A priest walked into the Butcher Shop. No, this is not a joke.

“I’m so excited to see you, Father!” The butcher and he had never met, but a conversation ensued.

How’s the weather? What else can I get you? Run of the mill conversation.

“Father, do you have time to hear my confession?” Not your typical butcher shop conversation.

The Butcher’s family is from Mexico, and it’s been years and years since he last went to confession— not because he didn’t want to go. Yes, he’s busy with work. Yes, he’s busy raising a family. But it’s hard to find a priest who can hear confessions in Spanish.

Imagine the weight lifted from his shoulders after going to confession for the first time in years! Imagine not being able to go to confession because of a language barrier.

The Center for the New Evangelization does many good things for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, and one of its teams is devoted to Hispanic Evangelization.

“Without Hispanic Ministry, you can’t welcome a large population already here in the archdiocese.” Samuel Vásquez is the Director of Hispanic Evangelization Team. “We welcome and accompany Hispanics, and we integrate them into the life of the Church.”

“Many people, when they look around and don’t see Hispanics in their congregation, think there is not a need to serve Hispanics. But if a parish hosts an event,” Vásquez continued, “adds a Spanish mass, or includes Hispanic Ministries, people will come.”

To demonstrate that point, Eucharistic Adoration was planned at the Sharonville Convention Center recently by the Hispanic Catholic Charismatic Renewal of Cincinnati. More than 2,000 people attended. Most of them were youth.

Data collected in preparation for Beacons of Light shows about 100,000 Hispanics are already in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. The vast majority of them are Catholic with an estimated yearly influx of 5,000 more.

The biggest source of growth right now in the Archdiocese is within the Hispanic Community. “These Catholics, new to the Archdiocese look to the church as the one familiar institution to welcome them and nourish them through the Word and the sacraments,” Vásquez shared.

Your support of the Catholic Ministries Appeal (CMA) helps support Hispanic Ministry.

THANK YOU for supporting the Catholic Ministries Appeal!

Click here to learn more about how the CMA supports the Center for the New Evangelization.