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Abstract

The history of a church is impossible to tell if the chronicles of its missions are ignored. It is the latter that give it life and continuity. This article aims to present a brief historical review of the development of the missions in the Church of the Nazarene in Cuba. We begin with Miss Leona Gardner, a North American missionary, who arrived on the island in 1902. She preached the gospel in the area of Casilda, Trinidad, in the former province of Santi Espíritus, for 25 years. The merit lies in the fact that although she did not manage to plant a known or formally instituted church, she dedicated herself to the work, with passion and perseverance. For this reason, she is recognized as the first Nazarene missionary in Cuba. Eighteen years later, Lyle Prescott and his family arrived on the island in 1945. This missionary, assigned by the World Mission of the Church of the Nazarene, as Director of the work, carried out commendable missionary work. In a house in Santo Suárez, the first Sunday school was held on May 26, 1946, the date on which the Church of the Nazarene in Cuba is considered founded. Then, in the same year, the first church was organized in Old Havana. From then on, Prescott continued, together with the missionaries Hall, Hendrix, and Coolidge, founding churches in Havana and other provinces, until they had planted 18 churches. Likewise, they are also credited with the creation and enabling of a Bible Institute. Prescott left Cuba in 1957, shortly before the last missionaries left in 1960, as a result of the Cuban Revolution. The Cuban church was left in the hands of the lay pastors, who formed them, and who, guided by God, did not let the work that was bequeathed to them die. The people of God lived very difficult times, especially due to unfavorable church-state relations and the isolation, with respect to the Nazarene Church abroad. By 1979, when the first General Superintendent, the Cuban national leader, visited Cuba, he reported on the work that had been carried out. This article highlights the ascending course of missions, in the different historical stages of Cuba, as well as the multiplication of workers. We were pleased to present testimonies of the performance of some native missionaries, representing the many servants who have reaped with tears. We recognize the valuable help that the Cuban missionary work has received from Nazarene brothers and sisters from other countries and the Mesoamerican Region, fundamentally in financial and other resources, starting in the late 90s. This article speaks for itself, of how sacrificial missionary work is and of God’s support for this beautiful ministry. It is a call not to forget history, and those who make it and are a part of it, fulfilling the great commission, until the coming of Christ.

DOI

10.7252/Journal.02.2024F.07

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