The Rev. Gene Flanery helps Kansas-City Latinos learn English and connects them to the family of God.
Raul and Silvia, an older Hispanic couple in Kansas City, were struggling with their English. So they decided to seek help at a conversation-based ESL class hosted by La Misión de San Lucas (The Mission of St. Luke), an ESL-ministry-turned-church-plant serving the 40,000 Latinos residing in Wyandotte County and beyond.
The couple joined a handful of other students meeting in the basement of a United Methodist church. After practicing their English for several months, they heard about a home Bible study for class members. Raul and Silvia had built friendships in the class, so they agreed to go. They liked the Bible study so much that they brought their kids.
“
The classes grew, as did the home Bible studies, and in 2014 Flanery launched The Mission of St. Luke, a missional community with services meeting at nearby St. Luke’s Lutheran Church. About seven Latino families currently attend. Flanery also operates a thrift store for the inner-city Hispanic community in a rented downtown space, with classrooms on the sides where he and a team of volunteers teach ESL several mornings and evenings a week.
The two ministries go hand in hand. Language assimilation is the top need of Kansas City’s Latino population, and low wages at blue-collar jobs mean economic challenges. Flanery hopes to also provide family counseling, children’s tutorial programs and leadership development for underprivileged families.
“The ESL classes make evangelism very real,” Flanery says. “We’re meeting new people every semester and touching their lives. People come to our thrift store and ask why we’re called St. Luke’s. Meeting new people is natural, not a program.”
Each ESL class begins with prayer and a reading from the Daily Office, followed by a short discussion.
“The people appreciate that, as they are a very religious community. No one has ever said, ‘We don’t want you to pray or read the Bible.’ We’ve seen a spiritual hunger develop from that little prayer time and sharing the gospel—it really touches their hearts.”
The curriculum—which Flanery has developed over time—is both fun and practical. He finds that many students are reluctant to speak up and use their English outside the walls of the class.
“They freeze up and don’t say a word of English,” Flanery says. “We try to encourage them to speak up and not be intimidated; it’s OK to make mistakes and laugh.”
On Sundays, the church’s contemporary, bilingual worship appeals to Latinos’ Catholic roots but provides a more laid-back, evangelical atmosphere. It’s a happy medium for multi-generational families—some English speaking, some not.
“The kids are Americans first, Latinos second,” Flanery says. “The kids are totally bilingual by third grade and because their parents don’t know English well, there is a generational divide.”
Living, working and worshipping in the Hispanic community, Flanery understands firsthand the challenges of starting a new life in the United States. He is fully available to his Latino friends, whether going with them to immigration court or doing soccer camps for the kids in the summer.
“Many of them have left danger and violence in Mexico and are working to bring their family members here,” he says. “They ask for prayer for their families. It’s all about touching people’s hearts and befriending them.”
Learn more at http://missionofstlukekc.org.
