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Christian studies faculty partner with churches in Amazon Basin

July 08, 2026 - James Taylor

Faculty from Ouachita Baptist University's Pruet School of Christian Studies traveled to Manaus, Brazil, June 26-28 to partner with churches across the Amazon Basin at the 17th annual Fé na Verdade (“Faith in Truth”) conference, hosted by Igreja Batista Constantinópolis.

The group led 20 sessions at two locations over three days, teaching ministers and laypeople on biblical passages and themes at a pastors’ conference and a simultaneous women’s conference. They also enjoyed times of worship, prayer and mutual encouragement.

Terese Cox, lecturer in Christian studies, served for almost five years in Lithuania, but this was her first trip to Brazil.

“I was really encouraged by worshipping and praying with our brothers and sisters,” Cox said. “I think about praying together simultaneously in English and Portuguese, being reminded of the ways God is present and at work all around the world. Sometimes we get little glimmers of it, like we did in Manaus. I will carry with me the names and faces of people to be praying for as they continue to join in the work God is doing in their own contexts.”

The partnership traces back to 2020, when Ouachita alumni Ron and Alana Greenwich, who previously served with the International Mission Board in Brazil, felt called out of retirement for a three-year assignment. Instead of returning to South Brazil, where they had spent most of their careers, they were sent to Manaus, where they joined with Igreja Batista Constantinópolis, pastored by Jorge Max da Silva.

Pastor da Silva wanted his daughter to study in the United States, and he connected with the Greenwiches’ son, Jason, director of Ouachita’s Grant Center for International Education. Ligia da Silva enrolled at Ouachita soon after.

During a 2022 visit, Pastor da Silva shared his vision for Ouachita professors to teach in Manaus — a conversation that set the wider partnership in motion with the first Ouachita group going in 2024. The Greenwiches all joined the 2026 trip as leaders and translators alongside the Pruet faculty. Ligia da Silva graduated in May with a degree in business administration and returned to Manaus, serving as a translator for the women’s sessions this year.

The Pruet team included Dr. Michael Cox, associate professor of biblical studies and Terese Cox’s husband; Dr. Adam Jones, assistant professor of Christian studies; Dr. Doug Nykolaishen, professor of biblical studies; and Dr. Barbara Pemberton, professor of Christian missions and director of Ouachita's Carl Goodson Honors Program.

Nykolaishen taught pastors on messianic prophecy in Isaiah. Jones addressed grief, pain and suffering. Michael Cox traced the Shema in Deuteronomy 6:4 through the law’s caring for the poor, tying it to Jesus' teaching in the Gospels.

The women’s conference theme was integrity, with Terese Cox, Pemberton, Alana Greenwich and Lyndi Greenwich, Ouachita alumna and Arkadelphia educator, all teaching sessions.

“I loved watching my colleagues do exactly what I was hoping they would do,” Jason Greenwich said. “They taught beautifully and it reached the audience. They don't realize how much they're appreciated.”

One pastor Michael Cox met had traveled about eight hours to reach the conference.

“He told me it was expensive for him, but that it's worth it to invest in learning so he can pastor his congregation well,” Cox said. “The conference embodies what we aim to do — read the Bible faithfully while living it out faithfully and bringing people to the God who is real and at work in the world.”

For Nykolaishen and Pemberton, this was a return trip, as they both spoke at the conference in 2024.

“I didn’t know it was possible, but I have even more confidence in God's word and in its power to affect people, to change their lives,” Nykolaishen said of how the trip will shape his teaching.

Pemberton, who lived in the Middle East for more than 10 years and has led student trips for 20 years, also noted the personal effect of the trip.

“I know when you go on trips like this, you are often more blessed than the people you're there to bless,” she said.

Pemberton is now preparing for next summer’s mission trip for students led by Pruet.

“Our students love to serve and I'm more excited than ever to provide them with international opportunities,” she said.

For Terese Cox, the trip will shape how she teaches Ouachita's missions class, particularly a unit on the importance of deepening long-term partnerships in relation to short-term mission work.

“Seeing this partnership and the ways it's mutually beneficial will continue to shape how we talk about global engagement,” she said.

Pruet faculty plan to return in 2028 and are exploring opportunities to stay connected to their Brazilian partners until then.

The Pruet School of Christian Studies prepares students for ministry and offers a 30-hour Christian Foundations co-major for undergraduate students in all fields of study who are interested in deepening their faith. Learn more at obu.edu/Christian-studies.