wfn.org | Spanish Protestant Church going through growth crisis

["Christian B. Schäffler" <APD_Info_Schweiz@compuserve.com>]

October 1, 1999
Adventist Press Service (APD)
Christian B. Schaeffler, Editor-in-chief
Fax +41-61-261 61 18
APD@stanet.ch
http://www.stanet.ch/APD
CH-4003 Basel, Switzerland

Spain: Protestant Church going through growth crisis, said 
Hispanic leader

Madrid, Spain. (ALC/APD)  A considerable part of the current  
crisis in Spanish Evangelical or Protestant Churches is 
fundamentally related  to growth, said Pedro Tarquis Alfonso. 

The well-known Christian leader, Media advisor for the 
Federation of Evangelical Religious Entities of Spain (FEREDE), 
said that Hispanic Protestantism is in the midst of a 
restructuring that seeks to resolve a series of difficulties. 

In his speech, entitled "Self-criticism of Protestant Christianity 
on the verge of the XXI Century," Tarquis said that the main 
external difficulties are: the lack of a common external image, 
the null relationship with Catholics who have a good 
relationship with Protestants, lack of knowledge of the 
Protestant historic-cultural patrimony and the relationship with 
the Catholic Church.  

Regarding the first, he said that the lack of a representative 
body, such as the Catholic hierarchy, is beneficial because it 
allows for more versatility, but creates difficulties regarding an 
ideological and ethical definition, as well as coordinated 
action. He noted that in the Catholic Church there are 
tendencies that are similar to Evangelical tendencies, and 
range from Liberation Theology to Opus Dei. 

He indicated that the Spanish Evangelical Alliance (AEE), a 
member of European and World Alliances, carries out tasks to 
disseminate Evangelical ecumenical thought, but lacks greater 
representation from some members of the Spanish Evangelical 
community. 

FEREDE, that represents Evangelical Churches before the 
State, serves as a channel to give public expression to legal 
questions and issues of ideological representation. However, 
the common development and coordination of projects still 
tends to face obstacles due to the autonomy of the local 
Church although slow progress has been made in some 
sectors. 

He also said that the "Unamuno Syndrome" has impeded 
Protestant Churches from forming a common front with free-
thinking Catholics about themes where there is agreement, 
such as the increased participation of women in the Church, 
the separation of Church and State and the revision of some 
dogma that lack a Biblical foundation. 

He also noted that many Spanish Evangelicals are not aware 
of the historical and cultural patrimony of their Churches, such 
as their participation in the liberation of the colonies of 
America, the abolition of slavery and women's education. This, 
he said, gives an idea of the social, historical and cultural 
rootlessness that Spanish Protestants experience and is 
compounded when they encounter the same rootlessness in 
the society that surrounds them. 

Regarding relations with the Catholic Church he said that 
Evangelicals have not known how to develop a relationship 
with the Catholic hierarchy or to carry out a "constructive 
opposition" regarding agreements and differences. This would 
also serve to strengthen their own internal identity. 

Moreover, said Tarquis, there are internal difficulties such as  
he separation between the faith and social commitment, the 
creation of a type of social "ghetto" due to prejudice and 
discrimination, and the tendency to preach a "light" 
Christianity, far from human needs. 

In this situation, concluded Tarquis, the vitality of 
congregations and the need that exists, is leading to a growth 
crisis that I hope has a notable harvest in the first years of the 
new century.