2010 Evangelization Supplement
‘Youths evangelizing youths’:
Hispanic lay movement helps spread the Gospel
Franciscan Father Arturo Ocampo, pastor of St. Patrick Parish in Indianapolis, sings with youths and young adults involved in Las Jornadas, a Hispanic lay movement in the Church, at the start of an April 18 Mass at his parish’s church. (Photo by Sean Gallagher)
By Sean Gallagher
When Catholic immigrants came to the United States in large numbers in the 19th and early 20th centuries, they often ended up worshipping in “national” parishes founded just for their ethnic group and were ministered to by priests from their home countries.
According to Margarita Solis Deal, archdiocesan coordinator of Hispanic Ministry, that is not the case with recent Catholic immigrants to central and southern Indiana from Mexico and Central and South America.
“This is the first time in the history of the Church in this country that we have immigrant groups coming into established parishes,” said Solis Deal. “That multi-cultural focus is new.”
This is why some newly arrived Hispanic immigrants choose to worship in Protestant congregations, Solis Deal said.
“[They] attract their spirit and their culture,” she said. “It’s a very attractive connection. And many of those Churches also have native leaders. A pastor might be a native of Mexico or Guatemala.”
While native priests aren’t coming to this country as with previous immigrant groups, some lay Hispanics in the archdiocese are reaching out to their immigrant brothers and sisters to make them feel at home in the Catholic Church in central and southern Indiana.
Approximately 60 teenage and young adult Hispanic Catholics in Indianapolis are doing this through their participation in Las Jornadas (“The Journey”), a lay movement founded by the Marist Brothers in Mexico in 1965.
Their motto is “Jovenes evangelizando a jovenes” (“Youths evangelizing youths”).
Roberto Marquez, a pastoral minister at St. Philip Neri Parish in Indianapolis, helped bring the movement to Indianapolis.
Originally from Mexico City, Marquez, 33, has been involved in Las Jornadas for 15 years. He oversees the formation for the young adult section of the movement for people ages 18 to 39.
Las Jornadas has groups for two age populations—those who are ages 14 to 17, and those who are ages 18 to 39. Participants begin by taking a one-day retreat to learn about it, and later attend a four-day retreat that introduces them to the areas of formation offered in the movement.
Those still attracted to the movement can then take classes once a week for four years to receive the full formation of Las Jornadas.
Marquez has been busy teaching the classes in Indianapolis during the three years that the movement has been offered in the archdiocese.
“I’m very busy,” he said. “It’s a very nice experience. But I’m very busy.”
While the participants take classes, they gradually become involved in activities organized by the movement and at parishes they belong to.
For example, youths and young adults in Las Jornadas in Indianapolis are planning upcoming retreats for their Hispanic peers preparing for the sacrament of confirmation and for quinceaneras, a festive coming-of-age ceremony for 15-year-old Hispanic girls.
“[Las Jornadas] is an opportunity to provide a welcoming environment for the immigrants and to help them feel a part of a community,” said Cuquis Romero, who oversees the 14 to 17 age group in Indianapolis. “Many times they come feeling a little bit lost. They don’t know how to establish themselves in this community.
“Las Jornadas is a way for them to say, ‘This is my community,’ ” added Romero, 37, who is also a secretary and youth coordinator at St. Patrick Parish in Indianapolis.
Her brother, Pablo, 27, has been involved in Las Jornadas in Indianapolis for three years. He is glad that his participation is helping him put his faith into action for others.
“It makes me feel very proud,” Pablo said. “I know that I can make a difference. I cannot change the world. But I can try to change somebody’s world.”
And they do this not simply through programs sponsored by parishes, but by reaching out to teenage and young adult Hispanic Catholics they might meet in their everyday lives who may have little or no contact with parishes.
“It’s the mission of Las Jornadas to have youths evangelize youths,” Cuquis said. “The youths involved in the movement go out and invite others who are not involved.”
Las Jornadas is one of a few Hispanic lay movements active in the archdiocese.
According to Solis Deal, Hispanic Catholics in central and southern Indiana are also involved in the Christian Family Movement and the Hispanic Charismatic Renewal.
“They have lay leaders who are also native to the community,” Solis Deal said. “They understand the stories of the community. They speak the same language. They can evangelize each other, whereas our parishes struggle with that because of the lack of language skills.”
(To see a list of archdiocesan parishes that offer Masses in Spanish, log on to www.archindy.org/multicultural/spanish.html.) †
