It is exciting to be part of something that is growing! The Good Shepherd Anglican Church in Lima (Peru), originally built as a chaplaincy Church to provide services to English speaking expatriates working in Peru, reopened its doors after 2 years, just after the previous Rector of the English speaking congregation ceased to be Rector and (in the absence of English speakers to preach/celebrate Communion) Juan Carlos and Penny were invited to help. At that point there were only about 12-15 people, and we praise God that, despite not having a permanent Rector, the Church has grown. It is especially encouraging to see such a large proportion of the congregation actively participating in music, refreshments, etc – maybe not having a “proper” Rector means everyone realises it’s up to THEM to do something! Not without a few hitches – the Carol Service (very popular with the British community) had to be retimed at the last minute following an (ultimately unsuccessful) coup the day it was supposed to happen. Of course where God is working the enemy is also working to undo it, so we are praying that we do not fall into the pitfalls. A rather less traditional service was the celebration of 150 years since the founding of the British Fire Brigade Victoria 8, a Company of Firemen founded by the British Community in Lima in Feb 1873 at the request of the newly independent Republic (yes, firemen are all volunteers here

As for the ministries we technically have, Penny continues as Rector of Jesús el Nazareno, a small Church in a poorer area in the south of Lima. We spent several months doing Abundant Life – a course covering the basic elements of Christian life. It was an interesting group – a few who have studied further education, and several who are barely literate. The exam at the end was thus written for some, and oral for others; in order to help them revise they were all given copies of the exam a couple of weeks before, so that they could revise the MAIN points of the course. Given that the aim was to deepen their understanding of Christian living (rather than to say they had passed an exam) the tutor (Penny) was not averse to nudging them in the right direction in the exam….. The children´s ministry continues; we had a Bible Holiday Club based on Moses during these summer holidays. (crafts on Moses´ basket)

Juan Carlos WAS in charge of the Spanish speaking congregation in the Good Shepherd, where it has been good to see some new people taking on responsibilities. However, as from mid-January he has been on a sort-of sabbatical as he seeks discernment for a future ministry in the south of Peru, based in Arequipa. This is a challenge, not least for our married life since we will be 700 miles apart for much of the time.

Last time we wrote we mentioned the support of communal kitchens. Sadly, these are still needed, since the economic situation is still not good. One reason for the economic problems is the lack of political stability; we now have our 6th President since Nov 2020, and there is general unrest in the country. A little sad that just as the municipal help comes to a halt , so has the discretional fund. However, God has provided in the past and we trust he will continue to do so.

We will be in UK from April to July, so hope to see you then!

Penny & Juan Carlos Marcés

Juan Carlos & Penny Marcés - the Good Shepherd Anglican Church Lima, Peru