Our preparation for this mission includes long service in theological education, previous extended stays in Latin America, and occasional ministry among Latinos in the US. For many years Michael taught Old Testament at a seminary in Austin, Texas, where April operated food services and taught liturgical dance.

Through teaching in Ecuador, studying in Costa Rica, and working in the US with Latino groups, we discovered how the rich diversity of Latino cultures informs varying expressions of Christian faith. We came to see that the Anglican tradition has a contribution to make as Latin American Christians struggle with the challenges posed by globalization. We also came to believe that North Americans stand to learn a great deal from Latin Americans as we reconsider how to practice our faith when confronted by similar challenges. This combination of past experience and new insights made us want to come to the Dominican Republic.

The Episcopal Church here is young, small, dynamic and rapidly growing. From its inception just over a century ago, it has struggled to realize its ideal of a church that integrates Dominicans from all ethnic backgrounds—Spanish-speaking criollos who came from Columbus’s first landing in the New World, English-speaking blacks who immigrated from the British West Indies to work sugar cane fields in the nineteenth century, and Haitians who have from time to time been impelled by the conditions in their country to seek refuge across the border.

Community development and preaching the gospel always go hand in hand here, demonstrating that faith makes a real difference in the life of the people. Dominicans from all walks of life are being attracted to the Episcopal Church when they see how faith in Christ creates a caring community that works for the common good. The Dominican Church actively solicits expertise and financial aid from abroad, in order to help develop institutions that will eventually become self-sustaining.
We are contributing to the work of the Dominican Church in two areas.

Michael is teaching in the diocesan seminary, El Centro de Estudios Teológicos (CET), thus helping to address an acute clergy shortage resulting from the Church’s rapid growth. The goal is to help raise up new generations of ordained leaders for the Dominican Republic and to enable CET to better serve the growing need for theological education in the surrounding dioceses of the Caribbean.
April is using her experience in catering and hospitality to facilitate the community life of CET and to accommodate the many mission groups that come here to do service projects. These groups are a powerful expression of the active ties the Dominican Church maintains with companion dioceses, parishes, and other interested folks in the US.

For monthly updates—reports of recent events, photos, and reflections on our experiences—click here.