Moving to Leon

It's official: we're moving to the city of Leon!

For the past six years we've lived in Torreon, a city in north central Mexico. During our time there, Mike has helped the Mexican Lutheran Church build a seminary, start three new congregations in the area, and strengthen the existing congregation El Redentor (Redeemer). Missionaries and Mexican pastors have worked together to improve the worker training program, build up lay leaders, and strengthen the Mexican Lutheran Church as a synod.

Now it is time to start a new chapter.

The Mexico mission team, which consists of four missionary families and two volunteers, is headed to the central city of Leon to start two new congregations. The plan is to focus on evangelism, build up these new churches, and then turn them over to Mexican pastors who will oversee them (this is exactly what has happened in Sonora and has worked out very well).

While we're in Leon, two Mexican pastors and one student-pastor will continue to oversee the congregations in Torreon. Work there will continue, just as it will in other areas of Mexico where we have Mexican pastors but no missionary presence (examples: Monterrey, Puebla, Guadalupe - see the map to find our Lutheran churches in Mexico).

Leon is the fifth largest city in Mexico and has a metro population of about 2 million people. It has a solid and growing economy, and is known for its shoe and leather industry (I'm already planning to buy some cute boots for my sixteen month old!).

You may have heard that we're moving out of Torreon for security reasons. This is true, to a certain extent. We feel that it is best for us, who live as foreigners in Mexico, to leave the city due to a recent increase in violence there (the result of Mexico's drug war, which is affecting certain areas of the country but not others).

While humanly speaking we are moving because of security issues, I firmly believe that God is directing us to Leon. According to our findings, there has never been a Lutheran church in Leon, even though the city is more than 400 years old! Think of the opportunity to take the Gospel there. Just writing this gets me excited to start packing my bags.

Join us in asking God to bless the work in Leon and continue to care for his flock in Mexico. Oh, and think about coming to visit us in our new home!

You can read more about Leon at these links:

- See a map of Mexico here.

- Look at some pictures of Leon.

- Read up on tourist info for Leon, so you can start planning your trip to visit us there!

- Get an overview of the city (in Spanish)

Recipe for Pozole Blanco

Pozole is a traditional Mexican soup, dating back to prehispanic times. The dish is regulalry served at festivals and celebrations throughout the country.

There are a number of versions of pozole. When I first came to Mexico, I was introduced to pozole blanco, or white pozole (named "white" because the broth is clear, as opposed to other styles of pozole which have a red or green-based broth, depending on the chilies that are added).

One thing I like about pozole is that you can make it as bland - I mean mild - or as spicy as you want. The soup is generally served without much seasoning and the chili and other seasonings are served on the side. This allows guests to customize the dish for themselves.

Here's a variation of a pozole blanco recipe I got from one of my Mexican cookbooks:

Ingredients
3 pounds chicken pieces (with bone included)*
16 oz prepared hominy
1 to 2 bullion cubes

Garnishes
Limes
Radishes, sliced
Onion, finely chopped
Chili powder
Oregano
Cabbage, shredded

Preparation
Place the hominy and chicken into a pot with 2 quarts of water. Add a bullion cube or two. Bring to a boil and simmer for an hour. Remove the chicken and let cool. Then take it off the bone, shred it, and return to the pot.*

Serve soup in bowls. On the side, serve the garnishes. For a true treat, eat with tostadas smothered in Mexican cream.


*You can also buy a roasted chicken from the grocery store and shred it to make the soup. Saves time and tastes good this way too.

Find more recipes here.

A letter to WELS from their missionaries in Mexico

If you follow mission work in Mexico, you may have recently heard some crazy (or not-so-crazy) rumors about the current security situation. The truth is, the ongoing drug war in Mexico has affected many areas of the country. It has not by any means, however, made it impossible for us to live and work in Mexico.

I'm including a letter below that was written by our missionaries in Mexico. It addresses the drug war issues and gives some inside scoop concerning the current affairs there. Please feel free to share this with members of your congregation or school. What it states is not so much political speak; rather, it is an honest view of the situation our mission team is working through right now. Here's the letter:

A probable change is taking place in the mission work in Mexico. WELS missionaries are currently investigating the possibility of moving out of the city of Torreon and into a different city in Mexico for a few years. The northern Mexican city of Torreon is home for the Mexican Lutheran Seminary and four mission congregations. However, the drug war in Mexico has begun to affect the city in an ever increasing manner.

