Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas (Jack and Doris Smothers Series in Texas History, Life, and Culture)

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

Number Eighteen Jack and Doris Smothers Series in Texas History, Life, and Culture

HISPANIC METHODISTS, PRESBYTERIANS, AND BAPTISTS IN TEXAS

Paul Barton

University of Texas Press Austin

Publication of this work was made possible in part by support from the J. E. Smothers, Sr., Memorial Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Copyright © 2006 by the University of Texas Press All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America First edition, 2006 Requests for permission to reproduce material from this work should be sent to: Permissions University of Texas Press P.O. Box 7819 Austin, TX 78713-7819 www.utexas.edu/utpress/about/bpermission.html  The paper used in this book meets the minimum requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (R1997) (Permanence of Paper). Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Barton, Paul, 1961– Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas / Paul Barton.— 1st ed. p. cm. — (Jack and Doris Smothers series in Texas history, life, and culture ; no. 18) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-292-71291-1 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-292-71291-X (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-13: 978-0-292-71335-2 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-292-71335-5 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Hispanic Americans—Texas—Religion. 2. Church work with Hispanic Americans. 3. Texas—Church history. I. Title. II. Series. BR563.H57B37 2006 280'.408968073—dc22 2005034965

For my wife, Beth, and my daughter, Elisa

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Contents

Acknowledgments

ix

Chapters 1.

Introduction 1

2.

The Tejano/a Catholic Worldview 12

3.

‘‘Onward Christian Soldiers’’: Anglo-Protestant Missionaries

27

4.

‘‘Jesus Is All the World to Me’’: Los Protestantes’ Appropriation of Anglo-American Protestantism 45

5.

‘‘Jesús Es Mi Rey Soberano’’: The Mexican-American Character of los Protestantes 78

6.

¿‘‘Somos Uno en el Espíritu’’? The Relationship between los Protestantes and Catholicism 115

7.

Conclusion 137

Appendixes A. Institutional History of the Rio Grande Annual Conference B.

Institutional History of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas 152

C. Institutional History of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery 157

147

viii

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

D. Máximo Villarreal Book Collection

161

E.

Course of Study Readings for Ordination for Spanish-Speaking Methodists 168

F.

‘‘Hispanic Creed’’ 172 Notes

175

Bibliography Index

233

215

Acknowledgments

This study is the result of the contributions, support, and encouragement of many individuals. Dr. Edwin Sylvest consistently challenged me to move from the periphery to the heart of this study. His enlightened perspective on Hispanic Christianity made him an excellent and engaging dialogue partner. Through his unique style of guidance, he helped make this endeavor as much a spiritual project as an academic one. Dr. William Babcock encouraged me to make this more than a denominational history, to expand the original subject to include other traditions. Dr. William Taylor inspired me to consider the nuances, ambiguities, and paradoxes endemic in history. Dr. Daisy L. Machado offered encouragement and inspired me to confront the provocative issues of our Hispanic reality. Dr. David Maldonado also offered helpful suggestions and kept reminding me of the importance of this project. His willingness to treat me as a colleague is greatly appreciated. By inviting me to assist him on his three-year project on Hispanic Protestantism, he exposed me to several new and old voices in this tradition. I extend my gratitude to those persons who provided comments on my dissertation to revise it for this book—Justo L. González, Roberto Gómez, Robert Wright, and Ulricke Guthrie. I also thank Timothy Matovina and Robert Wright for their comments on Latino/a Catholicism. Much gratitude goes to the staff and community of the Hispanic Theological Initiative, who provided financial, intellectual, and emotional support for this study.

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

My gratitude also goes to the members of the Rio Grande Conference and other Mexican-American Protestants who generously allowed me to interview them and who supplied me with obscure historical gems. Thanks also to my colleagues at the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest for their support and encouragement. Information on Spanish-speaking Protestants was gathered from various archival locations. I am grateful to the staff of several libraries and archival collections at universities and seminaries throughout Texas and New Mexico. The Reverend Page Thomas of Bridwell Library at Perkins School of Theology was invaluable in providing me with his expertise on the United Methodist archives there. Dale Patterson of the United Methodist Church’s historical agency, the General Commission on Archives and History, located at Drew University, was very helpful. I also thank the staff of other libraries who assisted with archival work— Ellen Brown at the Texas Collection at Baylor University, Bill Brock and Kris Toma, the archivists at Stitt Library at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, the staff at the Menaul Library of the U.S. Southwest in Albuquerque, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Alan Lefever and the staff at the Texas Baptist Historical Collection in Dallas, and the Hispanic Baptist Theological School in San Antonio. Thanks also to Mikail McIntosh-Doty of the Booher Library at the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest, who responded promptly to my many questions and requests, and to Donna Hall, my student assistant. I am grateful to Stacy Stringer and Janice Jones for their excellent assistance with the index. Each of these people contributed to the present work; at the same time, however, I take full responsibility for the content of this study. A special thanks to my parents, Roy and Rosa Marina Barton, whose lives have been a blessing to me and countless others. This study is in some sense my parents’ history told from their son’s perspective. They provided constant support for this project. Lastly, but most importantly, my deepest gratitude goes to my wife, Beth, and my daughter, Elisa. This is their project as much as mine.

1

Introduction

The Reverend Roberto Gómez, pastor of a Mexican-American United Methodist church in Mission, Texas, on the Texas-Mexico border, commented that the Anglo-American visitors to his church in December 1998 expected to find worshippers who looked like them. He experienced other instances like this throughout his tenure at the church. He noted that winter visitors from the north typically remarked to the pastor after the service that they never anticipated seeing such a large congregation of Mexican-American Protestants because they assumed that all Mexican Americans attended Catholic churches.1 In addition to addressing these visitors’ perceptions, Rev. Gómez must address his own self-perceptions. He represents many mainline Hispanic Protestants who inevitably confront a crucial question of identity: how can they be both Mexican American and Protestant? Straddling this identity divide, Mexican-American (and Hispanic and Latino/a) mainline Protestants find themselves negotiating two worlds—the world of the Anglo-American dominant society, represented in their Protestant denomination, and the world of their (generally Catholic) Mexican-American community. It is in this negotiation between their two primary frames of reference—the Anglo-American Protestant denomination and their Mexican-American Catholic community—that Hispanic Protestants work out their religious and cultural identities. Because the very terms used to denote Protestants of Hispanic background vary, it is necessary to specify how terms are used in this work. ‘‘Mexican-American Protestants’’ in this study refers most spe-

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

cifically to Mexican and Mexican-American Protestants in the U.S. Southwest, and occasionally to the larger Hispanic Protestant community. Given the continued immigration of Mexicans throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it is important to recognize both Mexicans and Mexican Americans in the history of the U.S. Southwest. The terms ‘‘Hispanic Protestants’’ and ‘‘los Protestantes,’’ used interchangeably in this book, embrace Mexicans, Mexican Americans, and other Hispanic Protestants living in the U.S. Southwest.2 Los Protestantes have experienced a constant tension, striving to maintain their Mexican-American identity in relation to AngloAmerican Protestants and their Protestant identity in relation to their Mexican-American Roman Catholic neighbors. In the process, they have experienced marginalization as a double minority. They are a religious minority within the larger Mexican-American community and a cultural minority within their Protestant denomination. They have been marginalized within their Mexican-American community because of their religious beliefs and activity and within their religious community because of their skin color and ethnicity. Likewise, los Protestantes have constructed their unique religious identity as a counterpoint to the Mexican-American Catholic community, which is the group of their cultural affiliation, and their cultural identity as a counterpoint to the predominantly Anglo-American Protestant community. To a great extent, the religious and cultural identity of los Protestantes has been shaped as they have moved back and forth between these two communities, one representing the religious and cultural context of their ethnic heritage, and the other representing the ideals and values of the dominant society. Identity formation thus involves a process of distinguishing oneself, or one’s group, from others, thus defining oneself through defining what one is not. Los Protestantes represent a unique mixture of Hispanic—and in this case Mexican-American—and Anglo-American religion and culture.They have maintained their ethnic identity through their network of ethnic relationships and observance of many cultural practices. They have developed their religious identity through internalization of the religious worldview and ethos originally presented by Anglo-American Protestant missionaries.3 It is the development of and shifts in this cultural and religious identity of Mexican-American mainline Protestants in Texas (and to some extent in New Mexico) that I explore in this study, covering the first outreach of Protestants into Texas in the 1830s through the

Introduction

3

1990s. Their identities were fashioned as they interacted with the two communities that formed their frames of reference, Anglo-American Protestants of their own denominations and Mexican-American Catholics within their barrio. Cultural adaptation was occurring in both directions, so that los Protestantes (1) incorporated aspects of Mexican culture into their faith, and (2) appropriated certain aspects of AngloAmerican culture and values. Specifically, this study focuses on the intricacies of the relationship between religion and culture of Mexican-American Baptists, Presbyterians, and Methodists, which are the first three Protestant traditions with Spanish-speaking adherents in Texas. I also address the similarities and differences in the relationships that Mexican-American Methodists, Baptists, and Presbyterians had with their Protestant denominations and their Mexican-American Catholic community, as well as analogous dynamics of Catholics in some cases. Each of the Spanishspeaking Methodist, Baptist, and Presbyterian groups had their own semi-autonomous institution at one time. The southern Presbyterians formed the Texas-Mexican Presbytery (1908–1955). Spanish-speaking Baptists established the Convención Bautista Mexicana de Texas (Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas) in 1910, which united with the Baptist General Convention of Texas in 1960. The Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas continues as a department of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, and is now known as the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas. The Methodists’ institution dates to 1885 with the Conferencia Fronteriza Misionera Mexicana de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur (Mexican Border Missionary Conference). The boundaries and names changed several times in the ensuing years. The most recent boundary change, in 1939, authorized the Conferencia Anual Mexicana del Suroeste (Southwest Mexican Annual Conference) to administer and establish Spanish-speaking churches in Texas and New Mexico. The name of the institution was changed to the Conferencia Anual del Río Grande (Rio Grande Annual Conference) in 1948.4 This work covers Mexican-American Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists and does not include all Protestant denominations and traditions that have been present among Hispanics in the U.S. Southwest.5 The Nazarenes, Disciples (the Christian Church), Mennonites, Latter-day Saints, and the Assemblies of God, among others, have historical roots among the Spanish-speaking people in the U.S. Southwest. I have focused upon the Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists because they began the earliest Protestant missions among the Spanish-

4

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

speaking in Texas and the rest of the U.S. Southwest. Comparisons among these denominations reveal similar dynamics; Mexican Americans in each have responded to similar religious, cultural, and institutional challenges. Instead of describing the full story of each group, I draw connections between them. And, although this study focuses on Mexican-American Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists, other Hispanic Protestants, as well as Catholics, might be able to identify with this history and use it as a vehicle for illuminating some of the dynamics operating in their own churches and settings. Protestantism has been studied as a vehicle for assimilating Hispanics into mainstream society. Yet, Protestantism as an agent of assimilation tells only part of the story of los Protestantes. Somewhere along the way, Anglo-American forms of Protestantism melded with Mexican-American cultural and social customs so that a distinctive form of Mexican-American Protestantism emerged. This melding of Anglo-American Protestantism with Mexican-American culture was necessary in order for Mexican-American Protestantism to become an indigenous, authentic, and empowering faith tradition in the MexicanAmerican community. As los Protestantes integrated their AngloAmerican Protestant faith with their cultural heritage, they intentionally began to embrace their ethnic culture. It was the ability to resolve differences in important aspects of identity between AngloAmerican Protestantism and their Mexican-American culture that enabled los Protestantes to continue as a unique group, distinct from their Mexican-American Catholic neighbors and distinct from their AngloAmerican Protestant co-faithful. Permeating this study is a concern for the changing relationship between los Protestantes and the two groups that have influenced their identity, namely Anglo-American Protestants and Mexican-American Catholics. In tracing the shifts in the relationships between los Protestantes and these two groups, as well as the shifts in their communal identity,6 I consider the following question: how is the identity of a group of people from one culture changed when they adopt the religion of another culture? Put another way, how do their worldview and ethos change as they enter into the Anglo-American Protestant orbit? And, given that this examination traces the development of Mexican-American Protestant identity for over a century, what are the historical events and trends that affected their identity in different periods? What shifts have occurred in their identity and how have these shifts occurred? How have los Protestantes maintained their

Introduction

5

Mexican-American and Protestant identities in relationship to the two communities to which they have continued to relate—their MexicanAmerican community and their Anglo-American denomination? The identity of los Protestantes flows from their relationship with each of these groups. Finally, what have been the similarities and differences among Mexican-American Baptists, Methodists, and Presbyterians in their assimilation into the dominant society and the maintenance of their cultural identity?

Assimilation and Cultural Preservation Examining Protestantism as a vehicle for assimilation into mainstream American society tells only one side of the story of Hispanic Protestantism. While some degree of assimilation resulted from Protestant influence, los Protestantes continued to practice their MexicanAmerican culture within their religious communities. Indeed, congregational life enabled the maintenance of their Mexican-American culture. This is the case with the Rio Grande Annual Conference, whose ministry in northern Mexico, Texas, and New Mexico dates back over one hundred years. Some Mexican-American Presbyterian and Baptist congregations have also celebrated their centennial anniversaries. The continued existence of separate bilingual, and increasingly bicultural, congregations demonstrates that processes other than assimilation were occurring among los Protestantes. These congregations provided safe environments where los Protestantes could engage in cultural self-preservation. Assimilation theory fails to explain why Mexican-American churches in the U.S. Southwest contain third- and fourth-generation Protestants who have chosen to maintain their membership within a Mexican-American congregation. The development of an emerging indigenous Mexican-American Protestant group calls into question the idea that Mexican Americans simply assimilated into mainstream American society through their participation in the Protestant church. While los Protestantes have assimilated to a certain extent during the last few decades, they have at the same time preserved their ethnicity through their participation in their ethnic churches. Because of the bilingual and bicultural nature of the Mexican-American Protestant churches in Texas, these congregations have facilitated the assimilation of Mexican immigrants into American society while at the same

6

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

time enabling assimilated Mexican Americans to gain an awareness of their cultural heritage. Mexican Americans were certainly not the only subaltern group struggling for autonomy in the U.S. Southwest. Native Americans, African Americans, and Asian Americans were also present in this region through the same period. All of these groups had in common the experiences of marginalization, discrimination, and dependency upon the Anglo-American majority, though each group’s experiences differed in its particular historical conditions and developments. Due to such particularity, each of these groups deserves separate examination. Moreover, future studies would do well to carefully analyze the interaction among these groups. Here, it must be sufficient to note that Mexican Americans’ history of struggle for autonomy had parallels, and even some contact, with each of these other groups, as well as with other Hispanic groups.

The Tapestry of Mexican-American Protestant Identity Some literature examining Protestant missionary activity in the U.S. Southwest has taken a unilateral approach.7 Viewing Protestantism simply as a force acting upon Mexican Americans places the focus of study upon those wielding power, namely the Anglo Americans who wrested control of the U.S. Southwest from Mexican Americans and Native Americans. Those who pursue this perspective tend to recount the ways in which Anglo-American Protestants viewed Mexicans as inferior and themselves as representatives of a superior culture sent to uplift a decadent group of people. To focus on denominational mission agencies and their Anglo-American missionaries is to treat Mexican Americans who converted to Protestantism as objects of evangelization rather than as persons with the ability to make choices. Attempting to strike a balance between the Anglo- and Mexican-American sides of the equation, I examine the religion and culture of both groups to understand the interplay of these two traditions in the lives of los Protestantes.8 The interplay of Mexican- and Anglo-American religion and culture can be understood by employing the metaphor of a tapestry. To make a durable tapestry, threads must be tightly interlaced. Viewed as a cultural and religious tapestry, los Protestantes have historical patterns resulting from their Spanish, indigenous, and mestizo roots and

Introduction

7

from the insertion of Anglo-American Protestantism into this heritage. These historical patterns have been woven together to constitute the Mexican-American Methodist, Baptist, and Presbyterian communities in Texas and New Mexico. Some of the threads appear in sharp relief, such as the influences of Protestant missionaries and this group’s contradistinction from the Catholic Church. Other threads are subtler, not as easy to perceive. The influence of anticlericalism and La Reforma in nineteenth-century Mexico and the Mexican Revolution are two cases in point. In the case of Mexican-American Methodists, Baptists, and Presbyterians, their history is one of a continuous weaving of cultural and religious threads into their communities that form historical patterns. Individuals participating in each of these communities, such as AngloAmerican missionaries, wove enduring strands of Protestantism into this cultural and religious fabric. Other strands have been inserted by larger trends, such as mass immigration at the turn of the twentieth century, when many Mexicans arrived in Texas to escape the ravages of the Mexican Revolution, and another wave of immigration from Central America in the late 1970s and 1980s. Finally, los Protestantes have been contributing to the weaving of their own history and identity. They have left enduring legacies in the transmission of the tradition they adopted and in their eventual challenge of certain legacies. I attempt to make sense of the historical, cultural, and religious patterns that continue in this tapestry. The metaphor of the tapestry is also helpful for understanding the stresses that los Protestantes have endured as they struggled to maintain their multifaceted identity. Some of these stresses have caused some parts of the fabric to unravel. This has occurred as congregations and members became disaffected from their organizations. In short, los Protestantes find themselves struggling to keep their tapestry woven together in the face of assimilation trends, other religious options (e.g., Catholic and Pentecostal traditions), and institutional challenges. Seen from a larger perspective, Mexican-American Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists are themselves a strand in the tapestry of the U.S. Southwest. In fact, this study might reveal significant patterns in interethnic relations between Mexican and Anglo Americans that are present in other Hispanic groups, both Protestant and Catholic. By illuminating the role that religion plays in the interethnic relations of Mexican and Anglo Americans, I hope to contribute to a greater understanding of the interplay of these two groups in the U.S. Southwest.

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

Methodology and Sources My approach to this study is that of an insider. As a fourth-generation Mexican-American United Methodist, I acknowledge a strong personal affinity for my cultural and religious traditions. Raised within the Rio Grande Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church, and currently an active participant in the conference, I am intimately familiar with the subject matter, as well as with many of the persons treated in this study. My status as ‘‘insider’’ influences the questions raised for this inquiry. It also underlies an intuitive dimension to this study; descriptions and evaluations of the experiences of los Protestantes are filtered through my lifelong relationship with this group. I am personally aware of the issues that los Protestantes must struggle with as they construct their identity in a pluralistic society. Thus, there is a sense in which this historical inquiry is also an attempt to make sense of the factors that have contributed to my own identity. While doing previous research on Hispanic Christianity in the U.S. Southwest, I realized that several works have been published about Hispanic Christianity in New Mexico, both Catholic and Protestant, but few persons had considered Mexican-American Protestants in Texas. Those works that do have taken a denominational approach. Brackenridge and García-Treto’s Iglesia Presbiteriana remains a standard and compelling work, but it only deals with Presbyterians. Likewise, Daisy Machado’s Of Borders and Margins addresses the history of the Disciples.9 My approach to the study of Hispanic Protestants in Texas follows the examples of two previous comparative works on Hispanic Protestants in the Southwest: Clifton Holland’s The Religious Dimension in Hispanic Los Angeles: A Protestant Case Study and Randi Walker’s Protestantism in the Sangre de Cristos, 1850–1920, both of which compare and contrast the development of Latino/a Protestant traditions in a specific region.10

Summary of Chapters To fully understand the worlds that los Protestantes negotiated— the Mexican-American Catholic community and the Anglo-American Protestant denomination—it is necessary to explore their characteristics. Chapter 2 examines the worldview and ethos of nineteenthcentury Tejano/a Catholicism. The first generations of Hispanic

Introduction

9

Protestants emerged from nineteenth-century Mexican and MexicanAmerican Catholicism. It is necessary to understand the religion and culture from which the first Hispanic Protestants emerged so that we can appreciate the changes that occurred when they entered the Protestant tradition and the ways in which they distinguished themselves from their Catholic neighbors. The worldview and ethos of Tejano/a Catholics, manifested in popular Catholicism, enabled them to endure wars, raids, political conflicts, and social and economic changes throughout the nineteenth century. The popular hymn ‘‘Onward Christian Soldiers’’ served as a beckoning call for the Protestant missionary movement throughout the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries.11 Chapter 3 examines the main features of Protestantism transmitted to the Spanish-speaking by Protestant missionaries. It demonstrates how the tension that existed between evangelical/revivalist and rationalist/modernist/educationaloriented Protestants was transferred to los Protestantes.12 Despite the different cultural nuances between evangelical and modernist-oriented Protestants, there were common characteristics of Protestantism and Anglo-American culture that pervaded missionary work among the Spanish-speaking in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest: anti-Catholicism, biblicism, revivalism, educational aspiration, and Anglo-American middle-class values and morality. Protestant missionaries accentuated these features to adapt their evangelistic work to the mestizo/a and Catholic nature of the borderlands. ‘‘Jesus Is All the World to Me’’ was a popular nineteenth-century hymn that epitomizes the personal piety of evangelical Protestants. Chapter 4 examines the religious and cultural identities that los Protestantes appropriated from the missionaries. The first half, focusing on the first Spanish-speaking Protestants in northern Mexico and Texas, notes the role of conversion in identity formation. I explore the extent to which conversion was able to transport converts from a Mexican and Catholic worldview and ethos to an Anglo-American and Protestant worldview and ethos. I also explore the complexity of conversion by observing varieties of conversion, reasons for conversion, and the consequences of conversion, particularly the ensuing turmoil as Protestantism entered Mexican and Mexican-American communities. The second half of the chapter focuses on the ways that los Protestantes internalized the Anglo-American worldview and ethos through their participation in Protestantism. I examine the extent to which los Protestantes assimilated into the Anglo-American society and culture. I also

10

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

examine gender roles and the Anglo-American cultural worldview and ethos inherent in Anglo-American Protestantism. The popular Spanish-language hymn ‘‘Jesús Es Mi Rey Soberano’’ (Jesus Is My Sovereign King) was written by the Mexican Methodist pastor and composer Vicente Mendoza in 1920. The hymn signals the movement by los Protestantes to express their faith using their own language and idiomatic expressions. Chapter 5 explores the enculturation of Protestantism into the Mexican-American context. This chapter examines the blending of Anglo-American Protestantism with Mexican-American customs and practices in their congregational life, especially worship. I examine the ways in which AngloAmerican Protestantism became Mexican-American Protestantism, exploring the symbols, rituals, behavior, and worship practices of los Protestantes as a way of understanding their unique cultural expression of Protestantism. The chapter asks a question fundamental for los Protestantes, namely, what is Mexican or Mexican-American about our worship and communal life? The hymn ‘‘Somos Uno en Espíritu’’ (We Are One in the Spirit) concerns the relationship between different parts of the Christian community. Chapter 6 traces the relationship between Mexican-American Catholics and Protestants from the late nineteenth century until the 1990s. It examines the evolution of the anti-Catholic attitude that los Protestantes absorbed from Anglo-American Protestantism, characterizing the pervasive anti-Catholic attitude as fundamental to the historical Mexican-American Protestant identity. This key identity feature diminished to varying degrees from the 1960s onward, although in some quarters it still flourishes. I explore how the relationship between los Protestantes and Catholics has recently changed from one based on conflict to one of emerging community. I also trace the ways in which Protestant and Catholic religiosity have merged. Chapter 7 summarizes the main arguments of the previous chapters, presents the conclusions of this study, and suggests issues for further consideration. Building on the work of this study, I highlight certain issues related to the study of Latino/a religion, such as religious pluralism and the transnational character of U.S. Hispanic religion. I also consider why Hispanic Baptists have enjoyed continued growth while Hispanic United Methodists and Presbyterians have experienced stagnation in their membership. As the incident with Rev. Gómez and the visitors to his church demonstrates, many remain unaware of the existence of Mexican-

Introduction

11

American Protestants.This study will help persons unaware of the existence of los Protestantes to appreciate this unique tradition and the challenges they have faced. Likewise, this work allows los Protestantes to reconsider their own Protestant and Hispanic identities as they explore the religious and social forces that have contributed to their present condition.

2

The Tejano/a Catholic Worldview

To understand the complex socioreligious identity of los Protestantes, it is necessary to explore the worldview and ethos of MexicanAmerican Catholicism.1 The worldview and ethos of a people is shaped in part by their historical and political experiences. In the case of Tejanos/as, Texans of Hispanic descent, their religion was influenced by the turmoil and conflicts they experienced throughout the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Examination of the worldview and ethos of Mexican-American Catholics puts in sharp relief the experience of Mexican-American Protestants and their relationship to their Catholic neighbors. For this study, the term ‘‘nineteenth century’’ transcends traditional boundaries of time; the time frame begins with Mexico’s War for Independence (1810–1821) and includes the Texas Revolt (1835– 1836), the U.S. annexation of Texas (1845), and the resulting MexicanAmerican War (1846–1848); it ends with the turmoil of the Mexican Revolution (1910–1917). Throughout this period, Mexican Americans experienced conflict and disorder, became a conquered people, and suffered a loss of economic, social, and political power. Mexican Americans’ unique form of popular Catholicism enabled them to maintain solidarity in the face of challenges to their physical, mental, economic, and psychological well-being. Mexican-American popular Catholicism, abbreviated in this chapter as popular Catholicism, enabled Mexican-American Catholics to maintain their ethnic identity and a sense of order throughout a chaotic period. In the end, popular Catholicism provided familiar ways of thought and living that en-

The Tejano/a Catholic Worldview

13

abled Tejanos/as to maintain their culture and sensibilities and to affirm their dignity amidst a larger society that considered them inferior and sometimes even subhuman. A people’s worldview and ethos develop in the midst of larger contexts, such as encounters and struggles with other groups. Through their encounters with Anglo Americans throughout the U.S. Southwest, Mexicans and Mexican Americans were forced to defend their worldview and ethos, and hence assert their own sense of dignity and humanity. The presence of the Anglo-American Protestant worldview challenged the validity of Mexicans’ Catholic, and cultural, worldview. I will explore the role that religion plays in maintaining the cultural and religious identity of Tejanos/as in the face of conquest and opposition. How did religion help Mexican-American Catholics deal with the chaos and social alienation they experienced throughout the nineteenth century? How did popular Catholicism enable them to deal with threats to their ethnic and religious identity? How did MexicanAmerican Catholics appeal to God for relief from suffering? In short, how did their popular practice of Catholicism help them to make sense of things in the midst of chaos, suffering, and injustice? An exploration of these questions will illuminate the Tejano/a Catholic worldview and ethos.

Social, Political, and Economic Contexts of Nineteenth-Century Tejanos/as From early in their history, Tejanos/as negotiated two worlds, the world of their local existence in Texas and the world imposed by distant power centers such as Madrid, Mexico City, and Washington, DC. During Mexico’s fight for independence from Spain, Tejanos/as found themselves torn between these competing centers of power and demands for their loyalty. Some members of the Tejano/a community in San Antonio, for instance, supported Mexico’s independence, and others supported Spain’s continued rule. Juan Bautista de las Casas, for example, led insurrectionists from the Béxar presidio and members of the lower class of the region against the royalists in 1811. Pro-royalist forces eventually defeated his forces. Another insurrection occurred in 1812, when Bernardo Gutiérrez de Lara, together with Augustus W. Magee, led the Republican Army of the North across the Sabine River and captured Nacogdoches. They eventually captured La Bahía and San

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

Antonio and proclaimed Texas’ independence in 1813. Again, royalist forces gathered and crushed the rebellion south of San Antonio.2 The church in Texas experienced instability as a result of this battle for loyalty. Gilberto Hinojosa notes, On the northeastern frontier, including Texas, the War of Independence from Spain disrupted the communities and undermined the traditional leadership role of the Church. Civic leaders who joined the insurgents were imprisoned and executed by loyalist forces, and their properties were confiscated. Family members were pitted against one another. The local church, which had formed the bonds unifying the communities, was thrown into disarray.3 During the Texas Revolt (1835–1836), Tejanos/as once again found themselves caught in a tug-of-war, this time between Anglo Texans who desired autonomy and those who supported continued statehood under Mexican sovereignty. San Antonio Tejanos/as had families with members fighting on both sides of the war.4 Thus, from the beginning of the nineteenth century, Tejanos/as have had to negotiate their political, cultural, and even religious identity through a maze of complex forces that demanded their loyalty.5 One of the leaders of the San Antonio Tejano/a community, José Antonio Navarro, signed Texas’ Declaration of Independence from Mexico in 1836.6 He pressed for Tejanos/as’ constitutional and civil rights at the state’s constitutional convention in 1845.7 Thus, San Antonio Tejanos/as had leaders who sought to protect and represent their interests in the new Texas Republic. During the period of the Republic of Texas, many Tejanos/as suffered violence at the hands of Anglo Texans who mistrusted them, even those who had fought alongside them for Texas’ independence.8 Juan Nepomuceno Seguín, who had served as a captain in the Texas Army during the Texas Revolt and as the mayor of San Antonio from 1841 to 1842, advocated for Bexareños (Mexican and Mexican-American inhabitants of San Antonio, in Bexar County) who had suffered violence and other injustices at the hands of Anglo Texans. He wrote, ‘‘Could I leave them defenseless, exposed to the assaults of foreigners, who on the pretext that they were Mexicans, treated them worse than brutes?’’ 9 Having been branded a traitor to Texas, and facing threats to his life, Seguín fled to Mexico for safety in 1842. He returned to San Antonio

The Tejano/a Catholic Worldview

15

in 1848, resuming political office as the justice of the peace in Bexar County in 1852.10 Competing views are held regarding the cause of the U.S.-Mexican War. On the one hand, this war is seen as an attempt by the U.S. to support the rights of Texans to determine their autonomy. Many in the U.S. hoped that Texas would eventually join the United States, a move opposed by Mexico, which had refused to recognize Texas’ sovereignty. On the other hand, the war is viewed as an attempt by U.S. leaders to wrestle away Mexico’s northern lands so the U.S. could expand its own boundaries. The war began on April 25, 1846, and ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo on February 2, 1848. The treaty stipulated that the United States compensate Mexico the amount of $15 million for its acquisition of the lands that today comprise the U.S. Southwest (Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah, and parts of Colorado and Wyoming) and that the Rio Grande serve as the border between the two countries.11 Tejanos/as caught up in this war were much less ambivalent about their position than they had been in the Texas Revolt. Having experienced years of domination under the Anglo-Texan rule during the years of the Texas Republic, Tejanos/as had no illusions that life would improve under U.S. rule. Those who lived in the disputed territory from the Nueces River south to the Rio Grande found themselves caught in a series of insurgent actions between Anglo Americans from the north and Mexicans from the south. By the end of the nineteenth century, Mexicans and Mexican Americans in Texas had lost access to public institutions that could ensure their prosperity and advocate on their behalf. Throughout the second half of the nineteenth century, they experienced a loss of economic, social, and political status. Tejano/a landowners lost much of their land in South Texas to aggressive developers, lawyers, and businessmen, some of whom used violent means. David Montejano states, ‘‘By 1900, the Mexican upper class would become nonexistent except in a few border enclaves.’’ 12 Mexican Americans were generally excluded from public education until the end of the nineteenth century. ‘‘By the end of the 1880s,’’ according to Meyer Weinberg, ‘‘a statewide network of public schools was finally attained, but if tejano children attended before 1900 the information is lost.’’ 13 Tejanos/as’ place in Texas society destabilized even further as waves of Mexican immigrants crossed the border during the Mexican Revolution (1910–1917) and the socially and politically volatile period

16

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

that followed. By 1940, Mexican immigrants outnumbered the existing Tejano/a population. Anglo Americans tended to make no distinctions between the newly arrived Mexicans and those Mexican Americans who had been in Texas for generations. The ‘‘peace structure’’ Tejanos/as had established with Anglo Americans was demolished, as the latter looked upon all Mexicans and Mexican Americans with contempt.

Popular Catholicism among Tejanos/as Hispanic Catholics in Texas, as in the rest of the U.S. Southwest, have participated in two forms of Catholicism, the official religion governed by the institutional church and the beliefs and practices that arise from the culture and faith of specific communities. These popular religious practices vary among regions. Popular religion is first and foremost local religion. Further, it is often practiced in relationship with the institutional church. And, it provides an ordering of time and a binding of the community. Finally, it helps subaltern groups resist efforts at assimilation and to continue to struggle in their efforts for justice and human dignity. Popular religion, understood primarily as lived religion, is always rooted in a particular time and space. Viewing religion as a local phenomenon, William Christian argues that all religious practices ‘‘have one thing in common: they are tied to a specific place and a historical constituency. All practice takes place somewhere.’’ 14 The official tenets of Catholicism may be prescribed by the institutional church or promulgated by the Pope, but the universal character of Catholic Christianity takes particular shape in the local practices of each region. Hence, local religion reveals the issues, concerns, aspirations, and problems of each locale.15 Regions and towns lived out their own particular local expressions of faith. Each Tejano/a community, including the parish clergy, developed its own local religious calendar and honored the town’s patron saints. In addition to the traditional Catholic celebrations, for example, Béxareños also had pastoral feasts distinct to their community: the four patron saints of San Antonio—Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria, Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, San Fernando, and San Antonio—were celebrated with feast days.16 Timothy Matovina states, ‘‘Bexar’s particular

The Tejano/a Catholic Worldview

17

combination of patronal feasts marked it as distinct from other settlements in New Spain.’’ 17 In his study of sixteenth-century Spanish religion, William Christian demonstrates that popular religion transcended class; it encompassed all socioeconomic groups, the educated and uneducated, traditional and modern mind-sets, and rural and urban populations. One of the functions of local religion, he points out, is its ability to bind together members of the community in the face of potentially threatening disparities among them: I do not think devotion per se was a matter of wealth or social class. In the early seventeenth century poor and wealthy peasants alike in the villages south of Toledo had a number of religious pictures on their walls. Indeed, joint religious devotions probably helped hold communities together in the face of wracking disparities of wealth and opportunity.18 Christian’s assessment of popular, or local, religion in sixteenthcentury Spain might be overly optimistic, however. For just as popular religion can bind the members of a community together, so can it sacralize hierarchical relationships, thus fixing, for example, gender and class roles that might otherwise have evolved toward greater egalitarianism. The relationship between the local expression of religion and the official religion of the institutional church is a dynamic one. Sometimes, these two forms of religion coincide, such as when the church leadership supports or sponsors popular religious festivals or the regionally specific liturgical observances of the people. At other times, the religion of the people has met with objections by church officials. Bishop Jean Baptiste Lamy of the Diocese of Santa Fe (1853–1889) and his successor, Jean Baptist Salpointe, objected to the Penitente brotherhood, a lay-led Catholic organization in northern New Mexico, because they engaged in practices that were outside the universal practices of Catholicism. Lamy also had many of the retablos removed from the churches and replaced them with French statues.19 In Texas, Bishop Marie Odin ‘‘refused to allow the customary ringing of the church bells on civic occasions, including the death of a leading citizen who happened to be Protestant.’’ 20 The worldview of Tejano/a Catholics has roots in Iberian medi-

18

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

eval Christianity, pre-Columbian indigenous religion and culture, and the dynamic amalgamation of these two traditions from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries. Orlando O. Espín, in his examination of the historical roots of U.S. Hispanic popular Catholicism, observes that the religion that Spaniards transmitted to the indigenous peoples of the Americas was medieval in character. ‘‘In that religious world,’’ he writes, ‘‘every dimension of daily life participated (or could participate) in the transmission and sustenance of Christianity.’’ 21 Spanish evangelists transmitted this medieval form of Iberian Christianity to the indigenous, and later, due to the slave trade, African populations in the Americas. In Spain and Mexico’s northern territories, official religion and popular religion merged, with local, indigenous elements having a strong influence relative to the official version. Espín states that the dual-level of Christianity of Mexico had also become part of the religious life of the Southwest. . . . Here, however, popular Catholicism seems to have had so heavy an influence that even the local ecclesiastical establishment—too weak to claim power on its own—had to promote it actively, thereby publicly linking it to the clergy. The same fundamental reasons of defense and buffer, evident in the rest of Mexico at the time, were operative in the northern frontier as the clergy allied itself here with the symbols of popular religion.22 As in the rest of Mexico, the character of Catholicism in the relatively isolated north was decidedly medieval, practiced in a particularly mestizo/a context.23 Espín states, This religion assumed as normative the Catholicism that had been interpreted by earlier popular generations in southern Mexico. However, the re-evangelization efforts, so important during much of the late colonial period, had barely any effect in the lands from Texas to California.24 However, some qualification needs to be made to Espín’s characterization. For example, the priest of Taos, Padre Antonio Martínez, was decidedly progressive in his outlook. Originating from northern Mexico, he developed the first printing press in New Mexico and the first preparatory school and seminary in the current-day U.S. South-

The Tejano/a Catholic Worldview

19

west. Likewise, the influence of the foreign clergy following the U.S. annexation of Mexico’s northern territories makes it likely that they also evangelized and ministered in a medieval, or pre-modern, mode.

Popular Religion amidst Social Change Conquerors establish their legitimacy in part by imposing their worldview and ethos on the conquered. This process, which involves a melding of firmly held beliefs and expediency, occurred when the Spaniards conquered certain indigenous groups in the Americas in the sixteenth century and again when Anglo Americans defeated Mexico and took possession of its northern territories in 1848. In each case, the invading colonial powers dismissed the existing inhabitants as barbarous and promptly initiated attempts to ‘‘civilize’’ them. If the newly conquered would adopt their superior religion, reasoned the conquerors, the ‘‘barbarians’’ would be raised up morally, socially, politically, economically, and spiritually. Naturally, the conquered did not agree with their conquerors’ assessments, and there ensued a struggle over the religious and cultural landscape of the territory. In the case of Mexico, Catholicism and indigenous faith traditions influenced each other. This is most evident in the apparition of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe near Mexico City in 1531. From the beginning of the Spanish evangelization of the indigenous in New Spain, there developed an official Catholicism and a parallel people’s Catholicism, which included many indigenous elements. In the case of the San Antonio Tejanos/as, their popular religious celebrations served as a means of resisting efforts by others to determine their identity. In Tejano Religion and Ethnicity, Timothy Matovina examines the historical processes by which San Antonio Tejanos/as (Bexareños) developed their ethnic and religious identity as a distinct, local one. He asserts that popular Catholicism played a central role in the Bexareños’ efforts to distinguish themselves from Mexico and the United States and from other ethnic groups in San Antonio. By examining the public religious celebrations of Catholic Bexareños throughout the nineteenth century, Matovina illuminates a community that had to negotiate its loyalties during the periods of Spanish, Mexican, Texan, and U.S. sovereignty. In each period, the popular religious practices of San Antonio Tejanos/as served as a vehicle for them to negotiate their dis-

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

tinct ethnic and religious identities in the face of war, violence, political turmoil, and eventual domination. Their religious practices, in the end, became a means of cultural and religious preservation in an environment where the new ruling class attempted to destroy their way of life. Matovina describes the procession honoring the feast day of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe in San Antonio on the basis of two eyewitness accounts, one in 1840, by Mary A. Maverick, and the other in 1841, by Bishop Jean Marie Odin. An image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, along with other images such as a cross and a banner of Mary, was carried in the procession: Young girls dressed in white and bearing candles . . . were the immediate attendants of the Guadalupan image. Maverick adds that fiddlers also participated, Odin that sixty members of the militia served as escorts. The rosary was prayed, and according to Odin religious hymns honoring the mother of God were sung. Both observers [Mary Maverick and Bishop Odin] recall guns being fired off as part of the devotion, and Odin wrote of cannons and bells sounding as well. They also mention religious ceremonies at San Fernando Church in addition to the processions.25 Referring to the period of Texas’ independence, Matovina states, ‘‘Intentionally or not, San Antonio Tejanos’ religious and other celebrations provided a means to express their emerging identity as a people of Mexican Catholic heritage who were citizens of the Texas Republic.’’ 26 The observance of annual processions honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe and other public religious celebrations continued for years following the U.S. possession of Mexico’s northern territories in 1848 in spite of efforts by Anglo Americans to assimilate them into the AngloAmerican Protestant world. Matovina states, Despite Anglo-American inducements to accept U.S. holidays as universal and despite criticisms of their religious practices, Tejanos continued to celebrate enthusiastically the principal feasts of their Mexican Catholic heritage. Tejano devotion included practices such as gun salutes, cannonading, bell ringing, processions, Christmas vigil lights on their homes, and riding horses through the streets on the feast of San Juan and other

The Tejano/a Catholic Worldview

21

saint days. As expressions of Tejanos’ religious and cultural background, these practices were a public manifestation of their continuing allegiance to their ancestral heritage.27 The Tejano/a Catholic worldview was ordered by a religious calendar which observed the holy days of both the church universal and the local region. As mentioned earlier, Bexareños maintained the feast days of San Antonio’s patron saints.28 In addition, Tejanos/as observed the feast days and other holy days of several other saints throughout the year.29 The observance of these holy days created an annual pattern of life that was ordered by the cultural and religious meanings imbued in these events. The observance of these events also maintained Tejanos/as’ attachment to their cultural and religious traditions in the face of great change and much suffering. De León points out in The Tejano Community that these celebrations mixed the solemnity of religious observance with play. These celebrations were a blend of the medieval Catholic religion they had received through Spanish evangelization and their own indigenous culture. ‘‘Whatever may be said about their consistency from year to year,’’ De León writes, ‘‘the fact remains that these fiestas played a part in the religious dimension of nineteenth-century Tejano culture.’’ 30 The fiestas were a means for the Tejano/a community to come together and assert its identity and group solidarity in the face of Anglo-American efforts to eliminate many of their cultural and religious practices. In addition to ordering their lives through the church year, Tejano/a Catholics also ordered their life cycles through a series of rituals. Catholic rituals served as markers at various stages of life, such as the baptism of a newborn, first communion, weddings, and funerals. In these events, the clergy played a significant part in the faith of the people, for the clergy and catechists transmitted the doctrine of the church through these sacramental ceremonies. The local community also played important roles in these events. Parents would cement their ties with family and friends by asking them to serve as the padrinos (godparents) to their baptized children. The relationship of compadrazgo (inviting the godparents to participate as co-parents of one’s children) established lifelong ties of support between families. It was also in these events that the larger community of family and friends gathered to celebrate the joyous as well as the tragic occasions of life. De León notes that even funerals had a festive dimension:

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

The death of a loved one at times featured more merrymaking than mourning, and some nineteenth-century funerals . . . became spirited occasions. By celebrating the departure of the deceased in this way, Tejanos may have been carrying out Spanish-Indian Catholic tradition, but at the same time they were behaving in ways not uncommon to preindustrial people.31 The festive dimension of holy days provided a counterbalance to the suffering and trials Tejanos/as experienced. Consistent with both medieval Spanish Catholicism and indigenous traditions, Tejanos/as had a strong belief in the supernatural and the miraculous. For this reason they looked to their saints for intercession. But the belief in the supernatural was not limited to the doctrines of Catholicism. Many Tejanos/as also looked to curanderos/as, local faith healers who combined Catholic and indigenous spirituality, for cures of the heart, mind, and body.32 The Spanish-speaking often visited them first for treatment of illnesses; curanderos/as were known, and they were accessible. Professional medical doctors were usually unavailable to the Spanish-speaking, and were also viewed with suspicion; they were not known to community members, and they seemed to have a hyperrationalist and scientific orientation toward health care. Curanderos/as thus provided an important service of healing to their community. They did not limit their healing practices to the eradication of physical maladies; rather, they maintained a holistic concept of healing, addressing social relationships, emotional and mental disorders, spiritual concerns, and physical illnesses. Their practice of healing also imparted to their visitors religious beliefs that both affirmed the people’s Catholic beliefs in the miraculous and recognized the value of indigenous healing practices. Among the well-known faith healers throughout the border in the nineteenth century was Teresa Urrea (1873–1906), who was born in Sinaloa, Mexico, and had a healing ministry by the age of eighteen. Adopting her as their ‘‘living saint,’’ the Sinaloan Indians used her as a symbol in their rebellion against the Porfirio Díaz dictatorship. The Mexican army sent her into exile to the United States in 1892, and she spent the rest of her years in the U.S. Southwest, healing thousands.33 She arrived in El Paso, Texas, in 1896, ‘‘fleeing from assassins in Arizona who accused her of fomenting revolution in Mexico.’’ 34 She set herself to healing the ill when she arrived. She died at the age of thirty-three in 1904 while trying to help people in a flood in Clifton, Texas.35

The Tejano/a Catholic Worldview

23

Another famous nineteenth-century curandero was Don Pedrito Jaramillo. He emigrated from Mexico in the 1881 and settled in Los Olmos in Brooks County, Texas. After he gained a reputation as a faith healer, people came from the entire region to receive his services. He also traveled throughout South Texas to engage in healing.36 De León states, ‘‘No curandero in the nineteenth century or after matched the powers of Don Pedrito Jaramillo.’’ 37 Tejano/a culture and religion survived the onslaughts of successive waves of social and political upheaval in part because much of it occurred within the home. The presence of altarcitos (home altars), the transmission of faith through mothers and grandmothers, the frequency of religious vows, and the placement of religious symbols throughout the home meant that religion was an ever-present influence in people’s lives. Tejanos/as lived out their faith through their familiar cultural expressions. And it was Tejanos’ ability to maintain their autonomy in the home—that most local of specific locations— that enabled their religious and cultural identity to survive and even flourish. De León states: For although economically, socially, and politically disadvantaged, Tejanos controlled their own primary environment. White society . . . did not meddle to any great extent with [Mexican Americans’] domestic life style. While attempts at cultural genocide by Anglo American institutions [were] part of their experience, Mexican Americans generally succeeded in repulsing those endeavors, as is evidenced by so many Mexican cultural forms that have survived. Mastery over themselves at home allowed them the power to perpetuate that religion’s world view, just as it gave them the space to control other facets of their cultural milieu. Autonomy rendered them the sense of security and strength to control their own privacy and reaffirm their cultural uniqueness and difference from Anglo Americans. Thus religion was no small part of a cultural makeup that defined their identity as Tejanos.38 Each aspect of religious practice in the home carried its own particular significance and meaning for the family. One common expression of a family’s religion was the building and maintenance of altars in the home (altarcitos). The altar might contain candles for intercessory prayer, an image of the Virgen de Guadalupe, an image of the Corazón

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

Sagrado de Jesús (the Sacred Heart of Jesus), photos of family members living and dead, special mementos of other persons, an image of a saint, flowers, and so forth. One priest noted in 1847 that almost all homes in West Texas had an image of the Virgen de Guadalupe.39 The presence of a sacred site within the home indicates the immanence of the holy in Mexican and Mexican-American life. The holy was not relegated to the rituals and symbols within the church building; it was present among them in their everyday living areas. The sense of the holy permeated everyday life in other ways, as well, such as through common dichos (sayings) and names. Common expressions included: ‘‘Si Dios quiere’’ (God willing), ‘‘Adios’’ (literally, to God you go), ‘‘No hay mal que por bien no venga’’ (There is no evil through which good does not occur). Jesus was called by a personal and caring name, ‘‘Chuy.’’ People gave religious/biblical names to their children, some of the most popular ones being Guadalupe and María (Mary), José (Joseph), and Jesús (Jesus). Likewise, places were given religious names, particularly those cities and towns settled by the Spaniards and Mexicans: Corpus Christi, San Antonio, San Juan, San Saba, and so on.

Conclusion Tejanos/as endured tremendous changes throughout the nineteenth century. They lived under six flags and experienced severe challenges to their ways of life that often resulted in a loss of public power and socioeconomic status. Throughout this period of turmoil, popular Catholicism and los Tejanos/as’ cultural values assisted them. ‘‘Preserving the faith was also an important part of this transition,’’ Hinojosa states. ‘‘Communities survived the changes resulting from the severance of the northern provinces from the Mexican heartland in part because the faith had deep roots in frontier society.’’ 40 Hinojosa’s conclusion on the nature of nineteenth-century Tejano/a Catholicism affirms that Mexican-American popular Catholicism provided Tejanos/as with a source of strength and solidarity; their religious and cultural beliefs enabled them to endure, and at times contest, the oppression they experienced at the hands of successive waves of conquerors. As they melded indigenous religious practice with the Catholicism that was imposed on them by the Spaniards, they were

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able to see themselves not through the eyes of their oppressors, but through the eyes of a loving Creator: By taking those beliefs and practices that fit into their life as poor and oppressed folk, Tejanos continued syncretizing old religious worldviews. While seemingly backward and superstitious at times, their religion rejected the lessons of passivity and resignation historically inculcated into dependent classes by institutional Catholicism. They rejected the notions that they should be solemn and passive and be guilt-ridden because they violated some of its proscriptions. They did not feel less human or less Christian for their nominal views, nor did they regard themselves as reprobates. Instead, their religion, like that forged by other people to correspond to their peculiar conditions, gave them a vital insight into life, one which tempered externally imposed adversity. Like so many other facets of Tejano culture, that insight played a crucial role in perpetuating the conditions of normalcy in Tejano homes. It was what permitted them to go on searching for an improved economic, social, and political life.41 In sum, the religious worldview of Tejano/a Catholics involved both a transcendent and an immanent experience of the holy. As transcendent, God was too holy to be addressed directly, so they used a host of intermediaries to whom they made supplication; chief among them was the Virgen de Guadalupe. Understanding God as sovereign over the created order, they believed in the providence of God for all things. Understanding God as immanent, they perceived as malleable the division between the living and the dead. Not only did they make supplication to the saints, but they also recognized permeability between life and death. The saints, they believed, were not in a faraway heaven, but still present among them. The holy was also imminent in many symbols, such as the Virgen de Guadalupe and the image of the Corazón Sagrado de Jesús. Their world was filled with symbols that made the holy close to them, a sense which they reinforced in home altars, in sacred images on their walls, in the names of family members, and in the invocation of God in regular sayings (‘‘Si Dios quiere,’’ ‘‘con el favor de Dios’’). In short, the sacred permeated the worldview and ethos of Tejano/a Catholics. It was a worldview mediated primarily through symbols, but also legitimated

26

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

through public rituals and celebrations, as well as through the official church’s ministries of the Eucharist, other sacramental ministries, and the catechism. Finally, religion was a pervasive dimension of life for Tejanos/as. ‘‘In the years immediately following the Texas Revolution,’’ De León writes, ‘‘women stopped to pray every morning before the statues of saints that decorated the Alamo’s outer walls. In the 1870s, when the great cathedral bell rang at noon, every Bexareño within hearing distance traditionally removed his hat and stood bareheaded until the tolling ceased.’’ 42 This pervasive religiosity, as we will see, contrasts starkly with the compartmentalization characteristic of AngloAmerican Protestantism.

3

‘‘Onward Christian Soldiers’’

Anglo-Protestant Missionaries

The hymn ‘‘Onward Christian Soldiers’’ concisely expresses the worldview of the church militant. As Protestant worshippers sang this hymn, they appropriated the Protestant-American ethos of the missionary enterprise—the centrifugal thrust of evangelical Protestantism. This chapter focuses on these forms of piety and mission initiatives as ways to understand the worldview and ethos that AngloAmerican Protestants attempted to bestow upon the Spanish-speaking who adopted their religious tradition. To comprehend the character of Protestantism operating on both sides of the United States–Mexico border, I pose two questions: (1) What was the character of the Protestantism the missionaries and Anglo-American Protestants arriving in the U.S. Southwest brought with them? (2) What aspects or expressions of that Protestantism did missionaries impart to the inhabitants of Texas? A consideration of these questions illumines the distinctive features of Protestantism that eventually permeated the Spanish-speaking Protestant congregations in Texas.

The Character of U.S. Protestantism Revivalism was a popular form of U.S. Protestantism throughout the nineteenth century and was one of two primary strands of AngloAmerican Protestantism that Protestant missionaries imparted to Mexican-American Protestants.1 The second—educational aspiration and achievement—was rooted in New England Puritanism.2 Southern

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

evangelicalism, with its emphasis on the personal salvation of the individual, was the dominant form of Protestantism in Texas and northern Mexico, while northern evangelicalism, with its emphasis on education and social ministry, predominated in New Mexico.3 However, even though revivalism predominated in Texas, the Puritan influence from the North was still felt. Puritanism influenced frontier Protestantism primarily through its view of the United States as the source of the world’s redemption and fulfillment. New England Protestants believed that God had established the United States as an instrument for the salvation of the world. Therefore, Protestants felt a moral obligation to support missionary endeavors to accomplish this vision. Puritanism thus also laid the foundation for the institutional missionary endeavors of the nineteenth century. This missionary zeal was a religious mirror of Americans’ drive to populate the entire continent of North America, and thus supported America’s military conquests of Native Americans and Mexicans. Since Catholicism was already firmly established in Mexico, it too became a target for Protestant zeal, and anti-Catholicism became an integral component of Protestantism in the U.S. Southwest. Robert Wright notes that New England Presbyterians and Congregationalists, in particular, provided seedbeds of strong anti-Catholic sentiment.4

Protestant Missionaries’ Vision of Mexico and the U.S. Southwest Anglo-American missionaries imparted to Tejanos/as a Protestant worldview and ethos that was primarily revivalist in character and imbued with the ideology of Manifest Destiny. They believed that, through a radical conversion to Jesus Christ, individuals could receive salvation and in the process realize their fullest human potential through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. On a sociopolitical level, the missionaries worked among Tejanos/as, hoping that a converted Spanish-speaking populace would develop into an enlightened and moral people motivated by Anglo-American Protestant ideals. The Anglo-American Protestant worldview, like that of U.S. culture generally, was forward looking. The Protestant missionary enterprise, striving for the Kingdom of God on earth, both manifested and facilitated this forward-looking thrust of U.S. Protestantism. In effect,

‘‘Onward Christian Soldiers’’

29

missionaries envisioned their work as a means of transforming Mexico into a Protestant nation and Mexican Americans in the U.S. Southwest into ideal citizens. The Reverend Alexander Sutherland, a missionary of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MECS), working in Texas and northern Mexico, wrote in 1883: ‘‘Age on age of darkness, duplicity, and degradation have left them [Mexicans] so full of evil, so prone to evil, that the task of purification and elevation would be utterly hopeless, leaving out the divinity of the agency.’’ 5 Protestant missionaries viewed themselves as agents who would deliver the Spanish-speaking inhabitants from what they perceived as the ignorance, superstition, and spiritual darkness of the Catholic Church.When the Congregationalist missionary Melinda Rankin heard that the Bibles she had distributed in Brownsville, Texas, were circulating on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande, she ‘‘doubted not but it would ultimately be seen that, by them, essential damage had been received in this kingdom of darkness where Satan had so long reigned with undisputed sway.’’ 6 Mexicans and Mexican Americans would become ‘‘enlightened’’ as they converted to the Protestant faith and became educated formally and informally by Protestant teachers and preachers.7 Protestant missionaries expected their Spanish-speaking converts eventually to assume the leadership of societal institutions and, through their influential positions, to infuse Protestant values and ideals, including moral respectability and economic progress, into the rest of the Spanish-speaking population. This vision of a transformed Protestant society in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest motivated the Anglo-American Protestant missionaries working in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest.

