Josué González, of Mosaic Conference, Elected as Moderator-Elect for Hispanic Mennonite Church
In a national assembly on January 29, 2022, Iglesia Menonita Hispana (IMH – Hispanic Mennonite Church) elected Josué González of Miami, FL, as moderator-elect.
Gonzalez is a founding member and elder of Iglesia Menonita Encuentro de Renovación (Encounter for Renewal Mennonite Church) in Miami, FL which is part of Mosaic Conference. He is a cargo flight dispatcher and is married to Noemi. González is also a student of the Instituto Bíblico Anabautista, (IBA – Hispanic Anabaptist Bible Institute) which is operated by Mennonite Education Agency (MEA). He is completing his final trimester and is set to graduate this Spring.
Iglesia Menonita Hispana is a Racial/Ethnic constituency group of Mennonite Church USA (MC USA) and reaches multicultural Hispanic and Latino/a Mennonites across the country.
González’ four-year term begins immediately. He will serve two years as moderator-elect and two years as moderator. He will also serve on the Constituency Leaders Council (CLC) of MC USA.
Marco Güete, Leadership Minister for Mosaic Conference and the director of MEA’s Hispanic Ministries Education programs, affirmed González’ readiness for this role.
“Josué has shown maturity, Christian spirituality, and intelligence serving on the local church board, and he will do well nationally with Iglesia Menonita Hispana,” Güete said.
María Teresa Pérez-Soto agrees. She is a leader of Encuentro de Renovación church and a tutor for IBA. “It is a blessing that Brother Josué González has been appointed moderator-elect of the Hispanic Mennonite Church board,” she said. “His dedication and commitment to the Lord’s work has been manifested in his Bible study with IBA and the help he has given to the local church as Treasurer. Through his passion for public speaking, Brother Josué will be a great asset for the board of IMH; additionally, he will ensure he moderates all meetings and assemblies fairly.”
González shared his thoughts about being called to a ministry position in the Hispanic Mennonite church. “When I started my studies at the Anabaptist Bible Institute, (IBA), my life changed and I started to think that God is training me not only to know more about him, but to serve him as a true disciple,” he said.
“I understood that I should work with the Mennonite Church and be able to help in the ministry where the Lord will use me. I just said, ‘Here I am Lord. I am willing to work for you.’ And this was how the Lord opened the doors to work with the intercultural committee of Mosaic [Mennonite Conference], and now with the Hispanic Mennonite Church USA,” reflected Gonzalez.
Ulises Arenas, the Executive Director of Iglesia Menonita Hispana, welcomed Josué, saying, “We appreciate Josué González becoming IMH’s new moderator-elect and we are blessed for his willingness to serve on the new IMH executive board. It is a pleasure for us to welcome Josue and work with him.”
The opinions expressed in articles posted on Mosaic’s website are those of the author and may not reflect the official policy of Mosaic Conference. Mosaic is a large conference, crossing ethnicities, geographies, generations, theologies, and politics. Each person can only speak for themselves; no one can represent “the conference.” May God give us the grace to hear what the Spirit is speaking to us through people with whom we disagree and the humility and courage to love one another even when those disagreements can’t be bridged.