Fewer and fewer Latin@s self-identify as members of the Catholic Church in the United States.  According to 2013 research conducted by the Pew Research Center, 55% of Latin@s identify as Catholics, reflecting a continuing decline of Latin@ US Catholic affiliation.  In 1990, some polls identified 76% of Latin@s as Catholic; five years later in 2010, 67% identified as Catholic.  The decline from 76% to 55% Latin@ US Catholic affiliation within twelve years seems catastrophic.  Moreover, this 2013 Pew research determined that 24% of Latin@s identified as former Catholics.   Even so, the actual number of Latin@s in the US Catholic Church has remained steady (this same data reveals that 1 in 3 US Catholics today are Latin@), largely due to growing birth rates and immigration.  However, if these declining trends continue, within a few years Latin@ US Catholics will make up less than half of all religiously affiliated Latin@s.

This lack of participation reflects a broken continuity between the Vatican II church of the encuentros and the situation of mestizaje today.

There is little doubt that the message of Church as communion was effectively communicated by Council leaders. Shortly after the Council of Vatican II, the US Hispanic/Latin@ Catholic Church –comprised of not only pastors, but mainly of lay ministers, parishioners and Latin@ family members—responded robustly, developing a pastoral process that deliberated and delineated plans to affirm and develop US Hispanic & Latin@ communities. The fruit of this process is partially reflected in the following list of Hispanic/Latin@ events called to consider Latin@/Hispanic ministry. Primer Encuentro, Segundo Encuentro and Tercer Encuentro, held from 1972-1987 at Trinity College and the Catholic University of America in Washington DC, developed comprehensive ecclesial conclusions on substantive issues, ranging from Spanish in the liturgy to culturally sensitive catechetics;  from religiosidad popular to Communicades de Base.  The Encuentro process and conclusions led to the formulation of the National Pastoral Plan for Hispanic Ministry in 1987, the culmination of pastoral de conjunto—a grassroots collaboration to discuss, deliberate and determine, together, pastoral needs, initiatives and actions. Yet, illustrative of differing processes and methods, the subsequent Encuentro and Mission (2002) did not develop a process as the previous Encuentros. Previous Encuentros developed processes at the parish level over a period of years, before continuing deliberations at the national Encuentro in Washington DC.  That the Encuentro and Mission in 2002 did not utilize a similar process may illuminate part of the reason that there has been a steady and sure declension of US Latin@ Catholics.

These encuentros opened up the possibility and likelihood of a continuing mestizaje—a term used by US Latin@ theologians to reflect ongoing encounter and change.   Mestizaje allows for adaptation but it also can create confusion. There are three areas where mestizaje is at work and can help illuminate the decline of the Latin@ [Catholic] population:

Ecumenism. The relationship between US Catholic Latin@ communities and Evangelical/Non-Denominational Christian communities is weak, and in many cases, in conflict.  Latin@s regularly identify themselves to me as “Catholic, but not Christian,” or “Christian, but not Catholic,” reflecting their understanding that there are essential differences between these two religious traditions. Whether their understanding is due to robust efforts on the part of Evangelical/Non-Denominational churches to denigrate or minimize the Catholic Church as not “really” Christian because of its adherence to Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, the sacraments, the Pope, etc., or whether this is due to the Catholic Church’s failure to reach out to these newer Christian communities that have flowered since the evangelical and charismatic phenomena of Billy Graham and the Azusa St. Revival, it is difficult to say for me—Likely a combination of both.  Also, US Catholic Latin@ ecclesial communities regularly disparage evangelical or Protestant communities as not really Christian due to their inability to trace their history to Peter and the original community of apostles—the original followers of Jesus.  This ecumenical reality reflects an issue for the US Catholic Latin@ Church.

The ambiguity of the “none” identity. The “nones”, although religiously unaffiliated, are not “unreligious.” According to research data, the “nones” identify as spiritual, and occasionally revisit church and practice some religious traditions of their previously learned faith.  The life of a “none” is not a life absent of a quest for the sacred, nor sensitivity to the search and desire for meaning.  Of course, “nones” are not only found in Latin@ communities—this phenomenon is trans-cultural and trans-ecclesial.  The challenge of the US Catholic Latin@ Church is to articulate how it understands Padre Nuestro in relation to the secular, not to just “hold on” to its own members, but to articulate to secular spiritual seekers the path of their spiritual quest.  In other words, how can the US Catholic Latin@ Church articulate in secular terms the meaningfulness and ultimate value of its spiritual experience?  

Leadership. The declining number of US priests and the importation of priests from non-US cultures present challenges to the development of Catholic community that include issues on ecclesial ministry, ecclesial governance and enculturation. There is an active presence of women in the US Latin@ Catholic Church, but their social condition is ambiguous because of the marginalized status of women in the church.

In conclusion, the fruit of Vatican II is found in Encuentro and Mestizaje—processes that were recognized and developed in the flush of Vatican II. Yet, the effectiveness of these processes is in question today, exemplified by the marked decline of Latin@ Catholics in the Church.  A retrieval of these processes in the life of the Latin@ Church may not be enough; perhaps an expansion of Encuentro and Mestizaje that includes members of the Christian Church and society broadly defined, and inclusive of all marginalized members of the Church, will invigorate the entire Christian  community.