El Salvador. World Factbook, 2005

Three Mennonite groups were active in El Salvador in 1986: the Iglesia Evangélica Menonita (Beachy Amish), the Iglesia Menonita de El Salvador (Metapán), and Mennonite Central Committee (MCC). The Iglesia Evangélica Menonita was begun in 1968 following six years of social service work in cooperation with the government. Seventy-five members meet in six locations in central and western El Salvador. In addition, the churches supported a variety of social service projects including an orphanage, day schools, and refugee programs. The Iglesia Menonita del El Salvador (Metapán) is related to the Iglesia Evangélica Menonita Hondurena (Honduran Mennonite Church) begun by Eastern Mennonite Board of Missions and Charities workers. The congregation in Metapán began when Salvadorans living in Honduras were repatriated after the 1969 war between the two countries. The church has grown from a few members to more than 100 and erected a building in 1982. Now it is planting churches in nearby communities. In 2003 it had congregations with 358 members.

Mennonite Central Committee began its work in El Salvador early in 1981 in response to the tremendous refugee needs that were a result of the civil war which began the previous year. MCC supported the work of local churches that had already started assistance programs in several, primarily rural, areas of the country. The emphasis was on emergency assistance including housing, clothing, medical care, and food distributions. This aid was continuing in 1986 but it had become a lower priority. As some of the local churches began to recognize the long-term nature of the war, they began to see ways to address the root causes of the conflict in addition to providing emergency assistance. Over the years, MCC has cooperated with them in resettlement projects, advocacy of dialogue and negotiation, and attempts to provide aid to the most affected rural areas so that residents would not have to become refugees and further strain the services of the larger towns and cities. Increasing emphasis has been placed on education of North Americans in the hope that the United States policy based primarily on a military solution can be changed to one of encouragement of a negotiated solution. Another emphasis is to accompany the Salvadoran churches as they face persecution while ministering to the poor and seeking to be peacemakers.

Bibliography

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Scottdale, Pennsylvania, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 5, p. 267. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.

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