The Revivalist Character of North American Protestantism As Sydney Mead notes, revivalism is one of the primary characteristics of North American Protestantism.8 In his study on denominationalism, Mead cites the distinctively North American conditions of religious freedom and the frontier as the most influential national conditions shaping Protestant denominations in the United States. These denominations provided the impetus for Protestant missionary work.9 Three of the six chief characteristics of North American Protestantism cited by Mead—the voluntary principle, revivalism, and antiCatholicism—were particularly strong among Protestant missionaries

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

working with Mexicans and Mexican Americans.10 Three other legacies bequeathed by missionaries to their Spanish-speaking protégés but not mentioned specifically in Mead’s treatment were education, social reform, and morality. These six emphases—the voluntary principle, revivalism, anti-Catholicism, education, social reform, and morality— constitute the religious and cultural aspects of Anglo-Protestantism that have endured to various degrees among los Protestantes.11

Preaching and the Revivalist Form of Ministry United States religious leaders, concerned that the overwhelming majority of the population had no church affiliation during and following the colonial period, found revivalism to be an effective means of reaching the unchurched.12 Mead cites Winfred Garrison: It is small wonder . . . that the revivalists put on all the heat they could and with some notable exceptions, appealed to the emotions more than to the intelligence. There is the heart of the matter. Revivalism in one form or another became the accepted technique of practically all the voluntary churches, the instrument for accomplishing the denominations’ objective of evangelism and mission.13 The ability of the preacher to inspire conversions became the primary criterion for measuring the effectiveness of ordained ministers.14 Mead states, ‘‘When pietistic sentiments and revivalist techniques swept to the crest of evangelicalism in America, the conversion of souls tended to crowd out other aspects of the minister’s work.’’ 15 The aim of preaching became, not the pastoral edification of the saints, but the recognition of one’s sinfulness and the need to throw oneself upon the mercy of God for salvation. Perhaps this emphasis on the conversion of souls accounts for some pastors keeping a count of the number of converts and new members they received throughout their ministry. The Reverend Abel Gómez, a Methodist minister, noted that he had received 1,459 new members throughout his pastoral ministry (1920–1970).16 Protestant missionaries continued the revivalist preaching tradition in Mexico and on the United States’ southwestern frontier. Methodists relied on John Wesley as their model for ministry. One of the early books translated into Spanish by the publishing house of the MECS was Sermones de Juan Wesley (John Wesley’s Sermons), printed

‘‘Onward Christian Soldiers’’

31

in two volumes (1891 and 1892).17 These volumes provided Spanishspeaking preachers with Wesley’s theology, especially his views on salvation. Both Anglo-American and Spanish-speaking ministerial students read John Wesley’s sermons as part of their training.18 Presbyterians had their revivals in the form of camp meetings, and Baptists also conducted regular revivals in Texas. Because they preached to a Catholic population, Anglo-American missionary preachers of all denominations included denunciations of particular Catholic beliefs and practices in their preaching.

The Revivalist Character in Texas Revivalism in Texas was manifest in the emotion-laden services filled with enthusiastic singing and the preacher’s demand for complete submission to Christ. Martha Remy, in ‘‘Protestant Churches and Mexican-Americans in South Texas,’’ notes the experiences of Gustav Dresel, a visitor to a Methodist revival in East Texas in the 1830s, who characterized the singing as ‘‘unending, bawling, nerve-racking sounds’’ which finally ended only to have the preaching begin. As the service progressed and the preacher became more denunciatory, the young girls became especially emotional and wanted to be saved, as everyone except Methodists was doomed to hell’s fire. Then the preacher ‘‘walked about and pressed hands’’ as he begged for converts. As the excitement mounted, one of the girls fainted and had to be revived by the women in the audience.19 For the Reverends Alexander Sutherland and Frank Onderdonk, the two most influential Methodist missionaries among the Spanishspeaking in Texas and northern Mexico from 1874 to 1936, revivals were a staple of their evangelistic ministries.20 Sutherland influenced Onderdonk’s revivalist faith at an early age; indeed, he preached the revival service at which Onderdonk had a conversion experience while a student at Southwestern University in November 1888.21 In turn, during Onderdonk’s tenure as the superintendent of the Texas Mexican Mission (1914–1930) and as one of two presiding elders in the Texas Mexican Conference (1930–1936), he regularly coordinated and preached at revivals. Evangelism was at the heart of Reverend Onderdonk’s ministry.

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The Reverend Alfredo Náñez, who worked closely with Onderdonk and knew him well, wrote: Up and down the state of Texas he went, preaching in the few churches the mission had, preaching in the open fields, and for many years preaching under a tent to great throngs in the cities or in the rural sections—wherever people congregated. His message was very simple: the love of God in Christ for all people. The extent to which he gave himself to preaching is evident in a short article he wrote in 1934 where he mentions that he was licensed to preach in 1889, that he had kept a record of the sermons preached and found that in these years he had preached 10,128 sermons, and comments: ‘‘I am hoping to do better during the next twelve months. Oh, the joy of proclaiming the everlasting Gospel of Jesus.’’ 22 At the annual conference following Onderdonk’s death in 1936, the Reverend Miguel Narro paid tribute to the missionary. It was in his evangelistic work where his virtues shined, where all of his efforts were concentrated. Brother Onderdonk worked for the salvation of our people. His great passion was the salvation of souls. Here we can find the secret of his success and the key to his work.23 More than any other individual, Onderdonk effectively instilled in Spanish-speaking Methodists the revivalist strand of Protestantism. Indeed, a whole generation of clergy and laity emerged and developed within the Spanish-speaking conference under Onderdonk’s leadership. Setting the example for effective evangelistic ministry, he inculcated such an evangelistic fervor in several of the ministers and laypersons that evangelistic work by Onderdonk’s successors enabled the conference to grow rapidly for twenty years following his death. In the twenty-two years Onderdonk spent as superintendent of the Texas Mexican Mission and presiding elder in the Texas Mexican Conference, many of the young men trained and supervised by him eventually became leaders in the Rio Grande Annual Conference, among them Alfredo Náñez, Abel Gómez, Josué González, and Felix E. Soto. Of these, González answered the call to the ordained ministry when

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Onderdonk preached at the first conference youth assembly in 1933,24 and Náñez converted to Protestantism in 1923 while hearing Onderdonk preach in Laredo, Texas.25

The Voluntary Principle and Individualism The principle of individual judgment regarding religious matters became a foundational element of U.S. Protestantism early on. John Leland, the most popular Baptist preacher in Virginia in his time, argued against clericalism and creedal forms of Christianity. He carried on a popular campaign from the 1790s to the 1840s, asserting that ‘‘religion is a matter between God and individuals.’’ 26 The home missionary movement carried the individualistic aspect of Protestantism to Mexican Americans in the U.S. Southwest. Colin Goodykoontz states in Home Missions on the American Frontier that the type of Protestantism presented by the home missionaries ‘‘was practical rather than mystical; it put emphasis on individual righteousness and personal salvation after death rather than on social righteousness and community salvation now.’’ 27 The objective of Protestant evangelism among Mexican Americans was the conversion of the individual.While preaching might be directed to a family, a group of workers, or a whole congregation, its aim was to pierce the heart of the individual. Onderdonk and other Protestant missionaries’ penchant for revivalism rested upon this individualistic approach to religion, which dated back to the Enlightenment and was rooted in Puritans’ and other North American colonists’ desire for religious liberty. This emphasis on the primacy of the individual as the locus of religious authority went hand in hand with Protestants’ anti-Catholic sentiment. Religious freedom, codified through the United States Constitution, became a hallmark of American society and culture; the U.S. government recognized the right of the individual to act upon his or her own judgments and sentiments regarding religion. The codification of the ideal of religious liberty resonated with Protestants. With their emphasis on an unmediated relationship between the individual and God, Protestants considered the individual as the final arbiter of religious truth. According to the Reverend L. Bacon, speaking to the Christian Alliance in the midnineteenth century, religious freedom was simply the development and application of that great principle which lies at the heart of the Gospel—the principle of the right,

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nay, let me say, rather the duty, of private judgment. This is Protestantism—this is Christianity. There can be no Christianity without it.28 The Catholic Church, in stark contrast, insisted that orthodoxy and salvation lay within the authority of the institutional (Catholic) church. Because ‘‘private judgment’’ was so central to the Protestant faith, Protestants saw this reliance on institutional authority as a form of blasphemy. Consequently, the Catholic Church was an easy target for anti-Catholic Protestants. Indeed, they viewed Catholicism, with its locus of authority in institutional tradition and hierarchy, not only as un-Christian, but also as un-American. ‘‘For evangelicals,’’ states Wollfe, ‘‘Catholicism in its inherent nature was opposed to a personal freedom of spiritual response that was the essence of true religion. Hence, we see that anti-Catholicism was closely linked with individualism, which has also been seen as a defining characteristic of evangelicalism.’’ 29

Anti-Catholicism Anti-Catholic sentiment existed during the colonial period, but it intensified significantly throughout the nineteenth century, when a growing number of Catholic immigrants threatened the cultural and religious hegemony held by Anglo-American Protestants in the United States. Anglo-American Protestants became antagonistic toward the growing Catholic population for four primary reasons. First, they believed the Catholic Church’s doctrine and hierarchical structure threatened American democracy by virtue of the obedience the Catholic Church expected of its members.30 Anti-Catholic and nativist North Americans felt so threatened by the possibility of immigrant Catholics gaining control of government that they formed the American Party (popularly known as the Know-Nothing Party) in the 1850s.31 The judge and Baptist preacher R. E. B. Baylor in San Antonio served as the president of the Know-Nothings in Texas in 1852. Presbyterians were involved in the Know-Nothing campaign in San Antonio and Victoria, since they comprised the largest contingent of Anglo Americans present in these two towns. One can surmise that they played a part in the victory of the Know-Nothing Party when it took control of San Antonio’s city administration in 1855.32 The KnowNothings won the majority of city council seats in municipal elections in December 1854. They assumed municipal rule in San Antonio in January 1855 and immediately began passing resolutions and laws

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unfavorable to the Bexareños (San Antonio Tejanos/as). Realizing the threat that the Know-Nothings posed to their way of life, the Bexareños organized themselves and worked with the Democratic party to defeat the Know-Nothings in the next election.33 Nationally, by the late 1850s the Know-Nothing party’s power had diminished as the looming Civil War changed the political situation radically. Second, Protestants contended that the growing number of Catholics thwarted Protestant efforts to establish a ‘‘Christian’’ nation. Protestants considered Catholics to be at best corrupt and inferior Christians and at worst heathens. Robert Baird, writing in Religion in America in 1844, argued that Catholics did not belong to the evangelical tradition because they ‘‘either renounce, or fail faithfully to exhibit the fundamental and saving truths of the Gospel.’’ 34 The increasing Catholic population was an indication to many Protestants that the United States was becoming less Christian. One example of how Protestants felt Catholics were trying to aggressively increase their influence was a position paper on education issued by the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore in 1884, the third national meeting of the U.S. Catholic bishops. It called for the establishment of parochial schools wherever possible, a move that Protestants viewed as a threat to their goal of an Anglo-Protestant nation.35 Third, perceiving Catholics as a corrupted religious group, Protestants feared Catholics would weaken the moral fiber of the country. Josiah Strong argued that apostate Catholics did not necessarily become Protestants; rather, they might live in ‘‘license and excess’’ and become ‘‘easy victims of socialists or nihilists, or any other wild and dangerous propagandists.’’ 36 Fourth, the anti-modernist stance of the Catholic Church placed it in direct opposition to the modernist and progressive thrust predominant in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. For example, in 1854, Pope Pius IX promulgated the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of Mary.37 In his encyclical Quanta Cura, issued on 8 December 1864, Pope Pius IX denounced beliefs associated with liberal thought. This was accompanied by the ‘‘Syllabus of Errors,’’ which listed those modern ideas the Pope considered irreconcilable with Catholicism.38 These promulgations were met with unease, if not outright hostility, on the part of Protestants. Justo L. González states, ‘‘Thus, during the last decades of the nineteenth century, the papacy was openly opposed to such innovations as the separation of church and state, freedom of worship, freedom of the press, and public schools under state supervision.’’ 39

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After Protestants successfully evangelized the Old Northwest and the Mississippi Valley, they faced the challenge of extending their tradition throughout the Far West and the U.S. Southwest. The presence of a large Mexican-American population in the newly acquired Southwest, considered a foreign land by most U.S. Americans, posed a new challenge to those who hoped to establish a Protestant nation. Protestant leaders now had to consider the undesirable possibility that MexicanAmerican Catholicism would threaten democratic institutions in the U.S. Southwest, challenge the hegemony of Anglo-American Protestantism in that region, and foster a morally corrupt society. In his book Our Country, Josiah Strong perceived an imminent threat to society in the numerical superiority of Catholics in the North American West. The Catholic population in the West greatly outnumbered the Protestant population, especially in New Mexico and Arizona, presenting a real possibility of gaining control of local and territorial governments.40 Anti-Catholicism thus appears as a primary motive for evangelizing each region of the North American frontier. With this background, it is clear how anti-Catholicism came to penetrate the heart of Protestant missionaries’ evangelistic ministries among the Spanish-speaking population. Protestant missionary preachers routinely vilified the Catholic Church in their sermons. Perceiving the Catholic Church as incapable of providing its adherents with means of salvation because of its supposed blasphemous doctrines and depraved clergy, they urged their audience to join the ‘‘true’’ church.41 We see an example of this low estimation of the Catholic Church, so typical of the Protestant position, in Sutherland’s annual report of 1883: We take none into the Church, nor admit any to the Lord’s Supper, without being baptized, either by our church or some other evangelical church. We do not recognize the Roman Catholic Church as the Church of Jesus Christ, nor, of a consequence, her ordinances and administrations as ecclesiastically valid.42 Echoing Sutherland’s anti-Catholic position, Onderdonk dedicated a chapter of his book, A Glimpse at Mexico, to a critique of the Catholic Church in Mexico. In the chapter, ‘‘Romanism’s Failure,’’ Onderdonk blames the Catholic clergy for the poverty and ignorance of the Mexican people. He states that the Catholic Church in Mexico, ‘‘instead of being the protector and helper of the people, has been like a

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leech sucking the lifeblood from it’’;43 he hammers home the point, saying that Rome ‘‘has betrayed her opportunity and her trust. She has exploited and left in poverty, ignorance and sin a great race of people. She has made common cause with powerful financial and foreign governmental interests to keep a great race in subjection.’’ 44 The anti-Catholic legacy of Protestant missionaries is most vivid in their crusading spirit. They frequently framed their struggle with the Catholic Church in terms of a holy war. Sutherland praised the Reverend Santiago Tafolla after reading about his evangelistic experiences near Goliad in The Texas Christian Advocate: ‘‘Brother T. is a small man, good worker and rides a large circuit—in all of which he resembles the editor of the Advocate [I. G. John, DD]. Long life to them both and a successful war on Rome and whisky!’’ 45 The Reverend Thomas Harwood, a superintendent of the Methodist Episcopal Church among the Spanishspeaking people in New Mexico from 1872 to 1907, stated at one time that he was engaged in a holy battle against ignorance, sinfulness, and the Catholic Church. He refused to consider retreat from New Mexico because that would be an injustice to our dear Mexican brethren, as it would leave them still more exposed to the derision, if not the violence of the Catholic enemies. In short, there must be no retreat. A victory in New Mexico for our holy Christianity, in the name of the King of battles, must be won.46 Anglo-Protestant missionaries were so committed to this crusade that they were willing to risk their lives for the cause. Just as the crusaders of the medieval period journeyed to distant, mysterious, and treacherous lands to claim territory in the name of God, so these Protestant missionaries traversed rugged terrain and endured hardships in the belief that their God supported them in their struggle against the infidels. Upon their death in the ‘‘battlefield,’’ their colleagues eulogized them as gallant heroes who set the standard for Christian sacrifice, bravery, duty, and honor. So for example Manuel Flores wrote in his tribute to Thomas Harwood: A hero has fallen, he is no longer with us, he has died. Yes he died, but he died in the field of battle with his face before the enemy. Let us take up his weapon, that is, the mantle of his spirit that he had, his unshakable faith that never faltered, even in the

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most critical moments of his existence. [Let us take up] his noble examples, and enter into the battle courageously, he serving us as a model, and his powerful influence that lives, as inspiration.47 The crusading spirit found new life among los Protestantes. Spanish-speaking Protestant ministers were the most vehement in their attacks upon the Catholic Church. Examples of the crusading spirit among Mexican-American Protestants are given in chapter 6.

Religious Literature U.S. Protestants’ distribution of religious literature and Bibles, so important as means of evangelization, displays two important characteristics of Protestantism—individualism and anti-Catholicism. This type of evangelization continued the methods that Protestant publishers had used to spread the Protestant Gospel throughout the nation. In the first third of the nineteenth century, Protestant publishers inundated the United States with Bibles and popular religious literature. Indeed, Nathan Hatch reports that the American Bible Society and the American Tract Society ‘‘by 1830 were annually producing over one million Bibles and six million tracts, respectively.’’ 48 In a similar vein, Methodist circuit riders during this period traversed the countryside simultaneously preaching the Gospel and selling books.49 This diffusion of religious literature contributed to the evangelization of the frontier and the formation of a popular evangelical culture throughout this period.50 Continuing this method of evangelization, Protestant missionaries and colporteurs distributed vast amounts of religious literature—including Bibles, testaments, tracts, newspapers, and books—to reach the Spanish-speaking audience in Mexico, the Republic of Texas, and, later, the southwestern United States.51 Presbyterians were some of the first to distribute literature and Bibles in Texas and northern Mexico. Among them, during the period of the Republic of Texas (1836–1845), was the Reverend Sumner Bacon, a Cumberland Presbyterian minister who received his commission as the first colporteur to Texas from the American Bible Society in 1833.52 Melinda Rankin, a Congregationalist teacher from New England, traveled to South Texas to meet the spiritual needs of the Spanish-speaking population there. She opened a girls’ school in 1852, soon after arriving in Brownsville, Texas, with support from the Presbyterians. In January 1856, she became a colporteur sponsored by the American and Foreign Christian Union. She resolved to request this position after the organi-

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zation informed her that it could not find ‘‘a Christian man’’ suitable for the task of distributing Bibles and religious literature to the Spanishspeaking in that region.53 According to Onderdonk, Rankin ‘‘became the superintendent of the colporteur work for the American and Foreign Christian Union for Mexico’’ in 1862.54 Rankin recalls her work: I visited many of the homes of my pupils, and wherever I could find any of the family who could read, I left a Bible, or a portion of it. . . . I believed the Bible to be the main instrumentality of renovating that long-neglected race, and I aimed to extend its circulation among all whom I could by any means reach.55 Methodists were also active distributors of religious literature. David Ayers, a Methodist layman from New York, started distributing many Spanish-language testaments and Bibles when he arrived in San Patricio, Texas, in 1834, but the local priest banned the Bibles and tried to confiscate the ones that had been distributed to his flock.56 At the 1859 meeting of the Rio Grande Conference (not to be confused with the current Rio Grande Conference) of the MECS, the Reverend P. Thompson was appointed an agent of the American Bible Society in Texas; he distributed Bibles and other religious literature ‘‘in the valley of the Rio Grande and contiguous regions.’’ The conference requested his reappointment to this position the next year.57 Sutherland served as a colporteur in Texas and Mexico from 1894 until 1917, the year of his death.58 Onderdonk followed the example of Sutherland by taking it upon himself to serve as a distributor of religious literature in the Texas Mexican Mission. By 1924 he had sold over one thousand religious books and Bibles.59 Baptists also engaged in the distribution of religious literature and Bibles. Among them was James Hickey, at one time an Irish priest, who moved to Texas as a colporteur for the American Tract Society. He was headquartered in Brownsville, Texas, and worked in Mexico. He organized the First Baptist (Mexican) Church in Monterey in 1864.60 In the mid-1890s, the San Antonio Association facilitated the distribution of over three hundred Spanish Bibles in San Angelo and El Paso. The Blanco Association recommended in 1895 that each congregation raise funds to support colportage in Texas.61 The Protestants’ strategic distribution of printed materials exemplifies the emphasis that Protestantism placed upon the word. Both the preached word and the written word were used to educate

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Protestants and to evangelize the unregenerate. Such a reliance on the word continued the tradition begun centuries before through the publication of the Bible in the vernacular. The considerable number of Spanish-language Bibles, tracts, books, and periodicals distributed throughout Mexico and the U.S. Southwest belies the stereotype held by many Anglo Americans that Mexicans and Mexican Americans were illiterate and uneducated. This concentration on the spoken and written word would continue as an essential aspect of Mexican and Mexican-American Protestantism even after the number of AngloAmerican missionaries diminished in Mexico and the southwestern United States. Also demonstrating their emphasis on the word, and reflecting their pragmatic and institutional orientation, Methodists, Baptists, and Presbyterians each established printing presses in Mexico and the southwestern United States to produce their own religious literature. The literature they produced—evangelistic tracts, periodicals, books, and educational literature—exemplified the worldview and ethos of southern Protestants. They emphasized the truth of Protestant Christianity based upon scripture, a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, a legalistic morality, a piety rooted in Anglo-Celtic revivalism, and fervent anti-Catholicism.

The Bible The sense of destiny permeating United States society, including its political and religious institutions, is rooted in North Americans’ interpretation of the Bible.62 Victor Furnish notes that by the early part of the nineteenth century, the Bible had become a national book. In America it was not just the book of church and synagogue. First, America’s sense of national destiny had been conceived according to biblical models and articulated in largely biblical terms. Second, Americans had come to regard the Bible as a moral anchor that could hold the nation steady, despite the tempestuous winds of social change and turmoil swirling all about. [Italics are Furnish’s.] 63 Anglo-American missionaries and their Spanish-speaking converts understood the Bible as the preeminent source of authority of Protestant preaching and teaching. Indeed, scripture permeated and served as a foundation for much of Anglo-American culture. With this appreciation for the sacred character of the Bible, Protestants engaged in wide-

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spread distribution of the Bible in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest with the expectation that the mere reading of scripture would open Mexicans’ and Mexican-Americans’ souls to the truth of the Gospel and lead them to convert to (Protestant) Christianity. The distribution of Bibles and religious literature did indeed result in conversions by individuals entranced by scripture and the Protestant message, but these were sporadic. The Reverend Alejo Hernández, the first Spanish-speaking ordained Protestant minister in Texas, credits his encounter with a Protestant book, Noches con los Romanistas, left by colporteurs in Mexico during the U.S.-Mexican War, as the catalyst for his conversion to Protestant Christianity.64 Ambrosio González, of Peralta, New Mexico, attributes his conversion to a Bible given him by the Reverend Enoch Nicholson, a missionary of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in 1852.65 Missionaries and their Spanish-speaking disciples used the Bible and other biblically based religious literature as authoritative sources to distinguish their positions from the theological claims of the Catholic Church. Protestant missionaries considered Catholicism blasphemous precisely because they believed many of its doctrines and practices to be incompatible with the Bible. Protestant missionaries and their Spanish-speaking converts wielded the Bible like a weapon to denounce Catholic teaching and practices. Their preaching and teaching, which regularly included distinctions between Catholic and Protestant theology and ecclesiology, thus relied heavily upon scripture. Likewise, many of the books published and circulating in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest were Spanish-language translations of British and North American Protestant authors who drew heavily on biblical citations as authoritative sources for their refutations of Catholic doctrine and practice.66

Morality Protestant missionaries placed great emphasis on a puritanical and evangelical moral code to differentiate themselves from Catholic Tejanos/as. They exhorted Mexican Americans to renounce gambling, drinking, dancing, parties, and sensuality, and to adopt Sabbath observance, industriousness, modesty, and a disciplined way of life becoming of Protestants. Yet, Protestants’ sense of morality extended beyond the purely religious; they displayed their patriotism sometimes to the point of being jingoistic. They expected Mexican Americans to demonstrate a similar sense of loyalty to the nation that had separated them from their Mexican homeland. Anglo-American

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Protestants in the U.S. Southwest also sought to replicate customs and practices common in the East, Midwest, and South.67 Anglo-American Protestant missionaries based their judgments of the intelligence and morality of the Spanish-speaking upon the degree to which they adopted Anglo-American religion and culture. Harwood compared Protestant and Catholic Nuevomexicanos in Peralta, New Mexico: The larger portion of the people are Protestants, and over seventy of these are members of our Church. They are by far the most cultivated of the town. Their superiority is seen in their general appearance, in their home comforts, and in their evident intelligence. Books and papers are seen in every one of their houses.68 Of these customs, intemperance was perhaps the most common vice condemned by Protestants, and so one’s drinking habits served in large part as the criterion for Protestants’ judgments of moral character.69 Women were in the vanguard of the temperance crusade. The Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) sent Miss Ella Butcher to Mexico and South Texas to organize temperance societies. She gave an account of her work to the Methodist Misión Mexicana de Texas (Texas Mexican Mission) in 1929.70 The presiding elder of the Valley district of the mission, the Reverend Frank Ramos, reported four years later that Butcher had organized temperance societies in his district.71 Other women, in their work as teachers, added temperance work to their educational work.72 Predictably, Protestant literature proposed conversion as the solution to dependence upon liquor. One typical tract, published in 1903 by the Mexican Tract Society, gave a litany of the tragedies that could occur as a result of intoxication. At the end of the tract, the reader was implored to deliver his or her life to Jesus Christ to escape the ravages of liquor: Reader, whatever reputation or conduct you may have had, although you have committed the most egregious sins, repent and believe in the Gospel. Jesus is the Messiah, Son of the eternal God, who came to the world, took human form, suffered and died for the sins of sinners, rose from the dead as proof that divine justice had been satisfied for the repentance of sins. Therefore, come to the refuge the Gospel offers you. ‘‘Come to me (Jesus says) you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’’ 73

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Social Reform Both the southern and northern strands of Protestantism emphasized social reform. The issue of involvement in social concerns by northern and southern evangelicals is a complex one, primarily because of the different cultural, economic, and religious contexts of the two regions. A chief distinction between the two groups, however, lay in the methods they employed to meet the needs of the dispossessed. Northern evangelicals attempted to achieve a more just society through reform of institutions, whereas Southern evangelicals expected social reform to follow from the conversion of individuals to Christianity. Southern Baptists, as well as denominations rooted in the South, also combined their evangelizing and social ministries through the establishment of institutions such as settlement homes, hospitals, orphanages, and schools.74 Protestant missionaries working among the Spanish-speaking in Mexico and the southwestern United States generally considered social reform to consist of the transformation of the moral character, religious temperament, intellect, and social condition of the Spanishspeaking. However, when addressing social reform, they did not consider changing the racist practices that Anglo Americans and their institutions directed toward the Spanish-speaking. Commenting on the objectives of the Protestant settlement houses established in several barrios throughout the U.S. Southwest, David Maldonado states, ‘‘Obviously these institutions were set up, not to advocate Mexican American rights and to change the social, political, and economic structures of the larger Anglo society, but to change the Mexican Americans themselves.’’ 75 Protestant leaders working in the U.S. Southwest blamed the flaws and sinfulness of Mexican Americans rather than the AngloAmerican institutions that contributed to the impoverishment of the Spanish-speaking. Even if pastors gained an awareness of the unjust treatment of the Spanish-speaking, they were constrained from challenging prevailing ethnic and class structures and attitudes for fear of reprisals from their congregations. Donald Post and Walter Smith, studying the relationships between Anglo-American Catholic and Protestant clergy and their congregations in three South Texas towns from 1945 to 1975, state that these churches expected their clergy to be involved in certain social welfare concerns, such as opposing drinking, pornography, and sexual deviance. [However], clergy criticism of Anglo/Mexicano relationships provoked a tempestuous response from local Anglos which even the relatively iso-

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lated Catholic priest would feel, courtesy of his parishioners and bishop. If, however, a clergyman restricted his concern for the poor Mexicanos through such personalistic, social welfare approaches as medical help, food, clothing, or compensatory educational services, he would not be opposed. But tampering with the historic town culture was taboo.76

Conclusion Anglo-American Protestant missionaries in Mexico and the southwestern United States transmitted the revivalist strand of Protestantism to the Spanish-speaking, and to a lesser extent the northeastern Calvinism often mediated through Anglo-Celtic Protestantism. Just as Protestant missionaries sought to transform the nation through spreading scriptural holiness throughout the land, so Anglo-American Protestant missionaries sought to transform the U.S. Southwest through the spiritual conversion of its inhabitants. Their program for accomplishing the evangelization of Mexico and the U.S. Southwest involved preaching for conversion in regular worship and at camp meetings, revival services, the distribution of Bibles and religious literature, and individual witnessing. Conversion, as the first step into the AngloAmerican Protestant world, would provide the Spanish-speaking population with the impetus for further moral and cultural transformation.

4

‘‘Jesus Is All the World to Me’’

Los Protestantes’ Appropriation of Anglo-American Protestantism

The popular hymn ‘‘Jesus Is All the World to Me’’ emphasizes for Protestants the significance of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.1 This emphasis on a personal relationship with Christ was transmitted to Spanish-speaking converts so effectively that they in turn exhibited a strong piety toward Christ. This personal relationship with Christ replaced the personal relationship that Spanish-speaking Catholics typically had with Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe and other saints. As Mexican Americans entered the orbit of Anglo-American society through the Protestant church, they appropriated the worldview, ethos, and ideology 2 of their Protestant missionaries, as the hymn ‘‘Jesus Is All the World to Me’’ suggests. Typically los Protestantes appropriated the two primary themes of U.S. American Protestantism— revivalism and education—in such a way that the inherent tension between these two strands of North American Protestantism was also played out in their own lives and organizations. Some ministers and laity appropriated more of the revivalist form of ministry and practice of Christianity, while others appropriated more of the rationalist and educational form of ministry and practice of Christianity. Certainly, these two strands were not entirely dichotomous, but it is possible to discern the predominance of one or the other of these emphases in most Mexican-American Protestants. Revivalism was the dominant mode of evangelicalism throughout the U.S. frontier in the nineteenth century and was the mode of evangelicalism practiced by the Protestant missionaries in the U.S. South-

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west. Spurred by religious leaders such as Francis Asbury of the Methodists and Charles Grandison Finney of the Calvinist tradition in the nineteenth century, revivals became the chief means of evangelizing the frontier population. Through these extended religious meetings, either at camp meetings or in churches and ‘‘protracted meetings,’’ participants were reminded of their sinful nature, the necessity of repentance, and the sovereign grace of God to save them from sin and hell. Through enthusiastic hymn singing, dramatic preaching, and testimonies, persons were persuaded to offer their lives to Christ and accept the salvation offered them by God. Since this chapter deals with the appropriation of Protestantism by Mexicans and Mexican Americans, the focus is upon the evangelistic mode of ministry and the kinds of conversion experienced by los Protestantes.

Background of the First- and Second-Generation Protestantes Frequently, Mexicans and Mexican Americans who transferred their religious affiliation to the Protestant church were those who were already either indifferent toward or opposed to the Catholic Church; they were predisposed to accept Protestantism because they had a marginal relationship to the Catholic Church. The Reverend Oscar F. Garza claims that his parents and grandparents had a weak affiliation with the Catholic Church, due in part to the influence of La Reforma, a period of civil war in Mexico during the 1850s and 1860s in which Mexican liberals succeeded in creating a separation between church and state. Reflecting a perspective conducive to Protestantism in Mexico, he considered his family ‘‘libres pensadores’’ (free thinkers).3 Many who adopted Protestantism either resented the alliance of the Catholic Church with political conservatives or were simply indifferent to the institutional church. While the overwhelming majority of Spanish-speaking persons in the United States experienced a dramatic decline in their social and economic status following the U.S. annexation of Mexico’s northern territories in 1848, there remained a Mexican-American elite that was able to maintain some economic power and represent their MexicanAmerican constituency before Anglo-American institutions. Some of these middle-class and landowning Mexican Americans converted to Protestantism during the nineteenth century. Likewise, many of those who affiliated with Protestantism had at least a modest level of edu-

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cation. For example, in San Antonio, some members of the prominent Navarro family, whose patriarch, José Antonio Navarro,4 supported Texas’ independence from Mexico, either became members of Protestant churches or otherwise affiliated with them. Mrs. William G. Cook (Angela María de Jesús Navarro), daughter of José Antonio Navarro, was one of the thirteen charter members of First Baptist Church in San Antonio, organized January 20, 1861.5 Likewise, H. G. Horton claims that in 1859, ‘‘the daughters of the distinguished Antonio Navarro’’ converted to Protestantism in a revival meeting at the Soledad Street Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MECS). He claims that José Antonio Navarro eventually joined the church also, reporting that two of Navarro’s daughters taught children in the Sunday School of Soledad Street Church in 1861 and 1862.6 Baptists received some influential Mexicans into their congregation in San Antonio, Texas. The Baptist missionary periodical Home and Foreign Fields reported in 1917 that the Mexican Consul Matías C. García was assisting the pastor of the Spanish-speaking Baptist church in San Antonio. Family members of General Francisco (Pancho) Villa also attended the Spanish-speaking Baptist church in San Antonio.7 Grijalva states that Pancho Villa’s daughter joined the Mexican Baptist Church in San Antonio in the 1920s and that several prominent officials of the city attended the church.8 The Protestant schools in Texas received students from all classes, but the founders and directors of the schools sometimes preferred to enroll children from wealthy and influential families precisely for the influence they could have on their communities. Thus William C. Blair, a missionary of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, working among the Spanish-speaking people in the Republic of Texas, established Aranama College in Goliad, Texas, with the hope of attracting the sons of wealthy families in Mexico. He hoped the graduates would return to Mexico endowed with Protestant faith and principles.9 Similarly, when a general who had served for Mexican president Venustiano Carranza was killed, the government sent his three sons to the Methodist school called Lydia Patterson Institute (LPI) in El Paso, Texas. Mary Watson, in her history of the school, notes that each of the three alumni became successful professionals. The youngest graduated from LPI and became a successful restaurateur in the western United States. She does not mention whether they converted to the Protestant faith, but she notes that the school’s moral teachings registered with the youngest son. He testified to Watson about LPI’s influence: ‘‘I learned that there was a better way of life than that of gambling and

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Primera Iglesia Bautista (First Baptist Church), San Antonio, Texas, 1 January 1922. The Reverend Policarpo Barro, pastor, is at front right of the semicircle, holding his hat. (Photo courtesy of Hispanic Archives, Texas Baptist Historical Collection, Dallas, Texas.)

drinking.’’ 10 Despite these examples of students from higher socioeconomic groups, Katherine Ashburn reports that most of the students studying at LPI were from the lower socioeconomic level in Mexico.11 The student body of the other Methodist school in El Paso, Texas, Effie Eddington School, consisted primarily of children from middle-class Mexican families,12 whereas Laredo Seminary received persons from various socioeconomic conditions, including orphans, whose parents, for reasons of death, drought, epidemics, or famine, could not provide for them.13

Conversion as Appropriation of Anglo-American Protestant Religion and Culture Conversion propelled Catholic Tejanos/as a great distance—from a Catholicism rooted in premodern religious traditions and an agrarian society to a Protestantism rooted in rationalist and revivalist traditions

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operating within a society bent on industrial and economic progress. Conversion to Protestantism was a turning point in the religious, cultural, and social orientation of Tejano/a Protestants. Those who experienced a dramatic conversion felt an assurance that their sins had been forgiven and that they had acquired an intensely personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ; they also experienced dramatic changes in their behavior, demeanor, and social relations. Conversion typically resulted in a turning from one’s Catholic community toward participation in a Protestant network of relationships. Additionally, Spanishspeaking Protestants embraced many of the ideals and moral codes held by Anglo-American Protestants. As they internalized these ideals, they gradually affiliated themselves with the dominant middle class. In many cases, the result of this process of assimilation was the gradual diluting of los Protestantes’ ties with their own ethnic community. While they may have maintained relationships with Catholic friends and family, the religious chasm that separated los Protestantes and Catholics frequently changed the nature of those relationships. Conversely, their conversion thrust them into greater identification with the Protestant church, especially their local congregation.

The Conversion of José Policarpo Rodríguez Like several other prominent Mexican-American preachers in the nineteenth century, the Reverend José Policarpo (Polly) Rodríguez experienced a dramatic conversion. It occurred in his hometown of Privilege Creek, Texas, around 1877, and exemplifies the kind of religious change many of his peers experienced. Soon after his conversion, he received a preacher’s license from the MECS. Rodríguez’ narration of his conversion demonstrates the inner turmoil that often preceded conversion, the euphoria that sometimes accompanied a conversion experience, and the reactions of family and friends. As the secretary of a local Masonic organization he founded together with his cousin, Santiago Tafolla, Rodríguez was well connected in his community. The Masonic society, to which most of the men of Privilege Creek belonged, functioned as a mutual aid society and met once a month for debate and discussion of issues.14 The society dissolved after Rodríguez, while still a Catholic, accused his cousin of bringing a Mexican-American Methodist preacher into the community. The disagreement led to a breakdown in the relationship between the two cousins.15 After a period of separation, Rodríguez eventually went to Tafolla’s house to conduct business with him. He found the Spanish-speaking

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

Methodist minister there, and after some persuasion by his cousin, reluctantly consented to hear the preacher’s prayer. Rodríguez left the meeting with Tafolla and the Reverend José María Casanova with unsettled feelings: I was anxious to throw it all off. But as soon as I entered the barroom the smell of liquor was horrible to me. I stopped, and did not know whether to go in or not, but I went in and sat down on a bench. I was feeling awful.16 He declined the invitation to drink with his friends at the bar. He couldn’t even eat supper that night.17 He told his story to a friend soon afterward. On his way home from his friend’s house, Rodríguez became overwhelmed with a sense of the transcendent. After I got close to Polly’s Peak, a fine hill on Privilege Creek, going through the woods—for I didn’t take any road—I felt so wretched that I got down off my horse and went off into the bushes and fell down on my face and prayed to God. I told him how miserable I was, and that if he would forgive me and save me I would be his humble servant the remainder of my days. I then got on my horse and started home. I soon commenced to feel better, and then better. I felt so light and free that I began to ride faster and faster. I was about a mile from home, and I made my horse go faster and faster—first a trot, then a gallop. I wanted to whoop. By the time I got home my horse was racing as hard as he could go. O, I can never forget that time! I had never felt that way before. I went into the house and kissed my wife and children. As I did not do that way usually, my wife looked at me very anxiously. She thought I was crazy. I went upstairs, and she followed me into her room. The walls were lined with images of saints and virgins, and I said: ‘‘My wife, take these things away.’’ ‘‘Why, what do you mean?’’ she asked me. [He replied,] ‘‘The Lord has taught me that we must not bow down and worship these things.’’ She burst into tears and told the children that their father had gone crazy. ‘‘No,’’ I said, ‘‘I am not crazy; but I know we must not pray to these things.’’

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That night I read from the Bible and prayed with my family, and from that day to this my house has been a place of prayer.18 Several of his family and friends objected to what they considered unacceptable behavior. Their reactions reflect the dramatic nature of his conversion. My neighbors and kin, among them my brother, José, used to come every night and gather on the bank of the creek across in front of my house and abuse and insult me in the most outrageous manner. They kept this up for a long time, trying to provoke me to some deed or word against them, but the Lord helped me to stand it all. They would curse and insult me and the Protestants and the preachers.19 Rodríguez’ brother, Manuel, voiced his intention to beat Policarpo for becoming a Protestant.20 This ostracism from family members and neighbors demonstrates the social dislocation that occurred for many converts to Protestantism. Indeed, while still a Catholic, Rodríguez himself had ostracized his cousin, Santiago Tafolla, when the latter became a Protestant.

Persecution and Ostracism Resulting from Conversion The Mexican-American community’s opposition to Protestantism in Privilege Creek is typical of the Spanish-speaking population’s general rejection of Protestantism. Conversion created such intense opposition because it created a rift in what Peter Berger calls ‘‘the sacred canopy’’ of worldviews. Conversion to another religious tradition raised the possibility within the homogeneous Spanish-speaking Catholic community that perhaps their Catholic tradition was not a true representation of the sacred order. The mere occurrence of Protestant conversion among members of the Catholic community destroyed the taken-forgrantedness of their cosmic vision. The conversion of some members of their community to a competing and unfamiliar tradition became a threat, not only to the predominant sacred worldview, but also to the cohesiveness of their homogenous community. This cohesiveness had its foundation in a shared, and previously uncontested, vision of the sacred order. With Santiago Tafolla’s, and then José Policarpo Rodríguez’ conversions, the Mexican-American Catholic community of Privilege Creek, Texas, felt compelled to reassert its faith in Catholic

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

claims about the sacred order of the universe through ostracism of Protestant converts. Mexican-American Catholics persecuted los Protestantes because they felt threatened by the unusual, and sometimes inexplicable, behavior that accompanied conversion. Policarpo Rodríguez’ wife and acquaintances found his demeanor so different, and his religious assertions so strange, that they believed he had become insane.21 Rodríguez states that his demeanor ‘‘was so different from anything they had ever heard of, and from any of their ideas about religion, that they could not explain it in any way except by saying that I had lost my reason.’’ 22 Berger explains, ‘‘When the socially defined reality has come to be identified with the ultimate reality of the universe, then its denial takes on the quality of evil as well as madness.’’ 23

Varieties of Mexican-American Conversions Rodríguez’ conversion represents the most dramatic type of conversion that occurred among Tejanos/as. In some cases, however, conversion was not a dramatic and life-changing experience; rather, it was simply a step in one’s faith journey. In such cases, conversion can be understood not only as a change in one’s relationship with God, but also as entrance into a new religious community and religious tradition. Conversion was not typically as dramatic an event for those who already had a weak affiliation with the Catholic Church. Alfredo Náñez is a case in point. He recalls his conversion not as a milestone in his life, but rather as one progressive step of self-improvement among many. This may be because he came from a family that had minimal affiliation with the Catholic Church. Given this indifference, Náñez did not meet with family opposition to his conversion. In fact, his family had already moved into the orbit of the Protestant tradition before his conversion; his sister had attended one of the Methodist schools in northern Mexico and his mother had received a visit from one of the Methodist missionaries.24 Náñez had also accepted a friend’s invitation to attend a worship service at a MECS congregation in Saltillo, Mexico, as a student at the preparatory school there.25 Impassioned conversions were also less likely if converts had had previous contact with the Protestant Church. Like Náñez, the Reverend Roy Barton, a Mexican-American United Methodist minister raised in Texas and New Mexico, experienced no psychological tur-

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moil as part of his conversion. Barton asserts that his coming to faith in Jesus Christ was a gradual process.26 The difference between Barton’s and Náñez’ ‘‘coming to faith’’ is that the former had been raised in the Methodist Church while the latter was converted while attending revival services. Barton’s conversion represents a common way in which Mexicans and Mexican Americans raised in a Protestant congregation came to profess their faith. Because they were raised in the Protestant church, they did not struggle between Protestant and Catholic religious claims. Their coming to faith normally was a matter of assent to the religious education they had received as children. María Rodríguez, a member of La Trinidad United Methodist Church in San Antonio, also falls into this category. The daughter of a lay evangelist, she appropriated the faith as a child while attending the Protestant church. Roy Barton and María Rodríguez, both of whom attended the Methodist church from childhood, attested to a gradual awareness of their faith in Jesus Christ; they could not recount a specific moment of conversion. Rodríguez recalled that her profession of faith during her confirmation was an emotional experience. Yet, she stated that this was not a conversion, but rather a deep appreciation of the faith she had already received as a child.27 Thus there are three common ways of entering into the Protestant faith. Policarpo Rodríguez, who had a dramatic conversion experience, represents the first generation of converts. He had to overcome his own initial antipathy to Protestantism as well as the active resistance of friends and family. For some, conversion meant ostracism by the Mexican-American Catholic community. In Rodríguez’ community of Privilege Creek, as in all other Spanish-speaking communities in the U.S. Southwest before the arrival of Protestantism, Catholicism was the ‘‘sacred canopy’’ that covered the entire Spanish-speaking community. His conversion and that of his cousin rent that canopy and ushered in personal and social turmoil. By contrast, Náñez does not relate the details of his conversion, and this alone is notable. Joining the Protestant church was not as dramatic an event for him as it was for Rodríguez because he joined the church in a town away from his family. Since he had been in Piedras Negras only a little while, he did not face the pressures of a closely knit community placing social constraints on his decision to convert. Also, Náñez’ family had very little allegiance to the Catholic Church, so it was not difficult to reject his nominal Catholic background. Finally, Barton’s and María Rodriguez’ coming to faith represents the experience of many young people raised

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

within Protestantism. Since they had grown up in this tradition, it was not necessary to have a dramatic conversion experience. Having been educated into their faith, they made a public confirmation of it in their early adolescence. There are other elements of religious conversion to consider. For some, conversion was less a matter of the heart and more a matter of cognitive assent to Protestant doctrine and a rejection of Catholic doctrine. Several Protestant ministers had been educated in Catholic schools and had either studied in seminary to become priests, or actually were priests. They switched to Protestantism as a result of study, concluding that Protestant doctrine was more consistent with the Bible.28 Frustration and conflict with the Catholic Church’s relatively rigid hierarchy also played a role in the change of religious affiliation by some priests. For example, Alejo Hernandez left his Catholic seminary in Mexico not because of doctrinal differences, but because of his opposition to the Catholic Church’s political support of conservative military forces. Benigno Cárdenas, originally a Catholic priest, entered the Methodist Episcopal Church after years of conflict with Catholic authorities in Mexico and New Mexico. The conversion of Mexican Americans to Protestantism in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries not only was the beginning of a new and intense journey of faith, but it also marked their baptism into the Anglo-American Protestant world, which was as much a cultural journey as it was religious. Conversion was the first step in the process of internalization of Protestant truth-claims about God, the world, and human nature. The Protestant church, then, became the agency for legitimating the Anglo-American worldview and ethos. Peter Berger defines internalization as the reabsorption into consciousness of the objectivated world in such a way that the structures of this world come to determine the subjective structures of the consciousness itself. That is, society now functions as the formative agency for individual consciousness. Insofar as internalization has taken place, the individual now apprehends various elements of the objectivated world as phenomena internal to his consciousness at the same time he apprehends them as phenomena of external reality.29 The Protestant church, as a social institution and as an ideological vehicle, served as a powerful conduit for transferring Anglo-American

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claims about objective reality into the subjective consciousness of Mexican Americans. As Berger states, ‘‘The objective nomos is internalized in the course of socialization. It is thus appropriated by the individual and becomes his own subjective ordering of experience. It is by virtue of this appropriation that the individual can come to ‘make sense’ of his own biography.’’ 30 Los Protestantes came to ‘‘make sense’’ of their own biographies through their participation in their congregations. The values they had inherited from Anglo-American missionaries became an essential part of their own value system, and as a result they endeavored to become ideal U.S. citizens.

The Appropriation by los Protestantes of the Revivalist Strand of Protestantism Revivalism among Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists As one of the strands of Protestantism transmitted by Anglo-American missionaries, revivalism carried within itself various religious and cultural values. Revivalism is most evident in the ministry of Spanishspeaking clergy in the nineteenth century and first half of the twentieth century. After dramatic conversions to Methodism in Texas, Alejo Hernandez, Santiago Tafolla, José Policarpo Rodríguez, and many others dedicated their lives to extolling the virtues of the Protestant faith. The sole aim of their ministries was to bring about the conversion of other Spanish-speaking persons. This emphasis on conversion continued as Protestant missionaries influenced Spanish-speaking pastors. The Reverend Onderdonk, for example, instilled in his protégés the mandate of evangelism through his own zealousness for this kind of ministry. Indeed, his revivalist style of ministry remained the predominant form of ministry among the clergy and laity of the Rio Grande Annual Conference for about twenty-five years after his death in 1936. Because of influences like his, while revivalism gradually diminished among many Anglo-American Methodists, it continued into the 1970s for Mexican-American Methodists. The revivalist strand of Protestantism fluctuated in strength among Hispanic Baptists and Presbyterians. Revivalism was strongest among Mexican-American Baptists, who even today continue the revivalist tradition they received in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. While Baptists also valued education, their revivalist thrust has been their most characteristic feature. Hispanic Presbyterians, on the

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

other hand, had some revivalist practices but fell more within the educational strand of Protestantism. Revivalist Christianity took a slightly different shape in the Texas-Mexican Presbytery, which added social services to its practice of ministry. The presbytery found successful means of adding to its congregations through Sunday Schools, vacation church schools, evangelistic worship services, and personal witnessing.31 Presbyterians complemented their revivalist ministry with a social ministry. Churches in Houston and Dallas during the 1940s sponsored a variety of social services, such as kindergartens, English classes, sewing and cooking classes, health and medical services, clubs, and recreation programs.32 The House of Neighborly Service in San Antonio, operating next door to El Divino Redentor, helped bring in at least half of the membership of the church.33

Evangelism Throughout the history of Hispanic Protestantism in the southwestern United States, los Protestantes adopted from their Anglo-American cofaithful a variety of methods of evangelism. During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the distribution of Bibles and religious literature was one of the most common means of evangelism. Los Protestantes were encouraged to distribute religious literature; Luis F. Gómez, author of a history of Nuevomexicano Baptists, observed that Hispanic pastors in New Mexico spent considerable time distributing Bibles and religious literature in the first decade of the twentieth century.34 Some Spanish-speaking colporteurs were employed as full-time distributors of Bibles and religious literature. Together with this distribution of Bibles and other religious literature, the earliest forms of evangelism along the borderlands consisted of preaching to small groups or families, often through personal visitation. Missionaries established some Sunday Schools early on, but these became a central vehicle for evangelism in the first half of the twentieth century. They reached their apex as mechanisms of evangelism from the 1920s until the 1950s, when regional Sunday School conventions provided opportunities for socializing, training, and inspiration. Sunday Schools also served as the seedbeds for new congregations, though full-time evangelists were also used periodically to that end. Methodist and Baptist organizations employed full-time MexicanAmerican evangelists at different periods from the late 1920s until the 1980s. Los Protestantes continued to follow evangelistic ministries initiated by their Anglo-American cofaithful well into the twentieth cen-

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tury. Youth camps were in vogue in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s among Methodists, Baptists, and Presbyterians.35 Many answered the call to ministry at youth camps, and many more experienced conversions there. Even today, youth camps among Hispanic Baptists and Methodists remain strongly evangelistic. Through most of the 1940s, the Rio Grande Annual Conference followed the model of English-speaking conferences by sponsoring several ‘‘youth caravans.’’ The youth traveled for eight weeks throughout the conference, conducting visitation, witnessing to youth and young adults, and leading worship services in the churches.36 Evangelism remained a vibrant strand of ministry within the Rio Grande Annual Conference and its predecessor institutions. Miss Elodia Guerra served as the conference evangelist from 1929 to 1933. She traveled throughout Texas conducting revivals and evangelistic services in the churches. She listed a total of 212 baptisms and professions of faith in her report for 1930 and 114 persons won for Christ in the 1931 report. She conducted services in nineteen cities and towns, and two of those more than once in the 1931–1932 conference year. Some of these revival campaigns lasted up to two weeks.37 From the 1920s to the 1950s, when evangelism was a central concern of the Rio Grande Annual Conference, numerical gain was not uncommon, particularly during the 1940s, a decade of intensive revival emphasis for the conference. Náñez states, ‘‘Every year of the decade there was a substantial net increase in membership, 1944–1945 being the peak year when there was a net increase of 628 members.’’ 38 He notes that membership in the Rio Grande Annual Conference grew faster than the general Mexican-American population in Texas and New Mexico.39 After receiving his BA degree from Perkins School of Theology in October 1944, the Reverend Josué González continued Elodia Guerra’s itinerant mode of evangelism by spending nine months in 1944–1945 visiting churches in the Southwest Mexican Conference. Anita González, his wife, writes: ‘‘He traveled by bus and held evangelistic services and training [for young adults] in 42 churches, sometimes sleeping on a church pew because there wasn’t money for hotels. Each church was supposed to pick up an offering to pay for the bus fare to the next stop.’’ 40 Evangelism continued to be a priority for the conference into 1960s and ’70s. The Reverend Narciso Sáenz received a full-time appointment as the director of evangelism for the conference during the years 1958– 1959, 1961–1962, 1968, and as the conference evangelist from 1969 until

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1972.41 There was a different minister appointed as the conference’s associate evangelist for the years 1968, 1969, and 1972. Revival fires flared sporadically in the 1970s and 1980s through the Lay Witness Movement and among certain youth groups, and Mexican-American Methodists conducted Lay Witness Meetings in the churches during this period. Those churches and members who embraced the Lay Witness Movement, a charismatic movement of the United Methodist Church, held lay-led weekend revivals that focused upon the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Some ministers continued the evangelistic thrust of the AngloAmerican missionaries well into the 1970s. Among them was the Reverend Josué González, a conference leader who emphasized that the mission of the church was ‘‘ganar almas para Cristo’’ (to win souls for Christ). González, as well as many ministers of his generation, regularly exhorted their congregations to witness to their faith so others might accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.42 Spanish-speaking Presbyterians maintained a strong evangelistic impulse among the first generations. Anglo-American ministers like Walter Scott held revivals and preaching series in the early 1900s. Spanish-speaking Presbyterian ministers also held revivals, publishing and distributing flyers inviting members of the Spanish-speaking community. One of the flyers even announced a former Catholic priest, the Reverend Juan Orts González, as the preacher.43 Spanish-speaking Presbyterians engaged in parallel evangelistic ministries with the Methodists. There was at least one youth caravan held in the Texas-Mexican Presbytery in the late 1940s or early 1950s.44 The presbytery also held several Pioneer Camps in the summer and regular youth rallies throughout the five districts. Indeed, much of the work of the presbytery’s director of religious education, Beatrice Fernández, was dedicated to developing leadership among the youth and young adults so they would engage in the evangelistic ministries of their local churches. Like the Methodists, the Texas-Mexican Presbytery (1908–1955) engaged in evangelistic ministries in other ways, such as through Sunday Schools, Vacation Church Schools, and evangelistic services. Among the three groups, Mexican-American Baptists maintained the strongest evangelistic character. Hispanic Baptists in Texas also had much success in statewide evangelism campaigns in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. The statistical report of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas in 1952 reports one hundred revivals held by the member churches for that year.45 In one of the evangelism crusades, ‘‘Cruzada

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Table 4.1. Professions of Faith and Baptisms of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas

Year

Professions of Faith

Baptisms

   

, , , ,

 , ,  ,

Source: Carlos Paredes, ‘‘Report of the Division of Evangelism of the Baptist General Convention of Texas,’’ Manuscript, Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas Archives, Texas Baptist History Collection, Accession Number: Box 24, Folder 1.9.7—Evangelism, Dallas, TX, 23 June 1975.

