Worship In Evangelical Hispanic Churches

Hispanic worship can be divided into four main expressions: Catholic, evangelical Protestant, Pentecostal, and spiritist. This article briefly describes the primary emphases of worship in the evangelical and Pentecostal worship traditions. The evangelical Protestant church in Hispanic countries grew out of the evangelical missionaries, who labored among the masses to bring them into the Protestant or Reformation tradition of Christianity. These evangelical groups ranged from denominations like Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist, and Lutheran to independent non-aligned missionaries. Many of the new members of these churches were either former Roman Catholic Christians or were a part of formerly unevangelized Indian tribes in remote jungles and mountains. The evangelicals brought a distinct pattern of worship to the Hispanics. Worship was centered on the preaching or teaching of the sacred Scriptures. The preacher or pastor became the focal point of the church and of the worship experien…