This is a common question.

“Evangelical” comes from the word that means, “good news.” As a church we want to be intentional in spreading the “good news” of Jesus Christ and His saving power in our community and throughout the world. It also means we are committed to the Bible as our guide for life.

The word “Free” means each church in the EFCA is free to make its own decisions and customize its ministries to meet the needs of that community.

The roots of the Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA) go back to Swedish immigrants who came to this country in the late 1800s. They wanted to establish churches which shared the good news and were able to establish their own style and expressions of worship “free” from a state-controlled church. Until the 1930s many of the early EFCA churches conducted their services in Swedish.

There are currently over 1,300 churches around the country, with over 100 in California. You can find out more about EFCA at the web site:

www.efca.org