Who Knew?

By Carrie Saathoff

Who knew that our very own Missional Presbyter Tracy Keenan, who served as a Presbyterian pastor for 31 years before arriving at New Castle Presbytery, is actually…..Pentacostal?! That’s right. We witnessed it with our very own eyes last night when she preached at Jesus es El Camino (Jesus is the Way), the church of our good friend, partner, and incredible interpreter Pastor Emerson Morales. Tracy may be Presbyterian on paper, but there is no doubt she is Pentecostal at heart.

Sitting in the first three rows, it took a few minutes for our “frozen chosen” Presbyterian bodies to thaw out a bit, but once the praise band started playing, we followed the lead of the regulars in the pews and really got into it with some clapping, swaying, and – dare we say – borderline dancing. Showing us how it is really done, Tracy took the stage to preach. Her usual animated self took on a whole other persona as she bounced around the stage, engaging the congregation with her inspirational message about love, hope and the importance of church community. It didn’t take long before she had us all responding to her sermon with outbursts of “Amen!,” enthusiastic applause, and lots of laughter. The entire sanctuary was bursting at the seams with energy – 100% Pentacostal. See for yourself in the video below:

Jesus es El Camino (JEEC) is located just outside of Guatemala City in a “red zone” plagued by poverty, violence, drugs and gangs. Members of this church attend worship five evenings a week plus Sunday morning, support and love each other like an extended family, and offer a safe haven for the youth who live nearby with an after-school program that serves 350 young kids. 

Last year, JEEC partnered with CEDEPCA and PC(USA) to start the Utz Pan bakery project. You may remember hearing about this project when we visited last year. If you gave an offering to One Great Hour of Sharing during Lent, then you supported this initiative. With a grant from PC(USA)’s Self Development of People program, the church was able to purchase a mixer, ovens, work tables and all the supplies six young adults needed to start their very own bakery. These aspiring bakers are learning a new skill and earning income to help support their families and continue their education.

The impressive members of Utz Pan welcomed us again this year, served us amazing pastries, hot chocolate and a full Guatemalan dinner before worship. They also shared a video and presentation about the four-day “field trip” they took in November to visit two bakeries located five hours away in Xela.

Sponsored by Westminster Presbyterian Church (Wilmington, DE) and New Castle Presbytery, this once-in-a-lifetime experience offered these young adults a chance to learn more about the bakery business, showcased the incredible beauty and history of their country, and strengthened friendships – both old and new.

After the trip, we will share a full article about this trip, complete with a link to the highlights video the youth made. There are just so many good things happening in Guatemala these days, we have to space out our articles so you don’t get overwhelmed!

Rolling back to the hotel at nearly 10pm last night, we were exhausted but jazzed. Don’t be surprised if we have a little more pep in our step when you see us back in worship at our home churches. I’m quite sure we are all a little more Pentacostal than we were 24 hours ago.