Voices of the Communion: Pastor Carla Steinmann-Franco, the Evangelical Church of the River Plate (Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay), tells her story. Pastor Steinmann-Franco is also a member of the LWF Council.
(Lutheran World Information Center) – What are the greatest challenges for your church today?
The Evangelical Church of the River Plate (ECRP) is located in three countries: Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. Each of them has different economic, social and cultural realities. And in each country we have projects and diakonia activities that were created to help and to be alongside people in these countries. In this way, in several of our congregations an ardent desire arose to help, to promote greater awareness and to be alongside people, as well as to pay attention to their social needs.
Over time, some of the diakonia activities have naturally changed their structure and profile, largely because the times have changed: the needs are no longer the same, and the approaches differ as well. By this I mean that one of our greatest challenges today could be: to be able to maintain, restructure and rethink the ways in which we carry out our projects and diakonia work and respond to new challenges that constantly arise. This is complicated by the political, social or economic instability that our countries experience. This reality haunts us and does not allow us to plan and organize, nor does it give us enough time to develop strategies with a long-term perspective.
That is why, day after day, in each of our projects and diakonia activities we have to be ready to confront and resist the difficulties before us. Alongside this, we have to seek an approach that would make it possible to provide not only material but also spiritual support. This challenge is daily and constant.
What role do the government and society play in carrying out the church’s activities?
The government does not finance and support the ECRP’s projects fully in any country, but it must be acknowledged that some activities receive greater or lesser government support, which allows us to concentrate in depth on certain activities, as well as to train our cooperation partners.
I do not want to deny that from the beginning the projects and diakonia activities were financed from private funds, through international organizations and sister churches in Europe. This still happens, perhaps on a smaller scale, but we continue to receive support from our brothers and sisters in order to be able to carry out those activities that we consider necessary and valuable.
Last but not least, it is worth mentioning all the people who help formally and informally, often without compensation, to perform the daily tasks that are necessary to ensure the continuity of the diakonia work.
As a young woman, what do you think about gender equality and the participation of women in your church?
With great joy and pride I can say that I am a recently ordained pastor in our church. I am also very proud to be able to report that in this church there are many ordained women who have worked in it for more than 30 years. Of course, at first it was not simple, and women pastors encountered many obstacles and challenges. Since that time, the younger generations have been able to work with greater autonomy.
Many victories were won and several goals achieved, through hard struggle and devotion to the calling, by those women who were the first to dream of being pastors in our church. But even today there is much to fight for and much to achieve. Every day we encounter the need to fight for our place and to reaffirm our positions and rights. It is true that we have the same rights and duties as male pastors, but we live in a society that is Catholic-majority and largely conservative, so in several cases it has been necessary to explain that women in the ECRP and in other churches of the Reformed tradition are likewise pastors alongside their male colleagues.
A good example is the fact that we have had to explain several times that the “pastora” is not always the pastor’s wife, but that she is a woman who plays this role as a result of her own effort and training. From personal experience I can say that in many cases I have had to explain that I am the pastor, but my husband has a different profession.
I also wish to point out that within the ECRP we have been able to discuss the issue of gender equality, as well as the issue of gender diversity. This is very hopeful, because within that same church an experience-enriching space is taking shape, and we can slowly overcome various barriers.
Of course, there is still a long road to travel, many battles to win and much ground to gain, both in the work of the church and in the social sphere, but I am grateful to be able to say that I belong to a church where dialogue is possible and where we as women can work autonomously and with equal rights.
During the LWF Council you approved a new LWF strategy. Which parts of the strategy will be especially applicable to your church or especially important for it?
As a youth delegate on the Council, I want to emphasize that I personally believe that one of the strong points in our future work is the continued support of youth work, both locally and in the global Young Reformers network. The strategy calls on churches to ensure acceptable youth participation in the church and society.
Youth work is extremely important in churches regardless of their size, because within it communities and connections take shape that allow us, without a doubt, to carry out our mission as churches in the world.
In this regard, I wish to highlight the importance attached to the inclusion and participation of young people in regional youth activities. It has allowed many LWF young people to travel, participate and learn about the work of churches in other regions.
In the ECRP we have had the privilege of hosting delegates from various churches of the region at our youth camp, and I can assert that this experience was unique, because it allowed us to see one another and learn together, respecting diversity. This is necessary for our youth networks to remain viable and active.
Youth work is extremely important in churches regardless of their size, because within it communities and connections take shape that allow us, without a doubt, to carry out our mission as churches in the world. We must continue to “reform” our churches, because young people are not only the future of the church, but also its present.
Buenos Aires, Argentina/Geneva
| 9.11.2018.
Source: The Lutheran World Federation