The Mama Leo Latinx Lecture series housed at Union Theological Seminary is funded by the Mama Leo Lecture Fund which you can give directly to here.

The 4th Annual Mama Leo Lecture Committe consists of:

Founder & Director - Rev. Dr. Samuel Cruz

Co-Chair - Rev. Dr. Kittin Silva

To Co-Sponsor This Event, contact us.

Event Outline

Prophetic Legacy: Latina Voices Shaping the Church and Society

Herencia Profética: Voces Latinas Transformando la Iglesia y la Sociedad

A Celebration of the Latina Pentecostal Legacy of Social Transformation, Public Theology, and Prophetic Preaching

8:30 AM Registration & Coffee

• Welcome table with event materials

• Networking opportunity

9:00 AM Opening Prayer

Worship

9:30 AM  Welcome -Dr. Sam Cruz, Associate Professor and Founding Director of the Mama Leo Lecture Series

• Brief remarks on Mama Leo’s legacy & why this lecture was started

9:45 AM – 11:00 AM Panel: Cloud of Witnesses: Hidden Figures and the History of Latina Pentecostal Pastoring and Preaching Moderated by Rev. Dr. Sito Ortiz  
This panel will bring the Hidden Figures website to life, featuring stories of five overlooked Pentecostal women from the Northeast. Scholars, pastors, and descendants will discuss their preaching legacy, spiritual authority, and how their ministries inform today’s public theology and resistance work.

11:00 AM – 11:10 AM Break

11:15 AM -12:30 PM Panel: Public Theology in a Time of Crisis: Digital Púlpitos and Prophetic Witness
Moderated by  Rev. Eli Valentin, UTS Alum 2004
Panelists: Rev. Aracelis Vázquez Haye (Pulpito Fellows Strategic Engagement Coordinator), Púlpito Fellows alums  

As America grapples with a deepening crisis of faith, where religion is too often co-opted for nationalism, exclusion, and silence in the face of injustice, this panel explores how Latina/o faith leaders are reclaiming the public square. Through digital púlpitos, social media, podcasts, and prophetic storytelling, these preachers, practitioners, and theologians confront empire, speak Gospel truth, and compel communities toward justice. Together, they embody a public theology rooted in liberation, spiritual resilience, and radical hope.

12:35 pm– 1:35 pm Lunch & Table Talk

1:40 pm -2:55 pm Panel: Hermanos en Solidaridad- Male Allies Lifting Latina Voices Panelists: Dr. Marc Rivera, Sam Cruz, Kittin Silva, and others.

In a church world that has often silenced or sidelined Latina voices, male allies have a critical role to play just like they did for Mama Leo not as saviors, but as co-conspirators in justice, equity, and Spirit-led liberation. This session highlights and hears from men actively working to create space, share power, and honor Latinas' prophetic and pastoral leadership in Pentecostal and justice-rooted ministry. These hermanos understand that true allyship requires risk, repentance, and radical partnership. Whether as mentors, colleagues, community leaders, spouses, they model what it looks like to be in solidarity, not just in words, but in action.

3:00 pm– 4:00 pm Keynote Address Speaker: Rev. Dr. Liz Ríos, Founder, Passion2Plant Church Planting Network & UTS Alum 2025

Topic: Pentecostal Power, Mujerista Mind: Latina Faith Leadership in a Changing Church & a Changing World

In an era marked by spiritual disillusionment, cultural upheaval, and theological compromise, Latina leaders are rising, not as afterthoughts, but as forerunners of a renewed, Spirit-led church. In this keynote, Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Ríos weaves together the bold fire of her roots in Pentecostalism with the liberating lens of mujerista theology to cast a prophetic vision for Latina faith leadership in a rapidly shifting religious landscape. Dr. Ríos will reflect on how Latinas formed in the crucible of marginalization, resilience, and sacred resistance are uniquely positioned to lead the church toward justice, healing, and holy disruption. This address will name the challenges, honor the legacy of trailblazers like Mama Leo, and ignite a call for Latinas to take their rightful place as architects of both ecclesial transformation and societal repair.

Prayer

Closing Reflections

Benediction