“Great things thou hast done, O Lord my God: thy wonderful purpose are all for our good, none can compare with thee; I would proclaim them and speak them but they are more than I can tell.”
Certainly the purpose of God is being fulfilled in the taking out of the nations a people for his name. In all cultures and in all walks of life men and women are receiving the gospel call and sometimes in wonderful and strange ways, and this is true of the way the Truth came to El Paso.
Our brother Ignacio Padilla worked in a textile dying concern called Texfy West. During coffee breaks, as fellow workers are wont to do, many things are discussed. One day in 1974 the idle chit chat was around what each one did with their weekends. One Lupe Rodriquez and another woman asked Nacho what he did. He told them that he spent his Sundays going to church. All day and es cry Sunday?” He was asked, the girls were surprised that anyone would spend his time in such a dull activity.
This lead to a discussion of Nacho’s belief. Lupe seemed most interested and questioned him about Jesus Christ’s Kingdom. She was surprised when Nacho told her that the priest could not forgive sins, that sins were forgiven through Jesus Christ. Then Nacho contrasted the Truth as taught in the Bible with lhe Catholic belief. He explained there was no need to go to confession and that we could go direct to God through Christ. He talked to Lupe about a month during their coffee breaks and lunch, Then he and his sister wife Teri began regular classes in Lupe’s home, speaking in Spanish. As providence would have it Lupe’s mother Julia Mendez came to visit because Lupe was expecting her first child, so Julia also attended the classes for four months. Meanwhile Lupe’s husband. after some resistance agreed to sit in the classes too.
In the interim, after baby Julie was horn, Manuel and Lupe paid a visit to their home town of El Paso, to show off their first-born. Manuel could not quite give up the Catholic tradition as yet, so he wanted little Julia baptized in the church. Lupe probably had mixed feelings concerning this, but consented.
Lupe became convinced of the Truth and was determined to be baptized into the on way under heaven to be saved. Upon their return to California the continued to study with Teri and Nacho, and gradually Manuel began to see the folly of worshiping saints and idols.
After about a year of classes Manuel and Lupe, gas e a good confession of their faith and were baptized in Pomona, July 1975, Shortly before they were baptized, Manuel and Lupe decided to return to El Paso to live permanently and as a consequence of this decision Lupe’s brother in law Jose and sister Alicia Villages came out to help them move and attended their baptismal service. According to Alicia, her husband Jose kept saying that they didn’t belong at the baptism and that the ought to leave, but they stayed, and afterwards Jose became involved in a discussion about the devil with brother Sherman Payne. Bro. Sherman found out that Jose was studying with the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and since, he had also studied with them he was ready to give his reasons for not going along with their doctrines, especially on a fallen angel devil. Jose was to say later that Brother Sherman had sown many doubts in his mind about the Jehovah Witness movement. For the few days they were here Teri and Nacho preached the kingdom to them. So when Manuel and Lupe moved back to El Paso, they had a reads made Bible class to teach.
In the meantime for several weeks before Manuel and Lupe were baptized, Lure’s mother Julia was continuing her studies of the truth by mail, with letters and tapes from sister Teri Padilla. When Manuel and Lupe returned to El Paso, Julia expressed her desire to be baptized.
This presented a problem, Julia could on speak Spanish and the closest ecclesia is 800 miles away, the nearest Texas ecclesia being the same distance as the nearest California ecclesia.
Fortunately Brother Milton Drake made himself available to visit El Paso. Bro. Drake speaks fluent Spanish has ing spent several years in central America as a Christadelphian Bible Missionary. He flew to El Paso for a week end and Sister Julia was baptized in a lake near her home on Aug. 10, 1975.
At the same time that Milton was in El Paso, Bro. and Sis. Nacho Padilla from Pomona were visiting El Paso, to witness sister Julia’s baptism and to further sow the seed of Truth among friends there. When they returned to Pomona they brought enthusiastic reports of the interest show in the Truth there.
In October 1975 my wife Hazel and I along with brother and sister Sherman Payne made a trip to El Paso. We also found ready ears and wonderful hospitality from our brethren and their families m El Paso. We spent a wonderful week of Bible classes every evening. Even though we spoke no Spanish we were able to carry on a very enthusiastic Bible studs with sister Lupe acting as interpreter. We found genuine interest in the hope of Israel in all our classes. Therefore when we returned to Pomona we enthusiastically stirred up interest from others to join in helping our fledgling ecclesia in El Paso. As a result of a request from the people there Bro. Bob and sister Margaret Brinkerhoff spent a week there in November 1975, with brother Bob also conducting a series of classes. When Jose and Alicia Villages, the daughter and son in law of Sister Julia, expressed interest in being baptized in the one hope, Jose’s sister, Isabell Santayo, also said she wanted to be baptized.
