CHURCH PLANTING

Why build churches in the CIS?

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, there have been more religious freedoms, but there are increasingly more limitations. The major problem is that church groups can only meet in legally registered church buildings. Congregations are not permitted to meet outside a church building and, therefore, are severely limited in their ministries. However, within the buildings they have religious freedom. Many people in the CIS are curious about evangelicals and are often eager to visit a new church building once it is constructed.

Why do many of the church buildings look so elaborate?

Although the government does allow some new church buildings to be put up, they put many restrictions on what the building will look like. Most often, the government dictates the actual design of the building.

Why is the cost so high to build churches now?

Inflation continues to be a big problem in the former Soviet Union. Building costs are rising at a very fast rate and supplies often have to come from other countries.

How is Slavic Missionary Service involved?

New congregations are meeting in remote areas outside of the cities. Through the gifts of supporting individuals and churches, SMS aids countless congregations to build new houses of worship

It seems like only yesterday when Slavic Missionary Service participated in the building program of the Gospel Light Church and Minsk Theological Seminary in Minsk, Belarus. The year was 1992, and SMS enthusiastically decided to join the daunting task of planting new churches in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). Since then, SMS has delighted in seeing churches dot the landscape in such areas as Borisov, Gomel, Kobrin and Novopolotsk, Belarus; Bryansk, Khimki and Orel, Russia; Kiev, Lutsk and Lvov, Ukraine; and Bendery and Varnitsa, Moldova.

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