Native Evangelism in Central Mexico

2. The Theology and Teleology of Amistad y Vida (Cristianos)

CHAPTER TWO The Theology and Teleology of Amistad y Vida (Cristianos) Foundation of Amistad y Vida A.C. Amistad y Vida (Cristianos) had its beginning in Mexico City. It was started in 1982 by the Presbyterian minister Robert Mayers, with the help of Mr. and Mrs. Pardillo; they formed the first congregation, which quickly grew to more than two thousand members; by 2001, numbers had increased to more than four thousand. A second congregation was established in Puebla in 1986, and within four years five more came into being within the metropolitan area of the city, with a total membership of more than eight thousand. Missionaries from the city of Puebla congregation founded a third group of congregations in and about Xalapa (the capital of the state of Veracruz) in 1989, which now boasts three congregations having a total of thirty-five hundred members. Finally, missionaries from Xalapa founded a congregation in Córdoba in 1993, which was moved to the outskirts of Fortín in 2004 and now has more than one thousand congregants. During the past fifteen years, Cristiano congregations have flourished in several regions of central Mexico and other parts of the country, but there are no reliable figures for its total membership; our educated guess is that Cristianos number between 100,000 to 120,000. The founder of the Fortín congregation is Jorge Bitar. He and his wife Susana were prominent leaders of Amistad y Vida 40 Native Evangelism in Central Mexico A.C. (Asociación Civil, or Civil Association) in Xalapa. Aware of the strategic importance of Córdoba as an entry to southeastern Mexico, the Bitars moved to Córdoba to set up a new congregation. After they were in that city for eleven years it was decided to move the physical site of the congregation to Fortín and more spacious quarters. The congregation has become the regional center for seven groups of Cristianos that have mushroomed in the Córdoba-Orizaba region. The rapid expansion of Amistad y Vida in central Mexico led to the emergence of local leaders, around whom independent congregations were established. These leaders coalesced as the equivalent of pastors, although with deliberate intent to avoid hierarchy the congregation calls them oradores (prayer leaders). The position of orador is little more than that of a prayer coordinator of religious services and administrator of congregation affairs; male and female congregants can, and often do, function as oradores. From the very beginning Amistad y Vida elicited a favorable perception from the Catholic population at large. Cristianos were regarded as low-key, well behaved, respectful, and, unlike other evangelist sects, nonthreatening to Catholicism.1 What most impresses the prospective converts is the cheerful and relaxed religious approach of Cristianos, which has become well known; this may be the group’s most appealing feature for disaffected Catholics, particularly the young and early middleaged . Although Cristianos are committed to the spread of their variety of Christianity, the sect does not engage in proselytism in the conventional meaning of the term. Rather they do it by example, that is, word of mouth and doing community work that people may notice; in the city they do not go from door to door, and they do not venture into rural areas. In almost its entirety Cristianos are fairly affluent urbanites of the middle class and the upper layer of the lower-middle class; some are professionals (physicians, lawyers, engineers, accountants, and so on in the lower range of local prestige and success), and many adults have finished their high school education (preparatory ). Thus Cristianos is an urban sect which appeals to peo- The Theology and Teleology of Amistad y Vida 41 ple on purely religious grounds, and it does not entail the syndrome of “rationalization after the fact” (that is, adducing that converts had found the true faith, often masking social and material benefits as factors involved in their conversion), as they have a fairly secure social and economic position in society. These are the main factors and attitudes that have characterized Amistad y Vida in its twenty-two years of existence, which explains its appeal to dissatisfied Catholics. Theological Configuration of Cristianos Let us first consider the kind of religious group Amistad y Vida A.C. is. The name translates into English as “Friendship and Life Association,” but its members call themselves “Cristianos” (Christians), and they are known as...