Because of this great interest the Pacific coast Bible Mission decided to send a missionary family to El Paso. They sponsored Bro. Jim and sister Marilyn Rogow of Buffalo, New York, who moved to El Paso in December 1975. With their help the Villages and Isabell Santova soon came to a saving knowledge of the truth. In February 1976 over Washington’s birthday weekend, Jose packed up the family and came to Pomona. He said when he was baptized he wanted it to be where there were many’ Christadelphians. Therefore the brethren in Pomona with the help of Bro. Nacho, and sister Teri Padilla interviewed Jose and Alicia Villegas and Isabell Santoya and after a good confession they’ were baptized on Sunday morning before memorial service and given the right hand of fellowship. The next day, like the Ethiopian eunch, they returned to El Paso rejoicing in their new found faith. With Bro. Jim and Sis. Marilyn there, the new ecclesia got off to a good start. They formed a Sunday’ School and engaged a room at a local Y.M.C.A. In May 1976 Sister Hazel and I paid another visit to our brethren in El Paso and as usual we were greeted with much love and hospitality and on Sunday were delighted to see the enthusiastic group of :youngsters they had in their Sunday School. Again there were anxious ears for Bible classes and another enjoyable week was spent. While there we encouraged them all to make plans to attend our Bible school in July and attend they did, almost the whole ecclesia. Bro. and Sis. Jose Villegas, Sis. Isabell Santoya, Sister Julia Mendez, Bro, and Sis. Jim Rogow and Bro. and Sis. Manuel Rodriquez. Even though Sis. Julia understands very little English, she was an enthusiastic at-tender of all the Bible school functions.
After Bible school 1976 things seemed to be fairly routine with our little ecclesia, but as with everything in this mortal vale there is always ups and downs. Sis. Julia’s husband, Juan, the father of sister Lupe and sister Alicia, suffered a serious heart attack but through the fervent and faithful prayers of brethren and sisters, Juan recovered. Then Bro. Jim and Sis. Marilyn had to move to Houston due to Bro. Jim not being able to find satisfactory employment in El Paso. In June this year Bro. and Sis. Bob Brinkerhoff and Sis. Hazel and I paid another visit to El Paso to encourage them, especially Brother Jose upon whose shoulders fell the burden of carrying on the affairs of the small ecclesia with the help of Bro. Manuel.
In the meantime, Bro. and Sis. Dennis Paggi had returned from several years of missionary work in Central America and since he speaks fluent Spanish, he began taking an active interest in helping the El Paso ecclesia. So two weeks after our visit, Bro. Dennis Paggi flew down for a weekend. He gave a lecture at the downtown Y.M.C.A. where our brethren now meet. While there was no outside response it was a spiritual uplift for the brethren and sisters. With the support of the P.C.C.B.M. Bro. Dennis plans to try to visit on a more or less regular basis. At the time of his visit juan Mendez expressed a desire to be baptized. Bro. Dennis talked to him but nothing really jelled until after Bro. Dennis returned home. Then two weeks before our Bible school in July news came from El Paso that Juan definitely was ready to put on the saving name ant that Bro. Jose and Sis. Alicia with family would bring Sis. Julia and Juan a week before Bible school to Pomona for an interview, again a problem, for Juan does not speak English. This was easily solved as Bro. Dennis would conduct the interview along with the ecclesial committee from Pomona. The folks arrived on Saturday and Saturday evening Juan was interviewed, giving a good confession of his faith. It was decided to have the baptism at 9:30 Sunday morning and Juan could receive the right hand of fellowship at Memorial meeting. Also Bro. Dennis was asked to speak and give the address in Spanish so Juan could benefit from his remarks. Thus we had another first in the Pomona Hall, a baptism conducted in Spanish.’ How wonderful, the word of God to be understood in all languages. Truly we echo the words of Paul. “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and his ways past finding our.” Our new Brother Juan and all the El Paso folk that came out with him attended our Bible School in July, and with the help of some of our bilingual brethren and sisters, Bro. Juan and Sis. Julia Mendez were able to enjoy some of the good things we all enjoy at our Bible school.
Bro. Dennis Paggi plans to continue his periodic visit to El Paso to minister to the brethren and sisters there. Also Bro. and Sister Villegas welcome everyone passing through El Paso to stop and pay them a visit. We know Jose would welcome any brother who would be able to give an exhortation in Spanish, as it falls upon him to do this most every Sunday, Since a good many there understand English, an exhortation in English would also be appreciated.
The El Paso meetings begin at 10:00 a.m. each Sunday at the Metropolitan Y.M.V.A.. 701 E. Montana, El Paso. During the week, contact Bro. Jose and Sis. Alicia Villegas, 195 Edith Dr.. El Paso, Texas, 79915, Phone 772-3378 or 778-3086.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One