Pray For
- Bishop Lubunga W’Ehusha as he leads this large general conference
- outreach to the growing Muslim population
- an end to the recurring health crises in the eastern part of the country where most FM members live
PRESENT MINISTRIES
The FMC continues to minister over a large area, including 38 different tribes speaking many languages. Most of the work is rural, but churches are located in six provincial capital cities and Kinshasa, the national capital. Nundu Deaconess Hospital continues to refurbish its facilities and strengthen its medical staff. Recurrent armed conflicts are affecting churches, destroying buildings and cattle, and causing displacement of people.
ORIGINS
In 1963, 7000 Christians of the Bembe tribe voted to join the Free Methodist Church. The missionary group that had been working among them had withdrawn three years earlier when independence in the country brought upheaval. Two Free Methodist missionary couples then moved to the Democratic Republic of Congo, but were forced to leave after a few months because of renewed political problems. 1964 to 1966 was a time of starvation and terror. Three thousand Free Methodist members were killed or reported missing. In the 1970s, with some return to political stability, missionaries and VISA workers returned and established residency.
Numerous Free Methodist schools were established throughout the conference on both elementary and high school levels. A hospital was built at Nundu near Lake Tanganyika. A rural health network was established, expanding to include 38 health centers. Workers trained at the hospital nursing school staffed many of these health centers.
In 1989 DRC became a provisional general conference electing Rev. Jason Bya’Ene as bishop. In September 1991, as the economy collapsed and the country became politically unstable, Free Methodist missionaries were withdrawn. One missionary returned in 1994 and was joined by two couples in 1996 only to evacuate several months later as ethnic tensions increased and turned into full-scale war. Thousands of Free Methodist families fled to neighboring Tanzania or were displaced within the country. The church became a full general conference in 1991.
Country Leader
Bishop Lubunga W’Ehusha
Democratic Republic of Congo General Conference
Prayercast | Congo
One Dream
Nundu Deaconess Hospital
Heartbeat | Democratic Republic of Congo
Obedient to the Call
When forced to leave their home in the Congo, many Free Methodists landed in the Nyarugusu refugee...
COUNTRY STATISTICS
General Conference
- Population: 85,451,192
- Evangelical Christians: 19.22%
- FM Work Opened: 1963
- FM Churches: 548
- FMC Membership: 122,331
- Ordained Ministers: 950
- Ministerial Candidates: 60
- Bishop: Lubunga Venance W’Ehusha
- Ecclesiastical Accountability: Free Methodist World Conference
Photo Credit: TUBS, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Church Planting & Development
Supporting Democratic Republic of Congo Church Planting and Development (CPD) will help resource Nundu Hospital and related health initiatives which serve the people of eastern D.R. Congo. The hospital has returned to offering health services after suffering many losses through war damages.
Extra Mile Projects
University of Hope
This university in the Democratic Republic of Congo, established in 2007, has four majors – theology, economics, agriculture and law. Funds are needed for operating expenses and continued development of its campus overlooking Lake Tanganyika near Baraka in the province of South Kivu.
Disease, hunger, poverty and war are daily realities for the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Believing Christian education can help provide solutions to these problems, a group of Congolese Free Methodist leaders came together. They established a university with ONE dream – to develop leaders to address the needs of their nation.
Nundu Deaconess Hospital
Nundu Deaconess Hospital serves a very wide population on the eastern edge of the DRC. The hospital is directed by Congolese physicians and has a long history of partnership with FMWM. In years of war, the hospital campus suffered great losses. Restoration is still underway. Funds for restoration, for projects and support of operations are processed through this account.