Mission Field – Mexico City
The Need
- If Mexico City had 360 missionaries they would each need to reach 100,000 people to evangelize the city. Mexico City. has less than a dozen independent Baptist missionaries.
- The growth rate in Mexico City is over 1,000 people daily.
- There are about 1 million college students in Mexico City. Mexico City has 350,000 alone in the world’s largest Latin America university – U.N.A.M.
- One half of the population is under the age of 20. Children under 15 make up 63% of population.
- There are about ¾ million children born annually in Mexico City.
- There are over one million orphaned children in Mexico City.
- There are several areas in Mexico City with over a million people without one Gospel preaching missionary.
- There are over 40,000 Jews in Mexico City.
The Size
- Almost 20% of Latin America’s population lives in the area of Mexico City.
- A little less than 1/3 of the population of the country of Mexico live in or around Mexico City.
- The population of Mexico City is just under the total population of all the countries in Central America combined.
- Only 3 countries (Brazil, Argentina, and Columbia) in Latin America have more people than Mexico City.
- Air pollution is very bad in Mexico City, so the city bans one fifth of its cars each day of the workweek and 25% of the cars on the weekend.
- The largest taxi fleet in the world is found in Mexico City. The city boasts a fleet of over 100,000 taxis.
- Mexico City covers 571 square miles. The metro area covers 900 square miles.
- Mexico City has about 1/10th the population of the country of the United States.
- More people than the country of Canada.
- Over twice the population of New York City.
- More people than each of the following combined areas of the United States:
- Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina.
- West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey
- Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine.
The History
Almost 700 years ago, on an island in the water of Lake Texcoco, the Aztecas founded Tenochtitlan. Tenochtitlán was built in 1325 by the Aztecs. It was destroyed by the Spanish when they conquered Mexico. Hernando Cortez first entered the Valley of Mexico in 1519. With fewer than 200 soldiers and a few horses, he conquered the Aztecs. In 1521 the Spanish destroyed the city of Tenochtitlán.
This ancient wonder later became the largest capital city the world has ever known. The city’s secular past melds three distinct cultures; the prehispanic, the colonial and the modern. These unique personalities have came together in the anthology we know today as Mexico City. Prehispanic influences can still be found in the faces of its people and the buildings and monuments built by their ancestors. In contrast, Historic Downtown illustrates Mexico’s Colonial period, with ornate religious buildings and architecturally masterful civic plazas that remain among the most beautiful in the world. With towering skyscrapers, sophisticated shopping malls and world-class hotels, modern day Mexico City is at the forefront on the XXI Century. This brilliant combination of history, tradition and modernization makes Mexico City one of the world’s most fascinating destinations.
The Facts
- Elevation: 7,400 feet/ 2256 meters
- Average Annual Rainfall: 25.7 inches/ 65 centimeters
- Average January Temperature: 68 degrees
- Average July Temperature: 77 degrees
- Major Industries: construction and the production of chemicals, plastics, cement, and yarns and textiles.
- Mexico City is situated on the southern end of the Anahuac Plateau.