Bautista Nueva Vida,’’ held in 1964, ‘‘evangelism first swept the state as never before. . . . At least 500 crusades were planned.’’ 46 The LatinAmerican Baptist New Life Crusade (Cruzada Bautista Nueva Vida) was ‘‘a concerted effort on the part of Texas Baptists to reach every LatinAmerican with the gospel message during a six-week period beginning Aug. 30 and concluding on Oct. 11, 1964.’’ 47 With two thirds of the campaign over, officials reported over four hundred local revival meetings and 4,695 professions of faith.48 This continuous emphasis on evangelism helped Mexican-American Baptists continue growing in membership and new congregations. Spanish-speaking Baptists continued to fan the fires of evangelism in the early 1970s. A 1975 report by Carlos Paredes of the Division of Evangelism notes the number of professions of faith and baptism from 1971 to 1974. Table 4.1 indicates the sharp increase of persons making professions of faith and being baptized. Paredes also mentions plans for an evangelistic campaign during which 120 evangelistic campaigns would occur in October 1975. Clearly, this report indicates a continued emphasis on evangelistic ministry among Hispanic Baptists in the 1970s.49 Baptists also had full-time personnel leading the evangelism ministry for the Spanish-speaking in Texas. The Reverend Rudy Hernández, called ‘‘the voice of evangelism in Texas among Spanish-speaking people,’’ 50 in 1955 became the first full-time staff person in the evangelism department of the Baptist General Convention of Texas to focus on the Hispanic population.51 He coordinated and led the evangelism crusades ‘‘San Antonio para Cristo’’ in 1955 and ‘‘Cruzada Nueva Vida’’

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Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

The Reverend Rudy and Lucy Hernández, of the Texas-Mexican Baptist Convention. (Photo courtesy of Hispanic Archives, Texas Baptist Historical Collection, Dallas, Texas.)

in the 1960s. He also led the first evangelism conference for Hispanics in Fort Worth.52 After several years with the Baptist General Convention of Texas (1955–1969) and as a pastor, he accepted the gift of a former hotel in Catarina, Texas, where he established the headquarters of Rudy Hernández Evangelism, Inc. He equipped the facility with a radio and television studio, a library, and a center for retreats and conferences.53

Sunday Schools Following the pattern of the Sunday School movement in mainstream Protestant denominations, los Protestantes used the Sunday School as an effective evangelistic vehicle; it became an effective way to begin new congregations and gain new members.54 In the nineteenth century and the early part of the twentieth century, itinerant preachers such as the Reverend Dionisio Costales of the Methodist Episcopal Church in New Mexico used weekly Sunday Schools to establish new faith communities.55 Sunday School was frequently the most vital area of congregational life, with the emphasis being on recruiting children, youth, and young adults. The Mexican

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Baptist Convention of Texas received many new members, especially children, through these Sunday Schools.56 Sunday School membership figures indicate the central role the Sunday School played in the overall life of the church. From 1885 until 1950, Sunday School membership among Spanish-speaking Methodists in northern Mexico, New Mexico, and Texas ranged from 80 to 125 percent of the total conference membership (in some years, Sunday School membership equaled or surpassed conference membership; see table 4.2).57 Sunday Schools were also an effective outreach mechanism for Spanish-speaking Presbyterians in Texas. G. W. Crofoot, the secretary for Latin-American Work, Synod of Texas, Presbyterian Church in the United States, stated, There are approximately one thousand more people enrolled in Sunday schools than belong to the churches, and the average attendance at Sunday school will almost equal the total church membership. In round numbers, it means 4,000 enrolled in Sunday School, 3,000 church members, and an average Sunday school attendance of about 3,000. It is a work with a future, for out of our Sunday schools come our churches of tomorrow.58 For Presbyterians, Sunday School and Christian education seemed to be the key to the future of the Spanish-speaking congregations. To further the promising Sunday School ministry among the Spanishspeaking in the Presbyterian Church in the U.S., the General Assembly’s Committee on Religious Education employed Beatrice Fernández as the Director of Religious Education for the Texas-Mexican Presbytery in 1946. Like the Reverend Alfredo Náñez, her counterpart in the Southwest Mexican Conference (renamed the Rio Grande Annual Conference in 1948) of the Methodist Church, Fernández conceived of her position as developing the leadership of her organization through education and leadership training. In her first year, ‘‘she had 65 students in her leadership education classes.’’ 59 To foster Sunday School growth, Sunday School Conventions were held as training workshops for pastors and Sunday School superintendents, teachers, and officers. In the 1920s and 1930s, Spanish-speaking Methodists held Sunday School conventions throughout Texas. In the 1940s, the Texas-Mexican Presbytery sponsored five regional Sunday School conventions semi-annually. As many as three hundred Mexi-

Table 4.2. Sunday School Membership for Spanish-Speaking Methodists

Year

1885 a

1890 a

1901 a

1910 a

1920 b

1930 c

1940 d

1950 e

Conference Membership Sunday School Membership Percentage of Sunday School Members Average Sunday School Attendance

,

, . n/a

,  , 

. n/a

,  , .  n/a

, , . n/a

, , . n/a

,  , 

. n/a

, , . ,

,  ,

. 

,

a Mexican Border Mission Conference, Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MECS) (statistics not available for 1900) b Texas Mexican Mission, MECS c Texas Mexican Conference, MECS d Southwest Mexican Conference, Methodist Church e Rio Grande Annual Conference, Methodist Church and United Methodist Church Note: Conference and Sunday School membership appears to have decreased substantially from 1910 to 1920; the membership in 1910 included the entire Mexican Border Mission Conference, covering northern Mexico and the entire U.S. Southwest. The membership listed for 1920 accounts for only the membership of one of the two mission branches of the Mexican Border Mission Conference, the Texas Mexican Mission. However, note that the ratio of Sunday School membership to total conference (or Mission) membership remained high.

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can-American Presbyterians would drive up to 150 miles one-way to attend a day-long Sunday School convention.60 Baptists also established a Sunday School Convention in the 1920s.61 They held Sunday School clinics through the early 1950s.62 In addition to fulfilling the stated purpose of the events, leadership training for Sunday Schools, these conventions also reinforced social relations among the participants. Attendees no doubt felt invigorated knowing that their local group was part of a larger network of congregations.63

Revivalism and Worship Los Protestantes often conceived of worship as an evangelistic event. Pastors delivered their sermons with the intention of converting the listeners or eliciting a renewed commitment to discipleship. Roy Barton mentioned the periodic revivals held in the Methodist church in Las Cruces, New Mexico, in which the young people regularly felt moved to repent of their sins and recommit their lives to Jesus Christ. He remembers that these highly charged emotional responses were elicited by the preacher or a guest evangelist.64 On the other hand, Minerva Garza recalls that when she was a young adult, preachers aimed primarily ‘‘to win souls for Christ.’’ 65 She refers to Sunday evening worship before the 1960s as the ‘‘servicio evangelístico’’ (evangelistic service).66 For Ben Costales, recalling the worship services led by his father, Dionisio Costales, in New Mexico, the altar call, when persons were invited to come forward to commit or recommit their lives to Christ following the sermon, was the climax of the worship service.67 Another important aspect of worship for Hispanic Protestants was the vibrant music and hymn singing. Music played an important part in attracting people to Protestantism. Hymn singing, along with the preaching, attracted a young Josué González to Protestant worship services in the lower Rio Grande Valley town of Donna.68 Similarly, as the Reverend Matías García, a political refugee from Mexico, was walking by the First Mexican Baptist Church of San Antonio during the Mexican Revolution one Sunday morning, his appreciation of their hymn singing led him to enter the church, where he was soon converted to the Baptist faith.69 Ben Costales remembers the music sung in the worship services when his father served as a pastor of churches in New Mexico as lively and upbeat.70 In a similar vein, even when the Reverend Francisco Gaytán was still Catholic, as an adolescent studying at Lydia Patterson Institute in El Paso, the hymnody of the Methodist worship services moved his spirit.71

Sunday School Convention at Iglesia Presbiteriana Mexicana in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo courtesy of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Archives, Austin Texas. Texas-Mexican Presbytery Records. Slide Collection 94-190, no. 31.)

Children at Sunday School Convention of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo courtesy of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Archives. Texas-Mexican Presbytery Records. Slide Collection 94-190, no. 32).

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The Reverend Matías C. García and his wife, Adelina Villareal de García, in Alto Frío Encampment, 1950. The Reverend García spent most of his ministry as pastor of Iglesia Bautista Calvario in San Antonio. (Photo courtesy of Hispanic Archives, Texas Baptist Historical Collection, Dallas, Texas.)

The music in mainline Mexican-American Protestant worship reflected the atmosphere of Anglo-American Protestant worship; it was emotional, lively, evangelical, and participatory. It was also diverse, with some denominations using only a cappella singing and others using instrumentation. Protestant hymnody included the use of European hymns in the Lutheran and Wesleyan traditions as well as new hymns from the Appalachian and southern regions. Indeed, the kind of music used in congregations made a clear statement about the kind of piety of its members. In the first few generations, los Protestantes’ worship music included instrumentation by pianos and organs; they

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refrained from using the guitar in worship because the instrument was used in cantinas, fiestas, and other ‘‘secular’’ settings. Costales also notes that, in the early stages of Methodism in New Mexico, Protestant Nuevomexicanos associated the guitar with Catholics, another reason to repudiate it.72 So, like their Anglo-American counterparts, MexicanAmerican Protestants used pianos and organs for musical accompaniment to Spanish translations of hymns originally composed in English or German. Since it was Anglo-American Protestants who edited the first Spanish-language hymnals, Spanish-speaking Protestants sang hymns that reflected the theology and piety of Anglo-American, German, and English Protestants. The music in Protestant worship, thus, introduced Spanishspeaking people to rhythms and melodies sung by their conquerors. As they sang these hymns, los Protestantes also learned the theology and spirituality of Anglo-American Protestants. Many of the Methodist hymns originated from John and Charles Wesley, thereby continuing the Wesleyan theology and piety of grace and holiness. Many other hymns expressed the popular faith rooted in nineteenth-century revivalism and pietism. The musical instruments, musical styles, theology, and piety conveyed by the hymns helped usher los Protestantes into the Anglo-American religious and cultural world. The proliferation of Spanish-speaking hymnals followed the voluminous publication of popular English-language hymnals. Nathan Hatch observes that from 1780 until 1830, a new wave of populist hymnody flourished, replacing many of the more traditional hymns from Europe.73 Missionary societies and denominational publishing houses eventually translated this popular hymnody for use in Spanishlanguage hymnals. As early as 1893, the American Tract Society published Spanish translations of its hymnals for Spanish-speaking Protestants.74 Even though Methodist publishing houses produced their own Spanish-language hymnals, Spanish-speaking Methodists in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest used a variety of hymnbooks in their worship, including hymnals produced by independent publishers such as the American Tract Society.75 As they sang popular hymns from a variety of Spanish-language hymnals, los Protestantes internalized a general evangelical piety. The same popular hymns that shaped AngloAmerican Protestant piety also shaped the piety of los Protestantes. Popular hymnody continued throughout the nineteenth century and into the early twentieth. Sydney Ahlstrom notes five hymns among hundreds composed during the late nineteenth and early twentieth

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centuries that represented the proliferation of this populist form of hymnody during that period: ‘‘What a Friend We Have in Jesus’’ (1868), ‘‘Jesus Keep Me Near the Cross’’ (1869), ‘‘Blessed Assurance, Jesus Is Mine’’ (1873), ‘‘Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling’’ (1909), ‘‘I Come to the Garden Alone/While the Dew Is Still on the Roses’’ (1912).76 Noting the widespread diffusion of popular evangelical hymns, Ahlstrom states, ‘‘Few ties were there that bound American Protestants so firmly together in a common popular tradition.’’ 77 Many of these popular hymns were included in the Spanishlanguage hymnals. El Himnario para Uso de las Iglesias Evangélicas de Habla Española en Todo el Mundo (The Hymnal for Use in Spanishspeaking Evangelical Churches throughout the World), published in 1931 by the American Tract Society, contains the Spanish translation of ‘‘I Am Thine, O Lord’’ (No. 265) as well as many other Spanish translations of popular English-language hymns. These popular hymns, included in various Spanish-language hymnals over the last hundred years, continue the revivalist and evangelical piety of the late nineteenth century up to the present. Originating in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, these hymns have served to maintain a common form of evangelical piety among Hispanic Baptists, Methodists, and Presbyterians.78 Although evangelical Protestantism has tended to minimize visual arts in its places of worship, some visual symbols made their way into Protestant churches. Hispanic Protestants incorporated visual images of evangelical devotion. Warner Sallman’s Head of Christ, painted in 1940, became an icon among North American evangelicals and could be found in the vast majority of Protestant churches in North America. Several mainstream denominations used Sallman’s Head of Christ in their literature.79 Hispanic Protestants received literature from their denominations, and Sallman’s Head of Christ found its way into Spanish-speaking congregations. Exposure to this painting led los Protestantes to purchase copies for their churches and homes. A large copy of Sallman’s Head of Christ hung in place of the cross at the front of the sanctuary of El Buen Samaritano Methodist Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico.80

Education and Assimilation To varying degrees, los Protestantes appropriated the educational strand of Protestantism. With its emphases on doctrine, rationalism, and self-improvement, and its embrace of modernity, the educational strand of Protestantism served

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to assimilate los Protestantes into mainstream North American society. The Reverend Alfredo Náñez, who had strong educational aspirations and demonstrated an astute intellect, embodied the desire of los Protestantes to advance through education. Throughout his ministry, he emphasized educational advancement and leadership development. In doing so, he encouraged and enabled members of his conference to function according to the standards of the Methodist denomination and the larger Anglo-American society.

The Educational Background of Mexican and MexicanAmerican Protestants Spanish-speaking persons and the Protestant church converged around the issue of education. Protestants made education a priority in their mission work, and the Spanish-speaking who adopted the Protestant faith took advantage of the educational opportunities afforded them by the Protestant church. Certainly, Protestantism inculcated the value of education in many converts to Protestantism, but many converts also entered Protestantism with this value already present. Many who converted from the 1850s onward were the beneficiaries of La Reforma, a period of Mexican history in which liberal leaders promoted the ideals of the Enlightenment in their struggle against the political conservatives and the hegemonic power of the Catholic Church in Mexico.81 La Reforma manifested anticlerical sentiments, leading many in Mexico to withdraw their affiliation with the institutional Catholic Church. Náñez, for example, with his lifelong drive for self-realization through education, was a product of anticlericalism institutionalized in La Reforma. Conversion to Protestantism did not instill in him an educational aspiration. Instead, conversion to Protestantism provided him with opportunities to realize the educational aspirations and leadership potential he already had. Of course other Spanish-speaking converts who would later become leaders also had some education before they joined the Protestant church. Among them was Alejo Hernandez, the first Spanish-speaking ordained minister in Texas, who converted to Protestantism and joined the MECS after studying at a Catholic seminary in Mexico. Santiago (James) Tafolla, the first Spanish-speaking presiding elder in the MECS in the United States, attended school in Georgia.82 José Inéz Perea, the first Spanish-speaking ordained minister to represent the Santa Fe Presbytery at the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., attended private schools in Mexico and New York. Náñez, the third Spanish-speaking Methodist to earn a Bachelor of Divinity de-

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gree from Southern Methodist University, graduated from a preparatory school in Saltillo, Mexico.83 The Reverend Matías García, born in Zacatecas, Mexico, in 1872, was well educated and had served as the Superintendent of Education for the state of Chihuahua, Mexico, when he converted to the Baptist tradition. He converted while visiting the First Mexican Baptist Church in San Antonio, then under the leadership of the Reverend Félix Buldain. He eventually became an ordained minister and served Baptist churches in Del Rio, Kerrville, and San Antonio.84 Before their conversion to Protestantism, some Protestant ministers had been educated in Catholic seminaries in Mexico. Their Catholic theological education provided them with at least a modicum of education. Among these converts from the Catholic priesthood was Benigno Cárdenas, a Franciscan who joined the Methodist Episcopal Church after a series of conflicts with Catholic authorities in Mexico and New Mexico. Félix Buldain, a Spanish priest, converted to the Baptist faith. Alexander Marshand, an ex-Catholic priest of French provenance, converted to Methodism and later joined the Baptist Church. A 1911 flyer from the Spanish-speaking Presbyterian Church in Hondo, Texas, listed an upcoming preacher as the Reverend Juan O. González, a former Catholic priest.85 These instances of educational attainment and aspiration prior to conversion suggest that while los Protestantes may have embraced the Protestant tendency to place a high value on education, this value was not necessarily lacking among the first Spanish-speaking converts. Many who became ministers, especially among the first generations of los Protestantes, had already received some education; they found the Protestant church’s emphasis on education compatible with their own desires for educational advancement. Protestantism therefore assisted rather than prompted these persons to attain their educational goals. The Mexican Revolution had a significant impact on Protestant missionary activity. For one thing, social and political turmoil in Mexico complicated the development of foreign missions in that country. In addition, there was a massive wave of immigration from Mexico. As a result, Protestant missionaries turned their sights from Mexico to the U.S. Southwest. They sought to meet the immediate physical and social needs of Mexican immigrants, to help incorporate immigrants into the dominant society, and to prepare them for responsible citizenship. Thus, church leaders viewed evangelism as an instrument of social assimilation and integration. The educational opportunities

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that the Protestant schools, missionaries, community centers, and teachers provided immigrant Mexicans and Mexican-American Protestants eventually resulted in an indigenous leadership for the Spanishspeaking Methodist, Baptist, and Presbyterian organizations. Ernest Atkinson, chronicling Mexican-American Baptists in Texas, writes: Much of what happened in the span of fifty years (1910–60) resulted in a large percentage of the Mexican/Mexican-American Baptist workers being educated and encouraged by the Home Mission Board’s department of language missions, the state convention department, along with the Texas Baptist Woman’s Missionary Union.86

Alfredo Náñez The Reverend Alfredo Náñez is a prime example of the tendency for los Protestantes to embrace the educational strand of Protestantism. Born in Monclova, Mexico, in 1902, Náñez entered a private school in Saltillo in 1918 to prepare for medical school. There, he learned French and prepared to enter the national school of medicine in Mexico City. Social turmoil resulting from the Mexican Revolution prevented him from realizing this goal. After graduating from preparatory school in Saltillo, Náñez moved to the Texas-Mexico border to find work. In Eagle Pass, he converted to Protestantism while listening to Rev. Frank Onderdonk preach at a revival service in 1923. The next year, he answered the call to ministry and matriculated at Wesleyan Institute in San Antonio. Upon graduation from Wesleyan Institute in 1927, and after becoming proficient in English, he enrolled at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in 1930, Náñez matriculated at the School of Theology at Southern Methodist University, whence he received a Bachelor of Divinity degree in 1932.87 Náñez broke with traditional educational training for the Spanishspeaking by insisting on a quality of education equal to that received by Anglo Americans. The Reverend Onderdonk tried to dissuade his protégé from pursuing higher education. The missionary remembered that a previous Spanish-speaking student had failed to enter the ministry after enrolling at Southwestern University. He feared that advanced education would lead ministerial students into professions other than the ordained ministry.88 Until Náñez’ time, Mexicans and Mexican Americans had been expected to enter the ministry following gradua-

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tion from specialized training schools like Wesleyan Institute.Yet these schools did not meet the normal educational requirements of their denomination. Náñez’ entrance into the Anglo-American educational realm led others to imagine themselves as deserving of the same level of education as Anglo Americans. A few years after his graduation from SMU’s School of Theology, other Mexican-American Methodists attended and graduated from the newly named Perkins School of Theology.89 Luis C. Gómez graduated from Perkins School of Theology in August 1945.90 Josué González graduated from Southern Methodist University with a BA in 1944 and from Perkins School of Theology with a BD in 1948. Sabas David Casas graduated from the Texas College of Mines and Metallurgy (currently the University of Texas–El Paso) in 1945 and earned a BD from Perkins in 1948. Narciso Sáenz received a Certificate in Theology from Perkins in 1948.91 Náñez’ educational emphasis is evident in many aspects of his ministry. He was the first Mexican-American appointed as the secretary of education for the conference (1939–1959). In the later years of his ministry, he served as president of Lydia Patterson Institute (1966– 1970), and finally as Professor of Practical Theology at Perkins School of Theology (1970–1973). Through his position as executive secretary of Christian education for the conference, Náñez had a significant opportunity to influence the gestalt of the conference’s ministry. The primary objective of his work was the development of boards of education in congregations and leadership development for the officers and teachers of each congregation.92 While other ministers conducted evangelistic campaigns and focused their ministry on the winning of souls for Christ, Náñez focused on developing the leadership of the conference through a range of activities: As Conference Missionary I do field work in our Conference developing leadership in our churches. One or two day institutes and regular training classes are held all through the Conference. Other activities include the promotion of Vacation Church Schools which are in our Conference a real missionary force, preparation of literature in Spanish, to promote the whole program of the church; summer activities include Young People’s Assembly, Young Adults’ Fellowship, a Pastoral Institute and a Caravan which has been one of the finest means of developing our growing young people’s work; and the publication of our Con-

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ference organ ‘‘El Heraldo Cristiano’’ which is the strong bond of union in our vast Conference.93 Náñez’ educational orientation and seminary training led him to view evangelism through the framework of education. So, in an undated one-page report on the progress of the conference, Náñez stresses the need to train pastors to recognize the value of Christian education for children: ‘‘Evangelism in the form of ‘bringing up’ Christians and not converting adults.’’ 94

José Espino The Reverend José Espino is another example of the educational aspiration that Mexicans brought with them when they crossed the border. Born in San Salvador, Zacatecas, Mexico, in 1898, Espino earned a teaching degree from the normal school in Saltillo. Upon graduation, he taught in public schools there, and then in the Methodist-sponsored Colegio Palmore in Chihuahua; he then taught for ten years at Lydia Patterson Institute. While at LPI, he decided to enter the ordained ministry. He received a preacher’s license from the MECS in 1923. He served as pastor of La Trinidad MECS, a large, thriving church in San Antonio, from 1936 to 1939 and again from 1945 until 1961. In the early sixties, while a pastor at El Mesías Methodist Church in El Paso, Texas, he also functioned as the chaplain to the students at Lydia Patterson Institute.95 Ministers who had taken advantage of higher education opportunities were conversant with intellectual currents in Christianity and academia. Preaching to the graduating class at Lydia Patterson Institute in 1962, Espino rebutted the theories on human nature articulated by Darwin, Marx, and Freud. Characterizing their ideas of humanity as limited, he argued instead that the fullness of humanity rests in one’s spiritual nature, in one’s relationship to God.96 Espino’s baccalaureate sermon demonstrates that Mexican and Mexican-American preachers were cognizant of the larger intellectual currents and responded to them in their preaching and teaching. Among the Mexican-American Presbyterians, the Rev. Jesús Leos was one of the first to receive a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in 1952. All other seminary students from his presbytery attended a special course provided by the seminary in Spanish. Upon completion, they received certificates instead of degrees. The Reverend Leos was able to complete his studies in

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the regular degree program because he had mastered English and completed his degree at the University of Texas at Austin. He had received financial benefits through the G.I. Bill, having served in the army during World War II. He also received some financial assistance from a Presbyterian family in Aransas Pass.97

The Convergence of Revivalist and Educational Strands of Protestantism Emphases among los Protestantes The history of European and U.S. Christianity is filled with distinctions between head and heart religion, the former flowing from the Enlightenment and finding its fulfillment in rationalism and intellectualism and the latter flowing from the pietist and revivalist movements and finding its fulfillment in contemporary evangelicalism. The Reverend Espino is perhaps the embodiment of the convergence between the rationalist and pietist strands of Mexican-American Protestantism. Evangelism was paramount for Espino. He gave altar calls during worship and was so successful in his evangelistic ministry at La Trinidad Methodist Church in San Antonio that it became known as one of the largest Spanishspeaking Protestant churches in the nation. Yet, he combined this evangelistic ministry with an educated perspective. He demonstrated a superior knowledge of history and doctrine, along with abilities in reasoning and rhetoric. Out of respect for the Greek and Latin authors, he named his two sons Homero and Virgilio.98 Like the Anglo-American evangelical missionaries before him, Espino espoused the Christianization of the nation so that the country might exist with order and in peace. He argued that Christians had a moral obligation to live a godly life and lead others to a righteous life. According to him, the consequence of failing to live piously was the flourishing of evil. The Church. The School. The Home. These are the three great trenches of Democracy. If we permit these to decay, the infernal hordes of crime, corruption, atheism, and barbarity will arrive like an irresistible avalanche. The dilemma [stated by] William Penn is very clear: Either men will be governed by God or they will be enslaved by tyrants.99

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In this statement, Espino places religion as a foundation for and continuation of civilized society. Like other patriotic evangelicals, Espino considered a Christian society as the telos of evangelical Christianity.

The Educational Attainment of los Protestantes Even Spanish-speaking ministers who had little schooling valued education, especially for their children. The Reverend Amado Rodríguez, an impoverished Methodist pastor in Georgetown, Texas, visited the president of Southwestern University in the same town and persuaded him to allow his two sons to enroll in the school without paying tuition.100 Like him, most ministers and their spouses endeavored to advance their children’s education. Rosaura Grado, the wife of the Reverend Pedro Grado, transported her children almost thirty miles, from Seguin to San Marcos, because she refused to send her children to the poorly equipped and segregated schools in Seguin.101 The value of education is also evident in the educational attainment of these children of Protestant ministers. Ministers’ children frequently obtained college degrees, and some even terminal degrees. Alfredo and Clotilde Náñez’ three children graduated from college, and one, William, earned a PhD from Tulane University.102 Sarah Soto Zajicek, the great-granddaughter of José Policarpo Rodríguez and the granddaughter of the Reverend Basilio Soto, received a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Texas at Austin in 1949. Her family claims her as the first Mexican-American woman to receive a PhD from the school.103 The same occurred among Presbyterians, where Tomás Atencio, the son of a Presbyterian minister, received a PhD from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, in 1985.104 Mexican-American Baptists also maintained an interest in education.105 Grijalva mentions that education was ‘‘a continuing aspiration’’ for Hispanic Baptists in the 1970s: ‘‘Hundreds of MexicanAmerican young people attended Baptist colleges and universities.’’ 106 These efforts were furthered by the substantial scholarship funds Baptists provided to aid their college and preministerial students.107 Not surprisingly, many Mexican-American Baptists made use of their denominational connections by attending one of the Baptist colleges and universities in Texas, especially Baylor University, Hardin-Simmons University, Dallas Baptist College, and Howard Payne University. Such higher education then propelled many of these students into leadership in political, professional, and religious arenas.108

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One can find many expressions of educational aspiration in the Rio Grande Conference periodical, El Heraldo Cristiano. For example, in the June, 1950, edition, the back page contains pictures of the graduating classes of Holding Institute and Lydia Patterson Institute. The students are pictured with their caps and gowns. In another section, there is a two-page spread containing pictures of graduates from different colleges. In another page of the same edition, there is the report of one of the conference leaders, Dr. Náñez, receiving an honorary doctoral degree from Southwestern University at the school’s recent graduation ceremony. To those families whose parents were laborers, and who did not have opportunities to achieve social advancement within the Anglo-dominated society, the pictures of other Mexican Americans attaining high school and college education served to make them aware that Mexicans and Mexican Americans could attain educational achievements, even doctorates, through the help of the Methodist Church.109 Mexican-American Protestants gradually began to obtain college degrees and even attend seminary. Education equipped the clergy with critical evaluative skills that they used to analyze their marginal position within the dominant Anglo-American church and society. As Mexican-American ministerial students attended the same colleges and seminaries as Anglo Americans, they learned the Anglo-American ways of relating and normative ministerial and administrative practices. And yet, while such education socialized los Protestantes to some extent, it also exposed them to Anglo-American instances of prejudice and misunderstanding. Such treatment made them both aware of their otherness among Anglo-American students and professors 110 and appreciative of their distinct culture. Of course, a seminary education that provided the Spanishspeaking clergy with the same educational level of theological preparation as their Anglo-American counterparts changed the nature of interethnic relations between the two groups. Until the 1950s, when only a handful of Rio Grande Annual Conference members had graduated from seminary, relationships between the Rio Grande Annual Conference and other conferences were characterized by dependency and paternalism. As a new generation of seminary-educated minis-

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ters assumed leadership in the Rio Grande Annual Conference in the 1960s, they demanded relationships with their Anglo-American brethren based instead upon mutuality and equality. Education thus helped to unravel the web of paternalism and dependency that had for so long characterized interconference relations. A similar dynamic occurred among Presbyterians and Baptists. As more Mexican-American Presbyterian and Baptist ministers received advanced degrees, their education enabled them to interact with their Anglo-American counterparts on the basis of educational equality. Indeed, institutions within these Protestant denominations began to employ a number of the educated clergy and laity as staff for the planning and coordination of Hispanic ministries. As a sign of their educational and professional achievements, several clergy from each of the three traditions received honorary Doctor of Divinity degrees. These honorary degrees were signs of appreciation for the contributions these ministers and laypersons had made to the church. The conferral of honorary degrees once again reinforced the value of education. But such degrees also indicated that denominational educational institutions, normally dominated by AngloAmerican leadership, had finally recognized the contributions that Spanish-speaking Protestants had made to their church. A more skeptical interpretation of the conferral of these honorary degrees for these persons is that this was another sign of paternalism—these persons were not given opportunities for doctoral studies, so they were rewarded for their years of contribution to the church instead.

Conclusion Los Protestantes appropriated and internalized two basic orientations from Protestantism. The first was revivalist religion—evangelistic and anti-modernist. The second was educationally oriented religion— addressing contemporary intellectual questions through rational discourse, valuing educational advancement as a sign of respectability and prestige, and incorporating the worldview and values of modern society into religion. The source of revivalism is evident in the Anglo-Protestant missionaries. The general thrust of their ministry for Mexican Americans was the evangelization and conversion of Mexican Americans to a powerful, transformative, personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The emphasis on education is rooted both in the mis-

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sionaries’ educational program and in Mexican and Mexican Americans’ educational aspirations. Protestant missionaries contributed to Mexican-Americans’ aspirations for equality and acceptance through the establishment of schools and the promotion of education. Yet, many converts to Protestantism already had educational training and aspirations; Protestantism simply supplied the resources for these individuals to realize their intellectual and social goals. As los Protestantes learned from the missionaries the ideals and values of Protestantism and the dominant society, the revivalist and educational threads of Protestantism continued to be internalized and woven into their existing cultural heritage by Mexican-American Protestants themselves. While revivalism and educational aspiration stand out as the two primary threads of Protestantism woven among and by los Protestantes, these two strands of the Protestant tapestry were frequently interwoven. Thus, individuals and congregations advocated a rationalist, educated worldview and understanding of the Christian faith while also working toward the conversion of individuals by means of inspirational rhetoric. The Reverend Josué González, for example, was a seminary-trained minister who constantly urged young people to pursue a college education and enter into the professional class. Yet he also constantly preached that the central purpose of the church was to win souls for Christ. Thus, one could be an educated person and espouse education as an important value for others, and still engage in a revivalist form of ministry. Sometimes, however, well-educated ministers maintained more traditional, anti-modernist approaches. González represents many Hispanic Protestants who internalized the tension between the educational and revivalist strands of Protestantism.

5

‘‘Jesús Es Mi Rey Soberano’’

The Mexican-American Character of los Protestantes

One of the most popular hymns among los Protestantes, ‘‘Jesús Es Mi Rey Soberano,’’ was written in 1920 by a renowned Mexican Methodist minister and composer of hymns, Dr.Vicente Mendoza.1 Until the 1930s, Spanish-speaking Protestants sang hymns that had been composed in Europe and the United States and then translated into Spanish. Dr. Mendoza was one of the first Spanish-speaking Protestants to create hymnody that reflected their own theology, spirituality, and musical style.2 His hymnody reveals that Spanish-speaking Protestants were not simply recipients of the Anglo-American Protestant missionary enterprise, but were creating their own particular worldview, which blended the faith and culture transmitted by the missionaries with their Mexican and Mexican-American culture, value system, and social relations. If the program of Protestant evangelization and Americanization had fully succeeded, Mexican-American Protestants would eventually have assimilated to the point of being indistinguishable from their Anglo-American brethren. Assimilation did of course occur to some extent among los Protestantes in Texas; they adopted much of the worldview and ethos of their Anglo-American Protestant missionaries. But the assimilation process was counterbalanced by the cultural preservation of their Mexican-American heritage. This cultural preservation accounts for the differences among Mexican- and Anglo-American Protestants. In an attempt to demonstrate elements of cultural preservation that occurred within Mexican-American Protestant congregations, I will examine the blending of Mexican- and Anglo-American

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culture in worship, the dialogical consciousness that los Protestantes maintained with the larger society, and the sense of community created among los Protestantes.

Reasons for the Continued Existence of Mexican-American Protestant Congregations While many Mexican-American Protestants remained poor throughout the first half of the twentieth century, the post–World War II generation advanced economically to the point where these congregations now had middle-class members in their midst. Middle-class Mexican Americans’ continued affiliation with their ethnic churches underscores the significance of the ethnic church as a transmitter of culture. If Mexican-American Protestants, especially those in the cities, had assimilated completely, why did they not join the AngloAmerican churches? To answer this question one needs to examine the ethnic aspects of Mexican- and Anglo-American relations. One might, to begin, argue that Mexican and Anglo Americans were segregated due to differences in social class. Yet, class analysis does not fully explain the segregation among Mexican- and AngloAmerican Protestants.3 For many Hispanic Protestants reached the same middle-class status as most Anglo Americans during and following the 1960s, yet they chose to continue attending churches oriented to their Mexican-American culture.4 Ethnic identity had much to do with the continued separation of the two groups. The movement of a large segment of los Protestantes into the professional and skilled labor workforce following World War II contributed to their social distance from the rest of the Mexican-American community. In cities such as San Antonio, Austin, Houston, and Dallas, as they entered the middle class, Mexican-American Protestants typically left the neighborhood surrounding their churches and scattered throughout the city, often living in neighborhoods with few Mexican Americans, or in middle-class Mexican-American neighborhoods. Many Mexican-American Protestants viewed migration from the barrio to the middle-class sections of town as a significant improvement in their lives. In his 1952 study of Presbyterian, Baptist, and Methodist administrative and educational work among Mexican Americans in Texas, David Harrison observed that pastors in San Antonio in fact advised their members to move out of the barrio as soon as they were

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able.5 While those who moved into more affluent neighborhoods enjoyed the pleasures of middle-class life, they also experienced a separation from the context within which their ethnic culture flourished. Since they no longer lived in the barrio, the Spanish-speaking church became a crucial institution for maintaining their cultural traditions and ethnic value systems. A central part of the explanation for the continued existence of Mexican-American Protestant congregations is the symbolic power of the family. The image of church construed as a family of believers resonated with the value that Mexican Americans placed on the family. Membership in a congregation and participation in the Protestant community center or settlement house offered some of the characteristics of an extended family. In the Protestant congregation, which served as the center for los Protestantes’ social activity, new families were created, family networks developed, and lifelong friendships (and rivalries) were made. When Protestant church members moved to other parts of Texas or the U.S. Southwest, they often had family members or friends in the Spanish-speaking church in the new town. Even when los Protestantes achieved the same educational and economic status as Anglo Americans, the ties of family and friends proved powerful enough to keep these members from moving to Anglo-American churches.6 Another reason why assimilated Mexican-American Protestants continued attending their own churches was because they found a familiar and a congenial quality of social interaction there: social and cultural customs that were absent in Anglo-American churches. Such customs included el abrazo (the embrace), el beso (the kiss), la fiesta (festive celebration), los velorios (wakes), padrinos (godparents), traditional gender roles, and communal celebrations. Another factor that contributed to congregational segregation was the racist attitudes and practices of their Anglo-American co-faithful. Interethnic relations between Mexican- and Anglo-American Protestants reflected the tenuous, unequal, and awkward character of ethnic relations in society. For example, throughout much of her childhood, Minerva Carcaño was unaware of the existence of the First United Methodist church in her hometown of Edinburg, even though this Anglo-American church was located only a few blocks away from her own church. Her ignorance of this other church manifests the lack of contact between Anglo- and Mexican-American Methodists in that small town. United Methodist Bishop Minerva Carcaño experienced firsthand

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this racist treatment from her Anglo-American counterparts in the lower Rio Grande Valley. When she was a child, the Mexican- and Anglo-American Methodist churches in Edinburg, Texas, agreed to sponsor a cooperative Vacation Bible School (VBS). The members of First United Methodist Church (UMC) attended and helped with the VBS at El Buen Pastor the first year. They ended the week with a grand celebration in the sanctuary, with teachers, children, parents, and church members in attendance. The next year, the cooperative VBS was held at First United Methodist Church. Members of El Buen Pastor expected to hold the closing ceremony in the sanctuary of First UMC, as they had done the year before at El Buen Pastor. Bishop Carcaño, who was elected to the United Methodist episcopacy in 2004, heard her mother and other adults from her church talking to the pastor of First UMC about this. He responded that he did not want to hold the ceremony in the sanctuary ‘‘because he did not want the people to soil the sanctuary.’’ Even though she was a child, Carcaño became upset upon hearing these remarks; she recalls it as an act of racism and remembers the adults’ reaction to this discrimination.7 The fact was that often, ethnic divisions were so strong in society that Anglo-American Protestants did not know how to welcome MexicanAmerican visitors. Those few Mexican Americans who did find acceptance in the English-speaking churches had typically adopted AngloAmerican manners to the extent that they were not threatening to the Anglo-American church members or else had joined the church because they had married an Anglo American.8 The Reverend Jesús Ríos, a Baptist pastor, recounted his experience of discrimination while serving a church in Sweetwater in 1941. The segregated school for Mexican Americans was set apart in the rearmost of the neighborhoods. And when I spoke with the [American] pastor he told me, ‘‘You cannot say anything about this school, because the teachers of the school there are members of my church.’’ This hurt me very much.9 Rev. Ríos’ experience of discrimination was not uncommon to many Mexican-American Protestants, especially in rural communities and small towns. Since the town leaders often attended the Protestant churches, the Anglo-American pastors were unwilling to confront the racism exhibited by their own members. Studying the relationship between clergy and their Anglo-American churches in South Texas between 1945 and 1975, Donald Post and Walter Smith concluded:

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Summarily, while there were a few brave, but timid and lonely, attempts by Anglo Protestant clerics to modify their members’ attitudes about Mexicanos and the resulting relational patterns, the effects were both minimal and significantly undermined by local social and religious ideas. Lay leaders effectively blunted prophetic reform attempts to change the local culture.10 Socioeconomic differences and experiences of injustice and discrimination contributed to the segregation of Mexican- and AngloAmerican Protestants. Even though many Mexican Americans eventually attained a middle-class status, almost all had humble origins. They remembered their impoverished conditions, as well as the discrimination and racism they and their parents experienced when they were young. Gene Gámez, a ‘‘thirty-something’’ member of Agape Memorial UMC in Dallas, recalls the harsh conditions he and his family experienced when they were a family of migrant farmworkers. He recalls the beating one farm owner gave his father, and the same man withholding wages due his family.11 Even though Gámez has climbed the social ladder to become a lawyer, he worships in a predominantly MexicanAmerican United Methodist congregation in Dallas. These common experiences of injustice at the hands of Anglo Americans often influence Mexican Americans’ decisions to continue worshipping in their ethnic congregations. The transborder relationship between los Protestantes in the U.S. Southwest and in Mexico is another important factor that has contributed to the continued existence of Mexican-American congregations. Many Mexican-American Protestants, especially those who immigrated to the United States during and after the Mexican Revolution, maintained relationships with family and friends in Mexico. As other family members and friends joined them, the newer immigrants were welcomed into the Spanish-speaking Protestant congregations. On the institutional level, the Protestant ecclesial organizations maintained relationships with their sister organizations in Mexico. There was a steady flow of pastors and laity into the Methodist, Presbyterian, and Baptist churches from the Protestant churches in Mexico and the rest of Latin America that kept the Mexican (American) culture vibrant in most of these congregations.

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The Blending of Protestant Religion with Mexican-American Culture in Worship The Mexican-American expression of Protestantism has been most visible in worship. The distinct blending of religion and culture in worship has varied across regions and denominations. Worship along the lower Rio Grande Valley, with its proximity to Mexico, has had a much more revivalist and Mexican flair than worship in Dallas/Fort Worth, where congregations have tended to be more assimilated. Worship in New Mexico has tended to be less revivalist, yet still evangelical.12 In the Rio Grande Annual Conference, worship in northwest Texas has tended to resemble worship in the Rio Grande Valley because the Spanish-speaking farmworkers from northern Mexico and South Texas migrated to and settled there. Much of Mexican-American worship is rooted in Anglo-American frontier religion, with its emphasis on emotionally charged preaching, energetic singing, and personal prayer. Mexican-American Protestants, however, have maintained many of these nineteenth-century practices, while the vast majority of Anglo Americans have modified their worship practices, generally moving to a more staid style. MexicanAmerican preachers have generally favored a highly rhetorical style of preaching. Like Anglo Protestant ministers, they have emphasized the narration of the biblical story as opposed to the Catholic emphasis on ritual. Mexican-American congregations have also engaged in energetic hymn singing. Spanish-language praise hymns, known as coritos or estribillos, gradually found their way into many Protestant congregations and eventually became an expression of popular religiosity. Other distinctively Mexican-American elements of worship have included spontaneous expressions of faith (such as testimonies and prayer), extensive pastoral prayer (which often involves prayer at the altar), pastoral blessings of individuals and families, a longer service (resonating with Mexican Americans’ less frenzied approach to time), and a strong sense of family and community.13 Other Mexican values and customs have periodically been included in worship. Even though Mother’s Day was an Anglo-American invention, the holiday’s glorification of mothers resonated so well with los Protestantes that they celebrated it as devotedly as a religious holy day.14 Finally, guitars and other instruments eventually found acceptance in many congregations.

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Celebration The Reverend María Luisa Santillán Baert, raised in a barrio in Dallas in the 1930s and 1940s, grew up attending Emanuel United Methodist Church. She became the first Rio Grande Annual Conference member to serve as a lay missionary in Mexico, later returning to Texas to obtain her M.Div. degree and serve as an ordained minister in the conference. In her essay ‘‘Worship in the Hispanic United Methodist Church,’’ she traces the changes that occurred as Hispanic Methodists gradually relinquished their initial dependence on Anglo-American Protestant forms of worship and incorporated Mexican and Catholic elements. In her account of the evolution of MexicanAmerican Methodist worship, she details Mexican-American Methodists’ efforts to integrate their faith with everyday life, their religion with their culture. In the early years of Mexican-American Methodism, anything resembling Roman Catholic practices, such as Ash Wednesday services, candles, acolytes, quinceañeras, and posadas, was discarded and labeled non-Christian. Today, many Hispanic United Methodist churches in the United States are slowly incorporating these very elements into their worship experiences.15 The early separation from anything remotely Catholic or ‘‘Mexican’’ alienated los Protestantes from their culture: The younger churches, excited by the ‘‘good news,’’ followed the worship patterns introduced and established by the missionaries. Their cultural traditions were dismissed because they were considered stumbling blocks for spiritual growth and thus deemed unacceptable to God. And so the separation of faith and life, religion and culture began.16 Anglo-American Protestant missionaries, as well as their MexicanAmerican converts, did not generally distinguish between Catholic and cultural worship patterns. Before the 1960s, Protestants considered many elements of Catholic worship and practically any cultural celebrations by Mexican-American Catholics inappropriate for MexicanAmerican Protestants. For example, Ben Costales mentions that Spanish-speaking Methodist churches did not have candles on the altar table until around the mid-twentieth century because Mexican-American

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Methodists considered them elements of Catholic worship.17 The Reverend Oscar F. Garza, after having attended a Methodist pastor’s school in the 1940s, where the Reverend Alfredo Náñez led a workshop on worship, was criticized by members of his congregation in Pharr, Texas, when he attempted to place candles and a cross on the altar table.18 Hence, as late as the 1940s, Mexican-American Methodists rejected worship practices seen as Catholic. Yet even while Mexican-American Methodists worshipped according to Anglo-American Protestant models, their cultural expressions were not totally eradicated by their baptism into the Protestant faith. In fact, worship, as the encounter between humanity and the divine, provided an opportunity for los Protestantes to express their faith in an atmosphere conducive to their ethnic culture. Their worship was usually led by Mexican-American laypersons or clergy originating from the Mexican-American community or from Mexico. (In some cases, they also came from other parts of Latin America.) Like most Protestant communities, los Protestantes expressed their faith through music, witness, proclamation, and prayer. Generally, worship in MexicanAmerican congregations provided los Protestantes with social and cultural space to develop and express their faith in ways that reflected their cultural values and customs. Hymn singing, testimonies, the pastoral prayer, the sermon, the sacraments, and prayer at the altar rail provided opportunities to feel the presence of divine power and to express their faith in familiar ways.19 Santillán Baert states: The sharing of joys and concerns is part of the worship service. People usually stand up and share what is in their hearts. Others come forward and speak and remain standing until it is time to kneel and pray. Then the pastor invites whoever wishes to come forward and kneel before the pastoral prayer is offered. Some pastors place their hands on the head or shoulders of those who have come forward to the communion rail for prayer, as he or she prays individually for each one.20 The expressive nature of Mexican-American Methodists is manifest in their salutations. Santillán Baert argues that the ritual of the passing of the peace (a form of greeting each other during worship) is not a necessary ritual element in Hispanic worship because Hispanics naturally greet each other before and after worship:

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From the time Hispanics enter the church building the passing of the peace begins with the embracing, the handshakes, and the holy kiss. . . . They do not wait until the appropriate time in the worship service, even though they will participate again in the ritual of friendship if the order of worship or the liturgy so prescribes it.21 Santillán Baert concludes that this ritual of friendship ‘‘is a vital part of the faith experience of Hispanics.’’ 22

Sacred Fiesta The expressiveness of Mexican-American Protestant worship is evident in the celebrative character of Mexican Americans. Some have even characterized Latino/a Protestant worship as a fiesta.23 The Reverend Justo L. González states that Latino/a Protestants, even though they are heirs of the Protestant emphasis on rationality, appreciate the element of mystery in worship: ‘‘Fiesta and mystery go together. In a fiesta, as in a steak dinner, we are not required to understand everything that goes on.’’ 24 In addition to celebration and mystery, this sacred fiesta also bridges the differences in social class, language, theology, and culture in worship. González states, Perhaps it is in our very multiplicity—in the impossibility of defining and describing us as a whole—that our greatest contribution to the worship of the church at large lies. We have learned how to worship together, even though we are not all alike. We have learned how to worship together in congregations in which people come from radically different strata of society, where some speak mostly English and very little Spanish, while others know mostly Spanish and very little English, and where there are several different variants of Spanish spoken. We have learned to worship and celebrate together even across significant theological lines. We have learned how to do this by combining a spirit of fiesta with a profound sense of mystery. The fiesta makes us all participants, and thus leads to the mystery of transgenerational, transclass, and transcultural communication. The mystery reminds us of the otherness of God, and thus makes it possible for all to celebrate the glory of one another’s otherness.25 Though some churches certainly sought to conduct their worship with order and formality, a characteristic religious fervor was present

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in pastoral prayers, singing, preaching, and altar calls. It would be fair to say that the affective dimension of worship predominated in most Mexican-American Protestant churches. It is this affect, this enthusiasm—a blending of Anglo-American Protestant revivalism with Mexican-American religiosity—that can be termed ‘‘a sacred fiesta.’’ Santillán Baert observes: One of the characteristics of Hispanic Methodist worship is the religious fervor that is manifested by believers. They sing with overflowing joy and seem never to tire even after a long period of singing or even if hymns have five or more stanzas. Enthusiasm seems to be the natural climate in worship, especially in the more charismatic congregation where more estribillos (choruses) rather than hymns are sung.26 She states that worship in the Hispanic Methodist tradition ‘‘indeed becomes a celebration.’’ 27 Ben Costales supports Santillán Baert’s description of the celebrative nature of Hispanic Methodist worship. Recalling the times when he attended worship led by his father, a preacher in New Mexico, Costales remembers when worshippers stood and clapped their hands as they sang hymns. He states that Nuevomexicano Methodists ‘‘sang very lively hymns that . . . gave the opportunity for expressing their excitement, enthusiasm. There weren’t any sober hymns, except at times of funeral services, then he would have more sober type singing. I guess you would call it the charismatic type of [worship].’’ 28

Testimonies The celebrative and expressive quality of MexicanAmerican Protestant worship was evident in their public testimonials, known as testimonios. Although testimonies were a practice inherited from the Wesleyan and revivalist tradition, they developed an indigenous character as los Protestantes testified to their faith in their Mexican-American context. In the early part of the twentieth century, some Mexican-American Methodists practiced a spontaneity springing from their enthusiastic faith. Ben Costales remembers when members of his father’s Methodist congregations in New Mexico would stand in the middle of the worship service to give a testimony or sing a hymn of praise: Some person would get the calling or urge to witness, and it could be right in the middle of the sermon. This person would stand up

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and sing a hymn or give a testimony because it was at that point that he had the urge. And it was tolerated because that was an expression of faith. So the pastors were not reluctant to allow that type of interruption, because to them it was a sign of that person developing in their spiritual strength.29 This type of testimony was not universally practiced; indeed some Mexican-American preachers, especially those of larger churches who might be especially cognizant of their pastoral authority, would not have permitted interruptions in their sermons. Luis Pedraja, reporting on a recent study he conducted of mainline Hispanic Protestants, states that the Hispanic Protestants he interviewed identified four purposes of testimonies: First, they are used to evangelize others. By sharing how God transforms and acts in the world, others might be moved or encouraged to convert to Christianity. Second, testimonios serve in a didactic function by teaching younger believers about the faith and God’s active presence in the life of the church. These testimonies usually include exhortations toward perseverance, explanations regarding God’s love, trustworthiness, and goodness, as well as intimations on divine providence and on how God acts in the world. Third, testimonios serve to encourage other believers in their faith by showing how God has assisted others through their times of struggle and difficulty. Finally, testimonios serve to glorify God by proclaiming and attesting to God’s continual work in our midst.30 Pedraja notes that testimonios are more prevalent among those congregations whose members experience marginalization— economic, social, or gender. For this reason, women frequently give testimonies. Because women generally have fewer opportunities than men to preach and teach in Hispanic churches, testimonies provide an acceptable and empowering vehicle for proclamation as women testify to their experience of God’s presence in their lives. The elderly, sick, and unemployed would also take advantage of the time for testimonies to witness to their faith.31 Testimonios manifest a significant dimension of Hispanic Protestant popular religion. Pedraja states,

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By definition, popular religion takes the form of innovative and concrete expressions in a community’s living faith in ways that empower the people without the control of clerics and religious institutions. If we define popular religion in this broad sense . . . then testimonios qualify as a form of popular religion within Hispanic Protestant congregations and as a form of liberative praxis.32 Hispanic Protestant testimonios differ from Hispanic Catholic popular religion in a unique way. Whereas Mexican-American popular Catholicism is based largely upon image and aesthetics, Hispanic Protestant popular religion is ‘‘primarily narrative, verbal (both written and spoken), or ‘word’ centered. The legacy of Protestant congregations elevates the ‘word,’ both in Scripture and preaching, above other sacramental expressions.’’ 33 As we saw in an earlier chapter, the Bible permeated the worldview of los Protestantes. It is therefore not at all surprising that individuals who gave testimonies frequently made a correlation between their personal experience and the experiences of biblical characters. Pedraja states, In making this connection, actually expressed at the meeting, the congregation identifies God’s work in their life as being as real as God’s work in Biblical accounts. Hence, they establish continuity between the words of the Bible and their lives, associating their circumstances with the testament to God’s work in our midst. In their understanding, they are living the same experience and in the same relationship with God as the people in biblical times.34

Wedding Ceremonies As in testimonies, Mexican-American popular religion is manifest in wedding ceremonies. The wedding ceremony has been an occasion in which Mexican-American culture and tradition comes to the forefront. Along with the exchange of wedding rings, the groom provides the bride with the arras, a gift of thirteen coins in a small, gold-colored box. Traditionally, the box of coins symbolized the groom’s intention to provide for the economic well-being of the family. In recent times, with dual-income families, the meaning of the arras has changed to account for the wife’s earning power. When the bride and groom kneel on a pillow for a prayer, a married couple

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comes forward to place a lazo, a white decorated rope in the shape of a figure-eight, over them. The lazo, accompanied by a blessing from the minister, symbolizes the bond of love and unity between the man and the woman. More recently, some Mexican-American Protestants have begun including a Bible as a symbol of the Christian foundation of the family. Another important element of Mexican-American weddings is the involvement of padrinos, or godparents. Members of the nuclear and extended family, and close friends of the family, sponsor certain parts of the wedding. There are padrinos for the arras, lazo, Bible, kneeling pillow, and for decorations and other parts of the reception. This network of padrinos creates a community strengthened through gift giving as a symbol of support. Such cultural traditions in weddings in Mexican-American Protestant churches have continued despite various forms of assimilation.

