New Zealand Christians hope the launch of Introducing God in their country will see young people return to worship the King.
The Sydney-based evangelistic course was launched across the country's major centres earlier this month during a week-long visit from founder and author Dominic Steele.
Mr Steele spoke at ten training seminars to 200 clergy and lay people from the Baptist, Reformed and Anglican traditions, as well as the Bible College of New Zealand.
"We went to New Zealand because we were encouraged to go by the churches already using Introducing God " as well as ministers who had had a look at it and wanted to develop it in their churches" Mr Steele says.
"We were delighted at the response."
Dominic Steele is rector of Annandale Anglican Church and director of the Christians in the Media ministry.
Joining him was Andre Wheeley, a recent graduate of Moore College who is about to take up a full-time position with Introducing God to train church leaders in using the course more effectively.
It is the first time the course has been launched officially overseas.
A number of churches around the world already use the course, particularly in Europe through contacts with Australian missionaries.
It has been translated into French and moves are underway for translations into Mandarin, Cantonese, Spanish and Portuguese.
Looking for new ways to reach the under-40s
Mr Steele says while the British-based Alpha course is immensely popular in New Zealand, many church leaders are looking to Australasian evangelistic methods to better reach those under 40 who have never heard the Bible's story.
"They [church leaders] felt Alpha wasn't connecting with 20 to 40 year olds," Mr Steele says.
He says for that generation, "the Church and Christianity are on the nose, but God and Jesus still have currency'.
"They were looking for something to connect with the real outsider, and Introducing God was written for that group."
Introducing God works on the "relational' model of evangelism, with a series of dinners and gospel talks using the Two Ways to Live model.
It sweeps across the Bible from creation to the cross, teaching biblical theology using secular language.
Approximately 600 course packs have been sold in NSW in the last two years, with an increasing number of Sydney parishes running the course as well as churches from the major denominations across Australia.
It is often held in lounge rooms, RSL clubs and non-church venues designed to attract young people who have never entered a church building before.
However, according to Mr Steele it is increasingly being used with all age groups across various ethnic and socio economic groups, from lunchtime business courses to prisons.
In a sign of the course's popularity, Christ Church, St Ives ran the course on Tuesday evenings at Hornsby Bowling Club last year while the Hornsby Shire Christian Centre ran it on Sunday evenings at the same venue.
http://www.introducinggod.org/
