general Brazilian population is composed:

Indigenous, European and African8. Southern Brazil, however is more characterized

by later waves of European immigrants. Within this context, Curitibas unique

6 Ribeiro, Darcy, 1995, O Povo Brasileiro: A Formao e o Sentido do Brasil. So Paulo: Companhia dasLetras, 817 Ibid., 968 Encontra Paran, Sobre Curitiba (About Curitiba), http://www.encontraparana.com.br/sobre-curitiba.htm(Accessed April 24, 2014).

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http://www.encontraparana.com.br/sobre-curitiba.htmhttp://www.encontraparana.com.br/sobre-curitiba.htm


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culture is formed by Polish, Ukrainian, Italian, German and Japanese immigrant

colonies. The fact that these immigrant communities tended to maintain much of

their ancestral cultures can be observed in Curitiba today.

The population of Curitiba consists of 77.4% white, 18.2 % brown, 2.9 % black

and 1.4% yellow and indigenous9. The last phrase uses the specific terms I found in

an official source for the demographics of Curitiba. Its interesting to note the

ambiguity of the terms and politically incorrect connotation in my native North

American culture. On the street the observable fact is that Curitibas population

consists primarily of European descendants10

.

On to a discussion of Curitibas religious demographics. Similar to all Brazilian

cities Curitiba has a large percentage of Roman Catholics. Three of the four

municipal holidays come from the Catholic liturgical calendar: Good Friday, Corpus

Christi and Our Lady of Light, patron saint of Curitiba 11. Until Brazil was declared a

republic in 1889 the official religion of the country was Roman Catholicism. The

practice of other religions was only permitted in a private domestic setting. Religious

freedom only came to the country in 1890. According to the most recent national

census, Roman Catholics consist of 73% of the population with

Protestants, termed Evanglicos, at 15.41%12. 67.6% of Brazilian Evangelicals are

Pentecostal. Research done by Catholic leadership in Curitiba shows a steady

9 IBGE, Paran - Curitiba. 2014. Cidades@ (@Cities), http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/xtras/perfil.php?codmun=410690(Accessed June 6, 2014)10 Ibid.11 Wikipdia: A Enciclopdia Livre. 2010. Memorial a Nossa Senhora da Luz dos Pinhais (Our Lady ofLight So Jose dos Pinhais Memorial),http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_a_Nossa_Senhora_da_Luz_dos_Pinhais(Accessed June 4, 2014).12 Revista Catlica Aratos. 2000. Igreja Catlica Romana em Curitiba (PR): estruturas daterritorialidade sob o pluralismo religioso (Roman Catholic Church in Curitiba, PR: territorial structuresunder religious pluralism), http://br.monografias.com/trabalhos917/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade2.shtml, (Accessed June 4, 2014).

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http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/xtras/perfil.php?codmun=410690http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/xtras/perfil.php?codmun=410690http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_a_Nossa_Senhora_da_Luz_dos_Pinhaishttp://br.monografias.com/trabalhos917/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade2.shtmlhttp://br.monografias.com/trabalhos917/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade2.shtmlhttp://cidades.ibge.gov.br/xtras/perfil.php?codmun=410690http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/xtras/perfil.php?codmun=410690http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_a_Nossa_Senhora_da_Luz_dos_Pinhaishttp://br.monografias.com/trabalhos917/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade2.shtmlhttp://br.monografias.com/trabalhos917/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade/igreja-curitiba-territorialidade2.shtml


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decline as a result of religious pluralism and the inability to break out of a caricature

of ceremonial traditionalism. The largest religious group in Curitiba after the Roman

Catholic Church are the Evangelical Christians 13.

Of particular interest regarding the religious demographics of Curitiba is the

history of Lutheranism14, which began in Southern Brazil in 182415. During the

period when Roman Catholicism was the only religion permitted in Brazil, marriages

performed by Protestant clergy were not recognized by the state. Children born to

marital unions non sanctioned by the Catholic Church were considered illegitimate.

The status of Protestant families only changed in 1863 when non Catholic clergy

were given this right. These conditioned contributed to the Lutheran church

becoming a self-sustaining community. In addition to being spiritual leaders,

Lutheran pastors were counsellors on legal matters, teachers of liberal arts and

doctors. For the next two centuries the Lutheran church largely considered itself an

ethnic church catering to german immigrants and their descendants. This

characterizes the identity of the Lutheran Church in Southern Brazil to this day16.

Other immigrants also formed religious communities in Curitiba which remain

highly influential to their ethnic groups. Similar to the Lutheran example, these

religious organizations cater to specific ethnic demographics in the city. The largest

of these ethnically oriented religious communities in Curitiba are the Ukrainian

Orthodox and Greek Orthodox of Antioch Churches.

