Revival Surges in Argentina
By Editorial Staff
Published May 1989
Imagine a revival so big that the number of charismatics and Pentecostals in a country triple in five years, with the result that it is a problem for churches to find buildings large enough to meet in.
Imagine thousands of people attending open-air meetings every night of the week in large cities. Meetings where miracle healings are commonplace in every service; where one of the best-known evangelists is a businessman who has been a Christian only 10 years.
Sound incredible? This describes Argentina, a nation of 30 million people in South America that until now has been slow to accept the gospel message.
“Argentina is in the throes of an absolute sovereign revival unheard of in the history of that country,” says J. Philip Hogan, executive director of the Division of Foreign Missions of the Assemblies of God, who has visited Argentina many times. “I know of churches where they have taken the seats out so they can pack more people in.”
Here’s what’s happening in Argentina: Once considered a prosperous country (Buenos Aires, the capital, had a modern subway system 50 years ago), the nation has been beset by economic and political woes for many years.
The nation is Roman Catholic (the constitution requires the country’s president to be Roman Catholic), but only a small percentage of the population is active in the church. Many Roman Catholics in the nation are involved in superstition and extreme Marian devotion.
In 1982, Argentina suffered a national embarrassment by losing the Falkland Island War (they call it the Malvinos Way) to Great Britain. Because Roman Catholic officials predicted victory for Argentina, and because many terrorists were trained in Catholic schools, many Argentines became disillusioned with the Catholic Church and have been more open to the gospel message in evangelical and Pentecostal churches.
At the same time, two things happened in the church:
- Evangelical Christians, who despite their common opposition to Roman Catholicism had a history of bickering among themselves, became unified and the dissension is largely ended.
“One of the blessings we have in Argentina is that many barriers are breaking down,” says Carlos G. Kennedy from Buenos Aires, who is with the Plymouth Brethren. “We’re not interested in arguing doctrine. We’re interested in changed lives, holiness, commitment and serving the Lord.”
- Miracle healings and deliverance from demons have become very common in churches, and it has been the miracles and the power that have drawn the unconverted.
It was this interest in the healing ministry that led well-known evangelists Charles and Frances Hunter to hold crusades in Argentina. On their first visit last July (winter in Argentina), more than 30,000 attended a meeting in Buenos Aires and 17,000 attended meetings in Rosario. More recently, more than 15,000 gathered in a large plaza in an affluent part of Buenos Aires this January to hear Charles and Frances minister on “How to Heal the Sick.”
In that service, after Charles Hunter ministered the baptism of the Holy Spirit to approximately one-third of those in attendance, miracles began happening spontaneously throughout the crowd, even before the Hunters had planned to move into the miracle part of the service. Trained workers began ministering to people who were healed.
Last December, John and Anne Gimenez, co-pastors of Rock Church in Virginia Beach, Virginia, visited Argentina and were impressed with the ministry of Hector Giminez (no relation). Giminez has a unique ministry in Buenos Aires where he is referred to by some as the “Nicky Cruz of Argentina.”
No accurate surveys have been taken of the number of new Christians. Yet several church leaders interviewed in Argentina said the total number of evangelicals is near three million – about one-tenth of the population. This is about three times the number of evangelicals when the revival broke out early in this decade. Of this number about 60 percent are Pentecostal or charismatic.
Even with the outstanding miracles, the growth of the churches and the obvious signs of revival, not everyone in Argentina believes a full revival is underway. Says Carlos Kennedy from Buenos Aires, “We believe we are only on the verge of a revival,” adding that the best is yet to come.
Forerunner - Home » The Forerunner Newspaper » Latin America
Your comments are welcome!
Go Stand Speak (DVD)
With “preaching to the lost” being such a basic foundation of Christianity, why do many in the church seem to be apathetic on this issue of preaching in highways and byways of towns and cities?
Is it biblical to stand in the public places of the world and proclaim the gospel, regardless if people want to hear it or not?
Does the Bible really call church pastors, leaders and evangelists to proclaim the gospel in the public square as part of obedience to the Great Commission, or is public preaching something that is outdated and not applicable for our day and age?
