Hispanic influence in the U.S. Catholic Church

The Hispanic community in America, which was below two million in 1940, has increased tremendously in the last few decades. Today it includes over 50 millions souls and represents 16% of the 308 million Americans. Two thirds of Hispanics are Catholic, and 15% Evangelical.

The first Hispanic bishop was consecrated in 1970. There are presently 50 such bishops. Today, the Catholic Church in America counts 68 millions baptized persons, which represents about 22% of the total population, 40% of which are of Hispanic origin. To top it off, it is estimated that the growth of the Catholic population is coming from them at the rate of 70%. One of our every four children in Catholic kindergarten is Hispanic. At such a rate, the Hispanic community will compromise the majority of Catholics in America as soon as 2030.
Such statistics call for some remarks:

By now most United States dioceses have set up well-established Hispanic parishes where the faithful and children are taught the Faith and can grow with little need of adaptation. This continues the Catholic battle which all immigrants faced from the 19th century regarding the use of their own language and traditions in their Catholic schools. (I am thinking specifically of the Germans in the Midwest.) The children are growing up perfectly bilingual and they serve as mediators to less adaptable parents.
Without a doubt, Latin American culture has a lot to offer to the United States Catholic Church. Just think of the great mystics like St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila. Think too of the wonderful cultural development, evangelization, and education brought about by the Spanish settlers under the Catholics Ferdinand and Isabella. They are the heirs of the highest cultural achievement which was brought about from the connection of the Old and New World. Who can boast of establishing two flourishing universities in the New World 150 years before Harvard? Who can boast of having an Indian Viceroy of Mexico just a few generations after the Spanish conquest of Cortes?
Most southern States of the USA were at one time the property of the Spanish crown. Are we witnessing the revenge of the Hispanics who were kicked out of their own territory by a fiercely Masonic government?
Yet, one may fear that the Spanish influence may be less Catholic than numbers tell. Like the waves of immigrations of the last century, the incoming Hispanics are mostly underprivileged families seeking asylum in a country which promises a rosy future for them. They have little education and little ambition. It will take generations to turn them into the powerhouse of Catholic America in leadership.
More to the point, there is here a large reserve of vital forces into which the present hierarchy must tap, under pain of letting the easy, happy-clappy Church leaders swing them to their side. It seems inevitable that our Society of St. Pius X needs to direct much of its efforts along the same lines and promote study in Spanish at the seminary. And—this is not negligible—our college students will fare better in job interviews if they can present some bilingual capacity in their resume.

The Pastor's Corner: January 2012

The Hispanic community in America, which was below two million in 1940, has increased tremendously in the last few decades. Today it includes over 50 millions souls and represents 16% of the 308 million Americans. Two thirds of Hispanics are Catholic, and 15% Evangelical.

The first Hispanic bishop was consecrated in 1970. There are presently 50 such bishops. Today, the Catholic Church in America counts 68 millions baptized persons, which represents about 22% of the total population, 40% of which are of Hispanic origin. To top it off, it is estimated that the growth of the Catholic population is coming from them at the rate of 70%. One of our every four children in Catholic kindergarten is Hispanic. At such a rate, the Hispanic community will compromise the majority of Catholics in America as soon as 2030. Such statistics call for some remarks: By now most United States dioceses have set up well-established Hispanic parishes where the faithful and children are taught the Faith and can grow with little need of adaptation. This continues the Catholic battle which all immigrants faced from the 19th century regarding the use of their own language and traditions in their Catholic schools. (I am thinking specifically of the Germans in the Midwest.) The children are growing up perfectly bilingual and they serve as mediators to less adaptable parents. Without a doubt, Latin American culture has a lot to offer to the United States Catholic Church. Just think of the great mystics like St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila. Think too of the wonderful cultural development, evangelization, and education brought about by the Spanish settlers under the Catholics Ferdinand and Isabella. They are the heirs of the highest cultural achievement which was brought about from the connection of the Old and New World. Who can boast of establishing two flourishing universities in the New World 150 years before Harvard? Who can boast of having an Indian Viceroy of Mexico just a few generations after the Spanish conquest of Cortes? Most southern States of the USA were at one time the property of the Spanish crown. Are we witnessing the revenge of the Hispanics who were kicked out of their own territory by a fiercely Masonic government? Yet, one may fear that the Spanish influence may be less Catholic than numbers tell. Like the waves of immigrations of the last century, the incoming Hispanics are mostly underprivileged families seeking asylum in a country which promises a rosy future for them. They have little education and little ambition. It will take generations to turn them into the powerhouse of Catholic America in leadership. More to the point, there is here a large reserve of vital forces into which the present hierarchy must tap, under pain of letting the easy, happy-clappy Church leaders swing them to their side. It seems inevitable that our Society of St. Pius X needs to direct much of its efforts along the same lines and promote study in Spanish at the seminary. And—this is not negligible—our college students will fare better in job interviews if they can present some bilingual capacity in their resume. The Pastor's Corner: January 2012