Who We AreWe have ministries in various languages and for all age groups. You're sure to find a place where you fit in.
English
Chinese
Spanish
The Vision of First Baptist ChurchThe vision of First Baptist church of Flushing is to evangelize, disciple, grow and unleash the body of Christ in the context of a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual community. Our commitment and vision is the proclamation of the Gospel of Hope in Christ Jesus in order for the transformed to become holistic change agents in a pagan and barbaric culture. Our vision embraces the development of missional leadership through task forces that will touch the community and world at every level of spiritual, social, emotional and physical need.Our MissionWe worship God as we witness His word to His World. The purpose of the First Baptist Church of Flushing is to worship God through a loving unified body of multi-ethnic believers trained to witness the Word of God to the World of God.AffiliationWe are in affiliation with the Conservative Baptist Association of America.
Profile of First Baptist Church of FlushingIntroductionHoward Osgood founded First Baptist Church in 1857. That same year the Third Great Awakening, also known as the "Businessman's Revival", began on Fulton Street in Manhattan. The church's first twenty years were marked by a deep commitment to the Irish immigrants who arrived during the Potato Famine of 1845.First Baptist Church continues in its modern day commitment to immigrants from around the world. Today the church has Sunday services in English, Spanish, and Chinese. The current membership is seven hundred, divided among the three congregations. There are three congregations: Spanish, Chinese, pastored by John Wang, and English pastored by Gary Domiano. Pastor Russell Rosser served as Senior Pastor from 1978-1999, and Pastor Henry Kwan has served as Senior Pastor since 2001. Geographic ProfileFirst Baptist is located in what may be the most religiously diverse neighborhood in the world. The church is located on the corner of Sanford Avenue and Union Street in Flushing, NY. Within a forty block radius there are multiple Mosques, Hindu Temples, Jewish Synagogues, Sikh Temples, and Buddhist Temples. The New York Times ran an architectural review on the $3.2 million dollar Mosque construction on the corner of Kissena Boulevard and Geranium Avenue.Flushing has a rich history of religious inclusion dating back to the 1647 Flushing Remonstrance. This document drafted by local residents freed John Bowne, a practicing Quaker, from prison on the grounds of religious freedom of expression. Flushing was also the site of early anti-slavery activity in the 18th century. In 1964 Flushing hosted the World's Fair. The whole world came to Flushing and the whole world stayed. During the 1980's Flushing's population went from 10% Asian to 50% Asian in seven years. Today immigrants occupy 70% of all available housing. The median income for the 11355 zip code area, of which the church is a part, was $33,000 at the time of the 1990 Census. The Church is surrounded by many institutions in a dynamic neighborhood. Across the street from the church is Public School 20 for elementary students. Nearby, the Flushing Branch of the Queensborough Public Library has the highest rate of book loaning in the city. The Church shares parking facilities with the Franklin Nursing Home. A few blocks away is Main Street, a thriving economic center which has become a second Chinatown in New York City. The Vision of First Baptist ChurchThe vision of First Baptist Church is to be a multi-cultural, multi-lingual church that contextualizes the Word of God to the World of God. The communities that speak one hundred languages in our neighborhood are the local mission field of the church. First Baptist Church members speak more than forty languages. In the past twenty years the church has also trained more than one hundred interns who have gone on to participate in global missions.Currently, the church has three hundred people who participate in the English worship service, two hundred in the Chinese worship service, and one hundred fifty in the Spanish worship service each Sunday. Although the church is made up of three congregations, it is one church, governed by one board of Deacons, one board of Trustees, and under one budget. The ministries of the church are organized significantly around fellowship groups that are both language and age specific. The church currently has Filipino, Indian, Spanish, Mandarin, and Cantonese fellowships. There are also married couples' groups, youth groups, young adult fellowships, men's and women's fellowships organized in the church. The Spanish congregation has a weekly prayer meeting on Friday nights. The Chinese congregation has weekly prayer meetings on Sunday and Wednesdays. The church has a strong youth emphasis with AWANA, Junior/Senior High Youth Group, Summer Day Camp, and Sunday School programs. Evangelism at First Baptist has included various youth outreaches, annual evangelism programs by all three congregations, and the use of after school / day camp initiatives to impact the community. The church has also had open air evangelism at the public school playground. English as a Second Language course have been offered to immigrants in the community. The church has also partnered with groups like the Pastoral Counseling Center of Flushing, the Boro Pregnancy Counseling Center, and the Concert of Prayer to impact the broader metropolitan community. Other demographics of the church include:
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