13 Ibid.14 For a synopsis on the history of Christianity in Brazil see Appendix A-ii15 Lenz Csar, Elben M. 2000. Histria da evangelizao do Brasil; dos jesutas aos neopentecostais(History of the Evangelization of Brazil; from the jesuits to neopentecostals). Viosa : Ultimato, 2000.16 Ibid.

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The only estimate I could come up with for the muslim population in Curitiba is

1,50017, which however seems much too low. These are mostly Lebanese, followed

by Palestinians and Syrians. The largest Mosque is a mile from my home which I

pass every day as I take my children to school. The Muslim Society of Paran is

also located at this Mosque18. A study in 2010 estimated that around 1000 jewish

families live in the Brazilian state of Paran, the majority in the capital Curitiba19.

Most of the jewish community in Curitiba practice a conservative, orthodox form of

Judaism20.

I have mentioned some of the more prominent ethnic religious communities, the

other religious communities present in the city are less ethnically centered. These

would include Latin American Spiritism. This form of Spiritism sharing many

fundamental concepts with nineteenth century North American Spiritualism21. As

books on mediumship became available in the Caribbean and Latin America they

struck a chord with existing traditions of ancestor worship and trance possession in

pre-existing Native South American and African religious systems22. The last

religious communities with significant representation worth mentioning are Gnostic

and Buddhist.

17 Instituto Brasileiro de Estudos Islmicos, 2007. Sociedade Muulmana do Paran faz 50 anos(Muslim Society of Paran turns 50) http://www.ibeipr.com.br/noticias.php?id_noticia=138(AccessedJune 4, 2014).18 Ibid.19 Federao Israelita do Paran, 2010. Os judeus no Paran(The Jews of Paran)http://www.feipr.org.br/judeuspr.aspx (Accessed June, 4 2014).20 For more information on Jewish immigration to Curitiba, see Appendix A-iii21 Wikipedia. 2014. Espiritismo(Spiritism) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espiritismo(Accessed June 4,2014).22 Ibid.

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http://www.ibeipr.com.br/noticias.php?id_noticia=138http://www.ibeipr.com.br/noticias.php?id_noticia=138http://www.feipr.org.br/judeuspr.aspxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espiritismohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espiritismohttp://www.ibeipr.com.br/noticias.php?id_noticia=138http://www.feipr.org.br/judeuspr.aspxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espiritismo


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Personal Evaluation of attitudes of IVC towards those of other cultures and

other faiths

Ethnic background has not been an influential factor in how the members of our

congregation form their own circles of relationship. Our church has never

consciously attempted to reach out to any specific ethnic or religious community in

the city of Curitiba. Our attitude has resembled that of Brazilian culture in general -

to acknowledge and celebrate cultural differences on a superficial level. In order to

maintain peace between different cultural groups Brazilians tend to maintain

caricatures instead of addressing deeper, potentially problematic issues23

.

Our faith community is surrounded, particularly because of our central location in

the city, by the largest concentration of ethnic diversity in our metropolis. So often

our attitude as a community has been one of passivity towards other religious

communities. This has been true whether our neighboring religious communities are

of a Christian tradition or other. For our congregation, the idea of reaching out in

dialogue to Buddhist, Muslim or Spiritist communities would be much more inviting

than reaching out to other Christian traditions. Perhaps our passive attitude towards

other significantly different Christian traditions in our city is that we judge them all to

be nominal believers. Perhaps our community hasnt sought dialogue with these

other Christian groups because we assume that they arent interested in spiritual

things at all. This has often been the rhetoric of Protestantism in Latin America as I

have experienced it. I should qualify here to say that I refer specifically to Christian

traditions such as Roman Catholicism and Greek Orthodox. Regarding Latin

American Spiritism, which considers itself to be a stream within Christianity,

23 For elaboration on Brazilian race relations see Appendix A-iv

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Protestants in Brazil would not categorize them by a nominal stereotype. At least we

admire Spiritists for their belief in and search for supernatural expressions from the

spirit world.

Section 3 - What, Locally: IVC as a missionary people of God in its

local contexts

Social mosaics that are natural bridges of outreach of IVCs surrounding

communities

Social mosaics are the geographic, programatic and relational communities

which surround our ministries. A church leader determines where these mosaics exist

by asking, Where are our people monday through friday? 24. As disciples of Christ,

church members should be moving out into their individual worlds. The sacred versus

secular divide created by the Enlightenment has eroded the understanding that the

world belongs to God. Natural bridges of God are where people play, work, connect,

etc25.

