Philly-Vision

by Donald King

Steeped in American history, Philadelphia is rich with unique attractions and metropolitan tinsel. It is also a showcase example of what today's North American mission field looks like and all the challenges that accompany it.

Philadelphia, PA

In Philadelphia, the 5th largest city in the nation, you'll find the Liberty Bell, the "Rocky" statue, the Betsy Ross house, Independence Hall, and Valley Forge. Sports enthusiasts know the city as the home of the Philadelphia Eagles and Phillies. And if you want a Philly cheese steak sandwich, don't even think about trying one anywhere else.

As is true with many urban environments, Philadelphia has an 80 - 85% unchurched population, a high crime rate and a broad representation of various world religions. Philadelphia is also the home of 80 college campuses with nearly 250,000 students enrolled of which 11,000 are international students.

You'll also find North American Mission Board missionaries serving in the city, suburbs and on college campuses sharing Christ and starting new churches. In fact, there is an intentional relationship between the college campus ministry and new church starts.

According to Robert Turner, Director of Collegiate Ministries, Baptist Convention of PA/S. Jersey, "Our collegiate ministries are strongly intertwined with church planting strategies in our area. It is vital that we be present at the birth of churches so we can be part of the "spiritual DNA" of a church located near a collegiate population. A number of our campus ministers have been trained and are conversant in the principles and language of church planting. We consider church planters to be close partners in the efforts to reach emerging generations with the Gospel."

The Journey Church, West Chester, PA

Examples of integrated church planting and collegiate ministry efforts can be found at several locations in and around Philadelphia. One such example is on the West Chester University campus where Brodie and Becky Smith serve as campus ministers and are Missions Service Corps (MSC) missionaries through the North American Mission Board.

Brodie and Becky began their assignment in January 2007. Becky had attended West Chester University as an exchange student fr

Brodie and Becky Smith

om Oklahoma. Having fell in love with the area, she never dreamed of being able to return as a campus missionary.

Brodie and Becky are working in conjunction with The Journey, a new church start, which is located adjacent to the campus. They seek to engage and interact with students on the campus by providing Bible study, discipleship study and lead events which bring Christians and non-Christians together for fellowship. They value the importance of building relationships with students that bridge misconceptions about Southern Baptists.

Brian Musser (right), Drexel University

Brian Musser, MSC missionary, serves as the campus minister on the prestigious Drexel University. Brian's commitment to share Christ at Drexel required a significant career change.
Prior to his current role, Brian was the Lab Manager in the Department of Pharmacology and Physiology at Drexel University's College of Medicine.

Brian meets with student ministry leaders on Drexel University campus.

Brian's new role on the Drexel campus is clear. "I have four goals: 1) to help students already in relationship with Christ mature and learn how to share their faith with others and become a leader among their peers; 2) to reach the unchurched and unsaved students with the message of the Gospel; 3) to gain favor among the administration and staff at Drexel; and, 4) to continue to make the presence of our ministry known on campus."

Stan Williams (wearing hat) talks about the size of the Univ. of PA campus

Stan Williams, MSC missionary and Regional Collegiate Ministry Coordinator for the Penn/S. Jersey Convention, has responsibility coordinating the collegiate ministry in Philadelphia. He also serves as campus minister at the University of Pennsylvania, Temple University and Rutgers University - Camden. The opportunities are tremendous on each campus but each has its own set of challenges as well.

Temple University

Stan's goal is "1) indigenous missional leadership development and deployment; and, 2) preparation of non-indigenous missionaries for greater effectiveness in urban ministry and urban student ministry." He believes it is very important to develop local leaders to assume responsibility and leadership for reaching the city for Christ.

There are new churches starting in and around Philadelphia. These new starts are working in concert with the collegiate ministry to provide the long-term connectivity, fellowship, discipleship and spiritual instruction necessary to grow new Christians.

Chuck Kieffer oversees the renovation project at The Foundry

An example of partnership between church planting and campus ministry can be seen at The Foundry, a collegiate/young adult targeted church plant. Chuck Kieffer, MSC missionary, serves as the pastor of this new church which is being remodeled to suit their needs and be more appealing to their target audience.

Tim Bottomly (left) leads the middle school youth ministry at The Foundry

Kieffer says, "We are targeting the Mosaic generation of emerging people (thirty and under) by utilizing contemporary methodology, ministering within a multi-cultural community. We use the arts in worship. We're also building a ministry team to reach the next generation through church planting, student ministry, community arts outreach, media and entertainment."

Realife Church meets in a neighborhood corner cafe

Another innovative new church start can be found in the Bridesburg neighborhood in Philadelphia. Realife Church currently meets in a café where kids congregate after school and moms come to hangout and decompress with other moms.

Rob Burns, lead pastor/planter of a church planting team moved into the neighborhood and began investing in the lives of his neighbors.

Rob Burns and family

Rob is excited about how things are developing. "The cafe was established as a place for people from the surrounding communities to relax, have some coffee, and form relationships that explore faith and life. Since the opening of the cafe in May 2004 God has used ReaLife in many ways to serve our community and build relationships. We are very excited about the future. God has brought together an awesome core team and is bringing about many new opportunities to meet people, serve, and continue the conversation."

Ken Miller (center) shares how they aquired the church

It's also good to see new churches growing and that's the case with Bucks County Community Church where Ken Miller has been pastor since December 1998.

Ken just recently led his young congregation to purchase an existing church and property from another church that no longer needed the large facility.

Bucks County Community Church

Ken has seen exciting growth and maturity of new members while breaking through misconceptions about Southern Baptists by residents in the neighborhood. His persistence in being a good neighbor who is a part of the community and actively seeking to develop relationships is essential in future growth.

Ken anticipates his church sponsoring a new church start in the very near future.

Christians who are looking for ways to engage in urban ministry should consider looking toward Philadelphia. There's plenty of work to do through collegiate ministry on campuses or in new church starts throughout the city.

NAMB missionaries in Philly need your help. Of course they covet your prayers but they also extend an invitation to come along side them to be involved in the work. In fact, they are prepared for your arrival. So take some time and go yourself or take a group from your church.

Go! Discover the North American mission field in Philadelphia.

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Get Connected

• Dr. Robert (Bob) Hylton, Director of Missions
  Greater Philadelphia Baptist Association
  Office: (215) 364-4984
  
• Brian Musser, Campus Minister,
  Drexel University
  Office: (215) 499-2970
  www.peaceandpower.com
  
• Rob Burns, Lead Pastor
  Realife Church
  Office: (215) 537-9669
  www.realifephilly.org
  
• Ken Miller, Pastor
  Bucks Country Community Church
  Office: (215) 752-9945
  www.buckschurch.org
  
• Chuck Kieffer, Pastor
  The Foundry
  Office: (610) 872-3344
  www.thefoundrypa.org
  
• Robert Turner, Collegiate Ministry Director
  Baptist Resource Network, Pennsylvania/South Jersey
  Office: (717) 652-5856
  www.brnonline.org