Here is what has been happening in the Methodist Church in Cuba:Read those last quotes again slowly: ",,, we tried every program that came along, but the church continued to grow older and decline. We had no other option but to pray and fast with all our power."
>Since 1999, the Methodist Church has grown from 8,000 to 36,000 members.
>The median age of the average Methodist parishioner ranges from the mid thirties to mid forties.
>The average age of pastors is 30 years old. All clergy have started at least one new church.
>Bishop Ricardo Pereira says that the Methodist seminary in Cuba intentionally trains its pastors theologically that he describes as "eminently Methodist and Wesleyan."
>Many congregations worship in house churches where they practice "lively worship, contemplative prayer, theological formation, and Bible study."
>The Methodist Church also excels at a Wesleyan understanding of the gospel that is one and the same time evangelistic and social in character. Every Methodist is encouraged and taught to share their faith verbally and in living it out daily. The Methodist Church has outreach missions to seniors and vulnerable families and single mothers, among other ministries.
Bishop Pereira states, "In the 1970s we tried every program that came along, but the church continued to grow older and decline. We had no other option but to pray and fast with all our power."
"Methodists are called to have that burning heart. ... We can't sit still. … If your heart does not burn, no program is going to fix it."
"Methodists are called to have that burning heart. ... We can't sit still. … If your heart does not burn, no program is going to fix it."
