InterVarsity has a specific take on what most organizations call diversity: Multiethnic ministry means that we reach, we include, and we empower students and faculty of every ethnicity and culture for God’s purposes in the world.
And what makes our approach distinct from many others is that we don’t stop at just the first verb, or even the second verb, but insist in all three.
(Read the full article,“What Exactly is Multiethnic Ministry?” from InterVarsity’s MEM blog.)
We Reach: The heartbeat of God’s mission
God’s desire to reach “all nations” (literally “all ethnic groups”) is all over scripture. Our mission is not only to reach those outside our community, but we are called to reach those outside our community who are not like us. For this to happen, learn three principles to incorporate into your outreach strategies.
We Include: Why just reaching isn’t enough
Everyone wants diversity in the room these days. I’m glad. It makes a difference. But ask this question: Is your ministry practicing inclusion or simply settling for colorblind diversity? Here are five signs that your ministry is growing in inclusion. If your chapter wants to improve in this area, order the Cross Cultural Competency Wheel that describes four areas of learning that are necessary to inclusion.
We Empower: Why inclusion isn’t enough
For InterVarsity students, faculty, and staff, the question is not just “Have you reached out to someone different than you?” or “Have you been in a small group or leadership team with someone different than you?” We ask, “Have you been led by someone from a different ethnic background than you?”
We pursue these three values for empowering multiethnic ministry:
- Leadership Development and Representation
- Openness and Creativity
- Missional Vision
My dream for InterVarsity ministry is that we will seek to empower people from all ethnic groups to give leadership to the mission. There will even be some places where the dominant ethnic leadership culture may change. When that happens we will have come full circle, and the opportunity will lie before us to “reach, include, and empower” once again.
--Joe Ho
Find more articles about race, ethnicity and the Christian faith on InterVarsity’s Multiethnic Ministries Blog.
