wfn.org | Taiwan Aborigines Plan Festival to Re-energize Church &

[Taiwan Church News <pctpress@ms1.hinet.net>]

Society
Taiwan Church News 2663, March 16, 2003
Reported by Ku Hao-jan. Translated and rewritten by David
Alexander

   To stimulate church outreach and broaden the missional context
of its congregations, the Eastern Amis Presbytery of the
Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (PCT) plans to hold a mission
festival on March 22nd, its first such event in a decade.
   The Eastern Amis Presbytery is comprised of 44 churches and
chapels in Taitung and Hualien Counties on the Pacific coast.
They are united in their tribal identity and use of the Amis
language. (The Central Amis Presbytery has 64 churches and
chapels, and the Western Amis Presbytery has 30.  All together,
the 3 presbyteries had 21,000 members at the end of 2000, with
6,870 attending worship on an average Sunday.)
   General Presbyter, the Rev. Mr. Chen Fu-chun, said that the
mission festival was in response to actions taken by and
encouragement from the PCT's General Assembly. The presbytery
organized a "New Century Mission Committee" this year, and its
first action was to plan the festival.
   Emphasis will be laid upon better preparation of Sunday School
teachers and equipping church members to penetrate their social
and neighborhood environments.	Mr. Chen said, "The presbytery's
campus ministries department is working in cooperation with cable
television stations, hoping to use this avenue to promote church
activities.  In some areas there is great cooperation.	The
second half of the year will show us the results of these
efforts.
   The presbytery has not attempted to mount any mass activities
for some time.	It hopes that 400 people will attend the mission
festival, which will include a revival meeting, small group
workshops and presentations.  The event will be held at
Chang-kwang Presbyterian Church in Taitung County.
   Organizers believe that all a church needs is a commitment to
move out of its own walls, and it can begin to penetrate its
neighborhood for mission service.

For more information: Chen Fu-chun  <acon@ms2.hinet.net>
		      Chang-kwang Presbyterian Church  +886 89
831154

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