4.4 ACOP’s Church Planting Strategy

[Celestine]

Indigenous Church Definition

An indigenous church is typically defined as self-supporting, self-governing, and self-propagating. If a church has never self-propagated (planted another church), it may still be considered indigenous if it is self-supporting and self-governing. Self-propagation is an important aspect, but the absence of it doesn’t necessarily disqualify a church from being indigenous. However, it might indicate an area for growth and development in the church’s mission and outreach.

[Anna]

If, by definition, an indigenous church is self propagating, then if it is not doing so it is not an indigenous church. However, is our goal to reproduce churches or to spread the Gospel? I believe these are two very different streams. As we have seen in this course so far, the church may not be what we want to reproduce. What we want to multiply is the number of people who hear and accept the Gospel and then go out into their part of the world to share the Gospel with those around them; creating more disciples who will do the same thing, and so on and so forth. Whether or not we are an indigenous church in the world today is irrelevant because Jesus didn’t tell us to go and multiply churches, He told us to go and make disciples. We have spent far too much effort establishing and growing our own churches. I think it’s time for us to focus much more intently and intentionally on making disciples, as we have been commanded to do.

[Zach]

If an indigenous church is self propagating by definition, then if it has not done so, it would not be indigenous by definition. It’s a curios definition as perhaps a more truly indigenous church would not be the one that propagates itself, but that one that has been birthed or planted from another local church. It is the offspring so to speak of a church that is truly the indigenous ones, in which case there are probably not that many around. But, if in the new movement we can have churches plant other churches and embed within the DNA of those new churches the need and thrust to start new churches as part of their foundational ethos, that might begin to turn the tide.

[Afraz]

Base on the information it has not meet the requirements to be categorized as indigenous church. It has not grown to be able to able to multiple itself. Being able to duplicate your self need strategy.