Utah Catholic Conference offers day of faith formation for adults and youth

Friday, Sep. 26, 2025

DRAPER — More than 700 Catholics from throughout the state gathered Sept. 20 at the Skaggs Catholic Center to attend the Utah Catholic Conference, a daylong event offering an opportunity “to reflect on the journey we share as a community of faith,” as Bishop Oscar A. Solis wrote in a letter that was included in the event program.

Adult participants were able to choose from workshops on a variety of topics in English and Spanish, including faith formation, marriage and family life, youth and young adult ministry, stewardship and liturgy.  Youth attended a separate event. (See story p. 8.)

The day opened with a Mass at which Bishop Solis presided. Among the concelebrants were Father John Evans, vicar general; Father Kenneth Vialpando, vicar for clergy; and Father Stephen Tilley, pastor of St. John the Baptist Parish. Numerous other priests also concelebrated. Deacon Dale Dillon and Deacon Juan Biaggini assisted.

Bishop’s Homily

The theme of the conference, “The Road of Hope,” provided the focus for the day, Bishop Solis said in his homily, speaking in both English and Spanish. 

“We come here not only as attendees or participants of an event but as pilgrims of hope,” he said, referring to the theme of this Jubilee Year declared by the late Pope Francis.

“This is very important because today, lots of people are losing hope,” are overwhelmed by personal trials and global crises, and have lost their sense of future, the bishop said. “There is a culture of materialism that dismisses God, a growing indifference to the sufferings of the poor, the migrants, the refugees and the marginalized.”

These are compounded by a rise in senseless deaths of innocent lives due to war, violence, ecological degradation, poverty and other forms of injustice, he added. “In a world marked by challenges, suffering and division, the Church proclaims with unwavering confidence: Christ is our hope; he proclaims this in our midst.”

The Gospel for the day, from Luke 4, told of Jesus at the synagogue at Nazareth reading from the Prophet Isaiah and saying, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

In this Scripture passage, “Christ announces a mission of liberation, of healing and restoration –  restoration to those in need,” the bishop said. “His words are not ancient poetry but a living promise. Christ reveals himself as the fulfillment of the people’s long-awaited longing and aspirations. He is not just the messenger of hope; but the embodiment of hope, hope incarnate. And this is the promise of the Jubilee: Christ is the anchor of our soul, of our inheritance, individually as well as a Church. Our hope is not a wish but a certainty.”

The jubilee is not just a celebration, it is also a summons to be missionary disciples, he said, “to live our identity and mission visibly, courageously and joyfully. As Catholics in Utah, our mission is urgent. We are not called just to blend in, but to stand out as signs and sacraments of hope in our communities and in the world.”

The conference was an opportunity “to renew our hearts, our communities and the life of our Church in the light of the hope that comes from our Lord,” the bishop said. “In response to the call of the late Pope Francis, let us walk together as one community of faith, mindful of the one who walks with us: Jesus.”

Keynote Speaker

In his keynote address to the English-speaking congregation, Mark Hart focused on the love of the Father for his earthly children, as well as the virtue of hope. 

Hart is the chief innovation office of Life Teen International, a worldwide Catholic youth ministry. He also is a bestselling author, radio host and speaker.   

The Catholic liturgy follows the instructions God gave to Moses for altar worship, Hart said, explaining that God wants “to actually take you out of yourself: ‘I want to take you on a sensory journey. I want you to see and smell and taste and hear how much I love you. I want the incense to transport you, I want the stained glass to envelop you, I want you to taste and see the goodness of the Lord at the altar at each and every Mass … in every parish, in every tabernacle, in every church, in every chapel, in every country free and unfree the world over, in every language known to man so that my people know that I fulfill my promise in Matthew 28: that I will be with you always because I am Emmanuel, I am God with us.’”

At the Mass, God gives his people the wisdom of the Word, then feeds them with his own Body and Blood, “to arm them with the strength and the grace and the power that they need to go into the world,” which needs Christ’s light, Hart said.

