The Iglesia Ni Cristo is for everyone who will heed the call of God and embrace its faith regardless of nationality, cultural background, social standing, economic status, and educational attainment.
To date, the Iglesia Ni Cristo membership comprises 114 nationalities. It maintains 5,545 congregations and missions grouped into 114 ecclesiastical districts in the Philippines and 102 other countries and territories in the six inhabited continents of the world.
Vision
A "radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless" (Eph 5:27 NIV) and whose members are bound by perfect unity faith and practice, devoted to a life of holiness and service founded on the true Christian teaching.Mission
To share the gospel of salvation to all people, by heeding Christ's call to "go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved" (Mark 16:15-16).To carry this out, the members gladly share their faith to everyone at all opportune time. They invite people to attend Bible study sessions and worship services. The Church also uses mass media in spreading its message of hope to a broader audience.
Pasugo: God's Message, the monthly official magazine of the Church that carries mainly religious articles and Church news and features, has been in circulation since 1939.
Through the Christian Era Broadcasting Service Incorporated (CEBSI), the Church broadcasts programs that discuss Bible teachings over the radio (via INC Radio - DZEM 954 kHz) and television (via INCTV channel 49).
INC Radio programs are aired also by other radio stations in the Philippines as well as in the USA and Australia. The INCTV channel 49 airs in free television and in major cable stations in the Philippines and some channels in the US. These programs can also be
seen in the Internet via the website www.incmedia.org.
To edify the faith of its members through constant and effective religious instruction, "admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom. . . [to] present everyone perfect in Christ" (Col 1:28 NIV).For the spiritual welfare of the members, worship services are held on Wednesdays or Thursdays and Saturdays or Sundays by every local congregation inside the house of worship. This solemn gathering of the faithful consists of hymn-singing, prayers, and study of God's words for proper applications in daily living.
Prayer meetings are also held weekly by each group of neighboring households for further instructions in the faith and announcements about Church undertakings.
Pastoral visitations to the brethren are conducted regularly by the Church officers for prayer and spiritual counseling.
Through its Christian family organizations (Buklod, KADIWA, and Binhi) the Church Of Christ undertakes programs to strengthen the family, to guide the single members in right living and in proper conduct, and to assist the youth in their studies. The Buklod (bond) is the organization of married members. The KADIWA (acronym of a Filipino phrase meaning "Youth with a Noble Intent") is for the single members 18 years and older, and the Binhi (seed) is composed of 13 to 17-year old members.
History
Registration: The Iglesia Ni Cristo was registered in the Philippines on July 27, 1914 by Brother Felix Y. Manalo, the Messenger of God in these last days. His specific mission was to preach about the way to salvation which resulted to the reestablishment of the Church founded by the Lord Jesus Christ in the first century. The first-century Church Of Christ was apostatized after the death of the apostles.
From the corners of Manila where he initially preached its biblical message of salvation, the Church easily gained a following that, in the next couple of years, spread from within the nation's capital to its neighboring provinces and regions.
By 1939, the Church had already expanded to as far as Ilocos Norte province in Northern Luzon and to the Cebu province in the Visayas with the addition of 14 districts. It reached farther south in Mindanao in 1941, with the establishment of a district in Cotabato in 1946. When its first Executive Minister, Brother Felix Manalo, passed away in April 1963, the Church had established ecclesiastical districts in more than half of all the provinces in this Far Eastern archipelago.
Expansion: From the late '60s throughout the '70s, the Iglesia Ni Cristo began to permeate the continents of North America (establishing congregations and missions in other American states and territories, such as Honolulu, Hawaii, and San Francisco, California in 1968, New York and Guam in 1969, and Canada in 1971); Europe (first in England in 1972, followed by Germany, Switzerland, and later, Spain); Australia, mid-'70s; Asia (China by way of Hong Kong; Japan through Tokyo; Thailand); and Africa (Nigeria and South Africa in 1978).
As more congregations arose across the globe, the US Main Office was set up in Daly City, California in June 1987, to assist the Central Administration in supervising the growing presence of the Church in the West. By the end of the '80s, congregations and missions have been formed in the Scandinavian countries and their neighbors.
The first congregation in Latin America was established in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba in 1990. The following year, the Church reached Mexico and Aruba.
A milestone in the Iglesia Ni Cristo's global expansion was the establishment of its congregations in world cities that are of great relevance to the history of Christianity-Rome, Italy on July 27, 1994; Jerusalem, Israel on March 31, 1996; and Athens, Greece on May 10, 1997. The predecessors (prayer groups) of these full-fledged congregations began two decades earlier.
In 2000, the Church's mission penetrated the South American continent, with the establishment of group worship services in Brazil and Peru. Even in minor island nations and territories throughout the Pacific and in the Middle East, Iglesia Ni Cristo members abound at present. The same is true in Southeast Asian countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, and many other countries.
Centennial: Now moving on to its centennial year in 2014, the Iglesia Ni Cristo under the leadership of its present Executive Minister, Brother Eduardo V. Manalo, continues to be blessed with sustained growth and greater success. As the membership keeps on growing, more ministers, evangelical workers, and Church officers are assigned all over the world. More houses of worship are also being built.
Assisting its Central Office in Quezon City, Philippines, the Church now has two main offices--the US Main Office in Burlingame, California and the Europe Main Office in London, United Kingdom which was inaugurated on July 25, 2010. Thus, the spiritual concerns of its members worldwide are properly addressed and attended to at all times. The unity of the faith is kept. The mission of salvation lives on.
