The History & Role of the “Spanish Church” at Andrews
The Andrews Memorial SDA Spanish Congregation, popularly called La Iglesia Hispana de Andrews Memorial, is the only Seventh-day Adventist Spanish speaking congregation in the island of Jamaica.
It is currently located at 29 Hope Road, was established during the tenure of Pastor Meric Walker, with the assistance of the Spanish Speaking Intern, Pastor Moises Espinosa, a native of Dominican Republic was resident in Jamaica at the time who had an official pastoral attachment. Others associated with the leadership of the Group, in the early days, included Anuery Vargas (D.R.) and Pastors Elias Zabala (D.R.) and Juan Corroga (Cuba).
The purpose of convening was to cater to Hispanics living in Jamaica or those visiting the island, who desired to worship in a warm and friendly environment in their own mother tongue. For example, many Sabbath afternoons members could be seen visiting the Honduran fishermen downtown, Kingston, distributing tracts written in Spanish, they even conducted a crusade in Spanish.
It should, however, be noted that several of the Hispanic natives who attended were only functional in basic English and so would not be able to engage meaningfully in worship services conducted in English. At the same time, Jamaicans who had a desire to learn and practice Spanish joined, and they too were warmly embraced as members of the group. The size of the group has waxed and waned through the years, largely due to the migratory nature of the sojourns of many in the Hispanic cohort of the church.
Currently, the congregation has a small membership. Nevertheless, it has members with huge hearts and this can be felt when one participates in any of their worship services. Owing to governmental public health restrictions occasioned by the ongoing coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic, the group has been meeting via Zoom from 10 a.m. – 12 noon every Sabbath since March 2020. However, on the second and last Sabbaths of each month, we have a dual mode service where there is an in-person component held at the church building, thanks to a measure of relaxation in Covid-19 restrictions. This service is streamed on the Zoom platform for those who desire to join online.
Native preachers from various parts of Spanish-speaking countries such as
Mexico, Spain, Dominica Republic, Puerto Rico, can be found preaching
each Sabbath and the incumbent, Pastor Mickel Allen,
and Elder Rose Cameron.
The services of the Spanish congregation are rich and spirit-filled. From 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. there is a short Sabbath school and the remaining time is for the divine service. Native preachers from various parts of Spanish-speaking countries such as Mexico, Spain, Dominica Republic, Puerto Rico, can be found preaching each Sabbath alongside the incumbent, Pastor Mickel Allen, alongside Elder Rose Cameron. It is noteworthy that both leaders are Jamaicans who have developed a good proficiency in Spanish. Other key individuals who unofficially play leadership roles include Maribel Alao, Derval Graham, and Yoandra Diaz. These committed servants thrive to assist in nurturing the members and presenting the gospel to the local community and wider Hispanic world.
There are instances where English speaking presenters are asked to preach. On these occasions, one of the dedicated members interprets the sermon into Spanish. These bilingual sermons provide a great opportunity for English speakers to join our services to enjoy and be blessed.
The other services of the Spanish congregation are the Bible class and vespers. Bible class is held 3:00 – 4:00 every Sabbath afternoon. Vesper services are held on the first Friday of each month, usually beginning at 6:30 p.m.
The membership of this congregation is not only warm but diverse; as there are a mixture of Jamaicans, Hispanics who reside on the island, as well as those who join us online from their native countries. The Spanish group is a wonderful place, not only to worship but to develop and sharpen one’s competencies in all four areas (listening, speaking, reading and writing) of communication in Spanish. In fact, one of the most recent initiatives is a language immersion experience where students from secondary and tertiary institutions are invited to attend services as a means of improving their Spanish.
The vision of the Andrews Memorial SDA Spanish congregation is to be the ideal “church of choice” where Hispanics living in the island or those visiting for work or study, as well as Jamaicans interested in learning or developing their Spanish can worship and come to know Jesus Christ in a warm and spirit-filled environment.
The most beautiful thing about this experience is that everything is done in Spanish, except on rare occasions where there is absolute need for bi-lingual intervention. We hope that this experience will continue to thrive and bring souls to Christ.
By Pastor Mickel Allen
Pastor Mickel Allen is a 2020 graduate of Northern Caribbean University where he completed his BA in Theology and an Associate of Arts degree in Spanish in 2021 at the same institution. He started serving the Spanish church in February 2021.
1. Small text in image not easily read
2. Author details at end for Pastor Allen should be full page width