2014 Diocesan Pastoral Congress will be Sept. 27

Friday, Sep. 05, 2014

SALT LAKE CITY — The Diocese of Salt Lake City Pastoral Congress, an annual opportunity for Catholics throughout the state to attend workshops on a variety of faith-related issues, is scheduled for Sept. 27.

“Our Pastoral Congress is a time for all Catholics in Utah to gather for study, reflection and prayer,” said the Most Rev. John C. Wester, Bishop of Salt Lake City, who will offer the morning prayer and celebrate the Mass during the event. “This day will strengthen us as we witness Christ to others. Please prayerfully consider joining me at the Pastoral Congress.”

One highlight of this year’s Pastoral Congress is that the Pastoral Plan will be unveiled; Bishop Wester has identified five initiatives that he would like the diocese to work toward achieving. Over the course of the next year, the plan calls for “a process of listening and discerning and reflecting theologically on actions on behalf of the Gospel in Utah in this time and place” to develop an action plan to implement those initiatives, said Susan Northway, director of the Diocese of Salt Lake City’s Office of Religious Education.

At the Pastoral Congress, workshop topics in both English and Spanish will range from Scripture to adult faith formation. New this year will be a presentation for those who care for aging parents, a situation faced by many Catholics as well as those in the wider community.

Also, “this year our Congress has been really well supported by our publishers; they are bringing in several speakers that [otherwise] we could not afford,” Northway said. 

The keynote speaker will be Hosffman Ospino, Boston College assistant professor of theology and ministry, who was the lead author of the National Study of Catholic Parishes with Hispanic Ministry, released this spring. 

Although Hispanics soon will comprise the majority of Catholics in the United States, and already account for more than half of all Catholics under the age of 30 in the U.S., Church offerings in the area of Hispanic ministry aren’t keeping up demand, concluded the study, conducted by Boston College’s School of Theology and Ministry in collaboration with the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University.

In Utah, an estimated 80 percent of Catholics are Hispanic.

Ospino, who “is probably the premier scholar today in Hispanic matters, and especially in demographics,” will talk about the study in relation to Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Guadium,  Northway said.

Another presenter, Patricia Jimenez, will address how parishes and individuals take up “The Joy of Encountering the Other.” 

“It’s a talk on unity,” Northway said, adding that Jimenez will offer some answer to the question “At this time when many parishes and missions are changing from primarily English-speaking to Spanish, how do we deal with the feelings that we may have?”

For information or to register, visit https://www.dioslc.org/ministries/education/pastoral-congress-2013 or call the Office of Religious Education, 801-328-8641 ext. 326.