One natural relationship bridge which exists between the members of our

congregation and the outside community is family. Our congregation consists primarily

of young families who relate frequently to other parents whose children attend the same

schools. Several families from our church have children at the same school.

Another natural relational bridge our community experiences in connection with

family is that of weekend gatherings with relatives where non-believers are often

present. A frequent sociological analysis of Brazilians is that they are divided into a

24 Parchmen, Karen, 2014, MC506 Course Shell, Lecture 6 - Furthering Your Churchs Mission Locally,p. 125 Ibid.

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passive majority and an active minority 26. Thus Brazilians generally characterize their

own culture as non-confrontational. This makes discussing matters of faith with family

members often proves a sensitive matter. A natural bridge into the community would be

offering workshops on conflict resolution.

Business is another aspect of life in Brazil which provides another context of

interrelating with non-believers. Brazil has the third largest number of entrepreneurs in

the world representing 27% of the population27. A large percentage of our church

community is self-employed whose informal work context is conducive to building

relationships. Individuals in our church who work in creative fields such as design,

photography and music tend to use informal networking. Communities of Practice28

could be a useful framework to use for relationship building between entrepreneurs in a

particular field.

In larger corporate work environments specific opportunities for relational

development exist in the form of employee retreats, training events and lunch / coffee

beaks. Several members of IVC also participate in the network of leadership and team

development consultants associated with the Leadership Development Seminar29.

Offering these consulting services to companies where members of our congregation

are employed is a potential natural bridge of relationship.

26 Folha Online. Santos, Milton. 1999. Nao Ativa, Nao Passiva(Active Nation, Passive Nation)http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/fol/brasil500/dc_3_2.htm(Accessed June 5 2014)27 Exame.com. 2012. Brasil o terceiro maior pas em nmero de empreendedores (Brazil has thirdlargest number of entrepreneurs worldwide) http://exame.abril.com.br/pme/noticias/brasil-e-o-terceiro-maior-pais-em-numero-de-empreendedores(Accessed June 4, 2014)28 COPs are Groups of people who share a concern, a set of problems, or a passion about a topic, andwho deepen their knowledge and expertise in this area by interacting on an ongoing basis. Wenger,Etienne; McDermott, Richard A.; Snyder, William. 2002. Cultivating Communities of Practice: A Guide toManaging Knowledge. Boston: Perseus Books Group. Kindle Edition. (p. 4)29 See page 29 of this paper

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http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/fol/brasil500/dc_3_2.htmhttp://exame.abril.com.br/pme/noticias/brasil-e-o-terceiro-maior-pais-em-numero-de-empreendedoreshttp://exame.abril.com.br/pme/noticias/brasil-e-o-terceiro-maior-pais-em-numero-de-empreendedoreshttp://exame.abril.com.br/pme/noticias/brasil-e-o-terceiro-maior-pais-em-numero-de-empreendedoreshttp://www1.folha.uol.com.br/fol/brasil500/dc_3_2.htmhttp://exame.abril.com.br/pme/noticias/brasil-e-o-terceiro-maior-pais-em-numero-de-empreendedoreshttp://exame.abril.com.br/pme/noticias/brasil-e-o-terceiro-maior-pais-em-numero-de-empreendedores


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Leisure contexts also provide opportunities to build relationships. In terms of

physical activities, the priority of men and women in our congregation is health.

Therefore, athletic pursuits such as running, cycling and martial arts are most popular in

our church membership. Stronger still among the leisure activities of the men in our

church are artistic areas of art, particularly music, visual and culinary arts. The women

of our church use social media to connect for dialogue on home decoration, cooking,

child raising, health and fashion.

Another means of connection between the women in our church and the outside

community is in regards to social needs such as family counseling. The need for

marriage and child raising counseling is an issue which links the women of our church

to women of different faiths in the city. This pursuit should be as strong among the men

of our church because of our biblical call to family leadership. These connections are

especially important for Brazilian men because of the growing change of gender roles in

families here30. Brazilian men are feeling the pressure to participate more actively in

raising children and helping with domestic administration31.

Lastly I will mention college, university and other informal educational contexts

such as workshops and seminars attended by the members of our church. A third of our

church members are in full-time college and two-thirds are involved in some form of

adult education.

30 Sade Plena, Lled, Maria Jlia, 2013. Homem com h minsculo: historiadora expe o declnio domacho contemporneo (Man With a Little H: Author Exposes the Decline of the Contemporary MachoMan),http://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtml(Accessed June 5, 2014)31 Ibid.

