What is the TheNewCulture.org?

TheNewCulture.org is a powerful new website which was launched by our organization in September 2008 (press release).  We have invested ~$50,000 worth of man hours and software in developing the site. It contains hundreds of Bible-based resources (books, articles, movies, news, Bible studies, etc.) and tools on topics related to building and sustaining multi-ethnic Christian community.  It is an interactive and discussion-oriented website which allows visitors to share their comments, questions/answers, encouraging stories, resources they have found to be helpful, etc.  The website is already attracting ~200 visitors a day from across the U.S. and around the world.  We expect that number to increase to over 500 visitors a day within the next year.  We also email a monthly New Culture Newsletter which contains featured resources from the website, coming events, etc.

Why did we create the site and newsletter?

The primary focus of our organization (ReNew Partnerships) is helping Christians break down the walls of ethnic division in the Body of Christ and build biblical, multi-ethnic community. Over the last eight years, we have worked with churches, ministries, and Christian colleges across the U.S. from a wide variety of denominational and ethnic backgrounds.  We observed that most Christians (even pastors and leaders) are unaware of the excellent resources which have been developed on topics related to multi-ethnic community.  We also observed that Christians building multi-ethnic community lacked a forum where they could share questions, ideas, experiences, frustrations, success stories, etc.  As you probably know, building multi-ethnic community is challenging, time-consuming work which involves addressing a wide variety of sensitive and difficult issues including cross-cultural communication, power sharing, historical injustices, etc.  Without good resources, support, and encouragement most efforts to build multi-ethnic community stagnate or end in failure and frustration.

How the site can help you equip your staff and members

You are probably reading this because you are involved with efforts to help your staff and the members of your organization  become better equipped to reach out to other ethnic groups and build multi-ethnic community.  We designed TheNewCulture.org with leaders like you in mind.  You may be doing activities like bringing in guest speakers, leading multi-ethnic workshops, hosting conferences, pursuing more diverse leadership, organizing civil rights tours, etc.  TheNewCulture.org can help to augment those efforts by providing a tool that is:

• always available: with 24 hour/7 days a week access, TheNewCulture.org can fit into anyone’s schedule
• easily accessible: member’s don’t need to travel any farther than their own computer
• on-going: unlike a one-time conference, TheNewCulture.org allows members to continuously grow and learn
• interactive: TheNewCulture.org allows members to be participants rather than just spectators
• specialized: members can find answers to the specific questions they are asking
• FREE: access to our site and most of the hundreds of resources on our site are provided for free

Ideas for implementing TheNewCulture.org and NC Newsletter as a part of your efforts

Another great thing about TheNewCulture.org is how quickly and easily you can include it in your efforts.  Unlike speakers/conferences/trips that require months of planning, recruiting, budgeting, etc., you can start to implement the TheNewCulture.org in just a few minutes with a short email (preferably written by your pastor or president) encouraging your staff/members to start using the site.  For example:

Dear Staff and Members,

As you know, we are very committed to (church/ministry/college name) being a multi-ethnic organization that reflects Christ’s power to tear down ethnic divisions (Ephesians 2:14) and unite his followers into a loving, unified community (John 17:21). I am so thankful and encouraged by the work of (staff person’s name) and the multicultural task force over the last few years.  They have done an excellent job of helping to equip us in this area through conferences, guest speakers, and the reconciliation bus tour this March.

In addition to these efforts, I am happy to let you know about a new partnership we have formed with TheNewCulture.org—a website which contains hundreds of bible-based resources on topics related to building multi-ethnic community.  On TheNewCulture.org you can find articles, blog posts, movies, news, Bible studies, talks, etc. by some of the leading experts in the country on a wide variety of topics related to building multi-ethnic community.  You can also engage in dialogue with Christians around the country who are working to break down the ethnic divisions in the Body of Christ.  I encourage you to visit the website on a regular basis and join in the dialogue.  I also encourage you to read the New Culture Newsletter which we will be sending out each month to help us keep multi-ethnic issues on the “front burner”.

Pastor Jones

In addition to sending out an email, you could let your staff and members know about TheNewCulture.org by mentioning it at your meetings, asking your staff to share it with the groups they are leading/teaching, posting it in newsletters, etc.

