Church of the Nazarene District Office

District Superintendent Rev Victor E George will be bestowed with an Honorary Doctorate in Divinity from the Caribbean Nazarene College at this year’s Graduation Ceremony.

Also receiving Honorary Doctorates this year are Rev Victor Price and Rev R Alphonso Porter, both of whom are graduates of the College.

The Baccalaureate Service will be held on Friday 25^th May 2012 at the College Chapel and the Graduation Ceremony on Saturday 26^th May 2012 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Wrightson Road, Port of Spain.

2012 Church Focus

The focus for this year and beyond is to recapture the heart of Jesus for His Church. This will result in healthy churches making Christlike disciples in the nation. Three main steps will help us get there:

1. Each church must complete the Life Cycle Evaluation.

2. Each church must complete the church health survey.

3. Each church must setup a refocusing team who will be charge with the responsibility to refocus the church.

4. Each church must document and implement a plan of action.

All of this will take place under the theme: United in Christ to Serve” John 17:21 (This Present Generation). Jesus prayed “that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me”. The standard is not institutional unity but rather personal unity: “Just as you are in me and I in you….that they may be one as we are one.” (vv.21-22). Jesus was not calling for uniformity since he and the Father are distinct from each other and have different functions. So it is with us each church will be different base on the community they are called to serve.

John in Chapter 15:1 spoke about this vital unity that exists between the vine and the branches in which every separate branch is still an integral part of the one vine. The purpose of this unity is the maintenance of a convincing testimony before the world to the revelation of God in Christ and to his love for his disciples. We cannot as Nazarenes allow this moment to unite the church to pass us. We must be prepared to give up our individual tribal purposes for the whole district or national purpose. The time is NOW!

We must come together and “expand our communication to utilize new media popular in today’s culture. This includes Facebook with its 800 million members and a 50 percent daily usage and even old technology like email and websites. It is possible to be a digitally connected church for ministry for outreach, for spiritual growth, and for receiving tithes and offerings – which should be understood as an act of worship”.

A note of caution is in order. In the age of Facebook people still need the personal touch. The church would do well to remember that it is the person of the Holy Spirit who reveals Jesus Christ to unbelievers – not technology. What if more churches become externally focused? What if more local churches were encouraged to try new things? What if more pastors equipped and commissioned their laity for service? What if more of our laity, once equipped and commissioned, took the initiative to explore new areas of ministry? This might include starting home Bible Studies, teaching Sunday school classes or engaging in planting new churches.

What if Nazarenes of all across the district would once again hear the call of God, be filled with the Holy Spirit, go into their world as empowered witnesses and become involved in making disciples? We will change the landscape of Trinidad and Tobago and by extension the region.

Our District D.N.A. remains the same, so are our watchwords: Self Propagation, Self Governance and Self Support.

Church's Position on Homosexuality

Offcial statement: The Church of the Nazarene believes that every man or woman should be                  treated with dignity, grace, and holy love, whatever their sexual orientation. However, we               continue to firmly hold the position that the homosexual lifestyle is sinful and contrary to the          Scriptures.

We further wish to reemphasize our call to Nazarenes around the globe to recommit themselves                to a life of holiness, characterized by holy love and expressed through the most rigorous and          consistent lifestyle of sexual purity.

We stand firmly on the belief that the biblical concept of marriage, always between one man                  and one woman in a committed, lifelong relationship, is the only relationship within which the gift               of sexual intimacy is properly expressed.

- Board of General Superintendents

Bethany Nazarene gets new Pastor

The Bethany Church of the Nazarene located on the beautiful isle of Tobago now has a new Pastor.

Minister Alicia Baptiste, after serving for several years as a Youth and Worship Minister at her home church, Cumuto Church of the Nazarene, has taken on the responsiblity of shepherding this young church.

A trained counsellor by profession, Baptiste works as a psycho-therapist with nationally recognised EAP Services Provider, Elders Associates. Baptiste will serve as interim Pastor for the remainder of 2012.