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http://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtml


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Congregation's missional orientation to its communities, state whether

introverted, extroverted, or a combination of both

IVC leans more towards a Culture Affirming community orientation than a

Counter Culture orientation32. Our teaching ministry focuses on bringing application to

the home and marketplace lives of the congregation. Our community does not withdraw

mentally from society at large. Our church is a refuge from the world in the sense that

we nurture and train our members for further missional engagement. However, there is

a lack of distinction between the lifestyle of our congregation and the non-believing

world33

. We engage in the culture which surrounds us primarily in terms of

consumerism not as agents of influence. Our church needs to find the balance

between Counter Culture and Culture Affirming which is ideal for missional activity to

flourish34.

Here I will evaluate IVC in n light of the Johnsons 5 Fold Taxonomy of

Congregational Self-Identity35. Like the Survivor Church, IVC has shares the view of

Brazilians in general Brazilian that the situation of their nation is overwhelming. As a a

teaching pastor I must constantly work against a general tendency in the population

towards fatalism regarding justice and inequality. At IVC we seldom mobilize

collectively to translate crises in the society into causes like the Crusader Church. We

are engaged emotionally and mentally in the social issues of Brazil and Curitiba, but our

approach resembles more that of the Servant Church - helping individuals quietly and

32 Counter Cultural - separatist/exclusivist (no mission). Culture Affirming - Live no differently thanbroader culture (no mission) (Parchman, Karen E. 2014. MC506 Leading a Missional Church, CourseShell, Lecture 6 - Furthering Your Church's Mission Locally, Fuller Theological Seminary, p. 2)33 Only 11% of non-Christians researched in the U.S. said they perceived Christians lifestyles as differentfrom the general population (Parchman, Karen E. 2014. MC506 Leading a Missional Church, CourseShell, Lecture 6 - Furthering Your Church's Mission Locally, Fuller Theological Seminary)34 Ibid.35 See Appendix A-v

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Most of the existing natural relational bridges between members of IVC and the

outside community are not geographically centered. However, since we are in the

process of moving to a new facility this is an opportunity for our church to prayerfully

and observantly develop new plans to be a friend to the local neighborhood.

Program Community:

The three main programmatic focal points of our church are the weekly public

worship services, home fellowships in homes and the Arts and Language Center. We

are looking for a central location to attract participants in the Arts and Language center

from around the metropolitan area40.

Relational Community:

IVC has sought to provide a hospitable context where people from the local

vicinity can come and experience the Kingdom of God41. We have not been as effective

at getting into our neighbors boats as Jesus did with Peter. It is important to make the

distinction between the two. Most of our congregations relational circles are not

geographically centered. Our close friends dont live near us, and if they do it is by

chance rather than resulting from such proximity. Although this makes centralizing our

church locally, building on these relational circles can result in a web of local impact

across the city.

40 For more information on IVCs home fellowship network, see Appendix A-vi41 Parchman, Karen E. 2014. MC506 Leading a Missional Church, Course Shell, Lecture 5: MissionalEcclesiology and Introduction to Interpretive Leadership, A Neighborhood Parable, Fuller Theological Seminary

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Section 4 - What, Globally: IVCs partnerships: church-to-church

connections, organizational standards relating to partnerships, and

ecumenical relationship

IVCc inter-church and inter-denominational, cooperative endeavors

One of the most unique characteristics of IVC is its relationship with Youth With a

Mission. YWAM is committed to train and send missionaries, "Into each sphere of

society to fulfill the Great Commission by reflecting Gods character and principles in

their everyday work"42. Therefore our relationship with YWAM provides opportunities for

holistic engagement including physical, social and spiritual attempts. Our church has no

official connection to YWAM, only partnerships where the church provides physical

space and other resources for particular projects. The YWAM missionaries who are

members of our congregation work with other denominations and organizations in the

city - Christian and non.

The primary reason for IVCs partnership with YWAM is the fact the senior pastor

is an active member of YWAM. There is a strategic benefit for a pastor to also be part

of a parachurch organization. Ministries that are locally and relationally intensive tend

to have an element of exclusivity. Focusing intensely on a local sphere limits broader

engagement. Within this category I would include local churches and other local

community based type ministries such as an orphanage, school, or mercy ministry

operation. Parachurch organizations are less locally and relationally intensive.

Relational and local exclusivity are key strengths of a local church. A local church

appeals to people by being a covenant community with certain relational and

42 UofN Kona, 2014, About Spheres of Society,http://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2/(Accessed June 5, 2014)

21
http://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2/http://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2/http://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2/http://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2/http://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2/


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geographical boundaries. Ralph Winters research is a key resource on the potential for

synergy between local church and parachurch organizations43.

