About 500 pastors, leaders and ministry representatives met Sept. 12 at Ríos de Vida Church in Quilmes, Argentina, for the First Congress on Childhood, Adolescence, Family and Education, organized by the Christian Alliance of Evangelical Churches of the Argentine Republic (ACIERA), according to a recent report on the gathering. The day combined biblical teaching and training to respond to the needs children, adolescents and families face in their communities.
The event was organized by ACIERA's Federal Children's Roundtable (Mesa Federal de Niñez). Its theme was drawn from Matthew 18:14: "It is not the will of your Father that one of these little ones should perish."
Delegations came from the Buenos Aires metropolitan suburbs (conurbano bonaerense), the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires and towns in the country's interior. The program included plenary sessions, a panel discussion on Argentina's social situation and two rounds of workshops. More than 30 speakers took part.
The Rev. Rubén Del Re, executive director of the Argentine Bible Society (Sociedad Bíblica Argentina), led the first plenary session. He urged participants to seize opportunities to share the Scriptures with adolescents and to pay attention to their needs, even when they seem distracted or distant.
"The Holy Spirit produces delight. That is why we teach and pray, so that the Scriptures will make them wise for salvation in Christ Jesus," he said.
Del Re also spoke about the influence of mothers and grandmothers in spiritual formation. He pointed to Eunice and Lois, Timothy's mother and grandmother, and the role that passing on the faith played in Timothy's life. Reflecting on Matthew 9:35-38, he linked Jesus' compassion with the responsibility to act in the face of people's needs.
The social situation of children was the focus of another part of the gathering. The Rev. Gabriel Coria addressed poverty and difficulties in accessing food, while the Rev. Paula Pradas spoke about educational challenges.
The poverty figures cited during the day are consistent with a UNICEF report published in June 2026, based on data from the second half of 2025. It found that 5.1 million children and adolescents were living in poor households in Argentina. About 1.1 million of them lived in households in extreme poverty. Monetary poverty affected 42.3% of the child and adolescent population.
The Rev. Amílcar Matosian spoke about youth suicide prevention and challenged myths that hinder addressing the issue. He urged those present to take an interest in the lives of adolescents and said churches should be "healthy communities, without judging."
Workshops offered training in child sexual abuse prevention, protocols for situations of violence, addictions, disability and neurodivergence. There were also sessions on Christian education in the home, pastoral care, children's rights and the use of social media and artificial intelligence.
Other workshops addressed sports and the arts as spaces of support, preparation for the workplace and organizing activities for children and adolescents. Participants were able to choose two workshops over the course of the day.
In the closing plenary session, the Rev. Christian Hooft, president of ACIERA, urged churches to stay attentive both to the threats children face and to the opportunities to walk alongside them.
"Let us talk to them about important things; let us sow a vision of greatness, the DNA of hope," he said. He spoke of adults' responsibility to pass on faith and hope to the next generations.
Original reporting by Diario Cristiano, Christian Daily International's Spanish edition.
