LATIN AMERICAN SOCIO-RELIGIOUS STUDIES PROGRAM

(PROLADES)

A BRIEF HISTORY OF

THE TWELVE LARGEST

PROTESTANT DENOMINATIONS IN

COSTA RICA, 1890-2000

(Updated to March, 2000: Last Revised on August 22, 2008)

By Clifton L. Holland

PROLADES
Apartado 1524-2050
San Pedro, Costa Rica
(506) 2283-8300
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet: www.prolades.com
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 A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE TWELVE LARGEST

PROTESTANT DENOMINATIONS IN COSTA RICA, 1890-2000

In 1980-1981 the author returned to Pasadena, California, from his home and ministry in
Costa Rica, where he had served as a missionary with the Latin America Mission since
1972, and began doctoral studies at the School of World Mission at Fuller Theological
Seminary. His doctoral dissertation, written in English, was on "A History of the
Protestant Movement in Central America, 1880-1980." The present report is an update
based on his chapter on Costa Rica, which originally only included historical profiles of
Protestant denominations with more than 1,000 members in 1978.

In historical perspective, eleven church planting organizations initiated work in Costa

Rica prior to 1940, eleven more in the period 1940-1960, and 20 between 1960 and 1980.
Obviously, it was the latter period that witnessed the greatest amount of new activity
among Protestant mission agencies and this contributed to accelerated church growth in
Costa Rica, both numerically in terms church members and geographically in terms of
the planting of new churches and missions throughout the country.

By 1978, the largest Protestant denominations in Costa Rica were the following in terms
of the number of congregations (churches and missions) and the estimated
communicant membership (Holland, 1981:50):

DATE NUMBER NUMBER

RANK NAME OF DENOMINATION
FOUNDED CONG. MEMBERS
1 SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH 1897 47 5,700
2 ASSEMBLIES OF GOD 1944 120 4,900
3 ASSOC. OF BIBLE CHURCHES (LAM) 1921 62 3,984
4 BIBLE BAPTIST CHURCHES 1958 7 2,950
5 FOURSQUARE CHURCH 1953 31 2,900
6 BAPTIST CONVENTION (SO. BAPT.) 1944 39 2,260
7 CHURCH OF GOD (CLEVELAND, TN) 1937 66 2,100
8 PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH 1896 17 2,049
CENTRAL AMERICAN CHURCHES
9 1891 60 1,500
(CAM)
10 UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 1917 24 1,395
11 PENTECOSTAL CHURCH OF GOD 1970 14 1,200
12 PENTECOSTAL HOLINESS CHURCH 1918 26 1,100
TOTALS 513 32,038

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These 12 denominations had 71% of the total number of congregations (churches and
missions) that were reported to exist in Costa Rica in 1978, and 72% of the total
members reported.

In order to update the information on these denominations for the period 1980-2000, the
author used a variety of sources, which are listed at the end of this study. In addition, a
number of new denominations were added to the original study; either the new groups
did not exist prior to 1980, or they were too small to be included in the original study
because they had less than 1,000 baptized members at that time.

The intent of this brief historical survey is to provide the reader with basic information
about the twelve largest Protestant denominations known to exist in Costa Rica as of
March 2000, and to encourage others to expand these profiles and update them so that
we all may have a more accurate picture of the origin, growth and development of the
larger denominations in our midst. Also, it is important that we analyze the growth of
these denominations in order to learn more about the way religious groups develop in
the Costa Rican context. The growth of baptized members in each of these denomi-
nations is not the only valid measurement of "church growth," but it does provide us
with one important criterion for doing a comparative analysis by decades to better
understand the growth patterns of the major denominations.

Hopefully, we can learn some important lessons from this brief study that well help us
in the process of strategic planning as we work to further the Gospel of Jesus Christ in
Costa Rica in faithfulness to the Great Commission.

PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH (1896)

The Anglican Church was one of the first Protestant Churches to begin work in Central
America and Panama (originally part of Colombia): the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist
was established in Belize City in 1815, and the Cathedral of Christ-by-the-Sea was
established in the Port of Colón, Colombia (now Panama) in 1857 (check date).
However, Anglican chaplains had accompanied British ships to Central American
ports-of-call since the 1740s, where several trading posts were established between 1750
and 1800. But it was not until the 1890s that Anglican missionary work began in Costa
Rica, although an Anglican chapel had been constructed at Greytown, Nicaragua in the
1850s, at the mouth of the San Juan River that forms the natural border between
Nicaragua and Costa Rica.

In 1896, Bishop Ormsby of the Diocese of British Honduras, visited Costa Rica and
established Anglican worship in the country for the first time, according to Nelson
(1963:78). Ormsby visited Port Limón and San José, where he was invited to send an
Anglican priest to serve as pastor of the Church of the Good Shepherd -- an
interdenominational congregation founded in San José in 1848 to serve the growing

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Protestant community, largely composed of foreign residents -- and to send
missionaries to Port Limón, where he found many West Indians of the Anglican Faith.

After Ormsby's return to Belize City, he arranged for the Rev. H. Alberto Ansell from
Jamaica to relocate to Port Limón; Ansell arrived in Costa Rica in May of 1896 and
established the Anglican Church in Limón, where Anglicanism prospered, according to
Nelson (1963:79). On April 28, 1898, the foundation stone was laid for St. Marks Church
in Limón, and the new building was dedicated on November 13 of that year. From
Limón, Anglican work expanded among the settlements of West Indians along the
Caribbean coast and along the railroad lines that had been built during the 1870s-1880s.
The railroad was constructed under the supervision of two North American engineers,
Henry Meiggs and Minor Keith, and was completed in December of 1890. After its
completion, Keith and others formed the infamous United Fruit Company (referred to
by Costa Ricans as "Mamita Uni") that developed the banana industry along the
Caribbean coast, which required the importation of thousands of experienced banana
workers from the English-speaking West Indies (former British colonies), many of
whom were Anglicans, Baptists and Methodists.

Of the 15,118 Negroes in Costa Rica in 1950, about 91% of them were living along the
Caribbean coast of the Province of Limón, where they formed about 33% of the
population. This coastal area was a steaming jungle when the railroad was built and the
Afro-Caribbean peoples arrived to clear the land, plant the care for the young banana
stocks, and eventually harvest the crops and ship the fruit via the railroad to Port
Limón for export to the USA and Europe. Before the arrival of modern sanitation, the
region was rampant with malaria, yellow fever and backwater fever, which were
deadly for most Europeans. However, many West Indian Negroes had developed
immunities to these diseases and could survive in this damp, hot climate where
bananas flourished.

Most of the Negroes living in Costa Rica in 1950 were descended from these West
Indian immigrants who settled along the Caribbean coast, and many of their families
were Anglicans, Baptists or Methodists when they arrived on these shores. The
Jamaican Baptist Union began work in Limón in 1887 under the leadership of the Rev.
Joshua Heath Sobey, a missionary with the Jamaican Baptist Missionary Society; the
First Baptist Church was organized on December 2, 1888 with Sobey as its pastor. The
Wesleyan Methodists from Panama sent the Rev. A. W. Geddes to Port Limón in 1894 to
begin work among the West Indians; the first formal Methodist worship service was
held at Cairo, a few miles north of Siquirres on August 20, 1894. After several years of
slow beginnings, the Missionary Committee of the Panama Conference of the Wesleyan
Methodist Church (British origins) sent the Rev. Edward Augustus Pitt to Costa Rica in
December of 1896, where he remained as missionary pastor for more than 30 years.
Also, the Salvation Army entered Costa Rica in 1907 from Panama and began work
among the West Indians; the first two officers were Captain Palaci (a Peruvian) and

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Lieutenant Stewart (a West Indian) who established themselves in Limón and began
work along the Caribbean coast.

Anglican work in the Province of Limón suffered from numerous problems that were
characteristic of that period of history: a migrant population, lack of education among
the laity, lack of clergy and few financial resources. In 1947, Anglican work in Costa
Rica was transferred from the Diocese of British Honduras to the jurisdiction of the
American Episcopal Missionary District of the Panama Canal Zone in an effort to obtain
more resources for the development of the work in Costa Rica. Although the Church of
the Good Shepherd in San José had used an Anglican form of worship since 1896, the
church government remained congregational (in keeping with its charter as an
interdenominational church), with the church members holding title to the property.
But, in 1947, the membership voted to formally affiliate with the Anglican Communion
(called the Protestant Episcopal Church in the USA) and to transfer ownership of its
property to Missionary District of Panama. In 1956, a new Diocese was created,
composed of the five Central American countries (excluding British Honduras), under
the jurisdiction of the Protestant Episcopal Church of the USA, with the Rt. Rev. David
E. Richards as the first Bishop.

Following this transition, the Anglican-Episcopal Church of Costa Rica became more
evangelistic and began to reach out to the Spanish-speaking population, mainly in the
San José metropolitan area. Traditionally, Anglican work in Costa Rica had been among
the English-speaking West Indians on the Caribbean coast and among the English-
speaking American and European residents in San José at the Church of the Good
Shepherd. In 1959, a Spanish-speaking church was organized in Barrio Cuba, San José,
and in 1960 another congregation was established in the suburb of Guadalupe.

