2026 Spring - Pastor Brian’s Preponderant Business

Earlier this year I was blessed with the opportunity to join a group from the New England Synod on an accompaniment trip to Honduras. Sixteen Lutherans from New England, including Bisho Pipho, five pastors, and ten members of various congregations, participated. It was organized by retired pastor David Rinas and his wife Doreen who volunteers as the leader of the Synod’s outreach team. This wasn’t a typical mission trip with the mission of building a church or medical center, but an “accompaniment trip” with the sole purpose of building relationships. David and Doreen arranged for our group to travel to six different Lutheran churches in Honduras and meet their congregation members, particularly the children in those congregation who receive scholarships from the New England Synod to attend school. These meetings were a major highlight for all of us.

My journey began by driving to David and Doreen’s house in Massachusetts where I stayed for the night along with one other traveler, a man named Jeff who is a member of Lutheran church in New Hampshire. We met most of the others at Boston’s Logan Airport early the next morning and after a layover in Miami arrived in Tegucigalpa, Honduras that afternoon. There we met two young men who served as our translators for the week, Selvin (who has known Pastor David since he was a boy) and his friend Armando. We also met Gloria and Alejandra who work for the Iglesia Cristiana Luterana De Honduras, that is the nationwide Christian Lutheran Church of Honduras which has 11 congregations in total. Gloria oversees the scholarship program and Alejandra is a recent college graduate who had been a scholarship recipient herself. These four, along with our bus driver Carlos, spent the majority of the week with us and were very much part of our group as well.

After our travel day, on Day 2 we visited a kindergarten school the Lutheran church runs, and two Lutheran churches—one rural and one in the capital city of Tegucigalpa. We met the pastors of each church, congregation members, children who are scholarship recipients and their parents. On Day 3 we left our hotel early and took a 3 hour bus ride to Aldea San Nicolas, a rural village community with a Lutheran church but no pastor. We were greeted warmly, served lunch, and spent the afternoon getting to know the members and a few of us played soccer with the children. It is amazing how much playing together can help people bond even when we don’t speak the same language!

We also did a few touristy things. After our long bus ride back to the city, we visited El Cristo del Picacho that evening, a 98 foot tall Christ monument. This was inside what I might describe as a city park located at the top of the mountain overlooking Tegucigalpa. The following morning we visited an area that is known for its souvenir shops. Many of us bought Honduran coffee and other souvenirs, including a prayer plaque I bought for St. Matthew. That afternoon we had our next church visit, a small church in Tegucigalpa called Emaus Lutheran Church where we heard about their ministry and met their pastor, members, and scholarship children and their families.

That evening our group had some free time. Instead of eating at a restaurant that evening we ordered take-out which gave us more time to relax at the hotel together. Some people started singing karaoke, both in English and Spanish. After dinner we all sat in a circle and debriefed the experience so far. Selvin also shared a bit of his life’s story with us. He has known Pastor David since he was a boy living in a poor Honduran village. At the time Pastor David was still learning Spanish and he had a fun time with the children of the village who laughed at all his mispronunciations. He gave Selvin an English-Spanish children’s book, which Selvin still has and showed to us. Selvin shared a little about how difficult his life had been as a poor child in Honduras and how with the help of people like Pastor David and the church he has grown up to be an English teacher. It was obvious to us all how much his hard work, perseverance, and faith in God have helped him succeed in life. At 30 years old, he still dreams of being a pilot someday but is grateful for the life he has now. After our large group conversation I stayed up talking with Selvin and Armando and taught them how to play pool at the hotel’s billiard table. I couldn’t help but consider how a simple thing like my growing up with a pool table in my basement indicated how vastly different our childhoods must have been.

The following day we left the hotel where we’d spent the first half of our trip and drove several hours, stopped for lunch at a restaurant by a scenic lake, and reached Gethsemane Lutheran Church that afternoon. We met their pastor, members, and children and were each given a small gift by one of the children. David and Doreen had helped build an addition to this church last year and the church unveiled a plaque thanking the New England Synod, and David and Doreen specifically, for sponsoring the repairs and renovation work.

We spent one night in a hotel in that town and the next day drove to San Pedro Sulla where we attended Sunday morning worship at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. After worship, we had lunch with the members and met the scholarship recipients here as well. That afternoon we met one of the ELCA missionaries who leads the ELCA programs in Central America, a pastor from the US who has lived in Central America for decades. We spent the remainder of the afternoon and evening at our hotel which had a very nice restaurant and bar area where we watched the Super Bowl! Even though it was a disappointing loss for our New England Patriots, it was fun to watch it together. After the game I stayed up with Selvin, Armando, and a couple other young adults in our group about everything from life in Honduras to their impressions of America’s tumultuous political landscape.

The following day was our final full day in Honduras. We visited an organization affiliated with the Mennonite church that works to resettle refugees and deportees. We learned how important the American economy is to Honduras and how much policy changes in the US are impacting the lives of Hondurans. That afternoon we did a little site-seeing in San Pedro Sulla. Some of our group did more souvenir shopping and then we visited a beautiful Roman Catholic cathedral and the town square. After one final breakfast together the following morning, we said goodbye to our new Honduran friends and journeyed to the airport where we set off for home.

I am so grateful for the opportunity to go on this trip. The people I met, the experiences I had, and the things I learned have changed me for the better. I have a better understanding of the lives of the people of Honduras and Central America in general. I learned how much our decisions in the United States impact their lives. I feel a new inspiration to become fluent in Spanish someday! And even if I don’t do that, I am sure I will be back to Honduras someday. The New England Synod hopes to organize a Honduras trip every year. If you are interested in going please let me know and perhaps a group from St. Matthew can attend next year. Visiting Honduras was a transformative experience, a special privilege, and a Spirit-filled adventure! I thank God for the opportunity, and I thank you all at St. Matthew for making it possible.

In Christ,

Pastor Brian