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Who We Are New Life Chinese Lutheran Church is a bi-lingual (English and Cantonese) congregation, reaching out to both recent and settled immigrants, as well as many second and third generation Chinese families. A Sunday visitor will quickly notice the warm and friendly atmosphere of the congregation. The church is family-oriented with members of all ages. The Rev. Charles "Chip" Fox is our pastor. Pastor Chip, his family, and the church laity work together to spread the Good News in the community. About Our Pastor, Charles "Chip" Fox
History of New Life New Life Chinese Lutheran Church is a congregation of The English District of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. New Life began in partnership with West Portal Lutheran Church and Lutheran Church of the Holy Spirit, both of San Francisco, California, and Chapel of the Cross Lutheran Church, St. Louis, Missouri. The goal was to establish a third Chinese Lutheran congregation in San Francisco and specifically in the Sunset district. The planting of this new congregation began in August 1994 when the Rev. Terrence Chan was called a missionary to begin this work. The need for Chinese ministry in the Sunset district of San Francisco is great. As the demographic and census information indicate, the population of the Sunset district, a neighborhood that is less than 2 square miles in size, has about 115,000 people of which 50,000 are Asian, primarily Chinese. The estimate is that well over 40% of the population in the Sunset district are Chinese. That compares to the city-wide ratio of 728,000 people and 250,000 Chinese, or just over 31%. The Asian population of the Sunset district is increasing while the other ethnic groups are declining as a percentage of the population. During the first year, a small core group was established and leadership training was provided to equip the core group for service and to reach unchurched people. The strength of this new congregation is based on the identifying and training of lay leaders. Initial activities included outreach and evangelism through neighborhood canvassing, a 10,000 dial-up tele-missioning campaign, "friendship" events and small group gatherings. Monthly worship services began on Christmas Day 1994 renting a ballroom dance studio on Taraval Street. Weekly worship services began in October 1995 in an elementary school on 35th Avenue. Since March 1999, New Life has conducted worship services by renting space from St. Francis United Methodist Church, 3601 Noriega Street, San Francisco, CA. In 2003, New Life changed location to 395 Addison St. and is sharing facilities with sister congregation Shepherd of the Hills. Although we remain two separate churches, we are increasingly participating in more joint activities and even joint worship. New Life TodayCurrently, New Life has 142 baptized members, 115 communicant members, and an average Sunday attendance of 77. Since its first days at the Taraval Street ballroom to its present location on Noriega Street, the church has grown to be a vibrant and faithful congregation, transitioning from a missionary church to a community of faith. In October 2001, the Rev. Terrence Chan was called to do other missionary work for the English District. In September 2002, the Rev. Charles "Chip" Fox accepted the call to be New Life's new pastor. The need for spreading the Good News of Jesus as great as the day New Life started; for that reason, New Life aims to continually bring the life-changing Word of God to its community and to care for and nurtue all those who hear it. Are you seeking a relationship with Jesus Christ
or would just like to learn more about the church? Send an email
to Pastor Chip at PastorChip@aol.com.
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