Dominican Republic
The DR is currently home to over 8 million people. It is the second largest nation in the Caribbean behind Cuba. The average income is around $300 U.S. per month, and tourism is the largest source of revenue for the Dominican people. Spanish is the official language, but in tourist areas many people speak English, German, French, and Italian, etc.
The earliest know inhabitants of the Dominican Republic reached the island around 2600 B.C., using dugout canoes that allowed them to ride the currents from South America through out the Antilles. They were primarily nomadic hunter-gatherers who used stone tools and left little behind for archaeologist to examine. A second group, often referred to as the Salanoids or ancient Arawaks, landed on Hispaniola around 250 B.C. The group, easily traced because of their distinctive ceramics, spread throughout the Caribbean.
A third migration, from Venezuela, swept through the Antilles about 2000 years ago, and by A.D. 700 occupied the Dominican Republic and most of the surrounding islands. This society’s complex hierarchical structure allowed for specialization in fishing, worship, art and farming. They called themselves the Taino (friendly people), and an estimated 400,000 of them lived on Hispaniola when Christopher Columbus landed his ship to their greetings. People on another island had told Columbus that there was gold to be found there, and the anxious Italian set off in the night to find it, accidentally dashing the Santa Maria offshore.
Columbus named the island Hispaniola (little Spain) and returned with a thousand colonist the following year ready to make it the centerpiece of Spain’s new empire. Naturally, it was the Taino who were set to work to build this vision, and within six years of Columbus’ arrival they had been thoroughly decimated by cruel working conditions and European diseases. Though some independent communities survived in hard-to-reach areas of the island, much of the original culture was lost.
The slave rebellion in Haiti was initially supported by the Spaniards of the DR, but their politicking backfired when revolutionary leader Toussaint L’Ouverture invaded the eastern part of Hispaniola, took Santo Domingo and freed the island’s 40,000 slaves. This prompted much of the Spanish elite to relocate to neighboring islands like Puerto Rico and Cuba.
The Church of the Nazarene
The Dominican Republic is located on the island of Hispaniola. The DR shares this Caribbean island with the Republic of Haiti. The Church of the Nazarene did not officially move into the DR until 1975, but for 20 years previous God was preparing the way. La Hora Nazarena, a Spanish radio broadcast was reaching lives long before the country had a church building or even a preacher. Between this global avenue of ministry and the Nazarene Publishing House (Latin Division) making Holiness materials available to other DR evangelicals, the DR was being prepared by God for the introduction of the Church of the Nazarene.
In the early 1970s Rev. William Porter was ministering in Puerto Rico. It was during this time that his attention was drawn to the DR. Rev. Porter traveled to the DR on occasion with the Puerto Rico Symphony. In his travels Porter also met several people who would most likely help him launch the work of the church.
In 1972 the World Mission Department passed a motion to officially begin the work in the DR. The leadership, in a strategic move, decided that they would send one of their best into the country, Rev. Louie Bustle. After a year of language preparation in Costa Rica, the Bustles took a five month furlough. Then in August, 1975, the Bustles arrived in the DR.
However, until the Bustles arrived, Rev. Porter was busy incorporating the Church of the Nazarene to be recognized officially by the DR government. He also recruited the help and ministry of Rev. Julio Rodriguez, a Free Methodist lawyer, and Mrs. Bobea who coordinated the effort of La Hora Nazarena in the DR.
When the Bustles arrived they found the field ripe for harvest. For 25 years God had been preparing this country for a great revival. In a short time, with diligent work the Church of the Nazarene grew in the DR from 0 churches to 60 in 6 years. Membership continued to rise, and in 1981 they had reached the Phase 3 distinction with over 2000 members.
Other ministries introduced and grown revolved around ministerial and theological training in conjunction with the Bible College in Costa Rica by extension.
Through the years the DR has continued to grow both numerically and in spiritual maturity. Today the DR supports five Nazarene Districts and 150 churches. Every so often this beautiful land is hit directly with a hurricane. Yet not even the vicious winds can blow down the church that God has built.
Sources:
- Parker, J. Fred. Mission to the World: A History of Missions in the Church of the Nazarene through 1985. Nazarene Publishing House, Kansas City, MO, 1988.
http://www.lonelyplanet.com
Dr. John Smee