As a consequence of these new efforts, the Anglican-Episcopal membership in Costa

Rica increased from 956 in 1947 to 1,950 in 1960 (Nelson, 1963:219). By 1978, there were
17 churches and missions with about 2,150 members and 4,200 adherents (Holland,
1981:50). Between 1960 and 1980, the total number of churches and the total member-
ship remained about the same: the denomination was obviously in a holding pattern.
Since 1980, the overall church membership has declined, probably due to the demise of
the older West Indian constituency and a failure to attract the younger generation. In
1986, church officials reported 14 churches and four missions (18 congregations) with
only about 900 members. In March of 2000, there were 17 congregations with about 650
members within the three districts: Limón (7), Siquirres (6) and San José (4).

In 1968, the Diocese of Central America was divided into separate jurisdictions for each
country, thereby forming the Diocese of Costa Rica. Its first Bishop was the Rt. Rev. José
Antonio Ramos (Puerto Rican). In 1973, this denomination became incorporated in
Costa Rica as "Asociación Misionera de la Iglesia Episcopal Costarricense" (Missionary

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Association of the Costa Rican Episcopal Church). Currently, the Bishop of Costa Rica is
the Rt. Rev. Cornelius Joshua Wilson (a Costa Rican of West Indian descent).

CENTRAL AMERICA MISSION (1891)

The first Protestant missionary work among the Spanish-speaking population was
begun by the Central American Mission (CAM). The CAM's first missionaries were Mr.
and Mrs. William Connell, who arrived in Costa Rica in 1891. Their initial ministry in
San José was in English, but Spanish-speaking work was soon launched at the urging of
Francisco Penzotti of the American Bible Society. This was a serious step to take because
of the popular idea that Protestantism was alright for Anglo Americans and West
Indians (Afro-Caribbean people from the British West Indies), but not for Hispanic
Americans. The McConnell's were aided by the arrival of three new missionaries in
1893 and five more in 1895.

From the outset, the emphasis of the CAM was on widespread evangelism rather than
on church planting. Mission workers preached and distributed Bibles throughout the
Central Valley and along the Atlantic coast. Meetings were held in private homes, and it
wasn't until 1902 that the first chapel was built. During the early years, the CAM work
weathered severe attacks from without by the Roman Catholic clergy and by popular
fanaticism. From within, under the leadership of Francis Boyle (1912-1920), the work
was divided and frustrated over the issue of hyper-dispensationalism.

These factors help to explain why church growth was slow. From 190 baptized believers
in 1900, the CAM work grew to 721 members in 1919, with eight organized
congregations in five provinces. However, by 1921, few CAM missionaries remained in
Costa Rica, and the work, in general, had deteriorated. Only five congregations
remained, and all but two national workers had abandoned the Missions.

Another twenty years passed with very little growth; only 300 members were reported
in 1937. It was not until the 1940s and 1950s that a new group of missionaries, together
with national pastors and workers, brought about an extension and consolidation of
CAM work in Costa Rica. The churches founded by the CAM were organized as the
Association of Central American Evangelical Churches, becoming autonomous in 1948
and almost entirely self-supporting by 1956. Not until the 1940s, under the leadership of
William Taylor, were national workers ordained as pastors and sufficient emphasis
given to formal training for Christian work. Church membership increased from 260 in
1935, to 650 in 1955, and by 1960 had reached 1,064. By the latter date, twenty-seven
organized churches had been established, each with an Hispanic pastor, in addition to
thirty-nine "congregations" (equivalent to "missions" in the vocabulary of other
denominations), and with 4,200 reported adherents. Due to strict membership
requirements, there were only about 1,000 communicant members out of the larger
number of adherents.

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Whereas the period 1940-1960 was one of slow but sustained growth, between 1960 and
1980 the number of churches and members remained about the same. In 1978, the CAM
reported 30 churches and 1,117 communicant members, or about the same number as in
1967 (1,123) or in 1960 (1,064).

According the CAM missionary James Paul:

Since 1960, the work has been characterized by the principle of "holding the fort".
Internal problems have retarded growth and an exodus of membership to new and
more aggressive groups has taken place. From without, the Association has been
affected by strange doctrines, by forms of both national and international
ecumenicalism, by the tongues movement, by liberation theology, and by the
normal process of change within Costa Rican society. A defensive stance has
tended to dampen the joy, the freedom, and the aggressive extension of the work.
(CAM BULLETIN, November-December 1977, page 11)

CAM missionary Sigifredo Bieske reported that, on the Pacific coast, the CAM lost 10
out of a total of 15 congregations to the Pentecostals during the 1970s and 1980s (Bieske,
1990:13). Bieske characterized the period 1960-1980 in CAM history as conservative,
conformist and lacking dynamism.

However, between 1980 and 1990, the CAM experienced something of a revitalization,
after coming to the realization of some of their shortcomings in a pastoral retreat in
1978. After the late 1970s, some of the older, conservative pastors retired or passed
away, while the number of CAM missionaries increased, mainly young couples from
the USA (some were reassigned from Nicaragua after the Sandinistas won the civil war
against the Somoza dictatorship in 1979), as well as the arrival of new national pastors
from other countries, mainly Guatemala and Nicaragua. Also, there was a change in the
evangelistic strategy of the CAM, from planting churches in small towns in rural areas
to concentrating on church planting in the growing urban areas of Costa Rica.

Consequently, the work of the CAM in Costa Rica began to show signs of renewal and
growth for the first time in several decades. During 1979 alone, the CAM started 10 new
congregations in the San José Metropolitan Area, which at that time had a population of
about 850,000 people. By 1986, the total CAM membership had grown to about 2,900, or
more than double what it was in 1978 (1,122); the total Sunday school attendance in
1986 was about 4,400 among the 50 churches and 14 missions ("missions" are called
"congregations" by the CAM). By 1989, there were 72 churches and missions with a total
membership of about 3,420.

However, during the decade of the 1990s, the number of churches and members
remained about the same. In March 2000, the CAM reported a total of 69 churches and
missions with about 3,500 members and 5,900 adherents.

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THE SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH (1897)

Seventh-Day Adventism began in Costa Rica during the 1890s among the English-
speaking West Indian immigrants on the Caribbean coast. Adventist missionaries,
based in the Bay Islands of Honduras, visited many ports of the Caribbean aboard their
missionary schooner "The Herald" during the 1890s, arriving in Port Limón in 1897.
Apparently, Elder F. J. Hutchins was the first Adventist to preach and teach in Port
Limón, and he was followed by I. G. Knight. By 1903, two Adventist chapels had been
established in Costa Rica at Limón and Pacuarito under the supervision of H. Louie
Mignott and C. N. Moulton. By 1906, the first Adventist evangelistic efforts had been
held in San José by T. M. Brown.

After the headquarters of the West Indian Union Conference was transferred from
Kingston, Jamaica to Colón, Panama in 1908, Costa Rica and other Central American
countries began to receive greater attention by Adventist missionaries. In 1921, the
Adventists established a primary school in Port Limón. However, early efforts to reach
the Spanish-speaking population were sporadic and not very successful. It was not until
1927 that the Adventist Mission of Costa Rica-Nicaragua was formally established, with
four organized churches and 148 members in Costa Rica. By 1935, there were seven
churches with 322 members, predominantly among the English-speaking West Indians
on the Caribbean coast.

Although the Seventh-Day Adventist Church grew slowly in Costa Rica prior to 1950,
since that time it has become one of the largest Protestant denominations in the nation.
By 1955 there were 24 congregations (churches and "groups" or missions) with about
1,450 members. In 1978, 41 congregations and about 5,700 members were reported, and
in 1986 there were 46 organized churches and 66 missions (total congregations = 112)
with 9,444 members. Prior to 1960, the majority of the Adventist church members were
English-speaking West Indian Negroes, but since then a growing number have been
Spanish-speaking Mestizos. By 1980, the Adventists comprised about 12% of the total
Protestant population of Costa Rica and was the largest Protestant denomination in the
country (Holland, 1981:50).

Although the Adventists are classified as "Protestants," they are not necessarily known
to be "Evangelicals," due to their own exclusiveness as a religious group and to certain
doctrinal differences (particularly, honoring the Sabbath and emphasis on certain Old
Testament regulations and Bible Prophesy) that have caused many Evangelicals to
consider them to be distant cousins at best (see Nelson, 1983:295). The Adventists have
always placed strong emphasis on both the mind and body: teaching morality
(abstinence = against the use of alcoholic beverages and tabacco) and Bible prophecy
(especially regarding the Second Advent = the return of Jesus Christ to establish his
earthly kingdom), and emphasizing good physical health (natural health foods and
vegetarianism). This historical separation between Adventists and Evangelicals

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(including Pentecostals and non-Pentecostals) in Costa Rica, and generally throughout
the Americas, has been a mutual rejection of one another. Prior to the 1950s, this mutual
antagonism was very strong, but since that time there has been greater tolerance and
growing mutual understanding between the various Protestant traditions.

