NHCLC’s Samuel Rodriguez Named One of 100 Top Christian US Leaders

Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference (NHCLC)/CONELA, America’s largest Hispanic Christian Evangelical organization, was named by Newsmax as one of America’s top 100 Christian leaders.

“I am honored and humbled to be a part of such a distinguished group of men and women dedicated to the expansion of God’s kingdom,” said Rodriguez. “It is a blessing to be a part of work that God is doing in the Spanish-speaking Diaspora and throughout the entire church.”

As president of NHCLC/CONELA, the nation’s largest Hispanic Christian organization representing millions of Evangelicals globally and more than 40,000 U.S. churches, Rodriguez works with leaders worldwide to reconcile evangelist Billy Graham’s message of salvation with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s march of prophetic activism through the “7 Directives” of life, family, compassionate evangelism, stewardship, justice, education and youth.

As a leading spokesperson for Hispanic Evangelicals, Rodriguez has been a featured speaker at the White House and frequently meets and consults members of both parties in Congress and in White House meetings on social justice, Latino and values issues, immigration and education. Rodriguez also served on President Obama’s White House Task Force on Fatherhood and is the recipient of the Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Award presented by the Congress of Racial Equality. 

He has been heralded as the “leader of the Hispanic evangelical movement” by CNN and Fox News and “America’s most influential Latino evangelical leader” by NBC/Telemundo. Rodriguez was also included in the TIME magazine “The 2013 TIME 100 Poll,” and the April 15, 2013 TIME cover story, “The Latino Reformation.”

Rodriguez will lead the NHCLC/CONELA Annual Convention in Houston April 28-30, 2015, bringing together more than 1,000 Hispanic leaders to discuss issues of faith, education, immigration, racial reconciliation, religious liberties, Israel, and family and marriage. Featured speakers will include Gov. Jeb Bush, Gov. Mike Huckabee, U.S. Congressman Luis Gutiérrez, Deputy Head of Mission for The Embassy of Israel to the United States Reuven Azar, Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services León Rodriguez, and The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission President Dr. Russell Moore, among others.

During the convention, NHCLC/CONELA will celebrate its merger, which became official last year, and reveal its new international name. It will also introduce new organizational leadership and launch an innovative Hispanic-focused television network in partnership with Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) as well as a new Israel coalition.

NHCLC/CONELA is the world’s largest Hispanic Christian organization. It serves as a representative voice for the more than 100 million Hispanic Evangelicals assembled in over 40,000 U.S. churches and another 500,000 congregations spread throughout the Spanish-speaking Diaspora. For additional information, visit nhclc.org.