Photo of Jaime Cisterna

Pastor Jaime Cisterna​

Personal Profile

Pastor Jaime Cisterna, 59, has been a pastor since being ordained into ministry by the Brazilian Baptist Convention in 1993. That same year, he married his wife, Luisa, with whom he had three children: Tiago, Débora (married to Joshua) and Lucas. Passionate about teaching the Word of God, Jaime wrote his dissertation on the subject, believing that through it alone, the great plan of salvation is revealed. Indeed, for it is by God’s Words that His transforming power is made available to us.

Ministry at First Free

Pastor Jaime came to leadership at First Free in 2015, at which time he had been serving as the pastor of a Brazilian church in Calgary since 2007. Having been invited to become the senior pastor at First Free, the two churches eventually merged, uniting both congregations. In September 2024, he also started working with the Billy Graham Association and moved to a part-time pastoral role at First Free.

Pastoral and theological references

C. S. Lewis, Charles Spurgeon, G. K. Chesterton, John Piper, John Stott, St. Augustine.

Favourite Books

  • Mere Christianity (Lewis)
  • The Cross of Christ (Stott)
  • The Pastor (Peterson)
  • In the Face of God (Horton)
  • Expository Exultation (Piper)
  • A Quest for Godliness (Parker)
  • The Call (Guinness)
  • The Divine Conspiracy (Willard).

Bible Verse

“Comfort, oh comfort my people,’ says your God. ‘Speak softly and tenderly to Jerusalem, but also make it very clear that she has served her sentence, that her sin is taken care of—forgiven! She’s been punished enough and more than enough, and now it’s over and done with.”

– Isaiah 40:1-2 (MSG)