There is a well-known Argentine tango that says “twenty years is nothing.” [1]
However, these twenty years since the creation of the Crearte Network have been years of hard work, great demand and constant growth in the task of serving faith communities in Latin America and in Spanish-speaking communities beyond. Production and support for Portuguese-speaking communities has also spread to Brazil and from there to other Portuguese-speaking contexts.
At the time of Red Crearte’s birth, Jorge Lockward had the following opinion regarding its formation: “I firmly believe that this is an extremely favorable moment for this project. Not only does the somewhat deteriorated situation of many Latin American ecclesial communities cry out, but also, in an environment of deep suspicion and theological paranoia, liturgy and the arts are perhaps one of the few viable means we have for the dialogue and transformation that they bear fruit to the oikoumene.” [2] This opinion makes evident the complex context that existed in the Latin American ecumenical environment, which turned out to be the referential framework from which Red Crearte emerged.
At the time of its launch, as one of the people who drove the birth of the network, he expressed that the Network responded to “the need to advance on the path of reflection, formation and musical and liturgical renewal is a widespread cry in many faith communities in Latin America. The Crearte Network, when conceived as an independent entity, has the beautiful possibility and at the same time the tremendous challenge of being able to serve all the churches, institutions and organizations that require its services or advice.» [3]
Those of us who generated this effort in that year 2004 perhaps did not fully imagine how enormous the contribution they would make, in a short time, to the ecumenical sphere not only in Latin America but globally.
All the experience accumulated in many years of work in training, formation, production and socialization of resources and ideas gave rise to an original, autonomous and ecumenical project of service to faith-based communities and organizations in Latin America and beyond. And we celebrate it with enormous joy and gratitude to God and to each church, organization, and people who trusted the Internet.
The Network is today actively present in several Latin American countries and in the United States of America. We actively collaborate with the World Council of Churches and other organizations at the national, regional, continental and global level through webinars, seminars and workshops, specific training aimed at specific needs, production of liturgical and musical resources, socialization of resources in a free through social networks, publication of songbooks, etc.
One of the challenges that we have been facing in the last two years is the possibility of not only accompanying the Spanish and Portuguese speaking communities but also offering resources produced in English, especially accompanying bilingual or trilingual communities in the United States. where, above all, Spanish is already a very present language in the churches.
At Red Crearte we believe that faith is celebrated and becomes flesh in the cultural processes of the believing people. Interculturality, a liberating and inclusive theology in the broadest sense, are the foundations with which Red Crearte can dream for many more years to make this world, “Another possible world” where the right to “sing what truly is” continues to exist. It is believed: the joy of celebrating the God of “good living.”
Looking ahead to the twentieth anniversary in 2024, several activities are being prepared that will be announced in due course, but that continue in line with the main objectives of the Network: training, encouraging constant liturgical and musical renewal, advising and accompanying churches and organizations in their celebratory challenges, encourage the constant production of contextual resources and socialize them in a way that is accessible to faith communities, they anticipate.
From the Crearte Network we thank God for his constant encouragement along the way. And we trust that the divine Ruah will continue to sustain the task and provide the human and material resources to continue on the path of service.
Gerardo Oberman
Continental Coordinator
You can access resources from the Crearte Network at:
Facebook: redcrearte
Instagram: @redcrearte
YouTube: RedCrearte
Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Amazon Music: Red Crearte
SoundCloud: network-create yourself
✉️ redcrearte@redcrearte.org.ar
🌐 www.redcrearte.org.ar
Red Crearte App available in Play Store and Apple Store.
[1] Volver, tango by Carlos Gardel and Alfredo Le Pera.
[2] http://cristianos.com/2004/07/06/nace-red-crearte-de-musica-y-arte-liturgico/ (quoting ALC news 04/07/14)
[3] Cited in the same preceding note.
Gerardo Carlos Cristian Oberman graduated in Theology from the Evangelical Higher Institute of Theological Studies (ISEDET) and holds a Master’s Degree in Liturgy from the Theological Community of Mexico. He is a pastor of the Reformed Churches in Argentina and has been president of the denomination several times. He has participated in various ecumenical bodies throughout his ministry, both local and international. He is a member of various liturgy teams such as the Alliance of Presbyterian and Reformed Churches in Latin America, the World Communion of Reformed Churches (convener) and the World Council of Churches. He is a founding member and coordinator of the Crearte Network, a space for training and promoting liturgical and musical resources that also accompanies events and training spaces in agreement with various organizations and churches.