V Encuentro gathering

PATERSON  Already dynamic, the Hispanic Ministry in the Church of Paterson received a major jolt of momentum, inspiration and focus on both the diocesan and parish levels on Saturday, April 7, during the historic diocesan-wide V Encuentro gathering in the Bishop Rodimer Center of the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist here. During the all-day event, 400 delegates of Hispanic Ministries from 30 parishes came together in prayer and reflection to choose the five most important pastoral priorities that they think the Diocese should address in serving the needs of its ever-growing Hispanic and Latino population.

Through this milestone gathering, the delegates — clergy, religious and laity — got the opportunity to participate in a much longer, four-year process, also called V Encuentro, to assist the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) in both determining and prioritizing those pastoral needs on a national level. During the diocesan V Encuentro, which featured an appearance by Bishop Serratelli, they selected priorities in the areas of social assistance, faith formation, marriage and family life, youth and young adults and the Office of Hispanic Ministry, said Ivannia Vega-McTighe, diocesan coordinator of catechesis, member of diocesan Hispanic Ministry and coordinator of the all-day event.

“It was a fantastic day,” Vega-McTighe. “Often, the Hispanic people in our parishes feel invisible in this society. That day, they felt that others were listening to them about the challenges that their communities are facing and how the local Church can respond to their challenges and suffering. It’s such an exciting time for Hispanic Ministry in the Diocese,” she said.

At St. John’s Cathedral, home to a large, active Hispanic community, the delegates — many wearing colorful dress from their native countries in the opening ceremony — divided into small groups and spent time voting what they considered to be the 15 most important pastoral priorities from a long list of 32 suggestions. Then, they voted to whittle those 15 recommendations down to the following five priorities that they considered most important (starting with the most popular):

• Social assistance: presenting workshops about issues of immigration, domestic violence and civil cases.

• Faith formation: providing ongoing spiritual, catechetical and doctrinal formation; worship; courses; Bible studies; conferences.

• Marriage and family life: helping to strengthen them by providing workshops that promote better communication between parents and children.

• Youth and young adults: implementing workshops, retreats, prayer groups and recreational activities.

• Office of Hispanic Ministry: providing full-time personnel to offer better assistance to the parishes of the Diocese.

Recently, Church of Paterson heard hundreds of suggestions that the 30 participating parishes brainstormed and selected for their own faith communities during a five-week process late last year that involved small-group sharing. Early last year, Hispanic Ministry trained facilitators how to lead the process in small groups at their respective parishes, Vega-McTighe said.

Soon, diocesan Hispanic Ministry will submit its five suggestions for the Region Three meeting of delegates from around New Jersey and Pennsylvania on Saturday, April 28 at the Co-Cathedral of St. Robert Bellarmine in Freehold. There, 20 representatives from the Diocese will join other delegates in whittling down another long list of compiled suggestions and vote for which pastoral priorities will be sent to the 3,000 delegates — including diocesan representatives — who will attend the national V Encuentro from Thursday, Sept. 20 to Sunday, Sept. 23 in Grapevine, Texas, Vega-McTighe said.

Nationally, the V Encuentro process will conclude in 2020, when the USCCB reflects on and evaluates all the suggestions and then selects some of them and compiles them in resource materials for dioceses, parishes and other Catholic organizations. Led by its coordinator, Deacon Guido Pedraza of St. John’s, diocesan Hispanic Ministry plans to establish a follow-up committee to continue working on ways to address its five pastoral priorities. Also, parish Hispanic Ministries will endeavor to work on their priorities, Vega-McTighe said.

“This [diocesan V Encuentro] was the fruit of the people and kept them enthusiastic to implement these priorities,” said Vega-McTighe, who credited the support of more than 50 lay volunteers.

During the diocesan V Encuentro, participants strengthened their faith through soulful prayer and music and the encouragement of Bishop Serratelli, who “overwhelmed” the delegates with a brief reflection that he delivered. Also, two priests gave inspiring addresses: Father Yojaneider Garcia Ramirez, parochial vicar of St. Peter the Apostle Parsippany, and chaplain of its Hispanic Ministry, and Msgr. Geno Sylva, diocesan vicar for special projects and the cathedral.

“I talked about the meaning and impact that the experience of V Encuentro had for our Diocese and reflected on the common vocation of being missionary disciples in this particular moment in the history of the Church in the United States of America,” Father Ramirez told The Beacon in summarizing his presentation. “I also encouraged people to work for young people and family. We must receive a lot of formation and go out to evangelize and catechize our people,” he said.

The schedule also included a panel discussion with Father Ramirez and five lay people, who spoke about how the V Encuentro process has strengthened their parishes. That day, Maria Torres of St. Anthony of Padua Parish, Passaic, served as master of ceremonies, Vega-McTighe said.

This year, the USCCB is in the midst of the second year of the four-year V Encuentro — the fifth such national process for Hispanic and Latino ministry since 1972. Starting at “the grass-roots level,” it encourages “ecclesial reflection and action” to inspire Catholics in the U.S. initiate “intense missionary activity, consolation, leadership development and identification of best ministerial practices in the spirit of the New Evangelization,” according to materials by the USCCB.

In addition to serving as master of ceremonies of the diocesan V Encuentro, Torres also participated on a planning committee for the event, helped train parish facilitators last year and joined V Encuentro at St. Anthony’s. She also serves as extraordinary minister of Holy Communion at St. Anthony’s and as director of religious education at two Passaic parishes, St. Mary and St. Nicholas.

“V Encuentro has revitalized and changed the way we think at St. Anthony’s. The parish has always been united, but now we work together with a greater understanding that we are one community working in different areas to bring to people the message of Christ,” said Torres, who called diocesan V Encuentro “historic.” “It was the first time that 30 parishes got together with one voice to prioritize the needs of the local Hispanic community.”