Salem Presbytery covers 19 counties in North Carolina. You could drive 150 miles from east to west or 120 miles from north to south and still be in the presbytery. There are 151 churches ranging in size from about 15 members to over 3,000 members. While the majority of churches are predominantly Caucasian, we also have Korean, Hispanic, and 21 African American churches within our Presbytery. How do you build community given that type of distance and diversity.
Our first step was to define three neighborhoods within the presbytery and have a staff person and some volunteer connectors who would focus on each of the neighborhoods. The staff person and the connectors would visit the churches in the neighborhoods and become familiar with their ministires and their needs. At the same time, we began to build an internet connectional system that would enable all of the churches to be in communication with the staff and with each other.
To empower the churches in these neighborhoods to practice ministry together, we are planning to set aside $50,000 as “neighborhood initiative funds.” Any four or more churches can propose an idea for joint ministry. They will present that idea through their inter-net connection to the rest of the churches in their neighborhood. The clergy and the elders who attended the last Presbytery meeting will be asked to vote their approval of the project. 60% positive vote will permit access to the funds.
We hope that this will bring ministry closer to home while maintaining the value of our connectional system. Discovering the new shape of the church is going to require a lot of experimentation and a flexibility to learn as we go.
