Report of the
Joint Committee on Ethnic Church
The Joint Committee met numerous times during the past year and continues to concentrate its efforts on Hispanic Church Planting. Our initial Hispanic Church Plant, the Lighthouse Church in south Allentown, PA, led by Pastor Elliot Ramos, experienced financial challenges this past year but God provided for the needs and the Mission continues to be a needed outreach to the Latino community in Allentown. The Organizing Elders, with the assistance of Mark Morrison, formulated a strategic plan that will be implemented in 2008
The Reading, PA Hispanic Church Plant continues to make progress under Carlos Rodriguez’s direction. An ESL outreach continues and is well attended. Attendance and offerings grew in 2007 and attendance is now averaging near one hundred people on Sundays. The Berks Regional Resource Team continues to assist and Grace BFC continues to act as a gracious host to La Roca. People continue to be saved and leaders are beginning to surface.
In 2007, Carlos Rodriguez, Church Planter at the Reading, PA Hispanic Church Plant and Pastor Marcos Ramirez, La Roca Church in Merida, Mexico, completed their tests for credentials with the BFC and are now Probationers. The Ministerial Candidate Committee appreciated the diligent preparation on the part of both men in completing the testing.
This past year, four members of the Committee: Elliot Ramos, Al Roberts, David Schlonecker, and Dana Weller were appointed by the Board of Church Extension to assess the Merida Church. The Team traveled to Merida, Mexico, and interviewed the Pastor, Elders, and congregation. They returned with a very positive report and recommendations that the Merida Church be received into the Annual Conference of the BFC. The Board of Church Extension approved the recommendations and the Merida Church will be presented for reception at this year’s Annual Conference. The Merida church will be the first church, outside of the United States, received into Conference. Praise God for His leading. The Merida church has been ministering in Merida for twelve years. The Church is nearing two hundred people, with qualified Elders, and is fully self-supporting and not seeking or desiring financial assistance from the BFC. The government of Mexico gave the church a property in the center of Merida, a city of two million people. The Church built a building on the property, along with an outdoor meeting place. They developed plans for a new sanctuary and are saving the money to build this new addition. The Merida Church had been looking for a connection with an established denomination because of the Mexican government requirement for such a connection and the Elders believes that being connectional is God’s desire for the Church. They investigated several possible connections but did not find the doctrinal compatibility they were seeking. When God led the Director of Church Extension to a meeting with Pastor Ramirez, it was apparent to both men that a connection could be pursued.
The Ethnic Committee will continue its work alongside the Merida Church and develop plans for overcoming any cultural challenges that confront us. The connection with Merida is strategic to the Hispanic church planting vision of the BFC. Both the Merida Church and the BFC seek to plant Hispanic BFC churches. Our joint vision is to have BFC churches established in the Yucatan and a Bible/Church Planting School in Merida where men can be trained for church planting in Mexico and the U.S. These are lofty goals, but we trust the Lord will guide us along each step just as He has done so with this entire venture.
The Committee continued to work on ways to develop its partnership with CAM International Mission. CAM is seeking to assist denominations ministering among Hispanics and planting Hispanic churches in America. A partnership agreement was approved this past year and could provide Hispanic men from CAM’s seminaries to assist our Hispanic church planting endeavors. Recently CAM recommended a graduate from its seminary as a candidate to assist us here in the U.S. We will be meeting with CAM and this man to determine the Lord’s will.
The Committee’s translation team, headed by David Schlonecker, continues its work on preparing a Spanish version of the Biblical Principles for Living (BPLs).
This past year, Dr. Gary Shogren, President of ESEPA Seminary in Costa Rico, BFC missionary, and member of the Quakertown BFC, recommended a man from ESEPA to assist us with Hispanic church planting. The Committee held several interviews with the man, paid his travel here to meet with the Committee, and he was interviewed by Committee member David Schlonecker in Costa Rico. The Committee approved the Brother to come and assist us with our Hispanic church plants in Reading and Allentown. Due to a lack of financial support and interest from the BFC churches, we decided not to call the Brother and place his family in such an uncertain situation. This was very disappointing for the Committee after having spent a significant amount of time and energy in qualifying this man.
Finally, we would like to encourage our Churches to reach out to the expanding number of ethnic-people groups in their ministry-target sites. “Ethnics in America, a Unique Opportunity to Share the Gospel…. Ethnic people in America totaled 97 Million in 2003 and this number continues to increase. Hispanics number close to 40 million, Asians close to 9 million, and Islamic people more than 7 million. More Jews live in America than in Israel. More Cubans live in Miami than in any city in Cuba except Havana. More Polish people reside in Chicago than in any city except Warsaw, Poland. More Armenians live in Los Angeles than in any city in the world. According to future projections, by 2060, the Asian population of the United States will surpass 42 million and the Hispanic population 115 million (The Alliance web site).” We can no longer ignore the alien in the land (the U.S.). We have many opportunities to reach ethnic people with the Gospel and plant BFC churches here in our BFC ministry target areas. We are not a large denomination and God, at present, has led us to focus on the Hispanic communities developing near all our churches. Please help us fulfill the calling God has given to reach the alien in our land.
We encourage the churches of Annual Conference to continue their support for ethnic church planting. If your church has not budgeted an amount for ethnic church planting, please do so. The opportunities are many and we need your support. Send your contributions to the Board of Missions, designated for Ethnic Church Planting.
Joint Committee on Ethnic Church: David E. Gundrum, Chairman; Don Faust, Secretary; Elliot Ramos, Alfred G. Roberts, Carlos G. Rodriguez, David K. Schlonecker, Dana E. Weller.