Recent Developments Various larger cultural phenomena have strengthened this freedom to be ethnically oneself. One is the Chicano/a Movement, which inspired Mexican-American Protestants to incorporate Mexican-American practices into their worship.35 Since the 1960s, los Protestantes have to some degree eschewed the AngloAmerican Protestant missionary mentality in worship, selecting elements from their Mexican-American culture and from Catholicism to create a church that more closely reflects the culture of its members. Los Protestantes began to appropriate elements of worship, rituals, and celebrations that they had considered exclusively Catholic, redefining them as being Mexican (cultural) and part of their own heritage. One such custom is the quinceañera, a rite of passage celebrating a girl’s entrance into womanhood and society on her fifteenth birthday. Prohibited for many years because it was considered Catholic, the quinceañera began to be celebrated in Protestant churches in the 1960s. In this religious ceremony, the young woman confirms her faith and dedicates herself in service to the community. This rite of passage is nowadays conducted first as a religious service in the church and afterward as a fiesta, bringing together the family, the congregation, and a large network of friends.36 It has become such an integral part of religious and social life that both Mexican-American Presbyterian and Methodist ministers have developed liturgies for quinceañeras in their churches.37 Another Catholic (or Mexican) celebration adopted by los Protestantes since the 1960s is las Posadas, a reenactment of the biblical story

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of Mary and Joseph’s search for hospitality in Bethlehem. According to Santillán Baert, Methodists in Mexico City had their own nine-night celebration of pre-Christmas activities. They met at the church every night for nine days for special fellowship, worship, and activities that occurred without the carousing associated with las Posadas.38 A Protestant version of las Posadas in the United States has reached such acceptance that it is now included as official liturgy in The United Methodist Book of Worship.39 Retrieving the ceremonies of the quinceañera and las Posadas has enabled Mexican-American Protestants to strengthen the communal aspect of their worship and to claim as their own traditions previously considered Catholic. Yet another celebration previously considered too Catholic that most Mexican-American Methodists have now embraced is the Ash Wednesday service. Gradually, Mexican-American United Methodists have begun to observe this day with a special worship service.40 Santillán Baert states that this worship observance ‘‘serves to remind Hispanics of their mortality and calls them to reflect on their relationship to God and to their neighbors.’’ 41 Most recently, some pastors have begun using ashes to mark the figure of the cross on the foreheads of worshippers. Mexican-American Methodists and other Protestants would have considered this practice unorthodox a generation ago. Various churches and pastors in the Rio Grande Annual Conference have experimented with new forms of liturgy and music since the 1960s, adding guitars and other instruments in their worship services, for example.42 During the 1980s and early 1990s, the music director at Emanuel UMC in Dallas, Moisés Molina, established a youth mariachi band at the church. During the morning worship service, the mariachi band accompanies a children’s choir, whose formerly only English-speaking members learned their ancestors’ language as they sang songs in Spanish. The children’s choir members also dress in traditional white Mexican outfits. Santillán Baert notes that ‘‘mariachi bands would not have been acceptable in worship . . . a few years ago.’’ 43 The liturgical movement that influenced the worship of post-WWII mainstream Protestantism is another phenomenon that gave MexicanAmerican Protestants an opportunity to reconsider practices and beliefs they had in common with their Catholic neighbors. From the 1960s onward, some Rio Grande Annual Conference ministers gravitated toward Catholic liturgical practice. The Reverend Daniel Arguijo processed into worship with a shepherd’s staff, much as Catholic (and more recently, Methodist) bishops have done. The Reverend Roberto

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Gómez genuflects when he administers the Eucharist.44 Some Mexican-American United Methodist clergy began wearing albs during worship in the 1980s. Other Mexican-American United Methodist ministers have cooperated with Catholic priests in wedding and funeral worship services when families had members affiliated with both religious traditions. Some Mexican-American Protestants have expressed positive sentiments about the Catholic Church, including Jorge LaraBraud, a Presbyterian layman and theologian. In a 1993 talk in Austin, he expressed his appreciation for the saints and Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe.45 Such instances indicate the growing tendencies of some Mexican-American Protestants to expand their traditional understanding of the catholic nature of the church, and over time to make their religious practices more consistent with those to which the Catholic majority in their community is accustomed. At the same time, Mexican-American Methodists have been welcoming indigenization in their worship music. In the 1950s, many congregations of the Rio Grande Annual Conference began singing a popular form choruses known as estribillos, or coritos.46 Reflecting the efforts to integrate their faith with their ethnic culture, Hispanic Methodists, through the support of denominational agencies, developed and distributed these popular and indigenous hymns, which had previously been transmitted orally. Beginning in the early 1970s, the United Methodist Church’s General Board of Discipleship responded to a recommendation from the United Methodist Hispanic caucus, Metodistas Asociados Representando la Causa de Hispanoamericanos (MARCHA), ‘‘that greater use be made of indigenous music in Hispanic worship, and to gather and distribute a variety of such materials throughout the church.’’ 47 The Board of Discipleship commissioned a project task force, called Celebremos, which included several members of the Rio Grande Annual Conference, to compile, arrange, and edit collections of popular Spanish-language hymns and coritos.48 Discipleship Resources, a publishing branch of the General Board of Discipleship, published the United Methodist hymnal supplement, Celebremos, Primera Parte: Colección de Coritos, in 1979.49 This supplement was followed in 1983 by Celebremos, Segunda Parte: Colección de Himnos, Salmos y Cánticos.50 The first supplement contained coritos familiar to all Hispanic Methodists; the second supplement had ‘‘a more global and ecumenical content with selections from Latin America, Spain, Puerto Rico, and the United States.’’ 51 The publication and distribution of these popular hymnbook supplements by the de-

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Raquel Mora Martínez, editor of the United Methodist Spanish-language hymnal, Mil Voces para Celebrar. (Photo courtesy of Raquel Mora Martínez. Used by permission.)

nominational agency facilitated more frequent use of coritos in many churches. The next significant period of Spanish-language hymnody occurred when the United Methodist Publishing House convened in 1991 an editorial committee of Hispanic Methodists from several regions of the United States and Puerto Rico to produce a new Spanish-language hymnal—Mil Voces para Celebrar, published in 1996. The editor for the hymnal was Raquel Mora Martínez, a longtime member of the Rio Grande Conference. Her husband, Bishop Joel Martínez, currently presides over the San Antonio area of the United Methodist Church.52 The editorial committee included in the new hymnal many of the traditional hymns composed by Europeans and Anglo Americans as well as a large number of indigenous hymns composed by

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Hispanic and Latin Americans. In an ironic twist, the editorial committee employed a Mexican-American Catholic composer and hymnologist—Carlos Rosas—as a consultant to assist with hymn selections. Indeed, Spanish-speaking Catholics composed many of the contemporary hymns selected for the new Spanish-language hymnal. The editorial board also commissioned Dr. Justo L. González, a retired member of the Rio Grande Annual Conference, to submit a ‘‘Hispanic Creed’’ for inclusion in the worship resources section of the hymnal.53

Coritos The publication of hymnal supplements filled with coritos (or little choruses) was an acknowledgment by Hispanic and AngloAmerican church leaders of the vitality of this popular form of Hymnody. In ‘‘Coritos as Active Symbol in Latino Protestant Popular Religion,’’ Edwin Aponte discusses the popular nature of Spanishlanguage praise hymns, known as coritos, or estribillos. Aponte views coritos as symbols that enable Latino/a Protestants to define themselves in light of the positive and hopeful message of the lyrics.54 Aponte’s treatment of coritos as a form of popular religion implies that they are an indigenous worship practice.55 These coritos, the early composers of which are not recorded, gradually developed particular indigenous styles with Latin rhythms and melodies. However much these coritos may be considered unique to Latino/a Protestants (especially Pentecostal Protestants), they nonetheless have their roots in AngloAmerican revivalism. Carlton Young, the editor of the most recent United Methodist hymnal, states that by the 1870s, revivalist music and worship style were solidly in place and together remain the most characteristic musical/liturgical style in [Spanish-speaking] Protestant churches of the Americas, including that part of The United Methodist Church identified as the Rio Grande Annual Conference.56 An example of the revivalist legacy in Spanish-language praise hymns is ‘‘Dame la Mano’’ (Give Me Your Hand): No me importa la iglesia a que vayas Si detrás del Calvario estás Si tu corazón es como el mío, Dame la mano y mi hermano(a) serás.

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Chorus: Dame la mano, dame la mano, dame la mano y mi hermano(a) serás, Dame la mano, dame la mano, dame la mano y mi hermano(a) serás It does not matter which church you attend If you are behind Calvary If your heart is as mine, Then give me your hand and you will be my brother (sister). Give me your hand, give me your hand, give me your hand and you will be my brother (sister). ‘‘Dame la Mano,’’ one of the oldest and most popular coritos, is sung to the tune of ‘‘Red River Valley.’’ Like other first-generation coritos, it does not exemplify a purely indigenous form of music and worship, but rather a blending of Anglo-American revivalist hymnody with Mexican-American religiosity and Latino/a musical styles. The commonality between Anglo-American revivalism and Mexican and Mexican-American culture lies in the emphasis on the experience of the heart: ‘‘If your heart is as mine, [then] give me your hand and you will be my brother (sister).’’ Coritos operate both on theological and affective levels. They are a highly emotive expression of worship in the communal and private lives of los Protestantes. Just as African Americans use bodily movement in their hymn singing, coritos allow los Protestantes to use their whole bodies while they sing.Worshippers singing coritos always stand, and usually clap enthusiastically. They might also raise their hands, wave them, or use gestures. So, for example, with the corito mentioned above, ‘‘Dame la Mano,’’ when the participants get to the lyric ‘‘give me your hand,’’ they move around the sanctuary and greet each other with a handshake or an embrace to signify hospitality and acceptance to visitors and spiritual brotherhood and sisterhood to other members. Worshippers repeat the song several times as they move throughout the whole sanctuary. This corito gives worshippers the opportunity to express their cultural values of hospitality and community. It heightens the emotive level of the congregation and frequently moves worshippers to give a testimony to their faith. Coritos not only allow for an emotive expression of faith, they also serve as religious symbols, conveying theological meanings not neces-

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sarily expressed in a more formal mode of worship. They provide a liberating and empowering message to Latinos/as, who often experience many of the difficulties associated with poverty and discrimination. In the face of such life-denying situations, coritos help Latino/a Protestants to make sense of their marginal status. Aponte states, The perception, and indeed the actuality of life-situations are changed when these symbols (coritos) are appropriated and used to make sense of one’s situation. God takes the side of the powerless, affirms both God’s continuing concern and involvement, and affirms the integrity of the culture, for these words of good news come through musical vehicles that are part of the believer’s own culture and everyday experience.57 Thus, coritos function in a similar way that the blues and gospel songs do for African Americans; they usher in a sense of immediacy with the sacred. They enable worshippers to express their deep-seated feelings of both woe and weal and foster a sense of intimate connection with God. Los Protestantes sing coritos in public worship and privately in daily life. In the same way that some persons recall memorized Bible verses in times of difficulty, Latino/a Protestants’ memorization of coritos provides them with an available ‘‘memory bank’’ of expressions of faith that they can draw upon throughout the day and in different situations. In this way they function also as ‘‘popular religious wisdom.’’ Aponte states: Coritos can be seen as the symbolic focal point of a theology that is popular religious wisdom articulating that which is near and dear to common adherents of religious faith. It may be said that the culture, history, and identity of those people who are integral parts of the Hispanic Protestant Church have been preserved by the popular wisdom of these people expressed through coritos. The coros have helped preserve culture, history, and identity. These coritos are held in affection and esteem by the people in their everyday devotional piety. . . . Coritos are not solely restricted to the liturgical experiences of Hispanic Protestants, but also have become a major vehicle for the transmission of the faith and the teaching of theology in a culturally rich manner through their being sung in Spanish.58

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Coritos have provided symbolic meaning that shaped and continues to shape the sacred worldview of Latino/a Protestants, while simultaneously creating a sense of order. The messages of these ‘‘little choruses’’ shape the religious worldview of Latino/a Protestants and permeate their everyday lives. Aponte concludes: In a symbiotic way, the symbolically active role of coritos in the worship and everyday life of these faith communities has informed the experience of Latinos. As the coritos point to significant realities beyond themselves they function as the symbolic boundaries used to make sense of everyday contexts. Coritos as symbols are an important part of clusters of symbols in a larger religious system or worldview that provides the context and resources for everyday living in Hispanic Protestant communities.59 Coritos also reveal cultural and class differences among los Protestantes. This form of hymn singing has occurred consistently among the monolingual Spanish-speaking churchgoers. Those who sing coritos typically attend small churches led by pastors of the same socioeconomic class as the members of the congregation. The larger churches, established during the period of Anglo-American Protestant missionaries, tended to be the slowest to use coritos in their worship. The pastors and members of those larger congregations, many of whose members tended to be more highly educated and middle class, perceived the theology of the coritos as crude, simplistic, and misguided. They also considered the musical style unrefined and vulgar. In short, many longterm Methodists of larger, established churches preferred the hymnody they had inherited from Anglo-American Protestantism and resisted the revivalist strand of worship and music rooted in Anglo-American evangelicalism. So in general the more established churches did not include coritos in their Sunday morning worship until the late 1970s and 1980s; some still do not include them in their Sunday morning worship. By the mid-1980s, however, most congregations in the Rio Grande Annual Conference had made room for both coritos and more traditional hymn singing in their worship. Much of the impulse for coritos and indigenous music came from pastors originating in Mexico and the rest of Latin America. The infusion of Mexican culture into Mexican-American Protestant worship occurred through the steady influx of pastors and laity emigrating from Mexico. Recent converts to Protestantism, if they were musically

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gifted, might compose coritos as expressions of gratitude or praise to God. Local preachers and laypersons used popular instruments, such as guitars and accordions, and familiar Mexican beats, rhythms, and musical styles to accompany the coritos. As los Protestantes began to include popular instruments and forms of music in their worship, they manifested their mestizo quality. For example, Miguel Angel Darino, reflecting upon Hispanic Baptist worship, notes that the introduction of drums reflects several cultural influences, such as African, Central and South American, and Anglo American.60 The continual immigration of Protestant clergy and laypersons has kept Latin American influence vibrant in Latino/a congregations.

Dialogical Consciousness and Identity Integration Coritos assisted Latino/a Protestants in the formation of their religious and cultural identity in the midst of an often alienating society. They provided a theological reflection upon the concrete struggles of los Protestantes and placed Hispanic Protestants’ life situations in the context of their relationship with the divine. Coritos are an example of the dialogical consciousness of Mexican-American Protestants, the inner and outer dialogue that occurs among Mexican Americans as they live in an Anglo-American society. Sometimes los Protestantes engaged in resistance to Anglo-American domination in their own organizations; sometimes they blended their Protestant faith with Mexican-American customs and practices.61 In all of these responses, los Protestantes engaged in ‘‘a dialogue between cultures’’ with Anglo Americans.62 Mexican-American Protestants’ identity was shaped by their double frame of reference—with Anglo-American society and Protestantism on the one hand and with their Catholic Mexican-American community on the other hand. They had to integrate the Mexican- and Anglo-American aspects of their identity to relate successfully to both groups. In their interaction with these two groups, Mexican-American Protestants were constructing their unique identity. Berger states: The individual is not molded as a passive, inert thing. Rather, he is formed in the course of a protracted conversation (a dialectic, in the literal sense of the word) in which he is a participant. That is, the social world (with its appropriate institutions, roles,

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and identities) is not passively absorbed by the individual, but actively appropriated by him. Furthermore, once the individual is formed as a person, with an objectively and subjectively recognizable identity, he must continue to participate in the conversation that sustains him as a person in his ongoing biography. That is, the individual continues to be a co-producer of the social world, and thus of himself.63 Thus, while the Mexican-American generation 64 of the World War II era sought acceptance in mainstream society through adopting the English language, observing Anglo-American holidays and customs, and demonstrating their patriotism, they also sought to preserve their ethnic identity.65 Mario García discusses this dual consciousness in his discussion of Bert Corona, who was raised in a Latina Protestant household. García mentions that Corona became aware of his Mexicanness, his ‘‘otherness,’’ as he attended the segregated ‘‘Mexican schools’’ in El Paso.66 Corona was able to integrate the varied aspects of his religious and ethnic identity due to the influence of his Protestant mother and grandmother.67 García suggests, In Corona’s case, he moved from a sense of being a Mexicano to recognizing that he was also a Mexican-American in the United States. As part of the Mexican-American Generation, Corona reflects the dual characteristics of his more bilingual and bicultural generation. Yet this dual cultural identity—being Mexican and being American, or what Ramón Saldívar describes as the ‘‘dialectics of difference’’—does not appear to have produced in Corona a great deal of anxiety, alienation, or fragmentation. Perhaps because he had already been exposed to a dual cultural existence . . . within his own home, Corona appears to have been spared what has been a source of alienation for many other Mexican-Americans. It may also be that this sense of alienation, based on dual cultures, has been somewhat overstressed by scholars, particularly Chicano intellectuals. For many within Corona’s generation, especially those in circumstances similar to his, acculturation or transculturation—adapting and inventing a Mexican-American tradition—may have been a somewhat positive strategy in adapting to one’s position in the United States (although not without its tensions). That is, this dual identity, or dual consciousness,

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possesses its creative side and has provided a positive sense of self for some Mexican Americans.68

A Common Sense of Community between Mexican-American Catholics and los Protestantes Before the United States’ conquest of the U.S. Southwest, Catholic faith communities established and maintained unity among the disparate populations on the frontier. In doing so, they also helped preserve the security of the people. Gilberto Hinojosa notes this communal function when characterizing Mexican-American Catholic communities in the U.S. Southwest: Most importantly, they support one another in the faith, irrespective of the [institutional] Church’s sometimes helpful, sometimes hindering role. The mutual support among the people sustains the community through change and adversity.69 Hinojosa’s characterization of the Mexican-American Catholic community could also characterize the quality of community among los Protestantes. Even though they differentiated themselves from their Mexican-American Catholic neighbors, Mexican-American Protestant congregations also enabled their members to adjust to and cope with social change. While their religious beliefs differentiated Mexican-American Protestants and Catholics, the two groups nevertheless shared some common experiences and values. Discussing the affinity between Hispanic Catholics and Evangelicals and Pentecostals, Allan Figueroa Deck mentions aspects of Hispanic Catholicism that could just as easily describe the religion of Hispanic evangelicals. He states that Hispanic Catholics responded to the ‘‘dramatic and emotive’’ aspects of religion and placed importance on ‘‘an immediate experience of God, a strong orientation toward the transcendent, an implicit belief in miracles, a practical orientation toward healing, and a tendency to personalize or individualize one’s relationship with the divine.’’ 70 Because Mexican-American Catholics shared an underlying devotional piety with los Protestantes, the former were able to fairly easily make the transition from their Catholic parishes to the evangelical congregations. Deck states,

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In a certain sense the movement of Hispanics [from Catholicism] to evangelical religion is a way to maintain a continuity with their popular Roman Catholic faith which in the period both before and after the Second Vatican Council has been disparaged, opposed, dismissed, or ignored by many official teachers of the Church.71 Hispanics’ concern for the quality of interaction and relationships is another important value for Protestants and Catholics alike. Rigoberto Caloca-Rivas states: Among Hispanics, a strong emphasis is placed upon appreciating each person, not so much for what s/he has as for her or his ability to relate with others. We might even say that we find ourselves, or know ourselves better, when we enter into relationship with others. It is the quality of that relationship which constitutes the core of our being in the world. To be in a situation of interdependence with nature, the Divine, and others, is the element that brings wholeness and integration to the Hispanic person, the Hispanic family, the Hispanic Church and the Hispanic society. Therefore, this dimension of relatedness can be considered as the constituent that touches and penetrates into the depth of the very existence of Hispanic peoples and motivates them to foster and develop deep and lasting relationships.72 The heart of Caloca-Rivas’ characterization of Latinos/as is the significance they ascribe to their relationships. Latinos/as determine the quality of relationships by their physical expressions of affection, empathy demonstrated in conversation, gift giving, and attendance at various social activities. In spite of their religious differences, MexicanAmerican Protestants and Catholics share a common manner of social interaction. To a large extent, but not solely for this reason, their communal orientation has undergirded their existence as a coherent ethnic community.

The ‘‘Saints’’ of los Protestantes The importance on social interaction was not limited to the living. Like Catholics, los Protestantes also maintained a relationship

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with their spiritual ancestors. When Mexican and Mexican-American Catholics joined the Protestant church, they did so with the belief that the Catholic cult of saints was an unbiblical accretion to the Christian tradition. Protestants countered Catholic veneration of Mary and the saints by claiming that Christians had an unmediated relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Yet los Protestantes gradually developed their unique version of a cult of the saints. They celebrated the first generation of Spanish-speaking Protestants who endured hardship to transmit the Protestant faith. For example, the Rio Grande Annual Conference, meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in June 2003, held a sesquicentennial memorial procession and ceremony in nearby Santa Fe to commemorate a sermon preached by Benigno Cárdenas in 1853, when he became the first Mexicano to preach a Spanish-speaking sermon in the United States. Religious folk heroes like Cárdenas inspired many Mexican and Mexican-American Protestants to lives of greater religious commitment. Preachers and the religious folk heroes’ descendents passed on these stories through oral tradition. In a few instances, such as with Santiago Tafolla, José Policarpo Rodríguez, and José Espino, the heroes even left behind their own memoirs. Mexican-American Methodists, Baptists, and Presbyterians each have their set of ‘‘saints.’’ Several blood and spiritual descendants, interested in learning about their forebears, have undertaken biographies of these religious heroes.73 For example, in response to questions by youth of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas about their spiritual pioneers, Esther Moye chronicled the lives and achievements of some of the most prominent Spanishspeaking members of the convention.74 The Reverend Jimmy García, director of Ethnic and Language Missions of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, states that the purpose of celebrating and remembering such religious heroes is ‘‘to keep us on course. They bring stability to those who are wise enough to look beyond their local setting to see where we are going.’’ 75 Noting that local Baptist congregations have the ability to call preachers who may not have a strong Baptist tradition, he cites the religious folk heroes, such as Matías Rodríguez, Joel García, and Rudy Hernandez, as providing the foundation for the Mexican-American Baptist tradition in Texas.76 Methodists have also developed their cult of saints. The charismatic personalities of the first few generations of Mexican and Mexican-American Protestants left their imprint on succeeding generations. In the same way that Catholics have pictures of saints and loved ones

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in their home altars, some Mexican-American Protestants have pictures of their spiritual ancestors in their offices or homes.77 Alfredo Náñez’ writing about the conversion and ministry of Benigno Cárdenas, the first Spanish-speaking Protestant minister in the U.S. Southwest, casts Cárdenas as a legendary figure.78 Bishop Joel Martínez of the Rio Grande Annual Conference has frequently preached about Alejo Hernandez, the first native Spanish-speaking ordained Protestant in Texas.79 Both Baptists and Methodists claim José Policarpo Rodríguez as a religious ‘‘saint.’’ The venerable minister’s son, Luís Rodríguez, followed him in the ministry in the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. His two great grandsons, Matías and Elías Rodríguez, became Baptist ministers. Sarita Zajiceck, Rodríguez’ great-granddaughter, managed the land originally owned by Rodríguez and the chapel that he constructed near Bandera, Texas. In 1982, Methodist and Baptist descendants of Rodríguez held a large family reunion and centennial commemoration of the construction of ‘‘Polly’s’’ chapel in 1882.80 The centennial celebration of Rodríguez’ chapel demonstrates the emphasis on the veneration of male converts and ministers. Since the Protestant preachers continued the paternalistic tradition of sanctifying their male clerical forebears, female religious heroes have unfortunately generally received much less attention than their male counterparts. However, the women in each of the Protestant denominations maintained their own cult of ‘‘saints.’’ Women in the Methodist, Baptist, and Presbyterian institutions carefully recorded the faithful leadership and service of their peers. Minerva Garza compiled a book in 1993 that profiled sixty women who had furthered the Rio Grande Annual Conference’s mission called 60 Aniversario: Sesenta Mujeres en Misión: Ellas Salieron sin Saber a Donde Iban (60th Anniversary: Sixty Women in Mission: They Went Out Not Knowing Where They Were Going).81 Both Clotilde Náñez and Minerva Garza published articles that demonstrated the courageous and heroic actions of Spanish-speaking Methodist women and clergy wives in Texas and northern Mexico.82 Baptist women also produced books that narrated the history of the Unión Femenil Misionera del Estado de Texas (Women’s Missionary Union of Texas): Destellos del Rubi; Es un Boceto de la Historia de la Unión Femenil Misionera del Estado de Texas, Junio de 1957 and Fieles al Maestro: Bordadoras del Diseño Misionero. These publications told the stories of courageous leadership and service of their women.83 While los Protestantes did not venerate their ‘‘saints’’ exactly as

Unión Femenil, Primera Iglesia Bautista (Women’s Union, First Baptist Church), San Marcos, Texas, 1950. (Photo courtesy of Hispanic Archives, Texas Baptist Historical Collection, Dallas, Texas.)

Clotilde Náñez, a leader in the Rio Grande Annual Conference’s women’s organization and wife of the Reverend Alfredo Náñez.

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Hispanic Catholics venerated their saints, the development of this Protestant version of a cult of saints demonstrates an important dynamic in the process of indigenization—the creation of a pantheon of legendary figures whose lives inspired succeeding generations. Such legendary figures provide a tradition and a sense of continuity, as well as a standard for religious commitment and service. The recognition of this pantheon of legends, or religious folk heroes, while at times paying homage to the Anglo-American missionaries, placed the first generation of Spanish-speaking converts at its apex. Because they left many sanguinary and spiritual descendants, the narration of the conversions and ministries of the first and second generation of Spanishspeaking converts generally took precedence over the recollection of the impressive accomplishments and charismatic personalities of the Anglo-American Protestant missionaries.

The Uniqueness of the Mexican-American Protestant Community While los Protestantes and Mexican-American Catholics share many features of social interaction, the unique situation of MexicanAmerican Protestant congregations in the barrio contributed to a manner of social interaction somewhat distinct from their MexicanAmerican Catholic neighbors. It was their unique religious faith practiced within predominantly Catholic Mexican-American neighborhoods and communities, and their ethnic heritage practiced within their Protestant context, that marked Mexican-American Protestant congregations as unique religious and cultural communities. Gilberto Hinojosa acknowledges some features of Mexican-American Protestant congregations during the period of 1910–1940 that appealed to the Spanish-speaking, including a strong sense of community, opportunities for participation and leadership, and the use of Spanish in worship. He states, Rituals, of course, were in the vernacular and often involved greater participation than traditional Catholic worship. Many of the Protestant groups also had strong commitment to community values that Mexicanos admired. In the smaller congregations members knew and were called to help one another. Because of the lighter educational requirements for the ministry, local

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Mexicanos could and did emerge as religious leaders of their own congregations.84 Los Protestantes created a lasting community within their congregations by spending much time participating in church activities. Until the 1960s, los Protestantes frequently spent all of Sunday in church. Minerva Garza remembers the Sunday routine at La Trinidad United Methodist Church in San Antonio during her adolescence in the 1930s. Members attended Sunday School first, then the 11:00 a.m. worship service, stayed for lunch, meetings of church groups (women, men, and youth), and remained for the evening worship service. They also returned to church for a mid-week worship or Bible Study.85 Such extensive periods in the church fortified the strong bonds of friendship with other church members.

The Isolated Nature of Mexican-American Protestant Congregations Philip E. Lampe, studying the level of assimilation of Mexican-American Protestant and Catholic schoolchildren, argues that the social isolation of los Protestantes contributes to a heightened level of community within their churches. Lampe states, In general, Protestant Mexican Americans tend to be rather isolated both from the majority of Mexican Americans who are Catholics and from the majority of Protestants who are Anglos. The isolation causes Protestant Mexican Americans to rely on their fellow church members to satisfy their social and emotional needs.86 Sometimes, the closeness felt among the congregation’s members contributed to its isolation from other Mexican Americans, and even to its gradual decline. Since they were either members of an extended family within the church or they had developed a sense of family among each other, members became so comfortable relating to each other that sometimes visitors and newcomers had difficulty breaking into the tight circle of relationships. Ben Costales mentions the difficulty that members of El Buen Samaritano United Methodist Church in Albuquerque have had in accepting ‘‘outsiders’’ into their church: The uniqueness of this congregation, for example, is that it is composed mostly of families who are related to each other, and

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there are some very strong persons in our church, in our local church, and there is a bonding among the church members, but when someone steps in from the outside, it’s not there. It’s very difficult for [newcomers and visitors] to feel welcome.87 Churches that had a strong sense of family yet also a strong evangelistic ministry were more likely to receive new members into their churches and continue growing. This was the case more with Mexican-American Baptists than with Mexican-American Methodists and Presbyterians. Whenever a church lost its evangelistic orientation, and its social activity became centripetal instead of centrifugal, the sense of family turned into cliquishness and contributed to the congregation’s gradual decline. Unable to bring in new members, these churches relied upon marriages and family relationships to maintain their membership.

The Development of Regional Communities The strong sense of community often extended beyond the congregation to include regional associations and networks of relationships. These regional networks of relationships helped to maintain a particular community even as members migrated to different locations.88 For example, after they moved to El Paso, Texas, Bert Corona’s mother and grandmother participated in an alumnae association of the Congregational schools in northern Mexico whose members fled Mexico during civil unrest. Thus, one could move to another region and find a home there among members of one’s denomination or religious organization. This was also the case with Bert Corona himself when he moved from El Paso to Los Angeles, where he found members of the Conferencia Hispana Femenil (Hispanic Women’s Conference), to which his mother and grandmother belonged, who helped him make the transition in his new city.89 The community of Mexican-American Protestants extended beyond the congregation when its members participated in conference, association, and presbytery meetings, annual conferences, and retreats. The Reverend Alfredo Náñez notes that these meetings played an important role in providing social alternatives for Mexican-American Methodists. Náñez refers to a period of renewal in the Texas Mexican Mission, and later the Texas Mexican Conference, that occurred under Onderdonk’s leadership (1914–1936). One of the means for renewal was the Sunday School conventions held in San Antonio, Austin, Corpus

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Youth of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery at the Synodical Conference. (Photo courtesy of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Archives, Austin, Texas. Texas-Mexican Presbytery Records. Photo Collection 94-190, #21.)

Christi, the Rio Grande Valley, and in other places. Noting the ‘‘great throngs of people’’ that gathered for study and fellowship at these Sunday School conventions, Náñez states, ‘‘In a day when the social activities of the Mexican Americans were limited, these gatherings had an important function.’’ 90 Sunday School conventions, as well as other regional gatherings, solidified the regional sense of community for Presbyterians, Baptists, and Methodists.

The Family as the Archetype for Community The development of Mexican-American regional communities was made possible because of Mexican Americans’ strong sense of family as the archetypal community. Studying the contrasts and similarities between AngloAmerican and Spanish-speaking Americans, Lyle Saunders states about Mexican Americans: Family influence extends through the whole culture and provides the organizational model for relationships outside the sphere of kinship. The familistic terms instead of personal names in introductions; by the practice of using kinship terms (e.g., primo ‘cousin,’ compadre ‘godfather’) to designate non-relatives . . . by

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the continued presence of nepotism in politics; structure of the terms and relations of the kinship pattern; by the general importance attached to relatives and the feeling of obligation towards even distant ones.91 He concludes: The family, then, provides a model for relationships both within and outside the kin group; it is a religious unit; an economic unity, a socializing unit; and for any individual it tends to be the chief link with both the village community and the wider outside world.92 The significance of the family for Mexican-American families is most evident on Día de la Madre (Mother’s Day). While this was originally an Anglo-American celebration, Mexican Americans accepted this celebration wholeheartedly because both Mexican-American Protestants and Catholics consider the mother, and in many cases the grandmother (la abuelita), as the spiritual center of the household and the principal transmitter of faith.93 Even though Mother’s Day does not appear on the church’s official religious calendar, Mexican-American Protestant congregations observe this day diligently. To honor their mothers, almost all members of the family, including those who normally might not attend church, accompany their mothers and grandmothers to church. Mexican-American Protestant churches include special music, testimonies, and rituals to honor the mothers. Pastors preach special sermons on the ministry of motherhood and the significance of the family. The special attention that Mexican-American churches pay mothers on this day illustrates the high esteem—to the point of sacredness—Mexicans and Mexican Americans have for mothers and the ideal of motherhood. La familia is the primary community within which Mexican Americans develop their identity. It refers not only to the nuclear family, but also to one’s extended family. Indeed, family can even mean any set of relationships with such intense bonds that individuals consider themselves part of each other’s families. For example, Mexicans and Mexican Americans have received into their family children who have lost one or both of their parents.94 Also, the relations of compadrazgo, the relationship between the godparents, extend the boundaries of family to include one’s compadre and comadre (literally, co-father and

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co-mother), one’s padrino and madrina (godfather and godmother), and one’s ahijado or ahijada (godson or goddaughter).95 Compadres, while not blood relatives, become chosen members of the family, with a special relationship with the parents and their godchildren. The custom of compadrazgo has continued among Mexican-American Protestants. This sense of family characterizes los Protestantes’ relation to other congregants, as well. Teresa Chávez Sauceda, reporting on a Mother’s Day ceremony at Getsemaní Presbyterian Church in Fort Worth, notes, ‘‘At Gethsemane, Mother’s Day is celebrated in a context where the congregation is seen as part of this extended family.’’ 96 She observes that the church honored all women, not just mothers, during its Mother’s Day celebration in worship. This collective recognition affirms the vows of support that the worshipping congregation makes when one is baptized. She states, Rather than each child having something to give to his or her own mother, the children of Gethsemane shared their gifts collectively through songs and poems for the whole congregation and flowers given to all the women present. In a very real way, this simple act symbolically affirms the promises made at their baptism that made the whole congregation adoptive parents of each child.97 The sense of family goes even beyond compadrazgo and congregational relationships to describe the sense of interrelatedness among Mexican Americans. In his introduction to Fronteras: A History of the Latin American Church in the USA since 1513, Virgilio Elizondo observes, Chicanos, Mexican Americans, Mexicanos, Latin Americans, Spanish-speakers—who are we? ¿Quién [sic] somos? When we are together, we have no doubt that we constitute a family. Pues somos en todo sentido una familia (For we are a family in every sense).98 The sense of family that permeates Mexican culture was inherent in congregational relations and continues to bind relationships and membership in the Latino/a Protestant church. Entrance into the Protestant church is akin to becoming a member of a new family, one that supports fellow believers spiritually, morally, and sometimes eco-

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nomically. Thus, los Protestantes customarily call each other ‘‘hermano’’ (brother) and ‘‘hermana’’ (sister) because they consider them members of the family of God; they understand themselves to be related as brothers and sisters in Christ. Similarly, the Reverend Francisco Gaytán called the Reverend and Mrs. Paul Grout, through whose influence he was converted to Protestantism as a youth, ‘‘Papa and Mama Grout.’’ He considered ‘‘Papa and Mama Grout’’ his spiritual parents the rest of his life.99

Community through Kinship In many Spanish-speaking congregations, kinship bound together members and various families. While congregations had some members who were the only Protestants in their family, the norm was to have whole families join a church. The Reverend Jimmy García notes that many new Baptist churches formed by Mexican immigrants consist mainly of a few families: We have many churches, immigrant churches that are family churches, of brothers and sisters and parents. And the immigrants come from Mexico and from other places, but when they come they come with family. The family comes and they bring the extended family and soon you have four or five brothers, a mother and a father. Many churches are formed around two or three families.100 As a congregation developed, its membership increasingly became composed of several families, some of which might be related by intermarriage. By way of illustration, one of the families that joined the Floyd Street Mission in Dallas (later known as Latin American Mission, Mary King Memorial UMC, and currently as Agape Memorial UMC) in the 1930s, the Vásquez, had six daughters and one son. Almost all the siblings remained members and raised their children and grandchildren within the church. A large percentage of the church consists of families related to the Vásquez family. Several members of other families of the church married children and grandchildren of the Vásquez family. Marriage among families in the congregation was prevalent before the 1960s, when marriage between Protestants and Catholics was strongly discouraged by families on both sides. Mexican-American Protestants expected their members to marry other Mexican-American Protestants, preferably of the same denomination. Ben Costales

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recalls a time when most of the marriages that occurred in El Buen Samaritano UMC were between members of that church, or at least with other Protestants.101 Antagonism between Protestants and Catholics contributed to intermarriage among Mexican-American Protestant families and established kinship bonds both within congregations and, if marriages occurred between members of different churches, throughout the Rio Grande Annual Conference. Kinship ties were especially strong among families of ministers. As late as 1997, El Buen Samaritano UMC in Albuquerque, New Mexico, had nineteen members who were descendants of the Reverend Dionisio Costales, a minister ordained in the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1896 who retired around 1930.102 The influence of kinship among relatives of preachers can also be seen in the membership of La Trinidad UMC in San Antonio. Several relatives of ministers have made this congregation their church home. The Reverend Daniel Z. Rodríguez, the recently retired pastor of La Trinidad, reflects on the contribution that marriage among congregational and conference members has had on their identity: Intermarriage has brought us to a point where we belong to each other. . . . It’s not easy . . . to not relate to people in Dallas, the Rio Grande Valley. Any time we talk about people in the Rio Grande Valley [here in San Antonio], we’re talking family. We want to be together. So when we meet at Annual Conference, it’s just a family, together. That’s why we have so much fun.103 Community created through kinship occurred among MexicanAmerican Presbyterians in Texas as well. Faye McDonald Smith states that family ties and the church as a site for forming cultural identity helped prevent Mexican-American Presbyterians from leaving their congregations following the merger of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery with other Anglo-American presbyteries in 1955, when ‘‘the church still represented an opportunity to see family, to speak Spanish and to reinforce their culture.’’ 104 Smith observes, Many Mexican-American Presbyterians intermarried with each other and developed kin relationships with several family clusters. For them, the church was a large extended family—which was bonded together not only by religion and heritage—but by blood.105

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Conclusion Through familial bonds, friendship networks, shared histories, the Spanish language, social customs, and manner of social interaction, Mexican-American Protestant congregations fostered a strong sense of belonging. Even as some Hispanic Protestants joined the middle class through educational attainment and entrance into the professional workforce, they continued attending Mexican-American congregations. Their sense of belonging led them to forsake geographically closer churches or Anglo-American congregations in favor of MexicanAmerican ones. Various forces contributed to the continued congregational segregation of los Protestantes. Among the positive factors were the sense of family, creation of community, and the ability to express one’s faith in accordance with one’s cultural upbringing. Mexican-American Protestants found a safe social space in which to worship and relate to each other in their own language and with their own customs. The primary negative force that contributed to segregated congregations was the racism with which Anglo-American Protestants treated their Mexican-American co-faithful. And, even when they did not receive blatant racist remarks or treatment, Mexican Americans had difficulty identifying with the worship styles and the culture practiced in the Anglo-American churches. Mexican Americans have such a history and experience of life in the U.S. Southwest that they experienced worship differently than Anglo Americans. Justo L. González, writing about the sense of exile and alienation that most Latino/a Protestants experience, states, There is probably no place where the feeling of exile and alienness becomes more poignant for me than when I attend worship in most Anglo churches of my own [Methodist] or another ‘‘mainline’’ denomination . . . I am in the church, the spiritual home for the homeless of which Peter speaks. And yet, I am not at home.106 The most significant point of González’ attempt to distinguish between Hispanic and Anglo-American worship is the recognition of the different life experiences that the two groups bring with them to worship. Anglo Americans, generally of a higher income, but also of a different culture, bring to their worship a different set of life experi-

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ences than those of Hispanic Americans. For example, I observed that the pastor of an Anglo-American Methodist church in North Texas used an illustration about martini lunches to connect with a congregation whose members were professionals and businesspersons.107 And in 1984, the United Methodist men’s organization of a very large church in the North Texas Annual Conference sponsored a golf tournament as a fund-raiser. The entrance fee was $75.00.108 While these examples certainly do not represent all Anglo-American congregations, they nevertheless hint at the broad cultural and class differences that exist between Anglo- and Mexican-American Protestants. Whether due to cultural or class differences, such dissonant life experiences have fostered segregated membership and worship. As they remained in their ethnic congregations, los Protestantes adopted certain aspects of Anglo-American Protestantism, preserved much of their Mexican-American culture, and blended aspects of the two cultural traditions within which they lived. Since they existed in an AngloAmerican society, their congregational culture was clearly more anglicized than that of Protestants in Mexico. However, they still retained elements of their Mexican-American heritage that distinguished them from their Anglo-American co-faithful. The modes of worship, values expressed in worship and congregational life, the quality of interaction and relationships, and the sense of community contributed to a particular culture that was neither wholly Mexican nor AngloAmerican, but was instead a blending of these two cultures, a mestizo Protestantism. Mexican-American Protestant congregations would have ceased to exist if their members had not been able in some way to harmonize the tension between their Mexican-American culture and their Anglo-American Protestant faith. Consciously and subconsciously, los Protestantes were engaged in an adaptive process of integrating their religion with their culture. This process of adaptation has enabled Mexican Americans to continue attending Mexican-American Protestant churches, rather than transferring to Mexican-American Catholic or Pentecostal churches or Anglo-American Protestant churches. The Mexican-American Protestant church provided los Protestantes the opportunity to express freely their religious sentiments in a familiar and nonthreatening environment. As second-, third-, and fourthgeneration Mexican-American Protestants assimilated, their Hispanic congregations became instrumental in the preservation of their cultural identity.

6

¿‘‘Somos Uno en el Espíritu’’?

The Relationship between los Protestantes and Catholicism

‘‘We Are One in the Spirit,’’ a popular hymn with a Native American melody, gives voice to the desire for unity among all peoples.1 In its Spanish translation, it has become popular among Spanish-speaking persons in the United States. Yet, the theme of unity and fellowship among Hispanic Protestants and Catholics could not even be conceived of until the 1960s; before then, Mexican-American Protestants defined themselves largely in opposition to the Catholic Church. Mexican and Mexican-American converts to Protestantism understood their conversion to be as much a rejection of their Catholic beliefs as an affirmation of Protestant beliefs. The rejection of Catholic beliefs entailed a significant change in their social relationships. After they embraced Protestantism, Mexican and Mexican-American Protestants often found themselves in conflict with Catholic family members, friends, and other members of the community. Those who were secondand third-generation Protestants naturally developed a segregated set of relationships with the members of their Protestant church. Varying degrees of anti-Catholicism existed among los Protestantes. The Reverend Jimmy García observed that immigrant and recently converted Baptists have had a much higher degree of anti-Catholicism than those who are second-, third-, and fourth-generation Hispanic Baptists.2 Anti-Catholicism was most strident among the first few generations of Mexican-American preachers, who viewed direct confrontation with Catholics as integral to their ministry. Although antiCatholic sentiments remain among los Protestantes, antagonism diminished from the 1960s onward, due in part to Vatican II, cooperation

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on matters of social justice, and a desire by los Protestantes to integrate their religion with their culture.

Sources of Anti-Catholicism Protestants’ anti-Catholic attitudes continued with equal intensity among Mexican-American Protestants throughout the nineteenth and into the late twentieth centuries. The two earliest sources of anti-Catholicism for Mexican-American Protestants were the views expressed by Anglo-American Protestants and the anti-clericalism of Mexicans resentful of the Catholic Church. The former source originated in the Protestant reformers of the sixteenth century. Martin Luther, among others, undertook and endorsed histories of the Catholic Church that portrayed the papal office as a seedbed of corruption, blasphemy, and violence. As Ray Allen Billington observes, this antipopery propaganda ‘‘was designed to discredit Catholicism.’’ 3 AntiCatholic sentiment among the English coalesced with cultural and political animosity between the English and the Spanish. As often happens among enemies, the English, political opponents of Spain and rivals in the race to settle and claim the American continents, dehumanized their enemy by portraying Spaniards and Mexicans as brutal and immoral beings. The Protestant missionaries throughout Mexico and the U.S. Southwest imparted this vehement anti-Catholic attitude to los Protestantes through their preaching, teaching, and literature. A second source of anti-Catholicism among los Protestantes originated in Mexicans’ resentment of the hegemonic power of the Catholic Church in their country. Many Mexicans disagreed with the Catholic Church’s support of conservative, and sometimes oppressive, regimes in Mexico. Mexicans who admired religious liberty in other countries, and perceived the Catholic Church as a roadblock to this ideal, further spurred anticlericalism. Mexicans who yearned for freedom of religion as it was established in the United States came to resent the hegemonic power of the Catholic Church in Mexico. With anticlericalism common in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest throughout the nineteenth century, Anglo-American Protestant missionaries found portions of the Spanish-speaking population predisposed to a more democratic form of religion. According to the Reverend William Butler, one of the founders of the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) in Mexico, Benito Juárez

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told one of the first MEC preachers in Mexico, ‘‘Upon the development of Protestantism depends the future happiness and prosperity of my nation.’’ 4 A third source of anti-Catholicism came from Mexican-American Catholics themselves. As Mexican Americans converted to Protestantism, establishing churches and witnessing to their faith, those with strong allegiance to the Catholic Church sometimes engaged in violence against Protestants. In Cuencamé, Mexico, in 1882, for example, Rosaura Grado wielded a kerosene lamp as a weapon against some men who entered the church sanctuary to harm her husband, the Reverend Pedro Grado.5 Such persecution only strengthened Spanish-speaking Protestants’ resolve against Catholicism and shaped their self-identity. Reflecting upon the antagonism between Hispanic Protestants and Catholics in his hometown of Seguin, Texas, during the 1940s and 1950s, the Methodist-raised David Maldonado concludes that the division between the two religious groups was imposed by outside agents: The more I think about it, the more I am convinced that this division [between Hispanic Catholics and Protestants] was imposed and maintained by clergy outsiders to the Latino community who placed institutional self-interest above the life of the community. These were Anglo Protestant missionaries and European Catholic priests. For example, Anglo Protestant missionaries wanted to make good Protestants out of Mexican-Americans. To them this meant we should become pietistic Americans with a strong Protestant work ethic. It also meant that we should turn our backs on anything and everything Catholic or Mexican. To convert was to become anti-Catholic and to drop out of the barrio’s social life. European Catholic priests came into our communities and painted Protestants as heretics, traitors, and threats to Catholicism. Thus, good Catholics were to avoid all Protestants. And so our community was split.6

Conflict between Mexican-American Methodists and Catholics Anti-Catholicism in the Nineteenth Century Anti-Catholicism inherited by Mexican and Mexican-American converts to Protestants originated in anti-Catholic and anti-immigrant sentiments and

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movements in Anglo-American Protestantism in the nineteenth century. Concerning the diffusion of anti-Catholicism in the mid-nineteenth century, Sydney Ahlstrom states that ‘‘anti-Catholic sentiment broadened out through the middle and upper classes of ‘American’ ancestry, becoming diluted but not disappearing as it blended with vague feelings of Anglo-Saxon pride and class consciousness.’’ 7 Anti-Catholic and nativist sentiments took institutional form when the American Party was formed around 1850. Party members had to be North American–born Protestants without Catholic wives or parents. Even though the American Party (commonly known as the Know-Nothing Party) disappeared as an institution by the end of the 1850s, anti-Catholic and jingoistic prejudices remained among a significant portion of the Anglo-American Protestant population.8 Denominational leaders and Protestant missionaries were spurred on to evangelize and assimilate the Spanish-speaking Catholic population in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest by their fear that they posed a threat to ‘‘national security.’’ The report on work among Mexican immigrants in the 1927 Missionary Yearbook of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, observed the following about the Spanish-speaking immigrant population in the U.S. Southwest: They are here to stay, and it behooves us to do all we can for their training in Christian citizenship. ‘‘With their many lovable traits,’’ says the Rev. Joseph Thacker, of the Western Mexican Mission, ‘‘and the willingness to do the hard work in the humbler spheres of life, they can become a valuable asset to our country if we give them the gospel, but without it they may become a menace to our Anglo-Saxon civilization.’’ 9 Echoing these prejudiced sentiments, Josiah Strong argued in Our Country that the sheer numerical superiority of the Catholic population threatened the democratic institutions of the United States’ western territories.10 Mexican-American ministers in the nineteenth century, eager to prove the orthodoxy of their new faith, understood their ministerial calling to include aggressive opposition to the Catholic Church. Following the model of Anglo-American missionaries, they perceived themselves as crusaders against the Catholic Church; they frequently clashed with priests and other Catholics in their efforts to convince others of the veracity of their religious claims. Grijalva notes that

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Baptist preachers debated with Catholic priests.11 Clotilde Náñez, in ‘‘Hispanic Clergy Wives,’’ notes an occasion when the Reverend Pedro Grado debated a priest about the veracity of Protestant and Catholic theology: In Durango [Mexico], Rev. Grado held a public debate with a priest, Father Irineo Durán, with the understanding that the loser would join the winner’s church. The priest was the loser. He became a Methodist and the Grado family treasured his cassock for many years. The incident, however, created antagonism toward Grado.12

Anti-Catholicism in the Mid-Twentieth Century Anti-Catholic sentiment continued undiminished into the midtwentieth century.13 The Reverend William Bernardo O’Neill’s impassioned plea before the 1949 session of the Rio Grande Annual Conference for a coordinated campaign to battle the Catholic Church for the souls of Hispanics was one of many such inflammatory statements. Originally from Puerto Rico, O’Neill urged Methodists and other Protestants to be more aggressive in evangelizing the Spanish-speaking population, arguing that failure to reach this population would result in the extensive influence of the Catholic Church in Hispanic culture and the rest of society: I do not think that this strong Methodism will remain deaf and blind to the reality of tangible facts that the astute Roman church uses to extend its grasp of power on the fertile fields of America; which now present themselves fertile and docile to her, owing to the placidness of Protestantism. . . . Being a respectable body within the religious field, we ought to give the alarm to our denominational associates and unite for battle. If we do not do so, we will inevitably be headed for the most tremendous and disastrous failure. . . . In my way of thinking, Bishop Smith and distinguished members of this Conference, I present to you the following problem for your prayer and consideration. Either we allow the papal influence to continue making its raids in this country or we stop its triumphal career by presenting a vigorous, united program of action.14

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The Reverend Abel Gómez, the editor of the Rio Grande Annual Conference’s newspaper, El Heraldo Cristiano, from 1946 to 1953, wrote several polemical articles and editorials against the Catholic Church. One editorial, ‘‘América Debe Permanecer Protestante’’ (‘‘America Must Remain Protestant’’), illustrates Gómez’ religious and political ideals. He criticized President Truman for naming a special envoy to the Vatican, claiming that the action betrayed U.S. and Protestant ideals of freedom of religion and the separation of church and state. Gómez believed this appointment also implied legitimization for the Catholic Church in the United States. To buttress his argument, Gómez reprinted part of Bishop A. Frank Smith’s address to the Southwest Mexican Conference condemning the president’s action.15

Anti-Catholicism and Worship Anti-Catholicism played a part in developing Protestant forms of worship. Like their Protestant forebears, los Protestantes reacted against the abundance of symbols in the Catholic Church by excluding practically any visual religious symbols, including the cross. The Reverend Oscar F. Garza notes that the cross was not included in Spanish-speaking Methodist sanctuaries for many years.16 Photos of El Buen Samaritano Methodist Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where Garza was the pastor from 1949 to 1955, show a large painting of Warner Sallman’s Portrait of Christ at the front of the sanctuary. The painting hangs on the front wall in place of the usual cross. The only symbols allowed in the sanctuary were the Bible and the pulpit, reflecting the Protestant emphasis on the word.17 Laypersons expected Protestant worship to have nothing in common with Catholic worship and also perceived their faith and religion as being in opposition to the Catholic Church. Rev. Garza, who served as the pastor of La Trinidad Methodist Church in Pharr, Texas, from 1942 to 1945, recalled that changes in the configuration of the altar created a concern among some laypersons that Catholic elements were infiltrating their worship. After he attended a workshop on worship, led by Alfredo Náñez, Garza rearranged the altar at the church in Pharr: At the workshop at the school of pastors, they taught us to have at the altar, which was the communion table, a cross, two candles and the communion elements—bread and wine. . . . After the workshop I returned to Pharr, where I was the pastor. . . . Since I was very capable of doing woodwork, I made a wooden cross there Saturday morning. I painted it, and made wooden candle

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holders, because there was no money to buy them, nor was there a place to buy them, and a nice stand on which to place the Bible. Sunday in the morning I had everything nicely arranged in front of the pulpit. Brother Domingo [and two other men of the church] came. Well, they arrived at church Sunday in the morning and saw the cross and candles. They said, ‘‘Listen, brother, this is what we left [from the Catholic Church]—the crosses and candles—and now you want to put them in here. This is going to upset the congregation.’’ Then I told them, ‘‘If this upsets them, look, take them, and let us move the altar table to the back corner.’’ And we moved it to the corner. The point is that, by following the guidelines of a study on worship, for such a small thing the brothers of the church became upset.18

Anti-Catholicism among Presbyterians and Baptists Prior to the 1960s, like Mexican-American Methodists and Baptists, Hispanic Presbyterians maintained anti-Catholic attitudes. The Reverend Olivares, the pastor of Iglesia Presbiteriana Mexicana in Laredo, Texas, wrote a brief, one-page treatise in 1947 titled ‘‘The Concept That the Evangelical has of the Roman Church’’ (translation mine). In it, Rev. Olivares lays out his evangelical opinion of the Catholic Church along three lines. Doctrinally, ‘‘the Roman church is not Christian because its teachings are contrary to that which God has ordered in the Holy Scriptures.’’ Politically, ‘‘the Roman Church, in almost all places where it has been able to rule, has demonstrated itself to be totalitarian and intransigent, condemning and killing as many as it can who love progress.’’ Morally, ‘‘among the Latino people where the Roman Church has ruled, especially where the priests are the most reverenced, the [moral] corruption among the people as been most disastrous.’’ He concludes that the moral failures of Spanish-speaking people are the result of their Catholic upbringing.19 Another Spanish-speaking Presbyterian pastor, the Reverend Reynaldo Avila, published a three-page treatise entitled ‘‘De la Verdad y el Error’’ (Of Truth and Error) in Victoria, Texas, in May 1904. It had such an impact that the Catholic Church published and distributed a response, titled ‘‘Dos Palabras: En Contestación al Suelto ‘La Verdad y el Error.’ ’’ 20 This exchange of accusations about religious truth was common among Spanish-speaking Protestant ministers and local Catholic leaders.

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Hispanic Baptists also engaged in active opposition to the Catholic Church. During his review of the earliest Baptist preachers among the Spanish-speaking people in Texas and northern Mexico, Grijalva states: ‘‘Baptist preachers and missionaries of this period often debated publicly with Catholic priests. This helped the Baptist cause in no small way.’’ 21 Grijalva himself displays a critical stance toward the Catholic Church, asserting that the Catholic Church failed to assist Mexicans and Mexican Americans adjust to the new American society following the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848: The priests declared that God intended for them to be poor and to suffer. The Catholic Church made the Mexican a mere surface practitioner of religious rites. Deeply religious by nature, he could not understand an impractical religion voiced in Latin. He did not need an Ave María; he needed avena [oatmeal] for his children.22

Anti-Catholicism from the 1960s Onward In the last four decades, anti-Catholic attitudes have waned among many Hispanic Protestants. The growing number of Hispanic Baptists who have been raised in Baptist congregations did not require a rejection of Catholic beliefs and practices in order to embrace their Protestant faith. The Reverend Jimmy García notes that as a fourth-generation Hispanic Baptist, he does not share the same anti-Catholic sentiments as his greatgrandfather.23 The Reverend Rudy Sánchez likewise asserts that antiCatholicism among Baptists has waned. He witnessed improved relations between Hispanic Baptists and Catholics in the mid-1990s.24 During the 1960s, the idea that Protestants had an obligation to oppose the work of the Catholic Church began to diminish as some Mexican-American Protestants and Catholics found common cause in their support of farmworkers and the political and economic rights of Mexican Americans. Radical reforms in the Catholic Church resulting from Vatican II also diminished Protestants’ hostility toward the Catholic Church.While some anti-Catholic attitudes continued, fueled partly by clergy and laity originating in Mexico, where the conflict between the Catholic Church and Protestant groups remains strong, and partly by continued anti-Catholic sentiments on the part of evangelical Protestants, los Protestantes gradually ceased to perceive the Catholic Church as a rival for the souls of the people. Indeed, some Catholic practices have made their way into the (United Methodist)

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Rio Grande Annual Conference, and some Latino/a Protestant pastors have established cooperative relationships with the Catholic Church in their areas.

