A Message from the Board of Directors of the Latino Ministries Association of the ELCA
You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien; for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: Exodus 22:21
You shall not deprive a resident alien...of justice: Deuteronomy 24:17-18
Do no wrong or violence to the alien: Jeremiah 22:3-5
Show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels: Hebrews 13:1-2
March 19, 2022
Dear Friends in Christ,
I am writing to you reporting on the latest actions of the Latino Ministries Association of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America regarding the situation in the Sierra Pacific Synod, but first, let me publicly give thanks to the wonderful siblings serving with me on our Board of Directors. The expansive array of diverse voices and perspectives on our board have been a true blessing during the last few months. Particularly, I am grateful for our board siblings belonging to the LGBTQIA+ community—you navigate your life as part of two marginalized communities, and your perspective is incredibly rich. I am also grateful for our female-identifying board members. Immigrants and refugees who are women face some unique challenges in the U.S., such as a fear of being deported or losing custody of their children—and your voice, on behalf of our female-identifying immigrant community, has been inspiring.
Every day, I give thanks to God for these communities embodied in our board: thank you!
On December 15, 2021, I made the difficult decision of calling Bishop Megan Rohrer (their/them) of Sierra Pacific Synod, to let them know that the Latino Ministries Association of the ELCA disapproved of the actions taken by them and the leadership of the Sierra Pacific Synod, regarding the timing and manner of the removal of the pastor of Misión Latina Luterana (now Iglesia Luterana Santa María Peregrina). On the day of the Vigil of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the synod council of the Sierra Pacific Synod took action to remove the pastor, during one of the most important liturgical days of this community.
The bishop and the synod council disregarded the months of arduous work that had gone into planning that day and have ignored the pain that has flooded this community as a result.
Hoping that this was just an uneducated decision, I wanted to offer the Association's services to provide anti-bias, anti-racism, and cultural competency training to the leadership team of the Sierra Pacific Synod. My request for dialogue was received with an incredibly painful response. Bishop Rohrer accused me and the Association of making the wrong assumption that they didn't know about the importance of this day for the community. This moment was particularly heartbreaking, since it confirmed my fear that their actions were intentional regarding my two points above: (a) the timing and manner of the removal of the pastor of Misión Latina Luterana, and (b) the disregard for the pain that was inflicted on the community.
(Later, public communications by Pastor Hazel Salazar-Davidson further confirmed my fears. I invite you to study and discern the links at the end of this communication, as well as past statements from the Association's board on our Facebook page.)
After my conversation with Bishop Rohrer, members of our board decided to accompany and pray with the community of Misión Latina Luterana (a community that was portrayed as aggressive and dangerous—not surprisingly, a dynamic we have experienced against the Latiné community in the U.S.). Although the community initially thought we were representatives from the synod during our visit on Sunday, December 19, 2021, we were received with welcoming gestures and a community open to honest discussion. After being invited to share a meal with them, we clarified that we represented the Association, but gave them our word that we were committed to their protection and well-being, as members of our Lutheran family.
In the meantime, several months have passed, and the community is still waiting for any accountability action that demonstrates our church's commitment to anti-racist practices. According to a note shared by Bishop Leila M. Ortiz, Metropolitan Washington, DC Synod, regarding a letter written by the Latiné bishops of our church to the Presiding Bishop and the Executive Committee on February 2, 2022, "The reverberations of this day [and the inaction that followed] have called into question the ELCA's capacity to faithfully engage communities of color in ministry, forced leaders of color across the nation to question their complicity within a system that continues to fall short of its public professions, and incapacitated the integrity of a church seeking to be newer, younger, and more diverse."
To make matters more complex, our Association's board has been strongly accused of not advocating for Pastor Nelson Rabell-González's case. It should be noted that our board is not in a position to advocate for his case at this point.
Let me explain.
A majority of this board's members identify as Latina, immigrant, and women of color. We practice believing victims—especially if they are women-identifying individuals—until proven otherwise. Since we don't have access to the victims' information or testimonials, we don't have concrete evidence to form an opinion. However, there is reason to believe that Pastor Nelson's case was mishandled based on a process established by the Sierra Pacific Synod.
After reviewing the situation, we convened and hosted a meeting with Latiné leaders from our church. All members of our board, representatives of the ELCA Latinx Lutheran Leadership (L3), the Estrategia Latina Committee of the ELCA, the Latiné DEMs and Churchwide staff leaders, and the Latiné Bishops of the Conference of Bishops were present during all or some of the conversations. Our goal was to reach out to our Presiding Bishop with a united and urgent demand for justice.
An urgent demand for racial justice and accountability.
Immediately after the meeting, we presented our demand to our Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton. The demand took the form of three actionable accountability and disciplinary requests regarding the Sierra Pacific Synod situation. Additionally, we specified a timeline for action. We hope this demand will help our church recognize the impact of racist actions against the Latiné community—an impact felt not only within the Misión Latina Luterana ministry but also throughout the entire ELCA.
During the first weeks of April, our board will publish additional information regarding the response from Bishop Eaton's Office to our urgent demand for justice.
In the meantime, we invite all members of our Association to continue to pray for the well-being of Misión Latina Luterana in Stockton, for the entire Latiné community, and all our Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) siblings in the ELCA, as well as for the recognition of the continued anti-racism work that is needed for the survival of our church body.
In a single day, the trust of an entire community of faithful Lutherans was lost.
In a single day, the ELCA lost an entire, vibrant community of young and diverse Lutherans.
Let us all work together for the acknowledgment of our wrongdoings and, in this case, for a healing process within the Latiné community, to avoid any further pain in our Church—particularly with our BIPOC siblings.
Let us pray.
O God of unconditional love, you who show no partiality in respect to people or nations, we have heard your good news of great joy for all the people. We know that your sanctuary is a house of worship for all people, with no regard for the color of our skin. May we celebrate our unity, made whole in our diversity. Forgive us for our inability to let our "old selves" die to the world. Raise us up to a spirit of newness and unity. In the name of Jesus. Amen.
In Christ,
Jennifer DeLeon (she/her/ella), Presidenta of Latino Lutheran Ministries Association of the ELCA
On behalf of the board members below:
The Rev. Gabriel Marcano (he/him/él), Vice-president of Latino Lutheran Ministries Association of the ELCA
Lupita Escamilla (she/her/ella), Secretary of Latino Lutheran Ministries Association of the ELCA
Marisol Dubon (she/her/ella), Treasurer of Latino Lutheran Ministries Association of the ELCA
The Rev. Toni J. Castañeda Carrera (they/their/elle/she/her/ella), Youth Representative of Latino Lutheran Ministries Association of the ELCA
Roberto Lara Aranda (he/him/él), Communications and Media Officer of Latino Lutheran Ministries Association of the ELCA
Kristina Díaz (she/her/ella), Regional Chapters Officer of Latino Lutheran Ministries Association of the ELCA