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GEOGRAPHY

Area 176,215 sq.km. Located between Brazil and Argentina on the east bank of the River Plate estuary.

Capital Montevideo 1,900,000. Urbanites 90%.

PEOPLES

The Charrua Amerindians, the indigenous people, were forcibly absorbed by the Spanish settlers.

Spanish-speaking 93.1%. Majority of Spanish origin. Italian origin 25%. Mixed race 7%.

Other 6.9%. Italian 75,000; Jews 55,000; Brazilian 32,000; German 28,000; Russian 15,000.

Literacy 97.5%. Official language Spanish.

ECONOMY

Changing from agriculture to industry, services and tourism. A high standard of living for Latin America, but the cost of its extensive welfare system is high. These costs necessitate restructuring, including privatization and inflation reduction. It is a member of MERCOSUR, the South American free trade body. Unemployment 11%. HDI 0.826; 40^th/174. Public debt 22.6% of GNP. Income/person $6,130 (19.5% of USA).

POLITICS

Independent from Spain in 1828. A long and largely unbroken tradition of democracy and civil liberties, was overturned between 1973 and 1985. Democratically elected governments have ruled since the end of the military regime in 1985.

RELIGION

Separation of church and state in 1918, with no legal preference given to any religion. The most secular state in South America.

Missionaries from Uruguay
P,I,A 82 in 14 agencies to 12 countries: Uruguay 44, Bolivia 4, Brazil 3, Chile 3.

Missionaries to Uruguay
P,I,A 232 in 48 agencies from 19 countries: USA 128, Brazil 30, Argentina 16, Canada 14, UK 11.

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Answers to Prayer

1 There is rising hope among Evangelicals. The last 10-15 years have been ones of heightened expectations, increasing fruitfulness, and unprecedented cooperation. The Evangelical Alliance is aiming to double the number of congregations between 1998 and 2005.

Challenges for Prayer

1 Uruguayan society has been characterized by secularism and hope in man for over 100 years. During the 1970s disillusionment set in, and by the '90s the manifest failure of secularism created a search for the transcendent. While Roman Catholicism may lay claim to 50% of the population, only 40,000 (1.2%) attend Mass. The majority of those affiliated with the Catholic Church are, in practice, non-religious.

2 Lack of knowledge of God has given opening to a spirit of error. Brazilian spiritists, once banned, could possibly number a million, many of them members of the Catholic Church. The largest non-Catholic religious bodies are sects such as the Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses and the New Apostolic Church. New Age thinking has filled the vacuum among the agnostic middle-class and intelligentsia. The Unification Church (Moonies) are also influencing the country through capital investment. Pray for these deceptions to be exposed and the demonic powers behind them defeated.

3 Evangelical churches have struggled throughout the past century to make an impact on Uruguayan society, and large-scale efforts garnered only meagre fruit in converts. However, since 1986 the growth of some Pentecostal groups and Baptists has accelerated. Pray for this awakening to continue and that all evangelical churches may find ways to take advantage of this new spiritual interest.

4 Unity has been one of the fruits of this recent awakening. While prayer for further unity and fellowship is still needed, churches are working together on an unprecedented scale. Through the ministry of DAWN, Evangelical Alliance members launched Cooperacion 2000 – a goal of 2000 new congregations by the year 2005. Many feel as if Uruguay is on the cusp of revival. Pray as well for the 20 or so seminaries or Bible schools. A large increase in congregations will create a demand for godly, well-trained pastors. Some schools have been negatively impacted in the past by liberal theology.

5 Missions vision has been limited but is experiencing a flowering of interest. At least two Uruguayan mission agencies have been formed (Avance and Desafio Mundial). There are active international bodies such as OM,YWAM, the Baptists and AoG. The Uruguayan COMIBAM sponsored a Congress on Missions in 2000, which has increased an awareness in churches of the needs of unreached peoples.

6 The discouraging days of meagre fruit in pioneer evangelism are over, but expatriate workers called to serve alongside the Uruguayan church are much needed. Larger missions: IMB-SBC (39 workers), AoG (34), BMW (12), Churches of Christ (12), and the Christian Brethren (10). Church planters from Latin American countries are also having success.

7 The less-reached:

a) The Jews are concentrated in Montevideo. JAMI has a small witness among them. There is an openness to the gospel.

b) The Chinese and Japanese communities. There is no church among them.

c) The Palestinians living in several border towns. Desafio Mundial is focusing on them.

d) The upper middle class living along Montevideo's coast are probably the largest unevangelized group in the country. Baptist and Pentecostal missionaries are working among them.

e) The poor are a growing segment of society with 40% of children now being born into poverty as the middle class shrinks. SAMS runs a shelter for the homeless in Montevideo. Pray that churches would mobilise to reach this needy group.

8 Christian support ministries:

a) Literature. A vital Christian ministry in this highly literate land. CLC has a ministry through its bookstore and a country-wide bookmobile ministry. IMB-SBC and the Bible Society have an extensive literature and Bible distribution ministry. Pray that the written Word may make a lasting impact.

b) Radio and TV. Uruguay is one of the few Latin American countries with a very low evangelical presence on radio (only Cuba is worse). TWR broadcasts from Montevideo to Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay. Despite rising costs, there is significant Christian presence in television, with programmes available terrestrially and on cable.

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