Cooperation between los Protestantes and Catholics The work of the recently retired pastor of La Trinidad UMC in San Antonio, Texas, is exemplary of the increasing cooperation between Protestant and Catholic churches. The Reverend Daniel Z. Rodríguez maintained a cordial relationship with the Catholic Church, for example, by conducting on occasion weddings and funerals in cooperation with Catholic priests. Most recently, he participated in an ecumenical prayer service in a Catholic parish. Another example of such cooperation is the San Fernando Cathedral in San Antonio, which has been observing Holy Week in various ways for over two hundred years. Since 1983, the parish has been observing Good Friday by reenacting the drama of Jesus’ Passion. Parish members spend considerable time and energy coordinating an outdoor procession that winds through the streets of downtown San Antonio and ends at the cathedral. In recent years, the procession has begun with an ecumenical prayer service at the Market Plaza near the cathedral. In 1997, Dr. Rodríguez was one of four Protestant pastors participating in the drama at the San Fernando Cathedral. Dr. Roberto Gómez, editor of the Rio Grande Record, the official newspaper of the Rio Grande Annual Conference, grasped the significance of this event: The Reverend Dr. Rodríguez made history by being the first Methodist of Mexican heritage to participate in this ecumenical prayer service. . . . He preached energetically and his message was well received by the audience. More than one thousand persons were present, including various members of La Trinidad church. We give thanks to God for occasions in which Christians of different churches gather to praise the name of our God and to pray with gratitude.25 The Reverend Rodríguez’ participation in a prayer service with Catholics near San Fernando Cathedral (the symbolic center of Mexican-American Catholicism in Texas) reveals the distance that some

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Latino/a Protestants have traveled—from antagonism toward and conflict with the Catholic Church toward an appreciation of the authenticity of the Catholic Church and a sense of community with their former rival. While there are still laity and pastors who would not join Catholics in an ecumenical worship service, the participation by Rev. Rodríguez signals a dramatic softening of antagonistic relations. It is also significant that the editor of the newspaper refers to this as an occasion for ‘‘Christians’’ of different churches to praise God. A generation or two ago, los Protestantes generally did not believe Catholics to be Christians. The attitude of the editor of the newspaper, Dr. Roberto Gómez, contrasts sharply with the attitudes expressed by the editor of El Heraldo Cristiano, Rev. Abel Gómez, mentioned earlier. There have been other instances that reflect the change in relationships between Mexican-American Protestants and Catholics. For example, Jorge Lara-Braud, a prominent Presbyterian lay theologian, gave a lecture on Mexican-American spirituality at Santa Julia Catholic Church of Austin, Texas, in 1993. In his lecture, he embraced traditional Mexican and Mexican-American Catholic spirituality. He recognized the importance of the Virgen de Guadalupe as a source of dignity and consolation for Mexican Americans: ‘‘Mary’s God is the God that our suffering and humiliated people have been longing for. The future she announced explodes in our souls into liberating visions, shattering our age-old fatalisms.’’ 26 Lara-Braud broke with the Anglo-American evangelical tradition by embracing the popular Catholic practice of veneration of the saints among Mexican Americans: Can you imagine us without santos y santas? Why do they mean so much to us? Because they embody what we hold sacred: the companionship with Jesus. It is the mystery of the incarnation all over again. And there is something profoundly meaningful in the materials we use to represent them, clay and cloth, canvas and color. It is sheer materiality—materiality which becomes sacrament as it conveys sacred memory and sanctifies the soil from which it comes.27 Lara-Braud’s conciliatory lecture, while not representative of all Mexican-American Protestants, nevertheless demonstrates that some Protestantes were no longer as antagonistic toward Catholicism as before. The Reverend David Maldonado confirms that relations between Hispanic Catholic and Protestants have warmed in recent years:

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Relations between Catholic priests and Protestant ministers have improved and flourished in many Hispanic communities. Joint weddings have been performed, and visits to each other’s churches are more common.28

Reasons for the Lessening of Tensions between los Protestantes and Catholics Integration of Religion with Culture The late 1960s, with the emergence of the Chicano/a Movement and the Civil Rights Movement, saw a degree of rapprochement between los Protestantes and the Catholic Church. For example, the Reverend Leo Nieto, a retired United Methodist Minister, relates an incident that occurred when he accompanied Mexican Americans from Texas to the Poor People’s March in Washington in 1968. Then a clergy member of the Rio Grande Annual Conference, he was part of a contingent from Laredo. He and two others wanted to give a statue of San Martín de Porres to Mrs. Coretta Scott King, seated at the dais at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. He and two others were in the middle of the crowd. He faced the challenge of passing through a sea of people to reach Mrs. King. At that moment I remembered the small Black saint whom I held tightly against my chest. I remembered the story about how he could fly miraculously through the air when it was necessary to help poor people. ‘‘Why not?’’ I asked myself. ‘‘It’s for a good cause.’’ I asked the Black saint whom I held tightly in my arm, if he would do us the favor of taking us through the air to where Mrs. King was, so that we could present him to her on behalf of the poor people of Laredo, Texas in memory of her husband, that Black Baptist preacher of Atlanta. Miracle of miracles! At that very moment a space opened up before us. It was like the parting of the Red Sea before the Israelites! My friends and I ran through the space. The sea of people closed again behind us.29 Nieto was able to make his way to the dais and get a friend’s attention. Officials allowed him to present the statue to Mrs. King, who held the gift and mentioned it when she addressed the audience.30

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The Reverend Nieto’s presentation of a statue of a saint, as well as his appeal to that saint for divine assistance, marks a rupture with the traditional anti-Catholicism of los Protestantes. The motivation for Rev. Nieto’s use of Catholic symbols was his concern for the poor. He chose San Martín de Porres because the Dominican lay brother of Peru had advocated for the rights of the poor and dispossessed. Thus, San Martín de Porres symbolized even for this Protestant minister the church’s obligation to act in solidarity with the poor. The Reverend Nieto’s description of the event in terms of the parting of the sea also incorporates the biblical worldview of Mexican-American Protestants, who continually interpret their reality with reference to biblical narratives. The moderation of anti-Catholic sentiment occurred as los Protestantes adopted many worship practices proposed by the Liturgical Movement. As Protestants began to appreciate the sacramental and symbolic nature of worship, they incorporated worship practices that had previously been ascribed to Catholics. Mexican-American Protestant clergy, especially seminary graduates, sought to integrate their worship with their cultural heritage. This meant changing the designation of certain rituals and ceremonies from Catholic to Mexican or Mexican American. Before the 1960s, the rituals of the quinceañera and las Posadas occurred only in the Catholic Church. The observance of Ash Wednesday, especially the placement of an ashen cross on the forehead, was also considered a Catholic observance. Since the 1960s and 1970s, these ceremonies have been conducted in many MexicanAmerican Protestant congregations. In addition, some Protestant pastors have incorporated certain visual elements in worship that signal an acceptance of Catholic liturgical practices. The use of candles and paraments is now common among congregations. Some ministers in the Rio Grande Annual Conference occasionally use albs, and a few others perform the Eucharist in a dramatic and ritualistic fashion.31 The Reverend Daniel Arguijo celebrated Holy Communion with great diligence. In his eulogy of Rev. Arguijo, the Reverend Roberto Gómez stated: Daniel, and a few others in our annual conference, took with great seriousness a certain type of worshipping that involves using symbols, albs, stoles, staffs, lit candles, and so on. Some people do not appreciate what we do and how we do it. And so, we are criticized, taunted, and even mocked. I got some of it, but

The Reverend Leo Nieto, the Rio Grande Annual Conference, 1971. (Photo courtesy of the Reverend Leo Nieto. Used by permission.)

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Daniel got it more and worst. It hurt him. I know because he told me so. Oh, if they only understood Daniel’s love of liturgy was his way of expressing his love and service in and through worship of our Lord Jesus.32 A more conscientious use of ritual, symbols, and practice of the sacraments by the Reverends Gómez, Arguijo, and some other MexicanAmerican Methodists marked a significant change in the worship of los Protestantes.33

Vatican II The Second Vatican Council (1962–65), called by Pope John XXIII to help the Roman Catholic Church respond to the modern world, unleashed a wave of liturgical reform, including the development of indigenous hymnody. Continuing under Pope Paul VI, one of the chief documents of the council, the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, allowed for the liturgy in the vernacular and promoted greater participation of laity in worship.34 Building on the principles laid down by Vatican II, the second plenary meeting of CELAM, the Latin American Bishops Conference, held in Medellín, Columbia, in 1968, called for all levels of the church to work for the social transformation of Latin America. This gave impetus to the formation of hymnody oriented around the themes of social justice and liberation. The third plenary meeting of CELAM, held in Puebla, Mexico, in 1979, solidified the positions taken at the Medellín conference; the bishops laid out a vision for the church that was communal and a pastoral plan that provided for the cooperation of all elements of the church. They also affirmed the value of culture expressed in liturgy. Hispanic Catholic leaders in the United States paid close attention to these developments and engaged in a dialogue with their Latin American Catholic partners in the 1970s and 1980s.35 Latin American and U.S. Hispanic Catholics involved with the struggle for liberation produced many hymns that connected Latinos/as’ life experiences, yearnings, and hopes with Catholic theology. As mentioned in a previous chapter, the editorial committee of the United Methodist Spanish-language hymnal employed as a consultant an innovative Catholic hymnologist, Carlos Rosas, to assist them in selecting hymns. That Mexican-American Protestants would cooperate with a Mexican-American Catholic hymnologist signifies the dramatic change that had occurred in the relationship between these two groups—from conflict to cooperation and community. Vatican II also resulted in an increased importance of the Bible

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for Catholics. In his lecture at a Catholic church in Austin, Lara-Braud spoke of a Catholic youth center that had an abundance of bilingual Bibles, a situation that would have been less likely before Vatican II. Also unlikely before Vatican II would have been the Catholic church’s generous donation of its surplus bibles to Lara-Braud’s Presbyterian church, El Buen Pastor. Lara-Braud’s reaction to this incident reflects the emergent rapprochement: You have no idea how delicious it was for me to make this announcement a few Sundays ago: ‘‘My dear brothers and sisters, do you remember when we used to give Bibles to the Roman Catholics? Well, today, we are the grateful recipients of these lovely bilingual New Testaments which Catholics of East Austin thought we would need to understand St. Paul a little bit better. Don’t you think both they and we are making history on this day?’’ 36 The Reverend Vicente Franco notes that his anti-Catholic attitude was transformed when he saw the changes implemented in the Catholic Church as a result of Vatican II. He had learned as a youth to despise the Catholic practices of veneration of saints, and he objected to worship in Latin instead of in the vernacular. Like most Hispanic Protestant ministers, he preached against the Catholic Church during his early years as a United Methodist pastor.37 His anti-Catholic sentiments diminished when he observed changes in the Catholic Church’s worship in the 1960s and 1970s. Catholic liturgical reform brought down many barriers that had previously made Rev. Franco antagonistic toward the church: Well, if they are going to start preaching the Word and doing all these things here, well, this is what we [Protestants] believe in. So there is that barrier that we had because this, as far as I’m concerned, doesn’t exist anymore. Si ellos van a predicar la Palabra en el lenguaje y el idioma que la gente entiende, [If they are going to preach the Word in the language that the people understand], who am I to say that this is incorrect. So we started opening doors for that. . . . I went to Dallas. I would go with a priest out there. We talked. We had meetings [about inner-city] ministries, and so forth, to help the people . . . we had a common cause. So that changed considerably, and it is changed. And to tell you the truth, when I want to see a religious service between 12:00 and

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1:00 in my TV here, I turn to the [mass at San Fernando Cathedral]. That’s what I do.38 Three incidents contributed to the nullification of Rev. Franco’s antagonism toward the Catholic Church. First, changes in the Catholic Church’s worship based upon the reforms instituted by Vatican II lessened the gap between Protestants and Catholics. The Reverend Franco perceived the Catholic Church to be moving toward Protestantism by conducting worship in the vernacular and recognizing the importance of the Bible and preaching in worship. Second, Rev. Franco discovered that both he and a Catholic priest in Dallas shared a common cause in helping the people of their barrio. He discovered that Mexican-American Protestants and Catholics could overlook the differences in doctrine and cooperate with each other in the area of social action. Third, as mentioned by Rev. Franco, there was the entry of the Catholic Church into the statewide ecumenical organization, the Texas Conference of Churches. This sign of improved ecumenical relations between Protestants and Catholics, which was reported in the media, softened Rev. Franco’s anti-Catholic attitude. The Texas Council of Churches, later renamed the Texas Conference of Churches, received the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church into its organization in February 1969.39 The Reverend Franco perceived the inclusion of Catholic and Protestant churches in a united ecumenical organization as a positive step. These events softened his stance toward the religious body he once condemned from the pulpit.40

Similarity of Experiences between MexicanAmerican Protestants and Catholics Because of the conflict and tension that separated MexicanAmerican Protestants from Catholics, both parties were unable to recognize that they shared the a sense of marginality within their respective churches. Church leaders perceived Mexican-Americans as foreigners who posed a political and cultural threat to mainstream society. Anglo Americans generally could not accept the ‘‘otherness’’ of Spanish-speaking people, hence such messages as ‘‘go back to Mexico,’’ ‘‘why can’t they learn to speak English?’’ and ‘‘why do they have such large families?’’ Church leaders, both Protestant and Catholic, used

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religion as a way to obliterate the perceived otherness of Mexican Americans, to assimilate them into mainstream society and thereby lessen the perceived threat to Anglo-American society. Protestant and Catholic churches pursued similar strategies for the evangelization and assimilation of Spanish-speaking persons. Leaders of both religious traditions viewed their mission among the Spanishspeaking as Americanizing a group considered to be foreigners. Susan Yohn observes that Protestant and Catholic leaders in New Mexico contended that Nuevomexicanos lived in a condition of moral degeneracy. In addition, both Catholic and Protestant leaders recognized a need to enable Nuevomexicanos to become responsible citizens of their new country. In order for the inhabitants of the territory to become active citizens and to improve their moral condition, they would require formal education. On these points, Protestants and Catholics agreed. Disagreement and conflict arose over the question of which religious tradition would control and dominate the processes of Americanization, assimilation, moral reform, and education.41 And, just as los Protestantes were at the margin of the Anglodominated Protestant churches, so Mexican-American Catholics found themselves to be marginal in their own institutional church. Gilberto Hinojosa summarizes the reasons for the marginalization of Spanishspeaking Catholics in the U.S. Southwest: Mexicans and Mexican Americans possessed a religiosity that at times appeared very different from that of other Catholics in the United States and seemed to exist apart from current institutional leadership and control. Many Mexicans and Mexican Americans did not speak English and there were few nonHispanic priests who spoke Spanish or understood Mexican and Mexican American culture. Influential Church authorities favored the Americanization of the immigrant, while pastors drew upon Mexican traditions to revive the faith of the newcomers. . . . Even in the distribution of its own resources the Church favored Anglo-American parishioners over Mexican Americans.42 Shortly after U.S. annexation of Mexico’s northern territories, the number of Mexican and Mexican-American priests and religious decreased dramatically. The Catholic Church did not demonstrate any particular interest in religious vocations for Mexican Americans until the

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post–World War II period.43 Until then, bishops relied on European and Anglo-American clergy and religious staff. The first bishops in New Mexico were French, and California for a period had only Irish bishops. Given the nationality of the church’s episcopal and sacerdotal leadership, decisions on the church’s mission to its community were made by Anglo Americans or persons of European nationality, especially Irish and French. Without appropriate representation in the leadership of the Catholic Church in the United States, Mexican-American Catholics had very little influence on the decisions affecting the allocation of church resources to their communities. Further, Catholic Church leaders, eager to tap into the resources of the dominant society, gave priority to the development of Catholic schools and congregations for the English-speaking population in the U.S. Southwest. In his essay on the history of Catholicism among Mexican Americans in the U.S. Southwest, Gilberto Hinojosa mentions both the patterns of neglect and the instances of attention. There were a few bishops, clergy, and religious who responded to the Spanishspeaking population’s needs and gave faithful service to them.44 The more common experiences for most Mexican Americans, however, were those of conflict, neglect, discrimination, and marginalization. Hinojosa summarizes the chief trends of the Catholic Church in Texas and the U.S. Southwest in the nineteenth century: The United States bishops generally tended to replace the local Mexicano clergy with French priests who were more concerned than their predecessors with full compliance with Church laws. Bishops, priests, and women religious elected to serve primarily the local elites, mostly Anglo Americans, whether Catholic or non-Catholic, in order to secure permanence for the Church once outside funds stopped flowing into Texas dioceses. In their attempts to shield the Church from the attacks of the anti-foreign, anti-Catholic nativists, churchmen and women seemed to be more preoccupied with having the Church become a part of the establishment than with serving Mexicanos. Thus, at times the Church appeared distant or removed from the Mexican-American community.45 Despite neglect and racist treatment, Mexican-American Catholics kept their allegiance to their church largely because they made a distinction between the institutional church and the church of the

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people. The church they loved was the church of their ancestors, the church that unified their community and provided meaning to their lives through ritual and symbolic ceremony. The church they resented was an institution whose leadership failed to address their needs adequately. Rigoberto Caloca-Rivas states, It would be gratifying to be able to say that the Church as institution accompanied them in [their] struggle. Unfortunately the contrary is true. Rather than being part of the solution, the Church has more often been part of the problem.46 He expresses the sentiments that many Mexican-American Catholics have maintained toward their church. Among many U.S. Hispanics there exists a love-hate relationship with the Church. The love is there because this is the Church of their fathers and mothers, of their abuelos, tios and padrinos. The templo is the site of some of the most precious moments of their lives—Baptism, First Communion, Wedding, Burial. The Church is the source of hope for ultimate meaning in a life that often does not make sense. Yet, at the same time, the hate dimension exists. It is rather an anger and a sadness. It is the resentment of a child neglected by its mother. With rare exception, the institutional Church has not been present to the suffering, the pain and the struggle of the Hispanic. The Church has not wept with her brown-skinned sons and daughters who were weeping. At times she even compounded their hurt by closing to them her doors, her eyes and her ears. In spite of their long tradition of Catholicism and in spite of their significant numbers, the U.S. Hispanics have until recently been outsiders in their own Church.47 The Spanish-speaking, whether Catholic or Protestant, were discriminated against not because of religious tradition but because of the prevailing racism of Anglo Americans and persons of northern European background. Protestantism was no more discriminatory toward the Spanish-speaking than was Catholicism. Rather, discrimination was present in both religious traditions because they were controlled by Anglo Americans with roots in northern Europe and the British

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Isles. In the case of the Catholic Church, diocesan leadership was often in the hands of European bishops and clergy. Hence, Protestantism was not the only agent of assimilation; Catholicism was also engaged in the work of Americanization. Both religious traditions actively engaged in Americanization because both were led in the United States by persons of northern and western European origin.48 Caloca-Rivas observes, ‘‘[The Catholic Church’s] tie with the oppressors is strengthened by the fact that the Church in this country is made up and controlled by Northern Europeans, which in itself colors its social stances, ministerial options and administration.’’ Virgilio Elizondo underscores this point: ‘‘Because the U.S. Church is predominantly white, Anglo-Saxon, and English-speaking, it is identified by the Spanish-speaking as part of the group which has taken advantage of them.’’ 49

Conclusion Until the mid-twentieth century, anti-Catholicism permeated the identity and work of los Protestantes. Early on, it was manifest as a crusade against the Catholic Church, led by Protestant missionaries and clergy. Anti-Catholicism entailed a rejection of Catholic doctrine, liturgy, ecclesiology, religiosity, and morality. It was such a dominant aspect of Protestantism that the first generation of Spanish-speaking converts to Protestantism vigorously challenged Catholic priests on doctrinal issues. They always carried their bibles and shot out scripture verses as a challenge to them. Anti-Catholicism was also a part of Mexican-American Protestants’ personal ethic; it was the rejection of a set of behaviors labeled sinful and associated with Catholics—behaviors such as drinking, dancing, smoking, and gambling. Finally, antiCatholicism transcended individual concerns to become perceived as a battle against the Catholic Church for the ‘‘soul’’ of America itself. Mexican-American Protestants appropriated the view of other Protestants that the Protestant Church needed to check the growth of the Catholic Church to ensure that the nation remained Christian (i.e., Protestant) and thus truly American. They feared that the failure to limit the power of the Catholic Church would result in the eventual loss of religious freedom. An important function of zealous anti-Catholic attitudes was the solidification of Mexican-American Protestant identity. Opposition to Catholic doctrine, worship, and morality formed the basis of Hispanic

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Protestant identity as much as the ‘‘positive’’ tenets los Protestantes embraced, such as the authority of the Bible, religious freedom, and so on. Los Protestantes experienced little ambiguity about what kind of life they were expected to live. This is partly because Catholics provided a standard against which Mexican-American Protestants judged their religious and ethical lives. To some degree, this assimilation involved a killing off or denial of Mexican and Mexican-American identity. And yet, as we have seen, the assimilationist urge did not completely obliterate los Protestantes’ identification with their Catholic/ Mexican heritage. As los Protestantes consolidated their Protestant identity over several generations, they were able to integrate previously rejected aspects of their Mexican/Catholic worldview and ethos. The complexity of—and ironies involved in—identity formation is illustrated by a story that Alan Dershowitz relates about Jewish identity. The story, Dershowitz says, reflects the ‘‘Tsuris [Suffering] Theory of Jewish identity, survival, and unity.’’ 50 When Napoleon went to war against Russia, a rabbi in Russia prayed publicly that Russia would defeat Napoleon, even though continued rule by the czar would mean continued persecution and a French victory would result in freedom and prosperity for the Russian Jews. The rabbi prayed for the continuation of this oppressive rule, explaining that he would rather see the Jews in Russia live in poverty and under oppression than to see them assimilate and lose their identity as they experienced peace and prosperity.51 In a sense, this story captures the historical reality experienced by the Spanish-speaking in the U.S. Southwest. Disappointed with the Catholic Church’s support of Spanish colonialism and its support of efforts to reunite Mexico with its European ruler, many in Mexico and many Spanish-speaking in what was formerly northern Mexico might have looked upon the Anglo-Protestant missionaries as ‘‘rescuers’’—or as yet another manifestation of colonialism. Like Napoleon, the Anglo missionaries held out the promise of assimilation, peace, and prosperity in the new world of the U.S. Southwest. But only on the condition that los Protestantes deny their religious and cultural identity. Even more than that, such renunciation was seen as central to their redemption as ‘‘civilized’’ people and as Christians. Los Protestantes thus navigated an extremely complex and hazardous course. Dershowitz notes that one possible result of liberation is that Jews might ‘‘assimilate and disappear’’ as an ethno-religious group.52 The same might be said of the Spanish-speaking. As early Protestantes grappled with conflicting loyalties and world-

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views, they defined themselves against the Catholic Church and all that it stood for. They generally assumed the perspective of the Anglo missionaries: the Church represented political oppression, ignorance, and an unconscionable disrespect toward the individual. But, as the generations of los Protestantes rolled on, and they consolidated and internalized their identity as Protestants, the perceived threat of Catholicism faded, and they were able to reintegrate elements from their heritage: las Posadas, the saints, the quinceañera. Changes within the Catholic Church helped the emerging rapprochement. When Vatican II ushered in liturgical reform and a renewed interest in the poor, the contrast between Protestants and Catholics weakened significantly. The use of the vernacular in worship, the increased use of lay leadership, and a new appreciation for the authority of the Bible brought Protestants and Catholics closer together. However, having weaned themselves of an enemy against which to define themselves, Hispanic Protestants face the same obstacle that Dershowitz observes in the case of Jews—how to maintain their ethnic and religious identity even as they increasingly fit in with the majority population. Los Protestantes of today, then, need to consciously address the question of what it means to be a Mexican-American Protestant.

7

Conclusion

From the start, Anglo-American Protestants perceived as their mission among the Spanish-speaking the assimilation and absorption of Mexican Americans into mainstream society. To this end, they inculcated in los Protestantes a worldview, along with corresponding attitudes, values, celebrations, and behaviors, that was as much Anglo American as it was Protestant. They offered the Spanish-speaking population in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries social services, health care, charity, education, vocational training, and religious services. In all of these different ministries, Anglo-American Protestants endeavored to ‘‘uplift’’ the Spanish-speaking—morally, spiritually, economically, and socially. In all their work, Protestants served as mediating agents between Mexican Americans and the dominant society. The Protestant goal of assimilating the Mexican-American population was never completely fulfilled. The vast majority of Spanishspeaking persons in the U.S. Southwest rejected the Protestant overtures to convert. That Mexican-American Catholics remained with their church despite often-discriminatory treatment and a lack of native priests shows the extent to which Catholicism was ingrained in the Mexican-American psyche. Most important to Mexican-American Catholics was not the institutional church, but the local Catholic community, a source of support and spiritual sustenance. Their continued adherence to the Catholic faith is a testimony to the power of local community in interpreting the mandates of the institutional church, as well as the power of symbol and ritual. Protestantism, devoid of all but a few symbols, did not provide equivalent substitutes for the

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saints, Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, and the communal rituals that ordered the year and daily life. Instead, Protestantism offered some religious practices that los Protestantes embraced with enthusiasm: the emphasis on biblical narrative, hymnody, and a personal relationship with God. Protestantism also provided an alternative worldview and mode of living for those who felt estranged from the Catholic Church and who appreciated the spirituality and services that Protestant missionaries offered them. To a large degree, these Protestantes learned to negotiate their way through the dominant society through their participation in Protestant denominations. Missionaries of this religio-cultural tradition served as a means for enabling Mexican Americans to adjust to an alien society by transmitting a cultural ethos embedded in their Protestant faith. Besides appropriating the Protestant faith from their spiritual mentors, los Protestantes also took on to various degrees many aspects of Anglo-American values, such as democracy, punctuality, self-improvement, education, and individualism. These values facilitated effective participation in the dominant Anglo culture. Paramount in the conversion and consolidation of los Protestantes was a strong anti-Catholic attitude; los Protestantes were what Catholics were not. Spanish-speaking and bilingual Protestant congregations, as well as extended networks of relationships and associations, provided a subculture that enabled los Protestantes to manage the tensions inherent in their status as a cultural and religious minority. Congregational life, especially worship, provided the cosmological and the social support to maintain their status as a religious minority amidst the Catholic majority in their Mexican-American neighborhoods. Familiar cultural practices in their churches, such as the use of the Spanish language and the maintenance of Mexican customs and social relationships, coupled with the Anglo-American congregations’ inability to provide a comfortable setting for Mexican-American visitors, resulted in the continuation of Mexican-American congregations for generations. By the mid-twentieth century, the congregation and its network of religious associations provided a place and an atmosphere where los Protestantes could integrate the cultural and religious dimensions of their identity in such a way that they could preserve their Hispanic identity while also operating successfully in the larger society.

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Protestantism and Religious Pluralism Protestantism facilitated a religiously pluralistic society in the U.S. Southwest. It offered to Mexicans and Mexican Americans a religious alternative to the hegemonic Catholic Church. Randi Jones Walker emphasizes this in referring to Mexican Americans in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado in the period of 1850–1920. In a period of cultural transition in the villages of the Sangre de Cristos [mountains], the Protestants offered a religious choice that seemed to point to the future being shaped in the Anglo-American world. Protestantism had a place for those who thought differently from their neighbors, who needed a place to express their independence in company with others.1 Protestantism provided sacred symbols and a religious language through which its members could grasp, and be grasped by, the sacred in ways radically different from Catholicism. Indeed, Protestant missionaries proposed a competing religious worldview and ethos, one that offered an individualistic and supposedly unmediated approach to connecting with the sacred. By putting forth a competing religious worldview, Protestantism undercut the objectification of the universe posited by Catholicism. It is this crisis that Peter Berger addresses when he states that the pluralization of religion represents a severe rupture of the traditional task of religion, which was precisely the establishment of an integrated set of definitions of reality that could serve as a common universe of meaning for the members of a society. The world-building potency of religion is thus restricted to the construction of sub-worlds, of fragmented universes of meaning, the plausibility structure of which may in some cases be no larger than the nuclear family.2 Protestant and Catholic authorities perceived themselves to be in competition for the loyalty of the Spanish-speaking. The Catholic Church served as a clear standard against which Mexican-American Protestants evaluated their beliefs and behavior. Los Protestantes considered the Catholic Church a rival and an invidious institution that needed to be diligently opposed. Indeed, the most anti-Catholic Protes-

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tants posed their competition with the Catholic Church in terms of a holy crusade. This rivalry and conflict continued until the recent past. The gradual decrease of anti-Catholic sentiments in the last thirty years has created some ambiguity in Mexican-American Protestants’ identity. With anti-Catholic sentiment weakened, Mexican-American Protestants’ identity becomes less distinct. Mexican-American ‘‘mainline’’ Protestants still have something of a defensive identity—they continuously have to explain to their Mexican-American constituency why they are not Catholic and to their Anglo-American Protestant brethren why they don’t join the Anglo-American churches.

The Transnational Character of los Protestantes Protestantism has clearly played a vital role in helping immigrants from Mexico and the rest of Latin America adapt to the alien U.S. society. Historically, Protestantism has done this through private schools, community centers, and the support of local Spanish-speaking congregations. But it is particularly through relationships established within the congregations that immigrants have found support systems for coping with the turmoil associated with immigration. Church members have helped these new arrivals gain employment and housing, and have helped orient them within a supportive, familiar environment. The issue of immigration highlights the transnational character of Hispanic Protestantism. Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, and other denominations have received a steady influx of ministers from Mexico and other parts of Latin America. These pastors, as well as laypersons, have provided important leadership for the churches. More importantly, they have continued to maintain the Mexican character of Protestant congregations. Most recently, the decades-long wave of Pentecostal immigrants from Mexico and other parts of Latin America have brought their Pentecostal theology, piety, and style of worship into the U.S. Southwest. The transnational character of these churches was even more evident before the international border became difficult to cross. In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, ministers worked in both Mexico and the United States without difficulty. Indeed, the boundaries of the first Spanish-language Methodist conference, the Conferencia Misionera Fronteriza Mexicana de la Iglesia Episcopal del Sur (Mexican Border Mission Conference of the Methodist Episcopal

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Church, South), established in 1885, included northern Mexico, Texas, and New Mexico. Methodist conferences for Spanish-speaking work continued to overlap the U.S.-Mexico border until 1930. The transnational character of los Protestantes is also evident in the beginnings of Spanish-speaking Presbyterianism in Texas. It was Mexican Presbyterians who established some of the earliest Spanishspeaking Presbyterian churches in Texas; a Presbyterian congregation in Matamoros, Mexico, established the first Spanish-speaking Presbyterian church in Brownsville, Texas, in 1877. This was the first Spanishspeaking Protestant congregation in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. The Presbytery of the State of Tamaulipas, Mexico, formed around 1884, directed missionary activities in several towns along the U.S. side of the border in the Rio Grande Valley for the next two decades.3 The Spanish-speaking Presbyterian church in San Marcos was established in 1884 by José María Botello, a layman from Matamoros, Mexico, without any support from missionaries or denominational agencies.4 The same can be said about the first Spanish-speaking Baptist church in San Antonio, which was founded by the pastor of the Baptist church in Saltillo, Mexico, in July 1888. The Reverend William Powell, pastor of the church in Saltillo, had such success preaching in a revival in San Antonio that he was able to organize the new converts into a new congregation. These new converts were baptized under the authority of the Baptist church in Saltillo and received first into membership in the Saltillo church. The church in Mexico then gave them permission to organize their own church.5

The Special Case of Baptists Unlike Presbyterians and United Methodists, Southern Baptists succeeded in establishing Hispanic congregations statewide. MexicanAmerican Presbyterians in Texas numbered approximately 2,800 among 38 congregations in 1963, and the Rio Grande Annual Conference of the Methodist Church had 106 congregations and a membership of 16,162. But the Hispanic Baptist Convention reported an impressive 418 churches, 68 missions, and a membership of 33,530 that same year.6 Clay Price of the Research and Information Services of the Baptist General Convention of Texas estimated in 1998 that there were roughly 134,000 Hispanic Baptists in Texas at that time. In contrast, the Rio Grande Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church reported

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103 pastoral charges with slightly over 15,000 members in 1996. Membership among Hispanic Presbyterians remained stagnant throughout the 1970s. A report by the Mexican American Coordinating Council listed slightly more than 3,000 for the entire Synod of the Red River (including Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Louisiana) in 1977.7 Hispanic Baptists in Texas have proliferated largely because of their evangelistic emphasis in ministry. They continued the evangelical mode of ministry, while Methodists and Presbyterians diminished their evangelistic character. Hispanic Baptists also benefited from the merger between the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas and the Baptist General Convention of Texas. The Reverend Rudy Sánchez states that the leaders in both ecclesial organizations were visionaries who pushed their denominational agencies to establish new congregations. He also credits the increase in Hispanic Baptists in Texas to an emphasis on equipping the laity for evangelistic mission and the availability of theological education in seminaries in Fort Worth and San Antonio. In short, Anglo-American and Hispanic Baptists have made the establishment of new congregations an ongoing priority. Hispanic Baptists’ emphasis on evangelism is not the only difference between them and Hispanic Presbyterians and United Methodists. Their evangelistic zeal only partially accounts for their numerical success. While Hispanic Presbyterians and United Methodists have become more ecumenical, especially in their relations with Catholics, Hispanic Baptists have maintained a clearer distinction between themselves and Catholics, primarily through their emphasis on doctrine. This strong sense of denominational affiliation, coupled with their emphasis on doctrine rooted in biblical interpretation, has helped Hispanic Baptists maintain a strong sense of identity and continue to grow. Finally, the educational standards for ordained ministry in the Presbyterian and United Methodist churches have prevented many Hispanics from functioning as pastors. In contrast, the independent nature of Baptist congregational life allows churches to ordain persons with less education. In the end, all factors account for the numerical success of Hispanic Baptists. Their emphasis on evangelism, a successful relationship with Anglo Baptists (and more specifically the Baptist General Convention of Texas), their concern for doctrine rooted in biblical interpretation, and less stringent educational requirements for pastoral ministry all combine to explain the distinctiveness and numerical success of Hispanic Baptists in Texas.

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Implications of This Study for the Future of los Protestantes Today, participation in Hispanic Protestant congregations involves choice. For Mexican Americans who have assimilated into the dominant U.S. society, participation in Hispanic Protestant congregations displays a desire to maintain and cultivate their ethnic culture. For some, the church becomes the nexus through which this ethnic culture is transmitted. Several possible trajectories seem likely for the future of Hispanic mainline Protestants. One of these is a gradual merging of MexicanAmerican Protestant and Catholic worldviews and ethos. The recent convergence between some Hispanic Protestants and some representatives of Roman Catholicism could well be seen as the beginning of the process of giving this new identity, with its new worldview and ethos, a specific shape and content in which the old division between Protestants and Catholics is gradually erased as a new ethnic Christianity comes into existence. This new ethnic form of Christianity mingles self-selected elements of Protestantism and Catholicism, elements that are specifically Hispanic in their cultural import. Another possible trajectory is a continuation of the nineteenthcentury Anglo-American missionary worldview and ethos. Curiously, this form of Hispanic Protestantism has been maintained most recently by the arrival of Mexican pastors and laity into the U.S. Southwest. This form of Protestantism has predominated in Mexico due to minority status within a largely Catholic population. As a result, pastors and laypersons who join the Protestant church in the U.S. Southwest bring their anti-Catholicism, revivalist, and sometimes Pentecostal form of Protestantism into the churches. The continual influx of Protestants from Mexico will tend to preserve the conservative nature of many of these churches. Clearly, these two trajectories are in tension with each other. Yet, they both exist within mainline Protestantism. Thus, there is no one single Hispanic Protestant worldview and ethos, but varieties of them, sometimes competing for dominance within organizations. Baptists have clearly and successfully maintained the evangelical worldview of the nineteenth century, while the United Methodist Church’s Rio Grande Annual Conference experiences tensions arising from these two competing worldviews among its membership.

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Challenges Facing Hispanic Protestants The two primary frames of reference for Hispanic Protestants have been Anglo-American Protestant denominations and the Catholic Church. In the last thirty years, Pentecostalism has emerged to become a third frame of reference. Indeed, the dominant form of Hispanic Protestantism in the United States is now Pentecostal.8 The authors of the most recent study on religious affiliation among U.S. Hispanics speculate that the reasons for increased affiliation with Pentecostalism include its evangelistic thrust, the prevalence of indigenous clergy, the style of worship, the extensive use of prayer groups, greater possibilities for leadership among laypersons and women, and an emphasis on healing ministries.9 Allan Figueroa Deck also postulates that Latinos/as have been attracted to evangelical and Pentecostal Christianity because of evangelicalism’s and Pentecostalism’s ability to help them adjust to the modernity that underlies U.S. society. With their emphasis on the development of a personal, individualized faith, evangelical and Pentecostal churches help Latinos/as integrate with the larger cultural emphasis on the individual. Additionally, Latinos/as are attracted to Pentecostalism due to its populist, down-home nature.10 ‘‘Mainline’’ Hispanic Protestants have been influenced by the rise of Pentecostalism in various ways. Given the network of relationships in the Latino/a community, elements of Pentecostalism have found their way into mainline Hispanic Protestantism. For instance, occasionally preachers from Latin America with Pentecostal backgrounds enter the organizations of mainline Protestantism. Even though they serve in mainline churches, they continue preaching and teaching according to their Pentecostal orientation. Preaching and teaching in the Pentecostal tradition does not always square with the doctrines of Baptists, Methodists, and Presbyterians. These three ‘‘mainline’’ Protestant traditions have a strong Christological focus, whereas Pentecostalism emphasizes the Holy Spirit. Another influence from Pentecostalism is through worship styles and hymnody. Many Protestant churches have adopted worship elements of Pentecostalism, such as new praise hymns, praise bands, and greater emphasis on music. Anglo-American Protestants spent much energy building ecclesial institutions throughout the U.S. Southwest. The various institutions established by Protestant missionaries—schools, community centers, hospitals, and churches—functioned as a means of inculcating the Anglo-American Protestant worldview in Mexican Americans. Of

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these various institutions, the local congregation became the institution through which a distinct Mexican-American Protestant community emerged. Los Protestantes accomplished this feat by creating a distinct religious and cultural community that provided religious meaning and opportunities for leadership to its members within a congenial environment. The Mexican-American congregation was, in some practices, a vehicle for transmitting Anglo-American Protestant values and ideals, thus mediating between dominant society and Mexican-American ethnicity. In other practices, the local church, along with the larger ecclesial associations and organizations, provided space for the preservation and practice of Mexican-American culture. Thus, it is in the life and worship of the Mexican-American congregation that Anglo- and Mexican-American cultures mixed most thoroughly, contributing to a new mestizo people—a mixture of Mexicano, Tejano, Nuevomexicano, and Californio subaltern cultures and AngloAmerican Protestant religion and culture. This new mestizaje is nothing less than the continuation of the mixing of bloodlines, religion, and culture that began with the Spaniards’ arrival in the Americas in the late fifteenth century and continued with the U.S. annexation of the present-day Southwest. There is a multitextured quality to the ethno-religious experience of Mexican-American Protestants. As mentioned in the introduction, the history of los Protestantes resembles a textile with many patterns, some of which appear harmonious, others ambiguous and vague, and still others in contradiction with each other. The threads that come together to make such patterns are the individual lives of Anglo Americans, Mexicans, and Mexican Americans and their congregations. Yet, the historical agents examined in this study represent not only the threads, but the weavers of the metaphorical textile itself, combining their own lives with the religious and cultural contexts of which they were a part, and leaving their own mark on the fabric of MexicanAmerican Protestantism. The fabric examined in this study reveals traditions of revivalist and educational emphases that help los Protestantes navigate their way through constantly changing religious, cultural, and social currents. These revivalist and educational emphases were manifest in religious organizations and local congregations. Interestingly, the same congregations that equipped their members to operate in the dominant society through the diffusion of Anglo-American Protestant values and worldview also provided los Protestantes with means to maintain

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their Hispanic and Protestant identity. The Spanish language, Mexican and Mexican-American customs, symbols, values, and ways of relating were passed on to succeeding generations of congregational members. Thus, the local congregation played, and continues to play, the most crucial role in helping Hispanic Protestants negotiate their cultural and religious identities in relation to their Anglo-American Protestant denominations, their Mexican-American Catholic community, and, increasingly, among Hispanic Pentecostals.

Appendix A

Institutional History of the Rio Grande Annual Conference

The current Rio Grande Annual Conference has its roots in the Methodist missionary work among the Spanish-speaking in Texas, New Mexico, and northern Mexico dating as far back as the 1850s. The work in New Mexico was begun by the Reverend E. G. Nicholson, the Reverend Walter Hansen, and Benigno Cárdenas in the early 1850s. After the departure of these three in the early and mid-1850s, Ambrosio González, a layman in Peralta, directed a Methodist class until the Reverend Thomas Harwood arrived in 1869, from Wisconsin. His arrival ushered in a new era of Methodism. He became superintendent of the New Mexico Mission in 1872.1 Later called the New Mexico Spanish Mission, it reached its apex around the time of Harwood’s retirement as superintendent in 1907. The Spanish-speaking work of the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) in New Mexico was restructured several times between 1907 and 1939, when the Spanish-speaking congregations of the MEC in New Mexico united with the Spanish-speaking Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MECS) congregations in Texas and New Mexico. In the MECS, the first official appointment of a minister to the Spanish-speaking population occurred when the Rio Grande Mission Conference appointed Robert Paine Thompson as missionary to the Mexicans throughout the lower Rio Grande Valley in 1859.2 Work among the Spanishspeaking in Texas expanded gradually until there were enough congregations to establish the Mexican Border Mission District in 1874. In addition to the appointment of the Reverend Alexander H. Sutherland as the superintendent, the new district had six appointments on both sides of the Rio Grande. A few years later, the district split into two Spanish-speaking districts, San Antonio and San Diego. These districts grew to the point where they were able to organize as the Mexican Border Mission Confer-

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ence in 1885. This conference also grew and became so expansive (covering the entire U.S. Southwest and northern Mexico) that it split in 1890 to create two separate conferences: the Mexican Border Mission Conference and the Northwest Mexican Mission Conference. These two conferences continued until 1914, when the MECS divided the work among the Spanish-speaking along national boundaries. Still, the work in Texas, now called the Texas Mexican Mission (1914–1918), remained a mission unit of the Mexican Border Conference. Similarly, the work in New Mexico, Arizona, and California was reorganized as a mission unit, the Pacific Mexican Mission (1914–1918) of the Mexican Border Conference. Most of the clergy in the Spanish-speaking missions in the southwestern U.S., even if they were U.S. citizens, kept their clerical membership in the Mexican Border Conference. Reorganization occurred again in 1918, when the Mexican Border Conference became the Mexican Conference and the Pacific Mexican Mission became the Western Mexican Mission. The Texas Mexican Mission and the Western Mexican Mission continued as branches of the Mexican Conference until 1930, when they became separate conferences (Texas Mexican Conference and Western Mexican Conference). This structure continued until 1939, when the MEC merged with the MECS and the Methodist Protestant Church. The MECS’ Spanish-speaking work in Texas, northern Mexico, and southern New Mexico grew steadily under the leadership of Sutherland. He served as the first presiding elder of the Mexican Border Mission District of the West Texas Conference, beginning in 1874. As other Mexican districts were formed, he served as a presiding elder in the San Antonio District and the El Paso District; Sutherland served as a presiding elder of the Mexican Border Mission Conference from 1885 until 1891. In the same way that the MEC’s Spanish-speaking work in New Mexico prospered under Harwood’s strong leadership, the Spanish-speaking work of the MECS in Texas, New Mexico, and northern Mexico flourished under Sutherland’s guidance. Methodists were proficient institution builders during the period of missionary work (from the mid-1800s to 1939). They established many schools and kindergartens in Texas and New Mexico in the late 1800s and early 1900s. They also founded printing presses and published books, tracts, newsletters, and periodicals throughout northern Mexico and the U.S. Southwest. In addition to establishing schools, Methodists responded to the social, economic, and spiritual needs of the large influx of Mexican immigrants during and after the Mexican Revolution of 1910–1917 by opening several Wesley Homes and Community Centers. Most of these centers were established during the first three decades of the twentieth century. When the Methodist Protestant Church, the MEC, and the MECS merged in 1939, the Spanish-speaking congregations of the MEC in New Mexico merged with the Spanish-speaking congregations of the MECS in

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Texas and southern New Mexico to form the Southwest Mexican Annual Conference. The name of this annual conference was changed to the Rio Grande Annual Conference in 1948. The current Rio Grande Annual Conference has maintained its boundaries since the 1939 merger of the MEC and MECS in Texas and New Mexico. The conference began a new phase in its development in 1939 with the creation of a full-time staff position of Director of Christian Education. The Reverend Alfredo Náñez served as the conference’s first Director of Christian Education (1939–1959). During his tenure, he reported, ‘‘The great part of our efforts have been dedicated to the training of leaders in the local churches.’’ 3 Náñez spent much effort helping local congregations and conference leaders structure their ministries in consonance with Methodist disciplinary requirements. According to Náñez, the conference membership steadily increased from 6,364 in 1939 to 14,447 in 1960.4 The Reverend Náñez, who was a presiding elder at the time of the merger, mentions the three greatest challenges facing the Southwest Mexican Annual Conference when it formed in 1939: ‘‘the geographical extension of the territory it covered [Texas and eastern New Mexico], the diversity and complexity of the constituency, and the development of a real annual conference with all the responsibilities and privileges that such an organization has in Methodism.’’ 5 Other challenges facing the conference included the theological education of pastors and inadequate compensation for pastors. Despite these challenges, conference membership grew steadily from 1939 until 1969. These years marked a period of enthusiasm among the Spanish-speaking congregations. Conference leaders emphasized Christian education, leadership development, and evangelism during these years. To accommodate its expansion, the conference created a fourth district in 1963. Overlapping four other annual conferences, the Central District stretched across the entire northern and northwestern section of Texas. During the period of Náñez’ leadership as Director of Christian Education, the conference reached maturity in many ways. The conference men’s, women’s, youth, and young adult organizations began in those years. The conference reestablished an official organ of the conference—El Heraldo Cristiano—the year Náñez began as Director of Christian Education. This periodical continued until 1953. By 1969, membership growth ceased and a period of gradual decline began. Conference membership hit a peak of 17,555 in 1969. Membership declined to around 15,000 in the mid-1980s. The lengthy period of steady decline in membership points to a shift in the corporate personality of the conference. This shift corresponded with a shift in new leadership, a greater level of assimilation, and higher economic status of many of its members.While evangelism was promoted by some conference leaders, the

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general enthusiasm for evangelistic ministry and congregational development waned. The dilution of the conference’s evangelistic emphasis had several causes. In the late 1960s, denominational and societal challenges diverted the attention of conference leaders away from their more traditional practice of ministry. The Chicano/a Movement challenged conference leaders to respond to physical, social, and economic needs of their Hispanic community. In their efforts to advocate for the needs of Hispanics, conference leaders occasionally conflicted with their Anglo-American Methodist brethren. Similarly, Mexican-American conference leaders fought to gain self-determination in the administration of their finances. Selfdetermination for Chicanos/as became a rallying cry for the leadership in the Rio Grande Annual Conference also. An identity shift occurred for many leaders of the Rio Grande Annual Conference during these years; they identified more with the impoverished members of their Hispanic community and recognized that their Anglo-American Methodist brethren had contributed to the oppression of their ethnic community. The identification of conference leaders with the Chicano/a Movement moved them into the area of advocacy and justice-oriented ministries and away from an emphasis on evangelism. Early on, Methodist leaders gave much attention to the education of members and theological education for pastors, especially as members attempted to meet educational requirements of the denomination. Wesleyan Institute in San Antonio provided theological education for ministerial students when it opened in 1917. After the school closed in 1932, Trinity University provided college scholarships to Mexican-American Methodists as part of an arrangement for leasing the buildings of the Wesleyan Institute. The Lydia Patterson Institute (LPI) in El Paso had also been a center of ministerial education. In addition to training young men for the ordained ministry, it offered an annual course of study for pastors. The theological department of the school closed when the Rio Grande Annual Conference accepted the denomination’s educational standards for pastors—two years of college education. The course of study was moved from LPI to Perkins School of Theology in 1951. The Lydia Patterson Institute continued functioning as a boarding school. Like Hispanic Baptists and Presbyterians, the Rio Grande Annual Conference considered merger with other Anglo-American–dominant conferences in Texas and New Mexico. At the request of Rio Grande and Southwest Texas Annual Conferences, the Texas Methodist Planning Commission authorized in 1954 the Inter-Conference Commission to study the relationship between the Rio Grande Annual Conference and other annual conferences in Texas and New Mexico. The commission offered several options to improve the Spanish-speaking work and develop closer coopera-

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tion between Anglo- and Mexican-American Methodists. One of the options included a merger of the Rio Grande Annual Conference with other conferences. The conference chose not to pursue the option of merger. The conference undertook its own self-study from 1965 to 1967, at the end of which it reaffirmed its status as a separate annual conference. The selfstudy settled any questions among the conference’s members about the possibility of merging with other conferences. From that time onward, the conference has continually asserted its right to exist as a separate, language-based conference. Conference members have decided that the advantage of self-determination and continued fellowship among each other outweighs the disadvantages of extensive territorial boundaries, financial hardship, and scarcity of resources.

Appendix B

Institutional History of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas

Date of First Church Organized The first permanent Baptist work among the Spanish-speaking people in Texas began in 1880 in Laredo, under the leadership of John O. Westrup and his brother, Thomas. Shortly thereafter, W. D. Powell, a missionary working in Saltillo, Mexico, visited San Antonio for a revival campaign. He requested his sponsoring church in Saltillo to receive the new converts in San Antonio as members in the church. The sponsoring church in Saltillo also authorized Powell to establish a new church among the converts in San Antonio—Primera Iglesia Bautista. The following churches were established during the first generation of Mexican Baptist work in Texas: 1. Primera, San Marcos, organized 14 July 1889. 2. Primera, El Paso, organized 10 July 1892. 3. Primera, Austin, organized 24 March 1899. 4. Primera, Beeville, organized 8 February 1900. 5. Primera, Bastrop, organized 1903. 6. Primera, Corpus Christi, organized 28 June 1911. 7. Primera, Dallas, organized 1918.1

The Establishment of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas Until 1910, Anglo-American missionaries supervised the Spanishspeaking Baptist work. The Reverend C. D. Daniel became the superin-

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tendent of Mexican work in Texas in 1899. His tenure lasted only a few months because he was called to assist with the missionary work in Cuba. After five years in Cuba, he returned in 1904 to resume the supervision of Mexican work in Texas.2 Daniel helped develop several Spanish-speaking congregations and became the spiritual father of many Spanish-speaking Baptists. As more Spanish-speaking Baptist churches organized, the members of these churches felt a need to organize themselves into a convention to further Baptist missionary work among the Spanish-speaking in Texas. The Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas (MBCT) was established when 36 messengers from 24 churches met in Brownsville, Texas, on 25 May 1910. They elected the Reverend Daniel as the first president of the new convention. He served two terms as president of the convention before declining a third term. The convention ‘‘elected B. C. Pérez as its new president’’ in 1912.3 The MBCT had many similarities with Hispanic Methodists and Presbyterians. They contended with many of the same challenges as those faced by the Rio Annual Grande Conference of the Methodist Church and the Texas-Mexican Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S. As an autonomous organization, MBCT’s leaders struggled to fund the salaried positions of the organization and to provide funds for church development. Like their Methodist and Presbyterian counterparts, they required financial support for the development of congregations and payment of pastors’ salaries. Additionally, they too relied upon Anglo-American missionaries and ministers to provide theological training and leadership in their organization. The most dramatic difference between the Hispanic Baptists and Hispanic Presbyterians and Methodists was the steady increase in membership and the number of congregations throughout the twentieth century. The membership and number of congregations of the MBCT grew steadily from its inception. The 1920 convention reported 1,714 members among the 25 churches represented at the annual convention. By 1926, the number of Mexican-American Baptists had increased to 4,200 among 60 churches and 66 missions. In 1942, the combined number of churches and missions was 125, with 8,606 members.4 In 1963, Hispanic Baptists numbered 418 churches, 68 missions, and 33,530 members.5 From 1963 onward, Hispanic Baptists grew even more rapidly than in previous decades. A staff researcher for the Baptist General Convention of Texas estimated that there were approximately 134,000 Hispanic Baptists in Texas in 1998.6 One of the reasons for the continuous, and sometimes rapid, growth among Hispanic Baptists is the autonomous nature of Baptist congregations. With decision-making authority resting in local congregations, Southern Baptists did not have to contend with denominational bureaucracies like Methodists and Presbyterians to start new congregations and

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to ordain ministers. Further, Baptists had fewer educational requirements for the ordination of ministers than did Methodists and Presbyterians. The lower educational requirements allowed Spanish-speaking Baptists to enter the ordained ministry more easily. The congregational independence of Baptists thus helped Spanish-speaking Baptists to continue growing throughout the twentieth century even when the other two denominations were experiencing decline. Another reason for progressive growth among Hispanic Baptists is the evangelistic emphasis they maintained throughout their history. Taking their cue from Anglo-American Baptists, Mexican-American Baptists continued the trajectory of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century revivalist ministry. Baptists’ enthusiasm for the salvation of individual souls resulted in regular increases in their membership and the establishment of new congregations.

Trends in Ministry Unlike Presbyterians and Methodists, Spanish-speaking Baptists gave much less importance to institutionalized forms of social ministry. The only form of social service was an orphanage for Mexican and Mexican Americans, along with several kindergartens. Unlike Methodists and Presbyterians, they did not develop community centers and social centers. More than Presbyterians and Methodists, Baptists maintained a thoroughly evangelistic and revivalist form of ministry and worship. The women in the MBCT met during the 1917 convention to establish the Asociación Bautista de Señoras, Auxiliar a la Convención (the Association of Baptist Women, Auxiliar to the Convention).7 In the 1920s, the MBCT established a Sunday School Convention and a Baptist Young People’s Union Convention.8

Merger with the Baptist General Convention of Texas Desiring greater understanding and cooperation between themselves and the Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT), the Convention merged with the Anglo-American–dominant convention in 1960. The merger was a mutual decision in that both conventions were autonomous and agreed on the terms of the merger. The merger was not a joining of equals, however. Very few Hispanics served in leadership positions of the BGCT following the merger. After the merger, the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas continued as a department of the Ethnic and Language Missions division of the Baptist General Convention of Texas. The MBCT

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continued to hold its annual meeting and elect its officers. Since the organization was no longer independent, its mission and programs were integrated with those of its parent organization. Upon the merger, the name of the Mexican Baptist Convention in Texas was also changed to the Hispanic Baptist Convention in Texas. The merger allowed Mexican-American Baptists to take advantage of the financial and administrative resources of the much larger BGCT. A scholarship fund was established to enable Hispanic Baptists to attend college and seminary. The coordinator of Language Missions of the BGCT established a financial campaign to match funds raised by local congregations to improve their church facilities. Also, the MBCT participated in the evangelistic campaigns of its parent organization. The membership and congregations of Hispanic Baptists continued to grow steadily following the merger of the two Baptist conventions. The merger between Mexican- and Anglo-American Baptists provided an impetus for further growth and expansion in Texas.

