More than 60 key leaders of educational ministries in Latin America met recently in Quito, Ecuador, for a significant planning and strategizing meeting that will enhance the future of ministerial preparation throughout the Church of God Latino world.

The two-day educational summit was led by David Ramírez, field director, and Miguel Álvarez, president of the South American Seminary (SEMISUD). The primary participants were the presidents, directors, and deans of the schools from 20 Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries, from México to Argentina and the Caribbean, along with key administrative officials.

For more than 75 years, Church of God leaders in Latin America have recognized the value and importance of preparing their ministers for pastoral and leadership tasks—from the 1933 establishment of Berea Bible Institute in México until the newest school was established recently in Colombia. As a result, the Latino church now operates 42 colleges and Bible institutes for training pastors and laymen.

The principal objective of the SEMISUD summit was to create a plan for a consortium that will promote unity and cooperation between the educational institutions. Eventually all the schools will be related to one another. They will grant graduation titles from certificates to the Ph.D. degree. At the present time, four schools are approved to award master’s degrees; these four will develop specializations and make them available to students from throughout Latin America, offering large portions of the academic work through Internet courses.

The participants spent two days interacting with those who gave conferences and working primarily in small groups, led by Juan Manuel Castañeda (México), Carlos Canizalez (Guatemala), Francisco Ortiz (Puerto Rico), Samuel Alves (Brazil), and Mireya Álvarez. Invited guests Klass and Conny Bom from the Netherlands presented a plan for a cooperative arrangement with the Free University of Amsterdam that would permit the Ph.D. in Pentecostal Studies to be awarded through the consortium.

The appointment of Francisco Jiménez as liaison for education in Latin America was made during the meeting.

The gathering was also attended by World Missions leaders and educational personnel, including Douglas LeRoy, general director; Carolyn Dirksen, vice president of Lee University; Bill George, missions education coordinator; and Dwain Pyeatt, of the Division of Education. Educators from other fields were observers at the meeting, including Scott Rains, from Asia/Pacific, and Blayne Waltrip, from Europe.

January 3, 2011

Posted by: Faith News Staff

Category: Church of God News