Remembering Dr. Dynna Castillo Portugal

The following was originally published on Tapestry—a bilingual (Spanish/English) Multicultural community of faith in Richfield, Minnesota. 

Dynna Castillo Portugal–A Light that Shone

(English Below)

I met my friend Dynna when we were both students at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, around 2012. She was studying for her PhD and I was studying for my Master of Divinity. I imagine that we met by sharing lunch at the Latin Table at Luther where Latino people and people who spoke Spanish sat together to get to know each other, create community and support each other.

I really don’t remember when we became friends, but it happened over the years. It may also have been because of the many parties we had as students living on campus, or the walks or the talks, or because we both loved Mexico, or because she was so talented, playing piano, singing and directing the choir and orchestra from his church in Mexico.

We graduated together from Luther in 2014. Dynna’s thesis was on domestic violence and how churches and their leaders could collaborate with other specialties to provide emotional, spiritual, and psychological support to people experiencing domestic violence and people who are violent. She had the great opportunity to teach courses on her thesis and I had the opportunity to hear her presentations in classes that I taught. In fact, she did an online talk about this topic recently and you can listen to it here:  https://fb.watch/qNzaS_fGQ6/

My friend Dynna was a very nice person. She always listened to me carefully and offered me her thoughts and ideas without judgment and with great compassion. I think it was like that with many people, and in recent days I have spoken with several people from her seminars and they all tell me how much they are going to miss her, not only themselves but the students who had the opportunity. opportunity to be in their classes.

With my children, my beloved Chris+ may he rest in peace, and my son Austin, we visited Dynna and her family in December 2016. We had already met her family here in Minnesota, but it was very special to be able to visit them in their beloved city and in your home. They took us to see tourist sites and eat all the delicious food from their region. When our luggage didn’t arrive with us, Shirley, Dynna’s sister, helped us in the Mexican style, much more direct than the “nice” Minnesotan style. They gave us an incredible welcome in Toluca and at their Getsemani Church in Mexico City where we were able to worship God with them and their community.

Dynna accompanied me in my grief that we lost my beloved son. She called me from Mexico or she heard the news, just as we were going into a vigil while looking for him. She always remembered my son and talked about him and I will always be grateful for that.

Dynna loved her family very much and was proud of them. When she told me about them, she could hear the smile in her voice. Her mother and her sister, who for a long time worked together at school as psychologists, and her niece Alessa, who is studying to be a doctor. And her dear dad who founded and pastors his Gethsemani Church where Dynna also preached and directed the choir and orchestra. She was so excited after her Christmas service… https://fb.watch/qNzxCVw6M9/

I remember the day, a few years ago, when Dynna told me that her beloved mother had passed away. Shortly after, Dynna told me that she had melanoma and that her cancer was aggressive. Dynna told me how she was doing, her successes and her difficulties. She was able to travel to Minnesota in December 2022 and it was the last time Josué and I saw her. We met for lunch at the Mall of America, one of her favorite places here in Minnesota. We talked about her illness and, more importantly, we talked about her faith. I saw a light in her eyes that shone, and although Dynna was always optimistic and smiled a lot, this light was different. She shone with deep faith in the promises of God embodied in Jesus Christ. She shone with the presence of the Holy Spirit in her life. And she shone with the security and peace that came from the conviction that God was acting in her life. Dynna accepted God’s will in her life and she lived in the hope of eternal life with all the saints in the glory of God.

The last time I spoke with Dynna was in late January or early February of this year. She had lost her sight due to a brain tumor. She had radiation and she improved a little, but at the end of the day, she passed away in the company of her family and in the arms of the Lord Jesus Christ. She was buried next to her beloved mom. He has left his daddy, his sister Shirley, his niece Alessa, his extended family, the parishioners of Gethsemane, so many friends on several continents, and his colleagues and students at Luther Seminary in St. Paul very sad. , MN, of Bethel in Arden Hills, MN, and Western Seminary in Holland, MI.

May we all live with a faith like Dynna’s. May the Holy Spirit comfort the afflicted and may we believe in God’s promises.

…I heard a powerful voice coming from the throne and saying: “Here, among human beings, is the sanctuary of God! He will dwell among them and they will be his people; God himself will be with them and will be their God. He will wipe away every tear from your eyes. There will be no more death or crying, nor regret or pain, because the first things have ceased to exist.