Of the three theological virtues, hope “is the tricky one,” he said, noting faith means to believe in God and that people are called to love their brothers and sisters, even those who are difficult to love, but “hope is the tricky one. … If faith is believing in God, hope is believing and trusting in God’s promises, and that’s where I think a lot of us go wrong.  You wouldn’t be here today if you did not have faith that there is a God and it’s not you.”

But many times hope evades people because of their life’s struggles, he said, and yet “we have a God who loves us so much that he would rather die than risk spending eternity without you.”

As he closed his presentation, Hart told the story of Derek Redmond, a British sprinter who was the favorite to win the 400 meters in the 1988 Olympics, but he tore his Achilles tendon. At the 1992 Olympics, Redmond finished at the top of his heat in the first two rounds, but in the semi-finals he tore his hamstring during the race. He continued, limping, and his father came down from the stands to help him cross the finish line. His father “runs up next to his son, puts his arm around him, and literally walks with his son – who’s in anguish – he walks him to the finish line,” Hart said.

This is a powerful reminder, Hart said, “that when you are at your lowest, your hardest, your worst, your most hopeless, you realize that even when you can’t see the Father, he’s there … and he’ll lift you up and escort you, and he’ll walk beside you and dwell within you because he does not want his children to wander aimlessly or to be lost.” 

Reactions

Attending the conference was educational and faith-affirming, said Ann Milano, who just started teaching catechism at St. Anthony of Padua Parish in Helper. “The speakers are just so inspirational, and I’m just learning a lot,” she said, adding that she would recommend next year’s event to others as a way to “grow in your spiritual life.”

Similarly, Ernest Barlow, a parishioner at Blessed Sacrament in Sandy, who just recently entered the Church, said he learned “a lot about how Christ is reaching out to us,” and he would encourage others to attend “especially for the outreach. … It’s a great way to show how Catholics are interacting with the world to present the love of Christ.”

The conference offered Catholics the opportunity to expand their faith and better understand their faith, said Michael Leith, Grand Knight of Council 12181 at St. John the Baptist Parish in Draper, who also saw the information presented by the vendors as “a way to … get exposed to other means to expand your faith as well.”

During one of the workshops, Veronica Florin and Jacquelin Sciotto of St. Thomas More Parish in Cottonwood Heights experienced walking a labyrinth for the first time, which they both enjoyed, they said.

“It put you in the mood to pray silently and to really center yourself,” Florin said. 

Conference in Spanish 

The keynote presentation in Spanish was given by Sister Norma Pimentel, MJ, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, Texas. She shared stories about her pastoral ministries in many areas, including homelessness prevention, disaster relief, pregnancy care, food assistance and humanitarian relief to immigrants as well as her personal life experiences.

“I have discovered a God that loves me, he loves all,” she said referring to her vocation to the religious life. “Before I used to think what Norma wants, she does, but I have come to discover that all is God. It is very important to recognize that God is everything, he is everywhere, and we need to let him be present. God loves us. He is the one who challenges us to stand up and to tend his people. That love is there to share and to care for others, especially those who most need us,” she said.

All people need to stop for a minute to listen to and respect others, she said.

“I tell people to be present – to listen to your brothers and sisters, get to know their stories and you will know what they need, what God is asking us to do,” she said.

Sr. Norma’s message was powerful, said Ana Ciricho, a parishioner at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Ogden, adding that what most impacted her was the message that “when we do more good acts is when the devil is more present.”

“I was very impressed when she talked about immigrants and how she totally follows the commandments and performs the acts of mercy,” Ciricho said. “She is following what God wants us to do [but] many of us don’t do it.”

The Spanish workshop sessions included “Pilgrims of Hope” by Father Omar Ontiveros, pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Orem; “Christian Formation of the Laity” by Fr. Marco Tulio Lopez, pastor of Notre Dame de Lourdes Parish in Price and its missions; “‘Mary, Radiant Star of Hope” by Fr. Rogelio Felix-Rosas, pastor of St. Francis Xavier Parish in Kearns; and “The Papacy: A Sign of Unity and Hope in a Wounded World,” by Angel Garcia, director of the diocesan Office of Hispanic Ministry.