PAST TO PRESENT
Tom Nees and The Mission Journal BY STAN INGERSOL Elton Trueblood contended that authentic Christian witness in the modern world requires three elements be brought into harmony: piety, social concern, and the life of the mind. All three converged in the ministry of Tom Nees. An inveterate reader with broad interests, Nees graduated from Nazarene Theological Seminary in 1962. He began writing for Herald of Holiness during his first pastorate. Those early articles clarified Nazarene beliefs, morals, and practices, and bore such titles as “Can a Man be Perfect?”“Moving Beyond Legalism,” and “On Being Open to Sanctification.”1 They reflected the central role of evangelism. Eventually, themes of Christian social responsibility emerged. In 1974 he wrote: “The witness of our lives includes everything we do and say as a revelation of what we believe and hold to be true.” Good works cannot justify sinners, but they do glorify God, allowing“authentic evangelism” to proceed.2 In 1973, Nees was pastor of First Church of the Nazarene in Washington, D. C., and wrote about the National Prayer Breakfast where President Nixon spoke. He then described some of the Christian networks operating inside America’s capitol city.3 Two years later, a prayer group was organized that evolved into a home mission church in Washington, D.C.’s “riot corridor.” Called the Community of Hope, its ministries grew to include “a health clinic, legal counseling, emergency food and clothing assistance, housing rehabilitation, a shelter for the homeless, tutoring, and a variety of other neighborhood projects.” Themes of urban ministry, care for the poor, and racial reconciliation had moved to the forefront of Nees’ witness.4 1 Herald of Holiness (Sept. 11, 1963): 7-8; (Oct. 13, 1971): 12-13; and (Mar 28, 1973): 10-11;
Tom Nees.
Nees was acquainted with Gordon Cosby, founder of Church of the Savior, an innovative congregation. He was also reading renewal literature, and he absorbed Mildred Wynkoop’s small but interesting book, John Wesley: Christian Revolutionary (1970), which examined early Methodist concern for the material needs of others. Nees entered a Doctor of Ministry degree program at Wesley Theological Seminary and submitted his thesis on “The Holiness Social Ethic and Nazarene Urban Ministry.” In it, he undertook a comprehensive study of urban and social ministry precedents in early Methodism and in the early Church of the Nazarene. He applied theological insights from Methodist and Nazarene founders to his practical approaches to inner-city ministry in Washington. Community of Hope launched a monthly paper edited by Estelle Ducharme. Nees noted that the new publication was “a part of our call to urban ministry... we want to open the life of our community to others, to encourage interest, participation and support as we 3 Ibid (April 25, 1973): 10-11. 4 Ibid (Dec. 1, 1982): 6-7.
2 Ibid (Sept 25, 1974): 6-7.
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NBUSA Quarterly