CURRENT AND RECENT PROJECTS

Christian mediation. CMU was hired to complete a feasibility study into the possibility of establishing a Christian Mediation Center in Richmond. The report details the findings suggesting that now is a very ripe time for such a ministry. As part of the process, we conducted two focus groups for live feedback. Both groups were extremely enthusiastic about the need for creating a vehicle to help Christians be obedient to Paul’s admonition not to take a brother to court. We believe that this ministry can take the Church at Richmond to a new level of credibility and service to the city. Strategic planning has begun. Stay tuned ...

Mission Conferences. CMU has hosted two citywide service conferences designed to inform and equip the community about ministries in the city, collaborative efforts underway, and opportunities for outreach and volunteerism. Attendees have attended workshops on everything from aftercare services for ex-offenders to working with the elderly, substance abusers and youth. The keynote speaker was nationally known pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson in 1999 and in 2000 we featured the father of modern urban mission, Dr. John Perkins with Rev. Wayne Gordon of the Christian Community Development Association. Planning for the next conference has begun, with a focus on youth.

Urban Hope. At the 1999 conference, CMU hosted a daylong Christian Business Summit to challenge participants to think of ways that business leaders could have a distinctively Christian impact on the city. What emerged was an enthusiastic interest in holistic Christian community development using the Woodville/Creighton Court area as a model for the city. Now under the leadership of our affiliate church, Charity Mission International Church, Urban Hope, Inc. has worked with CMU to form a vision for the East End of Church Hill. Urban Hope was formally announced to the city at our 2000 conference, and groundbreaking for its first new home began in September of 2001.

Northside Missions Center. A long-range plan of CMU has always been the acquisition of a large building that could be used as a headquarters or outreach center for dozens of ministries and congregations. CMU is now under negotiations to obtain such a facility for use by ministries as diverse as STEP (job readiness and mentoring), Elijah House Academy (K-8th grade), The Common Ground: Richmond Intercessors (24-hour prayer center), and a group of congregations interested in planting an international fellowship in the city, among others. As a part of this project, CMU was commissioned to complete two research projects. The first was a comprehensive demographic study of Richmond’s Northside, and the other a study of the international community of Richmond.

City Reaching. As part of its effort to convene the leadership necessary to make strategic Kingdom-oriented change, CMU has facilitated the gathering of pastors with ministry and business leaders to seek the Lord’s overall direction for Richmond. To that end, Jack Dennison of CitiReach International has met with the team once every three months since September of 2000. In April of 2001, the team completed a report entitled, "An Assessment of the Church", detailing where the citywide Church stands on seven criteria: prayer, unity, envisioning, research, leadership, learning, and serving.

Church Consultations. CMU has consulted with two groups of congregations on the South Side interested in cooperative outreach. In once case, CMU brought together four congregations to talk about neighborhood evangelism. These churches had never been in dialogue with each other, though three are on the same street! In the second case, CMU was invited to facilitate a daylong seminar for a several congregations seeking to impact the North Bermuda area of the Jefferson Davis Corridor. In another case, leaders of a denominational youth conference being held in Richmond asked CMU to find volunteer opportunities for hundreds of teens.

Communications. CMU hosts a web page with information about its 60 member organizations, articles about ministry around Richmond, and a community events calendar so that there can be an ongoing source of information about ministry and increased coordination of event planning. Visit us at www.cmu-richmond.org. CMU also publishes a newsletter, the CMU Messenger, with articles about local ministry activity, a calendar of events, and a “bird’s eye view” of what God is doing in the city.

Racial Reconciliation. Richmond will not be impacted by the gospel at a deep level until the ogre of racism is faced. In the wake of the recent controversies over the downtown Flood Wall, CMU helped facilitate leaders coming together for discussions on how the Church in Richmond might respond. The result was a statement widely endorsed by pastors, ministry leaders, and the laity all over the city.

The City as Parish. The Church is a sleeping giant, and the Enemy would most desire to see it rendered ineffective by keeping it divided and separate. CMU has crafted a new initiative, in conjunction with the Pittsburgh Leadership Foundation, to bring diverse congregations to the same table to think strategically about how to win the city for Christ. Local congregations are now being recruited for participation.

Prison aftercare. CMU is in dialogue with the State and Prison Fellowship to create a plan for the Christian community in Richmond to help bring families from “the system” to self-sufficiency (in Christ, of course). CMU would act as a broker between the system and a local congregation that would adopt the family. CMU’s member ministries would then come along side to provide supportive services, from childcare, to counseling, GED, and after-school tutoring.