Most people in the United States are aware of the drug war in Mexico. What many do not realize is the extent to which the war is affecting the country. In some areas of Mexico, such as the border town of Juárez, the violence is so great that missionaries no longer even enter the city. Over 2,600 people were murdered in Juárez in 2009, making it one of the more conflictive cities in the world. Still, other areas of the country have been left relatively unaffected. The Mexican state of Yucatán, for instance, reported no drug war related casualties in 2009.

The missionaries’ desire is to work together with our sister synod, the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mexico, to find a safe city for the missionaries to reside until the conflict resolves in Torreon. The missionaries are not in any imminent danger in Torreon, rather they feel it best to act proactively to avoid potentially serious consequences in the future.

Missionaries Mike Hartman and Larry Schlomer are currently doing an exploratory trip within the country to check out potential sites for the mission team to transfer to. God willing, a plan will be developed in the coming weeks and implemented in March.

Please pray that God use the situation in Mexico to bring people closer to Him. Also pray that He keep the WELS mission team safe together with the members of our Mexican sister church body. Paul’s missionary journeys come to mind as the mission team seeks a new location. On numerous occasions Paul had to modify his plans and leave a city unexpectedly. Each time God used the occasion to bring His Word to new areas. God has blessed the Mexican Lutheran church with steady growth these past years. We trust that He will use this situation to bring his precious message of salvation to more people in Mexico.

Mexico Volunteer Opportunity that can be done from Home

Want to help? Now there's a way to help mission work in Mexico without leaving your desk chair! Here's the scoop:

The Need
There are more than 120 WELS congregations in the U.S. currently carrying out outreach efforts to Hispanics in their areas.

On top of that, the Lutheran church in Mexico has been blessed with growth in recent years. While the church body continues to branch into new areas, Mexico is a big country and not every major city has a Lutheran church present yet.

Many members move from Mexico to the United States and vice versa. And when Lutherans come south of the border, they often contact us to find out if they are moving near a church.

Sometimes there is a church in the area, and sometimes there isn’t.

For Lutherans that are currently living in Mexico and do not have a church in their area, the Mexican Lutheran Church is in the process of developing a website – www.luteranosmexicanos.net. It should be finished this summer. One of the features this site will offer includes weekly videos of Spanish sermons.

In addition to the website, it would be helpful to have a database of all of the Lutherans in Mexico that are not near churches. By having their contact information in one place, pastors here can send them study materials, keep communication lines open, and deliver online devotions to them.

The Opportunity
We’re looking for a volunteer to help put together and maintain this database. There is no need to know Spanish or travel. The only requirements are:

- Internet and computer access

- Basic data entry skills (or ability to learn them)

- 5-8 hours per month

This would be a 1-year time commitment. The volunteer would work with the Mexico missionaries to gather the needed information and then enter it into the database. As mentioned above, the time needed for this project would be 5 to 8 hours per month (or 1 to 2 hours per week).

If you're interested or would like some additional information on this, please email me at rachelmhartman@gmail.com.

Thank you! And God's blessings on your year.

Two Pastors Ordained and Installed in Sonora

Last weekend was a memorable one for the Lutheran churches in the state of Sonora, Mexico. On Saturday, Alejandro Sanchez was ordained and installed at the congregation Cordero de Dios (Lamb of God) in the town of Sásabe. More than 100 people attended the service. Mike had the privilege of preaching and participating in the ordination and installation of Alejandro (pictured below).


Then on Sunday, Carlos Rosales was ordained and installed at the congregation el Buen Pastor (Good Shepherd) in the town of Altar. Around 130 people came. As before, Mike preached and participated in this service.




These events mark progress for both Sonora and the Mexican Lutheran church body. More than four years ago, Mission to the Children (an outreach group in southern Arizona) provided funding for a WELS missionary to move to Sonora, which lies just south of the Arizona border. This brought Missionary Ron Baerbock and his wife Karen to the area. During their time in Sonora, they have carried out mission work in 14 villages. They helped the congregations Cordero de Dios and el Buen Pastor grow and mature.

Then the Mexican Lutheran Church called Alejandro Sanchez and Carlos Rosales to serve as home missionaries to Sonora. They will serve the congregations in Sonora and help in the nearby villages. During the coming months, Missionary Baerbock will help orientate these two Mexican pastors and eventually the workload will be transitioned to them, as Missionary Baerbock plans to retire later this year.

Join us in giving thanks for this milestone in Sonora. Pray for a smooth transition and continued blessings of growth and prosperity in Sonora, Mexico.

*more on Sonora here.