The Rev. Nicholas Batzig knows there are plenty of churches to choose from in the Coastal Empire. But that hasn’t stopped him from starting a new one. After all, not all churches are created equal, he said.

“A lot of people say it doesn’t matter which church you go to as long as you’re sincere,” he said. “We say, ‘No, doctrine does matter, because the Bible teaches doctrine. That doesn’t mean we think we’re the only true church, but we do care deeply about the doctrine the scripture teaches.”

Batzig is among dozens of area religious leaders who have taken on the daunting task of starting a new Christian congregation in recent years. With hundreds of churches in Chatham County alone, new congregations are challenged to set themselves apart.

Batzig was recruited last year by local ministers affiliated with the Presbyterian Church in America to start a new congregation in Richmond Hill. He believes New Covenant Presbyterian Church is setting itself apart from other area churches through its “new Calvinistic” theology and its book-by-book, text-by-text, orthodox interpretation of the Bible.

Getting that message out has required some good business sense, an entrepreneurial spirit and a deep commitment to faith, he said. Much of the work has fallen entirely on him. Quickly after moving from Philadelphia, he opened bank accounts, launched a Web site and developed a business model.

The supporting ministers promised to cover Batzig’s full-time salary for at least a year while he recruited members. Some shared their mailing lists and allowed Batzig to preach in their pulpits.

“With coming into a new place, not knowing anybody, the number one thing people said to me was, ‘People need to hear you preach, and so you need a platform for that,” Batzig said. “Compared to someone who just comes in not knowing anyone whatsoever, I have the advantage of churches talking about this new work.”

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