National Latino Evangelical Justice Coalition Launch Announced at 20th Anniversary of the Hispanic Evangelical Movement

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Oct. 3, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Delegates from across the nation and Puerto Rico traveled to commemorate the historic 20th anniversary of the Hispanic Evangelical Movement which celebrated Dr. Jesse Miranda, A.M.E.N. and the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, and included the announcement of the National Latino Evangelical Justice Coalition launch.

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Dr. Jesse Miranda, a distinguished professor at Vanguard University in Costa Mesa, Calif., is an international Christian leader with a firm commitment to Latino civic engagement. A noted community leader and religious educator for more than 45 years, Dr. Miranda's expertise and extensive background in the areas of leadership, social ethics, reconciliation, and theological education resulted in him being called upon by four United States Presidents for consultation on issues dealing with church, society and immigration.

Rev. Jim Tolle, Sr. Pastor of El Camino Church in Los Angeles, Calif., said, "The evangelical community honored Dr. Jesse Miranda, one of its most influential and beloved leaders, for his trailblazing life through tributes and presentations at a large gathering in Los Angeles. A renowned scholar, whose creativity and bridge-building efforts have impacted thousands of students, pastors and leaders, Dr. Miranda is the father of the greatest growth segment of Christianity in the United States during this generation."

In 1992 Dr. Jesse Miranda, after witnessing the city of Los Angeles incinerated in a fire of racial strife and discord as a result of the Rodney King trial, established the Hispanic Evangelical network, Alianza de Ministerios Evangelicos Nacionales (A.M.E.N.). Through the years, his devotion to family, faith and community speaks to a leader who bows before God so that he can stand before man.

20 years later, the NHCLC, which was initiated by NHCLC President Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, as the apparatus for the next generation chapter of A.M.E.N., stands recognized by major periodicals, news outlets, scholars and leaders as 'The voice of Hispanic Evangelicals.'

The National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (www.nhclc.org), the nation's largest Christian Hispanic organization, is the Hispanic Evangelical Association unifying, serving and representing millions in the Hispanic Born Again community through 40,118 churches by reconciling the vertical and horizontal planes of the Christian message—via Billy Graham's message of salvation through Christ reconciled with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s march for justice—through the NHCLC's seven directives of Life, Family, Great Commission, Stewardship, Justice, Education and Youth.

The announcement of the launch of National Latino Evangelical Justice Coalition was received with tremendous applause from attendees at the 20^th Anniversary Celebration. Dr. Yuri Mantilla, newly appointed President of the National Latino Evangelical Justice Coalition and Director of International Government Affairs at Focus on the Family, said, "In this decisive moment in the history of our nation, the application of the biblical principles of justice to our society is of special importance.  A just society is one that respects the dignity of each human being created in God's image.  The Hispanic Evangelical Justice Coalition exists to defend and promote respect for the imago Dei, as a foundation for the defense of fundamental human rights, including the right to life, since the time of conception, and religious liberty for all."

Miranda expressed enthusiasm for the launch of the National Latino Evangelical Justice Coalition, stating, "Today, we further the cause by launching this Coalition with an expanded agenda in order to do justice in the name of Jesus." The coalition will focus on issues such as human trafficking, immigration reform, poverty alleviation and religious liberty.

Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, President of the NHCLC, said, "Celebrating 20 years of the Hispanic Evangelical Association enables us to affirm our foundational ethos while simultaneously advancing in executing the Lamb's Agenda. This historic celebration prompts us to exalt Christ as we declare 'The best is yet to come.'"

Dr. Miranda is the founder of the largest Latino seminary in the nation, The Latin American Theological Seminary. Currently he serves as an Executive Presbyter with the General Council of the Assemblies of God and is the president and founder of the Miranda Center for Hispanic Leadership. Dr. Miranda is also the Chairman Emeritus of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference.

SOURCE National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference