The Process

The name came about through a collaborative team process. Once we knew we would not use the former name possibility "Red," we prayed that God would name this church, because it is His church. God gave our team member Matthew Brown the name concept. Jeff Wong, the planting Pastor, had a sense the morning after a team meeting, this was the name God had chosen. He mentioned this as confirmation to the team only after the name was collaboratively discerned by the team over a four week process involving other name options, discussion, and prayer. At the end of the process we have a strong sense that this is the name God has chosen for this new church

The Meaning

The name More Than 12 suggests that the ways of Jesus are relevant and of value for more than just Jesus' twelve disciples from the first century, who are mentioned in the four God-inspired biographies of Jesus' life. Jesus' final words of commission given just before His ascension are also meant for a broader group than just His original twelve. It is intended for all His followers, including us today. This name functions as an ongoing reminder of the important charges to follow Jesus and to "make disciples." To those within our target group who are unfamiliar with Jesus or His original twelve, the name More Than 12 naturally arouses curiosity and makes them ask questions. This strategically provides a wonderful opportunity to talk about the One we so adore and follow in our faith journey. The name is fresh, catchy, memorable and unique for a church name. Because it is unconventional in marketing terms, it also repositions the church as a slightly different type of church, which is exactly what we sense the target group needs, what we think we are, and what we hope to be even more. That is, to be a slightly different alternative of a Biblical church, in order to reach as many fringe people as possible, who would not currently give conventional churches a chance.

The concept of Hybrid Church, the subtext found under the More Than 12 name in the logo, was developed with consideration of people who are un-churched or do not like church, and may easily glance over or dismiss what they are used to in terms of church. The concept also suggests something new and fresh, however it should be noted this is not done with a desire to be clever or hip, rather to be an alternative for them, to speak their language, with terms they can relate to and respect. It is meant to be quite vague, meaning different things to different people, even though the formal description relates to the part of our mission statement. For Christians it is meant to directly remind them that we are a church, but that we are also missional, which Biblically should have no distinction. For the un-churched, it is a highly favourable and interest-evoking subtext, making them think and ask questions, as opposed to presumptions.

The Symbol

Team member Dean Shiskowski came up with the concept of a greater than symbol to represent the name. The same morning that Jeff had a strong sense that More Than 12 was to be the name, God seemed to also give him a logo concept, for which he was praying. The end result is a logo described by Dean as visually simple and clean, which he relates to the international rock band U2.