DON’T MISS THIS EVENT!!!
TOPIC - “The Heart of a Barrio Prophet”
EVENT - CUMBRE de ALABANZA
TIME - Friday at 7pm
LOCATION - Community Baptist Church (map)
1120 McDonnell Ave. East Los Angeles, CA 90022READ: Barrio Prophets intro + (a), (b), and (c).

This mural sits on the corner of a major East LA intersection - Avenida de Cesar Chavez & Soto Blvd. (map), walking distance from our home. The title of the mural is “No Greater Love” or “The Greatest Love,” and has been there since 1992 by Paul Botello (a CSULA graduate) on the wall of Ramirez Pharmacy.

After the LA riots in May 1992, the city commissioned muralists in several communities to do several mural projects aimed at curbing the sense of urban disenfranchisement that had been revealed by the riots.

This mural was done in that same season, but was a gift from the Ramirez family. The LAmurals.org website describes the mural as “..attempting to connect spirituality with a society in need of peace.” This section of the mural depicts a bearded face gazing at a wounded heart that is surrounded by thorns. Somehow from the wounded heart, there is a seed sprouting a new plant that is surrounded & protected by a bursting flame.

I believe this is the heart of a barrio prophet that Jeremiah speaks from in chapter 12, the theme passage for tomorrow’s event. Wounded. Pricked and Prodded. Bearing new life through a flame of passion before God. Jeremiah says to God:

“You are always righteous, O LORD, when I bring a case before you. Yet I would speak with you about your justice: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease?…You are always on their lips but far from their hearts. Yet you know me, O LORD; you see me and test my thoughts about you…

How long…?”

God’s response to Jeremiah is worth the price of admission. Hope to see you there.

READ: Recounting how it went.

TOPIC — “The Heart of a Barrio Prophet”
EVENT — CUMBRE de ALABANZA
TIME — Friday at 7pm
LOCATION — Community Baptist Church (map)
1120 McDonnell Ave. East Los Angeles, CA 90022
Yesterday, after taking Bus Line 71 to CSULA, I met up with staff partners from USC to pray over the campus and invite students to the “Cumbre” event this Friday.

Students along Library walkway at CSULA
To the students that I met, I asked, “If God were to come into the barrio, what issues would God have to address?”Brenda, a frosh student from West LA that I met at the bus stop, said, “Teaching people peace and how to love one another.” I asked her what she meant by “peace.” “You mean the opposite of stress?” “No,” she replied, “opposite of violence.” Another woman that I talked with, Maritza, a third year Catholic student from South Los Angeles, talked about God needing to explain all of the division between Christians, who all claim Jesus. I met another woman on the walkway who responded, “I’ve never really thought about that, but now that you ask, I’m really interested to know.”

What I realized is whatever the specific question, there is a hunger in this generation to experience truth in flesh, God walking in the barrio. Maritza and I talked about the incarnation of Jesus as the picture for us of what our invisible God looks like. We didn’t use the word ‘incarnation’ but that was what we talked about - God among us, actually invested in the barrio issues that affect the people God cares about. While I don’t know who will show up this Friday, it is confirming to know that the hope for a prophetic voice in the barrio is what this generation of students hopes for.

Lastly, when asked “what does barrio mean?” by my students, they helped me fill in the answer - “ghetto, da hood, the city, urban center.” Urban center prophets just doesn’t flow the same.

READ: Barrio Prophets (a) and (b)

Like the mural depicts, the heart of a Barrio Prophet is not sheltered from pain and the thorns of life. Anyone in the barrio knows that through personal experience. “The Heart of a Barrio Prophet” is the topic and theme for the CUMBRE de ALABANZA this Friday at 7pm at Community Baptist Church (map) in East Los Angeles. One goal for this gathering of Latino/a college students from campuses and churches across Los Angeles is to create a place to encounter God - the great healer - through worship, prayer, fellowship and the Word. In this encounter - encuentro con Dios - God works to heal hurt and then lead students not away from the pain, but into facing & conquering it in order to usher in God’s transforming power.For many, one source of pain is the experience of the barrio. This was true for our speaker, Abner Ramos, who grew up here in East LA, and planned for his education at UCLA to be his ticket out of the barrio forever. But then the his encounter with God changed Abner from a barrio victim to a barrio prophet:

“To tell you the truth, I didn’t want to come. I thought that going back to East L.A. was against everything I had been working hard to accomplish, that is, to stay out of the ghetto and make a lot of money… But something interesting happened that day.As we were unloading the pizza Brad told me that someone had been shot on campus the day before. “Yea, some guys got in a fight in the parking lot. One of them pulled out a gun, and now the other dude is dead.” I didn’t think much of it then.