He who sat on the throne said, “I make all things new!” And he added: “Write, for these words are true and trustworthy.” Revelation 21:3-5

May you rest in peace, my friend, in the arms of Jesus, together with your mom and surrounded by the entire cloud of witnesses.

***

September 3, 1972-March 7, 2024

I met my friend Dynna in about 2012 when we were both students at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, MN. She was studying for her PhD and I was studying for my Masters of Divinity. We may have met over lunch at the Spanish table at Luther where Latino/a/e/x and Spanish learners sat together to get to know each other, create community and support each other.

I don’t actually remember when we became friends, but it happened over a number of years. It might have been during the many parties we held as students living on campus or on our walks or during our talks, or because we both loved Mexico, or because she was so talented, playing the piano, singing or directing the choir and strings in Mexico.

We both graduated from Luther in 2014. Dynna’s thesis was about Domestic Violence and how churches and their leaders could collaborate with other specialty areas to promote emotional spiritual and psychological support to people who suffered domestic violence as well as the people who perpetrated the violence. She has the great opportunity to teach classes based on her thesis of ella and I had the opportunity to hear some of her presentations of ella in classes that I taught. I was able to find a recent talk she did online that you can find here:  https://fb.watch/qNzaS_fGQ6/ https://fb.watch/qNzaS_fGQ6/

My friend Dynna was a lovely person. She always listened attentively to me and she offered me her thoughts and ideas without judging me and with a lot of compassion. I believe she was like that with many people, and in these last few days I have spoken with a number of people from her seminaries and they all told me how much they will miss her, and not just them themselves, but also the people who had the opportunity to take a class from her.

My beloved Chris + and Austin and I were able to visit Dynna and her family in December of 2016. We had already met her family here in Minnesota, but it was really special to visit them in their beloved city and home. They took us to see tourist sites and eat all of the delicious regional food. When our luggage didn’t arrive with us, Dynna’s sister Shirley helped us Mexican style, much more directly than our Minnesota nice style. They gave us an incredible welcome in Toluca and in their church Gethsemane in Mexico City where we could praise God with their community.

Dynna accompanied me in my grief when my beloved son was lost. She called me from Mexico right away when she heard what had happened just as we were holding a vigil while they searched for him. She always remembered my Chris and talked about him and I will always be grateful for that.

Dynna loved her family so very much and was very proud of them. I always felt the smile in her voice when she talked about her family. Her mother and sister, who for many years worked together as psychologists at a school and her niece who is studying to be a doctor. And her beloved father of ella who founded and pastors Gethsemane Tabernacle in which Dynna also preached and directed the choir and strings. She was so excited after their Christmas worship… https://fb.watch/qNzxCVw6M9/

I remember the day just a few years ago when Dynna told me her beloved mom had died. Not too much later, Dynna told me she had melanoma and that the cancer was aggressive. During the years Dynna talked with me about how treatments were going, both the successes and the difficulties. She was able to travel to Minnesota in December of 2022 and that was the last time Josué and I saw her in person. We got together for lunch at the Mall of America, one of her favorite places here in Minnesota. We spoke about her illness, but even more importantly, we spoke about her faith. I saw a brilliant light in her eyes, and even though Dynna was always an optimist and she smiled a lot, this light was different. She shines with a profound faith in the promises of God incarnated in Jesus Christ. She shone with the presence of the Holy Spirit in her life. And she shone with the assurance and peace that gave her the confidence that God was acting in her life. Dynna accepted God’s will of her in her life and she lived with the hope of eternal life with all of the saints in God’s glory.

The last time I spoke with Dynna was at the end of January or beginning of February of this year. She had lost her vision because of a brain tumor. She received some radiation and she got a little bit, but at the end, she died in the company of her family and in the arms of Jesus Christ. She was interred next to her beloved mom. Her father, her sister Shirley and her niece Alessa, her extended family, the people of her congregation, so many friends in different continents, her colleagues and students at Luther Seminary in St. Paul and Western Seminary in Holland, MI, and Bethel University in Arden Hill, MN, are all left to grieve Dynna’s death.

May we all live with a faith like that of Dynna. And may the Holy Spirit console all who mourn and may we, too, believe in God’s promises.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people from him, and God himself will be with them and be their God from him. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Revelation 21:3-5

May you rest in peace, my friend, in Jesus’ arms, together with your mom and surrounded by all of the clouds of witnesses.