Tag Archives: University Church of Christ

Bilingual ministry in Abilene

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DSCN6505I realize that my last couple of posts could leave people a bad impression of our church and our bilingual ministry. So let me try and point out some good things.

Abilene is a city of about 120,000 people. (According to Wikipedia, Abilene “metro” is about 165,000) The ethnic makeup of the city includes about 25% that identify themselves as Hispanic.

There are over 30 churches of Christ in the city and immediate area. As far as I know, there are only two which offer a service in Spanish. Only one of those functions within a larger, predominantly Anglo church: the bilingual service at University.

This work has been functioning for over 25 years. It has had its ups and downs but has always counted on the full support of the congregation. The elders have made it clear that the bilingual ministry is an important part of the University family.

The average age of UCC members trends toward the upper end of Abilene’s population. The bilingual group trends much younger. A large percentage of UCC members are longtime members of the Church of Christ; the bilingual group includes many who have been converted to Christ within the last 5 years or so.

It’s only fair that I point out some of these good things even as I’ve mentioned a few negative ones. To refer again to Jason’s analogy from Sunday, our church is working hard to look like a Cliff Huxtable sweater.

Travels with Tony

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OK, hiatus is over. Let’s get back to work. I’ve spent the last few weeks traveling with Tony Fernández, my friend from Matanzas, Cuba. Tony has been the Herald of Truth representative in Cuba since 1995, doing follow-up on our radio ministry all across the nation of Cuba.

Tony arrived in the States on September 11; he’ll leave October 9 to return home. While he was with us, he did the following:

    • Spoke twice for the bilingual group at the University Church of Christ in Abilene
    • Taught three classes at ACU’s Summit
    • Spoke to students at Faulkner University in Montgomery, Alabama
    • Spoke to the main assembly of the University Church of Christ in Abilene
    • Spoke at Coventry Christian School in Pennsylvania and met with area church leaders
    • Spoke to the Chesmont Church of Christ in Pottstown, Pennsylvania
    • Spoke twice to Harding University’s student chapel
    • Gave a keynote lecture and taught three classes at the Harding Lectureship

After leaving here, Tony spoke yesterday for the church of Christ in Clinton, Mississippi. Busy times!

A number of Tony’s talks can be found online. Let me share here a video that was prepared for Harding. It’s only four minutes and well worth your time.

If the video doesn’t play well, you might try watching it on Facebook.
Facebook videos don’t always embed well.