I went home to visit my family that weekend. That’s when my brother asked me what I had been up to. “I went to ELAC this week, it’s a cool place.”

He looked at me with a sad look on his face. “Guess who shot someone on that campus this week?”

“Who?”

“Marcel Narro.”

Marcel was by best friend growing up. I saw him go downhill when we were freshmen at Montebello High School. We did everything together. The day before I came to ELAC he pulled out his gun and emptied the clip at point blank range into another man’s chest. It’s a sad thing to see your friends make stupid decisions.

At that point I heard God’s voice say, “Abner, your best friends are killing people on that campus. You have to go and tell them that I bring hope, you have to give them my gospel.”

Yeah. Wow. Come on Friday to hear Abner speak. Bring your Latino youth, friends, leaders and future barrio prophets to experience this transformation from the God of Barrio prophets, Jesus himself.

READ: Barrio Prophets (a) and (c)

Everyday this week, I’ll be previewing CUMBRE de ALABANZA — “The Heart of a Barrio Prophet,” the big event this Friday at 7pm at Community Baptist Church (map) in East Los Angeles, by linking to information (all the links will be worth the click) about the event, the speaker, and our hopes and goals for the time.
Abner Ramos - serving students at East Los Angeles College (ELAC) will be preaching from Jeremiah 12 (read passage), a book he has been recently challenged by:

“Like Jeremiah, I’ve been fed up with the sin and apathy of my people. God had me study the prophet, and stopped me at chapter 12. When Jeremiah exposes his heart to God, God exposes his heart to Jeremiah. God has a beautiful heart.”

Read more of Abner’s blog thoughts on Jeremiah & being a Barrio Prophets here and here. One of our hopes for this time is for God to raise up a generation of Barrio Prophets to communicate a message of hope & justice.

Just last week I was at CSULA inviting students to this event when I met a student named Jose, who was waiting at the bus hub on campus to go home. Jose - who grew up in the barrio here in East LA - is a senior studying engineering who hopes to graduate this spring.

When I asked him “If God were to walk into the barrio, what would he have to speak to?”, Jose responded, “God would have to speak to the false perceptions that people have about those of us who live in the barrio, about how we live, what we are like, and what we hope for.”

Jose’ challenge for God is the same as Jeremiah’s challenge for God - to rise up and to act for justice in the barrio. God’s response to Jeremiah, to Jose and to you & I is this: “I am rising up - through this generation from the barrio to be worldchangers across the globe.”

On that note, you’re all invited this Friday to hear more about the generation of Barrio Prophets that God is raising up.

READ: Barrio Prophets (b)

The Latino Film Festival - co-founded by Edward James Olmos in 1997 - starts tonight and runs this weekend and next weekend. Check out the list of special events and the schedule of films

I grew up thinking of the little drummer boy in the context of Christmas. So reading this post from my friend’s Nate & Mailin Young, who live in Turkey, got my attention. Sharing about this practice in the month of Ramadan,

“The little drummer boy is not without purpose; he rouses people so they can grab an early breakfast before the sun rises and their fast begins. In the pre-alarm clock era, the drummer had an essential role; now he is more of a remnant of traditional Turkish culture.”

It made me think about tradition and U.S. culture: Who keeps the drum beat - even if only as a remnant of tradition - for our cultural appetite and religious devotion? And do we still listen to that drum-beat, or do we curl to the otherside of our comfortable beds, snoozing through the opportunities for devotion - whether personal or corporate - in the cultural traditions of our past?

Growing up in a family where tradition was seen as a reinforced as good thing [4 generations from the same college as 1 example - Io Triumphe!], I’ve also adopted new traditions from my Mexican family and neighbors, as well as my African-American & Chinese-American students, that put together, creates a sometimes beautiful, sometimes chaotic rythym in my life.

What I’ve come to wonder, though, is this - beneath the drum-beat of culture and tradition, what are we supposed to be awakened to? What, beyond the practice, are the principles or points of grace that the rythms of cultural traditions pointing to?

