Definition: Steiger [stahy-ger]
- noun
1. Dutch word meaning: "pier"
2. Refers to the location of the barge where David & Jodi Pierce started a bible study, to reach the punks and the anarchists in Amsterdam in the early 80s.

Steiger’s story begins in 1981 in Amsterdam at the height of the European punk rock movement. There David and Jodi Pierce started a Bible study on a barge behind central station for radical punks and street people.  They reached out to some of the world’s most radicalized youth, using the universal language of music to draw them in. They started a band called "No Longer Music" (NLM) that used the stage to communicate messages of love, hope, and peace—the Gospel of Jesus—to thousands of young people on a path to self-destruction.  From Amsterdam they branched out to the rest of Europe including many communist countries. 



In a 32-concert "Moscow to Mongolia" tour in 1991, NLM had the opportunity to be the first Western band to play in Uzbekistan and Mongolia. More importantly, however, the campaign resulted in 2,000 responses to the Gospel. Bible studies were begun in numerous cities by NLM's church planting partners who remained in Russia after the tour to disciple those who made a commitment at the concerts. These Bible studies have developed into numerous missions-minded churches, reaching out to the lost in their cities and other nearby cities.



Since then, No Longer Music has taken its message of hope to some of the darkest places imaginable, including closed Islamic countries, terrorist clubs, squatter villages, anarchy festivals, brothels, junkie joints, punk & goth music festivals, Satanist clubs and New Age gatherings.

Recently, Steiger has expanded it’s reach to include Muslim youth in Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, Lebanon and other parts of the Muslim world.  Many of these young people live in environments that are openly hostile to Christianity. No Longer Music has visited cities where the Gospel has not been preached for hundreds of years, and where the decision to follow Christ is literally a matter of life and death.  Despite these dangers, and the additional possibility of becoming ostracized from their families and communities, we have seen many respond to Christ and the hope that He offers.

As a result of these efforts, the Gospel’s contagious nature has produced a wave of people passionate about bringing the love of Jesus to secular youth.

Today there are 35 different ministries and partners operating out of 9 countries around the globe under the banner of Steiger International. These ministries are continually reaching out to their communities through unconventional programs like the SLOT Art Festival in Poland – an annual gathering of thousands of artists, musicians and young people; Pleiteiger Records in Germany – a record label dedicated to evangelistic artists founded and run by Steiger Germany’s base director; and the Salvage Yard Church in Minneapolis – which grew out of a “Hardcore” Bible study and ministers to the youth culture in that city.



For more information, we highly recommend reading David Pierce's autobiography "Rock Priest" which describes how Steiger came into existence.