Pastor Graduates from New Online Program

Twenty years ago, Carlos Palacios traded the terror and violence of an unstable Peru for the hope and promise of a new life abroad. Although he wasn’t sure what he should do once he arrived in a new country, he felt God calling him to ministry.

Palacios reached a milestone in his spiritual journey during a ceremony in Grand Rapids, Mich., last week, when he was one of the first graduates of a new online degree program designed by Christian Reformed Home Missions in collaboration with Calvin Theological Seminary and Kuyper College.

With his new B.S. degree in Missions/New Church Development, Palacios is now fully credentialed to lead Comunidad de Fe CRC (Community of Faith), the new church he started in early 2008 in Kissimmee, Fla. The church currently attracts 25 people to Sunday worship at an area high school.

Palacios’ path to church planting began in the mid-1990s when he started teaching English as a Second Language classes through a Hispanic ministry based in Madison Avenue CRC in Paterson, N.J. From there, he went on to work with Pastor Marco Avila at New Horizon CRC in Clifton, N.J.

In 2007, Palacios began to focus on becoming a pastor himself. After learning about the Home Missions distance education program, Palacios enrolled in online classes.

Soon after, he started the in-ministry training portion of his academic internship with Home Missions and moved to Florida to intern at Oasis Community Church in Winter Gardens, Florida. Working closely with the Home Missions Hispanic/Southeast U.S. Ministry Team, Palacios started Comunidad de Fe in Kissimmee, a growing community not far from Orlando.

Although the church is still getting off the ground, members have already started regular Bible studies and formed evangelism and leadership groups. The evangelism groups are key to the church’s goal of reaching out to Hispanic Kissimmee residents. “Our vision is to transform the community into a community of faith in Christ,” says Palacios.