October 5, 2008

OUT OF MANY, ONE. OUT OF ONE, MANY Official Plans for 2008 Centennial Celebration. View the ONE Promotional Video. Access the Centennial Logos in five languages.

The Church of the Nazarene is a global family. Each Nazarene in 151 world areas deserves to attend the celebration of our approaching centennial. For this reason, on October 5, 2008, the Centennial Celebration will take place across 24 time zones in every local church.

From the Hallelujah March around the Pilot Point tent in 1908 to more than 18,000 local churches today, the Church of the Nazarene has grown in ways that no single tent, sanctuary, or even coliseum could now hold the gathering of our entire church.

Yet how thrilling it will be to sense the bonds of a growing Nazarene family in 2008 as we unite in cultural diversity around common worship content, each pastor knowing that more than 18,000 fellow pastors are standing before their congregations that day to proclaim the same message, scripture, and theme.

The Centennial Sunday allows us to celebrate our Nazarene doctrine, core values, heritage, and mission. To assist pastors in proclaiming our message and mission that day, extensive Centennial Celebration resources are being developed for each local church.

The Centennial Celebration local church kit will include a manual with complete resources for the Sunday morning worship service, providing for cultural adaptation, but allowing Nazarenes around the world to share a common framework of sermon, scriptures, music, media, and ceremonies. A wide array of additional resources will lead up to the Centennial Sunday.

Resources include:

	•	The Centennial sermon, "The Church as a Holy People," prepared by General Superintendent Jesse Middendorf, in both manuscript and outline format with follow-along congregation notes and PowerPoint.
	•	Menu options in several worship styles for service planning: orders of service, scripture readings, responsive readings, calls to worship, and suggested congregational music selections.
	•	A professional 12-minute DVD presentation highlighting heritage, core values, and future look with additional footage for other uses.
	•	A Centennial DVD production geared just for children, along with a kids' activity take-home paper and multiple creative options for children to celebrate 100 years of Nazarene history.
	•	A historical summary for the pastor's background knowledge.
	•	Special ceremonies for sacraments of baptism and Lord's Supper, membership induction of the Centennial Class of new members, and church planting for the Centennial Sunday and lead-up Sunday services.
	•	A host of pre-centennial promotional aids including news releases, logos, and a series of three sermons prepared by Dr. Roger Hahn leading up to October 5, 2008. Ample resources provide the option for churches to celebrate not only the Centennial Sunday but also an optional three Sundays of pre-Centennial celebration.
	•	Full instructions on how to utilize the resources and how to plan and promote the service.
	•	All resources both in print and on CD-Rom.

Provisions have been made for this resource kit to be provided free of charge to all local church pastors. Minimal charges will be made for only three products, samples of which pastors will receive in their complimentary resource kit:

	•	A 14-page Sunday morning worship folder/program, available in bulk order for each church to order the number needed for its Centennial attendance.
	•	A Centennial musical arrangement in sheet music and multi-media DVD.
	•	The Centennial Heritage award, a historical scene limited edition, numbered, framed lithograph, with presentation ceremony and certificate, for honoring persons who have played an instrumental role in the history of each local church.

The Centennial Celebration affords us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to celebrate holiness in a way that no Nazarene generation has yet been privileged to do. From the most spacious sanctuary to the open-air shade tree, in every language, in every culture, every Nazarene deserves to celebrate the Centennial.

--The Board of General Superintendents