Mission and Ministry work in Latin America & the Caribbean
Concordia the Reformer Seminary’s deaconess program provides training for women in five Latin American countries: the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama and Venezuela.
Lutheran pastors and seminary students working in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region. A resource that helps teach the Biblical jewel of the distinction between, and the application of, Law and Gospel, will be invaluable to our LCMS mission work, as well as to our Lutheran partner churches throughout many LAC countries. We thank God for the generosity of the producers of Good News (Defiance, MO). They allow the VDMA Project to share electronic copies of their magazines within the LAC region at no cost to the recipients.
reaching in La Paz, Honduras, for years, even during the recent lockdowns. The fruits of his pastoral care and outreach to the community were evident in the overflowing crowd at a recent church dedication. With a capacity of 120, the new sanctuary was packed with worshipers. Dozens more gathered outside the facility to join in the celebration and sing praises to the Lord.
Lutherans in the Dominican Republic are excited and grateful for the recent shipment of books from the Lutheran Heritage Foundation (LHF).
In cooperation with the Bible Society of Brazil and the Bible Society of the Dominican Republic, LHF just sent over 2000 books to the Caribbean country for distribution to Lutheran missions nationwide.
Missionaries, seminarians and congregation members in Palmar Arriba, Dominican Republic, planned for about fifty children from the community to attend a week-long Bible camp. The camp gave children a place to be for a couple of hours during the heat of the Dominican afternoons and featured daily Bible stories, memory work, games, crafts, songs and snacks.
Rev. Raphael Voigt is a church-planting pastor in Los Andes, Panama. There, he teaches Bible classes, leads worship services and finds creative ways to reach the local community. Pastor Voigt works with two local deaconesses to provide painting classes for children and adults in the community. Each class includes a devotion or Bible lesson. He also provides music lessons, visits elementary schools, orphanages and hospitals, and makes inroads into the community, sharing the Gospel wherever he goes.
Rev. Maicon Schieferdecker serves as a church planter in three locations, Salto, Chapicuy and Paysandú in northern Uruguay. He leads worship services and Bible classes in a new worship facility in Chapicuy and a rented storefront in Salto. Work on the new mission in Paysandú is in the beginning stages.
Rev. Lucas Elberhardt, a church-planting pastor in the Dominican Republic, serves a mission congregation in Santo Domingo. Pastor Lucas leads worship services, teaches Bible classes, makes home visits, and works diligently to build bridges into the community. His robust youth outreach efforts include sports camps, youth days and music lessons, all of which include a devotion or Bible lesson. In addition to parish ministry, he currently supervises the fieldwork of two seminarians.
Brazilian Alliance Missionary Pastor Rafael Milagres is called to serve as a church-planting pastor in Lima, Peru. Currently, he brings Word and Sacrament ministry to the local congregation in Los Olivos and does outreach activities to bring in new members from the community. Pastor Rafael works alongside a seasoned Paraguayan Alliance Missionary Pastor, Walterson Siewert, and two recent graduates of Concordia the Reformer Seminary.
Venezuelan native, Rev. Gustavo Maita, grew up in a Lutheran home. This firm foundation served as a launch pad for formal theological studies, which began at Juan de Frías Theological Institute in Venezuela and continued at Concordia Seminary in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He served his vicarage in the Dominican Republic and graduated from Concordia Seminary in Argentina.
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