| Growing Hispanic/Latino presence changes church By Linda GreenUnited Methodist News Service  The small congregation of Agape Memorial UMC is on the leading edge of a quiet revolution transforming not only the denomination but U.S. society as well.
The 140-member Dallas church is the product of a Hispanic/Latino congregation merging with a dwindling Anglo one. Based in a neighborhood that is heavily Mexican, the congregation reaches out to the community in a variety of ways, such as through an after-school program that it offers in partnership with an elementary school. The change in Agapes congregation is mirrored throughout the denomination, which saw a nearly 30 percent increase in Hispanic/Latino membership between 1996 and 2001. Hispanic/Latinos are the fastest-growing demographic group in the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The growth has implications in every aspect of society in the United States, said the Rev. Cristian de la Rosa, Agapes pastor and former director of continuing education and course of study at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Ill. The churchs response to that boom is a concern for Hispanic/Latino United Methodist leaders, de la Rosa said. Many feel that the denomination, despite what it has done, is very behind. We are doing more than we were doing 10 years ago, but the population doubled and we need to be doing twice as much. The United Methodist Church signaled the importance of ministry with Hispanic/Latinos in 1992, when its top legislative assembly implemented the National Plan for Hispanic Ministry. Although the plan is the best thing Ive seen, de la Rosa said that in addition to tools, resources and information, the church needs a commitment that goes beyond a year at a time or four years at a time. It means a commitment that goes beyond a generation. For the United Methodist Church, we cannot really look at doing relevant ministry or being a relevant church without being in ministry with the Hispanic community, she said. If we choose not too, we will be an irrelevant denomination. Increased immigration boosted the Hispanic/Latino population during the 1990s and into the current decade. Many are coming to the United States for better jobs, to join other family members, to receive health care and to escape political oppression, said the Rev. Justo Gonzales, a United Methodist theologian. Today, Hispanic/Latinos are the largest U.S. minority, with 38.8 million people or 13 percent of the population. Those Census Bureau figures dont include an estimated 4 million undocumented Hispanics. In contrast, blacks number 36.1 million, or 12.7 percent of all U.S. residents. In the United Methodist Church, Hispanic/Latinos account for 51,871 members (in a total U.S. membership of about 8.4 million), 357 congregations and 506 clergy. Two of the denominations bishops are Hispanic/Latino. The United Methodist Church is one of the few denominations with a fully developed plan to address Hispanic/Latino concerns, Gonzales said. However, while the church has them on the radar, it has not decided whether it will work toward assimilation or allow Hispanic/Latinos to keep their own identity within the denomination, he said. A pilot project is under way in San Antonio to determine what attracts Hispanic/Latinos to the United Methodist Church. Palos believes the United Methodist Church has a gospel-centered, holistic message that makes sense to them. We need to have more passion for that, he said. It cannot be budgeted or programmed. It has to come from the heart. | 
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