Contact: Maritza Ramirez, National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, 916-529-3661

MEDIA ADVISORY, June 24 /Christian Newswire/ -- America's largest Hispanic Christian organization, The National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC), The Hispanic National Association of Evangelicals, announced the formal national launch of the Jesse Miranda Center, the first ever Hispanic Evangelical Think Tank. As the educational arm of the NHCLC, the Jesse Miranda Center will focus on research and leadership development addressing both ecclesiastical and social issues within the context of the Hispanic American Faith Experience.

"The 2008 elections, the arduous work of the NHCLC, immigration reform and the emergence of the Hispanic Mega Church Association, all speak to the growth of the Hispanic Evangelical community as the fastest growing and most influential segment of the American Faith Experience in the 21st Century.
"For that matter, our center will conduct research and survey our constituency on faith and public policy matters while simultaneously facilitating an academically rich platform for leadership development," explained Dr. Jesse Miranda, Chief Executive of the NHCLC and founder of the Center.

Last year, NHCLC and the Center, working out of the Vanguard University Campus in Costa Mesa, California, partnered with Faith in Public Life and America's Voice to publish a survey on "Hispanic Evangelicals and the 2008 Elections". The survey accurately predicted the voting inclination of Hispanic Evangelicals. Correspondingly, Hispanic evangelicals were crucial to President Obama's success in swing states such as Florida, Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado. This explains why Hispanic Evangelicals stand as one of the most sought after voting blocs in the current political landscape.

"Dr. Miranda is the Godfather of the Hispanic Evangelical movement. This Center will provide a prophetic and scholarly platform where Faith and research will converge around the nexus of Kingdom and Society. Our commitment to provide a unified voice for Hispanic Evangelicals coincides with a commitment to usher in a Cross Roots movement in America where the vertical and horizontal elements of the Cross stand reconciled as we address Salvation and Poverty Alleviation, Covenant and Community, Faith and Public Policy, John 3:16 and Matthew 25. At the end of the day, this center will produce Hispanic Evangelicals that embody the Kingdom passion of Dr. Billy Graham and the social activism of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.," declared Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, NHCLC President.

The Conference announced the opening of regional offices to serve the growing Hispanic Evangelical community. NHCLC offices in Texas, Washington State, Pennsylvania, and Chicago will begin serving their corresponding regions on July 1, 2009.