Bixcul, Abner
Description
Hispanic churches in the United States face the challenge of integrating the second
and third generations in the life and leadership of their local co
...
ngregations. This study
proposes that developing a multicultural structure in liturgy, ministry practices, and a
contextualized approach of the Sermon to be preached Bilingual or English with culturally
relevant and practical content, will integrate the emerging generations into their local
Church. The next generation of Christians faces spiritual, emotional, intellectual, and moral
challenges like no prior group of believers, and the Church needs to develop a more in-depth
understanding, more profound respect, and a more serious practical approach to their culture
and values.
Some Latino congregations in the United States operate as a replica of the churches
in Latin-America because first-generation Latinos lead them. Though there is nothing wrong
with the structures and systems of those churches in Latin-American, those systems and
structures do not entirely work when trying to minister to the second and third generations
in the United States. These young generations often do not connect with the Church and
cannot understand the message because of the language barrier; more importantly, the
younger generations do not connect with these churches because the cultural structure
collides with their multicultural identity.
This study analyses and compares Latino congregations with a multicultural structure
and those with a monoculture structure. This comparison is not a desire to denigrate or exalt
any congregation. Instead, it is an effort to analyze the effect that multicultural structures
have over the different generations in the Church. There is no better or worse Church, there
is only one Church, and local congregations are doing their best to minister in their respective
geographical context to everyone possible. The heart of the pastor is to bring people to Jesus.
This study does not focus on the spirituality of Pastors, or the success of a Pastor and local
congregation based on their numbers; it is an analysis of the multicultural reality that we are
experiencing in our local congregations in the United States.
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