Mulder - Latino Protestants in America

Also by Mark T. Mulder

Shades of White Flight: Evangelical Congregations and Urban Departure

Also by Gerardo Mart

A Mosaic of Believers: Diversity and Innovation in a Multiethnic Church

Hollywood Faith: Holiness, Prosperity, and Ambition in a Los Angeles Church

Worship across the Racial Divide: Religious Music and the Multiracial Church

The Deconstructed Church: Understanding Emerging Christianity (with Gladys Ganiel)

ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD

Lanham Boulder New York London

TM The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Printed in the United States of America

From Mark:

For my brother and sisters,

Dennis Mulder, Linda Schultz, Lois Mulder,
and Laura Wessels

From Aida:

Para mi hijo, Koichi Santiago,

mis abuelitos, Aida and Will Rojewski,

mis padres, Martha and Kevin McCrary

mis hermanos, Colleen and Timothy McCrary

Gracias por tu amor y apoyo

From Gerardo:

For my parents,

Rafael and Caridad Mart

Latino Protestantism stands as a vigorous outlier of religious growth in this country. Overall, the percentage of Christians in the United States has been in steady decline, and the share of adults who claim no religious affiliation continues to expand. Focusing on Protestantism, we see that both mainline and evangelical churches have suffered losses in recent years. Focusing on Catholicism, the percentage of Latinos who identify as Roman Catholics has slumped from 68 percent to 55 percent in less than a decade. Yet, within the larger milieu of seeming religious malaise in America, Latino Protestantism has demonstrated a remarkable vitality as surveys report that more and more Latinos identify as Protestant. Latino Protestant churches are growing, and Latino Protestant parachurch organizations are expanding. Despite this vibrancy, we know very little about Latino Protestants.

Latino Protestants in America addresses the lack of understanding and information by collating the best existing scholarship on this fascinating group alongside reporting some of our own original, social scientific observations. We find an increasing interest in Latino Protestants among scholars, among journalists, and among church leaders and Christians in general. Based on the increase of magazine articles and conferences related to Latino Protestants, we believe that this volume fills a synergistic niche of academic, journalistic, and ecclesial audiences. The information, evidence, and arguments distilled in the following pages are provided in the hope that they will provoke even greater attention on this burgeoning wing of Christianity in the United States. In the end, our intention is to substantiate and further stimulate more careful and more intensive lines of inquiry on Latino Protestants and their churches.

Thanks first and foremost to friends, new and old, who shared with us varied aspects of Latino Protestantism. Words cannot convey the levels of appreciation to all the leaders and members of the congregations who took time in their busy lives to welcome us. By opening their lives, their churches, and their communities, these men and women allow researchers like us privileged access to this dynamically growing and evolving group in the United States. Without them, this book would not be possible. Any errors committed in our sincere attempt to accurately describe the multiple, layered aspects of Latino Protestant Christianity are solely our own.

Toward collecting ethnographic data for this research, Gerardo
Mart and Mark Mulder received grant support funded by Lilly Endowment to form the Latino Protestant Congregations (LPC) Project.

Mark would like to thank the colleagues within his department for fostering a robust atmosphere of collegiality at Calvin College. Much is owed to Todd Vanden Berg, Lissa Schwander, Roman Williams, Elisha Marr, Jon Hill, Rachel Venema, Kristen Alford, Joe Kuilema, and Stacia Hoeksema. Outside the hallway, colleagues John Witvliet, Don DeGraaf, Jeff Bouman, Gail Heffner, Cheryl Brandsen, Michelle Loyd-Paige, and Todd Cioffi deserve thanks as well. Gratitude is also extended to good friends Jamie and Deanna Smith and Dan and Bethany Slane, who help to make Grand Rapids home. A special thanks as well to Jeremy Hekhuis, a dear friend and fellow traveler who helped to establish a foundation for this work years ago. A significant portion of this volume was written across the table from Peter Boumgarden at Ferris Coffee; he provided valuable and winsome company throughout. Mark also continues to owe much to the formative Seminars @ Calvin designed and facilitated by Michael Emerson and Steve Warner. Finally, a most profound note of gratitude to Dawn Mulder for her loving support, keen insight, and profound grace.

Aida would like to foremost thank Gerardo Mart and Mark Mulder for the opportunity to be a part of the LPC Projecta life-changing and critical point in her life and growth as a scholar of Latino religion. Their friendship and support along with the rest of the fellows has been a gift. A special thanks to LPC Project research fellow Melissa Guzman, who was always willing to take the time to provide feedback at the drop of a hat and whose expertise has been invaluable. Also thanks to LPC Project research fellow Debbie Berho for her encouragement and camaraderie and to Lloyd Barba for his keen insights and feedback. Aida would also like to thank colleagues at the University of Texas at San Antonio, particularly, Melinda Denton, for her unwavering care and mentorship, as well as John Bartkowski, Christopher Ellison, Gabriel Acevedo, and Heather Edelblute for their guidance, friendship, and support. I am so grateful for my dear comadres, Molly Dondero and Mieke Beth Thomeer, who provided critical feedback and writing support throughout the whole project. Another special thank you to current and former students for their assistance in this project at the University of Texas at San Antonio: Tara Fletcher, Socorro Montaez, Christina Helm, Keila Taylor, and Reed DeAngelis. Many thanks also for the care and support by many at Grace Northridge in San Antonio.