These any many other questions are answered in this documentary.
$19.95 — ORDER NOW!
(We accept all major credit cards and PayPal.)Click here for more information
A Revival Account: Asbury 1970 (DVD)
What is true Revival and Spiritual Awakening?
Discover the answer in this eyewitness account by Dennis Kinlaw, President of Asbury College, Wilmore, Kentucky, who recounts the story of a visitation of the Holy Spirit in 1970. This is the presentation that has continued to spark the flames of Revival in the hearts of people around the world. Contains eyewitness footage from the Revival at Asbury College in 1970 in Wilmore, Kentucky.
Certain to challenge you to greater holiness and a deeper commitment to full-scale revival. Original news and private footage has been included. If you are a student who longs to see a spiritual awakening at your school, you must see this video!
“This simple video does a wonderful job of conveying something of God’s heart and power, Everyone we have ever shown this to has received an immediate impartation of faith for revival and the power of prayer.”
— Bob and Rose Weiner, Weiner Ministries Int’l
Running Time: 40 minutes
$19.95 — ORDER NOW!
(We accept all major credit cards and PayPal.)Click here for more information
Amazing Grace: The History and Theology of Calvinism (DVD)
Download the Free Study Guide!
Just what is Calvinism?
Does this teaching make man a deterministic robot and God the author of sin? What about free will? If the church accepts Calvinism, won’t evangelism be stifled, perhaps even extinguished? How can we balance God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility? What are the differences between historic Calvinism and hyper-Calvinism? Why did men like Augustine, Luther, Calvin, Spurgeon, Whitefield, Edwards and a host of renowned Protestant evangelists embrace the teaching of predestination and election and deny free will theology?
This is the first video documentary that answers these and other related questions. Hosted by Eric Holmberg, this fascinating three-part, four-hour presentation is detailed enough so as to not gloss over the controversy. At the same time, it is broken up into ten “Sunday-school-sized” sections to make the rich content manageable and accessible for the average viewer.
Running Time: 257 minutes
$19.95 — ORDER NOW!
(We accept all major credit cards and PayPal.)Click here for more information
Reversing Roe: The Norma McCorvey Story (DVD)
In 1969, a pregnant 21 year old Norma McCorvey felt abortion was her only answer. He case was used to challenge the Texas abortion law and she eventually became the Jane Roe of the 1973 US Supreme Court decision, Roe v Wade. She never had an abortion, but instead became an icon in the national abortion debate. For 22 years, Norma McCorvey’s life was a battlefield. She worked inside abortion clinics. She promoted legalized abortion. But she was tormented by what she saw and felt. In the summer of 1995, her life changed forever.
Through the friendship of a pro-life leader and a special invitation from a 7-year old child, Jane Roe finally died so Norma Leah McCorvey could live. This is her story.
Running Time: 28 minutes
Watch a clip from Reversing Roe.
$19.95 — ORDER NOW!
(We accept all major credit cards and PayPal.)Click here for more information
The Four Keys to the Millennium (Book)
Foundations in Biblical Eschatology
By Jay Rogers, Larry Waugh, Rodney Stortz, Joseph Meiring. High quality paperback, 167 pages.
All Christians believe that their great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will one day return. Although we cannot know the exact time of His return, what exactly did Jesus mean when he spoke of the signs of His coming (Mat. 24)? How are we to interpret the prophecies in Isaiah regarding the time when “the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Isa. 11:19)? Should we expect a time of great tribulation and apostasy or revival and reformation before the Lord returns? Is the devil bound now, and are the saints reigning with Christ? Did you know that there are four hermeneutical approaches to the book of Daniel and Revelation?
These and many more questions are dealt with by four authors as they present the four views on the millennium. Each view is then critiqued by the other three authors.
$9.95 — ORDER NOW!
(We accept all major credit cards and PayPal.)
I was interested to read how the group is progressing.
Posted by A.J.Robotham on 10/22/2011 12:07 PM #