For you, what are the traditions - whether deeply held or faintly voiced - that you practice; and what do they point out in your life?

13 student leaders.
7 staff & interns.
5 colleges & universities.And somehow everyone fit in our living room.

Last Wednesday evening, Veronica & I hosted the 1st of 4 La Fe leadership meetings in this school year for students and staff from campuses around Los Angeles. Students from UCLA to East LA CC to Redlands gathered in our living room to pray & prepare for the “Cumbre de Alabanza” event coming up November 18th.We started by praying for each others families - a rare blessing considering how much energy & focus we usually have on the campus in campus ministry. Then Abner Ramos shared about the content of his message from Jeremiah 12 that he’ll be speaking to a group of 100-150 Latino college students, their families and pastors, on embracing the “Heart of a Barrio Prophet.”

What was most encouraging personally was to see such a clear reminder of God’s provision. Not even 2-3 years ago could any of us have imagined this type of gathering of Latino students. We didn’t even have any formal gathering of Latino staff, and less than a handful of Latino staff even if we could gather. Now, we have more than 7 Latino staff and interns and a promising group of gifted Latino student leaders on several campuses.And yet as students were leaving after the meeting, several students came up to me to share how meaningful it was to have this meeting in our home. More than all of the leadership insight. More than the inspiration of the upcoming event. More than the vision for reaching & serving the 350,000+ Latino college students attending 1 of 60+ colleges or universities in the Los Angeles area. It was the impact of hospitality and home that most blessed and encouraged them as they headed back to campus.

READ: Barrio Prophets (a), (b), and (c).

La Fe carries a lot of significance. In Spanish, La Fe means the faith. In InterVarsity-speak, La Fe also stands for Latino Fellowship, representing the needs of over 35 Latino staff and 1,200 Latino students across the country.As part of my ministry with InterVarsity, not only am I responsible for nurturing la fe lives of college students, but I’m also priviledged to serve the ministry of La Fe in InterVarsity in a few capacities. Locally, here in Los Angeles, we now have a team of staff - full-time & interns - that serve together to empower & advance Latino ministry to reach and serve the 350,000 Latino college students here in the greater L.A. basin. Tomorrow night we’ll have our first of 4 training/leadership meetings for this group of staff, and we’ll plan and prepare for the “Cumbre de Alabanza” event on November 17th.In addition, I also serve (as the lone gringo) on the National La Fe Servant Leadership team - a coordinating team of staff from La Fe for the broader ministry of InterVarsity across the country. As the only non-Latino on the team, I’m still finding my place, trying to listen carefully for exactly what it is that God has me on that team for. Not that I doubt my own commitment to ministry in the Latino community. But offering national (or even local) leadership as a gringo is a dance that I’m still learning the steps for.

Regardless, though, I’m travelling Thursday morning to meet through Sunday with that team and the other ethnic-minority leadership teams in InterVarsity for a historic first meeting. While each ethnic-minority community has had a leadership team for 10-15 years, this will be the first time that all 3 teams have gathered jointly to discuss & grow the ministry of InterVarsity nationally. Again, my place at the table in these meetings will be unique, as I discern what role I am to play. Lots to learn, that is for sure.

In just over a month - on Friday, November 17th at 7pm - we’ll have our 3rd Annual “Cumbre de Alabanza” at Community Baptist Church in East Los Angeles. In Spanish, cumbre means summit, and these meeting serve as a summit of worship & prayer, a gathering of Latino college students from across Los Angeles as we seek to raise up the next generation of Christian disciples and barrio prophets at the university.Abner Ramos, on staff with InterVarsity at East LA College - and a true barrio prophet in his own right - will be speaking from the text of Jeremiah 12. Click here to read about how Abner has caught a glimpse at the heart of God in his own journey as a barrio prophet.

READ: Barrio Prophets intro + (a), (b), and (c).

KTLA News (channel 5) is having a special program tonight at 10:30. Comedian Carlos Mencia will be one of the guests, as well as Ted Garcia and Lynnette Romero from the KTLA News, among others. Check it out if you can.

Rudy Carrasco, Director of Harambee Ministries in Pasadena, blogger of Urbanonramps, and contributing editor to PRISM magazine, recently wrote the cover article on “Surfacing Hispanic Leaders - Visibility is a Challenge, but not for long.”

