English

WELCOME!

Welcome to the "Comunidad de las Naciones" (Community of Nations) home page. Comunidad is a latino church in Charlotte, North Carolina; it is a ministry of St. Giles Presbyterian Church. Together, we are discovering what it means to be multi-ethnic and to open our arms and hearts to those around us.

While Comunidad is a latino church, it is our desire to be cross-cultural. We need to learn tol ive together as those redeemed from out of every kindred, and tongue, and people and nation. We need to learn to live together in the Kingdom of God; after all, we're going to be together for eternity.

Our services are conducted in Spanish, but we provide simultaneous translation into English, and translation sheets for the worship songs. We sing many of the same songs being sung today in anglo churches, but in another language, so you will feel right at home here.

While we may come from different cultures and speak different languages, we share in common that greatest of all Gifts, the Lord Jesus Christ. He alone is our identity and in Him all men are brothers. In Him there is neither Jew nor Greek, male nor female, bond nor free, black nor white, anglo or latino. We all speak that language of Love which transcends our native tongues and binds us together. Man and God at table have sat down, and we sit at table with those from different lands in the common fellowship which is ours in Christ. We are privileged above all people to be joint heirs with our latino brothers and sisters.

 

History

Comunidad was planted in April of 2004 when the Session of St. Giles felt very strongly the leading of the Lord to establish a latino church plant. Charlotte is a major center of latino immigration in the U.S, and St. Giles is situated in the heart of the latino population explosion here.

Alejandro (Ale) Ruz came from Chile with his family to pastor the church. Ale is a church planter from Santiago, Chile. He planted a Vineyard church in Asunción, Paraguay, in 1994, then returned to Chile as an assistant pastor. Upon arriving here in Charlotte he very quickly endeared himself and his family to everyone in St. Giles.

Ale returned to Chile in June of 2009 to plant a church in his home town of Santiago. Before he left he asked Nick Bowen, a bilingual member of St. Giles who was active in the latino church plant from the very beginning, to be the new pastor. Nick was approved by the Session (the church board) and he and his wife Pat now pastor the church.

Comunidad meets on the St. Giles property in the Fellowship Hall at the same times as St. Giles meets in the Sanctuary. It has it's own congregation, worship team, children's ministry, discipleship groups, prayer meeting, and functions. All functions are conducted in Spanish but there is simultaneous translation for each part of the service including the songs, so English speakers can understand and participate in the entire meeting. The worship style is the same in both churches and we sing a lot of the same songs, only in different languages.

Life Together

Latino immigration is a hot political button these days. But we are not the government, we are the church of the Lord Jesus Christ with a mandate to care for those who are less fortunate than we are. Did it matter to Jesus that the woman at the well was a Samaritan? Our testimony is "And the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob." (Isaiah 14:1). Our calling is "For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us." (Ephesians 2:14). Our opportunity is "The sons of strangers shall build up thy walls." (Isaiah 60:10). We can receive much from those that have joined themselves with us; they can minister to us in the Spirit because they are entering in.

The Lord will not judge us for how we have voted. He will want to know how we treated the stranger in our midst.

Navigating This Site

Here are some helpful hints for getting around in our web site:

Calendar

The calendar begins with Sunday (as well it should!) The letters stand for the days of the week in Spanish, and "D" is for "Domingo" (Sunday).

Invite a friend to visit this church, anglo or latino, by clicking on "Invitación Electrónico" (e-Invite). 

Vocab

Here's a little vocab to help find your way around here:

INICIO =               HOME PAGE
QUIENES SOMOS = WHO WE ARE
EVENTOS =             EVENTS
RECURSOS =          RESOURCES
ENLACES =             LINKS
CONTACTANOS =    CONTACT US