wfn.org | United Church of Christ Synod votes increase in Latino/Latina ministries

[George Conklin <gconklin@wfn.org>]

United Church of Christ
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contact: Barbara Powell
phone: 216-736-2222
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Synod delegates vote to strengthen Latino/Latina ministries
by Hans Holznagel
        PROVIDENCE, R.I.  _ July 3, 1999 — The General Synod of the United
Church of Christ approved a plan of action tonight (July 3) to help the entire
denomination deepen its ministries to and with one of the fastest growing
populations in the United States:  Hispanics.
        Fewer than 1 percent of the UCC’s 1.4 million members are Latino or
Latina, “but we are blessed beyond numbers in the leadership we have from our
Hispanic members,” said a regional minister who spoke for the resolution, the
Rev. Callie Rogers-Witte of the Phoenix-based Southwest Conference.
        The Synod voted to continue the life of a national “Hispanic Ministries
Implementation Team” for another two years, adopted a five-year Plan of Action
and commended its eight goals and 53 objectives to national, regional and local
settings of the church.
        The Synod also noted achievements so far in the Team’s 10 years of
work.  These range from the 1999 publication of a Spanish-language hymnal to
the slowly increasing presence of Latinas and Latinos in important roles such
as Synod delegates, delegates to ecumenical meetings, scholarship recipients
and Christian education consultants.
        “We now need to increase connections between conferences (regional
bodies) of the church and the regions of the Council for Hispanic Ministries,”
said Linda Jaramillo, president of the council and co-chair of the
implementation Team.
        Among the diverse objectives adopted by the Synod and commended to
various bodies of the church were:
        * Starting or revitalizing an average of four or more Latino-Latina
churches per year.
        * Developing a stewardship program for Hispanic churches.
        * Equipping conferences and local churches to address immigration
issues.
        * Increasing the number of Latinos and Latinas in important roles
in the
church, such as delegates to Synod and people in overseas missions.
        Eight broad goal areas include church development, a “sense of
inclusiveness,” global partnerships, societal empowerment, leadership
development, prophetic action, stewardship and health.
        (Hans Holznagel is minister for mission education and public relations
with the United Church Board for Homeland Ministries.)