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March 2002
Dear Partners in Mission,
My first colleague in ministry from the National Presbyterian
Church of Mexico (NPCM), was Saul Tijerina. Saul entered the Church
triumphant on January 16, 2002. He was a mentor and friend. I
miss his counsel. For ten years (1985-1995) we labored together,
creating ministries which planted churches and responded to the
needs of the poor via social service programs. At times the emphasis
was on church planting, and at others it tended to be on developing
programs that responded to the needs of the community, such
as a health clinic or day care center.
The NPCM tended to want to focus on the church planting, and
the PC(USA) tended to see social programs as the priority. Saul
once offered the following insightful comment: "We Mexicans
believe that if we plant a church it will automatically see the
needs of the community and respond as Christ would have. On the
other hand, sometimes I think the U.S. church believes that a
health clinic which ministers to the needs of the poor will one
day, by some miracle, become a church."
We continue to struggle with the imbalance which our respective
national churches bring to the ministry. The PC(USA) would emphasize
doing justice and loving mercy, and the NPCM would want to focus
on leading people to walking humbly with their God.
At our recent annual Council meeting we spent a day looking
at how the Bible balances proclamation and service. Service without
proclamation is no different than that done by any service club
in the city; and proclamation without service is akin to the behavior
of the Pharisee in the parable of the Good Samaritan.
So how do we proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ in both word
and deed? We concluded that it is a question of balance. But if
proclamation and service cannot be separated, how can we best
share that insight? We wish those who would designate their gifts
for hunger or health to understand that unless there is a church
capable of sponsoring a well baby clinic there could be no clinic.
For the U.S. church to do it alone might mean service at the expense
of proclamation. What we need are strong churches, Good Samaritans
willing to
be instruments of service in their community.
Below is a list of churches that PBM has had a hand in bringing
into existence. Prior to the work of PBM, the National Presbyterian
Church of Mexico had six churches on the border. Today there are
37 more, capable of proclamation and service. I pray that they
will each, in their own time, pick up the mantle of Christ as
expressed in Luke 4: 18-19.
In Mexico, new church development has three stages: beginning
with a "mission." When the numbers reach 25 they become
a congregation with a board of directors. When the congregation
reaches 40 members and has at least three trained elders the presbytery
can declare it an organized church.
Churches:
Dios Habla Hoy, 71 members
El Buen Pastor, 30 members
San Marcos, 40 members
La Nueva Jerusalem, 40 members
Renovacion, 75 members
Principe de Paz, 40 members
Verdad Y Redencion, 60 members
Uno En El Espiritu, 45 members
Congregations:
Monte Sinai, 35 members
Dios Con Nosotros, 40 members
Nueva Vida, 31 members
Bethel, 30 members
Monte Horeb, 10 members
Josue Y Caleb, 25 members
Berith, 45 members
La Ultima Cosecha, 15 members
Voz Del Desierto, 20 members
Verdad Y Vida, 20 members
Lirio De Los Valles, 45 members
Monte Sion, 8 members
Fuente De Vida, 27 members
Peniel, 8 members
Fuente De Vida, 27 members
Cristo Viene, 40 members
Peniel, 22 members
Principe De Paz, 17 members
El Buen Pastor, 30 members
El Buen Pastor, 86 members
Verdad Y Fe, 40 members
Esmirna, 25 members
Mission:
Sol De Justicia, 20 members
Cristo Es El Camino, 2 members
Dios Es Amor, 8 members
Monte Sion, 20 members
Emanuel, 11 members
Getsemani, 12 members
Mission, 10 members
Camino Verdad Y Vida
You have been a faithful partner of Presbyterian Border Ministry,
and I want to close by thanking you for your unending prayers
and financial support.
Grace and peace,
Jerry Stacy
The 2002 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 248
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