Iglesia Presbiteriana Emanuel - Cuchipampa

Yesterday evening I got to go back to one of my favorite places in Ayacucho, Peru...La Iglesia Presbiteriana Emanuel (part of theReformed Presbyterian Church of Peru) which sits above the city of Ayacucho Proper on a dirt road in a less developed district of Ayacucho, more affectionately known as Cuchipampa or what they tell me translates to pigland or pig pasture/meadow in Quechua. It is right next door to Quinuapata, don´t ask what that one means, maybe later. Needless to say it overlooks the city of Ayacucho from up above, a bird´s eye view if you will. It is kind of fun to walk out of the church at night and look down on the unassuming valley city of Ayacucho, all lit up, down below.
The reason I like going to visit the congregation at Iglesia Emanuel is they are so welcoming, and have included me in their worship, activities, and just about everything else since I arrived in Peru and made contact with the Pastor Juan Flores-Quispe. Pastor Quispe invited me to preach the first time I set foot in the door. I was glad that he gave me advanced warning so I could prepare. Having been invited to preach there was a shock in an evangeical church culture that is much more conservative than in the United States. Remember that evangelical in Latin America is simply used to refer to protestant christians.
One Thursday morning I met up with Pastor Juan and had lunch with he and his wife Giovanna. Pastor Juan made the soup. He claims to be quite an accomplished soup maker. I must agree. They have two children (Eunice and Caleb) and another one on the way (arriving at the end of February). Pastor Juan is also one of the leaders of the National Reformed Presbyterian Church in Peru, the IERP. He seems to balance alot - family, pastoring, teaching elementary school, and representing the national church.
So this time (Sunday Afternoon) I went to Cuchipampa to meet, for the first time, with the Presbyterian Women there or what they refer to as the ¨Liga Feminil¨ (The Women´s League). I brought a bibilcal message to share, but was more interested in first getting to know the women, of varied ages, gathered around the table. So we went around the table and said our names, talked about our families, and named our favorite Peruvian plato tipico. They liked things from trucha to pucca picante and back again. Also by simply sitting and being present I discovered that in some cases there were two or more generations of one family sitting at the table. The women were delighted to know that we also have Presbyterian Women in our churches in the United States.
It was fun to get to know the women, some speaking spanish and others only Quechua. I can understand what they are saying in Quechua, I just still cannot respond back to them. I am going to work on that. Next time, I come they want to do some dinamícas or icebreakers along with our bible study. They love icebreakers or games and singing here.
Even though part of my job is to visit a variety of churches in Ayacucho, which I do, I seem to be drawn back to the welcoming arms of the people of Emanuel. It is a part of my work that I enjoy, and I enjoy it even more now that I know the people better.