Tell me more ×
Spanish Language & Usage Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for students, teachers, and linguists wanting to discuss the finer points of the Spanish language. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 3 down vote favorite

In Protestant circles, the process of starting a new church is often referred to as "planting." I haven't found a translation for this in dictionaries I've looked in, and haven't really heard a parallel Spanish concept. What Spanish terms would be most commonly used to translate the following:

  • to plant a church (the verb describing an individual or church starting a new church)
  • church plant (the noun describing the newly-started church)
  • church planter (an individual in charge of starting a new church)
  • church planting (the process of starting new churches)
share|improve this question
Is this new church part of another church or group? Do you use it in any religious context, or just in protestant or catholic ones? I was thinking that maybe it has relation with the protestant community, as in Catholic or Orthodox denomination the churches are usually build by decision of a higher hierarchy. – JoulSauron♦ Jul 5 '12 at 17:57
1  
with church do you refer to the building or to the community? – Javi Jul 5 '12 at 18:04
@JoulSauron: Good point, edited. I've heard it in a Protestant context, but used whether it's an individual starting a church on their own or a large denomination or organization responsible for starting it. – jrdioko Jul 5 '12 at 18:08
@Javi: Primarily the community of people gathered together as a church, regardless of the place they happen to be meeting together. – jrdioko Jul 5 '12 at 18:08
@jrdioko Then I guess we have to wait for a Spanish speaker Protestant, as in the Catholic Church this is not common. Most of the Spanish-speaking community is Catholic compared to Protestant, maybe that's why "church planting" is not heard. Here is some data. – JoulSauron♦ Jul 5 '12 at 18:16
show 5 more comments

3 Answers

up vote 3 down vote

Courses on church planting are generally entitled "Plantamiento de Iglesias."

share|improve this answer
1  
Bienvenida a Spanish.SE! – JoulSauron♦ Jul 5 '12 at 19:14
Thanks, welcome to the site! What would "church plant" and "church planter" be then? – jrdioko Jul 5 '12 at 20:08
up vote 1 down vote

In this context, I would translate to plant as instaurar.

to plant a church: instaurar una iglesia

church planter: el instaurador de la iglesia

church planting: la instauración de iglesias

But I suspect anglicisms like plantamiento and plantador will prevail.

share|improve this answer
up vote 1 down vote

I have not been able to find anything of the sort in online dictionaries but I did a quick google search and I did find several articles in Spanish that talked about expanding the protestant church and they all did mention the word "plantar" which would be the literal translation of "to plant".

As an example here is one of the sentences:

También destacó la plenaria sobre la necesidad de "plantar" nuevas iglesias...

share|improve this answer

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.