Sr. Pastor Anthony “Shep” Crawford, who leads Experience Christian Ministries Church of Los Angeles, launched a new initiative, The Apology Tour, to help rebuild the relationship between churches and local communities.
The Apology Tour, which kicked off on Saturday, is a group of faith-based organizations that work together to help engage the community. Their mission pillars, abbreviated as CPR, are Connection: rebuilding the churches’ connection with the community; Partnership: partnering with schools, parks & recreation, politicians, law agencies, and community and faith-based organizations; and Relationships: mending strained relationships.
“The Apology Tour is aimed at showing the community that we as a church understand that we could be doing more, that we should be doing more and that we are making a commitment to do better and to be better,” the church said in a statement.
The church says The Apology Tour is Pastor Crawford’s passion project that he envisioned for Experience Christian Ministries for more than two years.
“The union between the two entities (the church and the community) is in crisis, especially following the global pandemic,” the church said. “So much is needed for the community and the church to thrive. The interconnectedness between the two entities is so vital to the sustainability of both that we must restore the relationship.”
Some of the faith-based organizations that ECM has partnered with include Center of Hope Church, Touch the World International Ministries, and Chosen Generation Fellowship Church.
The tour kicked off on Saturday with a press conference outside of Experience Christian Ministries, followed by a walkout with participating organizations on Sunday. During the walk out, which represented the Day of Pentecost, community faith leaders spent time in the community for 1-4 hours, offering various services, resources and giveaways for people in need.
“Faith leaders in the Los Angeles area are coming together to apologize for shortcoming and moving forward, the goal is to be fully intertwined within each community,” the church said. “Our communities are hurting and our promise to heal them from the inside out, is just the beginning.”
Beginning in June and running throughout the year, church leaders and members will participate in monthly training, led by ECM volunteers, LiveFreeCA personnel, community stakeholders, and faith leaders to learn how to help engage and develop the community.
“Change like this doesn’t happen overnight, but we are all dedicated to this movement,” the church said. “Our people are important to us and they should know it.”
Pastor Crawford is a five-time Grammy Award winning producer and writer whose mission is to strengthen the connection between the church and the community.
To learn more about Experience Christian Ministries and The Apology Tour, visit www.theecm.org.
