By Paul Jeffrey
Dec. 8, 2023 | MEXICO CITY (UM News)
As Mexican Methodists gathered in their country’s capital to celebrate the 150th anniversary of their founding by Methodists from the United States, they’re not just gazing back with nostalgia. They’re looking at how their Wesleyan heritage can better equip them to face current challenges ranging from artificial intelligence to the climate crisis.
“We wanted to create a space where to talk about the past was to talk about the present, but also to look with hope toward the future,” Bishop Agustín Altamirano Ramos told United Methodist News.
The principal architect of the Nov. 30-Dec. 3 anniversary conference, Altamirano serves the Mexico Annual Conference. One of six annual conferences in the country, it is based in Mexico City.
“This celebration should be like a trampoline that drives and pushes us forward, that challenges us to reflection, and also to action, because too often our reflection doesn’t go anywhere. We Methodists in Mexico see the future with hope. There may be difficult situations like those we’ve experienced in the past, but here we are. We believe the church still has a lot to give, still has a lot to teach, still has a lot to do so that the world will come to know God,” he said.
