Spanish church dedication today

PHOTOGRAPHER: Ana Zangroniz

Pastor Istar Hernandez, center, shows the newly cleaned original stained-glass windows in Templo Esperanza de Israel on Mohawk Place in Amsterdam Friday. The temple will celebrate its grand re-opening and dedication Saturday. At right is Hernandez’s

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A fledgling Spanish church will dedicate its new home in the city today.

The Ministerio Esperanza, or Hope Ministry, has purchased the former Temple of Israel on Mohawk Place and will formally move into the location during a ceremony at 4 p.m.

The evangelical church is associated with the Assemblies of God, according to Claritz Reyes-Malave, treasurer of the congregation board.

The church began with eight members in February 2007. The congregation has been meeting in the home of minister Istar Hernandez, which is located off Route 30 in Amsterdam.

The church had been in the process of purchasing the old Jewish temple for nearly a year and finally closed on the building Feb. 25.

“It’s a gift from God, really, that we got this temple,” Reyes-Malave said.

Hernandez said the Temple of Israel’s board was asking $150,000 for the building. Though the ministry didn’t pay that much, Reyes-Malave declined to specify the deal price. She said the church board thought she was crazy for wanting to purchase the space, which can accommodate about 200 people. Her ministry at the time, she said, was only a group of eight. The ministry has since grown to 25 members.

“This is an amazing thing,” Hernandez said. “This is what we consider a miracle. We are jumping.”

Reyes-Malave said the ministry wanted to retain the temple’s name so it is now called Templo Esperanza de Israel, which means The Temple Hope of Israel.

The Temple of Israel, built in the early 1900s, is one of the few structures in the city on the National Register of Historic Places. The temple had sat vacant for nearly four years before the Ministerio Esperanza bought it.

Reyes-Malave said there have been some minor renovations to the building, but not much because of the structure’s historic significance.

“It is a unique piece of land that God has given us and we feel very blessed by that,” Reyes-Malave said.

Currently the church offers Wednesday Bible class at 7 p.m. and a Sunday service at 9:30 a.m. All services are in Spanish. Family and community nights will be held Friday.

Reyes-Malave said the ceremony today will be bilingual followed by a 5:30 p.m. service, which will also be bilingual.

“With so many churches closing these days and from a very small fund with a very small number of parishioners acting by faith, we know that great things are happening and we’ll be able to help the community in a positive way,” Reyes-Malave said.