Chris Barrett was born and raised in Miami, Florida, where he grew up in a bilingual home, hearing Spanish from his Cuban mother, and English from his father, a native of Savannah, Georgia. Now married, Chris and his wife Ruth, of Puerto-Rican descent, are raising their two children to enjoy a life full of the flavors of ropa vieja, café Cubano, and the unique blend of Hispanic-American culture that has dubbed Miami, “the gateway to Latin America.” The Barrett family, with their blended Hispanic heritage and varying levels of bilingualism within their household, represent a fairly typical home in The 305, an area code which is over 72% Hispanic.
A paralegal by profession, Chris is also a Ruling Elder in a local Presbyterian Church of America. He is finishing seminary, and on track to become an ordained Teaching Elder (pastor). Yet in a denomination where just over 1% of the pastors are of Hispanic origin, the question is: what does it look like to care for and serve this melting-pot culture, that looks (and often sounds) so different from the typical church demographic? Of course, this question is not limited to the PCA, nor to the culture of Miami, but to the many denominations seeking to serve the growing Hispanic culture in cities throughout the United States.
En realidad, there are many challenges, and even prejudices (subconscious or otherwise) that easily hinder the work. Taking Miami as an example, it is clear that what is needed is a Kingdom view of people and culture (following Rev. 7, which paints the picture of a beautifully diverse and redeemed Church), willing to put aside majority culture norms for church ministry, and engage the beauty of the gospel amongst the diversity of people God has created.
MIAMI BY THE BOOKS:
By percentage, Miami has one of the largest Hispanic populations of any major US city, coming in second only to El Paso, and followed by cities such as San Antonio, Los Angeles, and Dallas, respectively.[i] The sheer percentage (58.1%) of Miami residents who are born outside the United States (primarily from Cuba, followed by Haiti, and then Colombia) speaks in and of itself to the inescapable reality of Hispanic-islander and Latino culture that have soaked into practically every pocket of the city.[ii] The prevalence of Spanish goes hand-in-hand with these numbers, with an astonishing 66% of Miami residents over the age of five speaking some level of Spanish, and only 25% who speak only English.[iii] Naturally, not only do these data points contrast starkly with the national averages (e.g., 13.6% of the US population is foreign-born), but they also help to create the rich, vibrant, flavorful, diverse culture where many have come to find a home, and that attracts countless visitors.
Yet while so many Miamians represent first-generation Latino immigrants, the fact that nearly 72% of Miami residents are US citizens speaks to the desire to call this new city home. People are settling in, using their skills, bringing their language and cultural backgrounds, and adapting together into a new way of life, in a city that is both welcoming, and foreign. Last year, researcher and sociolinguist at Florida International University, Phillip Carter, published his findings on how the prevalence of Spanish-language usage in Miami is creating a new English dialect unique to Miami-Dade county, based (in part) on some literal translations of common Spanish phrases to English (e.g., “get down from the car” from “bájate del carro.”)
Although one might infer that such fluency and merging and between cultures and languages would mean equality for an immigrant group that is often seen (be it consciously and subconsciously) as inferior, at least as far as it relates to language, Carter found this was not so. According to his research, Carter concluded that “Spanish and English are not set up here as ‘coequal.’ People absorb the message: Yes, there are two languages spoken here, but they matter in different ways: One language takes you this way, the other takes you that way. One may even be more important than the other.”[iv] But a deference to English is only the beginning of the story, and speaks to a larger cultural norm, that even in a majority-immigrant city like Miami, there is a deeply-rooted Anglo preference. And if such is the case in Miami, how much more so is it the case in other cities and zip codes throughout the nation where the statistics are reversed? And what are the implications of such language and culture preferences when it comes to reaching Hispanics for the gospel, even in cities like Miami?
THE REALITY OF MINISTRY IN MIAMI
The struggle with cultural preference within the church is not new. It is easy to look at the New Testament and see, for example, Jesus going against the expected cultural preferences by making time for the hated Samaritans (e.g., the woman at the well, in John 4), or Paul writing repeatedly about the need for unity (not preference) in the Body of Christ between Jews and Gentiles. The Bible does not ignore culture, but Jesus brings redemption and unity among peoples of every tribe, people, nation, and language (cf. Rev 7:9). Yet the reality, evident even in looking at the reach and performance of the church in places like Miami, is that reaching la diversidad de la ciudad (the diversity of the city) from a majority-culture denomination and context is difficult, and requires much intentionality.
Simply surveying the churches of the South Florida Presbytery demonstrates that planting and growing Hispanic churches (or generating Hispanic church growth within these churches) from a majority-culture denomination – even in places like Miami – is not automatic. Of the twenty-one churches located on the mainland within the presbytery, only one is a Spanish-speaking church; another offers a Spanish service, and a third has translated sermons on the website.[v] Of course, these numbers do not indicate everything; while not listed on the website, some churches, like where Chris Barrett serves, do have their services translated, and also sing in both English and Spanish. And certainly, in a region with such a mezcla de culturas (mix of cultures), looking at language alone does not tell the full story: just an overview of staff among these churches reflects a greater Hispanic representation than in most areas of the United States. Still, it is not close to commensurate with the demographic make-up of the area. Seeing the facts, it is useful to ask what challenges might be contributing to the disparity?