My primary involvement in YWAM is via an annual YWAM school called Ministry

Development Seminar (MDS) which I founded and direct. This seminar runs six weeks

tuesday to friday nights. Our team is also involved in ministry consultation and one to

four day seminars, mostly around the metropolitan area of Curitiba but increasingly in

other parts of the country as well. Our training programs represent holistic engagement

because we prepare believers to exercise their faith through spiritual, physical and

social efforts. Half of the MDS team are also members of the IVC congregation. Our

programs are held at parachurch organizations, local churches and businesses.

A group of women from our congregation and other churches pioneered a

womens prayer meeting for the private Lutheran school. Several families from IVC

have their children at this school. Through this meeting healthy interdenominational

relationships are being developed. This prayer meeting represents a social

engagement as these women pray for the continued excellence of the school which

serves both their children and the larger community.

Our worship band is involved in events at other churches periodically through the

leadership of our talented worship pastor. Pastor Tlio, who is also assistant pastor, is

a well-known worship leader and musician in our city. Through him our worship ministry

is able to play at other churches and IVC regularly receives musicians from other

churches as well, generally from the Baptist denomination.

43 Winter, Ralph D. 1973, The Two Structures of Gods Redemptive Mission.http://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdf.(Accessed June 5, 2014). Pasadena: Presbyterian Center for Mission Studies

22
http://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdfhttp://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdfhttp://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdfhttp://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdfhttp://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdf


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two Calvary Chapels in Curitiba are no longer present in either churches. For this

reason Im confident that if the other pastor and myself can build relational unity we can

build joint ventures.

As far as international connection between IVC and Kingdom endeavors

overseas, there is also much room to grow here as well. The only form of annual

missions trip where IVC engages with other denominations and ministries overseas

happens through those missionary couples in the church such as my wife and I who do

annual support-raising trips. During these trips my wife and I participate in conferences

and minister at churches and missions bases of diverse denominational/organizational

backgrounds. It has occurred to me that it would be great to involve our church

somehow in these types of activities. For example every year in Los Angeles my wife

and I organize an event called Caf Brazil to network and promote ministry in Brazil.

People from diverse denominations and organizations participate. The problem is that

involving the church in our our U.S. trips could undermine the purpose of spending

quality time with our North American partners.

IVC has been involved in sending individuals or teams on short-term missions

trips. Generally an individual member of the congregation gets a vision for such a

project and rallies support. Our church tends to employ a somewhat hands-off

philosophy regarding interdenominational/interorganizational mission partnerships. The

leadership regularly encourages an apostolic spirit from the pulpit. Then those who

respond with vision are given access to church resources and opportunities to solicit

help from the congregation. One downside of this approach is that many of those who

respond with vision are not able to rally the congregation around them to form teams

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and raise support. In these situations our leadership usually doesnt intervene based on

a kind of sink-or-swim leadership development paradigm. The idea is that leadership is

the whole ball game. If a project doesnt get off the ground its because the primary

leader lacks ability, experience or calling. We often let potential project pioneers know

at the beginning to expect this type of approach. However, this approach frequently

leaves the ministerial entrepreneurs disappointed with a lack of support from both the

leadership and the congregation.

IVC is definitely not insular towards receiving influence from other denominations

and organizations. Besides our own weekly Bible studies most of our communities

Christian input comes from sources outside our denomination (books, music, podcasts,

etc). In part this is because as senior pastor my denominational/organizational

background is diverse. As the son of an itinerant missions leader, I experienced a wide

range of ministry contexts and traditions. I come from a mosaic background of several

denominations and organizations myself. From the pulpit and in personal conversation

the majority of the theology I reference comes from outside our denomination. I believe

this rubs off on our congregation as a whole.

Section 5 - Where do we go from here and why should we go there?

Theological: A Missional Ecclesiology for IVC

In order to define what the Church is - both Universal and individual - what is

happening in the life of Christian churches must be observed and explained in light of

Scripture44. We come to a definition of church by identifying the predominant concept of

44 Veli-Matti Karkkainen. An Introduction to Ecclesiology: Ecumenical, Historical & Global Perspectives(Kindle Locations 44-46). Kindle Edition.

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Church throughout history45. At the same time our definition must be flexible enough to

take into account the dynamic contextualization that has occurred throughout church

history. Of particular importance at present is the emergence of the Church of the

Global South. A Colossal ecumenical failure occurred when a formerly world

Christianity became Westernized46. Whereas Western Imperialism thwarted the

culturally contextualized nature of the gospel, Christianitys current trend towards Non-

Western growth affords an opportunity to remedy this error47. The fact that no one

human language is viewed as more spiritually valuable as a means of communication

demonstrates that the Christian faith has no cultural favorites48

. Through translation the

gospel message is inevitably reconstructed and the rejection of cultural uniformity is

implicit49. Miroslav Wolf gives the most adequate simple definition of church: the

presence of Christ amidst the gathered community50.