One of the significant contributions that the Adventists have made to education in
Costa Rica was the founding of the "Colegio Adventista" (primary and secondary
levels) in 1927. Although the school was originally founded in Las Cascadas, Panama,
in 1925, it was relocated to San José in 1927, then to a site near Tres Ríos in 1932, and
finally to its present location at La Ceiba, near the City of Alajuela, in 1950. By 1972, the
name of the school was changed to "Centro Adventista de Estudios Superiores" (Adven-
tist Center of Higher Education), and it offered courses that were the equivalent of what
the Evangelicals were providing at the Bible institute level. However, since this type
and level of instruction was not accredited by the government of Costa Rica, the
Adventists began to upgrade their program so that it was able to satisfy the govern-
ment’s requirements to become a private university in 1986. With approval from the
government's Council of Higher Education (CONESUP), the Adventists changed the
name of this institution to the Adventist University of Central America (UNADECA).

This was the first "Protestant" educational institution in Costa Rica to achieve official
"university" status, and it paved the way for two Evangelical programs of theological
education to also become private universities in the 1990s: the Nazarene University of
the Americas (formerly, the Nazarene Seminary of the Americas) and the Latin
American Biblical University (formerly, the Latin American Biblical Seminary).

At the end of 1995, the Adventists reported a total membership of 20,274, and the 1999
annual report (December 31, 1999) shows the following: 85 churches, 47 missions (132
congregations) and 31,350 members, 90% of which are Spanish-speaking Costa Ricans,
10% are English-speaking West Indians, about 5% are Spanish-speaking Nicaraguan
immigrants, and about 5% are Bribri-speaking Native American Indians. This religious
group is the 2nd largest Protestant denomination in Costa Rica.

The Adventists also operate six primary schools and three secondary schools
("colegios") throughout the country. At the UNADECA campus at La Ceiba, near
Alajuela, this denomination operatives the Adventist World Radio (short-wave), which
covers the Americas, as well as a local radio station (Radio Lira) that covers about 80%
of Costa Rican territory. In addition, at least 29 Adventist pastors and lay workers from
Costa Rica are serving in other countries, including 11 in the USA and 13 in other
Central American countries.

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METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH (1917)

The Methodist Episcopal Board of Foreign Missions began work in Costa Rica in 1917,
with the arrival of George Amos Miller from Panama and Eduardo Zapata from
Mexico. Although Miller returned to Panama, Zapata remained in Costa Rica and began
missionary work. That year, the first Methodist congregation was founded in the home
of Modesto Le Roy in San José, which later became the "Church of the Redeemer" in
1919. Zapata labored in Costa Rica until mid-1918, when he has replaced by the Rev.
Sidney Edwards of Puerto Rico. During his second visit to Costa Rica, in 1919, Miller
(with funds from the Mission Board) purchased a piece of property on Avenida Central
in San José that formerly housed the Club Catalán, which was converted into the first
Methodist church building in the Central Valley. Later, it was on this property that the
new Church of the Redeemer was built and dedicated in 1925, under the pastorate of
the Rev. Carlos Alpízar.

Under the bishopric of W. P. Thirkfield from 1920-1924, new missionaries arrived and
new centers were opened. During the 1920s, new churches were founded in the San José
metropolitan area (Barrio México and Guadalupe) and in other communities of the
Central Valley (such as Cartago and Alajuela). During the 1930s, work was begun in the
southwestern coastal plain (Puntarenas Province) where the United Fruit Company was
developing new banana plantations (Golfito, Sierpe and Puerto Cortés). However, by
1937, only 262 "members in good standing" were reported in Costa Rica by Church
officials. According to Costa Rica Church historian Wilton Nelson:

The weakness of the Methodists seems to have been the opposite of that of the
Central American Mission. The latter did widespread evangelism without proper
church organization. The former had highly developed organization but lacked
evangelistic zeal. About 1934 a change took place and an interest in evangelism
began to manifest itself among the Methodists and resulted in expansion into new
areas. (Nelson, 1963:165)

In 1937, the Methodists appointed the first two Costa Ricans as pastors. Nelson states
that "the development of national workers and leaders was much slower than in the
Central American Mission" (1963:167). In 1944, for the first time, a national was named
as superintendent of the Costa Rican District of the "Central American Mission
Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church," which included the districts of Costa
Rica and Panama. The Methodists were also slow in developing self-supporting
churches, since it was not until 1954 that the first church in the district achieved this
goal.

During the 1950s, new churches were established in Concepción de Alajuelita and
Hatillo by Juan Sosa and Marion Woods, and in San Juan de Tibás, San Sebastián and
San Pedro, all of which are in the San José metropolitan area. In addition, Methodist

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work continued to grow in the "southern banana zone" of Puntarenas Province, where
new churches were planted in Palmar Sur, Villa Briceño, Pueblo Nuevo de Coto, Pueblo
Civil de Golfito, Buenos Aires, Piedras Blancas, Maiz, Camíbar, Kilómetro 31, Ollacero,
Villa Neilly, Coto 47 and Río Claro. In 1962, a Methodist church was also established in
San Isidro de El General (San José Province), in the southern region.

Although most of the members of these new churches were employees of banana and
African Palm oil plantations, many of the workers were migratory and did not remain
for long in the hot, coastal plains. There was a seasonal migration of farm workers
between the banana-growing areas in the lowlands and the coffee-growing areas in the
highlands. Many of those who were converted in Methodist congregations in the
southern banana zone eventually migrated to other parts of the country, where there
were no Methodist churches, and became members of other denominations.

Methodists have always stressed the social implications of the Gospel, and Methodism
in Costa Rica is no exception to the rule. In the first Annual Conference, social service
and temperance committees were established. Boy Scout troops and Camp Fire Girl
groups were developed in 1923. Since 1921, the Methodist School (bilingual in English-
Spanish) in San Pedro has provided quality primary and secondary education for
middle and upper class students, who have later become part of the new generation of
leaders within Costa Rican society. Many parents who would not darken the door of an
Evangelical church sent their children to this school, thereby removing prejudice and
creating a good public image for the growing evangelical community. In 1953, an
agricultural project was initiated in San Carlos, known as the Methodist Rural Center.

The Central America Conference of the Methodist Church established, in Alajuela, a

"School for the Preparation of Methodist Workers," beginning in 1957 with twelve
students from Costa Rica and Panama. This school was operated until the late 1960s,
and the facilities are still used as a retreat and training center for the Methodists and
other groups. More recently, the denomination has reestablished a school for training
pastors and lay workers: the Evangelical Methodist Seminary (Bible institute level) was
founded at the Alajuela facility in 1990.

Although church growth among the Methodists has been rather slow, the work has
been notably well organized. From the first Conference report in 1920, when 49
communicant members were reported, the Methodists grew to 262 in 1937, 633 in 1955,
and by 1960 numbered 865. Only 88 members were added by 1967 (953), and only 1,135
members were reported in 1978. In 1967, 19 churches were reported to exit. Between
1967 and 1978, the Methodists had an annual growth rate of only 1.8%, which is less
than the natural population increase of 3.5%.

There is evidence of more substantial growth during the 1980s-1990s. By 1983 there
were 1,266 members, and by 1986 the membership had increased to 1,378 among 20

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churches and seven missions (23 congregations). However, by 1989, the Methodist
Church reported 25 churches and 23 missions (48 congregations), with about 1,568
members. In March 2000, there were 50 congregations and missions with about 5,000
adherents (no official membership data was reported).

A number of tensions among the Methodists in Costa Rica, as well as among other
denominations, have led to conflicts between those who have favored Liberation
Theology and those who have opposed it, between those caught up in the Charismatic
Movement and those who oppose the Pentecostalization of their churches, between
traditional Liberals and Conservatives, etc. During the 1980s, several pastors who
supported Liberation Theology left the Methodist Church due to conflicts with their
more conservative brethren. In 1989, a Methodist pastor in Heredia left the Methodist
Conference of Costa Rica (affiliated with the United Methodist Church in the USA) and
became affiliated with the Free Methodist Church of North America; during the 1990s,
four other churches were founded by, or became affiliated with, the Free Methodist
Church in Costa Rica.

The Methodist Conference of Costa Rica has actively participated in the Evangelical
Alliance of Costa Rica (EACR), which includes about 100 members (denominations,
independent churches and service agencies). For many years, Methodist Bishop
Fernando Palomo has served as President of the EACR Board of Directors and has had
an active role in promoting cooperation and unity among Evangelicals. The EACR is
involved in a variety of activities, such as responding to emergency situations
(specifically, natural disasters), coordinating inter-denominational events and programs
(20 EACR commissions exist at the national level), and representing the Evangelical
Community before government authorities.

PENTECOSTAL HOLINESS CHURCH (1918)

The first Pentecostal missionaries to arrive in Costa Rica were Mr. and Mrs. James Hare,
affiliated with the Pentecostal Holiness Association (PHA), according to Nelson
(1983:270), although they only remained for a few months during 1918. However, in
1926, the Hares returned and established their first church in Cartago.

Two additional Pentecostal missionaries arrived during the 1930s. Carrie Zeisloft came
to Costa Rica in 1930 and served as pastor of the Cartago congregation for eight years; it
is not known how long the Hares remained in Costa Rica, but in the mid-1930s they
apparently were working with a few small churches in northern Guatemala (Pruitte, no
date, page 4). Encouraged by the Hares, Amos Bradley arrived in Costa Rica in 1936,
affiliated with the PHA, after having served as an independent missionary in
Guatemala and El Salvador since 1908.

