CLIR

In addition to the Christian school and the four Reformed churches in Costa Rica, there is also a Reformed bookstore and print shop run by the Confraternidad Latinoamericana de Iglesias Reformadas (CLIR), which means the Fraternity of Latin American Reformed Churches. CLIR holds a few theological conferences throughout all of Latin America. Last week there was a conference in Brazil, and in October there will be another conference in Ecuador. The website for CLIR is http://www.clir.net/; it’s all in Spanish, but if you type the address into Google, there is an option to translate the web page. Google translates some of the words incorrectly, but, at least, you can get the general idea. The print shop prints a bi-annual magazine about various theological issues for all of the Reformed churches in Latin America. They also work on translating books into Spanish, as well as writing new books that address many theological topics. They have recently finished translating a book on the Predestination and Providence of God and a commentary on Jonah, both written by John Calvin. One of the books that they sell is the Westminster Shorter Catechism, so if you’ve ever wondered what the chief end of man is in Spanish, here’s the answer.

Question: ¿Cuál es la finalidad principal de la existencia del hombre? Answer: La finalidad principal de la existencia del hombre es glorificar a Dios, y gozar de él para siempre.

Bill Green is the pastor of Pacto de Gracia, and he also works full-time at the print shop.

A book rack at church with some of the books that CLIR sells.

Every week in church, we say the Apostle’s Creed together. My latest goal has been trying to memorize the entire thing in Spanish. I’m realizing that it’s very challenging to memorize something in another language, but I’m slowly getting it down. Here’s what the Apostle’s Creed looks like in Spanish.

Creo en Dios Padre Todopoderoso,
Creador del cielo y de la tierra:
Y en Jesucristo su único Hijo, Señor nuestro;
Que fue concebido del Espíritu Santo.
Nació de la Virgen Maria,
Padeció bajo el poder de Poncio Pilato,
Fue crucificado, muerto y sepultado;
Descendió a los infiernos;
Al tercer día resucito de entre los muertos;
Subió a los cielos;
Esta sentado a la diestra de Dios Padre Todopoderoso;
Desde allí vendrá al fin del mundo a juzgar a los vivos y a los muertos.
Creo en el Espíritu Santo,
La Santa Iglesia Universal,
La comunión de los santos,
El perdón de los pecados,
La resurrección del cuerpo
Y la vida perdurable. Amen.