The church is a creation of God which materializes in the lives of Christs

disciples as they gather in local communities to discern the contextualization of the

gospel in their time and place51. By faith, local churches are communities of Gods

missionary people52. It is as local churches are edified towards participation in Gods

mission in the world that they turn into who they already are by faith 53. In other words,

participating in the missio Dei is the process by which a local church discovers and

45 Van Engen, Charles E. 1991. God's Missionary People: Rethinking the Purpose of the Local Church.Grand Rapids MI: Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition, 1025.46 Greenman, Jeffrey P., Green, Gene L., Global Theology in Evangelical Perspective: Exploring the

Contextual Nature of Theology and Mission, Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2012. Kindle Edition, 25347 Ibid., 27648 Ibid., 30649 Ibid., 38950 Veli-Matti Karkkainen. An Introduction to Ecclesiology: Ecumenical, Historical & Global Perspectives(Kindle Locations 44-46). Kindle Edition, 148551 Van Engen, Charles E. 1991. God's Missionary People: Rethinking the Purpose of the Local Church.Grand Rapids MI: Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition, 179.52 Ibid.53 Ibid.

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fulfills its destiny. This destiny is not only an action but an identity, not only a matter of

doing but of being. Participating in the missio Dei means becomes a community of love

which draws all men to reconciliation with God54. The local churchs relationship to the

Kingdom of God is being a representation of Christs rule over their faith community in a

particular area55as well as His rule over the entire cosmos56. This mission of the local

church in the world is patterned after that of Christ Himself 57.

Each member of a local church must be encouraged to discover and fulfill their

God-given calling. All disciples of Christ have a general calling as members of the

priesthood of all believers58

as well as individual callings to fulfill divinely preordained

works59. These individuals see themselves as sent by God to specific contexts in time,

location and sphere of influence60. Any form of crossing the boundary between the

Kingdom of God and the system of this fallen world is an act of engagement in mission.

When we speak of mission, we refer to the transcendent mission of God to reveal

Himself to all mankind, reconcile the willing to Himself, redeem all of Creation and

demonstrate the righteousness and beauty of His Kingdom.

A missional church understands the Kingdom of God as both a present and

future reality. As we submit to Christ's Kingship on earth we are a contrast society61

which glorifies His righteous ways and attracts men and women to His rule and

adoption. We are focused both within and without. Our inward focus is inspired by the

54 Ibid., 1448-145855 Ibid., 155356 Ibid., 172257 Ibid., 183558 I Pet. 259 Eph. 2.1060 Frost, Michael, 2011,The Road to Missional: Journey to the Center of the Church, Grand Rapids:Baker Books, Kindle Edition, 271-27261 Lohfink, Gerhard. 1972. Jesus and Community: The Social Dimension of Christian Faith. Philadelphia:Fortress Press, Kindle Edition, 1532.

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redemptive purpose for the natural world. God's Reign is expressed in the extent of His

people's witness in every sphere of society on earth. The witness of God's people (the

Church) is accomplished through His people, but is not contained by His people

individually or collectively. The Kingdom of God must break out into every realm of

society among every people group until the end of time.

Taken from Acts 2:42, the primary task of IVC is to teach the revelation of God's

truth in Holy Scripture, to pray for specific direction and empowering of the Holy Spirit,

to celebrate the free gift of salvation through Christ's sacrifice and to fellowship as a

contrast society in this fallen world66

. A transcending emphasis in all we do is the

exhortation of all the saints to discern and fulfill their unique call to participate in the

Missio Dei until their pilgrimage on this earth ends.

Praxeological: Congradulations and recommendations

The leadership of IVC must hold the following two tensions together: Our

ministry is to equip the people of God to engage in the mission of God outside the

church, but we are to do it by using the time that we have with those people when they

are at church or engaged in churchly activities."67.

The following is a set of next steps towards bringing IVC into greater participation

in the missio Dei. Our congregation needs to develop new abilities in order to engage

its context. I have applied Roxburghs 4 leadership steps towards becoming missional

map-makers.

