"What are you doing this evening?" the woman who cuts my hair asked me.

"I'm going to a Spanish-as-Second-Language class."

"What's that?" she asked.

I explained to her that I wanted the people in the churches that I serve to learn to speak Spanish so that they can be more hospitable toward their neighbors. Not only in Illinois but throughout the United States, there is a large and/or growing population of Spanish-speaking people. While most of these new immigrants are eager to learn English and attend English classes, it's hospitable to at least attempt Spanish when we connect with them in our communities and in our churches.

"Wow! I never heard of anything like that! That's cool!" she said. Then she added, "I'd like to do that." I assured her that it wasn't exclusively for United Methodists but anyone who was interested.

This represents a typical conversation when talking about the Spanish-as-Second- Language classes being held in the Northern Illinois Annual Conference. After coming to Northern Illinois, I called together a small group of United Methodist linguists with my vision of a curriculum. I imagined it to be an adult learning experience that would enable us to speak if only minimally, sing with greater confidence, and pray together in our culturally diverse communities, churches and annual conference. These dedicated United Methodist linguists developed this curriculum that can assist us in being buenos vecinos (good neighbors).

The orientation for teachers and host church representatives is very important so that those who teach understand the spirit of the curriculum. It's also important that the host churches provide hospitality to those who come; many times people would come from other churches and from the community at large.

I went to the first orientation for the teachers and host church representatives after I signed up for my own six-week course but I was anxious about being able to learn any Spanish. I have a "foreign language anxiety." I learned at the orientation for the teachers and hosts that we would learn Spanish the way a child learns a language; not by conjugating verbs or memorizing long lists of words. We learned our first language by listening to it, seeking to comprehend it even when we didn't totally understand every word, and then slowly beginning to speak it ... very slowly. Speaking is the hardest part and usually language courses quickly "force" adults into speaking before they're really comfortable doing it.

My foreign language anxiety was heightened again as I went to my first class but it was quickly reduced as the teacher guided us through the lesson plan. This curriculum is a model of adult learning with many participatory activities which resulted in lots of fun and laughter.

After attending several classes, I was privileged to attend the installation of the presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church on the campus of the University of Chicago. And wouldn't you know? The person sitting next to me was the only Lutheran woman bishop in Latin America. There were no other Spanish-speaking persons around her. She spoke very little English and I spoke very, very little Spanish but she was patient and kind with me and I know she appreciated that I even tried. These experiences happen all the time in our daily lives, in the life of our church, and in our communities. It will happen to you and when it does, you'll be able to demonstrate hospitality through a few kind words!

This curriculum has been a labor of love by the women who have developed, tested and revised it over the last two years and I highly recommend it even (or maybe especially) if you have foreign language anxiety. In the classes I took, there were people with various levels of ability to speak Spanish already and this added to the class immensely. Whether you know no Spanish whatsoever or you took Spanish in high school (and it's been years since you used it), you'll benefit from this curriculum.

All of us live in communities where our neighbors are Spanish-speakers. It says a lot about the openness of our hearts, minds and doors when we speak a word to them, even if it is halting and without the right verb conjugation ...

Bishop Sally Dyck