SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Unity and celebration were the hallmarks of the third general and eighth annual conference events of the autonomous Methodist Church of Puerto Rico June 6-11 here. The events also marked 100 years of Methodist presence and service on the island.

With 78 percent of the vote on the first ballot, Juan A. Vera Méndez was elected bishop of the Methodist Church of Puerto Rico for a six-year term at the General Conference June 6-8. Vera has served as the church’s episcopal leader for more than two years since his election to complete the term of Bishop Victor L. Bonilla, who stepped down for health concerns in November 1997.

He said the election "reflects that we’re united" and that the church supports his efforts "to put the church in good standing in Puerto Rico" by developing a strong program of new church starts, spiritual formation and work on social justice issues.

The church has had success in opening new congregations in the past with 20 new churches opened in the last 10 years and an average annual increase in membership of about 20 percent, Vera said.

Vera himself has been active in social causes. He was asked by the Puerto Rican government to help negotiate peace with protestors and arrested May 4 for protesting against the United States Navy presence on the island of Vieques.

The church’s seven cabinet members opened the Annual Conference event June 8 by recounting the most significant accomplishment of each church during the previous year. Vera especially noted the success of the Sabana Grande church, which was left with only seven members and on the verge of being closed following a crisis last year. "Now it has 40 members and is growing," he said.

In addition to business, conference delegates took time to celebrate the past and the present. More than 1,000 people, mostly youth and young adults, crowded into San José Plaza in Old San Juan for the Millennium Concert, "Encuentro de Generacoines" (Meeting of Generations), June 9. The four-hour concert featured salsa and merengue music with Christian lyrics and an enactment of the history of Puerto Rico performed by a youth dance group.

"The concert…has an evangelical focus and it’s dedicated to all youth," Vera said, adding organizers were hoping to attract hundreds of youth who frequent nearby bars and clubs.

The culmination of the six days of celebration was a public worship service called "El Acto Magno del Centario" (The Great Act of the Centennial) at the Pavilion of Peace in San Juan’s Luis Muñoz Marín Park June 11. The two-hour worship service and celebration was attended by more than 2,000 people. It featured music led by the Methodist Church University Choir and sermons by Vera and Archbishop Roberto Gonzalez Nieves, the Roman Catholic leader of San Juan.