66 Acts 2.4267 D. Scott Cormode "The Missional Church and Leadership Formation" (Craig Van Gelder, ed.) GrandRapids: Eerdmans 2009. Page 102

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First we must assess how society has changed around us rendering modern

church paradigms obsolete68. We must realize that our church has mostly been

operating on an attractional model and come to grips with the pros and cons of this

approach69. Our church must be taught that, particularly in our generation, local

connections are more meaningful than being card carrying members of global

institutions such as denominations or missions organizations 70. We must focus locally

with a vision to generate global impact in the process. Instead of concentrating on

bringing people into our church programs we must reengaging as a church in our local

contexts on the basis of what God is already doing there71

.

At the same time, we must realize that that attractional church models do exert

significant influence on the unbelieving community. Many church small group programs

are overly introverted. However, there is generally an intrinsic organic potential in small

group meetings for the inclusion of non-believers. The experience of Christian

community is generally contagious and expansive even if the participate are completely

uninitiated in missional philosophy.

Our congregation must focus on redeveloping its core identity72. We must realize

that our church is not a bounded set where individual members share the same social

circles73. As a congregation we must reject the illusion of unity based on equal reasons

for participation. Through constant dialogue we must discern the unique motives which

draw each member of our church community. Our unity must be based around

68 Roxburgh, Alan. 2009. Missional Map-Making: Skills for Leading in Times of Transition. Jossey-Bass.Kindle Edition, 249869 Ibid., 249870 Ibid., 252671 Ibid., 257372 Ibid., 260573 Ibid., 2620

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embracing this diversity. In order for missional engagement to be possible, the

leadership of IVC must develop trust, initiate conversation74and introduce biblical

narratives in order to inspire new experiments in promoting the Kingdom of God in our

local context75.

Third, in order to be a missional community IVC must organize itself socially

around not only values but practices76. In order for this to happen our church would

have to be convinced of the power of simple habits held collectively by a community to

transform the society around them77. The two primary practices should be identified as

part of IVCs particular gifting and calling - hospitality78

and learning79

. We must

celebrate both our organic, informal ability to express hospitality and our passion for

education.

Fourth, our church leadership must realize that one way communication from the

stage in our church meetings is not where missional engagement happens 80. Our

leadership needs to focus on identifying the conversations happening in our members

lives outside our church programs. If we can discern which conversations might lead to

missional engagement and encourage our members to pursue them, our church can

more effectively influence the neighborhood81.

On overview of each section leads me to finalize with the following practical steps

towards greater missional engagement by Igreja Vivendo em Cristo. Prayerfully, our

leadership needs to form a plan for how the Arts and Language Center will function

74 Ibid., 269675 Ibid., 272776 Ibid., 277277 Ibid., 281278 Ibid., 296879 Ibid., 307280 Ibid., 320581 Ibid., 3237

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financially. The foundation we set in the next six months will affect the projects long-

term future.

This paper merely mentions the importance of our churchs participation in the

modern Christian ecumenical movement82, but a comprehensive plan must be

implemented towards this goal. First our leadership and general congregation must be

discipled from the pulpit at our general meetings regarding our call to contribute to the

witness of the Universal Church of Christ. This instruction must include guidelines

regarding nonnegotiable doctrines versus nonessentials and love as the primordial rule.

Our leadership should seek Gods direction regarding which meetings of Christian

communities and Christian leaders in our city IVC should be participating in.

The individual members of our congregation must be taught to identify the social

mosaics which exist in their lives. We must articulate that IVCs primary strategy for

local impact is through its individual members not through the presence of programs at

a central location. Our local impact will happen primarily through the spheres of

relationship developed by the individuals of our congregation.

As senior pastor I believe that the missional bridge IVC should focus on in the

next year should be the Arts and Language Center. We should identify similar

organizations and projects in the city independent of religious affiliation. This will be key

to entering our city versus retreating into the attractional and insular paradigms which

have characterized our church in the past.

CONCLUSION

82 Page 30, paragraph 1

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The process of completing this Plan for Missional Engagement for a Igreja

Vivendo em Cristo has been challenging and rewarding. Leading a Missional Church

has been a class full of helpful interaction with other spiritual leaders who desire to

further the cause of Christ in its entirety. Through the perspectives of my colleagues I

have seen the inconsistencies and ambiguities regarding the vision I am leading my

brothers in Christ toward.

The missio Dei is so vast and comprehensive that a plan for one Christian

communitys participation in it cannot be contained in a paper. I pray that the lessons

regarding Christian community learned in this paper serve me as I continue my work in

Curitiba, Brazil at Igreja Vivendo em Cristo.

