In Guatemala, Adventist pastor killed after leading evangelistic campaign

October 27, 2014 | Jalapa, Guatemala | IAD Staff

Pastor Noe Alfredo Gonzalez, 54, stands on mountainous region in east Guatemala where he ministered to for more than 10 years. He was shot and killed on Oct. 23, 2014, when he and his wife were attacked by masked assailants while driving home on their motorcycle. Image courtesy of Guatemala Union.

An Adventist Pastor was killed after returning home from leading an evangelistic campaign last week in Guatemala.

Noe Alfredo Gonzalez, 54, had just finished preaching in the three churches in the Hierbabuena Village, in Chiquimula, in the east region of Guatemala on Oct. 23, 2014, when he and his wife were attacked by masked assailants while driving home on their motorcycle.

Gonzalez was shot four times and his wife, Oralia Gonzalez, was struck on the head and left for dead. Oralia was treated at a local hospital for injuries and released hours later. She told church leaders what she witnessed.

Local authorities are still investigating.

“We are saddened by the loss of our minister Noel Gonzalez and plead for God to grant strength to the family, relatives, church members and the church as they face this irreparable, but at the same time, momentary loss,” said Pastor Guenther Garcia, president of the church in Guatemala in a statement.

Noe Alfredo Gonzalez served the Adventist church for more than 10 years in the Jalapa mountains, San Juan la Ermita and Hierbabuena districts.

According to Pastor Gustavo Menendez, Gonzalez was well-known as a lay champion winner of souls in the mountains of Jalapa and later invited by the church to serve as a lay pastor in the East Guatemala Mission.

“His heroism and commitment to the work of God will always be remembered,” said Menendez. Menendez recalled an incident years ago when Gonzalez threw himself in front of angry indigenous community where Pastor Jaime Torres, the president of the mission there, had been beaten and was being held. “Pastor Gonzalez offered his life to save the life of the Adventist president and the situation difussed,” said Menendez.

Gonzalez becomes the fourth Adventist pastor to be killed in Guatemala in the past 33 years, church leaders said. In 2009, Pastor Erick Cerritos from Honduras was visiting his parents in Guatemala when he was killed, Pastor Lester Miranda was killed during a public transportation assault in 1996, and in 1981 Pastor Miguel Angel Lopez disappeared during an armed conflict in San Marcos. His body was never found.

Hundreds of church members attended the burial service of Pastor Gonzalez on Saturday, Oct. 25, in the Mirador Community in Jalapa to pay their respects. Image courtesy of Guatemala Union

Church administrators in Guatemala are concerned for the safety of their 117 ministers and more than 243,000 church members as violent assaults are increasing throughout the country.

“We want you to live each day in the presence of Jesus so that you can be prepared for whatever incidence you may face each day,” said Garcia in a statement to the 117 ministers in Guatemala. “Do not be discouraged by the wickedness, injustice and depravity that you are called to face as you proclaim the good news of salvation.”

A memorial service was held for Pastor Gonzalez on Saturday, Oct. 25, in the Mirador Adventist Church in Jalapa, where neighboring churches closed for the day as hundreds of church members payed their respects.

Pastor Noe Alfredo Gonzalez, was born on July 22, 1960 in Jalapa, Guatemala. Gonzalez is survived by his wife Oralia and four grown children.

Gustavo Menendez contributed to this article