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Apparently, Bradley and Zeisloft decided to work independently of each other, she in
Cartago and he in San José. According to Nelson, Bradley formed a few unstable
congregations in the San José area during the 1940s (Nelson 1983:270-271). According
to Pruitte, these small congregations were located in the provinces of San José (Cinco
Esquinas de Tibás, Barrio Cuba, Plaza Víques, Desamparados and Santa Ana) and
Heredia, and Bradley was assisted by a “native worker,” don Víctor Ramos (Pruitte, no
date, page 4). Because of an illness, Mrs. Bradley remained in the USA during most of
Amos’ ministry in Costa Rica.

In 1950, Bradley rejoined the Pentecostal Holiness Church (PHC) in the USA (he had
been affiliated with the PHC from 1912 to 1919) and requested that the Mission Board of
PHC, a different group than the Pentecostal Holiness Association, take over his mission
work in Costa Rica, probably due to a lack of support from the PHA. After considering
this request, the PHC responded affirmatively and sent the Rev. John Parker to Costa
Rica in 1951. At that time, Bradley was the supervisor of two organized churches (with
two parsonages) and seven “preaching points.” Parker, who was appointed the field
superintendent after Bradley died in 1955, had some success during those first, difficult
years; the work grew from a total of 44 church members in 1952 to 180 in 1960, and
reached 1,104 in 1974.

Mrs. Charlene West (her husband was deceased) and her family arrived in Costa Rica
about 1974 and replaced Parker as superintendent. By 1978, there were only 26 churches
with about 1,100 members (Holland, 1981:50), and a Bible Institute had been established
in Santa Ana, located in the Central Valley to the west of the capital city. In March 2000,
the PHC reported a total of 76 churches in Costa Rica with about 3,800 members.
However, little information has been written about the historical development of these
churches.

LATIN AMERICA MISSION (1921)

The interdenominational Latin America Evangelization Campaign, later known as the

Latin America Mission (LAM), entered Costa Rica in 1921, under the leadership of the
Rev. and Mrs. Harry Strachan. The mission began as a promoter of evangelistic
campaigns throughout Latin America, and soon came to have a major role in pulling
the evangelical movement in Costa Rica out of its impasse and stagnation. This was
accomplished by means of local evangelistic campaigns and the cooperative
institutional efforts promoted by the Strachans.

Harry and Susan Strachan, who had served in Argentina under the Regions Beyond
Missionary Union, established the headquarters of their new mission in San José for the
express purpose of engaging in: (1) Systematic evangelistic campaigns in the larger
cities and towns of Latin America, to be held in tents, theatres, halls, or in the open air,
to attract people who would normally not come to a building associated with religious

14
services; (2) Itinerant evangelization to be carried out simultaneously, covering the
district surrounding the center where the campaign is held; (3) Training of native
workers (Nelson, 1962:175). Some of the best evangelists of Latin America were
recruited as preachers for the campaigns that were carried out between 1921 and 1934 in
Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain and Morocco. According to Nelson, "These
campaigns may well have constituted one of the factors that pulled the Evangelical
Movement in all Latin America out of its decades of doldrums and started it on its
modern period of phenomenal growth" (1962:176).

Such campaigns were held in Costa Rica with Juan Varetto in 1922 and with Angel
Archilla Cabrera in 1927. During the first campaign, there was no organized opposition,
and people from all social classes packed out the largest theatre in San José. But the
second campaign in 1927 provoked a great religious controversy, with public
defamation of Protestants by Catholic priests through articles in local newspapers and
printed handbills. However, this seemed to encourage people to attend the meetings
held in a San José lumberyard, where 1,400 overflowed the meeting place. The Archilla
campaign contributed greatly to the advancement of the evangelical movement in Costa
Rica, because sympathy for the evangelical cause had been created, and hundreds had
been converted. New converts were so numerous that the existing churches could not
care for them, which motivated the Strachans to build a large tabernacle-like structure
in 1929, seating 1,000. This was the origin of the Bible Temple in San José that served as
an "evangelistic center" for the extension of the work in the capital and to outlying
areas.

Before coming to Costa Rica, the Strachans had traveled throughout Latin America in
1920 to survey the status of evangelical work. One of their conclusions was that Bible
institutes and seminaries were few in Latin America, and that an urgent need existed to
train national workers. During the campaigns, this need was met by holding short-term
Bible institutes in the mornings, concurrently with the evangelistic meetings in the
evenings. They also established a Women's Bible Training School in the Strachan home,
beginning in 1923 with eight students. In 1924, when a two-story structure was built for
the Training School, Harry Strachan brought down eight young men from Nicaragua
and converted the school into a "Bible Institute". By 1925 the Institute was functioning
with 19 students and a faculty composed of missionaries of the Central American
Mission, the Methodist Episcopal Church, and the Latin America Evangelistic
Campaign. This interdenominational Institute met a long-felt need and was well
received in evangelical circles, resulting in many Missions deciding to send students to
the school. In 1930, there were forty students, representing eleven countries and eight
denominations or missions. The name was changed to the "Latin America Biblical
Seminary" in 1941, when its academic standards were raised to meet the growing needs
of the evangelical movement.

15
Other ministries were created by the Latin America Evangelization Crusade to further
the Lord's work in Costa Rica and Latin America. In 1926, a Spanish literature ministry
was initiated that grew to become the Editorial Caribe/LAMP (Latin America Mission
Publications) in 1948, now one of the most important publishers and distributors of
evangelical literature in Latin America. By 1961 LAMP bookstores had been formed in
Port Limón, Panama City and New York City, in addition to the original bookstore
founded in San José in 1953. Editorial Caribe continued to expand and increase its
effectiveness; however, its offices were moved to Miami in 1970 to better serve the
growing literature market throughout Latin America.

The Bible Clinic (now, Hospital Clínica Bíblica) was constructed in 1929 to care for
believers who needed hospitalization, since prejudice was so strong against evangelicals
that they were sometimes refused entrance to government hospitals or, once interned,
were neglected. Although Costa Rica was becoming more liberal, fanaticism still
persisted in many of the state and Catholic institutions. In addition, loving care of the
sick and helpless in an evangelical hospital resulted, both directly and indirectly, in
winning many to the Lord and improving the public image of the evangelical
movement in Costa Rica. The Bible Clinic grew out of a small nursing school that was
established by the Mission in 1928, under the direction of missionary and national
nurses. Many leading Costa Rican doctors have practiced medicine at the Bible Clinic,
including a growing number of Protestant doctors who are Costa Ricans. A new
hospital building was added to the older facilities in 1975, which doubled the capacity
to over 60 beds. Since 1968, the hospital has been entirely under national management.

Susan Strachan had a great concern for sick and homeless children, and in 1931, when a
two-hundred acre dairy and coffee farm was purchased by the Mission, her dreams
were fulfilled by the establishment of an evangelical orphanage, called the Bible Home,
in San José de la Montaña. Hundreds of orphaned and abandoned Costa Rican children
have been cared for by the Bible Home, some of whom have become outstanding
evangelical leaders. In 1947, a camping ministry was added to the work of the LAM,
utilizing part of the Mission farm. Camp Roblealto thus became one of the earliest such
camping ministries in all of Latin America.

The decade of the 1940s brought many changes to the Latin America Evangelistic
Crusade. In 1941, the name was changed to "The Latin America Mission" (LAM) to
reflect the expanding interests and ministries of the Mission. With the death of Harry
Strachan in 1945, his son, Kenneth, became co-director of the LAM along with his
mother, Susan. When Mrs. Strachan passed away in 1950, Kenneth became the General
Director.

The 1940s also brought the organization of the Association of Bible Churches (AIBC),
which grew out of the LAM's evangelistic work. Although it was not the Strachan's
intention to plant churches, the expansion occurred naturally resulting from

16
evangelistic work by students and faculty of the Bible Institute and from evangelistic
campaigns sponsored by the Mission. During the 1920s and 1930s, local congregations
were formed in the Central Valley and in the northwestern coastal province of
Guanacaste. The Bible Temple in San José remained the center of these efforts, with the
distinction of being the largest evangelical church in the country until the 1980s.

In 1945, the AIBC was formed with 14 churches and 406 baptized members, however,
the number of adherents was considerably larger. The LAM, during its early years of
evangelistic enthusiasm, did not adequately follow-up and consolidate the gains made
in evangelism by organizing new believers into local congregations. This lack of proper
ecclesiastical organization was a common defect of independent missions, such as the
CAM and the LAM, and stemmed from an inadequate concept of the importance of the
local church.

The first LAM missionary to see this weakness was Kenneth Strachan, who initiated the
preliminary steps that led to the formation of the AIBC in the mid-1940s. However,
many of the founding congregations of the AIBC had only been organized locally the
year before, when the first Latin pastors were ordained. By 1959, much progress had
been made toward self support among the Bible Church Association.

