The Fresh Expressions Board of Directors is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Susquehanna Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. Through the partnership we will be working with the 800 congregations in the Susquehanna conference to advance the mission of God in rural, urban and suburban settings.
Dennis Otto serves as director of Congregational Development:
“In Susquehanna Conference (UMC) we are excited to join in the movement of creating new places for new people by partnering with Fresh Expressions. The way Fresh Expressions values both the contributions of the inherited church and the various new expressions of church fits with our culture and challenges us to take kingdom steps to live this out. This approach seems offer a strategy that moves us toward necessary action but in ways that are highly contextual and scalable.”
Chris Backert, National Director of Fresh Expressions added, “This latest in a growing number of partnerships fits with the vision of the Fresh Expressions movement as we seek partnership around a common mission to reach the growing number of Americans with no connection to any church.”
Fresh Expressions is an international movement of missionary disciples cultivating new kinds of church alongside existing congregations to more effectively engage our growing post-Christian society.
The movement started in 2004 as an initiative of the Church of England and the British Methodist Church and has resulted in the birth of thousands of new communities bringing renewal to established churches. Fresh Expressions has spread to Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and Germany. In 2010, the movement began taking shape in the US through the vision and generosity of the Baptist General Association of Virginia and a growing number of partners committed to a new era of missional ecumenism– a unity around the mission of God through the Resurrected Son, empowered by the Holy Spirit.
In seeking to steward the movement and progress of this work, Fresh Expressions US is fostering a network of collaborating denominations, churches, streams and agencies to accomplish together what we cannot do apart.
At the most basic level, we believe the “rising tide raises all ships” and that a robust partnership of action that results in a renewed and re-imagined Church benefits everyone involved and extends the mission of God in tangible ways. These partnerships generate resources to continue the momentum in order to help change the default mode of the American church from maintenance to mission.
For more information on partnership contact Chris Backert: Chris.Backert@freshexpressionsus.org
