The Mexican American Catholic College (MACC) in association with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Region X Catholic Association of Diocesan Directors of the Hispanic Ministry (RXCADDHM), hosted the first regional Encuentro on Children’s Spirituality, The Child and the Lamb. The event was held from April 26-28, 2024 on the MACC campus in San Antonio, TX. Sixty-four ministers from eleven dioceses in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas attended the Encuentro. Speakers included nationally recognized leaders in children’s spiritual and health development: Mary Mirrione from Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (CGS) and Charleen Katra from the National Catholic Partnership on Disability (NCPD).
In his opening presentation Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller ignited our hearts through a passionate challenge that illuminated the path by which we can empower our ministers. Auxiliary Bishop Michael J. Boulette called us to a spiritual journey with children who oftentimes have a deeper relationship with God than we realize. Sometimes we need to listen to the wisdom of the child. Fr Matthew DeLeon, Pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Uvalde and Fr. Will Combs, BBD, Pastor of St. Mary Magdalen Parish in San Antonio presented pastoral approaches to responding to children and families in crisis and through charismatic evangelization, respectively.
We spent the weekend learning and sharing best practices and strategies to enhance children’s spirituality in our parishes, schools, and communities. We are already facilitating and integrating wonderful resources in the network of friendship and fellowship generated as fruits of the Encuentro. It has been a genuine exercise of synodality.
MACC began bi-monthly follow-up meetings in June. These sessions will assist the Encuentro’s participants develop strategies to implement children’s spirituality programs in their communities. Together, we will continue generating initiatives and best-practices to grow children’s spirituality. Our emphasis will be on the neediest ministries and children with disabilities. The bi-monthly meetings are the foundation upon which we will develop next year’s Encuentro.
