By Armando Machado | Correspondent 

In an effort to foster spiritual growth and integral formation, more than 250 Hispanic ministry coordinators from throughout the Diocese attended a daylong workshop Nov. 19 in the gymnasium of St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton.

“We are called by Jesus to serve; we are called by the Lord to be merciful,” Sandra Lopez, diocesan coordinator of Hispanic ministry initiatives, said as she reflected on the day’s theme, “Life in Community: How to Grow in Love and Community.”  “Jesus said we should love one another as he has loved us.”

The workshop, the fourth annual hosted by the diocesan Office of Pastoral Life and Mission – Hispanic Initiatives, explored ways that attendees could step up as Hispanic ministry leaders, and foster their own spiritual growth.

“They learn to grow more in their spirituality, and thus become better leaders for the community and Church,” Lopez noted.

Guest speaker Cruz Teresa Rosero, who works with the Diocesan Pastoral Institute for the Diocese of Brooklyn, N.Y., led discussions about love, mercy, leadership and spiritual growth.

“My hope is that people will leave here today with a clear sense of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. It’s a lifelong process. It’s so much more than a simple ‘yes,’” shared Rosero.

Rosero’s presentation focused on the importance of “growing” as disciples and she offered practical tools that the Church gives to foster that growth.

“Daily prayer is important. It is through conversation with the Lord that one realizes how to be in communion with Him. Participating in the Mass is vital. The Mass is what connects us with the Lord and with one another. And that leads to another tool the Church gives us, community. We should all look to participate in parish groups. It is important to build friendships in faith that can support us when life brings its difficulties.”

Rosero continued that it can be easy to take “a wrong path” because life is so unpredictable and can be so difficult, noting that this is especially true for the Hispanic community.

Among the Hispanic Ministry leaders in attendance was Roberto Muñoz of Our Lady of the Angels Parish, Trenton, who observed how important it is “that everything we seek to do, we do united with Christ.”

“If we maintain unity with Christ in all that we do, we will always remain focused in service as leaders for him,” Muñoz said.  

Remarking on the importance of faith formation of the Hispanic community, María Aldazabal, coordinator of the Hispanic ministry in St. Ann Parish, Browns Mills, said the workshop gave her ideas on how to bolster faith formation in her parish.

She added that an important goal for ministry leaders is to maintain clear communication with clergy at the parish and the diocesan levels so that operational needs are known and met.

Describing the significance of the workshop goals, she said she learned there is always room for ministry service improvement and that Latino parishioners are always in need of spiritual support, especially now as tensions arise over fair immigration policies.

Rosero led a special prayer for undocumented immigrants and their families, offering words of faith, hope and love amid worries and fears stemming from deportation.

“As people and leaders of faith, we are called to work to form new disciples. Our faith is a missionary faith,” concluded Rosero. “To be a leader as Catholic means to know how to work as part of a team and to not hold ourselves back from ‘going out’ and living as missionaries in our world. We need to hear God’s call to us and then we need to have the strength to respond to it.”