Puerto Rico Mennonite Church
Puerto Rico Mennonite Church (Mennonite Church), the result of mission work by the Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities, is the outgrowth of the work of the Civilian Public Service unit at La Plata near the center of the island, which was sponsored by the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) during World War II. The first Mennonite meetinghouse on the island was built at La Plata by the MCC and was dedicated on 18 March 1945.The congregation was organized in 1947. A second center was opened and a congregation organized at Pulguillas, 12 miles from La Plata, in 1947. In 1948 the Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities purchased from the Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration the entire La Plata Unit, consisting of the hospital, community center, store, dwelling houses, and other buildings, and operated the work conjointly with the MCC, for the benefit of the community, until 1953. In 1957 the hospital at La Plata was discontinued and is now operated as a clinic. In the same year a new 32-bed hospital of fire- and hurricane-proof construction was opened at Aibonito, where a new nurses' home is in process of erection. In addition to the hospital there are now (1958) four medical clinics and one dental clinic, staffed by three doctors and one dentist. There are now on the field a language school, a Bible school, an elementary and junior high school, and a broadcasting station, Luz y Verdad, which reaches 21 stations scattered throughout the Latin countries of the world. There are 8 organized congregations, 3 mission stations with a membership of 339 in charge of 7 ordained and 3 licensed ministers. In 1955 the churches of Puerto Rico were organized into a conference which was admitted to membership of the Mennonite General Conference in that same year. In addition there is also maintained under private management a farm project, store, and related interests for the benefit of the people of the community.
| Author(s) | S. C Yoder |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1959 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Yoder, S. C. "Puerto Rico Mennonite Church." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1959. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Puerto_Rico_Mennonite_Church&oldid=67394.
APA style
Yoder, S. C. (1959). Puerto Rico Mennonite Church. Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Puerto_Rico_Mennonite_Church&oldid=67394.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 231. All rights reserved.
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