Sword & Trowel 2020: Issue 1
CHURCH PLANTING IN CHILE Report from Michael Hunt, a Tabernacle deacon, of a visit to Temuco Reformed Baptist Church, October 2019
T
HE city of Temuco, in south central Chile, has a population
of about 400,000. Roman Catholi- cism is present but not apparently strong. There are many Pentecostal churches and other Protestant group- ings. Many have increasingly liberal theology and most have adopted con- temporary worship. The Pentecostal churches have a strong tradition of orchestral and choral performances. Pastor Pablo Huircapán, with his wife Nathaly, began pioneering a reformed Baptist church there on 14 January 2016, starting with three people at a private flat. Soon, five people began services near the centre of the city, close to public transport. After some months, with increasing numbers of visitors, meetings were moved to other premises and there were about 30 attending regularly by
the end of 2017. The following
year meetings were moved to premises which it was hoped to purchase in due course. This did not prove possible and the fellowship is now renting a hall with facilities, in a central location, on an hourly basis. This is ideal for access from all parts of the city. There is something of a north/south divide but all are prepared to travel to the centre. About 50 are now meeting on Sundays, with more in the evening evangelistic service than in the morn- ing teaching service. Consideration is being given to
Pablo Huircapán
renting a nearby building which will be available for purchase in about a year’s time. It is an old house that will require a lot of work but would
The spread of Temuco from a local vantage point showing mainly one and two-storey buildings and large buildings only in the centre of town. The church is located in the right half of the centre.
Church Planting in Chile
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