According to his great mercy / Por su gran misericordia
He has caused us to be born / Nos ha hecho nacer de nuevo 
again to a living hope through / mediante la resurrección de
the resurrection of Jesus Christ / Jesucristo, para que tengamos
from the dead. 1 Peter 1:3b ESV / una esperanza viva. 1 Pedro 1:3b

This verse is displayed on red shirts worn proudly by the church leadership at Resurrección y Esperanza/ Resurrection and Hope Church. Don’t let the Spanish sign out front deter you from visiting because this bilingual church invites all to worship together.

“Instead of looking at other cultures and languages as barriers, we want to look at those as bridges,” said Dana Castorena, worship leader and pastor’s wife.

“We ask ourselves, how can we appreciate each other and how God created each culture unique? We want to celebrate those differences and learn from each other rather than dispute differences,” Castorena continued.

Added pastor Francisco Castorena, “We are trying to show we are a family of faith and we are doing life together … not just seeing each other behind these four walls, but when church is over, we build those relationships.”

Resurrection and Hope Church was established in April 2017 as a church plant from the Central Baptist Association with the help of Pioneer Community Church, where the Castorenas attended for 16 years. The Castorenas both felt called to reach other interracial couples and people who didn’t have a church home because of language barriers.

With around 50 members, who are half English and half Spanish speaking, it’s important to the Castorenas to offer a combination of both languages during services so families can worship together.

“For instance, if the wife speaks English and the husband speaks Spanish, one of them is not getting the message. One is not feeling at home,” said Dana passionately. “Here they both go home having learned something in their own language.”

Added pastor Francisco, “I interpret in both languages and deliver God’s message in the same setting for everyone here.”

As for the typical order of bilingual service, there’s singing, scripture, contemporary worship with either split tracks or an acoustic band, children’s church, sermon, Sunday school and communion offered once a quarter, which is open to believers. 

When describing the bilingual services, Dana’s eyes lit up before saying, “This is a picture of what heaven is going to be like. It’s not just going to be White, Chinese or Hispanic people. We’ll worship together and be with Jesus together.”

Pastor Francisco smiled and joked that their church has the best fellowship meals with both cultural foods represented like Southern casseroles and homemade tortillas.

As far as addressing misconceptions, one reoccurring assumption they’ve noticed from people in the community is that their church is all Spanish speaking because the church sign is in Spanish only, but they are working to get that changed. Pastor Francisco also pointed out that they are not competing with other local churches.

“We are not in competition with our family of faith,” said Pastor Francisco. “We’re here to work together, love people, God and serve the world. We’re seeking the lost and unchurched people of our community.”

Resurrection and Hope Church is located on 662 North Spring Street. For more information on service times, call 931-581-8926.