BUTLER TWP — Christianity is practiced around the world, but the world seemingly brought Christianity to Butler on Aug. 7 for the inaugural service of the Iglesia Hispana Butler.

Known in English as the Hispanic Church of Butler, the group meets at Whitestown Road Baptist Church on South Duffy Road.

According to the Rev. Moises Rosario, at least 10 countries were represented at the service, which drew 60-plus attendees.

Although many were guests from the region's multiple Hispanic churches that Rosario also started, he estimates at least 20 were Butler County residents looking for a place to worship.

He counted 17 county residents at last week's service.

“The people from the area: I call to the front,” he said of the first service, showing with his hands how the line of local attendees spanned from wall to wall in the front of the sanctuary.

Those included residents of Cranberry Township, Mars and Zelienople as well as the city of Butler.

Their countries of origin include Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Brazil, Mexico, Peru and Columbia. A few also were local college students trying to improve their Spanish.

Also represented were Honduras and Nicaragua, the respective native countries of Oscar and Teresa Alvarez, now of Penn Township.

Oscar Alvarez said the couple learned of the service through friends, who apparently found out through Rosario's efforts.

“It was a great service. I think it's going to be helpful for the community,” said Alvarez, 48, who works in Mars as a nursing assistant.

“We have a great pastor with Mr. Rosario. He is very dedicated to what he does.”

A member of the Southern Baptist Convention's North American Mission Board, Rosario has planted 14 Hispanic churches since 1996. Although some of those operate in the eastern part of the state, since 2005 Rosario has worked in communities around Pittsburgh and Erie.

To start the churches, Rosario uses multiple sources to identify areas with a potential audience for Spanish services. He also uses different ways to get the word out.

“We use the census. We use the telephone guide, the consul, chamber of commerce. We use information, but also — we travel,” he said, listing the Internet and old-fashioned postal mailings among his methods.

“It's hard, but he does it,” said Rosario's wife, Mildren.

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, 1.1 percent — or about 1,838 — of Butler County's 183,862 residents claimed Hispanic or Latin origins.

Although stereotypes often peg Spanish-speaking residents as migrant farm workers, Rosario said many are working professionals or are married to Butler natives.

“Is there enough here to make a church? Oh yes,” he said.

“I think there are many Hispanic people coming to the area looking for a place to congregate,” Alvarez agreed.

The same holds true at St. Paul Roman Catholic Church on McKean Street, which hosts a monthly Spanish Mass.

The Masses are officiated by the Rev. Gerlad Lutz, a Butler resident since April 2010.

“The Mass was going on long before I came here,” said Lutz, who said attendance ranges between 30 and 50.

St. Paul's regular Masses also are translated into Spanish in a book, so it is hard to know how many Spanish-speaking people attend throughout the month, Lutz said.

Rosario said many Hispanics also are Protestants: In his native Dominican Republic, he was raised as an evangelical Christian — common among the residents.

For him, the leap to being a Baptist was easy. Becoming a pastor also seemed like a natural progression for the 61-year-old Rosario, who began as a radio announcer in his homeland.

“My life is to talk,” he said.

Rosario also describes unifying many broadcast workers by enlisting their membership in the Dominican Republic's radio trade association, of which he was president for two terms.

Helping to form many local chapters also allowed him to hone skills as a church planter.

Rosario moved to the United States in 1991, after which time he did correspondence studies through the Instituto Bíblico Anabautista, or Anabaptist Biblical Institute, which trains Spanish-speaking leaders to serve the Mennonite Church USA. He subsequently became a Baptist.

Despite the many churches Rosario has launched, he and his wife hope to put down roots in Butler.

The Iglesia Hispana Butler meets at 2:30 p.m. Sundays at the Whitestown Road Baptist Church, 409 Whitestown Road, Butler Township. The Whitestown congregation will continue to meet at its regular time at 11 a.m.

Rosario also is founder and director of the Spanish Mission of Grove City, which meets at 6 p.m. Tuesdays at Tower Presbyterian Church, 248 S. Broad St.