It was an exciting moment for the coordinators and writers when the new Anabaptist Christian Education Curriculum "Enséñanos tus caminos" was presented to the participants of the 5th Latin American Anabaptist Consultation, Paraguay, February 1999. This same body had commissioned the project at several earlier meetings and had been anticipating the realization of the request for "our own teaching materials." This need had been expressed in different areas at different times and receiving the first three books brought forth feelings of thankfulness and praise to God. No longer would it be necessary to purchase other denominational or interdenominational material, nor rely on translations of programs that had been produced for different cultures. It was just the beginning but there was affirmation and encouragement to continue.
     The process of producing the curriculum is both challenging and rewarding. Writers' workshops have been held in four South American countries and in three Central American locations, as well as in Mexico. Over 100 persons have participated in the writing of lessons during the first year, thus producing twelve trimesters. Four have been written for each of three age levels, a total of 156 lessons. Work is well underway for the preparation of the second year.
     The participants in the Curriculum Writing Workshops begin by writing one of their own experiences of faith. This exercise helps us all to reflect and express on paper our relationship with God as well as foster confidence and fraternity within the group. After all, the Bible is largely a compilation of people's experiences with God. We try to have someone competent in the Spanish language give technical pointers on grammar, spelling and punctuation. Some study times give insights into the developmental stage we are writing for and another describes the cultural and socio/economic differences among our Hispanic churches.
     A session on Basic Beliefs of the Mennonite/Anabaptists has aroused interest and appreciation for who we are and how we seek to live as followers of Jesus. One of our objectives is to let our children know how we understand the invitation to be "doers of the word" while we hope for the fulfillment of God's Kingdom. Some "Encuentros," or lessons, are written and evaluated during the workshop. When there is a spirit of unity and acceptance we can constructively correct one another for the common purpose of presenting materials that will be useful in our churches.
     The invitation to participate in the writer's workshops is extended to members of our churches who love the Lord and who are concerned that our children learn to know Jesus and to walk in his ways. It is good to have teaching experience and academic preparation but we have also appreciated the insights of many persons who have not had the privilege to receive formal training.
     The process of learning and writing together in this way has been an enriching experience for the participants and most express excitement for the opportunity to be actively involved in the production of didactic materials for the teaching ministry in our churches. We hear expressions like, "I never thought I could write"; "Now I really want to be a Mennonite"; "We're going to have our own curriculum"; "Thanks for giving me the opportunity to participate!" It is necessary to do considerable editing when we deal with so many writers.
     A group representing the three geographical divisions: Central America, Colombia and the Southern Cone, as well as different conferences of Latin America, met in Montevideo to revise, format and bring together the work that had been done in the different areas. We tried to weed out expressions that are not understood in different contexts and check for theological and doctrinal correctness. This is no easy matter, yet we are amazed at the commonality of basic teaching and principles. Now we await the evaluations and suggestions from the facilitators that are using the material in the churches. It can only be of service if it is understandable and accepted by the users. We expect to circulate the curriculum materials by presenting master copies to each country so that they can make the necessary adaptations and corrections for the churches in that region.

Participants in the writer's workshop in Paraguay with Henry Dueck, consultant, Helen Dueck, project coordinator. Not in the photo, Janet Breneman, project coordinator.