In 1960, the AIBC had 13 churches, 18 missions and 37 preaching points, with a total
membership of 1,055. During the 1950s, a large number of rapidly growing missions,
mostly daughter-congregations of the Bible Temple, had been planted in the San José
area, many of which later became flourishing churches.

By 1967, the membership of the AIBC had grown to 1,574, in 1974 to 3,470 and by 1978
had reached 3,984 with 44 churches, 18 missions and at least 34 preaching points. The
annual membership increase between 1967 and 1978 was 9.7% (AAGR). Most of these
congregations were located in the Central Valley and in the provinces of Guanacaste
and Alajuela (especially in the San Carlos plains).

Beginning in the early 1970s, the AIBC began to experience the impact of the growing
Charismatic Movement in North and South America, which resulted in the
Pentecostalization of the many of the AIBC congregations throughout Costa Rica. The
Bible Temple was the first AIBC church to hear testimonies in the pulpit from
Charismatic leaders, both Protestants and Catholics, from the USA and Argentina
regarding the "New Pentecostal Revival" that was spreading around the world. During
the 1970s, the Renewal Movement, as it was called in Costa Rica, had a large impact on
many non-Pentecostal denominations, like the AIBC, the Methodist Church, the Baptist
Convention and other groups. While many local congregations began to exhibit Neo-
Pentecostal tendencies, others rejected these influences and became strongly anti-
Charismatic. For years many AIBC congregations struggled over this issue: some
experienced conflicts and divisions and lost members to other churches, while others

17
were unified and prospered. By and large, the AIBC became identified with the Neo-
Pentecostal Movement by the late 1970s.

However, during the 1970s and 1980s, other conflicts emerged that caused serious
damage to people and organizations and led to the first real schism within the ranks of
the AIBC. Liberation Theology (LT) became a controversial issue in the mid-1970s
among evangelicals in general and, in particular, among the faculty and students of the
Latin American Biblical Seminary (LABS) in San José, a school founded by the LAM in
the 1920s that trained pastors and Christian leaders from many denominations and not
just from the AIBC. The pro-LT and anti-LT factions waged verbal warfare against each
other, with the result that many individuals were slandered and many Evangelical
organizations were divided over this issue, including missionaries of the LAM and of
other mission agencies.

By the late-1970s, a number of professors had resigned from the LABS who were
opposed to, or not comfortable with, the teaching of LT, which left the majority of the
remaining professors united and supportive of LT. At the same time, many
denominations in Costa Rica that were opposed to LT, as well as national churches and
mission agencies in other countries, stopped sending their leaders to the LABS.

This controversy also affected the AIBC as several of the LABS professors were also
pastors in AIBC churches, and the issue of LT was hotly debated within the leadership
of the AIBC for several years. Finally, in 1985, a group of five pastors and their churches
withdrew from the AIBC and founded a new association of churches: the Costa Rican
Federation of Evangelical Churches (FIEC, in Spanish). The FIEC is now affiliated with
the Presbyterian Church in the USA, and has also become a member of the Latin
American Council of Churches (CLAI, in Spanish) and the Association of Reformed and
Presbyterian Churches in Latin America (AIPRAL, in Spanish). At the end of 1988, FIEC
reported nine churches and one mission, with a total of about 400 members. In March
2000, there were 24 churches with about 1,700 members affiliated with FIEC.

Meanwhile, in 1983, the AIBC reported 52 churches and 18 missions in Costa Rica, with
about 5,700 baptized members; and, in 1989, the total membership was about 6,000 in 70
congregations. In 1989, there were 109 congregations (75 churches and 34 missions)
with about 9,350 members. In March 2000, the AIBC reported 134 congregations
(churches and missions) with 8,772 members.

CHURCH OF GOD - CLEVELAND, TN (1937)

The Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) began work in Limón in 1937, when a small
English-speaking independent congregation was taken under its care. No other work
was begun for 13 years. In 1950, Noel de Sousa, a young, bilingual Panamanian
missionary arrived to develop the work. The first Spanish- speaking church was

18
organized in San José in 1951, and by 1955 four churches with 281 members were
reported. However, Nelson states that "during its first years this group was notorious
for its proselytizing activities and an extreme form of Pentecostalism" (1962:224). Noel
de Sousa was reportedly arrested some 40 times because of his preaching in public
places. This "scandalous behavior" did not enjoy the respect of other evangelical groups,
and even fellow Pentecostals protested. This situation led to the formation of a number
of splinter groups.

However, with the arrival from Guatemala of the Rev. Jaime Aldama in 1959, this
movement took on a more serious character. Under Aldama's leadership, the Church of
God became more identified with the evangelical movement in Costa Rica, especially
after their participation in the 1960-61 Evangelism-in- Depth campaign. The work
expanded to include 14 congregations with 835 members in 1967, with over 2,000
reportedly attending Sunday school. In 1974, the membership totaled 1,235 and by 1978
had increased to 2,100 distributed among 48 organized churches and 17 missions.
Between 1967 and 1978, the total membership grew 9.7% per year. The main San José
church is located in Barrio Cristo Rey, where the Church of God Bible Institute is also
operated.

During the 1980s and 1990s, the Church of God continued to expand geographically, as
well as experiencing an increase in the total number of churches and membership. By
1983, there were 236 churches with about 9,145 members; by 1986, there were 324
churches and about 12,700 members. However, in 1989, denomination officials reported
only 301 churches but with 13,500 members. In March 2000, the Church of God
(Cleveland, TN) reported 19,000 members and 380 churches in Costa Rica, which made
it the 3rd largest Protestant denomination in Costa Rica.

ASSEMBLIES OF GOD (1942)

The largest Protestant denomination in Costa Rica today, the Assemblies of God, was
established by the Rev. and Mrs. Lawrence Perrault in 1942. By 1944, several missions
had been established in San José, Alajuela and Puntarenas. The Assemblies of God
workers also experienced some difficulties during these early years, mainly due to the
novelty of Pentecostalism in Costa Rica but also due in part to the attitudes and policies
of their missionaries. Some of the first national workers were pastors who had served
with other Missions, but who were recruited by the Assemblies of God after professing
the Pentecostal experience. However, this initial period of non-cordial relationships was
soon overcome when Perrault left and Arthur Bauer took his place. The latter
demonstrated a friendly and cooperative spirit, which has been true of most of the
missionaries who have arrived since Brauer. When the Evangelical Alliance was formed
in 1950, the Assemblies of God was a charter member.

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In 1945, the Assemblies expanded their work to the town of San Isidro de El General, an
important market center located on the Pan-American Highway to the south of San
José. This led to the development of the work in the large southwestern sector of Costa
Rica, an agriculturally rich area that was attracting many colonists, including a group of
Italians that settled near San Vito. This region was practically untouched by other
Protestant groups, except for the Methodists. Here, the Assemblies found a large field
for evangelism and church planting. By 1956, eleven churches had been formed in this
region, mainly cared for by new workers that had been trained in the new Bible
institute in San José.

During the period 1946 to 1952, very little progress had been made in opening new
work by the Assemblies of God in Costa Rica. This was mainly due to a lack of national
workers, which kept missionaries tied down to pastoral responsibilities. However, by
1950, a national pastor was appointed to the main church in San José, and two years
later the same occurred in Alajuela, which freed missionaries to develop work in new
fields. The establishment in 1953 of a Bible institute in San José, under the direction of
David Kensinger, led to the development of trained national pastors and provided new
workers for church expansion in the southwest region.

Between 1953 and 1980, the Assemblies of God grew to become the largest Pentecostal
denomination in Costa Rica, and the second largest Protestant denomination after the
Adventists. From 189 baptized believers in 1953, the work grew to 556 members in 1960,
and by 1967 a total membership of 846 was reported. Between 1967 and 1978,
membership grew 19.2% per year, which was the highest rate of growth among the
larger denominations. Membership more than doubled between 1974 and 1978, from
2,128 to 4,492, with 120 congregations in existence by 1978.

Much of this recent growth has been due to concentrated evangelistic efforts since 1970
in the San José area and throughout the Central Valley, which have met with consider-
able success. Several large new churches, like those in Desamparados and Moravia,
have been planted after a year of conducting an extended evangelistic campaign with
wide publicity from radio, TV, and newspaper advertisements. Thousands were drawn
to the meetings by a strong emphasis on divine healing, and hundreds stayed on to
become founding members of the new churches. Special training sessions were held for
new converts before the evening evangelistic services, and new leaders were prepared
to teach Sunday school classes and to shepherd the new congregations. In 1980 one of
San José's largest churches, the Gran Campaña de Desamparados reported over 500
baptized members, and with 800 to 1,000 in attendance. Many new churches and
missions have been started by means of these extended evangelistic campaigns
throughout Costa Rica, combined with the zeal of young, new pastors from the Bible
Institute in Moravia.

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During the 1980s and 1990s, the growth of the Assemblies of God in Costa Rica was
even more spectacular. By 1983, the total membership was reported to be 11,691 (about
300 congregations); by 1986, it had increased to about 18,000 (about 325 congregations).
However, in 1989, denominational officials reported only 228 churches and 17,268
members. Nevertheless, there is evidence of a surge of growth during the 1990s. In
March 2000, the Assemblies of God reported 294 congregations with about 46,900
members in Costa Rica, which made this religious group the largest Protestant
denomination in the nation.

