His parents, Pablo Ávila and Herminia Portalatin, were both Sephardic Jew schoolteachers that had converted to Christianity, and he eventually followed in their footsteps.
[6] While training for the summer Olympic Games of 1956, Ávila experienced terrible pain in parts of his body and, after various tests, was diagnosed with chronic arthritis by his doctors.
He became a full-time preacher and, in 1972, he invited several friends, family, and neighbors to form the Escuadron Relampago Cristo Viene ("Christ Is Coming Lightning Squadron"), which congregated in a small room in his house to discuss the Bible, salvation, Christianity, and the Apocalypse.
Eventually, his ministry and followers increased dramatically, and a new three-story building near the PR # 2 state road was built to accommodate the attending public.
The network and his ministry has grown considerably over the years, expanding to magazines, books, audio tapes, videos and televised scheduled programming.
The three-story building which he and his close followers originally built now serves as the headquarters for Yiye's ministry and his television network.
These shows and many other programs are broadcast in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, and are transmitted via satellite to Latin America, the continental United States and certain parts of Europe.
[5] In addition to his television shows and public preaching, Yiye Ávila was a prolific writer, publishing numerous works throughout his ministry years.