Albany participants inspired by national Hispanic meeting

Hispanic youth in the Church "have a need to be heard, to be welcomed, to be encouraged and to have a place to share their experiences," according to Theresa Gecewicz.

She was one of four representatives from the Albany Diocese who attended the National Encuentro for Hispanic Youth and Young Adult Ministry, held recently at the University of Notre Dame.

For the quartet, who are youth leaders in Holy Family parish in Albany, attending the event was the culmination of a long journey. Fundraising and preparation began last November and included an April trip to a regional gathering in Pennsylvania.

Goals of meeting

The bilingual event, "Weaving Together The Future," asked more than 2,000 Hispanic youth, young adults and parish leaders to focus on the needs of Hispanic young people and their contributions to the Catholic Church in North America.

The National Catholic Network De Pastoral Juvenil Hispana and subcommittees from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops sponsored the conference.

During the Encuentro, the participants prayed and attended Mass, listened to speakers and musical groups, networked, and traded ideas for strengthening Hispanic ministry.

'Inspired'

"Something that really inspired me was seeing so many other young people who are involved with the Church," said Nestor Damian, a young adult volunteer at Holy Family parish. "I saw there's a great thirst for recognition, a lot of real hope for leadership."

Mr. Damian was heartened to see the participation of youth from many different Hispanic cultures, as well as witness the support of the 18 bishops and hundreds of lay leaders who attended.

Goals

At Holy Family, Mr. Damian plans to apply things he learned from speaking with youth from across the country.

His goals include the creation of a pastoral plan for Hispanic youth in the Albany Diocese, increased networking with youth leaders from New York City, outreach to Hispanic youth beyond Holy Family and doing more bilingual work.

"We cannot miss this opportunity," he told The Evangelist. A plan "would be a great help for Hispanics working with Hispanics, and for bishops and other ministers working with youth and young adults. What we are looking to do is create new leaders."

Motivated

Ms. Gecewicz called the Encuentro "very motivating and very impressive. The young people that were there were very impressive because of the depth of faith and their maturity. I was so touched by what the Hispanic community has to offer the Church."

She was struck by what she sees is the "richness" of culture Hispanic Catholics have to offer the Church at large, as well as the concern for current issues involved with immigration.

She also said that Hispanic youth are looking for the support of their bishops and ministers in tackling specific needs, such as sensitivity to cultural differences, Spanish and bilingual Masses and youth ministries, and an increasing development of resources and education.

Outsider is in

Ms. Gecewicz began to attend the Spanish Mass at Holy Family parish in Albany after her graduation from The University at Albany as a way of connecting to Spanish culture and keeping up her mastery of the language.

Invited to join the youth group, she said, "I was a little nervous going into this as someone who is not Hispanic, but something that became very clear to me was that this wasn't about race in any way. It's about completing the mission of the Church.

"The next big step is going to be building bridges between populations. There is a need to build bridges because, as a whole, the Church can be so much stronger because we have a lot to offer one another."

(6/22/06) [[In-content Ad]]