If the statistics are correct, then this denomination grew significantly by planting many
new congregations (geographical expansion), as well as by attracting more people to the
existing churches. Part of this church growth can be attributed to an increase in
membership among some of the suburban congregations in the San José Metro Area.
The largest AG congregation in the nation was reported to be Iglesia Oasis de
Esperanza (about 3,500 members) in Moravia, a suburb of San José; the pastor and his
congregation can also be seen on a weekly local TV program. In addition, the
Assemblies of God have been successful in founding many private Christian schools
under the sponsorship of a local church in the Central Valley.

SOUTHERN BAPTIST-RELATED CHURCHES (1944)

One of the largest of the ten Baptist groups in Costa Rica is the work historically related
to the Southern Baptist Convention. Their first church in Costa Rica was a group that
broke away from the Central American Mission in 1943, under the leadership of Aurelio
Gutiérrez, who was appointed to the Home Mission Board in 1944. During this early
period, the doctrine of "Landmarkism" was especially strong, which brought ill repute
upon the Baptists because they taught that "Baptists, especially Southern Baptists,
constitute the only true and legitimate succession of the Apostolic Church" (Nelson
1962:229). Many of the early Baptists in Costa Rica had been "converted" from other
evangelical groups. However, dissention soon arose within the new Baptist movement,
leading to the formation of a splinter group, known as the National Baptist Church, in
1945.

From 1944 to 1948, Gutiérrez was the only resident missionary of the Southern Baptists,
but the Rev. Van Earl Hughes was sent to Costa Rica in late 1947. With his arrival, the
former policy of Landmarkism began to change, and relationships improved with other
evangelical groups. Although the Baptist Convention did not become affiliated with the
Evangelical Alliance when it was formed in 1950, they did cooperate wholeheartedly in
the Evangelism-in-Depth campaign in Costa Rica during 1960-61.

The expansion of the Baptist work began in 1944 when missions were begun in Cinco
Esquinas, Moravia, Puriscal and Nicoya, and the following year in Limón, Naranjo and
Alajuela. The first Annual Convention was held in 1946 with representatives from six

21
churches and missions. By 1949, when the Convention was transferred to the Southern
Baptist Foreign Mission Board, there were three organized churches and six missions,
with about 220 members.

The period 1950-60 was marked by the organization of six new churches, the
construction of new church buildings, the initiation of a theological seminary and the
paternalistic economic policy by the Foreign Board. Funds for the purchase of property
and the construction of new temples, as well as pastoral salaries, all came from the
Foreign Board, with very little economic participation from the local churches. After the
founding of the Baptist Theological Seminary in 1951, new fields were opened by the
graduates with the economic support of the Mission. However, the work suffered a
setback in 1955 when Gutiérrez led a breakaway movement that became affiliated with
the World Baptist Fellowship. By 1960, however, new churches and missions had been
added to the work that had grown to 613 members and a Sunday school attendance of
1,278. By 1962, a total of 867 members were reported by all the churches and missions in
Costa Rica related to the Baptist Convention.

Beginning in 1957 there was a turnover in missionary personnel, with nine new couples
arriving by 1979. Among them were seminary professors, literature workers, general
missionaries, urban church developers and pioneer workers. Three new fields were
opened by evangelistic missionaries (church planters) in Turrialba, San Ramón and San
Isidro. Baptist bookstores were started in San José (1958) and San Ramón (1960). Since
1966, and excellent campground has been developed by the Southern Baptists in San
Rafael de Ojo de Agua that is used by many different groups.

Beginning in 1960, the Southern Baptist Mission began a ten-year program aimed at
self-support, which created a crisis in missionary-national relationships. During 1963,
several pastors resigned in protest, but the churches generally accepted the
responsibility of self-support. The Baptist Convention, since 1966, has administered the
funds sent through the Foreign Mission Board for church work in Costa Rica and for its
various institutions (Baptist Theological Institute, Baptist Camp and bookstores) and
programs (social, youth and evangelistic work). By 1973, most of the churches were self-
supporting, although many of the pastors were working part-time outside the church.
However, lay participation increased, and the churches continued to grow both in
number and membership.

Between 1967 and 1978, the Baptist Convention had a 6.7% AAGR, increasing from
1,107 members in 1967 to 1,626 in 1974 and 2,260 members were reported in 1978. By
1978, there were 27 organized churches and 13 missions.

In 1980 (Note: this is the date given by Bieske, page 44; but it appears that the rupture
occurred in the Annual Convention of 1979; see Nelson, page 290) the Baptist
Convention of Costa Rica (BCCR) had a falling out with the Southern Baptist Foreign

22
Mission Board (SBFMB) in the USA, and the former became independent of the latter.
The main problem seems to have been a breakdown in relationships between the
missionaries (related to the Foreign Mission Board) and the national pastors (related to
the national Baptist Convention) over the issue of the autonomy of the local
congregations and the use of funds from abroad. Consequently, each organization went
its separate way.

After the split, 12 churches remained with the BCCR, while others became independent
of both groups, and a few remained in fellowship with the SBC. For years both
associations of churches sought to incorporate the independent Baptist churches into
their own ranks. The SBC-related churches and missions continued to receive the
support of the SBFMB. After about three years of financial struggles, the BCCR became
affiliated with the American Baptist Churches in the USA, which enabled the Baptist
Convention to cover part of its budget with funds from abroad and to begin its own
Bible institute program with courses at night. In 1986, the BCCR reported 17 churches
and 11 missions (28 congregations), with about 850 members; and in 1989, there were 24
churches and 6 missions (30 congregations), with about 2,500 members. Obviously,
there was significant growth in membership (194%) but not in the total number of
congregations.

In 1989, the BCCR reported 30 congregations, while the SBFMB-related fellowship of

churches, called the National Union of Baptist Churches (NUBC), reported 17 churches
and eight missions (25 congregations) with about 620 members. It could be that the
separation between the two sister organizations allowed each one to concentrate more
on its own priorities and development unhindered, and that this released the built-up
tension and allowed greater freedom and creativity to emerge, thereby producing
greater growth in total membership and in the establishment of new congregations than
might have been achieved if the split had not occurred. Both organizations appear to
have been "revitalized" after the split took place, and to have grown both in quality and
quantity.

In March 2000, the BCCR reported 31 congregations and 1,400 members, whereas the
NUBC reported 22 congregations and 1,517 members, which makes a total of 53
congregations and 2,917 members. By comparison, at this same time, other Baptist
groups reported the following: Missionary Baptists (two groups of churches), 21
congregations and 1,500 members; Bible Baptist Churches (six different groups of
churches), 20 congregations and 3,442 members; and others (largely, independents), 29
congregations and 2,610 members.

INTERNATIONAL CHURCH OF THE FOURSQUARE GOSPEL (1954)

The International Church of the Foursquare Gospel initiated work in Costa Rica in 1954
as an extension of its strong work in Panama, where the Foursquare Church was one of

23
the largest evangelical groups in the nation. Around 1954, a mission was begun in
Puntarenas, and in the later part of 1955 work began in San José. Due to the influx of
Panamanian Foursquare members into the banana region of southwestern Costa Rica, a
considerable number of Foursquare churches arose in that area. In 1978, nineteen out of
a total of 31 Foursquare churches in Costa Rica were located in this region.

Of the larger Protestant denominations in Costa Rica, the Foursquare Church had the
second highest rate of growth for the period 1960-1978, somewhat lower that of the
Assemblies of God. From 56 members in 1956, the Foursquare work increased to 250
members in 1960. The total membership tripled between 1960 and 1967, with 758
members recorded in 1967. Between 1967 and 1978, an annual growth rate of 14.4% was
maintained, with 1,626 members in 1964 and 2,905 in 1978. In 1986, denominational
officials reported 2,500 members among 73 churches and 32 "campos blancos"
(preaching points). A Bible institute was established at the central church in San José for
the training of national pastors and lay workers.

The growth of the Foursquare Church continued during the 1990s, more so in member-
ship than in starting new churches. In 1989, the Foursquare Church reported 74
churches and 34 "campos blancos," with about 3,750 members. By March 2000, there
were 77 churches and 23 "campos blancos" with about 4,776 members. There were two
congregations among Native American Indians, Cabécares and Guaimí, in the southern
zone. This was the 5th largest Protestant denomination in Costa Rica in 2000.

BIBLE BAPTIST CHURCHES (1958)

There are several church associations in Costa Rica that are related to the Baptist Bible
Fellowship movement in the United States. The largest of these associations was
established in San José about 1958 by Jefferson Meek. According to Nelson, after some
initial success, this group began to loose ground because of its "Fighting Fundamen-
talism" stance. By 1974, however, the work had increased to 287 members, and several
new missionary couples arrived in Costa Rica. Filled with youthful enthusiasm, the new
missionaries embarked on an aggressive evangelistic ministry in several new, middle-
class neighborhoods in San José, where they successfully established new churches.
Their approach has been to set up a tent ministry in a vacant lot that they purchased,
conducting evangelistic meetings in the evenings and training new leaders in the
mornings, which was similar to Strachan's approach during the 1920s. Later, after the
congregation grows to an adequate size, a permanent temple is built with the aid of
stateside churches.

