Wilkommen, Bienvenue, Welcome!
How do you make your diverse parish into a family?
Photo from Photos.comThe one word missing from this article’s title is ¡Bienvenidos!—a phrase that’s becoming more and more common in parishes around the country. The parish I serve is half English-speaking and half Spanish-speaking, and the balance continues to tilt toward our Latino brothers and sisters. Our constant challenge is to help everyone feel welcome, both the newcomers and the “old-timers.”
Our differences aren’t just language. Our English-speaking population is growing older. Most of the families who send their children to our school now worship at the (packed!) noon Mass in Spanish, though their children speak English, so our Children’s Liturgy of the Word is in English at both the English and Spanish Masses. Our teenagers are primarily Latino in ethnicity, but Anglo in culture. And it’s not just a question of English and Spanish. Our Latino brothers and sisters come from many different countries throughout Central and South America, bringing their own distinct cultures and traditions of celebration. Finding a creative and nurturing balance among all these elements makes for very interesting discussions at pastoral team meetings!
There are some models, though, that little by little are working in our parish. Here are five ideas we’ve tried to bring our people together in a spirit of warm and genuine welcome.
- Eat together. Several times throughout the year meals are sponsored by different groups in the parish—the Holy Name Society pasta supper in the fall, the pancake breakfasts sponsored by the School Guild, the various ethnic celebrations surrounding feast days—El Señor de los Milagros (Peru), San Juan Bautista (Puerto Rico), and St. Patrick’s Day. These are slowly becoming parish-wide celebrations.
- Learn together. Our experience with whole community catechesis was very rewarding when we assembled members of both communities once a month for a planned activity. Each language group had its own learning sessions—including the children and teens, but everyone came together for bilingual prayer at the beginning and end of each session, as well as social time.
- Work together. Our parish buildings are old and in constant need of repair. Everyone comes together to winterize the buildings, clean and paint the school, and work around the grounds. It becomes a time of shared camaraderie.
- Worship together. Major feasts—Easter, Christmas, the parish patronal feast (Assumption)—are always celebrated bilingually. Slowly but surely, thanks to careful planning, these are becoming celebrations embraced by the entire parish.
- Be patient together. Every positive move in one direction means a sacrifice by another. We trust in the history of our parish that has traditionally welcomed people of many nations, all of whom have learned to be a parish family. Seeing more Anglo faces at the Spanish Mass and vice-versa is a truly positive step.
Our parish isn’t yet a model of success, but it is thriving in the midst of its growing pains. The people of God are collaborating on many levels, and building a new church that is coming to speak only one language—the language of Pentecost—full of welcome and praise of the God we all worship.
Use change as an opportunity
Many parishes are facing clustering, closure, and consolidation. Rather than holding on to the past, these realities offer real opportunities for all parishes to learn how to welcome and support one another. Trust in the Spirit’s guidance!
Deborah McCann is a pastoral associate at St. Mary Star of the Sea Parish in New London, Connecticut, and the author of Lift Up Your Hearts: 50 Blessings and Prayers for Parish Meetings and Ministries (Twenty-Third Publications).
