V Encuentro to help with needs of Hispanic Community

Imagine a project that reaches out to everyone in the entire United States Hispanic/Latino community. A project that will include one million pastoral leaders! A project so big that will take four years to complete. That project is the fifth national Encuentro or V Encuentro.
The Encuentro is a huge undertaking and very challenging according to Diocese of Beaumont coordinator of Hispanic youth and young adults Julio Beltran. Beltran serves as the Region 10 chair for the Encuentro. He said the Encuentro will show the bishops “these are the needs of the Hispanic community at this point and how the Church can address those needs.”
Beltran said, “The last Encuentro was done in 2006 and focused on Hispanic and Latino youth and young adults. It found that many parishes did not have facilities set aside for Hispanic offices or meeting space.”
Many parishes have since addressed that need. That’s how the Encuentro helps the church meet the needs of the community.
This Encuentro will include questions like: What can the Catholic Church do to help you overcome obstacles that keep you from accomplishing your goals in life? How can the Catholic Church help you to share God’s love to others? Do you feel a sense of belonging or welcome in the Catholic Church?
These questions will follow questions about age, gender and whether or not the surveyed were born in the United States.
Not only will the Encuentro reach out to the immigrant community, but Beltran said this Encuentro will also “integrate the 2nd and 3rd generation of U.S. born Latinos” so that all Hispanic/Latino needs are included.
The V Encuentro will work similar to a census and reach not only to Hispanic/Latino church members, but to the entire Hispanic/Latino community.
The Encuentro starts with training at the diocesan level.
These diocesan leaders then train leaders in the parishes. These parish leaders then train parish teams who will fan out to ask Hispanic/Latino community members the Encuentro questions.
This training includes learning the history of the Encuentros, theological reflection on where the Hispanic/Latino community stands with the church and the assigning of roles, such as a diocesan chair and committee members.
“The Diocese of Beaumont has already held diocesan level training,” said Jesus Abrego, director of Hispanic Ministry. These diocesan leaders will soon be training the parish leaders. The same thing is happening in 175 dioceses across the United States.
After the Encuentro questions have been ask, the process of compiling the results begins.
The results are first tabulated at the parish level. The results then go to the diocesan and regional levels before all regions come together for a national statement. The national Encuentro document will then be used to guide the Church as it further embraces the Hispanic/Latino community.