By 1978, the Bible Baptists had established four churches and three missions, with a
total membership of 2,950. This gives them an average congregational size of 421
members, which was probably the highest average size of any Protestant denomination
in Costa Rica at that time. Even more noteworthy is the fact that the Bible Baptists'

24
annual growth rate between 1974 and 1978 was a remarkable 79%; however, they
started from a small membership base. Nevertheless, in this period, the Bible Baptists
out distanced all other Baptist groups in Costa Rica, and their church in San Sabastian
alone reported almost 1,000 members, with an even greater number in attendance in
1978.

In 1980, other smaller Baptist groups in Costa Rica were: American Baptist Association
(13 churches and 540 members), Baptist Missionary Association of America (295
members), Baptist International Mission (277 members), World Baptist Fellowship (212
members), and several other independent groups related to Bible Baptist churches in
the United States.

According to a 1998 study by Clive Buttermere (a missionary with the Southern Baptist
Foreign Mission Board), there were a total of 181 churches and missions that were part
of 10 church associations or were independent (13 congregations) that can be classified
as "Baptist" in Costa Rica (Buttemere, 1999). However, we have classified the Assoc-
iation of Costa Rican Bible Churches (AIBC, related to the Latin America Mission) as
part of the Baptist Family of Churches. By March 2000, the total number of Baptist
churches and missions in Costa Rica consisted of 257 congregations with about 19,250
members, according to PROLADES.

WORLDWIDE MISSIONARY MOVEMENT – IGLESIA CRISTIANA

PENTECOSTAL DEL MOVIMIENTO MISSIONERO MUNDIAL (1963)

Founded in 1963 in Puerto Rico by the Rev. Luis M. Ortiz (1918-1996), who had been a
missionary with the Assemblies of God in Cuba from 1944 to 1959, this denomination
arrived in Costa Rica also in 1963 through Ortiz’ personal evangelistic ministry. By
1986, under the leadership of National Supervisor Luis A. Monge Salazar, 26 churches,
10 missions and 18 preaching points had been established with a total of 1,788 members
and a church community of about 2,500. In early 2000, there were 110 churches, 30
missions and 80 preaching points, with an estimated membership of 5,000, which made
this religious group the 9th largest Protestant denomination in Costa Rica. The National
Supervisor in 2000 was the Rev. Carlos F. Guerra Suárez. About 90% of the members
were native Costa Ricans and 10% were a mixture of Nicaraguans, Colombians and
Salvadorans. In 2003, there were 160 established congregations (churches and missions)
with about 7,500 baptised members. The average congregational size was 47 members.
This denomination has an Episcopal form of church government, with the National
Superintendent functioning as a bishop; all church properties are held in the name of
the denomination.

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PENTECOSTAL CHURCH OF GOD (1970)

This Puerto Rican denomination arrived in Costa Rica in 1970 in the person of
missionary Virgilio Figueroa, who established his headquarters in the San José area. In
1978, Figueroa reported 14 churches and 1,200 members nationally. In 2000, this
denomination reported 118 congregations with a total of about 4,000 members, which
made the Pentecostal Church of God the 12th largest Protestant denomination in Costa
Rica. Doctrinally, this group has basically the same statement of faith as the Assemblies
of God, from which it emerged in Puerto Rico in 1921 as national church body affiliated
with the Assemblies of God in the USA. The Pentecostal Church of God in Puerto Rico
began its own missionary program in 1940, which resulted in the establishment of
affiliated churches in many Latin American countries as well as an earlier (1929) sister
denomination on the East Coast of the USA: The Latin American Council of the
Pentecostal Church of God of New York.

ROSE OF SHARON CHRISTIAN MISSION (1976)

According to a study by CAM missionary Sigifredo W. Bieske, the Rose of Sharon

Christian Mission was founded in San José in 1976, following an extended evangelistic
campaign led by evangelist Gumercindo Melgar, a controversial Pentecostal leader
from Guatemala. Before leaving Costa Rica, Melgar entrusted José Luis Madrigal, a
Costa Rican pastor who had no formal theological training, with the responsibility of
providing pastoral care for the small congregation that had been formed as a result of
the crusade.

From this small beginning, Madrigal and his organization began to make quite a name
for themselves (positive with some, negative with others) in Costa Rica, not only
because of Madrigal’s charisma and style of worship but also due to the rapid growth of
the movement. First, Madrigal rented the second floor of a commercial building, located
near Plaza González Víquez on the south side of San José, where they began to hold
meetings in late 1976. Within two years, the congregation had increased to more than
300 members and had outgrown the facilities. Consequently, part of the congregation
moved to a larger meeting place near the Central Market in the "red-light" district,
renting another "upper room" in a building that formerly housed the Canada Dry
Company. From these two locations, Madrigal and his followers began to hold
evangelistic meetings around the country that resulted in the formation of a series of
daughter congregations. By 1983, the Rose of Sharon Christian Mission reported 26
affiliated congregations with about 3,000 adherents (no membership records are kept).

However, in 1984 a conflict developed between Madrigal and Yamil Herrera, the pastor
of the Plaza Víquez congregation, which resulted in the movement’s first division. After
Brenes was forced to leave Madrigal’s organization, he started a new church in the "red-
light" district of San José that became known as Maranata. In 1986, although the central

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church in San José had only about 100 members, the Maranata movement (affiliated
with Maranatha Church in Chicago, IL, USA) reported 1,130 total adherents in 5 small
congregations throughout the country. In 2000, there were eight churches and six
missions (14 congregations) in Costa Rica affiliated with the Maranatha World Ministry
of Faith and Power.

Both of these movements are characterized as very authoritarian, with the founder
being the dominant leader and prophet who requires absolute obedience and loyalty
from his followers. Both Madrigal and Brenes are given to sharing "special revelation"
by means of dreams, visions, tongues and prophecy, which enhances their authority
and popularity among their followers. The worship services, which often last for two or
three hours or more, are characterized by very active and loud participation by
members of the congregation in a variety of activities: singing, praying, dancing in the
spirit, speaking in tongues, words of prophecy, etc. There is also a strong emphasis on
divine healing and the casting out of demons led by church leaders. Consequently, both
the Rose of Sharon Christian Mission and Maranata are classified as part of the Divine
Healing and Liberation Family of Churches within the Pentecostal Movement.

In early 1983, Madrigal began to promote the idea of building a large central church
with a seating capacity of about 6,000. At that time the "mother" church of the
movement, located in the Central Market district, only had about 800 people in
attendance. Madrigal began to raise money to buy a large piece of property (about 4,000
square meters), located across the street from the Kamakiri Restaurant on Calle Central
in Barrio Tournón (District of San Francisco de Goicoechea) on the north side of San
José, for about $100,000. His vision was to build a three-story building on this site
consisting of a first floor for church offices and a dining hall for social activities, a large
second-floor auditorium (seating 6,000), and a basement to be used as a parking garage.
By late 1983, the property had been purchased and construction began on the basement
area, but soon the funds ran out and the project came to a halt. However, after the
congregation began to meet in the unfinished basement, the attendance continued to
grow (about 1,200) and the funds continued to flow, which allowed construction efforts
to resume. At the end of 1989, a temporary roof had been built for the first floor, and the
congregation had grown to about 2,000 in attendance.

By 1986, the Rose of Sharon Christian Mission was an established "denomination,"

reporting 25 churches and missions with about 3,915 members. In 1990, Madrigal
reported about 6,000 adherents in 30 congregations. However, a series of problems
arose during the 1990s that resulted in the closing of some of the daughter congre-
gations, with the members of these returning to the mother church, while other
daughter congregations became independent of Rosa de Sarón.

In 1995, five of the dissident groups joined forces to form the Association of Wesleyan
Churches (Holiness tradition), with international ties to the International Wesleyan

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Church in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. In August 2001, there were 30 churches and
about 3,000 baptized members related to this denomination. Two of the main leaders of
this group are president Robert Barrantes (Concepción de Tres Ríos, La Unión,
Cartago), and vice-president Luis Azofefa (Grecia, Alajuela).

Meanwhile, the mother church of Misión Cristiana "La Rosa de Sarón" in Barrio
Tournón reported an average Sunday worship attendance of about 10,000 in March
2000, which made it the largest single congregation in the nation. In addition, there
were four other congregations related to Rosa de Sarón (including one in Ciudad Colón
and one in Santiago de Puriscal). This is the 4th largest Protestant denomination in
Costa Rica.

THE NATIONAL EVANGELICAL CHURCH COUNCIL (1978)

This is an autochthonous Costa Rican Pentecostal denomination with no known links to

any religious group in other countries. It was founded on 19 June 1978 at the Iglesia
Evangélica Nacional in the municipality of Guadalupe, Barrio San Gerardo, Cantón de
Goecochea (suburb of San José, the capital city) by eight members of the Board of
Directors of the new Asociación Concilio Iglesias Evangélicas Nacionales de Costa Rica
(ACIENCR), which held office from 1978 to 1980. This denomination has a Presbyterian
form of church government, with the ruling elders making all of the most important
decisions for the Association without consulting the members. The President of the
ACIENCR at its founding in 1978 was the Rev. Edgar Chacón Alvarado (hijo), who held
that office until 1986 when he was replaced by Ramón Rojas Chavarría (1986-1988).

