CHARLOTTE — V Encuentro, a process of evangelization and leadership development to better serve the fast-growing Hispanic Catholic population in the United States, has slowed but not stopped its work despite the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, national leaders are organizing a follow-up event Oct. 9-10 to be held virtually, so ministry leaders including those from the Diocese of Charlotte can reconnect and discuss the next steps in this multi-year effort.
Launched by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in 2013, V Encuentro grew at the grass-roots level and gradually encompassed parish, ministry and diocesan level efforts to compile ideas and information that could be used to help U.S. Church leaders better minister to the growing number of Hispanic Catholics and strengthen the ways in which Hispanic Catholics respond to the call to the New Evangelization as missionary disciples. Discussions culminated with a national conference in 2018 in Texas, and now V Encuentro’s recommendations are ready for dioceses including Charlotte to start implementing.
Sister Joan Pearson, Hispanic Ministry coordinator for the Salisbury vicariate and one of the diocese’s organizers for V Encuentro, said local efforts to keep the process moving have not abated.
The diocese’s V Encuentro team also includes Vicar for Hispanic Ministry Father Julio Dominguez, Father Jose Juya and Hispanic Ministry’s Charlotte vicariate coordinator Eduardo Bernal. They are focusing on seven areas of work that are key for the local Church in western North Carolina: Youth Ministry, Formation and Spiritual Accompaniment, Promotion of Vocations and Bilingual Ministers, Formation and Training of Leaders, Family Ministry, Support of the Diocese, and Evangelization and Mission.
Team members have met via video conferencing to discuss the national report’s conclusions and develop these seven priorities moving forward – creating and fine-tuning the pastoral response for here at the local level.
“Soon we will conduct a survey among the faithful of the diocese including questions that will allow us to know how their needs have changed due to the pandemic,” Sister Joan said.
Sister Joan noted that the Charlotte diocese is uniquely positioned to implement the ambitious goals of V Encuentro, as the diocese already has an extensive leadership team involved with and experienced in Hispanic ministry. She said Charlotte is the only diocese in the United States with Hispanic ministry coordinators appointed through the chancery to serve every vicariate, or region, and the number of parishes with Hispanic ministry and bilingual clergy is also comparably high.
That leadership depth and breadth of ministry already in place are crucial in responding to the needs of the diocese’s Hispanic Catholic population, which has swelled to represent nearly half of all Catholics in the diocese. Among children and young people, that percentage is even higher.
Diocesan V Encuentro team members know that it will be vital for the local Church to meet the needs of these families moving forward and helps champion their ongoing formation and leadership development, to prepare people to become missionary disciples ready to serve the entire Church.
— César Hurtado, Reporter
More online
At www.vencuentro.org: Learn more about V Encuentro