Our faith is anchored solely in the person of the Lord Jesus—the Living Word—as He is faithfully revealed in the Holy Scriptures—the Written Word. Thus, the Word must hold a central place in the Christian faith and the life of the Church, for the Church itself was established and is sustained by it. Consequently, pastoral ministry is inherently a ministry of the Word.

This foundational retrieval of the reformed approach to ministry is evidently bearing much fruit across our nation. We are observing a strong correlation between churches becoming healthier through the faithful exposition of God’s Word and an encouraging rise in young men aspiring to be equipped for pastoral ministry. Churches are gathering and uniting around the objective of genuinely Word-centred ministries. A testament to this growing commitment was our recent conference on expository preaching, where around 300 individuals, including approximately 60 pastors from across the country, assembled to hear esteemed speakers such as David Helm and other Portuguese-speaking pastors discuss the 'Vox Dei'—the voice of God—in the life of the church.

Emerging from this spirit of unity and shared conviction is the formation of the Rede Reformada (Reformed Network). Founded by a group of pastors, its aim is to foster broader communion and cooperation, grounded in friendship and unity within the Portuguese context. We do not seek to replace existing denominations but rather to encourage pastors through resources and events that bolster their ministries within their local churches. Our core principles reflect this vision: the Authority of Scripture, Centrality of the Gospel, Primacy of the Local Church, Value of Public Worship, Exercise of Authority, Practice of Mission, and Biblical Complementarianism.

While rooted in Portugal, the Rede Reformada envisions itself as a network reaching out to Europe and beyond. We maintain partnerships with like-minded organisations globally, celebrating the universality of Christ’s Church. Our desire is to learn from churches worldwide, whilst simultaneously striving to serve our nation in a biblical and contextualised manner.

Significantly, efforts to equip men to faithfully expound the Scriptures are growing, with the Martin Bucer Seminary Portugal playing a pivotal role. It actively supports local churches in identifying and discipling leaders, addressing perhaps our greatest need: faithful Bible expositors for the pulpits of Portugal. We rejoice in the fact that we currently have 41 students, the majority of whom are already serving as pastors or intend to do so.

Indeed, it is an inspiring time to serve the Lord in Portugal. The Lord is raising up a generation devoted to his unfailing Word, and we pray he continues to bless these efforts for the glory of his name and the flourishing of his Church.

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