In 1994, denominational officials reported 46 organized churches with 58 licensed

preachers, which were divided into eight presbyteries: San José I (Guadalupe, Zapote,
Cinco Esquinas and Centro Cristiano Canaán), San José II (Centro Cristiano Fe y
Esperanza, San Juan de Tibas and San Felipe), San José III (Santa Ana, Puriscal, La Fila
and Guayabo de Mora), San José IV (Villas de Ayarco, Monte Sinaí and Dos Cercas),
Alajuela (La Argentina, Palmares, San Ramón and Tacares), Zona Sur (Ciudad Cortéz,
Abrojos Ciudad Neily and Miramar), Parrita (Pueblo Nuevo, La Julieta, Palo Seco,
Cerritos, Cerros, La Loma and Damas), Puerto Jiménez (El Edén de Osa, Rincón de Osa,
Palma de Osa, Palo Seco de Osa, Sándola, Puerto Jiménez Centro, Río Tigre, Cañaza and
San Miguel), Guanacaste (Santa Ana, Paso Tempisque, Belén, Corralitlos, Santo
Domingo, Ortega and San Blas), Puntarenas (Cidral) and Zona Atlántica (Pejivalle).

Geographically, the 46 organized churches were located as follows: San José Province
(14), Alajuela Province (4), Zona Sur (Southern Puntarenas Province, 3), Central Pacific
Region (Part of Puntarenas Province, 7), Puerto Jiménez area (Part of Puntarenas
Province, 9), Northern Puntarenas Province (1), Guanacaste Province (7) and Zona
Atlántica (Limón Province, 1). The total for Puntarenas Province was 20 churches.

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In 1988, the ACIENCR acquired by merger the churches and properties that formerly
belonged to the Asociación Bíblica Elim (ABE) in Guanacaste Province with seven
organized churches located in the Cantón of Carrillo, which are listed above under
Guanacaste Province in 1994. The ABE was created by the evangelistic, pastoral and
teaching ministry of the Rev. and Mrs. Kenneth Bennett, who had a casual association
with Elim Assemblies in Lima, New York, a Pentecostal denomination in the Latter
Rain tradition. This included the property of the Elim Bible Institute in Carrillo,
organized and built by the Bennett’s as part of their 20-year’s of ministry in Guanacaste.
Faced with a need to retire from their mission work in Costa Rica and return to the
USA, the Bennetts decided to turn over their mission work to the ACIENCR along with
the legal title to all of their property, rather than selling the property and keeping the
assets for their retirement.

However, there have been a number of serious conflicts among the principal leaders of
this denomination, with some dissident pastors leaving to join other denominations
with a loss of an estimated 8-10 organized churches. Consequently, there was not much
real church growth between 1986 and 2000. The official denominational statistics for
March 2000 showed only 41 organized churches and 4,768 members.

Nevertheless, the ACIENCR did experience considerable church growth between the
date of its founding in 1978 with 7 or 8 organized churches and 1986 when this
denomination reported 41 organized churches, two missions and 17 preaching points,
with a total of 3,351 baptized members and a church community of about 4,600. Most of
this growth occurred in the Provinces of San José and Puntarenas due to the
evangelistic activities of numerous pastors and to an alleged spiritual revival that
occurred in the Central Pacific Region of Puntarenas Province during the early 1980s.

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 TABLE OF 24 LARGEST PROTESTANT DENOMINATIONS

IN COSTA RICA, MARCH 2000

NUMBER OF NUMBER OF
DENOMINATION CONG. MEMBERS
1 ASAMBLEAS DE DIOS 294 46.900
2 IGLESIA ADVENTISTA DEL SETIMO DIA 132 31.350
3 IGLESIA DE DIOS (CLEVELAND, TN) 380 19.000
4 MISION CRISTIANA ROSA DE SARON 5 12.500
5 IGLESIA EVANGELICA CUADRANGULAR 99 9.900
6 ASOCIACION DE IGLESIAS BIBLICAS (AIBC) 134 8.772
7 ASOC. DE IGLS. EVANGS. CENTROAMERICANAS 69 5.925
8 IGLESIA SANTIDAD PENTECOSTAL 76 5.850
9 MOVIMIENTO MISIONERO MUNDIAL 140 5.000
10 IGLESIA METODISTA DE COSTA RICA 50 5.000
11 CONCILIO IGLESIA EVANGELICA NACIONAL 41 4.768
12 IGLESIA DE DIOS PENTECOSTAL 118 4.000
13 IGLESIAS DE CRISTO 38 3.800
14 ASAMBLEA APOSTOLICA DE FE EN CRISTO JESUS 34 3.550
15 IGLESIAS BIBLICAS BAUTISTAS 20 3.442
16 CONF. MENONITA CONSERVADORA 21 3.000
17 ASOCIACION MISIONES TRANSMUNDIALES 17 3.000
18 MISION CARISMATICA INTERNACIONAL 1 3.000
19 IGLESIA DE DIOS DE LA PROFESIA 64 2.500
20 IGLESIA PENTECOSTAL UNIDA 33 2.250
21 IGLESIA DEL NAZARENO 33 2.006
22 COM. MISIONERA PUERTA DE FE 16 1.600
23 UNION NACIONAL DE IGLESIAS BAUTISTAS 22 1.527
24 CONVENCION BAUTISTA DE COSTA RICA 31 1.400
SUBTOTAL: 24 LISTED ABOVE 1,880 189,372
SUBTOTAL: OTHERS 390 39,285
TOTAL 2,270 228,657

(NOTE: SORTED BY NUMBER OF REPORTED MEMBERS)

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barrientes, Pablo David, "Breve Reseña Histórica de la Asociación Concilio Iglesias

Evangélicas Nacionales de Costa Rica" (ensayo no publicado, curso Administración
Eclesiástica, AE-434, Universidad Nazarena de las Américas, 1994).

Bieske, Sigifredo W., El Explosivo Crecimiento de la Iglesia Evangélica en Costa Rica

(San José, Costa Rica: Editorial Jossmay, 1990).

Buttermere, Clive R., "Directorio de Iglesias Bautistas de Costa Rica" (San José, Costa
Rica: computer report, January 1, 1999).

Castillo, Martín, "Una Reseña Histórica del Desarrollo de la Iglesia de Dios Evangelio
Completo en Costa Rica: 1936-1996" (trabajo de tesis, Licenciado en Teología,
Universidad Nazarena de las Américas, 1996).

Central American Mission, CAM Bulletin, November-December 1977, page 11.

FAEC, ¿Dónde está la Iglesia? Un Directorio de las Iglesia Evangélicas Costarricenses

(San José, Costa Rica: Federación Alianza Evangélica Costarricense, 1995).

Gómez, Jorge I., El Crecimiento y la Deserción en la Iglesia Evangélica Costarrricense

(San José: Publicaciones IINDEF, 1996).

Holland, Clifton L., Directorio del Movimiento Protestante en Costa Rica, 1974 (San
José, Costa Rica: IINDEF, 1974).

Holland, Clifton L., World Christianity: Central America and the Caribbean (Monrovia,
CA: MARC/ World Vision, 1981).

PROCADES, Directorio de Iglesias, Organizaciones y Ministerios del Movimiento

Protestante: Costa Rica (San José: PROCADES-IINDEF, 1978).

PROCADES, Directorio de Iglesias, Organizaciones y Ministerios del Movimiento

Protestante: Costa Rica (San José: PROCADES-IINDEF, 1983).

PROLADES, Directorio de Iglesias, Organizaciones y Ministerios del Movimiento

Protestante: Costa Rica (San José: PROLADES-IMDELA, 1986).

PROLADES, Directorio de Iglesias, Organizaciones y Ministerios del Movimiento

Protestante: Costa Rica (San José: PROLADES-IMDELA, 1989).

PROLADES, Directorio de Iglesias, Organizaciones y Ministerios del Movimiento

Protestante: Costa Rica (San José: PROLADES-IMDELA, 1991).

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PROLADES, Directorio de Iglesias, Organizaciones y Ministerios del Movimiento
Protestante: Costa Rica (San José: PROLADES, 2001).

Nelson, Wilton M., Historia del Protestantismo en Costa Rica (San José, Costa Rica:
Publicaciones IINDEF, 1983); this is an update on Nelson´s earlier book in English (see
below).

Nelson, Wilton M., A History of Protestantism in Costa Rica (Lucknow, India:

Lucknow Publishing House, 1963)

Pruitte, Mrs. T. A. (Lutie Bradley Pruitte, daughter of Mr. & Mrs. Amos Bradley),
“Biography of Rev. and Mrs. Amos Bradley,” no date, typewritten (composed by Mrs.
Pruitte in Atlanta, Georgia, prior to her mother’s death in 1959)

PROLADES
Apartado 1524-2050
San Pedro, Costa Rica
(506) 2283-8300
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet: www.prolades.com

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