Brazil
Thirty-year dream realized as Brazilian church names elders
Christians in Brazil celebrated the realization of a 30-year dream recently as the Church of Christ in Curitiba appointed elders and deacons.
Vilmar Bucco, Jose Carlos Sottomaior and Luis Silva will serve as elders of the congregation. The church also named six deacons: Gilberto Castanheira, Pedro Jory, David Penna, Marcos Siqueira, Maurício Bini and Fernando Dias.
The Curitiba mission had its genesis in 1981 at the Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver. Instructor Bob Waldron taught students there and “opened their eyes to the billions of lost souls worldwide that needed to hear the Good News about Jesus,” said missionary Alan Nalley. Waldron now serves as director for research and global planning for Missions Resource Network.
In a chapel presentation at Bear Valley, Gary Sorrells, then a missionary in Sao Paulo, Brazil, talked about the need for workers there. Sorrells represented a ministry called Brazil Break Through, now Continent of Great Cities. Sorrells now serves as the ministry’s director emeritus.
Four families committed to work in Curitiba, a city of 2 million souls: Ron and Georgia Freitas, John and Sherena Langley, Alan and Ree Nalley and Rod and Linda Nealeigh. The team set goals of evangelizing the city and “establishing a strong missionary church, with its own building, centrally located, easily accessible, and with its own biblical and Brazilian leadership,” Alan Nalley said.
Today, about 350 people attend the Curitiba church. The congregation launched a preacher-training school, the Bible Institute of Southern Brazil, in 2005. The church and school have helped plant two additional congregations in southern Brazil.
The Curitiba church is self-supporting, Nalley said. It supports a full-time secretary and two full-time evangelists — Mauro Francisco and Cicero Balbino. Ramos Costa recently joined the team as a self-supported evangelist.
Each missionary committed to serve five years in Brazil but stayed much longer. The Langleys returned to the U.S. after 12 years. The Freitases stayed for 15 years and now work for Continent of Great Cities. The Nealeighs recently said goodbye to Curitiba after 23 years of service.
The Nalleys plan to stay in Curitiba, where they will continue to work with the Bible institute and “provide a mentoring relationship for the Curitiba leadership, help with new church plantings, lead an evangelistic small group … and continue to share the Good News in Curitiba and all the places God leads,” Alan Nalley said.
Vilmar Bucco, Jose Carlos Sottomaior and Luis Silva will serve as elders of the congregation. The church also named six deacons: Gilberto Castanheira, Pedro Jory, David Penna, Marcos Siqueira, Maurício Bini and Fernando Dias.
The Curitiba mission had its genesis in 1981 at the Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver. Instructor Bob Waldron taught students there and “opened their eyes to the billions of lost souls worldwide that needed to hear the Good News about Jesus,” said missionary Alan Nalley. Waldron now serves as director for research and global planning for Missions Resource Network.
In a chapel presentation at Bear Valley, Gary Sorrells, then a missionary in Sao Paulo, Brazil, talked about the need for workers there. Sorrells represented a ministry called Brazil Break Through, now Continent of Great Cities. Sorrells now serves as the ministry’s director emeritus.
Four families committed to work in Curitiba, a city of 2 million souls: Ron and Georgia Freitas, John and Sherena Langley, Alan and Ree Nalley and Rod and Linda Nealeigh. The team set goals of evangelizing the city and “establishing a strong missionary church, with its own building, centrally located, easily accessible, and with its own biblical and Brazilian leadership,” Alan Nalley said.
Today, about 350 people attend the Curitiba church. The congregation launched a preacher-training school, the Bible Institute of Southern Brazil, in 2005. The church and school have helped plant two additional congregations in southern Brazil.
The Curitiba church is self-supporting, Nalley said. It supports a full-time secretary and two full-time evangelists — Mauro Francisco and Cicero Balbino. Ramos Costa recently joined the team as a self-supported evangelist.
Each missionary committed to serve five years in Brazil but stayed much longer. The Langleys returned to the U.S. after 12 years. The Freitases stayed for 15 years and now work for Continent of Great Cities. The Nealeighs recently said goodbye to Curitiba after 23 years of service.
The Nalleys plan to stay in Curitiba, where they will continue to work with the Bible institute and “provide a mentoring relationship for the Curitiba leadership, help with new church plantings, lead an evangelistic small group … and continue to share the Good News in Curitiba and all the places God leads,” Alan Nalley said.
-
Feedback
View Comments
I am Bro.TJ from India.
India