AFCI World News

Christian School and Seminary Training in Peru

BY: Charlie Hanak, Americas Regional Director

I'm in Chimbote, Peru, with a group from Virginia (USA) who are making improvements to the Kindergarten classroom for the Cristo Redentor School (raising the roof so the room won't be so hot). As the only Christian school in a large barrio, Cristo Redentor is meeting an important need in the area. As an outreach of the Villa Maria Methodist Church, the school also provides outreach and care to the families of the students.

We have spent time with the faculty and students of the seminary training program sponsored by AFCI-Peru in Chimbote.  The pastors use the Cristo Redentor building in the evenings for their classes.  Ricardo Visurraga, National Director of AFCI-Peru, has arranged for the students to receive credit from the Evangelical Seminary in Lima.  The school year begins in March and 25 pastors are signed up.

                Seminary students saying, “Thank You!”

Sunday School Teacher Training in Peru will Impact 7,000 Children

Training of Sunday school teachers in the city of Huancayo, Peru is providing a foundation for reaching a great number of children in the nation. The first training event was held on November 5 and 6 was attended by 65 teachers. The focus of this seminar included age appropriate teaching methods for children and building a the spiritual life of the teachers.  The teachers came from a number of places, including the Amazon jungle.  The professors who gave the teaching were Peruvian specialists from the capital city of Lima.

The next seminar is scheduled for the end of January to provide training for the teachers to hold Bible schools for the children (VBS) in their local churches during February, 2011 while the children are out of school for the summer. It is anticipated that the Sunday school teachers in this second seminar will impact over 7,000 children with their new training and materials.”

Fishing for souls in Peru

Ricardo Visurraga, AFCI Peru National Director, and a mission team of 10 people from the United States waited patiently for children to arrive at the Gethsemane Church in Chimbote. The church was named after the garden on the lower slopes of Mount Olivet where Jesus went to pray. Many of the children are sons and daughters of fishermen who fish daily in the waters off of the north coast of Peru.

Nearly 100 children with smiling faces entered the church from the surrounding streets, and the church leaders taught them children’s choruses that they sang beautifully. The bamboo roof on the church let in a little light and was protection against the hot afternoon sun. They heard the story of Moses as he led his people out across the Red Sea. Then along with their parents, each one made a replica of the crossing, complete with sand where the sea had parted.

This is a new era for missions in Peru. As people flock to the city to find employment the population is growing rapidly, and over half of the people are now under 18 years of age. The need is greater than ever to reach the younger generation with the truth of God’s Word. The AFCI Peru team has a strategy to reach this new generation in the city centers of their nation.