Africa Missions - Healing a Continent

Church of the Resurrection has been in relationship with local, African church leaders for more than eight years. We began sending mission teams to Africa in 2005, serving through two distinct partnerships associated with the Methodist Church of Southern Africa.

• Since 2006, we have invested in and assisted with the construction and renovation of four churches located in impoverished communities surrounding Durban, South Africa. The congregations meeting in these buildings are using them as centers for both worship and missions that address critical community needs and lead people to Jesus Christ.
• For more than six years, Resurrection teams of women have participated in the African Tujenge event, an annual conference that provides training and education to women to minister with victims of HIV/AIDS. Equipped and empowered to be role models and leaders in their communities, these African women return to their homelands to educate and care for others.

The dates on the right side of this page indicate the upcoming trips. Click on the dates of your choice for further details about each trip. Or contact the ministry connector for more information.

Building Churches 

Since 2006, The Church of the Resurrection has helped construct and renovate four churches in association with the Pinetown Methodist Church. In 2010 construction will begin on the Samungu Church. Assuming resources become available for future projects, two more churches will be built between 2011 and 2015. Future teams will help construct a new church, transform an existing building into a church or work on simple projects and ministry activities.

Responding to Poverty and HIV/AIDS

For the past five years, Church of the Resurrection has sent teams of women to participate in the African Tujenge event, an annual conference that provides training and education for ministering with victims of HIV/AIDS. Equipped and empowered to be role models and leaders in their communities, these women return from the conference to their homelands to educate and care for others.

2010 teams are now forming to fight HIV/AIDS and poverty in Africa. A July trip is planned to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to members will participate in the first graduation ceremony to be held at a new Education Center in Lubumbashi and share in the celebration with 100 students from several countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Teams will visit nearby villages and towns in DRC to witness the amazing accomplishments made by the committed individuals who are leading satellite projects and serving as role models in their communities.  Team members will also help with small repairs to homes and ministry sites. Additional summer and fall mission trips are being planned to Johannesburg, South Africa and one other country where SHADE operates thriving satellite projects.

Learn More About Africa

  1. Learn more about the city of Pinetown

    Pinetown is an industrial town located on the outskirts of Durban, a city of 3 million people.  Pinetown Methodist Church has an average worship attendance of 400 and “exists to be a sign of the Kingdom of God in a broken world.”  This purpose is fulfilled, in part, through various missions, including a Christian school, a vocational training center, a soup kitchen, a retirement center, ministries to children called “educare” centers and Project Nehemiah. The church is part of the Clerpine Circuit, which is a cluster of 23 Methodist churches in Southern Africa.
    In nearby impoverished township areas, several Methodist congregations have the potential for rapid growth. Similar to Church of the Resurrection, they are located in areas that have growing populations and they have a core group of members who are committed to reaching non-religious and nominally religious people. Their efforts are hampered by the fact that they are meeting in school classrooms, which are too small, and to which they have no permanent claim.

  2. Learn more about the continent of Africa

    Africa – A Continent with Infinite Possibility
    Africa is the second-largest of the seven continents on earth, covering 11,700,000 square miles. There are about 53 countries in Africa with the biggest country being Sudan, which covers 967,500 square miles. The Sahara Desert is located in northern Africa and covers 3,500,000 square miles. There are more than 1,000 different languages spoken in Africa.
    HIV/AIDS is one of the largest and most complex threats to human health the world has ever known. Great stigma compounds already tragic physical consequences. Nearly 40 million around the world continue to suffer and die from this disease, which often robs them of family, social networks and ways to make a living. 24.5 million are in sub-Saharan Africa. Young women bear the greatest risk of infection and burden of caring for the ill. AIDS has orphaned more than 15 million children. Today one out of twenty children in Africa is orphaned.
    Christianity is probably the main religion in most of sub-Saharan Africa, while in the northern part of the continent it is a minority religion, where the majority of the population is Muslim. There has been tremendous growth of Christians in Africa. It is anticipated that in 2025 there will be 633 million Christians in Africa (World Christian Encyclopedia).

  3. Learn more about HIV/AIDS in Africa

    The story of HIV/AIDS is usually told through statistics, such as "Forty million people are infected with HIV. In Africa alone there are nearly 16 million AIDS orphans, and 8,000 AIDS-related deaths every day."  Such staggering numbers are often overwhelming and impersonal, keeping us from seeing the faces of people affected by the AIDS pandemic.  Rather than being paralyzed by such numbers, Church of the Resurrection provides numerous opportunities to become actively involved -- opportunities to see people face to face, to hear their stories, and to serve alongside them.

Need More Information?

Still have questions about going on a mission trip?  Go to the Preparing for a Trip page for more information, tips, and frequently asked questions.

Interested in Leading a Trip?

Visit the Leading a Trip page to find out more information, requirements, and training dates.