People group profile · PG046981
The Purepecha of Mexico
The Purepecha of Mexico, numbering about 201,000 people, are Engaged yet Unreached. They are descendants of the Tarascan Empire, a Mesoamerican civilization on Lake Patzcuaro that was among the few to resist Aztec conquest and became known for advanced copper and silver metalworking before falling to the Spanish in 1530.
They are an indigenous people in the Central American Indigenous people cluster of the Latin American and Caribbean Peoples. Their primary religion is Folk Catholicism, and they primarily speak Spanish.
Fast facts
- Country
- Mexico
- Population
- 201,000
- Affinity group
- American Peoples
- People cluster
- Central American Indigenous
- Primary language
- Spanish (spa)
- Primary religion
- Folk Catholicism
- Strategic Progress Index
- Engaged yet Unreached
- Evangelical
- Less than 2%
- GSEC
- Less than 2% Evangelical, No Recent CP Activity
- Lostness priority
- Expanding Unreached People Group
- Region
- Central America, Americas
- Location
- Jalisco: Jilotlan de los Dolores municipality, small border area; Michoacán de Ocampo: Comachuén east, Cañada de los Once Pueblos north, Nuevo Parangaricutiro south; Tarecuato west
Where they live
Gospel status
The Purepecha are Engaged yet Unreached, which means fewer than 2% are evangelical Christians, but there are sustained efforts to establish self-sustaining churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. In GSEC terms, this people group is less than 2% evangelical, some evangelical resources are available, but there has been no active church planting among them within the past two years.
- Congregations exist Yes
- Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted
Next steps for the Purepecha
- Continue prayer and fasting for this group
- Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting among this group
- Begin training up local leaders to lead and develop strategies to reach their own people
Primary religion
Folk Catholicism · Christianity
95% adherents
Primary language
Spanish · Indo-European family
100% speak Spanish
Gospel resources in Spanish
- Bible available
- JESUS Film available
- Radio programs available
- Gospel recordings available
- Audio resources available
- Bible stories not available
Films
- Magdalena (Spanish, Castilian)
- Magdalena (Spanish, Latin American)
- The Savior (Spanish, Latin American)
Bibles
- 1569 Sagradas Escrituras · text
- 1602 Reina-Valera Antigua · text
- Biblia de América · video, audio, text
- Dios Habla Hoy · audio
- La Biblia · text
- La Palabra de Dios para Todos · audio
- La Santa Biblia, Nueva Versión Internacional® · video
- Lenguaje Actual · audio
- Reina Valera 1995 · audio
- Reina Valera Contemporánea · video
- Reina Valera, Revisada y Corregida (1865) · text
- The Word of God for All - 2000 World Bible Translation Center · audio, text
- The Word of God for All 2014 · audio, text
Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.
Pray for the Purepecha
- Romans 12:4–5. Pray that believers from many cultures will work together as one body so that the church is built up.
- Revelation 7:9. Pray for the day when people from this group stand before the throne with every nation, tribe, people and language.
- John 17:3. Pray that many will come to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.
- Psalm 27:1. Pray that new believers will be strengthened in the face of persecution, with the Lord as their stronghold.
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