According to Chris, Miami is a place that is, in many ways, ripe for the gospel message. Most are coming from some type of religious background, whether Roman-Catholic, Pentecostal, or Santería. Yet as is true within many immigrant communities, the faith of parents is not enough to sustain them through the difficulties of a new way of life. Sometimes it is getting caught up in the busyness of trying to provide for the family and work their way up the socioeconomic ladder that eats into the church life that was integrated into life in la patria (homeland). Some are eager to escape the burdensome legalism they may have felt in their Pentecostal background, while others have been burned by a prosperity gospel that has simply left them disillusioned and unsure where to turn. In Chris’ experience, el reto (the challenge) is not so much convincing people that there is a God, but helping them to see what La Palabra de Dios (the Word of God) has to say about the True God, and who He is.
THE NEED FOR INTENTIONAL MINISTRY
If true Gospel-transformation is to take place among the thriving but spiritually broken Hispanic population of Miami and other similar cities and zip codes, it is clear that the approach must be targeted specifically and intentionally to this culture, with great love and care. We must ask, along with the Apostle Paul, “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent?” (Rom 10:14-15). The need is not simply for Hispanic or Spanish-speaking leaders to fill the pulpits in the denomination’s churches; rather, it is for people to go, live among, and value the people and their culture, that they might hear God’s truth not simply in their language, but within their context, applied to their stories.
Phillip Carter’s realization that, even in a place like Miami, Spanish-speaking takes deference to English, provides one glimpse into a reality: even and especially in church ministry, pastors and churches must be intentional to care for the culture(s) they are trying to reach. Jesus ministered powerfully to many social outcasts, but not because He saw Himself as “stooping” to their level.[vi] Rather, it was because He saw them equally as people created in the imago Dei, and in need of redemption. To go, serve, and preach in Miami and the Hispanic-immigrant/Hispanic-American community at large, the vision must be not to go and serve “los pobrecitos” (in this case, a somewhat denigrating way of saying “those poor people”) or simply as a mission of the church, but the vision to bring the Gospel to a people and culture that are growing in number and impact throughout the United States and abroad.
At the same time, Barrett notes that, for Americans coming to Miami from other parts of the United States, adjusting to such a uniquely blended culture can feel challenging and awkward. This reality is true also in segregated cities, when residents from a majority-culture area step into an area or zip code permeated with mercaditos, tienditas, carnecerias, and flower venders on every corner. Yet if the church does not actively seek to bridge these divides through training, sending, and working alongside Hispanic, bilingual, and bicultural leaders and partners, these encounters will continue to be nothing more than that: interesting, awkward, and easy to leave behind. Rather, the church must pray and strive to do the slow, hard, but rewarding work of seeing and learning the needs of a burgeoning culture within our society, and trust the Lord to bring His growth.
A GOSPEL-CENTERED VISION AND PRAYER
As a Hispanic-American Miamian and soon-to-be pastoral candidate, Chris Barrett knows his love for his city’s culture, and has a desire to see it grow in the knowledge of the Lord. He has seen the need for Gospel truth to permeate the lives and families in his city and beyond. For Chris, the desire is to first reach English-speaking second-generation Hispanics, knowing that through the children, there will be a need and opportunity to reach the Spanish-speaking parents and families. Where and how exactly the Lord will draw and use him and the Barrett family in the coming months and years is still unclear. Yet what is clear for Chris – and for the growing Hispanic population in Miami and throughout the United States – is that the Lord is working.
While some are called to go out, the Lord of the Harvest has put a growing people and culture, ripe for the Gospel, in our very midst. Miami provides an excellent case study, but the numbers are growing across the nation, in cities both large and small. As a church, as a denomination, as individuals, we must ask ourselves: will we help to serve, care for, come alongside, and raise up leaders for the harvest? May we join our voices in prayer al Señor de la cosecha (to the Lord of the Harvest), and trust the Lord to be at work as we use whatever resources He has entrusted us to care for, love, and serve nuestros vecinos hispanos (our Hispanic neighbors) for the growth of His Kingdom.
¡A Dios sea la gloria!
JOIN US IN PRAYER:
Pray for Chris, as he finishes seminary and works towards ordination, that the Lord would direct and guide him and his family, in order for him to serve as the Lord is calling him, in Miami, Puerto Rico, or elsewhere.
Pray for Miami, that the Lord would raise church leaders who would care for the rich diversity of culture, and be able to bring the Gospel message to a people and culture ripe for harvest.
Pray for the PCA and other denominations to see, understand, and begin to equip and send more partners, leaders, and church planters to care for the growing Hispanic population throughout our cities, and the United States.
Pray for HLI, as we seek to encourage, train, multiply, and send leaders to reach Hispanics, both within the United States, and beyond.
Please consider giving to HLI so that we can continue training, supporting, and encouraging pastors, leaders like Chris, and congregations who are caring for these changing cities and communities, as they reach the Hispanic-American context for the Gospel.
ENDNOTES:
[i] Per the United States Census Bureau and the 2020 census, following the Hispanic Communications Network compilation of the data. See https://hcnmedia.com/news/latinos-in-the-united-states-the-10-cities-with-the-most-hispanics/.
[ii] Data from Data USA on the city of Miami, FL, accessed April 16, 2023. See https://datausa.io/profile/geo/miami-fl/.
[iii] Per the United States Census Bureau current data table for Miami-Dade County. See https://data.census.gov/table/ACSST1Y2022.S1601?q=Language%20Spoken%20at%20Home&g=050XX00US12086.
[iv] Phillip Carter, as quoted by Angela Nicolletti in her article, “Even among immigrants, English is the preferred language in Miami,” FIU News, January 23, 2024. https://news.fiu.edu/2024/miami-english-and-spanish-bias-preference-study.
[v] Data gathered from the PCA South Florida Presbytery website, as of May 2024. See https://www.sflpresbytery.org/churches.
[vi] In reality, the Lord condescends to each and everyone of us, in taking on flesh and dwelling among us in our brokenness!
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