Margarita Martinez, Bishop of ELCA Caribbean Synod, Dies
Bishop Margarita Martinez of the Caribbean Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), died on 11 March of cancer in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. She was 59.
The Rev. Mark S. Hanson, ELCA presiding bishop and president of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) said of Martinez: “[She] challenged us to confront the barriers we erect to divide us from one another and to cross those barriers for the sake of reconciliation. In her leadership of the Caribbean Synod she gave us a vision of a more inclusive and multicultural church. In ecumenical relationships she modeled the gifts of women in ministry and leadership. She was a strong mentor and spiritual friend to countless young people and newly ordained pastors.”
Born in New York, Martinez earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in business administration from Universidad Mundial, Hato Rey, Puerto Rico, in 1979 and 1982 respectively, and a master of divinity degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia in 1989.
After her ordination in 1989, Martinez served as pastor at Iglesia Evangelica Luterana Bethel, Dorado, Puerto Rico, and Iglesia Evangelica Luterana San Marcos, Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. She served as secretary of the ELCA Caribbean Synod from 1991 to 1993.
Martinez was a voting member at the 1995 ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Minneapolis, and she was elected an ELCA delegate to the 1997 LWF Ninth Assembly in Hong Kong, China. From 1997 to 1999, Martinez served as associate director for global events, ELCA Global Mission. The ELCA Caribbean Synod elected Martinez to a six-year term as bishop in 2001. At the time of her election she was a mission developer at Cristo El Senor Lutheran Mission, Cayey, Puerto Rico.
Martinez appointed the Rev. Francisco L. Sosa as acting bishop of the synod in August 2006, when information about her declining health was disclosed. Sosa preceded Martinez as the synod’s bishop.
Martinez is survived by one adult child, a brother and mother.
The ELCA Caribbean Synod has 6,140 baptized members in 34 congregations in Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands. (349 words)
(ELCA News Service)
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