wfn.org | ALC Noticias June 12, 2005

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

ALC NEWS SERVICE
E-mail: director@alcnoticias.org

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CONTENT

NICARAGUA: Pastors propose submitting constitutional reforms to referendum
PARAGUAY : MERCOSUR creates working group on religious freedom
BRAZIL: Nilson Fanini asked for a transfer and divides Baptists from Rio de
Janeiro
BOLIVIA: Bolivia's problems are structural, said UMAVIDA

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NICARAGUA
Pastors propose submitting constitutional reforms to referendum

By Trinidad Vásquez

MANAGUA, June 9 (alc). The National Council of Evangelical Pastors (CNPEN)
proposed that the government submit proposed constitutional reforms to
referendum as a mechanism to overcome the crisis between the Enrique
Bolaños government and the National Assembly.

"We ask that you recall that national sovereignty resides with the people
and that it is necessary to turn to grassroots consultation mechanisms to
keep the conflict among powers from growing worse," said Pastors Mario
Espinoza and Palbo Sovalbarro, president and secretary general of CNPEN
said in a press conference June 7.

The conflict between the government and Congress grew worse after the
approval of Constitutional reforms in the National Assembly. According to
the government, these reforms break down the balance among State powers. It
opposed to the creation of bodies to regulate public services that
government sources have said are presided by officials close to the
Sandinista Front and the Constitutionalist Liberal Party, of former
president Arnoldo Aleman.

The government did not recognize the appointments for the National Assembly
for the Superintendency of Public Services and ordered the police to guard
the telecommunications, water and electricity buildings. Meanwhile, the
president of the Supreme Justice Court Manuel Martinez, said that the
constitutional reforms and the appointment of the officials are obligatory
and those who are opposed can be sanctioned with up to six years in jail.

According to the Evangelical pastors, "only respect for the people and the
full exercise of their rights will allow the constitutional postulates to
no longer be a utopia."

The pastor of the Baptist Church Carlos Villagra, warned that the country
is experiencing a serious crisis that could end in social chaos and he
called on to make their prophetic voice heard.

Cardinal Miguel Obando y Bravo, in an event convened by the mayor of
Managua, Dionisio Marenco, called on government and opposition leaders to
return to dialogue and find a solution to the crisis. If we do not resolve
this problem, he warned, the situation could become more complicated and
lead to violence.

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PARAGUAY
MERCOSUR creates working group on religious freedom

ASUNCION, June 9 (alc).  Representatives from official bodies responsible
for relationships with different religious confessions Mercosur (Southern
Cone Market)  agreed to create a working group on religious freedom and
worship, during a meeting held in this capital June 2 -3.

The working group, made up of representatives from MERCOSUR member and
associate nations (Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, Chile and Bolivia)
is considered a valuable instrument for exchange and joint work regarding
issues of religious freedom and worship in the region.

Convened by the government of Paraguay, which currently holds the
Pro-Tempore presidency of Mercosur, meeting participations including the
Under Secretary of Worship of Argentina, Héctor Masquelet; Dr. Humberto
Lagos, advisor to President Ricardo Lagos on religious issues and director
of human rights programs, the Deputy Minister of Worship of Paraguay,
Osvaldo Gonzáez, Faleg González, of the Bolivian Embassy and the Deputy
Minister of Legal Security for the Ministry of Interior and Justice of
Venezuela Pedro Manuel Olveira.

Upcoming meetings will also be attended by representatives from religious
confessions and organizations. Issues such as conscientious objection,
moral relationships and public order, the rights of women and religion as
well as the movement of Church dignitaries and missionaries among countries
will be addressed.

During the Asuncion meeting, participants also agreed to publish periodic
reports about religious freedom in the region and the elaboration of a web
page to share information about legislation, problems related to religious
freedom and worship as well as to contribute ideas for a better
relationship among States and religious entities.

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BRAZIL
Nilson Fanini asked for a transfer and divides Baptists from Rio de Janeiro

Por Edelberto Behs,

RÍO DE JANEIRO,  June 8 (alc). One of the most emblematic pastors of the
Evangelical Brazilian World, 73-year old Nilson do Amaral Fanini asked the
First Baptist Church of Niteroi, that he has led for 41 years, for his
transfer to the Baptist Church on the Island of Conceicao.

"We are not going to place any obstacles for transfers," said the current
president of the First Baptist Church of Niteroi, Delio Lima de Amaral,
although he admitted that similar requests from 152 faithful constitute a
division in the congregation.

The strife can be explained by problems of an administrative-financial
order: suspect accounts, debts of a million reales (close to $408,000) of
the Baptist Theological Seminary of Niteroi and a problem involving
1,670,000 reales (around $700,000), money coming from tithing and donations
to build the Baptist Cathedral in land provided by the municipality of Niteroi.

With the authorization of Pastor Fanini, the money destined to build the
cathedral was deposited in an account belonging to people who were
illegally dedicated to buying and selling dollars. "He did not consult the
board. If he had done so we would not have this damage," said Amaral, who
assumed the presidency last March after Fanini asked to be separated for
alleged health reasons.

