Definition of Stephen Ministry: 

Stephen Ministry is a complete system for training and organizing laypersons for caring ministry in and around their congregations.

History: 

Stephen Ministry began in 1975 when the Rev. Kenneth C. Haugk, Ph.D., a pastor and clinical psychologist, trained nine laypersons at his congregation in St. Louis to be Stephen Ministers.  They assisted him in providing distinctively Christian care to members of the congregation and community.  These trained caregivers were so enthused about their ministry they encouraged Dr. Haugk to offer Stephen Ministry to more congregations.

The Name:  

The name Stephen comes from St. Stephen, who was the first layperson commissioned by the Apostles to provide caring ministry to those in need (Acts 6).

Congregations:  

More than 7,000 congregations are enrolled in the Stephen Series.  These congregations represent more than 90 different Christian denominations and come from all 50 states, 9 Canadian provinces, and 20 other countries.

People:  

More than 37,00 individuals (pastors, church staff, and laypersons have been trained as Stephen Leaders at Leaders Training Courses. These Stephen Leaders have returned to their congregations to train almost 300,000 laypersons to be Stephen Ministers.  It is estimated that since 1975 Stephen Ministers have provided distinctively Christian care to well over half a million people through formalized one-to-one caring relationships and have used their caregiving skills to touch the lives of millions of others in an informal way. 

   The Stephen Series Logo: 

The logo Stephen Ministry congregations use consists of a cross and circle, together with a broken person and  a  whole  person.  The broken person stands behind the cross, symbolizing the brokenness in our lives as a result of our sin.  The whole person stands in front of the cross because it is through the cross of Jesus that we again are made whole.  The circle symbolizes both the wholeness we receive through Christ and God’s unending love for us.

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