Empowering a Local Church to Reflect Revelation 7_9 Unity through Multi-Ethnic, Bilingual, Combined Worship

Bowditch, Mark “Empowering a Local Church to Reflect Revelation 7:9 Unity Through Multi-Ethnic, Bilingual, Combined Worship.” Doctor of Ministry. Major Applied Project, Concordia Seminary, 2017. 347 pages. The purpose of this MAP was to carry out field research specifically designed to answer the research question: “Can multi-ethnic, bilingual, combined worship services be developed at Mt. Calvary that will foster Christian unity and fellowship among two different cultures?” This effort presupposed that it is God’s will for His people, the Church, to be joined together in unity and fellowship on earth—as they will be in heaven (Rev 7:9). The basic problem in ministry this MAP addressed is the all too common segregation found within the church where ethnic groups are more hyper-segregated than in the world. The context of this MAP study was a medium sized, mono-ethnic, English-speaking, white local church that began doing multi-ethnic ministry in 2016 when she opened her doors to a growing community of Karenni-speaking refugees from war-torn Burma. To bring the two ethnically-diverse communities together, a series of six combined worship services were scheduled over a five-month period in 2017. Field research was conducted both before and after these services. The aim of the pre- and post-research was twofold: to aid in the development of meaningful, bilingual worship services and to measure if Christian unity and fellowship could be fostered as a result of the joint worship services. The MAP includes a theological and biblical foundation that provides a congregation with needed support and motivation for conducting bilingual, combined worship in the context of multiethnic ministry. It also includes a review of various ways other churches conduct multi-ethnic worship. The quantitative and qualitative data drawn from a pool of forty-three research participants (from both ethnic communities) represented 12.5 percent of the average 350 worshippers at Mt. Calvary each weekend. The field research showed that multi-ethnic, bilingual, combined worship services can indeed be developed that foster Christian unity and fellowship between two very different ethnic groups