Educational Institutions Early on, Spanish-speaking Baptists received their theological education through private study and an annual two-week Bible Institute. Some of the Anglo-American missionaries and individuals showed particular concern about the education of Mexican Americans, particularly Mary Gambrell, Charles D. Daniel, Paul C. Bell, and J. L. Moye.9 The first of several annual Mexican Bible Institutes was held at the First Baptist Church of Austin for ten days in July 1908. Dr. F. M. McConnell was the lecturer; Mrs. J. G. Gambrell, the wife of the Secretary of the Baptist State Convention, financed the costs and travel for the institute and attended the sessions.10 A more permanent form of theological education was established when Paul C. Bell founded the Mexican Baptist Bible Institute in Bastrop in 1922.11 Bell closed the school in 1941, shortly after his wife died. After the Bible Institute at Bastrop closed, John L. Moye organized La Escuela de Profetas (The School of Prophets) as a new vehicle for theological education. This annual two-week course of study held classes on several aspects of congregational ministry.12 Desiring a more extensive educational program for ministerial students, Baptists in San Antonio established the Mexican Baptist Bible Institute (MBBI) in their city in 1947. They established a four-year program in theological education at the institute in 1950. The MBBI became the most influential center for theological education for Spanish-speaking Baptists in the Southwest. Remy states that one quarter of the pastors of the

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Mexican-American Baptist churches in 1963 had attended the Mexican Baptist Bible Institute.13 After the merger of the MBCT and the BGCT, the school’s ownership was transferred from the San Antonio Baptist Association to the BGCT in 1962; it continued to provide its four-year theological education curriculum.14 The BGCT made the school a branch of the larger Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth in 1982 and changed the school’s name to the Hispanic Baptist Theological Seminary, San Antonio, in 1982. This decision was rescinded six years later, when the school once again came under the jurisdiction of the Missions Division of the BGCT. The school’s education program was reduced to two years in 1993.15 The school’s name was changed to the Hispanic Baptist Theological School in 1999 to comply with Texas guidelines for higher education. Albert Reyes began his tenure as the school’s president in 1999 and led a campaign to gain accreditation from the state of Texas and other accrediting agencies. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board granted the HBTS the authority to grant BA degrees in 2003. That year, the school changed its name to the Baptist University of the Américas and received accreditation from the Accrediting Association of Biblical Higher Education. The school matriculated 206 students on its campus and 450 students in extension sites in the United States in Mexico in 2003.16 Baptists also provided for the education of young people in three other ways. First, they opened many kindergartens in the Mexican-American congregations. Second, they provided scholarships after World War II for young people to attend college. Third, they established a secondary school, the Valley Baptist Academy, in 1947 in the lower Rio Grande Valley. The academy’s purpose was to provide for the Christian education of Mexican and Mexican-American youth at the high school level. It continues to operate near Harlingen, Texas.

Appendix C

Institutional History of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery

The first Presbyterian missionary to the Spanish-speaking people in the U.S. Southwest was William C. Blair, in 1839, appointed by the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America. For the rest of the nineteenth century, the Presbyterian work among the Spanish-speaking in Texas and northern Mexico was conducted sporadically by interested ministers and laypersons. One of the most effective and enduring missionaries was Melinda Rankin, a Congregationalist who received much support from Presbyterians. She moved to Brownsville, Texas, following the U.S.-Mexican War to start a girls’ school there. She opened the Rio Grande Female Institute in 1854 with the assistance of a Presbyterian minister, the Reverend Hiram Chamberlain. After a period of conflict with Chamberlain, she moved across the border to Matamoros and devoted herself to evangelization and mission work in northern Mexico. She also conducted and supervised colporteur work throughout the lower Rio Grande region and northern Mexico. Presbyterians from Mexico organized the first Spanish-speaking Presbyterian congregation in the United States. Mexican Presbyterian converts from Matamoros, Mexico, crossed the border to start the Spanish-speaking congregation in Brownsville in 1877. This new congregation joined the Presbytery of the State of Tamaulipas, Mexico, in 1884. The Presbytery of Tamaulipas organized other churches throughout the lower Rio Grande Valley, including the towns of Harlingen, San Benito, and Mercedes. The organization of the next Spanish-speaking church in the U.S. Southwest was authorized by the Western Texas Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S. (southern) in San Marcos, Texas, in 1887. This church had been organized by José María Botello, an elder of the Presbyterian congregation in Matamoros, Mexico.

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The Spanish-speaking congregations in Texas received support from the Reverend Walter Scott, who had been present among the congregants in the San Marcos congregation when it was organized in 1887. Scott was ordained in 1892 and charged with working among the Mexicans and Mexican Americans in Texas. Under his leadership, the number of Spanishspeaking congregations grew from one in San Marcos to six in 1897. The six congregations had a total membership of almost 600 in 1897. By 1902, there were ‘‘11 organized churches, 25 elders, 15 deacons, 618 communicants, and 292 baptized non-communicants. In addition there were 11 Sunday schools with 407 students.’’ 1 During this time, Scott organized an association of elders and deacons among these congregations. This organization preceded the formation of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery. The Texas-Mexican Presbytery was formally organized in 1908 with four ordained ministers and 17 churches in San Marcos, Texas. There was conflict between the two most dominant Anglo-American ministers of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery. There was so much tension between Walter Scott and Robert Campbell that Scott left the presbytery to work among the Spanish-speaking people with the support of the Central Texas Presbytery. (Accusations of infidelity and harsh and cruel treatment of Scott’s wife, which weakened his reputation within the TexasMexican Presbytery, also led Scott to work outside the structure of the Spanish-speaking presbytery.) Scott began working in Central Texas and established a Presbyterian congregation in Tyler in 1914. To avoid further conflict between Scott and Campbell, the synod separated the area north of Austin and called it the Advance Field. Scott’s congregations eventually spanned 114 counties and four presbyteries covering central and northern Texas. After years of separate work between Scott and Campbell, the synod merged the congregations under each minister’s authority into the TexasMexican Presbytery, dissolving the Advance Field in 1935. Several studies on the viability of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery were conducted during its existence. Each study had as its aim an analysis of the structure of Spanish-speaking work and a proposal for more effective organization of the church’s resources to minister to this group. The first study, authorized by the Synod of Texas in 1942, commissioned the Ad Interim Committee to study the Mexican-American work. The Ad Interim Committee recommended the appointment of a Secretary for Mexican Work when it reported to the Synod of Texas in 1944. The synod, with the financial support of the General Assembly’s Executive Committee of Home Missions, appointed the Reverend G. Wendell Crofoot as Secretary for Latin-American work in 1946. That year, Beatrice Fernandez was appointed by the General Assembly’s Committee on Religious Education as Director of Religious Education for the Texas-Mexican Presbytery. Crofoot resigned his position one year later.

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The synod continued considering ways to support the work of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery by establishing the second Ad Interim Committee on Latin-American Work in 1947. The committee reported its findings to the synod in 1949. Members in these committees expected the TexasMexican Presbytery to be making greater progress than was occurring. They were disappointed by the lack of self-supporting congregations and the lack of indigenous leadership proceeding from the churches. Frustration over the lack of progress in the Texas-Mexican Presbytery led leaders of the Western Texas Presbytery in 1950 to request that the synod study the process for dissolving the Spanish-speaking presbytery. The Texas-Mexican Presbytery countered this request by asking that a committee be appointed to reexamine the viability of their presbytery. The synod granted the Texas-Mexican Presbytery’s request by establishing the third Ad Interim Committee. After an exhaustive study of the TexasMexican Presbytery, the committee informed the synod in 1952 of the deficiencies of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery and made twelve recommendations, including one that encouraged Mexican-American Presbyterians and congregations to join the Anglo-American presbyteries when they felt ready to take this step. The Texas-Mexican Presbytery reacted strongly to the committee’s report in 1953; its leaders sent a point-by-point communication that countered the report’s negative evaluation of the presbytery. In the end, however, the members of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery acknowledged the inevitability of merger. The synod voted in 1953 to begin the process of dissolving the TexasMexican Presbytery. The presbytery was officially dissolved 1 January 1955. The Spanish Department of Austin Seminary in Austin, Texas, also closed that year. Brackenridge and García-Treto refer to the Texas-Mexican Presbytery as ‘‘not exactly a standard judicatory.’’ 2 Dominated by Anglo-American missionaries and dependent upon financial assistance from denominational agencies, it functioned more as a mission than as an autonomous presbytery. Only a handful of congregations met the denomination’s expectations of becoming self-supporting, and pastors continually lived in poverty. Brackenridge and García-Treto write, ‘‘When the presbytery itself was eliminated in 1955, of the thirty-four churches on its roll only six had achieved self-support despite a vigorous campaign by the Synod of Texas to encourage fiscal responsibility.’’ 3 Unable to meet the Anglo-American Presbyterians’ expectations for membership, financial health, and leadership, the presbytery was finally merged into the other English-speaking presbyteries in Texas. Hispanic Presbyterians in Texas never reached sufficient numbers to create a self-sustaining organization. Because of the high educational standards imposed by the denomination, they struggled to recruit persons into

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the ordained ministry. Many churches struggled to sustain themselves without clerical leadership.When the Texas-Mexican Presbytery was established in 1908, it had 17 churches with ‘‘a total of 387 communicant members, an average of fewer than twenty-three each.’’ 4 A 1952 report of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery records 32 Hispanic churches with a membership of 5,401 and 3,025 communicants.5 The Texas-Mexican Presbytery dissolved in 1955, and there were 38 Hispanic congregations in Texas in 1959. By 1975, the number had declined to 33 congregations, with approximately 2,731 total communicants.6 Anglo-American and Mexican-American Presbyterians established two boarding schools in Texas for the education of Latin-American and Mexican-American young people in the twentieth century. The Synod of Texas opened the Texas-Mexican Industrial Institute for Mexican boys in 1912 in Kingsville, Texas. The Presbyterian School for Mexican Girls opened in Taft, Texas, in the fall of 1924. The girls’ school merged with the boys’ school in 1956. The new co-ed school became known as the Presbyterian Pan-American School that year. Although some Mexican-American students attended the schools, the majority of the student body originated from Mexico and the rest of Latin America. The boarding school in Kingsville is still operating. To prepare students for full-time ministry, the Executive Committee on Home Missions of the U.S. Presbyterian Church worked cooperatively with Austin Seminary and established the Spanish Department at the seminary in 1921. Anglo-American ministers and professors were assigned the responsibility of teaching Spanish-speaking students at the seminary. The program was plagued by a lack of institutional support, inadequate textbooks, low enrollment, and inadequate financial support. Additionally, the seminary program did not help the students contextualize their theological education for their Hispanic community.7 Despite the program’s deficiencies, Brackenridge and García-Treto consider this program ‘‘a definite improvement over the preceding opportunities for theological education.’’ 8 The Spanish Department of Austin Seminary continued until 1954. The Texas-Mexican Presbytery and almost all the work done by Presbyterians in Texas was conducted by southern Presbyterians. However, by 1952, there were four Hispanic Presbyterian churches from the northern Presbyterian branch in Texas existing apart from the Texas-Mexican Presbytery. They operated in San Antonio and Fort Worth, Texas.9

Appendix D

Máximo Villarreal Book Collection

This is a collection of Protestant Spanish-language books published in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Some of the books are tracts that were distributed in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest for evangelistic purposes. Others are hymnals and books that Spanish-speaking Protestant ministers read for their religious and professional development. The collection gives a glimpse of the spiritual and intellectual life of the early Mexican and Mexican-American preachers. Most of these books were owned by the Reverend Máximo Villarreal, a member of the Mexican Border Mission Conference and the Mexican Border Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. Some of the books were owned by later preachers. The collection is located in the personal archives of Paul Barton. It is available on microfilm from the Recovering the U.S. Hispanic Literary Heritage project at the University of Houston. Almeida, P. Teodoro de. Tesoro de Protección en la Santísima Vírgen o Estímulos de Amor y Devoción á la Madre de Dios Señora Nuestra. Escritos en Portugués por el P. Teodoro de Almedia. Con aprobación del Ordinario. Barcelona: Librería Religiosa, Imprenta de Pablo Riera. February, 1850. 376 pp. This is a catechism on the Virgin Mary. Athans, S. D. Una Colección de Cantos Especiales. Nogales, AZ: S. D. Athans, n.d. 24 pp. A Tiempo. A series of compiled and bound evangelistic tracts by different publishers. The first tract has no author, only the title name. Author unknown. La Revolución y Sus Heroes. No title page. Published in 1911 or later. 255 pp.

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An account of the Mexican Revolution. . Tratado de la Verdadera Religión. Paris: Imprenta Schneider, n.d. 451 pp. The title page is missing. Ball, H. C., compiler. Arpa y Voz de Salmodia. San Antonio: Casa Evangélica de Publicaciones, 1939. 229 pp. Bravo y Tudela, A. Tratado de la Predicación Cristiana. 2nd ed. Madrid: ‘‘Los pedidos a nombre del autor,’’ 1871. 567 pp. Binney, Amos, and Daniel Steele. Compendio de Teología. Translated into Spanish from English by Cornelio Miller. Mexico City: Imprenta Metodista Episcopal, 1877. 192 pp. [A book of hymns]. No title page. 240 pp. [A book on Methodist doctrines and beliefs]. No title page. 517 pp. Castro, Julian, and C. C. Cota, eds. Cantos de Victoria. El Paso: Alianza Ministerial Mexicana de El Paso, Texas, 1920. 158 pp. Catecismo de Economía Doméstica para el Uso de las Escuelas de Niñas. Mexico City: Tipografía de Aguilar e Hijos, 1884. 24 pp. A tract in the same book that begins with the first tract: W. C., translator. Roma y la Palabra de Dios. Translated from French by C. W. Madrid: Imprenta de J. M. Perez, 1870. Cien Himnos Escogidos (Español e Ingles). Albuquerque: Imprenta del Abogado Cristiano Neo-Mexicano, 1899. 126 pp. Contains the order of worship and the ritual of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Código Civil del Distrito Federal y Territorio de la Baja California. Mexico City: Imprenta de Aguilar e Hijos, 1885. 357 pp. Confesión de un Pecador. Escrita por el Doctor Constantino Ponce de la Fuente en el Siglo XVI. Reprinted by D. Luis Usoz y Río, 1863. 3rd ed. Nashville: Casa Editorial de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur. Agents Bigham and Smith, 1902. 50 pp. Reprint of a sermon given by Constantino Ponce de la Fuente, a Spanish theologian, preacher, and reformer in the sixteenth century. D’Aubigne, T. H. Merle. Historia de la Reformación del Siglo Decimosecsto [sic]. Translated from the fourth French edition by Ramon Monsalvatge. New York: N.p., 1887. 446 pp. Darby, J. N. Sinopsis de los Libros de la Biblia. Traducción de Los Romanos. Barcelona, Spain, 1880. 119 pp. De Capmany, Antonio. Filosofía de la Eloquencia. Madrid: N.p., 1877. 232 pp. De Curzon, Henri. Mozart. Translated and annotated by Eduardo L. Chavarri. Series: Los Maestros Cantores. Historia de la Música de la Vida de los Grandes Músicos. Buenos Aires: Editorial Tor—S.R.L., n.d. 189 pp. De la Peña, Rafael Angel. Compendio de Gramática Teórica y Práctica de

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la Lengua Castellana. 3rd ed. Mexico City: Herrero Hermanos Sucesores, 1907. 264 pp. De Ripalda, P. M. Gerónimo. Catecismo y Exposición Breve de la Doctrina Cristiana. Paris and Mexico City: Libreria de Ch. Bouret, 1892. 95 pp. De Valdes, Juan. Manera que se Debería Observar para Informar desde la Niñez a los Hijos de los Cristianos en las Cosas de la Religión. 2nd ed. Madrid: Librería Nacional y Extranjera, 1884. 23 pp. Downey, David G., ed. Doctrinas y Disciplina. Translated from English by Albert B. Báez. Methodist Episcopal Church. 662 pp. No title page, but the title is found on p. 3, the name of the translator on p. 6, and the name of the editor on p. 453. El Credo o Exposición Dogmático-Moral del Símbolo de los Apóstoles por un Sacerdote de la Congregación de la Misión de la Casa de México. Mexico City: Imprenta Literaria, 1866. 285 pp. Contains the signature and approval of the archbishop of Mexico. It is a catechism on the Apostles’ Creed. Chapter 8, especially pp. 229–230, articulates a condemnation of Protestantism. Gallois, Leonardo. Historia General de la Inquisición. Translated from French by Francisco Nacente. Barcelona and Madrid: Librería de S. Martin, 1869. 216 pp. Godbey, J. E. The Methodist Church-Member’s Manual. A Hand-book for Every Methodist. 6th ed. Nashville and Dallas: Publishing House, Methodist Episcopal Church, South. Bigham and Smith, Agents, 1903. 224 pp. Grado, Pedro. Pequeña Colección de Himnos: Escogidos y Adaptados con Especialidad a las Reuniones de las Ligas Epworth, Sociedades de Esfuerzo Cristiano, Oración y Avivamiento. 6th ed., revised and enlarged. [El Paso]: El Paso Printing Company, 1908. 92 pp. . Pequeña Colección de Himnos: Escogidos y Adaptados con Especialidad a las Reuniones de las Ligas Epworth, Sociedades de Esfuerzo Cristiano, Oración y Avivamiento. 8th ed., revised and enlarged. Edinburg, TX: Imprenta Revista del Valle, 1914. 94 pp. Harrison, D. Guillermo P. Sermones por el Rev. Juan Wesley, Catedrático Supernumerario Que Fue por Algún Tiempo en el Colegio Lincoln de la Universidad de Oxford. New edition, revised, with introductory notes, analysis, and questions for use by students. Translated by Primitivo A. Rodríguez. Nashville: Casa de Publicaciones de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, 1892. 575 pp. Himnario de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal. Musical edition. Mexico City: Imprenta de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal, 1881. 190 pp. Himnario Evangélico. 4th ed. Buenos Aires: Imprenta Metodista, 1947. 400 pp. Himnario Metodista Episcopal. No title page.

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Himnos de las Iglesias Evangélicas. Mexico City: N.p., n.d. 80 pp. Himnos para el Uso de la Iglesia Metodista, del Sur, en México. Nashville: Imprenta de la Iglesia Metodista del Sur, 1875. Horne, T. H. El Romanismo, Enemigo de la Santa Biblia. Translated from English by Rev. G. H. Rule. ‘‘En la Imprenta de la Biblioteca Militar de Gibraltar, a costa de la Sociedad de los Estados Unidos de América para Tratados Religiosos.’’ 1840. 206 pp. Iglesia Metodista Episcopal. Doctrinas y Disciplina de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur. Matamoros: Imprenta del ‘‘Ramo de Olivo,’’ 1877. 148 pp. Langdale, John W., ed. Suplemento a la Disciplina Española de 1920. ‘‘Contiene Todas Aquellas Alteraciones y Adiciones, que Pueden Ser de Interés para los Pueblos de Habla Española, que se Hicieron a la Disciplina de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal los Años 1924–1928.’’ New York: Methodist Book Concern, 1929. 614 pp. La Primera Oración de Carlota. N.p. 63 pp. No title page. A fictional story for beginning readers. Las Enseñanzas de Roma y la Palabra de Dios. Translated from French. León, Guanajuato, Mexico: Casa Bautista de Publicaciones, 1915. Llorente, Juan Antonio. Historia Crítica de la Inquisición de España. Obra Original Conforme a lo Que Resulta de los Archivos del Consejo de la Suprema, y de los Tribunales de Provincias. Vol. 3. Madrid: En la Imprenta del Censor. 1822. 255 pp. Mantilla, Luis F. Educación Infantil en los Jardines de Niños (Kindergartens) (Para el Uso de las Madres de Familia). 2nd ed. Mexico City: Imprenta del Comercio, de Dublan y Compañia, 1881. 80 pp. McTyeire, H. N. Catecismo sobre el Gobierno de la Iglesia con Referencia Especial al de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur. Nashville: Casa de Publicaciones de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, n.d. 244 pp. Mendoza, Vicente, ed. [Himnos Selectos. 4th ed.] Casa Metodista de Publicaciones. [Approx. 1919.] Title page unavailable. The handwritten note that mentions this book as a gift has a date of 1919. Paley, Guillermo. Evidencias del Cristianismo. Translated from English by José Blanco White. Rev. ed. by Primitivo A. Rodriguez. Nashville: Casa de Publicaciones de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur. Barbee and Smith, Agents, 1893. 447 pp. Patton, Francisco L. La Inspiración de las Escrituras Sagradas. New York: H. E. Simmons, 1869, translated edition 1883. 118 pp. Penn, Guillermo. Una Prevención Oportuna contra el Papismo. Breve Exámen de un Folleto Intitulado ‘‘Una Explicación de la Fe Católica Romana.’’ Translated by Samuel A. Purdié. Matamoros: Imprenta de ‘‘El Ramo de Olivo,’’ n.d. 21 pp.

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This is the first of a series of brief evangelical tracts bound together. Phillips, J. A. Naturaleza y Causas de la Inmoralidad del Catolicismo. El Paso: Casa Bautista de Publicaciones, 1922. Pouget, P. Francisco Amado. Instrucciones Generales en Forma de Catecismo: En las cuales, por la Sagrada Escritura y la Tradición, se Explican en Compendio la Historia y los Dogmas de la Religión, la Moral Cristiana, los Sacramentos, la Oración, las Ceremonias y Usos de la Iglesia. Translated from French by D. Francisco Antonio De Scartin. Vol. 3. 4th printing. Madrid: La Imprenta de Benito Cano, 1793. 435 pages. Quintero, Gregorio Torres. La Patria Mexicana: Elementos de Historia Nacional. 2nd cycle. 4th ed., revised and enlarged. Mexico City: Herrero Hermanos, Sucesores, 1908. 407 pp. . Primer Libro de Recitaciones. Paris and Mexico City: Librería de la Vida de Ch. Bouret, 1907. 142 pp. A reader containing mostly poems. Ritual de la Iglesia Metodista. Buenos Aires: Imprenta Metodista, [1942]. 112 pp. Rowe, Guilberto T., ed. Doctrinas y Disciplina de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, 1922. Nashville: Casa de Publicaciones de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur. Lamar and Barton, Agents, 1923. 386 pp. Salcedo, J. Juan. Improvisación Pronunciada el Día 20 de Abril de 1884 por J. Juan Salcedo en su Acto de Bautismo y Recepción, en la Iglesia M.E. del Sur en el Saltillo. Matamoros: Imprenta de ‘‘El Ramo de Olivo,’’ 1884. 16 pp. This is the first in a bound series of booklets. Salinas, Miguel. Construcción y Escritura de la Lengua Española (Segunda Parte de la Gramática Inductiva). 2nd ed. Mexico City: Impresores, S.R.L., 1939. 433 pp. Schmid, C. Genoveva de Brabante. Mexico City: Tipografía de Aguilar e Hijos, 1885. 135 pp. A series of essays designed to repudiate Roman Catholicism and encourage the reader to convert to Protestantism. No title. Some of the essays are titled ‘‘¿Oráis?’’ ‘‘Estáis Convertido?’’, ‘‘¿Estáis Perdonado?’’ and ‘‘Jesús.’’ Seymour, M. H. Noches con los Romanistas: Con un Capítulo Preliminar sobre los Resultados Morales del Sistema Romano. Translated from English by H. B. Pratt. New York: La Sociedad Americana de Tratados, n.d. 396 pp. Sicilia, Mariano José. Lecciones Elementales de Ortología y Prosodía. Paris: Libreria Americana, 1828. Simpson, Mateo. Conferencias sobre la Predicación. Translated from En-

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glish by C. A. Gamboa. Mexico City: Imprenta Metodista Episcopal, 1889. 276 pp. Sloan, William H., ed. Sermones de C. H. Spurgeon: Discursos Populares y Evangélicos. Book 1, nos. 1–13. Mexico City: Imprenta de ‘‘La Luz,’’ 1897. Spitzi. Leyendas de la Alsacia. Madrid: Librería Nacional y Extranjera, 1877. 37 pp. This booklet is third in a series of bound booklets that begins with Juan de Valdez’ Manera. Teófilo y Sofía o el Pastor de los Pirineos. New York: Sociedad Americana de Tratados [American Tract Society], n.d. 48 pp. This booklet is the second in a series of bound booklets that begins with Juan de Valdez’ Manera. Thomson, H. C., compiler. Segunda Edición de Nuestros Himnos. Matamoros, Mexico: Imprenta de ‘‘El Ramo de Olivo,’’ 1884. Tillett, Wilbur F. La Salvación Personal: Estudios sobre las Doctrinas Cristianas que se Refieren a la Vida Espiritual. Translated into Spanish by Primitivo A. Rodríguez. Nashville: Casa Editorial de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, a Cargo de los Agentes. Smith and Lamar, 1905. 486 pp. Torrecilla, Frey D. Pedro Maria de. Biblioteca Selecta de Predicadores. Colección Escogida. Sermones Morales II. Paris: Librería de Rosa, Bouret, 1854. 544 pp. . Biblioteca Selecta de Predicadores. Colección Escogida. Sermones Morales III. Paris: Librería de Rosa, Bouret, 1855. 542 pp. Uno en Cristo. 3rd ed. Madrid: Librería Nacional y Extranjera, 1891. 16 pp. This booklet is fourth in a series of bound booklets that begins with Juan de Valdez’ Manera. There are several more essays or tracts in this bound booklet. Urcullu, José de. Lecciones de Moral, Virtud y Urbanidad. Nueva edición corregida con arreglo y la última ortografía de la academia. Paris and Mexico City: Librería de la Vida de Ch. Bouret, 1900. 264 pp. . Catecismo de Aritmética Comercial. Paris and Mexico City: Librería de la Vida de Ch. Bouret, 1902. 132 pp. An arithmetic book. Watson, Jorge D. Manual de la Santidad. Translated from English by La Señorita M. Matamoros: El Rev. Elías Robertson, Imprenta de ‘‘El Ramo de Olivo,’’ 1885. 110 pp. Watson, Ricardo. Vida del Rev. Juan Wesley, A.M., Antiguo Socio del Colegio de Lincoln, Oxford. Annotated by Juan Emory. Translated from English. Mexico City: Imprenta Metodista Episcopal, 1878. 364 pp. Westrup, Tomas M., compiler. Himnos Selectos. Philadelphia: La Sociedad Bíblica y de Publicaciones, n.d. 90 pp.

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W.C., translator. Roma y la Palabra de Dios. Translated from French by W.C. Madrid: Imprenta de J. M. Pérez, 1870. 187 pp. In several chapters, the author repudiates several doctrines of the Catholic Church regarding the Eucharist, Purgatory, the Bible, the Church, and the sacraments. It also criticizes Roman Catholic positions on marriage, confession, the Eucharist, and prayer.

Appendix E

Course of Study Readings for Ordination for Spanish-Speaking Methodists

The following books were approved for the course of study for ministers seeking ordination in the Mexican Border Mission Conference, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 1886.

First Year 1. The Bible, with references to history, biography, and chronology 2. The Discipline of the Church, especially chapter I 3. Sermons of John Wesley, 1–9 4. Compendium of Theology, part IV, by Binney 5. Evidencias del Cristianismo, by Alden 6. Noches con los Romanistas, chapters 1–8 7. Catechism concerning the government of the church 8. An original written sermon concerning repentance

Reference Books 9. ¿Qué Es Menester Que Haga para Ser Salvo? by Bishop Peck 10. Moral Legends 11. The Pope and Civil Power 12. Commentaries by Rule, vol. 1

Course of Study Readings for Ordination

Second Year 1. The Bible, with reference to the prophetic parts 2. Discipline, chapters 2–4 3. Sermons of John Wesley, 15–20 4. Compendium of Theology, part 3, by Binney 5. The Life of John Wesley, by Watson 6. The History of the Church, by Hurst 7. Noches con los Romanistas, chapter 9 to the end 8. Retórica by Hermosilla 9. Apelación dirigida a los Inconversos, by Fletcher 10. An original written sermon concerning justification by faith

Reference Books 11. Memoria de Carvosso 12. The Inspiration of Scripture 13. Commentaries by Rule, vol. 2

Third Year 1. The Bible, with reference to the life of Christ 2. Discipline, chapter 5 to the end 3. Compendium of Theology, part 2, by Binney 4. Sermons of John Wesley, 34–39 5. Light for the Way 6. Logic, by Balmes 7. History of the Reformation, by D’Aubigné, vol. 1 8. Lucila o la Lectura de la Biblia 9. An original written sermon about the Testimony of the Spirit

Reference Books 10. The Church in Spain 11. Spiritual Conflicts of a Roman Catholic 12. Commentaries by Rule, vol. 2 13. The Cure for Incredulity, by Nelson

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Fourth Year 1. The Bible, with reference to Acts, the Epistles, their analysis and design 2. Discipline, a review of the whole 3. Sermons of Wesley, 40–67 4. Compendium of Theology, part 1 5. Biblical Baptism 6. History of the Reformation, vol. 2, by D’Aubigné 7. The Divine Authority of the New Testament, by Bogue 8. Elementary Philosophy, by Balmes 9. An original written sermon concerning regeneration

Reference Books 10. Commentaries by Rule 11. The Life of Ester Ana Rogers 12. The Gospels Explained, by Ryle

The following books were approved by Bishop Bowman in 1882 for admission into the Traveling Connection in the New Mexico Spanish Mission of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Books translated into Spanish: Arithmetic, Geography, Spanish Grammar, Bible Doctrine, Methodist Catechism, Book of Discipline.

First Year 1. Doctrina de la Biblia 2. Compendio Tesologia [sic] 3. Historia de la Iglesia, by Bishop Hurst 4. Vida de Wesley and written sermon

Second Year 1. Historia de la Reformación 2. Historia de los Estados Unidos 3. Vida de Carvosso 4. Evidencias del Cristianismo

Course of Study Readings for Ordination

Third Year 1. Teología Natural, by Paley 2. La Vida de Hester Anna Rogers 3. La Salvación, by Bishop Merrill 4. ¿Qué es Menester Hacer para ser Salvo?, by Bishop Peck 5. Sermones de Wesley 6. Catecismo de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal 7. Written sermon

Fourth Year 1. A review of all the books from the first three years 2. Other works appropriate for this final year of study

171

Appendix F

‘‘Hispanic Creed’’

The following creed was written by Dr. Justo L. González for a worship service at the 1987 symposium, ‘‘Redescubrimiento: Five Centuries of Hispanic American Christianity 1492–1992,’’ sponsored by the Mexican American Program at Perkins School of Theology. It was later included in the worship resources section of Mil Voces para Celebrar: Himnario Metodista.

‘‘Hispanic Creed’’ We believe in God, the Father Almighty Creator of the heavens and the earth; Creator of all peoples and all cultures; Creator of all tongues and races. We believe in Jesus Christ, his Son, our Lord, God made flesh in a person for all humanity, God made flesh in an age for all the ages, God made flesh in one culture for all cultures, God made flesh in love and grace for all creation. We believe in the Holy Spirit through whom God incarnate in Jesus Christ makes his presence known in our peoples and our cultures; through whom, God Creator of all that exists, gives us power to become new creatures; whose infinite gifts make us one people: the Body of Christ.

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We believe in the Church universal because it is a sign of God’s Reign, whose faithfulness is shown in its many hues where all the colors paint a single landscape, where all tongues sing the same praise. We believe in the Reign of God—the day of the Great Fiesta when all the colors of creation will form a harmonious rainbow, when all peoples will join in joyful banquet, when all tongues of the universe will sing the same song. And because we believe, we commit ourselves: to believe for those who do not believe to love for those who do not love, to dream for those who do not dream, until the day when hope becomes reality. Amen. From Mil Voces para Celebrar: Himnario Metodista, by Justo González, p. 70. Copyright © 1996 by Abingdon Press. Used by permission.

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Notes

Chapter 1 1. Roberto Gómez, interview with Roberto Gómez, conducted by Paul Barton, Austin, TX, 30 May 2004. 2. The Hispanic/Latino/a academic community uses both terms— Hispanic and Latino/a—interchangeably. Daisy Machado uses both terms throughout her book, Of Borders and Margins: Hispanic Disciples in Texas, 1888–1945, American Academy of Religion Academy Series, edited by Carole Mysofski (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), 114, note 4. The title of ACHTUS’ journal (Journal of Hispanic/Latino Theology) also represents the tendency to use both terms. Fernando Segovia provides a helpful discussion of the use of various terms to designate persons originating from a Spanish-speaking background. He considers the terms ‘‘Hispanic Americans,’’ ‘‘Latinos/as,’’ and ‘‘Hispanics,’’ and finally proposes ‘‘U.S. Hispanic Americans.’’ His argument for this designation is compromised by the title of his own book, however, which resorts to the common usage of both Hispanic and Latino/a terms. Fernando F. Segovia, ‘‘Introduction. Aliens in the Promised Land: The Manifest Destiny of U.S. Hispanic American Theology,’’ in Hispanic/Latino Theology: Challenge and Promise, ed. Ada María Isasi-Díaz and Fernando F. Segovia (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1996), 31–42. Finally, Hispanics in northern New Mexico usually do not refer to themselves as Mexican ‘‘American’’ or ‘‘Hispanic.’’ Because of their strong identification with their Spanish heritage, they prefer the term ‘‘Spanish-speaking’’ or ‘‘Spanish American.’’ Arthur L. Campa, Hispanic Culture in the Southwest (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1979), 4. 3. Clifford Geertz provides useful definitions of ethos and worldview: ‘‘A people’s ethos is the tone, character, and quality of their life, its moral

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Notes to pages 3–6

and aesthetic style and mood; it is the underlying attitude toward themselves and their world that life reflects. Their world view is their picture of the way things in sheer actuality are, their concept of nature, of self, of society. It contains their most comprehensive ideas of order.’’ Clifford Geertz, ‘‘Ethos, World View, and the Analysis of Sacred Symbols,’’ in The Interpretation of Cultures (New York: Basic Books, 1973), 127. 4. Condensed histories of Spanish-speaking Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas and New Mexico are provided in the appendices to orient the reader on the institutional development of these groups. See Appendix A: Institutional History of the Rio Grande Annual Conference; Appendix B: Institutional History of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas; and Appendix C: Institutional History of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery. 5. The following churches and traditions were also present among Mexican Americans in the Southwest: Lutherans, Nazarenes, Episcopalians, Congregationalists, Disciples of Christ (the Christian Church), Mennonites, and Pentecostals. Dissertations and other studies have been written on the history of Hispanic Nazarenes, Disciples, and Mennonites in the United States. For the Nazarenes, see Ronald R. Galloway, ‘‘Biculturalism in the United States of America: A Study of Hispanics in the Church of the Nazarene’’ (PhD diss., United States International University, 1995). For the Christian Church (Disciples), see Daisy L. Machado, Of Borders and Margins: Hispanic Disciples in Texas, 1888–1945, ed. Carole Mysofski, American Academy of Religion Academy Series (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003). For Mennonites, see Rafael Falcón, The Hispanic Mennonite Church in North America, 1932–1982, trans. Ronald Collins (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 1986). For Pentecostals, see Gastón Espinosa, ‘‘Borderland Religion: Los Angeles and the Origins of the Latino Pentecostal Movement in the U.S., Mexico, and Puerto Rico, 1900–1945’’ (PhD diss., University of California, Santa Barbara, 1999). Hispanic Pentecostal churches, emerging at the turn of the twentieth century, have their origins in the Holiness Movement. The distinct nature of their religious and cultural history merits a separate study. 6. Many shifts in the identity of los Protestantes correspond with the shifts of Mexican Americans’ identity throughout their history in the U.S. Southwest. For a review of the changes in Mexican Americans’ selfperception throughout the history of the U.S. Southwest, see John R. Chávez, The Lost Land: The Chicano Image of the Southwest (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1984). 7. The following authors, focusing on the influence of Anglo-American Protestantism upon Mexican Americans, neglect the historical agency of Mexican-American Protestants: James McMillin, ‘‘Anglo Methodist Missionaries and Mexicans in the Southwest and Mexico’’ (MA thesis, South-

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ern Methodist University, 1994); E. C. Orozco, Republican Protestantism in Aztlán: The Encounter between Mexicanism and the Anglo-Saxon Secular Humanism in the United States Southwest (n.p.: Petereins Press, 1980); Donald E. Post and Walter E. Smith, Clergy: Outsiders and Adversaries. The Story of Catholic and Protestant Clergy’s Attempts to Relate the Gospel in Three South Texas Towns Experiencing Changing Mexicano/Anglo Relationships during the Period of 1945–1975 (n.p.: National Endowment for the Humanities Grant No. RS-26255-531, n.d.). 8. Some recent works appreciate Mexican Americans as agents in history. Rather than portraying Mexican Americans as simply objects to be evangelized, they highlight the interactive relationship between Mexican Americans and Anglo-American Protestants: Sarah Deutsch, No Separate Refuge: Culture, Class, and Gender on an Anglo-Hispanic Frontier in the American Southwest, 1880–1940 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1987); Mark T. Banker, Presbyterian Missions and Cultural Interaction in the Far Southwest, 1850–1950 (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1993); Susan M. Yohn, A Contest of Faiths: Missionary Women and Pluralism in the American Southwest (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1995). Focusing on Tejano Catholics in San Antonio, Texas, Timothy Matovina studies the role of religion in maintaining Tejano Catholic identity. Timothy M. Matovina, Tejano Religion and Ethnicity: San Antonio, 1821–1860 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1995). 9. R. Douglas Brackenridge and Francisco García-Treto, Iglesia Presbiteriana: A History of Presbyterians and Mexican Americans in the Southwest, 2nd ed. (San Antonio: Trinity University Press, 1987); Machado, Of Borders and Margins. 10. Clifton L. Holland, ‘‘The Religious Dimension in Hispanic Los Angeles: A Protestant Case Study’’ (South Pasadena, CA: William Carey Library, 1974); Randi Jones Walker, Protestantism in the Sangre de Cristos: 1850–1920 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1991). 11. The words to ‘‘Onward Christian Soldiers’’ were written by Sabine Baring-Gould (1834–1924) in 1865. The music was composed by Arthur S. Sullivan (1842–1900) in 1871. Cyber Hymnal, ‘‘Onward Christian Soldiers,’’ 21 June 2003 (cited 1 July 2003), http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/o/n/ onwardcs.htm. 12. The terminology used to describe these strands of Protestantism is admittedly problematic. By juxtaposing revivalism with rationalism, modernism, and education, I do not mean to imply the irrationality of revivalism. Rather, the point is a matter of emphasis. Revivalist Protestantism placed emphasis on the religion of the heart. Rationalist Protestantism emphasized a faith based upon intellectual reasoning.

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Notes to pages 12–15

Chapter 2 1. See note 3, Chapter 1, above. 2. Robert A. Calvert, Arnoldo De León, and Gregg Cantrell, The History of Texas, 3rd ed. (Wheeling, IL: Harlan Davidson, 2002), 51. 3. Gilberto M. Hinojosa, ‘‘Mexican-American Faith Communities in Texas and the Southwest,’’ in Mexican Americans and the Catholic Church, 1900–1965, ed. Jay P. Dolan and Gilberto M. Hinojosa, Notre Dame History of Hispanic Catholics in the U.S. (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994), 18–19. 4. Timothy M. Matovina, Tejano Religion and Ethnicity: San Antonio, 1821–1860 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1995), 25, 27. 5. Anglo Americans did not establish any presence in Laredo until the U.S. military occupation in Laredo in 1846. See Robert E.Wright, ‘‘Popular and Official Religiosity: A Theoretical Analysis and a Case Study of Laredo-Nuevo Laredo, 1755–1857’’ (PhD diss., Graduate Theological Union, 1992), 559–560. A census was taken in 1846 that showed the entire Laredo population to be Mexican. (See Wilcox, 1938, p. 104, cited in Wright.) 6. David Montejano, Anglos and Mexicans in the Making of Texas, 1836–1986 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1987), 39. 7. Arnoldo De León, The Tejano Community, 1836–1900 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1982), xvi, 28. 8. Montejano, Anglos and Mexicans in the Making of Texas, 26–27. 9. Arnoldo De León, They Called Them Greasers: Anglo Attitudes toward Mexicans in Texas, 1821–1900 (Austin: University of Texas Press, Austin, 1994), 78, quoting Juan N. Seguín in Personal Memoirs of John N. Seguín, 19. His memoirs are reprinted in David J. Weber, ed., Northern Mexico on the Eve of the United States Invasion: Rare Imprints concerning California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas (New York: Arno Press, 1976). See also Frank De la Teja, ed., A Revolution Remembered: The Memoirs and Selected Correspondence of Juan N. Seguín (Austin: Texas State Historical Society, 2002), 90. 10. De la Teja, A Revolution Remembered, 40, 50. 11. Descendants of Mexican War Veterans, ‘‘Introduction,’’ in The U.S.Mexican War, 1846–58: A Concise History, 28 August 2002 (cited 30 August 2003), http://www.dmwv.org/mexwar/intro.htm. 12. Montejano, Anglos and Mexicans in the Making of Texas, 50. Montejano’s Chapter 3 analyzes the ways in which Mexican landowners in South Texas gradually lost possession of their lands to the Anglo Americans. 13. Weinberg notes that Texas established a state school fund for whites only a year after the Civil War. Meyer Weinberg, A Chance to Learn: A History of Race and Education in the United States (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977), 144.

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14. William A. Christian Jr., Local Religion in Sixteenth-Century Spain (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1981), 178. 15. Ibid. 16. Timothy M. Matovina and Gerald E. Poyo, eds., ¡Presente! U.S. Latino Catholics from Colonial Origins to the Present, American Catholic Identities: A Documentary History (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2000), 6. 17. Ibid. 18. Christian, Local Religion in Sixteenth-Century Spain, 147. 19. Gilberto M. Hinojosa, ‘‘Mexican-American Faith Communities in Texas and the Southwest,’’ in Mexican Americans and the Catholic Church, 1900–1965, ed. Jay P. Dolan and Gilberto M. Hinojosa (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994), 20. 20. Ibid. 21. Orlando O. Espín, ‘‘Popular Catholicism among Latinos,’’ in Hispanic Catholic Culture in the U.S.: Issues and Concerns, ed. Jay P. Dolan and Allan Figueroa Deck (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994), 317. 22. Ibid., 336. 23. Virgilio Elizondo explains mestizaje as the mixing of two peoples with different histories into a new people with a new and common history. He notes that mestizaje has occurred twice in the history of Mexican Americans. He cites the apparition of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe (Our Lady of Guadalupe) in Tepeyac, Mexico, in 1531 as the birth of a new mestizo people in Mexico. The second mestizaje has occurred among the Mexican Americans and Anglo Americans of the U.S. Southwest. Virgilio P. Elizondo, ‘‘Mestizaje as a Locus of Theological Reflection,’’ in Beyond Borders: Writings of Virgilio Elizondo and Friends, edited by Timothy M. Matovina (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2000), 162. See also Virgilio P. Elizondo, The Future Is Mestizo: Life Where Cultures Meet (New York: Crossroad, 1992), 64, 74. 24. Espín, ‘‘Popular Catholicism among Latinos,’’ 336–337. 25. Matovina, Tejano Religion and Ethnicity, 44. 26. Ibid., 47. 27. Ibid., 79. 28. Ibid., 6. 29. De León, The Tejano Community, 141–143. 30. Ibid., 146. 31. Ibid., 146–147. 32. For studies on curanderismo, see Eliseo Torres, The Folk Healer: The Mexican-American Tradition of Curanderismo (Albuquerque: Nieves Press, n.d.); Ari Kiev, Curanderismo: Mexican-American Folk Psychiatry (New York: Free Press, 1968); Robert T. Trotter, II, and Juan Antonio Chavira, Curanderismo: Mexican American Folk Healing, 2nd ed. (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1997). For a novel on faith healing in New

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Notes to pages 22–27

Mexico, see Rudolfo Anaya, Bless Me, Ultima (New York: Warner Books, 1994). 33. Luís D. León, ‘‘Metaphor and Place: The U.S.-Mexico Border as Center and Periphery in the Interpretation of Religion,’’ Journal of the American Academy of Religion 67, no. 3 (1999): 560–561. 34. De León, The Tejano Community, 150. 35. León, ‘‘Metaphor and Place,’’ 561. 36. De León, The Tejano Community, 150–151. See also Brooks County Historical Survey Committee, The Faith Healer of Los Olmos: Biography of Don Pedrito Jaramillo, 4th ed. (n.p.: 1990), 2–6. 37. De León, The Tejano Community, 150. 38. Ibid., 153. 39. Ibid., 140–141. 40. Hinojosa, ‘‘Mexican-American Faith Communities in Texas and the Southwest,’’ 24. 41. De León, The Tejano Community, 153. 42. Ibid., 141.

Chapter 3 1. It is helpful to distinguish between evangelicalism and revivalism. Revivalism is a mode of evangelicalism. Revivalist evangelicalism stressed certain aspects of evangelicalism, such as the ability of the preacher to lead others to a dramatic religious conversion, in which one understands oneself to be born again in Jesus Christ. Evangelicalism features ‘‘biblicism (a reliance on the Bible as ultimate religious authority), conversion (a stress on the New Birth), activism (an energetic, individualist approach to religious duties and social involvement), and crucicentrism (a focus on Christ’s redeeming work as the heart of essential Christianity).’’ Mark Noll, ‘‘Introduction,’’ in Evangelicalism: Comparative Studies of Popular Protestantism in North America, the British Isles, and Beyond, 1700–1990, ed. Mark A. Noll, David W. Bebbington, and George A. Rawlyk (New York: Oxford University Press, 1994). Noll bases this definition of evangelicalism on David W. Bebbington’s Evangelicalism in Modern Britain: A History from the 1730s to the 1980s (London: Unwin Hyman, 1989), 2–17. AntiCatholicism marks a fifth defining characteristic of nineteenth-century evangelicalism. This characteristic predominated among evangelicals in the U.S. Southwest. See John Wollfe, ‘‘Anti-Catholicism and Evangelical Identity in Britain and the United States, 1830–1860,’’ in Noll et al., 184. 2. The form of Protestantism that was brought to the U.S. Southwest was an amalgam of these two strands, with varying degrees of influence across the region. The differences between the northern and southern ex-

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pressions of Protestantism clearly have implications for how ministry was conducted among the Spanish-speaking. 3. For a detailed history and analysis of Protestant mission work and religiosity in northern Mexico and South Texas, see Chapters 6 and 7 in Robert E. Wright, ‘‘Popular and Official Religiosity: A Theoretical Analysis and a Case Study of Laredo-Nuevo Laredo, 1755–1857’’ (PhD diss., Graduate Theological Union, 1992). 4. Ibid., 277. 5. Walter N.Vernon, ‘‘Some Thoughts on the Historic Methodist Mission to Mexican Americans,’’ Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX, February, 1975, 3, quoting from Alexander Sutherland’s missionary report in Annual Report, Board of Missions, Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 1883, 70. 6. Juan Francisco Martínez, ‘‘Origins and Development of Protestantism among Latinos in the Southwestern United States 1836–1900’’ (PhD diss., Fuller Theological Seminary, 1996), 42. 7. Missionary Nannie Holding’s comment about Rev. José Policarpo Rodríguez illustrates the Anglo-Protestant view: ‘‘I never saw anyone with a more lovely, simple, childlike faith than this Mexican friend; he came as we expressed it; ‘from the very depths of the vilest into the glorious light of the liberty of a child of God.’ ’’ Nannie Emory Holding, A Decade of Mission Life in Mexican Mission Homes (Nashville: Methodist Episcopal Church, South Publishing House. Barbee and Smith, Agents, 1895), 71. 8. Sidney E. Mead, ‘‘The Rise of the Evangelical Conception of the Ministry in America: 1670–1850,’’ in The Ministry in Historical Perspective, ed. H. R. Niebuhr and D. D. Williams (New York: Harper, 1956), 207–249. See also Sydney E. Mead, ‘‘Denominationalism: The Shape of Protestantism in America,’’ in The Lively Experiment: The Shaping of Christianity in America (New York: Harper and Row, 1976), 103–133. 9. Mead, ‘‘Denominationalism,’’ 133. 10. Mead lists six characteristics of denominationalism: (1) historylessness, (2) the voluntary principle, (3) the mission enterprise, (4) revivalism, (5) anti-intellectualism and pietism, and (6) competition among denominations. Ibid. 11. I have not included the mission enterprise in this discussion of the character of Anglo-American Protestantism because it inheres in all the Protestant mission activity in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest. For example, education, social reform, and morality were manifestations of the missionary enterprise, as was anti-Catholicism. It is important to recognize that the missionary enterprise was a pervasive impulse in North American Protestantism and its importation to Mexico and the U.S. Southwest. 12. William McLoughlin defines the North American revival as ‘‘the

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Notes to pages 30–31

Protestant ritual in which charismatic evangelists convey ‘the Word’ of God to large masses of people who, under this influence, experience what Protestants call conversion, salvation, regeneration, or spiritual rebirth.’’ William McLoughlin, Revivals, Awakenings, and Reform: An Essay on Religion and Social Change in America, 1607–1977, ed. Martin E. Marty, Chicago History of American Religion (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1978), xiii. McLoughlin’s definition of the American revivals requires modification for the Mexican-American context; a nineteenth-century ‘‘revival’’ in the Southwest could occur within a family or a small group of converts. Protestant preachers rarely had the opportunity to preach to ‘‘large masses of people.’’ Until after the Civil War, the frontier audience, especially in New Mexico, often consisted of individuals and families in sparsely populated areas or in villages. 13. Mead, ‘‘Denominationalism,’’ 122, citing Winfred Garrison, ‘‘Characteristics of American Organized Religion,’’ Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 256 (March 1948), 20. 14. Ibid., 229. 15. Ibid., 244. 16. Paul Barton, ‘‘A Biography of Rev. Abel Gómez,’’ Manuscript, Dallas, TX, 1988, 5–6. 17. Volume 1 of Sermones de Wesley was printed in 1891. ‘‘Minutas de la Séptima Sesión Anual de la Conferencia Fronteriza Mexicana de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur,’’ held in Laredo, TX, 5–9 November 1891 (Austin: Imprenta de Julius Schutze, Jr., 1892). Volume 2 was printed in 1892. ‘‘Minutas del Octavo Período Anual de Sesiones de la Conferencia Fronteriza Mexicana de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur,’’ held in San Marcos, TX, 19–21 October 1892 (Nashville: Casa de Publicaciones de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, 1893). 18. John Wesley’s Sermons was required reading for Anglo-American and Nuevomexicano pastors in the New Mexico Spanish and English Missions, Methodist Episcopal Church, in 1892. See Randi Jones Walker, Protestantism in the Sangre de Cristos: 1850–1920 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1991), 121–122. 19. Martha Caroline Mitchell Remy, ‘‘Protestant Churches and Mexican-Americans in South Texas’’ (PhD diss., University of Texas at Austin, 1971), 102–103, quoting from Gustav Dresel, Houston Journal: Adventures in North America and Texas, 1837–1847, translated and edited by Max Freund (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1954), 68–69. 20. The Reverend Alexander Sutherland was first appointed the presiding elder of the Mexican Border Missionary District of the West Texas Conference, Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in 1874. He worked among the Spanish-speaking people in Texas and northern Mexico until his death in 1917. Roger Loyd, ‘‘Alexander H. Sutherland: Prophet of the Lord,’’ Photo-

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copy, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX, 22 April 1971, appendix: ‘‘Alexander H. Sutherland—A Chronology.’’ The Reverend Frank Onderdonk served among Spanish-speaking Mexicans as a missionary in Mexico in 1907. He continued working among the Spanish-speaking in Mexico, and then Texas, until his death in 1936. Actas del Séptimo Período de Sesiones de la Conferencia Mexicana de Texas de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, held in San Antonio, TX, 15–18 October 1936, 17. 21. Alfredo Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church (Dallas: Bridwell Library, Southern Methodist University, 1980), 66. 22. Ibid., 72, quoting Frank S. Onderdonk, ‘‘Just Ramblin’ ‘Round,’’ The Southwestern Advocate, 12 July 1934, 2. Náñez incorrectly uses the newspaper title Texas Christian Advocate. 23. Actas del Séptimo Período, 19. (Translation mine.) 24. Anita González, interview with Anita González, conducted by Paul Barton, Edinburg, TX, 29 August 1996, 1. 25. Alfredo Náñez, ‘‘Summary of Náñez’ Ministerial Career, Including His Conversion,’’ Alfredo Náñez Archives, Bridwell Library, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX. Box 2, Drawer 1. File: ‘‘Ideas.’’ 26. Nathan O. Hatch, The Democratization of American Christianity (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1989), 98, quoting from John Leland, The Rights of Conscience Inalienable . . . or, The High-flying Churchman, Stript of his Legal Robe, Appears a Yaho (New-London: Printed by T. Green and Son, 1791), 8. 27. Colin Brummitt Goodykoontz, Home Missions on the American Frontier. With Particular Reference to the American Home Missionary Society (Caldwell, ID: Caxton Printers, 1939), 425. 28. Wollfe, ‘‘Anti-Catholicism and Evangelical Identity in Britain and the United States,’’ 183, quoting from L. Bacon, Addresses at the Annual Meeting of the Christian Alliance, held in New York, 6 May 1845, with the Address of the Society and the Bull of the Pope against It (New York, 1846), 13. 29. Ibid., 184. 30. Josiah Strong dedicates a whole chapter to the possibility of Catholicism gaining control of the United States’ democratic institutions and subjecting the nation to the authority of the Catholic Church in Josiah Strong, Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis (New York: Doubleday, Page, 1912), 46–59. See also James McMillin, ‘‘Anglo Methodist Missionaries and Mexicans in the Southwest and Mexico’’ (MA thesis, Southern Methodist University, 1994), 44–45. 31. Sydney E. Ahlstrom, A Religious History of the American People (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1972), 565. 32. Wright, ‘‘Popular and Official Religiosity,’’ 257, 88.