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Van Engen, Charles E. 1991. God's Missionary People: Rethinking the Purpose of theLocal Church. Grand Rapids MI: Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

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http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/http://livepage.apple.com/http://livepage.apple.com/http://br.monografias.com/http://br.monografias.com/http://br.monografias.com/http://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2http://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/http://cidades.ibge.gov.br/http://livepage.apple.com/http://livepage.apple.com/http://br.monografias.com/http://br.monografias.com/http://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://sites.uai.com.br/app/noticia/saudeplena/noticias/2013/12/11/noticia_saudeplena,146734/homem-com-h-minusculo-historiadora-poe-a-nu-o-declinio-do-macho-conte.shtmlhttp://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2http://www.uofnkona.edu/about/about-the-spheres-of-society-2


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Veli-Matti Karkkainen. 2002. An Introduction to Ecclesiology: Ecumenical, Historical &Global Perspectives(Kindle Locations 44-46). Kindle Edition.

Wikipdia: A Enciclopdia Livre. 2010. Memorial a Nossa Senhora da Luz dos Pinhais

(Our Lady of Light So Jose dos Pinhais Memorial), http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Memorial_a_Nossa_Senhora_da_Luz_dos_Pinhais (Accessed June 4, 2014).

Wikipedia. 2014. Espiritismo(Spiritism) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espiritismo (Accessed June 4, 2014).

Winter, Ralph D. 1973, The Two Structures of Gods Redemptive Mission.http://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-

Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdf. (Accessed June 5, 2014).Pasadena: Presbyterian Center for Mission Studies

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http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_a_Nossa_Senhora_da_Luz_dos_Pinhaishttp://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_a_Nossa_Senhora_da_Luz_dos_Pinhaishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espiritismohttp://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdfhttp://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdfhttp://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdfhttp://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_a_Nossa_Senhora_da_Luz_dos_Pinhaishttp://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_a_Nossa_Senhora_da_Luz_dos_Pinhaishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espiritismohttp://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdfhttp://www.pathwaysinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/The-Two-Structures-of-Gods-Redemptive-Mission.pdf


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World Wars the wives of prominent Jewish pioneer immigrants in Curitiba organized

themselves to offer help to Jewish refugees which began to arrive in Curitiba,

(1917). As this organization grew the need and opportunity to start a Synagogue

presented itself and it began in 1920, also located till present a mile from my home .

iv. Our church has largely embodied the common Brazilian ethos of cultural color

blindness. Brazilians deal with racial and religious tensions in a very different way

than North Americans. Brazilians tend to use a lot of ethnic slurs openly which

would be offensive and rude in my native United States. Although unconsciously,

Brazilians seem to use this behavior to mask real prejudices and divisions in their

population. Whereas North American's often think and feel similar things, the status

quo is generally to maintain external politeness and respect. Brazilians deal with

this in a totally different way. They openly tease each other for biological differences

as well as cultural traditions. This is done in a non-serious way, but it masks serious

issues. An ethical value of color blindness is in error because it does not express

the character of Father God. Scripture teaches us that God desires that not only

individuals but nations (Mat. 28:19) be discipled. This indicates that people groups

will be discipled while retaining their collective biological and historical identity.

Trying to transcend cultural or ethnic differences isn't the overarching biblical value,

rather recognizing and embracing diversity. I believe that our both our local church

as well as Brazil as a nation need to stop dealing with ethnic diversity on a

superficial level. The congregation of IVC needs to take a closer look at how ethnic

and religious diversity affects our communities and seek the Lord on how He wants

us to address them.

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v. Dudley, Carl S., & Johnson, Sally A. 1993, Energizing the Congregation: Images

That Shape Your Church's Ministry. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press (104ff).

i. The Survivor Chruch tells of the crisis (mostly internal) it has weathered. It is

reactive to the crisis of an overwhelming world.

ii. The Crusader Church never tires of seeking out issues and championing causes.

It is proactive to translate crises into causes.

iii. The Pillar Chruch is anchored in its community and feels a distinct responsibility

for it. It takes civic responsibility that embraces the community.

iv. The Pilgrim Church tells of the movements of cultural groups in its history, in

counterpoint to the pillar's sense of being rooted in a place. It cares for extended

family or cultural groups.

v. The Servant Chruch goes about the work of helping people in need with a quiet

faithfulness. It provides support for individuals who need help"

vi. IVC plans to continue to encourage the growth and multiplication of home

fellowships which meet during the week. This is our primary current and future

strategy to mobilize the members of our congregation to reach out to their local

communities. In itself this is not a particularly creative strategy. Where we hope to

be creative is in encouraging home fellowship leaders to identify particular areas of

interest - hobbies, sports, social needs - which they can use to draw their neighbors

into a an environment where they can be exposed to the gospel and the Kingdom of

God.

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Documents

MissionalChurch_DDawson