How to Join
Application Form (print publications)
The Associated Church Press is a community of communication professionals dedicated to giving God's word a creative set of wings as it describes and supports the life of faith in the Christian community. Founded in 1916, we are the oldest religious press association in North America, as well as the publishing organization that's most representative of the diversity of Christian faith in the western hemisphere.
The ACP family consists of Publishing Members, Individual Members, and Affiliate Members.
Publishing Members
This is the greatest share of our membership as well as our historic base. Members of this type can be periodicals (newspapers, newsletters, journals, magazines), news/feature services, or websites. Members may be ecumenical or interfaith so long as Christian readers make up a significant part of their audience. Members may also be international, so long as readership is English-speaking. If your periodical, news service, or website organization is looking for ways to improve itself — editorially, financially, or graphically — if your staff can benefit from professional training in print-communication skills, from networking with other religious-press professionals, and from fellowship within a rich diversity of the Christian faith, then Publication Membership is the right fit for you. Key benefits: listing in our online Publication Member directory, one free use of Publishing Member mailing list per year, eligibility for the annual ACP Awards' "Best of the Christian Press," member and group discounts for our convention and other events/services, access to our members-only online professional development, our regular e-newsletter ACPwire, press cards and membership certificate, freelancers directory in hard copy, postal counseling for U.S. members. Also: a mentoring program and the "Forms Forum" where members share templates, spreadsheets, checklists, etc. rather than reinvent the wheel.
If you would like a prospective Publication Membership packet:
(1) Please review our organization's Statement of Ethics and Standards of Professional Practice to be sure our philosophy is a good fit with yours.
(2) Notify ACP's office at ContactACP@aol.com by using the contact information at the top of this page. For much faster service, click here for a Publication Member Application Form and Dues Schedule.
Individual Members
Our Individual Members include freelancers (individual writers, marketers, publishers, web designers, and editors), students and teachers of religious journalism, retirees from the field of religious communication, and Honorary Life Members. If you as an individual want to have a relationship with Publishing Members of the ACP, to promote your individual work or to sustain your personal interest in this field, then Individual Membership is the ACP category of membership that fits you best. Key benefits: listing in online freelance directory, access to our members-only online professional development section, our regular e-newsletter ACPwire, member discounts for our convention and other events/services, press card and membership certificate.
If you would like a prospective Individual Membership packet:
(1) Please review our organization's Statement of Ethics and Standards of Professional Practice to be sure our philosophy is a good fit with yours.
(2) Notify ACP's office at ContactACP@aol.com by using the contact information at the top of this page. For even faster service, visit the online Individual Member Application Form and Dues Schedule.
Affiliate Members and Partners
Affiliate Members are the ACP's "Preferred Partners"—those whose business and/or service purposes — design firms, publishing and marketing consultants, religious book publishers, Christian charities — are good match with our Publishing Members. If your organization is looking for a symbiotic relationship with publishers of religious periodicals, websites, and news/information services — if you can help them and they can help you — then Affiliate Membership is the ACP category of membership that fits you best. Key benefits: listing in Preferred Partners online directory, one free use of Publishing Member mailing list per year, access to our members-only online professional development, our regular e-newsletter ACPwire, member discounts for our convention and other events/services, membership certificate, exclusive opportunities to teach your expertise at ACP conventions as a way to promote your business or publicize your message.
If you would like a prospective Affiliate Membership packet, notify ACP's office at ContactACP@aol.com by using the contact information at the top of this page. For even service, click here for an Affiliate Member Application Form.
Why Join Us?
We invite you to join us in the exciting and changing
world of Christian communications!
The purpose of ACP is "...to promote acquaintance and fellowship, to foster helpfulness among its members, and its individual members, and to stimulate high standards of religious communication." Read what others say about ACP:
"Since I work on a small editorial staff, membership in ACP has been especially beneficial. It allows me to connect with others in church publishing, to learn from each other's challenges, and share wisdom and give support. It's a fabulous network that has helped me both professionally and personally." Kate Sprutta Elliott, Editor, Seeds for the Parish
"Increased postal rates have us all on the ropes. I don't know where we would be without the intervention and leadership of the ACP. Its advocacy - as well as personal advice on how to qualify for discounts - has easily been worth the annual cost of membership." Michelle Merten, Marketing Manager, U.S. Catholic
"Our participation in the Associated Church Press provides the staff of the United Methodist Reporter with an excellent opportunity to fulfill one of Jesus' most fervent prayers, that his disciples 'may all be one' (John 17:20). Through ACP we readily encourage and learn for one another as we pursue the ministry of communications in our respective theological contexts.. Thus we build up the body of Christ among ourselves and in the churches we serve." Cynthia B. Astle, Editor and Director of E-media, UMR Communications, Inc.
"The critiques and workshops annually provided by journalism professors from around the nation stimulate our staff with creative ideas and new ways to improve our weekly publication." Bob Terry, Editor, The Alabama Baptist