Receive FREE advertising just for utilizing TheNewCulture.org

If you are trying to build a more multi-ethnic church, ministry, or Christian college then the visitors to our site are probably just the type of people you would like to get involved with your organization.  Here are some of the ways we help to direct visitors to your organization:

• a link to your organization on most pages of our site: If you decide to encourage your staff and members to use TheNewCulture.org please contact us and let us know–we will then post a link to your organization in the “in partnership with…” section of the left menu which appears on most pages in our site.
• community networking: When your staff and members post comments or join in the dialogue in our discussion forum they can link to your ministry’s website.
• events calendar: You are welcome to post information about your multi-ethnic events/conferences/workshops on our site.
• posting new resources: Your staff/members are encouraged to post new resources on our site.  When they do, we can post a link to your organization in their author’s profile (click here for an example).
• online directory: We maintain an online directory to help the visitors to our site connect with churches, ministries, and colleges that are committed to building multi-ethnic community.  You are welcome to post your organization on the directory regardless if you partner with our efforts or not.

Is there any financial cost?

TheNewCulture.org and the New Culture Newsletter are free services we provide to help the Body of Christ.  Although we do not charge a set fee, we appreciate it if you would consider making a financial contribution toward our efforts.  We have a “suggested donation” of only 10 cents per staff/member per year. For example: if your organization has 1000 staff and members then we ask that you would consider giving $100/year or more.  Of course, this is just a small fraction of what it would cost for you to provide these services on your own.  If you cannot make a donation we are still glad to partner with you—we don’t want anyone to be hindered from using our resources for financial reasons.  If you contribute $500 or more toward our efforts each year we will also include your logo/link in a “funding provided by…” section on the frontpage of our site (if you so choose).

FREE options for sending the New Culture Newsletter to your staff/members

If you choose to send the New Culture Newsletter to your staff/members you can do so in two ways: (both are free)

1. Send us the email addresses at infothenewculture.org and we will add them to our newsletter list.  Advantages: they will receive the NC Newsletters automatically each month with no additional effort on your part.  Disadvantages: you will need to continously send us the addresses of new staff/members.
2. Have one of your staff subscribe to our newsletter—then they can forward it on to all of your staff/members. Advantages: you can send it to your most up-to-date list of contacts. Disadvantages: requires extra work on your part and forwarded version of the newsletters may not format correctly.

Customized options for sending the New Culture Newsletters (small fee)

We can create a customized version of the NC Newsletter with your organization’s logo, introductory paragraph, links, events, etc. specifically geared toward your organization (click here for an example).  It can be sent in two ways:

1. (similar to #1 above) We can create/maintain a special mailing list just for your organization and email the newsletters out to your email list directly each month.  This service costs $0.04 per contact per newsletter (minimum of $50).  For example, if your organization has 2000 contacts it would cost $80 per newsletter.
2. (similar to #2 above) We will create the customized version of the newsletter and email it to you and then you can email it out to all of your contacts.  We charge only $20/newsletter for this service.

Other ways we can help

• online training courses: In September 2009 we plan to launch our online training courses.  Our plan is to work with top experts from around the country to prepare high quality, low-cost training courses on key topics related to building and sustaining multi-ethnic community.  Click here for more information.
• on-site training forums: If you are interested in having ReNew Partnerships staff facilitate an on-site training forum at your church, ministry, or college please contact us.  We can customize the focus and content to the needs of your organization.  Click here for more information.

In Summary

TheNewCulture.org is a powerful website that can help to provide the staff and members of your organization with the Bible-based resources and encouragement they need to succeed in their efforts to build and sustain multi-ethnic community.  Our website and monthly newsletter can be quickly and easily implemented along with your other current efforts.  All of our resources are provided for free or at a very low cost.  Creating a similar website and newsletter would cost tens of thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours of work.   Utilizing TheNewCulture.org can also be an excellent way to help get the word out about your organization to a very diverse group of Christians from across the U.S. and even around the world. We provide a variety of free/low-cost methods for sending the New Culture Newsletter to your staff/members each month.  We also offer other resources including online training courses and on-site training forums.

Please contact us at infothenewculture.org for additional information.