Hart van Osdorp - Amsterdam

Osdorp is considered to be a deprived neighborhood in Amsterdam. There are many problems, like poverty, unemployment, loneliness, racism, integration problems, school dropout and more. More than half of the inhabitants of Osdorp are of Moroccan or Turkish origin. Most people are muslim. There are 7 churches and 8 mosques, but the churches aren't focused on Osdorp and their members are mostly from other districts.

'Hart van Osdorp' (English: heart of Osdorp) was founded 13 years ago by Henno Smit from ECM Netherlands. It is an intercultural family of Jesus. Important values of the project are: discipleship, being family, prayer, paying attention to the Holy Spirit and telling people about Jesus. 'Hart van Osdorp' distinguishes itself from other churches by the strong emphasis on family and by being a real neighborhood church. They want to meet and serve the people in Osdorp unconditionally, without judgement. Everyone is welcome.

After many years of hard work, 'Hart van Osdorp' has build a lot of trust in the neighborhood. The city of Amsterdam has even asked the project to participate in the municipal social work in Osdorp, which led to many activities, like language courses, children's projects, picnics, initiatives for people with disabilities, the development of neighborhood gardens and more. 'Hart van Osdorp' also puts a lot of time and energy into the asylum seekers' center in Osdorp. At present, 80 to 100 people are structurally connected to 'Hart van Osdorp'.

“It is quite a challenge to be a church in this environment,” says Henno Smit. “It requires a lot of investment, prayer and patience. But in the last two years, we have baptized 15 people, most of them with a muslim background. We are very grateful to God for everything He does!”