On September 5, district superintendents from USA and Canada districts were updated on plans for celebrating the Centennial of the Church of the Nazarene on October 5, 2008. “The church’s 100th anniversary will be celebrated in every local church, uniting 18,600 congregations in 151 world areas around common worship and ministry elements,” said Dr. Nina Gunter, general superintendent, in addressing the group. “District superintendents are key in training every pastor so that every local church can join in this once-in-a-lifetime celebration.”

To resource pastors in planning and conducting the Centennial Celebration in their churches, extensive resources have been in development for the past two years. USA/Canada district superintendents recently premiered the Centennial DVD entitled “Out of Many One, Out of One Many: The First 100 Years of the Church of the Nazarene.”

This DVD that will be shown to every congregation emphasizes the diversity of the family of 1.6 million Nazarenes united by our common message of holiness and our commitment to make Christlike disciples. As part of the total Centennial Celebration local church resources kit, the Centennial DVD is recorded in five languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and Korean. Pastors will have the option of showing the entire presentation at one time or portions of it at four different times, bridging into the Centennial sermon on October 5, 2008.

The Centennial DVD has been made possible by a generous donation from America’s Christian Credit Union, an official sponsor of the Centennial Celebration of the Church of the Nazarene.

Among the resources in the Centennial kit are four sermons, historical summary, promotional aids, youth and children’s ministries and activities, children’s DVD, and information for ordering music, Heritage Award, and commemorate booklets for every Centennial Sunday attender. Special Centennial ceremonies are included for church planting, membership reception, baptism, and the Lord’s Supper. A highlight of October 5, 2008, will be Nazarenes worldwide partaking of the Lord’s Supper in unity across 24 time zones.

District superintendents in the USA and Canada will be distributing Centennial resources kits in district pastoral training sessions in early spring 2008, guiding pastors in how to plan, promote, and conduct Centennial worship services and ministries utilizing the resources. Training dates are posted by district at www.nazarenecentennial.org. For more information, contact your district superintendent.

The six world regions are contextualizing, translating, and distributing Centennial resources for local churches globally so that every Nazarene has the privilege of joining in the 100th anniversary celebration. Multiple translations are currently in process and will soon be posted at www.centennialresources.org for the benefit of all Nazarenes speaking those languages.