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Notes to pages 35–39

33. Timothy M. Matovina, Tejano Religion and Ethnicity: San Antonio, 1821–1860 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1995), 56, 70, 73. 34. Mead, ‘‘Denominationalism,’’ 131, quoting from Robert Baird, Religion in America, or an Account of the Origin, Relation to the State, and Present Condition of the Evangelical Churches in the United States with Notices of Unevangelical Denominations (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1845), 220. 35. Ahlstrom, A Religious History of the American People, 832. 36. Strong, Our Country, 55–56. 37. Justo L. González, The Story of Christianity. Volume 2: From the Reformation to the Present Day (New York: Harper and Row, 1985), 297. 38. John P. Dolan, Catholicism: An Historical Survey (Woodbury, NY: Barron’s, 1968), 178. 39. González, The Story of Christianity, 298. 40. Strong, Our Country, 58. 41. Walker, Protestantism in the Sangre de Cristos, 30–31. 42. Vernon, ‘‘Some Thoughts on the Historic Methodist Mission to Mexican Americans,’’ 3, quoting from Annual Report, Board of Missions, Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 1883, 70. 43. Frank S. Onderdonk, A Glimpse at Mexico (Nashville: Methodist Episcopal Church, South, Publishing House, 1930), 28. 44. Ibid., 32–33. 45. Alexander Sutherland, ‘‘From the Border,’’ The Texas Christian Advocate, 17 May 1879, 1. (Italics are Sutherland’s.) 46. Thomas Harwood, History of New Mexico Spanish and English Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church from 1850 to 1910, vol. 1 (Albuquerque: El Abogado Press, 1908), 180. 47. New Mexico Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Minutes of the New Mexico Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, held in Las Vegas, NM, 27–30 September 1917 (Las Vegas: Optic Publishing, [1918?], 46. (Translation mine.) 48. Hatch, The Democratization of American Christianity, 141. 49. Ibid., 142. 50. Ibid., 141–143, 45–46. 51. See Appendix D: ‘‘Máximo Villarreal Book Collection,’’ for a list of tracts distributed in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest in the latter part of the nineteenth century. 52. Martínez, ‘‘Origins and Development of Protestantism among Latinos in the Southwestern United States 1836–1900,’’ 35, 38. 53. Melinda Rankin, Twenty Years among the Mexicans, a Narrative of Missionary Labor (Cincinnati: Chase and Hall, 1875), 67–68. 54. Onderdonk, A Glimpse at Mexico, 38.

Notes to pages 39–41

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55. Rankin, Twenty Years among the Mexicans, 41–42. 56. David Ayers, ‘‘Reminiscences of David Ayers,’’ The Texas Methodist Historical Quarterly 1, no. 1 (1909): 39–41. 57. Sterling Fisher, ‘‘The Rio Grande Conference,’’ The Texas Methodist Historical Quarterly 1, no. 4 (1910): 349. 58. Loyd, ‘‘Alexander H. Sutherland.’’ 59. Actas de la Misión Mexicana de Texas, held in San Antonio, TX, 21–23 October 1924 (Chihuahua, Mexico: Imprenta Palmore, 1924), 28. 60. Joshua Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 1881– 1981 (Dallas: Office of Language Missions, Baptist General Convention of Texas, in cooperation with the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, 1982), 11–12. 61. William Bricen Miller, ‘‘Texas Mexican Baptist History; or a History of Baptist Work among Mexicans in Texas’’ (ThD diss., Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1931), 11, citing Minutes of the Blanco Association, 1895. 62. Victor P. Furnish, ‘‘The Curious Case of the Bible in America from the Colonists to Clinton,’’ presentation to the Town and Gown Club of Dallas, Southern Methodist University, 15 April 1996, 9. 63. Ibid. 64. West Texas Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, Minutes of the West Texas Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, held in San Antonio, TX, 20–25 October 1875 (Nashville: Southern Methodist Publishing House, 1876), 266–267. 65. Harwood, History of New Mexico Spanish and English Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church from 1850 to 1910, 292–293. See also Robert M. Craig, Our Mexicans (New York: Board of Home Missions of the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., 1904), 45. Although González states that he converted after E. G. Nicholson gave him a Bible in 1853, Harwood concludes that González actually converted in 1852, during Nicholson’s first tour in New Mexico. 66. The following titles illustrate the juxtaposition of the Bible with the Catholic Church: T. H. Horne, El Romanismo, Enemigo de la Santa Biblia, trans. G. H. Rule ([New York]: American Tract Society, 1840); Las Enseñanzas de Roma y la Palabra de Dios, trans. from French (León, Guanajuato, Mexico: Casa Bautista de Publicaciones, 1915); M. H. Seymour, Noches con los Romanistas: Con un Capítulo Preliminar sobre los Resultados Morales del Sistema Romano, trans. H. B. Pratt (New York: American Tract Society, n.d.); Roma y la Palabra de Dios, trans. W. C. (Madrid: Imprenta de J. M. Perez, 1870). (In several chapters of the latter text, the author repudiates several doctrines of the Catholic Church regarding purgatory, the Bible, the church, and the sacraments, including marriage, confession, and

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Notes to pages 42–44

Eucharist. He places Catholic doctrine at the beginning of each section and then cites several biblical passages that seem to contradict that particular Catholic teaching.) 67. Anglo Americans felt compelled to continue their cultural practices even though they were in a Mexican environment. A representative from the Women’s Board visited Laredo Seminary one Christmas during the tenure of Miss Holding’s directorship. Holding states, ‘‘On that first Christmas, she discovered . . . that there was no Christmas turkey on hand. This was not in accordance with her idea of Christmas, so she determined that she would find a large turkey for her missionaries and their little flock.’’ The visitor went into town to find a turkey and bring it for all to eat. Holding, A Decade of Mission Life in Mexican Mission Homes, 17–16. 68. Harwood, History of New Mexico Spanish and English Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church from 1850 to 1910, 292. 69. Robert S. Michaelsen asserts, ‘‘The battle against ‘demon rum’ became increasingly intense as the [nineteenth] century progressed and many a Protestant minister came to believe that the chief test of a man’s character was to be found in whether or not he drank spirituous liquors and that the cause of Christianity rose or fell with the fortunes of the temperance movement.’’ Robert S. Michaelsen, ‘‘The Protestant Ministry in America: 1850 to the Present,’’ in Niebuhr and Williams, 254–255. 70. Actas de la Décima Sexta Sesión de la Misión Mexicana de Texas de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, held in San Antonio, TX, 3– 6 October 1929 (Chihuahua, Mexico: Imprenta Palmore, n.d.), 8. 71. Actas del Segundo Período de Sesiones de la Conferencia Mexicana de Texas de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, held in San Antonio, TX, 8–11 October 1931, 28. 72. Onderdonk, A Glimpse at Mexico, 51. Among Methodists in New Mexico, Mrs. Emily Harwood, a teacher by profession, served as the corresponding secretary of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union in Socorro among the Spanish-speaking. Harriet Kellogg, Life of Mrs. Emily J. Harwood (Albuquerque: El Abogado Press, 1903), 90. 73. Timothy Smith, Revivalism and Social Reform in Mid-NineteenthCentury America (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1957), 7. (Translation mine.) Located in the Máximo Villarreal Book Collection (see Appendix D of this volume). 74. Keith Harper, The Quality of Mercy: Southern Baptists and Social Christianity, 1890–1920 (Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 1996), 12. 75. David Maldonado, Jr., ‘‘Hispanic Protestants: Reflections on History,’’ Apuntes: Reflexiones Teológicas desde el Margen Hispano 11, no. 1 (1991): 12. 76. Donald E. Post and Walter E. Smith, Clergy: Outsiders and Ad-

Notes to pages 45–47

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versaries. The Story of Catholic and Protestant Clergy’s Attempts to Relate the Gospel in Three South Texas Towns Experiencing Changing Mexicano/Anglo Relationships during the Period of 1945–1975 (N.p.: National Endowment for the Humanities Grant No. RS-26255-531, n.d.), 207.

Chapter 4 1. The words and music to ‘‘Jesus Is All the World to Me’’ were composed by Will L. Thompson, published in New Century Hymnal (East Liverpool, OH: Will L. Thompson Co., 1904). Cyber Hymnal, ‘‘Jesus Is All the World to Me,’’ 7 June 2003 (cited 1 July 2003), http://www.cyberhymnal .org/htm/j/a/jallworl.htm. 2. The term ‘‘ideology’’ refers to a collective understanding of reality shaped in response to uncertain situations and perceived threats to a group’s well-being. Ideology also proposes a program of belief and action, as in the case of Manifest Destiny. See Clifford Geertz, ‘‘Ideology as a Cultural System,’’ in The Interpretation of Cultures (New York: Basic Books, 1973), 220, 231. 3. Oscar Garza, interview with Oscar Garza, conducted by Paul Barton in San Antonio, TX, 26 May 1996. 4. José Antonio Navarro signed Texas’ Declaration of Independence from Mexico in 1836 and represented Tejanos’ interests in politics during the period of the Republic of Texas. He also pressed for Tejanos’ constitutional and civil rights at the state’s constitutional convention in 1845. His son attended Harvard University. Arnoldo De León, The Tejano Community, 1836–1900 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1982), xvi, 28. 5. Joshua Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 1881– 1981 (Dallas: Office of Language Missions, Baptist General Convention of Texas, in cooperation with the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, 1982), 12. 6. H. G. Horton, ‘‘Beginnings of the Mexican Work,’’ The Texas Methodist Historical Quarterly 1, no. 3 (1910): 289–290. Timothy Matovina disputes the accuracy of Horton’s claim about the Navarro family’s affiliation with the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. See Timothy M. Matovina, Tejano Religion and Ethnicity: San Antonio, 1821–1860 (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1995), 62. 7. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 31–32. 8. Ibid., 39. 9. R. Douglas Brackenridge and Francisco García-Treto, Iglesia Presbiteriana: A History of Presbyterians and Mexican Americans in the Southwest, 2nd ed. (San Antonio: Trinity University Press, 1987), 8.

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Notes to pages 48–56

10. Mary Watson, ‘‘Early History of Lydia Patterson Institute,’’ Nueva Senda 39, no. 3 (1964): 14. 11. Katherine Travis Ashburn, ‘‘History of the Methodist Educational Work among the Mexicans in Texas’’ (MA thesis, Texas Christian University, 1934), 33. 12. Ibid., 57. 13. Nannie Emory Holding, A Decade of Mission Life in Mexican Mission Homes (Nashville: Methodist Episcopal Church, South Publishing House. Barbee and Smith, Agents, 1895), 236–239. 14. José Policarpo Rodríguez, ‘‘The Old Guide’’: Surveyor, Scout, Hunter, Indian Fighter, Ranchman, Preacher, His Life in His Own Words (Nashville; Dallas: Publishing House of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, Smith and Lamar, Agents, [1898?]), 89. 15. Ibid., 90. 16. Ibid., 91–92. 17. Ibid. 18. Ibid., 93–94. 19. Ibid., 97. 20. Ibid. 21. Ibid., 93, 96. 22. Ibid., 94. 23. Peter L. Berger, The Sacred Canopy: Elements of a Sociological Theory of Religion (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1974), 39. 24. Alfredo Náñez, interview with Alfredo Náñez, conducted by Roy Barton, n.d. See also Minerva Garza, ‘‘The Influence of Methodism on Hispanic Women through Women’s Societies,’’ Methodist History 34, no. 2 (1996): 79. 25. Interview with Alfredo Náñez. 26. Roy Barton, interview with Roy Barton, conducted by Paul Barton in Dallas, TX, 15 March 1997. 27. María Rodríguez, interview with María Rodríguez, conducted by Paul Barton in San Antonio, TX, 28 May 1996. 28. Among Methodists, these include Benigno Cárdenas, and in part, Alejo Hernández; among Baptists, Felix Buldain (Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 30) and Alexander Marshand (Ibid., 18); among Presbyterians, Ramón Monsalvage, a Spanish ex-monk, assisted Rev. John McCullough briefly in his ministry to Tejanos in San Antonio in 1847 (Matovina, Tejano Religion and Ethnicity, 61). 29. Berger, The Sacred Canopy, 15. 30. Ibid., 21. 31. G.W. Crofoot, ‘‘We Report, Part 1,’’ in Flying Chips: Latin-American Presbyterianism in Texas (n.p.: Executive Committee of Home Missions, Synod of Texas, Presbyterian Church, U.S., [1947]), 23, 25, 27–28, 31–32.

Notes to pages 56–58

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32. Ibid., 25–26. 33. Rodolfo L. Guerrero, ‘‘The House of Neighborly Service,’’ in Proceedings of the Nineteenth Annual Meeting of the Society (n.p.: Presbyterian Historical Society of the Southwest, 1996), 23–25. This settlement house and church were not a part of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery, however. They were the only Mexican-American Presbyterian church in San Antonio affiliated with the northern Presbyterian denomination, the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A. 34. Luis F. Gómez, Historia de la Obra Bautista Hispana en Nuevo México (El Paso: Casa Bautista de Publicaciones, 1981), 21. 35. Spanish-speaking Methodists in Texas and New Mexico held their first annual youth assembly at Holding Institute in Laredo in 1933. See also Actas del Cuarto Período de Sesiones de la Conferencia Mexicana de Texas de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, held in San Antonio, TX, 2– 5 November 1933, 21. Presbyterians opened a boys’ camp on Catalina Island in California in the 1920s. Brackenridge and García-Treto state, ‘‘Through recreation, study, and fellowship, campers were instilled with love and respect for ‘the American way of life,’ one of the primary goals of the camp directors.’’ The camp, which Brackenridge and García-Treto characterize as ‘‘a reliable evangelistic arm of the church,’’ continued operating segregated camping programs until 1955. Brackenridge and García-Treto, Iglesia Presbiteriana, 146–147. Grijalva states that the ‘‘camp became a popular means of Christian growth’’ in the 1940s. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 150–151. 36. Felicidad Méndez, ‘‘La Caravana de Jóvenes,’’ El Heraldo Cristiano, September 1941, 8. See also El Heraldo Cristiano, July 1942, 5; July 1944, 5; September 1945, 5; September 1946, 11; July 1947, 1; September 1948, 12. Located in the personal collection of Paul Barton and in the Bridwell Library, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX. 37. Actas del Primer Período de Sesiones de la Conferencia Mexicana de Texas, held in Brownsville, TX, 16–19 October 1930 (San Antonio: Imprenta de Lara, n.d.), 33; Actas del Segundo Período de Sesiones de la Conferencia Mexicana de Texas de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, held in San Antonio, TX, 8–11 October 1931, 29; Actas del Tercer Período de Sesiones de la Misión Mexicana de Texas de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur, held in Laredo, TX, 10–13 November 1932, 25–26. 38. Alfredo Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church (Dallas: Bridwell Library, Southern Methodist University, 1980), 99. 39. Ibid. 40. Letter from Anita González to Paul Barton, 2 August 2004. 41. The 1971 conference journal lists Narciso Sáenz as having received a special appointment, although the journal for this year does not list

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Notes to pages 58–60

the nature of the special appointments for anyone receiving one. It is assumed that he continued his work as the conference evangelist that year. Actas Oficiales de la Conferencia Anual Río Grande de la Iglesia Metodista Unida, held in Kerrville, TX, 5–9 June 1970; Actas Oficiales de la Conferencia Anual Río Grande de la Iglesia Metodista Unida, held in Corpus Christi, TX, 5–8 June 1971, 40. 42. González completes a ‘‘religious genealogy’’ that traces the revivalist form of ministry through an entire century. Sutherland, who began working among the Spanish-speaking in Texas in the 1870s, preached when Onderdonk was converted in 1888; Onderdonk preached when González responded to the call to ministry at the first Methodist Spanish-speaking youth assembly in 1933; González served as a mentor for this author during adolescence and young adulthood. 43. ‘‘Invitations to Worship Services,’’ n.p., 1904, Texas-Mexican Presbytery Collection, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Archives, Austin, TX, Accession Number: 94–190. 44. [Beatrice Fernández], ‘‘Report on Religious Education in the TexasMexican Presbytery,’’ n.p., n.d., Texas-Mexican Presbytery Collection, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Archives, Austin, TX, Accession Number: 94–104. 45. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 50. 46. Ibid., 125. 47. Rudy A. Hernández, ‘‘Cruzada Bautista Nueva Vida’’ (Latin-American Baptist New Life Movement), Baptist Standard, n.d., 17. 48. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 125. See also Oscar Romo, ‘‘Ecos de la Cruzada Bautista Nueva Vida,’’ El Bautista Mexicano, 1964, 5. 49. Carlos Paredes, ‘‘Report of the Division of Evangelism of the Baptist General Convention of Texas,’’ Manuscript, Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas Archives, Texas Baptist History Collection. Box 24, Folder 1.9.7—Evangelism, Dallas, TX, 23 June 1975. 50. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 138. 51. Ibid., 98. 52. Ibid., 154. 53. Ibid. 54. For a study on the connection between the nineteenth-century Sunday School and its relationship to North American society and evangelical Protestantism, see Anne M. Boylan, Sunday School: The Formation of an American Institution, 1790–1880 (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1988). She observes that the North American Sunday School evolved from a school aimed at helping the poor to a vehicle for ‘‘self-help and collective social advancement’’ for the working-class (166).

Notes to pages 60–63

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55. Ben Costales, interview with Ben Costales, conducted by Paul Barton in Albuquerque, NM, 16 June 1997. 56. Ernest E. Atkinson, ‘‘Hispanic Baptists in Texas: A Glorious and Threatened History,’’ Apuntes: Reflexiones Teológicas desde el Margen Hispano 17, no. 2 (1997): 41. 57. ‘‘Mexican Border Mission Conference, 1885,’’ in Minutes of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, for the Year 1885 (Nashville: Southern Methodist Publishing House, 1886), 57; ‘‘Mexican Border Mission Conference, 1890,’’ in Minutes of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, for the Year 1890 (Nashville: Publishing House of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 1891), 51; ‘‘Mexican Border Mission Conference, 1901,’’ in Minutes of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, for the Year 1900 (Nashville: Publishing House of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, [1901]), 225; ‘‘Mexican Border Mission Conference, 1910,’’ in Minutes of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, for the Year 1910 (Nashville: Publishing House of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, [1911]), 6; ‘‘Texas Mexican Mission, 1920,’’ in Minutes of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, for the Year 1920 (Nashville: Publishing House of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, [1921]), 283; ‘‘Texas Mexican Conference, 1930,’’ in General Minutes and Yearbook for 1930–31, Being the Minutes of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, for the Year 1930, and the Southern Methodist Yearbook for 1931, ed. Curtis B. Haley (Nashville: Publishing House, Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 1931), 255; ‘‘Southwest Mexican Conference, 1940,’’ in General Minutes and Yearbook for 1940–41, Being the Condensed Minutes of the Annual Conferences in the Southeastern and South Central Jurisdictions of the Methodist Church for the Year 1940, and the Methodist Yearbook for 1941, edited by Nolan B. Harmon, Jr. (New York: Methodist Publishing House, [1941]), 223; ‘‘Rio Grande Conference,’’ in General Minutes of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Church in the United States, Territories, and Cuba, 1950 (Nashville: Methodist Publishing House, [1950]), 421. 58. Crofoot, ‘‘We Report,’’ 27. 59. Brackenridge and García-Treto state, ‘‘As a woman and as a university and Assembly’s Training School graduate, [Beatrice Fernández] represented a new direction in presbytery leadership.’’ Brackenridge and GarcíaTreto, Iglesia Presbiteriana, 111. 60. Crofoot, ‘‘We Report,’’ 31–32. 61. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 41. 62. Raúl Solís, ‘‘Letter from Raúl Solís to the Sunday Schools of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas,’’ O’Brien, TX, 6 August 1953, Letter,

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Notes to pages 63–67

Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas Archives, Texas Baptist Historical Collection, Dallas, TX. Record Group 1, Box 1, Folders 1–40; Folder 1.9.5— Sunday School. 63. Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church, 72. See also Crofoot, ‘‘We Report,’’ 32. 64. Roy Barton, interview with Roy Barton, conducted by Paul Barton in Dallas, TX, 15 March 1997. 65. Minerva Garza, interview with Minerva Garza, conducted by Paul Barton in San Antonio, TX, May 1996. (Translation mine.) 66. Ibid. 67. Interview with Ben Costales. 68. Josué González, conversation with Paul Barton, Georgetown, TX, 1983. 69. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 38. 70. Interview with Ben Costales. 71. Interview with the Reverend Francisco Gaytán, 27 August 1996. 72. Interview with Ben Costales. 73. Nathan O. Hatch, The Democratization of American Christianity (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1989), 146, citing George Pullen Jackson, White and Negro Spirituals: Their Life Span and Kinship (New York: n.p., 1943), 62. 74. Himnos Evangélicos (New York: American Tract Society, 1893). Náñez notes that the Methodist Publishing House of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, produced a Spanish-language hymnal in 1875. Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church, 113. María Luisa Santillán Baert probably refers to the same publication, but calls it the Book of Worship. She states it was published by the Methodist Church of Mexico in 1875. María Luisa Santillán Baert, ‘‘Worship in the Hispanic United Methodist Church,’’ in ¡Alabadle! Hispanic Christian Worship, ed. Justo L. González (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996), 59. 75. Santillán Baert, ‘‘Worship in the Hispanic United Methodist Church,’’ 65. The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, produced Himnario Cristiano para Uso de las Iglesias Evangélicas, 2nd ed. (Nashville: Methodist Episcopal Church. South, Smith and Lamar, Agents, 1915.) Náñez notes that churches in the Rio Grande Conference and its preceding institutions had used no less than ten different hymnals throughout the history of these organizations. Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church, 113. 76. Sydney E. Ahlstrom, A Religious History of the American People (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1972), 846. 77. Ibid. 78. El Himnario para Uso de las Iglesias Evangélicas de Habla Española en Todo el Mundo (New York: American Tract Society, 1931). The fol-

Notes to pages 67–70

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lowing is a partial list of hymns found in the 1931 hymnal that also appear in the most recent edition of the Spanish-language United Methodist hymnal, Raquel Martínez, ed., Mil Voces para Celebrar: Himnario Metodista (Nashville: United Methodist Publishing House, 1996): ‘‘Cerca, Más Cerca,’’ ‘‘Jesús, Yo He Prometido,’’ ‘‘Roca de la Eternidad,’’ ‘‘¡Santo! ¡Santo! ¡Santo!’’ ‘‘Tuyo Soy, Jesús.’’ 79. David Morgan, ‘‘Warner Sallman and the Visual Culture of American Protestantism,’’ in Icons of American Protestantism: The Art of Warner Sallman, ed. David Morgan (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1996), 45. 80. ‘‘One See Is Worth a Thousand Tells,’’ The Methodist Woman, September 1951, 22. Other photographs are located in the History and Archives room at El Buen Samaritano United Methodist Church, Albuquerque, NM. 81. As an example of the emphasis on the Enlightenment in Mexican education, the federal commission on education was headed by a doctor who had studied in France and had strong positivist inclinations. Gabino Barreda, appointed in 1867, was ‘‘a medical doctor who had studied in France and become a devotee of the positivist philosophy of Auguste Comte. While positivism would not become the official state doctrine in Mexico for another fifteen years, its roots most definitely can be found in Barreda’s educational values. The curriculum recommended by the committee and adopted by the Congress in late 1867 placed heavy emphasis on arithmetic, the rudiments of physics, and further emphasis on mathematics and the natural sciences in the secondary schools. The arts and the humanities, while not entirely ignored, were subordinated to an understanding of the physical world.’’ Michael C. Meyer and William L. Sherman, The Course of Mexican History, 5th ed. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1995), 407. Meyer and Sherman continue: ‘‘More important to Juárez than the curriculum itself was the fact that primary education in Mexico was made free and obligatory for the first time’’ (407). 82. Rodríguez, The Old Guide, 89. 83. The first Spanish-surnamed graduate of SMU to receive a BD was Santiago Gómez, in 1919. He was followed by Eleazar Guerra in 1926. Guerra eventually became a bishop of the Methodist Church of Mexico. Náñez was the third Spanish-surnamed graduate to earn a BD from SMU, in 1932. Lewis Howard Grimes, A History of Perkins School of Theology, ed. Roger Loyd (Dallas: Southern Methodist University Press, 1993), 155. 84. Martha Caroline Mitchell Remy, ‘‘Protestant Churches and Mexican-Americans in South Texas’’ (PhD diss., University of Texas at Austin, 1971), 38. See also Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 38. 85. ‘‘Invitations to Worship Services.’’ 86. Atkinson, ‘‘Hispanic Baptists in Texas,’’ 42. 87. Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Meth-

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Notes to pages 70–72

odist Church, 1; Alfredo Náñez, ‘‘Summary of Náñez’ Ministerial Career, Including his Conversion,’’ Alfredo Náñez Archives, Bridwell Library, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX. Box 2, Drawer 1, File: ‘‘Ideas.’’ 88. Interview with Alfredo Náñez. For the same reason, the Presbyterian missionary Pratt provided only the most basic theological education at the Bible Training School for Christian Workers in Laredo, Texas. He feared well-educated students would leave the professional ministry for higher paying jobs and less strenuous work. He also believed that providing the students with a superior education would make it difficult for the ministers to accommodate themselves to the harsh living conditions in the MexicanAmerican community. Brackenridge and García-Treto, Iglesia Presbiteriana, 26. 89. The name of the school was changed from SMU School of Theology to Perkins School of Theology at the Board of Trustees’ Meeting, 6 February 1945. William Richey Hogg, ‘‘Introduction,’’ in Lewis Howard Grimes, A History of Perkins School of Theology, ed. Roger Loyd. (Dallas: Southern Methodist University Press, 1993), xviii. For a brief history of Hispanic developments at Perkins School of Theology, see pp. 155–157. 90. Roberto Gómez, interview with Roberto Gómez, telephone interview conducted by Paul Barton from Dallas, TX, 9 March 1998. 91. Ben O. Hill, ‘‘Tres Graduados de S.M.U.,’’ El Heraldo Cristiano, July 1948, 5. 92. Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church, 100. 93. Náñez, ‘‘Summary of Náñez’ Ministerial Career,’’ 1–2. 94. Alfredo Náñez, ‘‘Materials for Children in the Southwest Mexican Conference,’’ Alfredo Náñez Archives, Bridwell Library, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX. Box 2, Drawer 1, File: ‘‘Mexican Methodist History.’’ 95. The conference journals for these years show that Espino was appointed as the pastor of El Mesías Methodist Church, El Paso, TX. However, references in Ministerio Dramático mention his relationship with the students at Lydia Patterson Institute. He notes that he was the chaplain of the school in 1962. In the biographical introduction to the book, Bishop Eleazar Guerra states that Espino was functioning as the Director of the Ministerial Department of the school at the time of publication. José Espino, Ministerio Dramático (El Paso: Privately published, 1963), 6, 87. See also José Espino, Virutas de Mi Taller (El Paso: Privately published, 1963), 6. Francisco Gaytán, who taught at the school during this time, confirms that Espino held the title of chaplain at the school, although his official appointment was as the pastor at El Mesías Methodist Church in El Paso. Francisco Gaytán, telephone conversation with Paul Barton, 9 March 1998. 96. José Espino, ‘‘La Imagen de Dios,’’ in Baccalaureate Sermon by Rev-

Notes to pages 73–75

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erend Jose Espino, Chaplain, Lydia Patterson Institute, El Paso, TX, 1962. Also published in Espino, Ministerio Dramático, 87–93. 97. ‘‘Rev. Jesse Leos Marks up a ‘First’,’’ The Texas Presbyterian, 1 July 1952, Texas-Mexican Presbytery Collection, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Archives, Austin, TX, Accession Number: 94–104, n.p. 98. Espino, Virutas de Mi Taller, 6. 99. Ibid., 10. 100. Daniel Z. Rodríguez, telephone interview with Daniel Rodríguez, conducted by Paul Barton from Dallas, TX, 17 December 1997. 101. Clotilde Falcón Náñez, ‘‘Hispanic Clergy Wives: Their Contribution to United Methodism in the Southwest, Later Nineteenth Century to the Present,’’ in Women in New Worlds: Historical Perspectives on the Wesleyan Tradition, ed. Hilah E. Thomas and Rosemary Skinner Keller (Nashville: Abingdon, 1981), 167–168. 102. Interview with Alfredo Náñez. 103. Information on Sarah Soto Zajicek’s PhD was provided by the Registrar’s office at the University of Texas at Austin. 104. Tomás Atencio, ‘‘Short Résumé of Tomás Atencio,’’ 1995, Lilly Project on Hispanic Protestantism in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX. 105. Whenever Grijalva refers to higher education in colleges and universities in his book, he always does so with reference to ‘‘Christian education’’ and the Baptist schools in Texas. He does not consider the possibility of Mexican-American Baptists attending a secular or even non-Baptist school. This manifests the close connection that existed, or that he perceived to exist, between Mexican-American Baptists and the Baptist educational institutions. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 147. 106. Ibid. 107. At the Convention of Mexican-American Baptists in Lubbock, Texas, in 1964, it was reported that thirty scholarships were given to Mexicans and Mexican Americans that year from the ‘‘Latin American Scholarship Fund.’’ A total of $46,726.51 in scholarships and loans had been granted up to that date. Also, twenty-two ministerial students received a total of $2,479.50 from the Latin American Ministerial Scholarship Fund that year. Furthermore, the Home Mission Board provided seventy-three scholarships totaling $6,525.00 to students in the Mexican Baptist Bible Institute and the Valley Baptist Academy. Ibid., 122–123. 108. Ibid., 147–150. 109. Paul Barton, ‘‘Function and Dysfunction: A Case Study of Mexican American Methodists,’’ Apuntes: Reflexiones Teológicas desde el Margen Hispano 14, no. 2 (1994): 38. The photographs are in El Heraldo Cristiano, June 1950, 5, 20. 110. Roy Barton tells a story in which his ‘‘Mexicanness’’ was high-

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Notes to pages 78–81

lighted by a professor in front of his preaching class. The preaching professor stopped him in the middle of his sermon and asked him why he sounded like a Latin American. At this point, students began to snicker. When Barton responded that he was Mexican American, the professor told him to go ahead and preach the rest of his sermon in Spanish. Instances such as these impressed upon the Mexican-American theological students their difference from their Anglo-American student colleagues. Interview with Roy Barton, conducted by Paul Barton, Dallas, TX, 30 July 1998.

Chapter 5 1. Cecilio McConnell, La Historia del Himno en Castellano, 2nd ed. (El Paso: Casa Bautista de Publicaciones, 1968), 93. 2. Ibid. 3. For a thorough treatment that combines race and class analysis in the study of Mexican Americans, see Mario Barrera, Race and Class in the Southwest: A Theory of Racial Inequality (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1979). 4. Most of the churches in the Rio Grande Annual Conference had members with different levels of assimilation and a variety of economic conditions. Most churches had members who were fairly assimilated as well as members who remained largely unassimilated. The congregations also had a membership with economic status ranging from impoverished to middle class. Many churches also had recent arrivals from Mexico or Latin America. 5. David C. Harrison, ‘‘A Survey of the Educational and Administrative Policies of the Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian Churches among Mexican-American People in Texas’’ (MA thesis, University of Texas, 1952), 182. 6. This was the case until the 1970s. From the mid- to late 1970s onward, assimilated members of the Rio Grande Annual Conference were less hesitant to join Anglo-American churches. 7. Minerva Garza Carcaño, interview with Minerva Garza Carcaño, conducted by Paul Barton in Dallas, TX, July 1996. 8. Some of the comments made regarding the cultural preservation of los Protestantes are valid up to the 1970s. For example, assimilated Hispanic Protestants today have much less hesitancy about joining AngloAmerican and English-speaking congregations than they did twenty years ago. 9. Jesús Ríos, Memorias Orales de Jesús Ríos: Una Entrevista Hecha el 16 de Diciembre de 1978, Baylor University Program for Oral History (n.p.: Copyright—Convención Bautista Mexicana de Texas y la Convención

Notes to pages 82–83

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General Bautista de Texas, 1980), 41. The quotation was translated into English by Paul Barton. 10. Donald E. Post and Walter E. Smith, Clergy: Outsiders and Adversaries. The Story of Catholic and Protestant Clergy’s Attempts to Relate the Gospel in Three South Texas Towns Experiencing Changing Mexicano/Anglo Relationships during the Period of 1945–1975 (n.p.: National Endowment for the Humanities Grant No. RS-26255-531, n.d.), 220. 11. Gene Gámez, ‘‘Be Patient and Persevering,’’ in And He Will Be Called Immanuel: Advent Devotional, Agape Memorial United Methodist Church, Dallas, 12 December 1997. 12. More research needs to be done to make more informed statements that compare worship patterns and styles of ministry among Mexican-American Methodists, Baptists, and Presbyterians.Veteran Baptist pastor Rudy Sánchez asserts that the age of a congregation affects the levels of assimilation and emphases in ministry more than denominational affiliation. He states that the well-established churches (those established earlier in the twentieth century) balance both educational and revivalist concerns in their ministries. Newer churches, however, lean more strongly toward revivalism. My personal observations of congregations in the Rio Grande Annual Conference support Sánchez’ point. Newly organized churches emphasize evangelization and personal conversion, while older congregations, whose members are more educated and assimilated, are more likely to participate in social ministry. 13. While these features describe Mexican-American Protestants, they are not exclusive to this group. McCauley observes the importance of the family as a paradigm for worship among Appalachian mountain congregations. Deborah Vansau McCauley, Appalachian Mountain Religion (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1995), 82. Energetic worship predominated on the North American frontier. Methodist worship on the North American frontier was characterized by simple songs that could be memorized easily, spontaneous worship expressions, such as shouting, singing, or testimonies, and calls to the altar. James F. White, Protestant Worship: Traditions in Transition (Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1989), 160. Prayer, especially the pastoral prayer, also occupied a central place in Anglo-American Methodist worship at the turn of the twentieth century. ‘‘In this, the preacher covered the whole gamut of prayer from confession to oblation, from praise to intercession, using Elizabethan rhetoric. In Sunday evening services, those who wished to were invited to kneel in prayer at the altar rail. In the midweek prayer service, all could express their concerns aloud in prayer.’’ White, Protestant Worship, 164. 14. Roberto Gómez considers Mexican Americans’ esteem for mothers as a manifestation of the image of the Virgen Guadalupe in their ‘‘collective unconsciousness.’’ For this reason, after Christmas and Easter,

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Notes to pages 84–86

‘‘mestizo churches, Roman Catholic or Protestant,’’ treat Mother’s Day as the most holy day of the year. Roberto L. Gómez, ‘‘Mestizo Spirituality: Motifs of Sacrifice, Transformation, Thanksgiving, and Family in Four Mexican American Rituals,’’ Apuntes: Reflexiones Teológicas desde el Margen Hispano 11, no. 4 (1991): 86. 15. María Luisa Santillán Baert, ‘‘Worship in the Hispanic United Methodist Church,’’ in ¡Alabadle! Hispanic Christian Worship, ed. Justo L. González (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996), 59. 16. Ibid. 17. Ben Costales, interview with Ben Costales, conducted by Paul Barton in Albuquerque, NM, 16 June 1997. 18. Oscar Garza, interview with Oscar Garza, conducted by Paul Barton in San Antonio, TX, 26 May 1996. Reverend Garza was the pastor of La Trinidad Methodist Church in San Antonio, Texas, from 1942 to 1945. 19. The following description of Hispanic Protestant worship, especially as provided by Santillán Baert, was typical up to the 1970s for churches in the Rio Grande Annual Conference. One can still find churches that fit this description, but there are also congregations where the Mexican-American character and sense of worship as sacred fiesta have all but disappeared. The section in Chapter 5, ‘‘Recent Developments in MexicanAmerican Protestant Worship,’’ addresses the indigenization process in worship from the 1960s to the present. One can see the dissolution of the festiveness of Mexican-American Methodists in the last twenty years by examining the level of informal fellowship that occurs during the annual meeting of the Rio Grande Annual Conference. During annual conferences, many people would gather in the lobby of Southwestern University’s Laura Kuykendall Residence Hall for coritos, testimonies, prayers, and jokes. The participants sang coritos to the accompaniments of guitars and accordions, played in Mexican norteño style. The participants either originated from Mexico (or other parts of Latin America) or had close ties to Mexico. These spontaneous and informal periods of fellowship, truly a sacred fiesta, were common in the late 1970s and perhaps even in the early 1980s. They are rarely held at annual conferences nowadays. 20. Santillán Baert, ‘‘Worship in the Hispanic United Methodist Church,’’ 65. 21. Ibid., 64–65. 22. Ibid., 65. 23. Michael Hawn notes that the celebratory quality of worship is a central dynamic to Mexican-American Protestant worship. C. Michael Hawn, ‘‘Reflections on Worship in the Rio Grande Valley,’’ Perspective: A Newsletter for the Alumni/ae and Friends of Perkins School of Theology (Summer 1996): 6. See also Roberto Escamilla, ‘‘Fiesta Worship,’’ The Interpreter, June 1976, 2–4.

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24. Justo L. González, ‘‘Hispanic Worship: An Introduction,’’ in González, 25. 25. Ibid., 26. 26. Santillán Baert, ‘‘Worship in the Hispanic United Methodist Church,’’ 60. 27. Ibid. 28. Interview with Ben Costales. 29. Ibid. 30. Luis G. Pedraja, ‘‘Testimonios and Popular Religion in Mainline North American Hispanic Protestantism,’’ paper presented in the Lived Theology and Race Workgroup of the Project on Lived Theology of the University of Virginia, 23–25 February 2001, Memphis, TN, and Oxford, MS, University of Virginia, Project on Lived Theology, 2001 (cited 17 August 2003), http://livedtheology.org/meetings/race2.htm. 31. Ibid. 32. Ibid. 33. Ibid. 34. Ibid. 35. Changes in Roman Catholic worship following Vatican II, as well as the Protestant liturgical movement in mainline Protestantism, also influenced changes in Latino/a Protestant worship. 36. For a treatment of the anthropological and religious dimensions of the quinceañera, see C. Gilbert Romero, Hispanic Devotional Piety: Tracing Biblical Roots, Faith and Cultures Series (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1991), 71–82. 37. Tomás Chávez, Jr., ‘‘Quinceañera: A Liturgy in the Reformed Tradition,’’ Austin Seminary Bulletin (Faculty Edition) 98, no. 7 (1983): 34–47. See also Desiderio Del Pozo, ‘‘El Orden del Culto—Festejo de una Quinceañera’’ (n.p.: n.d.). 38. Santillán Baert, ‘‘Worship in the Hispanic United Methodist Church,’’ 70. 39. The United Methodist Book of Worship (Nashville: United Methodist Publishing House, 1992), 266–268. This worship resource also contains a prayer for a young woman celebrating a quinceañera (no. 534). 40. Santillán Baert, ‘‘Worship in the Hispanic United Methodist Church,’’ 69. 41. Ibid. 42. Ibid., 64. 43. Ibid. 44. Personal observations of Reverend Daniel Arguijo and Reverend Roberto Gómez in worship. 45. Jorge Lara-Braud, ‘‘A History of Mexican-American Spirituality,’’ informal talk given by Jorge Lara-Braud, Santa Julia Catholic Church, Aus-

200

Notes to pages 92–94

tin, Texas, on 3 February 1993, 68. Located in the Benson Latin American Collection, University of Texas, Austin, TX. 46. Minerva Garza reports that Dr.Vicente Mendoza, a Mexican Methodist minister, professor, and composer, introduced coritos to Spanishspeaking Methodists in Texas in the 1950s when he visited Texas. She mentions ‘‘Una Mirada de Fe’’ and ‘‘Solamente en Cristo.’’ Interview with Minerva Garza. 47. Roberto Escamilla, ‘‘Preface,’’ in Celebremos, Segunda Parte: Colección de Himnos, Salmos y Cánticos, ed. Roberto Escamilla (Nashville: Discipleship Resources, 1983). See also Carlton R. Young, Companion to the United Methodist Hymnal (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1993), 42. 48. According to Young, Companion to the United Methodist Hymnal, 42, the members of the project task force for the two hymnal supplements were Roberto Escamilla, project director; Elise Shoemaker Eslinger, music editor; Raquel Gutiérrez-Achón, chair; Mary Lou Santillán Baert, Roger Deschner, Esther Frances, George Lockwood, Raquel Martínez, Dolores Márquez, and Gertrude Suppe. 49. Roberto Escamilla, ed., Celebremos, Primera Parte: Colección de Coritos (Nashville: Discipleship Resources, United Methodist Church, 1979). Musical arrangements by Esther Frances. 50. Roberto Escamilla, ed., Celebremos, Segunda Parte: Colección de Himnos, Salmos Y Cánticos, rev. ed., (Nashville: Discipleship Resources, United Methodist Church, 1983). 51. Young, Companion to the United Methodist Hymnal, 42. 52. Raquel Mora Martínez, a native of Mexico, is a member of the Rio Grande Annual Conference. Her husband, Bishop Joel Martínez, is currently the episcopal leader of the Rio Grande and Southwest Texas annual conferences. 53. United Methodist Church (U.S.), Mil Voces para Celebrar: Himnario Metodista (Nashville: United Methodist Publishing House, 1996), 69–70. See also Appendix F: ‘‘Hispanic Creed.’’ 54. Edwin David Aponte defines ‘‘corito’’ as ‘‘a short, popular chorus sung most often in communal worship settings. . . . These coritos arose from the life situations of the people themselves. Often the exact origin of specific songs is unknown, but they are seen to have risen from the pueblo.’’ Edwin David Aponte, ‘‘Coritos as Active Symbol in Latino Protestant Popular Religion,’’ Journal of Hispanic/Latino Theology 2, no. 3 (1995): 60–61. The term ‘‘estribillo’’ is preferred over ‘‘coritos’’ by some members of the Rio Grande Annual Conference. 55. Edwin Aponte finds many aspects of coritos indicative of popular religion. He states that coritos ‘‘(1) often appear outside formal institutional structures; (2) are often transmitted outside formal channels of instruction; (3) express expectation of concrete manifestations of the supernatural in

Notes to pages 94–98

201

the midst of the everyday; (4) possess cultural elements that are indigenous (concepts, thought patterns, rhythms, and instruments); (5) express the deep faith of a pueblo sencillo, in the sense of unpretentious, trusting faith; (6) function as symbolic boundaries in a social context that is often chaotic; (7) are communal at multiple levels, not just in their performance, but also in providing real connection and solidarity with others; (8) are individual in that they provide Latino Protestant believers a ritualized way to express their faith’’ (Ibid., 62). 56. Young, Companion to the United Methodist Hymnal, 39. 57. Aponte, ‘‘Coritos as Active Symbol in Latino Protestant Popular Religion,’’ 65. 58. Ibid., 65–66. 59. Ibid., 66. 60. Miguel Angel Darino, ‘‘What Is Different about Hispanic Baptist Worship?’’ in ¡Alabadle! Hispanic Christian Worship, ed. Justo L. González (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996), 82. 61. Juan Francisco Martínez, ‘‘Origins and Development of Protestantism among Latinos in the Southwestern United States 1836–1900’’ (PhD Diss., Fuller Theological Seminary, 1996), 296–298. In Mexico, Mexican church workers in the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, longing for opportunities for leadership within their church, began a nationalist movement around 1920. Their push for indigenous leadership led to conflict between Mexican Methodist preachers and Anglo-American church leaders supervising them, including the presiding bishop, James Cannon, Jr. They finally achieved their goal of establishing an autonomous Methodist church in Mexico in 1930. Juan N. Pascoe and Rolando Zapata Olivares, ‘‘El Movimiento Metodista en México,’’ in Iglesia Metodista de México: la Iglesia Metodista de México y Su Herencia Wesleyana (n.p.: Iglesia Metodista de México, [1953]), 80–85. Other authors refer to a nationalist movement among Mexican and Mexican-American Protestants in the first quarter of the twentieth century. Five churches and about seventy members of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery left that organization to join this independent and autonomous ecclesiastical organization. R. Douglas Brackenridge and Francisco García-Treto, Iglesia Presbiteriana: A History of Presbyterians and Mexican Americans in the Southwest, 2nd ed. (San Antonio: Trinity University Press, 1987), 90. Náñez writes about this movement: ‘‘It was during this same period [early twentieth century] that as a sign of protest against [Anglo-American] domination, a group of leaders from several Protestant denominations in Mexico, many of whom were Methodists, left their churches and organized the Evangelical Mexican Church, an autonomous church formed entirely of Mexicans. This antimissionary movement extended into Texas and for a few years affected the Spanish-speaking work of the Methodist Church in the Southwest, espe-

202

Notes to pages 98–100

cially around San Antonio.’’ Alfredo Náñez, ‘‘The Transition from Anglo to Mexican-American Leadership in the Rio Grande Conference,’’ Methodist History 16, no. 2 (1978): 69. The resistance to domination by AngloAmerican church leaders emerged again in the Chicano/a Movement in the 1960s and 1970s. 62. Ramón Gutiérrez uses the phrase ‘‘a dialogue between cultures,’’ as well as the phrase ‘‘the contest of cultures,’’ to describe the interaction between Spaniards and Native Americans during the Spanish era in New Mexico. Ramón A. Gutiérrez, When Jesus Came, the Corn Mothers Went Away: Marriage, Sexuality, and Power in New Mexico, 1500–1846 (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1991), xvii. The phrase ‘‘a dialogue between cultures’’ can also apply to the interaction between Anglo Americans and Mexican Americans in the Southwest. 63. Peter L. Berger, The Sacred Canopy: Elements of a Sociological Theory of Religion (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1974), 18. 64. The self-perception of Latinos/as in the Southwest as ‘‘Mexican American’’ developed during and following World War II. This was the dominant term indicating persons of Mexican ancestry until the 1960s. John R. Chávez, The Lost Land: The Chicano Image of the Southwest (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1984), 108. See also Gilberto M. Hinojosa, ‘‘Mexican-American Faith Communities in Texas and the Southwest,’’ in Mexican Americans and the Catholic Church, 1900–1965, ed. Jay P. Dolan and Gilberto M. Hinojosa, Notre Dame History of Hispanic Catholics in the U.S. (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994), 84. 65. John Chávez states, ‘‘Although LULAC [League of United Latin American Citizens] members believed in the assimilation of U.S. Mexicans into the Anglo world, they were not so busy assimilating themselves as individuals that they forgot their people as a whole. . . . LULAC members insisted on the acceptance of their ethnic group as an equal among other immigrant groups in the United States. With this as an ideological base, the League fought for the civil rights of Mexicans throughout the Southwest and was especially concerned with segregation in the public schools.’’ Chávez, The Lost Land, 116. 66. Mario T. García, Memories of Chicano History: The Life and Narrative of Bert Corona, (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1994), 14. 67. Ibid. 68. Ibid., 15. 69. Gilberto M. Hinojosa and Jay P. Dolan, ‘‘Introduction,’’ in Dolan and Hinojosa, 12. 70. Allan Figueroa Deck, ‘‘The Challenge of Evangelical/Pentecostal Christianity to Hispanic Catholicism,’’ in Hispanic Catholic Culture in the U.S.: Issues and Concerns, ed. Jay P. Dolan and Allan Figueroa Deck (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994).

Notes to pages 101–103

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71. Ibid., 422. 72. Rigoberto Caloca-Rivas, ‘‘Hermeneutics for a Theology of Integration: Components for an Understanding of the Role of the Hispanic Church in the United States’’ (MA thesis, Graduate Theological Union, 1982), 91. 73. Each of the following biographies on Methodist forebears was written as a paper for college or seminary courses: Paul Barton, ‘‘A Biography of Rev. Abel Gómez,’’ Manuscript, Dallas, TX, 1988; Max Cisneros, Jr., ‘‘El Paraje de Valverde y un Hombre, El Reverendo Blas Gutiérrez 1831–1904’’ (n.p.: 1975); Richard Leggett, ‘‘The Early Work of the Methodist Church with the Hispanic People of Texas and a Brief Biographical Sketch of the Life of the Rev. Basilio Soto,’’ course paper for ‘‘History of Christianity II,’’ Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, spring 1994, Austin, TX; Roger Loyd, ‘‘Alexander H. Sutherland: Prophet of the Lord,’’ Photocopy, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX, 1971; Roland McGregor, ‘‘Thomas Harwood: The Father of Methodism in New Mexico,’’ Photocopy, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX, 1971. 74. Esther B. Moye, Lo, I Am with You (Atlanta: Home Mission Board, Southern Baptist Convention, 1953). This short book tells the stories of five Spanish-speaking Baptist ministers plus the wife of one of them, Matías C. García, George Berumen Mixim, the Reverend and Mrs. I. E. González, Isaac V. Pérez, and Joshua Grijalva. She states in the foreword that she wrote the book in response to questions by Mexican-American Baptist youth who wanted to know the heroic stories of their Spanish-speaking spiritual ancestors. 75. Ibid., 18. 76. Ibid., 17–18. 77. Roy Barton kept pictures of his mentor, Alfredo Náñez, on his desk for many years. 78. Alfredo Náñez’ treatment of Benigno Cárdenas casts the Roman Catholic priest-turned-Methodist-minister in a very positive light. Alfredo Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church (Dallas: Bridwell Library, Southern Methodist University, 1980), 5– 11. Roy Barton confirms that Náñez considered Cárdenas an icon for Hispanic Protestants. Náñez also preached frequently about Cárdenas. Roy Barton, conversation with Paul Barton, Dallas, TX, 30 July 1998. Fray Angélico Chávez’ article on Cárdenas offers a Roman Catholic counterpoint to Náñez’ adulatory treatment. Angélico Chávez, ‘‘A Nineteenth-Century New Mexico Schism,’’ New Mexico Historical Review 58, no. 1 (1983): 35– 54. A comparison of Náñez’ and Chávez’ treatments of Cárdenas is a lesson in historiography. Each author colors his treatment of this enigmatic historical figure according to his denominational prejudice. 79. Hernández was admitted on trial into the conference and ordained a Deacon in 1871 by Bishop Marvin at the West Texas annual conference in Leesburg, Texas. Minutes of the West Texas Conference of the Method-

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Notes to pages 103–109

ist Episcopal Church, South, held in San Antonio, TX, 20–25 October 1875 (Nashville: Southern Methodist Publishing House, 1876), 267. 80. George Carmack, ‘‘100 Years at Polly’s Church,’’ San Antonio Express-News, 1 May 1982, 1-B, 8-B. 81. Minerva Garza, 60 Aniversario: Sesenta Mujeres en Misión: Ellas Salieron sin Saber a Donde Iban (n.p.: Mujeres Metodistas Unidas, Conferencia Río Grande, Iglesia Metodista Unida, [1993]). 82. Minerva Garza, ‘‘The Influence of Methodism on Hispanic Women through Women’s Societies,’’ Methodist History 34, no. 2 (1996): 78–89. See also Clotilde Falcón Náñez, ‘‘Hispanic Clergy Wives: Their Contribution to United Methodism in the Southwest, Later Nineteenth Century to the Present,’’ in Women in New Worlds: Historical Perspectives on the Wesleyan Tradition, ed. Hilah E. Thomas and Rosemary Skinner Keller (Nashville: Abingdon, 1981), 161–177. 83. Destellos del Rubí: Es un Boceto de la Historia de la Unión Femenil Misionera del Estado de Texas, Junio de 1957 (San Antonio: n.p., n.d.). An updated history of the Mexican-American Baptist women in Texas was produced recently: Isabel A. Estrada, Ruby H. Vargas, and Judith L. Bishop, Fieles al Maestro: Bordadoras del Diseño Misionero (Dallas: Women’s Missionary Union of Texas, 1992). 84. Hinojosa, ‘‘Mexican-American Faith Communities in Texas and the Southwest,’’ 42. 85. Interview with Minerva Garza. 86. Philip E. Lampe, ‘‘Religion and the Assimilation of Mexican Americans,’’ Review of Religious Research 18, no. 3 (1977): 248–249. 87. Interview with Ben Costales. 88. Deutsch notes that New Mexico villagers developed a regional community throughout northern New Mexico and Colorado. A network of regional relationships and a regional economy was part of their strategy of accommodation to the changing economy and culture from 1880 until 1940. Sarah Deutsch, No Separate Refuge: Culture, Class, and Gender on an Anglo-Hispanic Frontier in the American Southwest, 1880–1940 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1987), 9–10. 89. García, Memories of Chicano History, 41. 90. Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church, 72. 91. Lyle Saunders, ‘‘ ‘Anglo’ and Spanish-Speaking Americans: Contrasts and Similarities,’’ Practical Anthropology 7, no. 3 (1960): 200. 92. Ibid., 202. 93. Deck, ‘‘The Challenge of Evangelical/Pentecostal Christianity to Hispanic Catholicism,’’ 421. While Deck refers only to Hispanic Catholics, Hispanic Protestants also viewed women as the spiritual center of the home. Most Protestant Hispanic churches began their ministries with

Notes to pages 109–113

205

women. Worship usually had an overwhelming attendance of women. Additionally, the women’s organizations within the congregations and in regional associations were usually much more highly organized than men’s organizations. 94. Saunders, ‘‘ ‘Anglo’ and Spanish-Speaking Americans,’’ 200. Saunders discusses familism as one of five distinguishing characteristics of Mexican-American culture: ‘‘To be a Spanish-American, says Margaret Mead, is to belong to a familia. The central structuralizing principle is seen to be that of loyalty and responsibility to all members, although the first loyalty and responsibility is for members of the family’’ (200). He also notes that the family is a fluid network of relationships, consisting of an extended family and also incorporating others not of blood relationship. 95. Mexican and Mexican-American parents choose close friends (and sometimes members of their family) to serve as ‘‘co-parents’’ of their children. The padrinos participate in the baptism ceremony of the child. They also play a supportive role in the raising of the child, in effect becoming the child’s second set of parents. 96. Teresa Chávez Sauceda, ‘‘Becoming a Mestizo Church,’’ in González, 95. 97. Ibid., 95–96. 98. Virgilio P. Elizondo, ‘‘Introduction,’’ in Fronteras: A History of the Latin American Church in the USA since 1513, ed. Moisés Sandoval, General History of the Church in Latin America (San Antonio: Mexican American Cultural Center, 1983), xi. (Translation mine.) 99. Francisco Gaytán, interview with Francisco Gaytán, conducted by Paul Barton in Edinburg, TX, 11 January 1996. 100. Jimmy García, interview with Jimmy García, conducted by Paul Barton in Dallas, TX, 21 May 1998. The same was true for many congregations in the Rio Grande Annual Conference. 101. This holds for Methodists in New Mexico, as well, according to Costales. Interview with Ben Costales. 102. Paul Barton, ‘‘El Buen Samaritano UMC—Notes,’’ Manuscript, 1997. Dionisio Costales was ordained a deacon in 1896 and an elder approximately in 1912; interview with Ben Costales. 103. Daniel Z. Rodríguez, interview with Daniel Rodríguez, conducted by Paul Barton in San Antonio, 28 May 1996. 104. Faye McDonald Smith, A Living Heritage: Mexican-American Presbyterians; Una Herencia Viviente: Presbiterianos Mejico-Americanos (n.p.: Mexican-American Christian Education Committee, Division of National Mission, Presbyterian Church in the U.S., [1982]). 105. Ibid. 106. Justo L. González, ‘‘Hispanic Worship: An Introduction,’’ in González, 17.

