Three million Basque live in the northern part of Spain and the southern part of France. They are one of the least-evangelized people groups in Western Europe, with less than 1 percent of all Basques identifying themselves as believers. The Basque people will often tell you that they are Catholic, but they also add that they are non-practicing Catholic with no relation to the church. While French or Spanish are the commercial languages, their heart language is Euskara. Euskara is a very old, pre-Indo-European language, unlike any other language known to man. In 2010 Northstar began a 5-year partnership is a missionary family in Spain and send a team each summer to help run an English camp for students. Follow the adventures on the blog.
Northstar has been involved in Basque country in northern Spain for several years. Each summer, Northstar leads a Vacation Bible School there, teaching children and developing relationships with the locals. Northstar’s most recent trip in January 2014 involved teaching English in middle schools, participating in English conversations with the locals and hosting events to build relationships with the locals.
Amy Hirabayashi, one of the January 2014 team members, said that, “even though (the Basque people) are free, they’re still searching for something more.” Another team member commented that, “it was great to see seeds be planted and seeds from other trips be watered by those who are faithful and obedient.” Check out some photos from Northstar’s recent trip in January 2014.
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- The beautiful coast.
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- The typical Spanish architecture.
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- Up in the Pyrenees.
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- The famous “U” part of the beach.
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- Hiking with the nationals to build relationships.
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- The city lit up at night.