"Pastor Fanini trusted people too much," handing over large amounts of
money and without guarantees," said Amaral. The new president complained
about Fanini's lack of transparency in the management of the congregation's
accounts.

Regarding the serious allegations, ALC tried to communicate with Fanini on
June 1, but through the secretary of the organization "Reencontro - Social
and Educational Works," the pastor said he would only talk "next week." New
attempts on June 6 and June 8 did not yield any results.

According to influential Evangelical magazine Eclesia, there is no evidence
that Fanini had acted in bad faith. The loss of 1,670,000 reales, according
to Eclesia, was only discovered by the pastor himself with the help of
Ademir Pimentel, member of the Church.

The assembly held February 3 determined that the debt regarding the
Cathedral Project should be pardoned and this decision made part of the
Church membership indignant, who opted to denounce the case before the
judicial branch.

The First Baptist Church of Niteroi convened a new assembly for the end of
April, but did not manage to bring together half of the members as
stipulated in the statutes in order to have a quorum in order to address
the issue of the debt. "We must bring together more than 4,000 which does
not correspond to our list of members," said Amaral.

The congregation is currently reviewing the number of members and a
possible statutory reform. The decision to pardon the debt is on hold until
the trial.

With the accounts under the magnifying glass, other uncomfortable data for
Pastor Fanini has appeared. For example, the Church has been paying four
different life insurance polices for Fanini, one of them worth 500,000
reales (around $205,000).

Fanini asked the Church to grant him a monthly retirement stipend of 14,400
reales ($5,900) which he earned as a n active pastor in the Church.
However, the congregation has frozen the pastor's request for benefits,
including the pension.

The Verification Commission of the Church accounts confirmed that it also
spent considerable sums in travel, per diem and food attention, all covered
by the "Cathedral expenses." In the past three years, said expenses reached
75,000 reales, according to the magazine Eclesia.

The Church board decided to verify the Church's accounts in the past five
years. "It is a great deal of work," said Amaral.
Numbers from the Baptist Seminary of Niterio currently under the leadership
of Pastor Nilson do Amaral Fanini, who substituted Fanini in the position,
are also worrying. Up until recently, the Seminary, which now has a
deficit, had a reserve or approximately $123,000 in a bank account, said
Amaral.

The unrest in the First Baptist Church of Niteroi dates back to October
2004, when an Internal Audit Commission asked Pastor Fanini, then president
of the Congregation, to clarify the situation regarding the use of the
funds and the business that has been carried out. The commission did not
obtain any responses.

The Church is now going through major difficulties, "but it is alive and we
must balance ourselves, with the help of the Lord," said Amaral. It still
has regular worship services. Optimistic, Amaral hopes that the Church will
shortly recover from all its problems.

The Church was founded May 1, 1982. In 41 years of ministry, Fanini
baptized 11,000 people, created an organization Church structure that
brought together 13 auxiliary ministries, including the NGO Reecontro,
which last year distributed 20 tons of food.

Fanini, who was president of the World Baptist Seminary, held crusades in
109 countries. He founded the theological seminary which has trained more
than 600 pastors and religious educators who work in different parts of
Brazil. He is a member of the Council of former presidents of the World
Baptist Council, a consultative body for the international organization
that congregates more than 100 million Baptist around the world.

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BOLIVIA
Bolivia's problems are structural, said UMAVIDA

LA PAZ, June 10 (ALC)..The proclamation of the new president of the
Republic Eduardo Rodríguez and the convocation of general elections will
likely contribute to reducing the political tension but will not resolve
the structural problems confronting Bolivia.

According to the Bolivian Network Uniting Hands for Life (UMAVIDA), the
chaos in the country will not be resolved with general elections or by
convening a constituent assembly. "Even less by nationalizing hydrocarbons
or declaring regional autonomies. These are timely issues and likely
condemned to failure, if they do not follow a sensible process."

In recent weeks Bolivia was the scene of grassroots mobilizations, road
blocks in more than 80 points across the nation, dynamite explosions in the
cities, a siege on the Executive and legislative branches and
confrontations among State powers.

In the context of the mobilizations, the fact that Congress was unable or
unwilling to hold a session and accept the resignation presented by former
President Carlos Mesa and the lack of decision on the part of Senate
presidents and the legislative change to renounce the right to
constitutional succession, brought the country to the verge of a civil war.

According to UMAVIDA, a body that brings together 11 Evangelical and
Protestant Churches, the problem in Bolivia is structural. "We build a
state that excludes the vast majorities, the excluded never had space for
participation and decision in the political and economic life of the
country and thirdly, we were never able to educate ourselves to live in
democracy and a multi-cultural society, it affirmed.

"We need to educate our spirit for democracy and multi-cultural life. We
need to free ourselves from our selfishness and our myopic mentalities. We
need to educate ourselves for solidarity," said the declaration.

The ecumenical body raised the need to build the future based on the values
of the Kingdom of God and attending the needs of the poor. "Until God's
chosen satisfy these delayed! needs, every attempt at political or social
agreement will be these: an attempt under siege by permanent chaos,"
concluded the reflection of UMAVIDA.
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