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Notes to pages 114–119

107. Participant observation of a Sunday morning worship service at First United Methodist Church, Coppell, Texas, Summer, 1997. 108. Information provided by the Reverend Billy Dalton, Dallas, TX, 1984. Confirmed by Dalton on 31 December 1997. While these examples of Anglo-American experience reveal class differences more than they do cultural differences between Anglo and Mexican Americans, the economic disparity between the two groups affects the cultural differences. As Anglo Americans generally enjoy a higher standard of living than Mexican Americans, they are able to participate in leisure and social activities accessible only to persons of higher incomes.

Chapter 6 1. ‘‘We Are One in the Spirit’’ was composed in 1966 by Peter Scholte, http://www.untiedmusic.com/ezekiel/onespirt.html. 2. Jimmy García, interview with Jimmy García, conducted by Paul Barton, Dallas, TX, 21 May 1998. 3. Ray Allen Billington, The Protestant Crusade 1800–1860: A Study of the Origins of American Nativism (New York: Rinehart, 1952), 2–3. 4. John Wesley Butler, History of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Mexico: Personal Reminiscences, Present Conditions and Future Outlook (New York: Methodist Book Concern, 1918), 35. Of course, the statement attributed to Juárez conveniently serves the propagandist purposes of Butler. 5. Clotilde Falcón Náñez, ‘‘Hispanic Clergy Wives: Their Contribution to United Methodism in the Southwest, Later Nineteenth Century to the Present,’’ in Women in New Worlds: Historical Perspectives on the Wesleyan Tradition, ed. Hilah E. Thomas and Rosemary Skinner Keller (Nashville: Abingdon, 1981), 166–167. 6. David Maldonado, Jr., Crossing Guadalupe Street: Growing up Hispanic and Protestant (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2001), 176–177. 7. Sydney E. Ahlstrom, A Religious History of the American People (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1972), 564. 8. Ibid., 565–566. 9. Elmer T. Clark, ed., Missionary Yearbook of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, 1927. Containing the Eighty-First Annual Report of the Board of Missions (Nashville: Board of Missions, Methodist Episcopal Church, South, n.d.), 296. 10. Josiah Strong, Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis (New York: Doubleday, Page, 1912), 57–58. 11. Joshua Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 1881– 1981 (Dallas: Office of Language Missions, Baptist General Convention

Notes to pages 119–122

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of Texas, in cooperation with the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, 1982), 30. 12. Náñez, ‘‘Hispanic Clergy Wives,’’ 166. 13. One anomalous report asserts that anti-Catholicism was absent among the Spanish-speaking Protestant clergy in San Antonio. David Harrison, who interviewed several Spanish-speaking Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian clergy in San Antonio in the early 1950s, noted that ‘‘there were no Mexican-American ministers interviewed with a great devotion to the Roman Catholic Church, but none stated, as a motivation for their work, a fear or near-hatred for the Roman Catholic Church.’’ David C. Harrison, ‘‘A Survey of the Educational and Administrative Policies of the Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian Churches among Mexican-American People in Texas’’ (MA thesis, University of Texas, 1952), 32. Harrison’s assessment suggests that anti-Catholic fervor might have been diminishing by the 1950s. However, anti-Catholic sentiments continued among many Spanish-speaking Protestants into the 1970s. 14. William Bernardo O’Neill, ‘‘A United Coordinated Front for Methodism among the Spanish-Speaking People in the United States,’’ Manuscript, n.d., Náñez Archives, Bridwell Library, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX. Box 2, Drawer 1. File: ‘‘Mexican Methodist History.’’ References in the letter point to a date between WWII and 1949. No date given, but he mentions the fact that they are in the post-WWII period. It must also be before 1949, since he addresses the letter to Bishop Frank A. Smith and members of the Southwest Mexican Conference. 15. Abel M. Gómez, ‘‘América Debe Permanecer Protestante,’’ El Heraldo Cristiano, July 1946, 3. (Translation mine). 16. Oscar F. Garza, interview with Oscar F. Garza, conducted by Paul Barton, San Antonio, TX, 26 May 1996. 17. Ibid. 18. Ibid. 19. I. C. Olivares, ‘‘El Concepto Que Tiene el Evangélico de la Iglesia Romana’’ (The Concept That the Evangelical Has of the Roman Church), Manuscript, Austin, TX, 3 February 1947, Texas-Mexican Presbytery Collection, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Archives, Austin, TX, Accession Number: 94–190. 20. Reynaldo Avila, ‘‘La Verdad y el Error,’’ Manuscript, Victoria, TX, 28 May 1904, Texas-Mexican Presbytery Collection, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary Archives, Austin, TX, Accession Number: 94–190. 21. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 1881–1981, 28. 22. Ibid., 9. 23. Interview with Jimmy García. 24. Rudy Sánchez, interview with Rudy Sánchez, conducted by Paul Barton, Dallas, TX, 8 May 1998.

208

Notes to pages 123–130

25. Roberto L. Gómez, ‘‘Servicio Ecuménico de Oración del Viernes Santo,’’ The Rio Grande Record, April 1997, 4. 26. Jorge Lara-Braud, ‘‘A History of Mexican-American Spirituality,’’ informal talk given by Jorge Lara-Braud, Santa Julia Catholic Church, Austin, Texas, 3 February 1993, 7. 27. Ibid. 28. Maldonado, Crossing Guadalupe Street, 110. 29. Leo D. Nieto, ‘‘The Chicano Movement and the Gospel: Historical Accounts of a Protestant Pastor,’’ in Hidden Stories: Unveiling the History of the Latino Church, ed. Daniel R. Rodríguez-Díaz and David CortésFuentes (Decatur, GA: AETH, 1994), 153–154. 30. Ibid., 155–156. 31. The Reverend Roberto L. Gómez, ‘‘Mestizo Spirituality: Motifs of Sacrifice, Transformation, Thanksgiving, and Family in Four Mexican American Rituals,’’ Apuntes: Reflexiones Teológicas desde el Margen Hispano 11, no. 4 (1991): 89, performs the sacrament of Holy Communion in a more dramatic fashion than most other Protestant ministers. He expresses his appreciation of Holy Communion in the following statement: ‘‘Because of the methods and manner of Protestant evangelization of mestizos, the Sacrament of Holy Communion is de-emphasized. The frequent celebration of Holy Communion is one of the Protestant mestizo’s great losses. The preached Word of God and a more spontaneous style of worship become important in the religious life of the Protestant mestizo. However, the de-emphasis on Holy Communion is a high price to pay to become a Protestant mestizo.’’ 32. Roberto Gómez, ‘‘Reflections on the Life of the Reverend Daniel M. Arguijo,’’ Emanuel United Methodist Church, Austin, Texas, 8 January 1998, 1. 33. Further research needs to be conducted to determine if a similar liturgical movement has occurred among Hispanic Presbyterians and Baptists. 34. Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. Sacrosanctum Concilium. Solemnly Promulgated by His Holiness Pope Paul VI on December 4, 1963. 35. The Paulist National Catholic Evangelization Association, ‘‘Appendix 6: Ministering with Hispanics,’’ http://www.disciplesinmission .org/support/files/Apendx6.pdf. Accessed July 11, 2005. 36. Lara-Braud, ‘‘A History of Mexican-American Spirituality,’’ 9. 37. Vicente Franco, interview with Vicente Franco, conducted by Paul Barton, San Antonio, TX, 27 May 1996. 38. Ibid. 39. J. Claude Evans notes that the Texas Conference of Churches expanded its membership to include the Roman Catholic Church and the

Notes to pages 130–134

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Orthodox Church. J. Claude Evans, ‘‘Discord along the Rio Grande,’’ The Christian Century 86, no. 31 (1969): 397. 40. Interview with Vicente Franco. 41. Susan M. Yohn, A Contest of Faiths: Missionary Women and Pluralism in the American Southwest (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1995), 67–68. 42. Gilberto M. Hinojosa, ‘‘Mexican-American Faith Communities in Texas and the Southwest,’’ in Mexican Americans and the Catholic Church, 1900–1965, ed. Jay P. Dolan and Gilberto M. Hinojosa, Notre Dame History of Hispanic Catholics in the U.S. (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994), 7. 43. Ibid. 44. In his history of the relationship between the Catholic Church and Mexican Americans in the U.S. Southwest, Hinojosa acknowledges the discriminatory practices of the Catholic hierarchy and the prejudices of the North American and European leadership toward the Mexican-American population. He balances his accounts of the hierarchy’s tendency toward discriminatory practices with observations on the contributions of occasional individuals, religious orders, and bishops who showed a genuine concern for the Spanish-speaking. For another account of the Catholic Church’s relationship with Hispanics in the twentieth century, and one Catholic bishop’s efforts to lead the church in ministry to the Spanishspeaking in the U.S. Southwest, see Stephan Privett, The U.S. Catholic Church and Its Hispanic Members: The Pastoral Vision of Archbishop Robert E. Lucey, vol. 9, Trinity University Monograph Series in Religion (San Antonio: Trinity University Press, 1988). 45. Hinojosa, ‘‘Mexican-American Faith Communities in Texas and the Southwest,’’ 30. 46. Rigoberto Caloca-Rivas, ‘‘Hermeneutics for a Theology of Integration: Components for an Understanding of the Role of the Hispanic Church in the United States’’ (MA thesis, Graduate Theological Union, 1982), 17. 47. Ibid., 18. 48. E. C. Orozco, Republican Protestantism in Aztlán: The Encounter between Mexicanism and the Anglo-Saxon Secular Humanism in the United States Southwest (n.p.: Petereins Press, 1980), 120–121. Orozco disagrees with the idea that the Catholic Church followed a policy of Americanization. He states, ‘‘The [Catholic Church] openly and vigorously opposed the rapid de-Mexicanization of the Spanish-speaking population. The founding of private schools in California, Texas, and New Mexico, is ample testimony of the Church’s commitment in this regard.’’ 49. Caloca-Rivas, ‘‘Hermeneutics for a Theology of Integration,’’ 21, quoting Virgilio Elizondo, Christianity and Culture: An Introduction to

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Notes to pages 135–142

Pastoral Theology and Ministry for the Bicultural Community (1975; San Antonio: Mexican American Cultural Center, 1983), 98. 50. Alan M. Dershowitz, The Vanishing American Jew: In Search of Jewish Identity for the Next Century (New York: Little, Brown, 1997), 4. 51. Ibid., 2–3. 52. Ibid., 3.

Chapter 7 1. Randi Jones Walker, Protestantism in the Sangre de Cristos: 1850– 1920 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1991), 113. 2. Peter L. Berger, The Sacred Canopy: Elements of a Sociological Theory of Religion (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1974), 134. 3. R. Douglas Brackenridge and Francisco García-Treto, Iglesia Presbiteriana: A History of Presbyterians and Mexican Americans in the Southwest, 2nd ed. (San Antonio: Trinity University Press, 1987), 17. 4. Ibid. 5. Joshua Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 1881– 1981 (Dallas: Office of Language Missions, Baptist General Convention of Texas, in cooperation with the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, 1982), 14. 6. For Presbyterians: ‘‘Latin American Work,’’ in Minutes, 108th Session of the Synod of Texas, Presbyterian Church, U.S., held in Hunt, TX, 21– 23 May 1963, 459. For Methodists: Actas Oficiales de la Conferencia Anual del Río Grande, held in Kerrville, TX, 21–24 May 1963, 29, ‘‘Recapitulation—Table No. 1.’’ For Baptists: Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 121. The wide gap between the number of Hispanic Baptists and United Methodists is even larger when one considers that the Rio Grande Annual Conference includes churches in New Mexico while the Mexican (later changed to ‘‘Hispanic’’) Baptist Convention of Texas is limited to the boundaries of its state. 7. For Baptists: Clay Price conducted a survey in 1997 of all Southern Baptists in Texas. He estimated that about 5 percent of Southern Baptists are Hispanic (roughly 134,000). Clay Price, telephone conversation with the author, 9 September 1998. Mr. Price also cited the following information for Hispanic Baptists in Texas: number of congregations of Hispanic Baptist congregations for 1997: 433 churches, 452 missions. Churches are selfsupporting; missions have a sponsoring congregations and thus are not selfsupporting. Number of Hispanic Baptists for 1997: 52,382. Qualifications for these statistics: (1) About half of the congregations did not report, so this figure is approximately 50 percent of the total number of Hispanic Southern Baptists attending Hispanic congregations. (2) The membership statis-

Notes to pages 144–149

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tic does not include Hispanic Southern Baptists attending non-Hispanic congregations. ‘‘1997 Annual Church Profiles,’’ compiled by Research and Information Services, Baptist General Convention of Texas, Dallas, TX. For Methodists: Actas Oficiales, Conferencia Anual de Río Grande de la Iglesia Metodista Unida, held in Abilene, TX, 11–14 June 1997. For membership, see p. 227 (‘‘Statistician’s Report’’). For the number of pastoral charges, see the statistical tables at the back of the minutes, pp. 229–242. Pastoral charge refers to pastoral appointments to congregations. Some pastors were appointed to two congregations. For Presbyterians: ‘‘Report of the MexicanAmerican Coordinating Council,’’ 1977 Minutes, Synod of Red River, Presbyterian Church in the United States, held at Mo Ranch, Hunt, Texas, 27– 28 September 1977, 5. 8. For the most recent national survey on religious affiliation among U.S. Hispanics, see Gastón Espinosa, Virgilio Elizondo, and Jesse Miranda, ‘‘Hispanic Churches in American Public Life: Summary of Findings,’’ in Interim Reports. A Series of Papers on Work in Progress by the University of Notre Dame’s Institute for Latino Studies and Research Partners in Our Community of Interest (Notre Dame, IN: Institute for Latino Studies, Notre Dame University, 2003). 9. Ibid., 16. 10. Allan Figueroa Deck, ‘‘The Challenge of Evangelical/Pentecostal Christianity to Hispanic Catholicism,’’ in Hispanic Catholic Culture in the U.S.: Issues and Concerns, ed. Jay P. Dolan and Allan Figueroa Deck (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994), 424–425, 427.

Appendix A 1. During the tenure of Harwood’s ministry in New Mexico (1869 to 1913), some Spanish-speaking churches of the southern Methodist denomination (MECS) were organized in the southern part of New Mexico. 2. The Rio Grande Mission Conference was the name first given to the Anglo-American dominant conference in 1858. The Rio Grande Mission Conference changed its name to the West Texas Conference in 1866, and again in 1939, when it changed its name to the Southwest Texas Conference. 3. Alfredo Náñez, ‘‘Informe Anual. Junta de Misiones y Construcción de Templos. Junta Conferencial de Educación. Conferencia del Río Grande,’’ n.d., Náñez Archives, Bridwell Library, Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, Texas. Box 2, Drawer 1, File: ‘‘Mexican Methodist History.’’ 4. Alfredo Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church (Dallas: Bridwell Library, Southern Methodist University, 1980), 94, 112.

212

Notes to pages 149–156

5. Alfredo Náñez, History of the Rio Grande Conference of the United Methodist Church, 94–95.

Appendix B 1. Joshua Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 1881– 1981 (Dallas: Office of Language Missions, Baptist General Convention of Texas, in cooperation with the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, 1982), 17–22. Regarding the debate about the first Baptist church in Texas, see p. 41. I am indebted to Grijalva’s book as the main source of information for this brief institutional history of Hispanic Baptists in Texas. 2. Ibid., 15. 3. Ibid., 26, 28. 4. Ibid., 34, 44–45, 69. 5. For Presbyterians: ‘‘Latin American Work,’’ in Minutes, 108th Session of the Synod of Texas, Presbyterian Church, U.S., held in Hunt, TX, 21– 23 May 1963, 459. For Methodists: Actas Oficiales de la Conferencia Anual del Río Grande, held in Kerrville, TX, 21–24 May 1963, 29, ‘‘Recapitulation—Table No. 1.’’ For Baptists: Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 121. The wide gap between the number of Hispanic Baptists and United Methodists appears even larger when one considers that the Rio Grande Annual Conference includes churches in New Mexico while the Mexican (now called the ‘‘Hispanic’’) Baptist Convention of Texas is limited to the boundaries of its state. 6. Clay Price, a staff member in the Research and Information Services department of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, conducted a survey in 1997 of all Southern Baptists in Texas. He estimated that about 5 percent of Southern Baptists are Hispanic (roughly 134,000). Clay Price, telephone conversation with the author, 9 September 1998. For an extended treatment of the differences between Hispanic Baptists and Hispanic Methodists and Presbyterians, see ‘‘The Special Case of Baptists’’ in Chapter 7. 7. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 32. 8. Ibid., 41. 9. Ibid., 122. 10. William Bricen Miller, ‘‘Texas Mexican Baptist History; or a History of Baptist Work among Mexicans in Texas’’ (ThD diss., Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1931), 43–44. 11. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 15. 12. Ibid., 74. 13. Martha Caroline Mitchell Remy, ‘‘Protestant Churches and Mexican-Americans in South Texas’’ (PhD diss., University of Texas at Austin, 1971), 173.

Notes to pages 156–160

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14. Grijalva, A History of Mexican Baptists in Texas, 75. 15. Ernest E. Atkinson, ‘‘Hispanic Baptists in Texas: A Glorious and Threatened History.’’ Apuntes: Reflexiones Teológicas desde el Margen Hispano 17, no. 2 (1997): 42. 16. ‘‘History,’’ Baptist University of the Américas website (http://www .bua.edu/history.html).

Appendix C 1. R. Douglas Brackenridge and Francisco García-Treto, Iglesia Presbiteriana: A History of Presbyterians and Mexican Americans in the Southwest, 2nd ed. (San Antonio: Trinity University Press, 1987), 23. 2. Ibid., 90. 3. Ibid., 91. 4. Ibid., 90–91. 5. Committee on Program, Publicity, and Research, Synod’s Council of Texas, Presbyterian Church, U.S., ‘‘Latin American Presbyterian Churches in Texas. A Study Prepared for the Ad Interim Committee on Latin-American Work, Synod of Texas,’’ Austin, TX, 1952, Manuscript, 11, 14. 6. Brackenridge and García-Treto, Iglesia Presbiteriana, 122. See also Presbyterian Church Synod of Red River, U.S., ‘‘Panorama of Mexican American Presbyterian Churches in Texas,’’ in 1975 Minutes, Meeting held in Little Rock, AR, 23–24 September 1975, 68. 7. Brackenridge and García-Treto, Iglesia Presbiteriana, 108. 8. Ibid., 107. 9. Committee on Program, Publicity, and Research, ‘‘Latin American Presbyterian Churches in Texas,’’ 11.

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Torres, Eliseo. The Folk Healer: The Mexican-American Tradition of Curanderismo. Albuquerque: Nieves Press, n.d. Trotter, Robert T., II, and Juan Antonio Chavira. Curanderismo: Mexican American Folk Healing. 2nd ed. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1997. Ventajas Que Resultan de la Borrachera. Mexico City: Alizanza Mexicana de Folletos, n.d. Vernon, Walter N. ‘‘Some Thoughts on the Historic Methodist Mission to Mexican Americans.’’ Photocopy. Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, TX, 1975. Walker, Randi Jones. Protestantism in the Sangre de Cristos: 1850–1920. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1991. Watson, Mary. ‘‘Early History of Lydia Patterson Institute.’’ Nueva Senda 39, no. 3 (1964): 10–15. Weber, David J., ed. Northern Mexico on the Eve of the United States Invasion: Rare Imprints concerning California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. New York: Arno Press, 1976. Weigert, Andrew J., William V. D’Antonio, and Arthur J. Rubel. ‘‘Protestantism and Assimilation among Mexican Americans: An Exploratory Study of Ministers’ Reports.’’ Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 10, no. 3 (1971): 219–232. Weinberg, Meyer. A Chance to Learn: A History of Race and Education in the United States. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977. White, James F. Protestant Worship: Traditions in Transition. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1989. Wollfe, John. ‘‘Anti-Catholicism and Evangelical Identity in Britain and the United States, 1830–1860.’’ In Evangelicalism: Comparative Studies of Popular Protestantism in North America, the British Isles, and Beyond, 1700–1990, edited by Mark A. Noll, David W. Bebbington, and George A. Rawlyk, 179–197. New York: Oxford University Press, 1994. Wright, Robert E. ‘‘Popular and Official Religiosity: A Theoretical Analysis and a Case Study of Laredo-Nuevo Laredo, 1755–1857.’’ PhD diss., Graduate Theological Union, 1992. Young, Carlton R. Companion to the United Methodist Hymnal. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1993. Yohn, Susan M. A Contest of Faiths: Missionary Women and Pluralism in the American Southwest. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1995.

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Index

Page numbers for illustrations are in italics. Agape Memorial United Methodist Church, Dallas, Texas, 82, 111 altarcitos, 23–25. See also home altars American and Foreign Christian Union, 38–39 American Bible Society, 38–39 Americanization. See assimilation American Party, The (The KnowNothing Party), 34–35, 118 American Tract Society, 38, 39, 66–67 Anglo Americans: characteristics of, 9; class differences with Mexican-American Protestants, 114; cultural differences with Mexican-American Protestants, 113–114; view of mission, 137; views of Mexicans and MexicanAmericans, 29, 131, 181n7 anti-Catholicism, 29, 34–39, 84, 115–123, 129; among Baptists, 115, 118–119, 122; and crusading spirit, 139–140; and evangelicalism, 35–36, 180n1; and identity

of los Protestantes, 134–136, 138; among Methodists, 119–121; of Mexicano preachers, 118–119, 207n13; moderation of, 123–126; from 1960s onward, 122–123; in nineteenth-century U.S., 31, 34–36, 117–118; among Presbyterians, 121; with Protestant missionaries, 28, 29–30, 36–37; source of, 116–117; in twentiethcentury U.S., 119–123; waning of, 122–125, 128–129, 136; and worship, 84–85, 120 anti-clericalism, 7, 33, 68, 116 Aranama College, 47 Arguijo, Daniel, 91, 126, 128, 199n44, 208n32 arras, 89, 90 Asbury, Francis, 46 Ash Wednesday, 84, 91, 126 assimilation, 4–6, 7, 99, 134–135, 151, 196nn4,8, 197n12; and cultural preservation, 78, 79, 80, 114, 135, 143; and education, 67–68; effects of, 49; and evan-

234

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

gelism, 69, 131; and League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), 202n65; limits of, 78, 79, 135, 137; motivation for, 118, 130–131; and popular religion, 16, 20, 90; and Protestant missionaries’ concept of mission, 131, 137; and social isolation, 106; and worship, 83 Atencio, Tomás, 74 Austin, Texas, 79, 92, 107, 124, 129, 152, 155, 158, 159 Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, 72, 159, 160 Avila, Reynaldo, 121 Ayers, David, 39 Bacon, L., 33 Bacon, Sumner, 38 Baird, Robert, 35 Baptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT), 3, 59, 60, 102, 141, 142, 153, 154, 155, 156 Baptists, Southern, 39, 43, 153– 154; and biographies of religious leaders, 203n74; Hispanic Southern Baptists and evangelism, 142; Hispanic Southern Baptists and membership statistics; 141– 142, 210–211n7, 212n6; Hispanic Southern Baptists’ enrollment in Texas Baptist higher education institutions, 74; leaders, 203n74; and social reform, 43 Baptist University of the Américas, 156 Barro, Policarpo, 48 Barton, Roy, 52–54, 63, 195– 196n110 Bastrop, Texas, 152, 155 Baylor, R. E. B., 34 Bell, Paul C., 155 Bible, The, 38, 40–41; and Catholic

transformation, 128–129; distribution for evangelization, 38, 39, 56; importance of, in Catholic worship, 130; Spanish-language, 128–129; and testimonies, 89; and theology, 41; use of the Gospels, 33–41 Blair, William C., 47, 157 border: economic, social, and political conquest, 15; transborder reality of Mexican-American Protestants, 82, 140–141, 147– 148; U.S.-Mexico border, 14 borderlands: curanderos/as, 22–23; evangelism along, 56, 70; Protestant missionary work along, 9, 27, 70, 147, 157 Botello, José María, 141, 157 boundaries: coritos and symbolic, 97, 200–201n55; familial, 109; of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, 210n6, 212n5; of the Mexican Border Mission Conference, 3, 140–141; of the Rio Grande Annual Conference, 149, 151, 210n6, 212n5; of Spanish-speaking conferences and missions, 148–149 Brownsville, Texas, 29, 38, 39, 141, 153, 157 Buldain, Félix, 69, 188n28 Butcher, Ella, 42 Campbell, Robert, 158 camp meetings, 31, 44, 46 Carcaño, Minerva, 80–81 Cárdenas, Benigno, 54, 69, 102, 103, 147, 188n28, 203n78 Casanova, José María, 50 Casas, Sabas David, 71 Catholic Church: call for social transformation, 128; Catholic identity, 7; competition with

Index

Protestants, 139–140; Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, 128; ecumenical relations, 122–128, 142; Latin American Bishops Conference, 128; liturgical reform, 128–130; and marginality of Mexican Americans, 130– 134; Mexican-American Catholic clergy, 131–132; MexicanAmericans’ concept of the church, 133; rituals/feast days of Tejanos/as, 20–22; social hymnody, 128; and Vatican II, 115, 122–123, 128–130. See also antiCatholicism; Protestant and Catholic relations Catholicism, as a source of strength, 24, 100. See also Mexican-American popular Catholicism CELAM. See Latin American Bishops Conference Celebremos, 92 Central Texas Presbytery, 158 Chamberlain, Hiram, 157 Chicano/a Movement, 90, 125, 150, 202n61 children: children’s choir at Emanuel UMC, Dallas, Texas, 91; and kindergartens, 156; and Sunday Schools, 60–61. See also education; Náñez, Alfredo; youth Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), 3, 8, 176n5 Christian education, 149; and Alfredo Náñez, 72; and Beatrice Fernández, 58. See also education; Sunday Schools circuit riders, 38 Civil Rights Movement, 125 class: Anglo-American middleclass values, 9; challenging class structures, 43; class and

235

ethnicity, 79–80, 113; class differences between Anglo- and Mexican-American Protestants, 114, 206n108; and conversion to Protestantism, 46; and coritos, 97; decline of Mexican-American upper class in nineteenth century, 15; middle-class Mexican Americans, 79; and popular religion, 17, 20; and Protestant school student bodies, 47–49; upward economic mobility, 77, 79, 82; and worship, 86 Colegio Palmore, 72 colonialism, 19, 135 colportage and colporteurs, 38–41, 56, 157 community, 113; and allegiance to Mexican-American church, 113– 114; coritos, varying view of, 97; discrimination in, 81; disruption during War with Spain, 14; division within, 117; and family, 108– 111; and Hispanic Protestant congregations, 85, 106, 145; identity issues within, 2–3, 5; and intermarriage, 111–112; through kinship, 111–112; Mexican-American Catholic faith communities, 100, 105, 132; regional communities, 107–108, 204n88; and religion as unifying force, 17; and social isolation, 53, 106; socioeconomic influences in, 47; and Sunday School conventions, 107–108; surviving change, 24 community centers, 70, 80, 140, 144, 148, 154. See also Wesley Homes compadrazgo, 21, 109–110 Conferencia Anual del Río Grande, 3. See also Rio Grande Annual Conference

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Conferencia Anual Mexicana del Suroeste (Southwest Mexican Annual Conference), 3, 57, 120, 149 Conferencia Fronteriza Mexicana de la Iglesia Metodista Episcopal del Sur (Mexican Border Missionary Conference, The Methodist Episcopal Church, South), 3, 140–141, 147–148, 161, 168 Congregationalists, 28, 107. See also Rankin, Melinda congregations (Hispanic Protestant), 79; characterizations of, 105–106, 111, 145–146, 197n12; diversity in, 86; and ethnic identity, 80, 85, 138, 143, 145–146, 197n12; and evangelistic emphasis, 100, 107; and family, 80, 90, 111–112; sense of community versus social isolation, 106; and women, 204–205n93 Convención Bautista Mexicana de Texas (Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas): establishment of, 3; merger with the Baptist General Convention of Texas, 3 conversion, 9, 42, 46, 77; and cultural change, 48–49, 54; and family conflict, 49, 51, 52, 115; motivation for, 28; and persecution, 51–52; to Protestantism of Catholic priests, 54, 58, 69; as rejection of Catholicism, 54, 115, 135; and worship, 63; and youth, 53–54, 57. See also evangelism; persecution; Reforma, La; religious literature; revivalism and revivals; Rodríguez, José Policarpo Cook, Mrs. William G. (Angela María de Jesús Navarro), 47 coritos, 83, 92, 93, 94–98, 198n19,

200nn46,54, 200–201n55; class, 97; definition of, 200n54; and dialogical consciousness, 98; indigenization, 97–98; and marginality, 96; and popular religion, 96, 200–201n55; and worldview, 97 Corona, Bert, 99, 107 Costales, Dionisio, 60, 63, 112, 205n102; and Sunday schools, 60; and worship, 63 Crofoot, G. Wendell, 61, 158 Cruzada Bautista Nueva Vida (Latin-American Baptist New Life Crusade, The), 58–59 cultural adaptation, 3, 9, 99, 114, 140, 144–146 cultural integration, 98, 114, 135– 136; and congregational life, 138, 143, 145–146; and worship, 126 cultural preservation, 5–6, 19–20, 24, 78, 96, 99, 114, 138, 196n8; and congregational life, 143, 145–146; at home, 23 curanderos/as and curanderismo, 179–180n32; Jaramillo, Don Pedrito, 23; Urrea, Teresa, 22 Daniel, C. D., 152–153, 155 de Lara, Bernardo Gutiérrez, 13 de las Casas, Juan Bautista, 13 denominationalism, 29–30, 181nn10,11 dialogical consciousness, 79, 98– 100. See also cultural integration Disciples, The. See Christian Church discrimination, 81, 82, 96, 132, 133. See also racism Dresel, Gustav, 31 ecumenism, 130, 142 education: and assimilation, 67–

Index

69; Cruzada Nueva Vida, 58– 60; establishment of Catholic schools, 35; and Hispanic Baptists, 74, 142, 156, 195nn105–108; and Hispanic Methodists, 74, 142; and Hispanic Presbyterians, 142, 157, 160; of MexicanAmerican Protestant clergy, 70–76, 142; in Mexico, 193n81; in nineteenth century, 15, 38, 45; Protestant schools in Texas, 47; with Revivalism, 55–56; seminary education, 75–76; as a strategy for evangelism and assimilation, 27–28, 30, 38, 131; value of, 68, 74–77. See also children; Náñez, Alfredo; Sunday Schools; theological education; vacation church schools; youth; and individual institutions Effie Eddington School, 48 El Buen Pastor Presbyterian Church, 129 El Buen Pastor United Methodist Church, Edinburg, Texas, 81 El Buen Samaritano United Methodist Church, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 67, 106–107, 112, 120 El Divino Redentor Presbyterian Church, San Antonio, Texas, 56 El Heraldo Cristiano, 72, 75, 120, 149 El Paso, Texas, 22, 39, 99, 107, 152 Emanuel United Methodist Church, Dallas, Texas, 84, 91 Escuela de Profetas (School of Prophets), 155 Espino, José, 72, 73–74, 102, 194n95 estribillos. See coritos ethos, 2, 4; of Anglo-American Protestants, 9–10, 27, 28, 138, 139; and assimilation, 78, 138; and conquest, 19; and conversion, 9,

237

45, 54; cultural integration, 135, 143; definition of, 175–176n3; of los Protestantes, 135, 138, 143; of southern Protestants, 40; of Tejano/a (Mexican-American) Catholicism, 8–9, 12, 25 Eucharist (Holy Communion), 26, 92, 120, 126, 167, 208n31 evangelical and evangelicalism: anti-Catholicism, 121–122; and Christianization, 73–74; as distinguished from revivalism, 180n1; hymnody, 66–67; and intellectualism, 73; and José Espino, 73; morality, 41; piety, 66–67; religious literature, 38; and revivalism, 45, 73; southern and northern, 43; worship, 83 evangelism: assimilation, 69, 130– 131; comparison between Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists, 142; Espino, José, 73; along the frontier, 38, 46; González, Josué, 57–58; Guerra, Elodia, 57; Hernández, Rudy, 59–60; and los Protestantes, 33; methods of, 56–57; Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, 58–59, 142, 154; motivation for, 118; Náñez, Alfredo, his view of, 72; objective of, 33; Onderdonk, Frank, 31–32; Rankin, Melinda, 38–39, 157; religious literature, 38–42, 56; revivals, 30, 57–59; Rio Grande Conference, 57, 149– 150; Sáenz, Narciso, 57; Scott, Walter, 58; Sunday Schools, 56, 60–61, 63; Sutherland, Alexander, 31; testimonios, 88; and transformation, 76; worship, 63. See also colportage and colporteurs; education; Sunday Schools; youth camps

238

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faith healers. See curanderos/as family: as archetype of community, 108–111, 205n94; celebration of Mother’s Day, 109–110; compadrazgo, 21, 109–110; identity, 109; kinship, 111–112; MexicanAmerican Catholic piety, 23–25; Mexican-American Protestant congregations, 80, 106, 107, 110– 113; Mexican-American value of, 83, 90; reactions to Protestant conversion, 51, 52, 53; transnational religion, 82; worship, 89–90 Fernández, Beatrice, 58, 61, 158, 191n59 fiesta, 86 Finney, Charles Grandison, 46 First Baptist Church, Austin, Texas, 155 First Baptist Church, San Antonio, Texas, 47 First Baptist (Mexican) Church, Monterey, Mexico, 39 First Mexican Baptist Church, San Antonio, Texas. See Primera Iglesia Bautista Mexicana, San Antonio, Texas First United Methodist Church, Edinburg, Texas, 80–81 Flores, Manuel, 37–38 Fort Worth, Texas, 60, 83, 110, 142, 160 Franco, Vicente, 129–130 free thinkers, 46 friendship rituals, 85–86 frontier religion, 83 Gambrell, Mary, 155 Gámez, Gene, 82 García, Adelina Villareal de, 65 García, Jimmy, 102, 122 García, Matías, C., 65; conversion

of, 63; educational attainment of, 69; and hymn singing, 63 Garza, Minerva, 63, 103, 106 Garza, Oscar F., 46, 85, 120 Gaytan, Francisco, 63, 111 Glimpse at Mexico, A, 36 Gómez, Abel, 30, 32, 120, 124 Gómez, Luis C., 71 Gómez, Roberto, 1, 208n31; as editor of the Rio Grande Record, 123–124; in Protestant liturgical movement, 91–92, 126–128 González, Ambrosio, 41, 147, 185n65 González, Josué, 32; conversion of, 63; education of, 57, 71; and evangelism, 57, 58, 77; and hymn singing, 63; and value of education, 77 González, Juan Orts, 58, 69 González, Justo L., 94, 113, 172 Grado, Pedro, 74, 117, 119 Grado, Rosaura, 74, 117 Guadalupe, Virgen de. See Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe Guerra, Eleazar, 193n83 Guerra, Elodia, 57 Hansen, Walter, 147 Harwood, Emily, 186n72 Harwood, Thomas: and antiCatholicism, 37, 42; and morality, 42; as superintendent in New Mexico Mission, 147; tribute to, 37–38 Head of Christ, 67. See also Portrait of Christ Hernández, Alejo: and conversion, 41, 54, 55; education of, 68; ordination of, 203n79; religious literature, 41; revivalism, 55; veneration of, 103 Hernández, Rudy, 59–60, 102

Index

Hickey, James, 39 Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas. See Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas Hispanic Baptist Theological School (Seminary). See Baptist University of the Américas ‘‘Hispanic Creed, The,’’ 94, 172–173 Holding, Nannie, 181n7, 186n67 Holding Institute, 75, 189 Holy Communion. See Eucharist home altars, 23–25, 103. See also altarcitos House of Neighborly Service, The, 56 hymnody: and Catholic transformation, 128; Celebremos, 92; coritos, 92, 94–98; and cultural change, 66; estrebillos, 83, 87, 92; El Himnario para Uso de las Iglesias Evangélicas de Habla Española en Todo el Mundo, 67; hymn singing, 63, 87, 92; ‘‘Jesús Es Mi Rey Soberano,’’ 78; Latino/a hymnody, 92–98; and Liberation theology, 128; Mendoza, Vicente, 78; and Pentecostalism, 144; and piety, 65–67; Protestant hymnody, 65–67; and revivalism, 63, 67, 94; and Second Vatican Council (Vatican II), 128; Spanish-language hymnals, 66–67, 93, 192nn74,75; Spanish praise hymns, 83. See also coritos; Mendoza, Vicente; music; worship identity, 140: and anti-Catholicism of los Protestantes, 134–136; and the Chicano/a movement, 150; and cultural integration, 98, 136, 138; and dialogical, or dual, consciousness, 98–100; ethnic,

239

79–81, 143; and family, 109; loss vs. oppression, 135; preservation of, 135, 138; and racism, 82; religious, 142; and worship, 84 ideology: appropriation of Protestant, 45; definition of, 187n2; of Manifest Destiny, 28 Iglesia Presbiteriana, 8 Iglesia Presbiteriana Mexicana, Laredo, Texas, 121 Immaculate Conception of Mary, 35 immigrants and immigration, 2; anti-Catholic sentiment among Hispanic Protestant immigrants, 115; anti-Catholic sentiment in the nineteenth century, 34, 117–118; Catholic mission work, 131; and Hispanic congregations, 5, 82, 111, 140; League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), 202; during and after the Mexican Revolution, 7, 15–16, 69, 148; Pentecostal immigrants, 140; Protestant mission work among immigrants, 69–70, 118, 140, 148; transnational character of Hispanic Protestantism, 97–98, 140 indigenization, 4, 116; hymnody, 78, 92–94, 97–98, 128; leadership, 70, 144, 159, 201n61; religious heroes, 105; testimonies, 87; worship, 126 individualism, 33–34, 38, 138 Instituto Wesleyano. See Wesleyan Institute Jaramillo, Don Pedrito, 23 ‘‘Jesús Es Mi Rey Soberano,’’ 10, 78 ‘‘Jesus Is All the World to Me,’’ 9, 45 Juárez, Benito, 116–117

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justice, 16, 116, 128 justice ministry, 150 kindergartens, 56, 148, 154, 156 King, Coretta Scott, 125 Know-Nothing Party, The, 34, 118. See American Party, The Lamy, Jean Baptiste, 17 Lara-Braud, Jorge, 92, 124, 129 Laredo, 33, 121, 125, 152, 178n5, 181n3, 189n35, 194n88 Laredo Seminary, 48 Las Posadas, 84, 90–91, 126 Latin-American Baptist New Life Crusade. See Cruzada Bautista Nueva Vida Latin American Bishops Conference, 128 La Trinidad United Methodist Church, Pharr, Texas, 120 La Trinidad United Methodist Church, San Antonio, Texas, 53, 106; Espino, José, 73; kinship (intermarriage), 112; Rodríguez, Daniel Z., 123 lazo, 90 League of United Latin American Citizens, 202n65 Leland, John, 33 Leos, Jesús, 72–73 liturgical movement, 91 Lydia Patterson Institute, 47; Espino, José, 72; Gaytan, Francisco, 63; graduation, 75; Náñez, Alfredo, 71; theological education, 150; worship, 63 Magee, Augustus W., 13 Maldonado, David, 43, 117, 124–125 MARCHA (Metodistas Asociados Representando la Causa de Hispanoamericanos), 92

marginality, 130; and coritos, 96; of Mexican-American Catholics in their churches, 130–134; of Mexican-American Protestants in their churches, 130–131, 33– 34; and testimonies, 88. See also otherness Marshand, Alexander, 69 Martínez, Antonio José, 18 Martínez, Joel, 93, 103, 200n52 Martínez, Raquel Mora, 93, 93, 200n52 Masons, 49 Matamoros, Mexico, 141, 157 Maverick, Mary A., 20 Máximo Villarreal Book Collection, 161–167 McConnell, F. M., 155 MEC. See Methodist Episcopal Church MECS. See Methodist Episcopal Church, South membership: statistics of Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists, 141–142; statistics of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, 153, 210–211n7; statistics of the Rio Grande Conference, 149; statistics of the Texas-Mexican Presbytery, 160 Mendoza, Vicente, 10, 78, 200n46 Mennonites (Mennonite Church USA), 176n5 merger: consideration of merger of the Rio Grande Conference, 150– 151; dissolution of the TexasMexican Presbytery and merger with other presbyteries, 112, 159–160; of the Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas with the Baptist General Convention of Texas, 3, 142, 154–155 mestizaje, 145; definition of, 179n23

Index

Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC), 37, 41, 54, 60, 69, 112, 116–117, 147, 148–149, 170, 182n18 Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MECS), 29, 30, 39, 47, 49, 52, 68, 72, 103, 118, 147, 148, 149, 161, 182, 201n61 methodology, 8 Mexican-American generation, 99 Mexican-American popular Catholicism, 12–13, 16–17, 19–20, 24, 133, 137–138 Mexican Baptist Bible Institute: in Bastrop, 155; in San Antonio, 155–156 Mexican Baptist Convention of Texas, 3, 58, 142; establishment of, 153; institutional history of, 152–156 Mexican Revolution, The, 15, 69, 148 Mexican Tract Society, 42 Mexico, War of Independence, 13–14 migration, 111; pastors and laity originating from Mexico and Latin America, 97, 140, 143. See also immigrants and immigration; transnational religion Mil Voces para Celebrar, 93 Misión Mexicana de Texas. See also Texas Mexican Mission missionaries: and the Bible, 38– 41; and education, 76–77; and evangelism, 76; Protestant, 28– 29, 76–77; and revivalism, 76. See also names of individual missionaries missionary enterprise, the, 27, 28, 181n11 Molina, Moisés, 91 morality, 41–43, 47–48 Mother’s Day, 83, 109–110, 198– 199n14

241

Moye, John L., 155 music: indigenization in worship, 92; influences, 98; instrumentation, 65–66, 83, 91, 98; MexicanAmerican Protestant, 63, 65; Protestant hymnody, 65. See also hymnody; worship Náñez, Alfredo, 32, 61, 120: biography of, 70–72; and Christian education, 72; and conversion, 52–53, 68; education of, 68–71; and evangelism, 72; and Frank Onderdonk, 32, 70; leadership development, 71, 149; Lydia Patterson Institute, 71; Perkins School of Theology, 71; secretary of education, the Rio Grande Conference, 71; and Southwestern University, 70, 75; value of education, 74; and worship, 85 Náñez, Clotilde, 74, 103, 104, 119 Náñez, William, 74 nativism, 118 Navarro, Angela María de Jesús. See Cook, Mrs. William G. Navarro, José Antonio, 14, 47, 187n4 Nazarenes (Church of the Nazarene), 176n5 Nicholson, Enoch, 41, 147 Nieto, Leo, 125, 126, 127 Noches con los Romanistas, 41 Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe: apparition, 19; feast day of, 20; and home altars, 23–24; included in Protestantism, 92; as intermediary, 25; and piety, 45, 124 Odin, Jean Marie (bishop), 17, 20 Olivares (priest), 121 Onderdonk, Frank, 31,32, 36, 182–

242

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

183n20; colporteur, 39; evangelism, 31–32, 55; A Glimpse at Mexico, 36–37; and Náñez, Alfredo, 70; revivalism, 33, 55 O’Neill, William Bernardo, 119 ‘‘Onward Christian Soldiers’’, 9, 27 otherness, 99, 130–131, 195– 196n110. See also marginality Our Country, 36, 118 Our Lady of Guadalupe. See Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe padrinos/as, 21, 80, 90, 133, 199n95. See also compadrazgo paternalism, 74, 76, 102–103 Penitentes, 17 Pentecostalism and pentecostals, 140, 143, 144–146 Peralta, New Mexico, 41, 42, 14 Perea, José Inéz, 68 Pérez, B. C., 153 Perkins School of Theology, 70–71, 150 persecution: and conversion, 51– 52, 117 pietism, 66, 73 piety: of Hispanic Catholics and evangelicals, 100–101; of Mexican-American Catholics, 124; and Mother’s Day, 109, 110; Tejano/a, 25 Pius IX (pope), 35 Poor People’s March, 125 popular Catholicism. See MexicanAmerican popular Catholicism popular religion, 16–17; coritos, 94–98; las Posadas, 90–91; quinceañera, 90; testimonies, 89; wedding ceremonies, 89–90. See also altarcitos Portrait of Christ, 120. See also Head of Christ Post, Donald, 43, 81

Powell, William, 141, 152 Pratt, Henry B., 194n88 preaching, 33; anti-Catholic content, 116, 129–130; Bible as the source of preaching, 40; by circuit riders, 38; for conversion, 41, 46, 63; by early missionaries, 56; and intellectual discussion, 72; Mexican-American preaching, 83; Pentecostal, 144; and revivalism, 30–31; and revivals, 58, 83, 141 Presbyterian Pan-American School, 160 Presbyterian School for Mexican Girls, 160 Presbytery of the State of Tamaulipas, 141, 157 Primera Iglesia Bautista Mexicana, San Antonio, Texas, 48; conversion of Matías García, 69; establishment of, 141, 152; hymn singing, 63 printing presses, 18, 40, 148 Privilege Creek, Texas, 49, 50, 51, 53 Protestant and Catholic relations: common values, 100–101; competition for loyalty of Spanishspeaking persons, 139; conflict between, 121–122, 139–140; cooperative relations between Hispanic Protestant ministers and Catholic priests, 123–125; crusading spirit of Mexicano preachers, 118–119; ecumenical relations, 128–129, 130; between Hispanic Protestant ministers and Catholic priests, 92, 119, 121–122; between Mexican and Mexican-American Catholics and Protestants, 112, 118–120; source of conflict, 117; violence against Hispanic Protestants, 117

Index

Protestantism (Anglo-American): anti-Catholicism, 34–35; characteristics of, 9, 26–30; conversion from Catholicism, 46–47; education, 76–77; evangelicalism, 27–28, 36; future in, 143–146; individualism, 33–34; Puritanism, 27–28; revivalism, 27, 29, 76–77; and support for assimilation, 137–138, 140; voluntary principle, 33; worldview, 28; worship, 197n13 Protestantism in the Sangre de Cristos, 1850–1920, 8 Quanta Cura, 35 quinceañera, 90–91, 126, 136 racism, 80–82, 113, 131–134, 178n13, 195–196n110, 209n44. See also discrimination Ramos, Frank, 42 Rankin, Melinda, 29, 38–39, 157 Recovering the U.S. Hispanic Literary Heritage, 161 Reforma, La (Reform Laws), 46, 68 relatedness and relationships, 101 Religion in America, 35 Religious Dimension in Hispanic Los Angeles, The, 8 religious freedom, 33, 73–74 religious literature, 38–42; antiCatholic, 121, 185–186n66; Course of Study Readings for Ordination for Spanish-speaking Methodists, 168–171; distribution of, 44, 56; of Methodists, 150; production of, 40. See also Máximo Villarreal Book Collection religious pluralism, 10, 139 Republic of Texas, 14–15, 38, 47; Texas Revolt, 14, 15

243

revivalism and revivals, 27, 29, 31, 45, 55, 177n12; characteristics of, 180n1; convergence with education, 73–76; definition of, 181– 182n12; as distinguished from evangelicalism, 180n1; and evangelicalism, 45; and the frontier, 46; and Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas, 55–56; and hymnody, 66–67; and Lay Witness Movement, 58; and preaching, 30–31; San Antonio para Cristo Baptist crusade, 59; and worship, 63 Reyes, Albert, 156 Rio Grande Annual Conference, 39, 57–58, 143; dates of existence, 3; institutional history of, 147–151 Rio Grande Female Institute, 157 Ríos, Jesús, 81 Rodríguez, Amado, 74 Rodríguez, Daniel Z., 112, 123–124 Rodríguez, José Policarpo (Polly), 102; and conversion, 49–53, 55; commemoration of, 103; and Sarah Soto Zajicek, 74 Rodríguez, Luís, 103 Rodríguez, María, 53–54 Rosas, Carlos, 94, 128 Sáenz, Narciso, 57, 71, 189–190n41 saints: and festivals, 20–21; images, 24, 26, 50; as intercessors, 22, 25, 125–126; Mexican-American Protestants’ cult of saints, 101– 105, 203nn74,78; patron saints, 16; Protestant appreciation of, 92; San Antonio, 16; San Martin de Porres, 125–126; women and cult of saints (religious heroes), 103–105 Salpointe, Jean Baptist, 17

244

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

Saltillo, Mexico, 141 San Antonio, Texas, 141, 155, 160; festivals of saints, 19–20; House of Neighborly Service, 21; independence from Mexico, 14; independence from Spain, 13– 14; Know-Nothings, 34; patron saint, 16; popular religious influence, 19 San Antonio Association (Baptist), 39, 155 Sánchez, Rudy, 122, 142 San Fernando Cathedral, San Antonio, Texas, 123, 130 San Marcos, Texas, 74, 141, 157, 158 San Martín de Porres, 125, 126 Santa Julia Catholic Church, Austin, Texas, 124 Santillán Baert, María Luisa, 84–87, 91 School of Theology at Southern Methodist University. See Perkins School of Theology Scott, Walter, 58, 158 segregation, 79, 80, 82, 113 Seguín, Juan Nepomuceno, 14 Seguin, Texas, 74, 117 Smith, Walter, 43, 81 social ministry: and Baptists, 154; and Presbyterians, 56 social reform, 30, 43–44, 140 Soledad Street Church, San Antonio, Texas, 47 ‘‘Somos Uno en Espíritu,’’ 10 Soto, Basilio, 74, 203n73 Soto, Felix E., 32 Southern Methodist University, 69, 70, 71 Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 156 Southwestern University, 31, 75; Náñez, Alfredo, 70, 75; Rodrí-

guez, Amado, 74; worship, 198n19 Southwest Mexican Conference, 120 spirituality. See piety Strong, Josiah, 35, 36, 118 Sunday Schools, 56, 58, 60–64, 106–108, 154, 158, 190n54 Sutherland, Alexander H., 29, 31, 36, 37, 39, 147, 148, 182n20 ‘‘Syllabus of Errors,’’ 35 Tafolla, Santiago, 37, 49–51, 102; and conversion, 55; education of, 68 Tejano/a Catholicism. See Mexican-American popular Catholicism temperance and the temperance movement, 41, 42, 186n69; Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU), 42, 186n72 testimonies (testimonios), 46, 83, 85, 87–89, 198n19; and the Bible, 89; and marginalization, 88; and Mother’s Day, 109; and popular religion, 89; purposes of, 88; and women, 88; and worship on the frontier, 197n13 Texas Christian Advocate, 37 Texas Conference of Churches, 130 Texas Council of Churches. See Texas Conference of Churches Texas Mexican Conference, 32 Texas-Mexican Industrial Institute, 160 Texas Mexican Mission, 42. See also Misión Mexicana de Texas Texas-Mexican Presbytery: dates of existence, 3; establishment of, 158; institutional history of, 157–160 theological education: and assimi-

Index

lation, 75; Catholic theological education of some Hispanic Protestant clergy, 69; Course of Study Readings for Ordination for Spanish-speaking Methodists, 168–171; and discrimination, 75; for Hispanic Baptists, 74, 142, 153, 154, 155–156; —, Baptist University of the Américas, 156; —, Bell, Paul C., 155; —, Daniel, Charles D., 155; —, Escuela de Profetas (School of Prophets), 155; —, Gambrell, Mary, 155; —, Hispanic Baptist Theological Seminary, 156; —, Mexican Baptist Bible Institute, 155–156, 195n107; —, Mexican Baptist Bible Institute in Bastrop, 155; —, Mexican Bible Institutes, 155; —, Moye, John L., 155; —, Reyes, Albert, 156; —, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, 156; for Hispanic Methodists, 30, 31, 70–71, 149, 150; —, Lydia Patterson Institute, 150; —, and Nánez, Alfredo, 70, 71; —, Perkins School of Theology, 71, 150; —, Wesleyan Institute, 70, 71, 150; for Hispanic Presbyterians, 72; —, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, 72, 160; —, Bible Training School for Christian Workers, 194n88; —, of Leos, Jesús, 72–73; —, Pratt, Henry B., 194n88; —, Spanish Department of Austin Seminary, 160; and inter-ethnic relations, 75–76. See also education; Máximo Villarreal Book Collection; and individual names and institutions theology: emphasis on the Bible, 41; Liberation theology, 128; re-

245

flected in music, 66, 78, 95–97, 128; Wesleyan, 66; within fiesta, 86–87 Third Plenary Council of Baltimore, 35 Thompson, P. (Robert Payne), 39, 147 transnational religion, 82, 140–141, 143 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, 15, 122 Trinity University, 150 United Methodist Book of Worship and Las Posadas, 91 University of Texas at Austin, 73, 74 Urrea, Teresa, 22 U.S.-Mexican War, 15 vacation church schools, 58, 81 Valley Baptist Academy, 156 Vatican II, 122, 136; and the Bible, 128, 130; and ecumenical relations, 129; and worship, 128, 129–130 Villa, Pancho, 47 Villarreal, Máximo, 161 Virgen de Guadalupe. See Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe visual arts, 67, 120 voluntary principle, 29–30, 33 Watson, Mary, 47 wedding ceremonies, 89–90 Wesley, Charles, 66 Wesley, John, 30–31, 66 Wesleyan Institute, 70–71, 150 Wesley Homes, 148. See also community centers Western Texas Presbytery, 157 Westrup, John O., 152 Westrup, Thomas, 152

246

Hispanic Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists in Texas

West Texas Conference, 148, 211n2 women: and cult of saints (religious heroes), 103–105; in leadership, 103; Mother’s Day, 109, 110; organization of, 149; and religious roles, 204–205n93; and testimonies, 88 worldview: of Anglo-American Protestants, 28, 137–138; definition of, 175–176n3; of Latino/a Protestants, 97, 126, 135, 138, 143; of Mexican-American Catholicism, 12, 21–22, 25–26; of southern Protestants, 40 worship: altar call, 63; in AngloAmerican worship, 113–114, 197n13; and anti-Catholicism, 84–85, 120–121; Ash Wednesday worship service, 91, 126; and cultural integration, 126; in Dallas/Fort Worth, 83; ecumenical worship, 123, 125; at Emanuel UMC, Dallas, Texas, 91; Eucharist in, 92; evangelistic services, 63; as fiesta and celebration, 86– 87; Holy Communion, 126; and

identity, 84; and indigenization, 92; Las Posadas, 90–91, 126; and the liturgical movement, 91, 126, 128; in the lower Rio Grande Valley, 83; Mexican-American Protestant, 83–92, 198nn19, 23, 208n31; and Mother’s Day, 109– 110; and musical instruments, 65–66, 91; and music/hymns, 63, 87, 91, 92; in New Mexico, 83; in northwest Texas, 83; and Pentecostalism, 144; with Protestant ministers and Catholic priests, 92; quinceañera, 90, 126; and revivalism, 63; and Second Vatican Council (Vatican II), 128; use of Spanish, 105–106; wedding ceremonies, 89–90. See also hymnody; music young adults, 57–58, 60, 149 youth: 57–58, 63, 71, 108, 149, 189n35 Zajicek, Sarita Soto, 74