Argentina

Field Office Information

C&MA Field Entry in 1897

Field Director:

Jon Grames

Mailing Address:

The Christian and Missionary Alliance Washington 2945 C1430EUI Capital Federal
Cuidad de Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA

Phone:

011-54-11-4542-6100

Email:

cma_arg@yahoo.com

Website:

National Church

The Argentine Christian and Missionary Alliance: 64 organized churches, 37 unorganized groups, 40 ordained ministers, 5,950 baptized members, and 9,150 inclusive members

Team Initiatives

• 1. To plant new churches in unreached areas of Buenos Aires, Corrientes, Mendoza and other locations as resources are available.
• 2. To effectively promote missions in Argentine Alliance churches and to cultivate a strong, unified structure for training and sending Argentine Alliance missionaries.
• 3. To write, publish and distribute Sunday School, Christian Education and Church Leadership materials in partnership with the Alliance Publications Foundation.

The Virtue of Patience

2009-05-14 09:32:42.0

By Dan and Melody Taube, serving in Argentina

Editor's note: In their ministry through the Buenos Aries Professional Project (BAPP), Dan and Melody Taube are engaged in the delicate task of building relationships in hopes of introducing professionals to Jesus. The following excerpt from one of the Taubes' newsletters highlights the spiritual fruit of longsuffering—an essential ingredient in winning these precious souls to Christ.        

The highlights of each week for us are the Bible studies we hold in homes. These are times when we grow and see others grow in understanding of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. As we teach, we trust that the Holy Spirit will take the Word and do the humanly impossible task of making Jesus and His teaching real and relevant to those who attend.

The conversation usually is lively with a great deal of participation. Porteños, as the inhabitants of Buenos Aires are known, are very expressive. Just imagine interacting with a room full of Italians, and you will have an idea of the group dynamics. It isn't unusual for two or three people to talk at once, and the amazing thing about it is that Porteños can follow all three!

A recent Sunday wasn't perhaps as lively as some, but a husband and wife who actively participate in the discussion made a couple of statements that stuck in our minds. At one point, "Rosa" (not her real name) looked around the room and said to the rest of the group, "Thank you for being patient with me. I don't know if I ever would have come to Christ if you would have hurried me up."

Later in the discussion Rosa's husband expressed his burning desire that his brother come to Christ. He exclaimed with Argentine enthusiasm, "Every time I see him, I want to beat him over the head with the gospel!"

These two comments illustrate the internal battle we often face with those we desire to come to Christ. We want to move things along faster, but so many of our friends are slow to make the commitment. Pray that our zeal will never cool and our patience will outlast all the arguments raised against our Lord by people we love dearly.

Thanks for walking alongside us as we minister His grace.

What You Can Do

Praise God for those who found Jesus through the ministry of Dan and Melody and BAPP. Pray for continued fruit from this outreach.

Demographics

Population

Population--39,537,943 Infant mortality rate--15.2/1,000 Life expectancy--75.9

Capital City

Buenos Aires (13,076,300) pop.

Geography

As long as the United States is wide, Argentina (1,068,296 sq. mi.) is bordered by the Andes Mountains on the west; the north is swampy and partly wooded; the south has rolling, fertile pampas; and further south are cool, arid steppes with wooded and fertile sections.

Languages

Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French

Ethnicity/Race

White (mostly Spanish and Italian)--97%; mestizo, Amerindian, other--3%

Economy

Per capita income--$12,400 Inflation--6.1% Unemployment--14.8% Literacy rate--96.2% (1995 est.)

Government/Political Climate

Democracy, frequent internal political conflict. After World War II, a long period of authoritarian rule was followed by a military junta in 1976. Democracy returned in 1983.

Religion

Roman Catholic--92%; Protestant--2%; Jewish--2%; other--4%