“My family came to Christ through a Baptist, predominantly white church in Burbank. During college, first at Biola University, then as a Stanford University transfer student worshipping with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, I was in a small minority of Hispanics living out their faith.More challenging, my peers had few connections to Hispanic Christian leaders. That didn’t deter me in my quest to find an ideal Hispanic congregation “back home.” East L.A. had not been home for many years, but it had been my mental fixture, my destination, ever since I responded to an altar call at age 10.

So I searched—in vain. It was one thing to find Hispanic churches on the east side of Los Angeles, but quite another to find a church where I felt I fit in. The traditions and predominant use of Spanish (I’m not fluent) were foreign to me.

In addition, I’d learned of God’s desire to touch the whole life, not just save the soul. Finding a church that integrated action with faith was more difficult than I thought.”

Rudy is a great leader and a stand-up guy who - everytime I’ve ever heard him speak - shares about his personal journey with Jesus as much as about his ministry “accomplishments.” His authenticity is real and his influence is great.

Also, listed among 8 influential leaders is InterVarsity’s Director of La Fe (Latino Fellowship) - Orlando Crespo, as well as a blogger mention to East LA’s Abner Ramos (read his recent post about why he is in East LA.)

I have the pleasure of working with Orlando on a national La Fe leadership team, and much more closely with Abner serving Latino students here in Los Angeles. Both are great men of faith.

OK. You are either reading this article because you have a strong opinion one way or the other about the existence of the infamous “chupacabra” (goat sucker) or because you just happen to read this blog and have never heard of this strange beast.Well, aparently some Texas farmer caught - and killed - the chupacabra, a weird animal that looks like a mix between a hairless dog, a rat and a kangaroo. May the great debate continue.

Time Magazine released a recent web-exclusive story on the 25 Most Influential Latinos in the US. Not surprisingly, one-third of the Latinos on the list are from Los Angeles.With Los Angeles being home to the largest Hispanic population outside of Latin America, the future influence of Latinos will be felt not just within the Latino community, and not just in Los Angeles, but across the U.S. in the coming decade.

The following article reveals some surprising and some not so surprising information about the religious affiliations of U.S. Latinos. For example:

“…of the 35.4 million U.S. Latinos, about 23 opercent (almost 8 million) identified themselves as [Protestants/Evangelicals], according to a study by the Hispanic Churches in American Public Life (HCAPL) research project…Despite the surprising percentages of Latino Protestants, the vast majority of American Latinos, 70 percent, are Catholics, making the Catholic Church, and the icon of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the most identifiable symbols of Latino religion.”

One stat that really got my attention, though, was knowing that “there are more Latino Protestants in the United States than American Jews, Muslims, Episcopalians or Presbyterians.”

Reading through the article provided some interesting reflection on what ‘evangelism’ and what ‘discipleship & Christian education’ in the Latino community will need to look like.

If you like the music of Selena, check out this link about the late Latina pop-icon’s cult following.

As Veronica & I prepare for parenthood through adoption, the part of the process that I’ve enjoyed the most has been the healthy discussions about culture and the upbringing that we will offer our kids. So this article got my attention, especially since Veronica & I have so much family in Mexico.

I met the artist of this painting today - Diego Cardoso - at HomeGirl Cafe in Boyle Heights on First Street, right by Mariachi Plaza. [It is a great new restaurant - you should try it.]Cardoso grew up in Boyle Heights, graduating from Roosevelt High School. He has an exhibit of paintings - “Urban Images” - in the restaurant, which is across the street from the Metro Gold Line East LA extension that is set to open in 2008. “Working for the Metro (MTA) pays my mortgage,” he said, “but I want to connect each station on the Metro extension to the community life and art around that station.”

In Boyle Heights, that equals murals. When Veronica & I moved to Boyle Heights 5 years ago, I started working on a mural project, cataloging murals in Boyle Heights. In the end, I made a driving tour, including over 60 murals in the Boyle Heights neighborhood.

Cardoso was very interested in my mural tour, so I’m going to get together with him to talk more about the driving tour that I’ve made. Who knows, maybe I’ll be a part of future “urban images.”

Check out this editorial piece from James Rojas of the Latino Urban Forum, from today’s LA Times on the need for more public space in downtown LA.