NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - "Igniting Ministry," the United Methodist Church’s most ambitious attempt to use television and other media to evangelize the masses, will be launched nationally this September.

The 2000 General Conference approved a campaign authorizing United Methodist Communications (UMCom) to create national television commercials about the United Methodist Church for cable television.

The $20 million national campaign is designed to increase the awareness of the United Methodist Church and its ministries and to invite people into a relationship with Christ through the local churches.

The campaign will be kicked off with a proposed "United Methodist Open House Month," in which local churches will be urged to hold a monthlong open house. The churches will be encouraged "to get ready for company, not just by opening the doors of the church and waiting until a 30-second commercial motivates someone to walk in," said the Rev. Steve Horswill-Johnston, a staff executive and the newly named director of Igniting Ministry.

Rather, he said, churches will see a positive effect from the TV ads if they make a concentrated effort to sharpen their hospitality and marketing skills, and if members personally invite people into their houses of worship.

Horswill-Johnston, who formerly led the communication agency’s Conference Resourcing Team (CRT), has assembled a team to lead the campaign with help from leadership across the church.

"Perhaps it is time to cease allowing only the secular media to declare what divides us as a denomination and use those same media to declare what unites us and makes us the denomination of choice," Horswill-Johnston said. "Most importantly, by doing this across the connection, we can declare to those we are inviting and to each other that our connectionalism is our competitive advantage."

"Television is the language of the people, the kind of people we are looking to bring into relationship with Christ and into our United Methodist congregations," said the Rev. Larry Hollon, UMCom’s top staff executive.

The ad campaign will provide the denomination with the opportunity "to address persons we might never have the opportunity to communicate with in any other way," he said.

So far, nine television ads and six radio spots have been shown in various parts of the United States. Nearly 40 percent of the viewers polled indicated an interest in visiting a United Methodist church after seeing the ads.

The television ads are one element in a five-part coordinated effort. The broader campaign will support and encourage local churches to become active partners in reaching out to "unchurched" people and creating renewed enthusiasm among members.

A planning kit and training sessions are being developed to assist congregations in honing their inviting and welcoming skills and to provide guidance in conducting media campaigns based on Igniting Ministry. Newspaper ads, radio spots and artwork for supporting media will be included in the planning kit and on a Web site. In addition, matching grants will be offered to help conferences and local churches with media buys. On the Internet, the campaign will provide information about the United Methodist Church and a locator service to find local congregations.

UMCom will use the funding voted by General Conference only to purchase time on national cable systems. From its own separate budget, the general agency will develop the spots, the planning kit, training and Web site, as well as provide funds for matching grants. Local and regional matching grants will begin in the spring. The grants will enable recipients to purchase local and regional broadcast television time to supplement the nationwide cable TV buy. Applications will be available through UMCom’s Igniting Ministry office (800-476-7766).

Florida United Methodist Communications and the Florida Conference Communications Team are coordinating the Igniting Ministry effort in the Florida Conference. Churches will be receiving details about how they can be involved in the initiative in the coming months.