México Partnership Update
When you wake up on Sunday morning and begin getting ready for church, you probably don’t think, “I’d better pack a lunch—it’s going to be a long drive.” And as you sit down for worship, you likely don’t wonder, “Will I understand the sermon today, or only understand half of it?”
But for many believers in northern and central México, these are weekly realities. Some travel hours to reach the nearest Presbyterian congregation. Others sit through services in Spanish even though their heart (primary) language is Otomí, Mixtec, Tzeltal, or another indigenous tongue — and understand only fragments of the message.
This is why our partner, the National Presbyterian Church of México (INPM), is working diligently to plant new churches in underserved regions and to establish congregations where indigenous believers can worship, learn, and grow in their heart language.
A church for a growing city
Manzanillo is a rapidly growing port and tourism city in west central México. Its population has grown rapidly over the past 20 years and is approaching 200,000 people. One thing it doesn’t have is a Presbyterian church.
A handful of believers trek around five hours round-trip to Colima to attend the only Presbyterian church in the state. Last fall The Outreach Foundation teamed with the INPM and Pastor José Luis Rodríguez of Iglesia Puerta de Salvación in Colima to start a church in Manzanillo. Pastor José has diligently built a core team in Manzanillo and 13 people regularly attend house church meetings as well as weekly Bible studies via Zoom.
Pastor José plans to find a church planter to expand the work in this strategically important city.
Hearing the Gospel in your heart language
Nearly 20% of people in México belong to an indigenous people group, and 10% of them only speak their native language. The INPM recognized evangelizing and discipling indigenous people requires pastors with both indigenous language and culture fluency, and Scripture translated in the heart languages of indigenous people. Pastor Noé Paulin has stepped into this gap. He is a Presbyterian pastor in the central state of Hidalgo and is Mezquital Otomí and bi-lingual in Spanish and Otomí. The burden to reach this indigenous people group is huge.
The Outreach Foundation recently partnered with him to start a house church in the town of Ixmiquilpan – a center of Mezquital Otomí culture where approximately 25% of people mainly speak Otomí. Pastor Noé conducts services and Bible studies in a mix of Spanish and Otomí. In just a few months, the congregation has grown to eight families. With financial support from The Outreach Foundation, he will soon be able to purchase New Testaments in Otomí.
But Pastor Noé’s vision doesn’t stop there. He is already holding evangelistic outreach events in the villages around Ixmilquipan featuring traditional Mexican Rondalla music groups.
THE OPPORTUNITY
The Outreach Foundation is seeking gifts to help the National Presbyterian Church of Méxicoplant more churches so that both Spanish and indigenous language speakers alike can hear the gospel and be discipled. Gifts will also be used to purchase Bibles translated in indigenous languages.
You may make a gift by sending a check to the address below with the partner name “México Partnership” on the memo line or you can donate on the GIVE page of our website: www.theoutreachfoundation.org.
