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Latino Ministry Committee The Latino Ministry Committee (renamed from Hispanic Ministry), was created by resolution at the 2004 Convention (following a year of study in 2003 as a task force) to develop and implement strategies to further Latino Ministry in this Diocese. Appointments are made by the Bishop and Council. The Rev. Luis León, Chair ( 2006 ) The report below represents the Annual Report for 2003, presented to Council at the January 2004 Diocesan Convention and printed in the 2004 Journal and Directory. ANNUAL REPORT (2003) The One Hundred Eighth Convention of the Diocese of Washington directed the Task Force to meet, study and propose strategies that would: (1) increase the number of Spanish-speaking clergy in the Diocese; (2) encourage outreach programs that establish a presence in the Hispanic community; (3) equip lay leadership for ministry; (4) identify funding sources, along with congregational resources and models to help existing congregations receive and welcome Hispanic members; (5) expand the number of weekly Sunday worship services in Spanish within the Diocese; (6) explore mechanisms to provide seminarians with intensive Spanish language training beginning in 2004; and (7) submit a preliminary report to convention in January 2004. By all accounts, 2003 was one of the most active years in recent history in featuring the opportunities and challenges of reaching out to the growing Latino community in the greater Washington D.C. metropolitan area. The Task Force met on six occasions throughout the past year. Our first task was to learn about the history of the work with the Latino community over the past thirty years, a ministry that began in earnest in the mid-1970's during the episcopate of Bishop Creighton with the birth of Misión San Juan. Misión San Juan would be the center of diocesan efforts for the next twenty-five years: it was served by five different priests and moved its worship services to five different locations. San Juan found a permanent home at St. John's Lafayette Square in 1995 and officially became a part of St. John’s Church in 2000 and thus ceased to be a separate mission of the Diocese. The Task Force hosted two important gatherings in 2003: (1) On May 30 over seventy participants representing ten congregations attended our first diocesan-wide conference on Hispanic ministry. The event was co-chaired by the Rev. Hannah Atkins and the Rev. Mark Pendleton and funding for the conference came from a Soper Grant given previously to St. John’s Church Lafayette Square. Our keynote speaker was the Rt. Rev. Wilfrido Ramos, Bishop Suffragan of Connecticut. Demonstrating their support for this ministry, Bishop and Mrs. Chane attended the May conference. The main language of the conference was Spanish. Professional translators provided simultaneous Spanish/English translation throughout the morning. The panel discussions and workshops were designed to help congregations in the preliminary stages of exploring or implementing this ministry as well as equipping existing Spanish-speaking congregations in the Diocese with stewardship training. On Sunday, September 28 we held our first diocesan-wide Latino Liturgical Celebration at St. John’s, Lafayette Square. Over one hundred people attended the worship service that featured music from the St. John’s choir and the preaching of the Rev. Luis León, rector of St. John’s. Bishop Chane celebrated the Eucharist in Spanish. After the worship service a wonderful luncheon was served. Plans are already underway for the second annual celebration at the Church of Our Saviour, Hillandale in 2004. The Task Force also worked to define a process by which
congregations and clergy in the Diocese interested in starting or expanding
their work with Latinos can apply for grants. Diocesan Council approved
a yearly cycle of Hispanic Ministry Grants that will provide up to $40,000
each year for congregations and clergy. Programs should strive to be self-sustaining
and be supported by congregation operating funds within three years. A
congregation would be limited to $40,000 in grant money over a five-year
period beginning 2004. The parameters are as follows: (2) A one-time grant of up to $1000 for clergy or lay leaders to study Spanish. Recipients of the grants will agree to participate in the liturgy of one of the existing Spanish ministries in the diocese within six months of receiving language training. (3) Grants of up to $10,000 per congregation per year to implement mission and outreach. Grants could be used to pay salaries, purchase materials, and expand presence in the Hispanic community. The following congregations currently offer weekly services in Spanish: St. Michael’s and All Angels in Adelphi In researching possible locations for new Hispanic ministries, the Task Force made use of current demographic data from Percept, Inc. which identified the highest concentrations of Latinos in the Diocese. Montgomery Country has the largest number of Latinos with over 122,500, followed by Prince George’s County and the District of Columbia with approximately 56,000 Latinos in each jurisdiction. It is the hope of the Task Force that the One Hundred and Ninth Convention of the Diocese of Washington will establish a permanent Hispanic Ministry Committee that will seek to direct the grant program, continue to encourage collaborative work between the congregations currently offering worship and outreach in Spanish, establish an annual “Hispanic Liturgical Celebration” to rotate around the diocese, and encourage new worshipping communities in targeted areas in the Diocese with the highest concentrations of Hispanics where there is no presence to date. The Chair of the Task Force would like to thank the members of the Task Force that contributed to our work throughout the past year: Mr. Simon Bautista, Ms. Emily Van Loon, Ms. Daphne Gerig, the Rev. Hannah Atkins, the Rev. Luis Leon, the Rev. Dalton Downs, the Rev. Nilda Lucca-Anaya, the Rev. Michael Heidt, the Rev. Joe Clark and Ms. Elizabeth Butts. I would also like to acknowledge the contribution of the Rev. Edmund Olifiers for his good work to further Hispanic ministry in the diocese. The Rev. Mark B. Pendleton, Chair
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