ABWE - Association of Baptists for World Evangelism

Date Entered: 1978

Major Ministries: Church Planting

The Argentine Republic experienced varied political leadership following its independence from Spain in the nineteenth century. The facist-style government of Juan and Evita Peron in the1940s was followed by a series of military dictators until the government reverted to a parliamentary democracy in 1982.

Rampant inflation followed hard on the heels of the nation’s turbulent politics. However, a new monetary system and government spending cuts heralded the beginning of an economy that has grown and stabilized since the late 1980s.

Argentina contributes substantially to the character of the entire South American continent. Second only to Brazil in size, its large land mass divides naturally into three topographical and climatic areas.

These three sections spread over an area four times the size of Texas. From the tropical, heavily forested Gran Chaco in the north, through the temperate, treeless Pampas in the central region, to the bleak and arid Patagonia in the south, Argentina certainly offers distinctive variety.

Over one-third of the Argentine population lives in or near the capital city of Buenos Aires. Following Spanish colonization, the residual Indian population occupied the border areas of the country while European immigrants spurred modernization, making Argentina one of the most industrialized of the major Latin American nations. Argentina’s cattle production and grain export is second only to that of the United States.

In the fall of 1977, an ABWE survey team answered an invitation to study this attractive country with its progressive citizens. The team members saw the capital city suburbs as a church planter’s paradise, heard the cordial welcome of the nationals, and sensed the need for an aggressive New Testament program of evangelism.

In 1978 two veteran missionary couples began ABWE’s ministry in this new field. In recent years God has formed a team of missionaries now engaged in evangelism, discipleship and church planting.

The training of nationals holds a high priority. Argentine youth respond beautifully to the challenge of education and the opportunities for leadership in an indigenous church ministry.

Since the early days of ABWE’s involvement in Argentina, missionaries and national Christian leaders have teamed up to implement a program that will multiply churches in the large city of Buenos Aires. New missionary couples are needed to meet the challenge of building upon that base.