Region I

Geography

Region I includes the states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont; the Archdioceses of Boston and Hartford; and the Dioceses of Bridgeport, Burlington, Fall River, Manchester, Norwich, Portland ME, Providence, Springfield MA, and Worcester.

Pastoral Profile of Region I in Hispanic / Latino Ministry

Diocesan personnel dedicated to Hispanic ministry in the Region:[*]

• In offices of Hispanic Ministry:[2] 10
• Responsible for Pastoral Juvenil Hispana: 1
• In ethnic / multicultural or other specialized offices: 3
• Office personnel assisting these leaders: 2

Estimated Hispanic Catholic population:

• 413,000 immigrant Hispanic Catholics
• 363,000 Hispanic Catholics born in the U.S.
• 16% of the Catholics in the Region are Hispanic / Latino

Parishes with Hispanic / Latino Ministry: 130

• Masses in Spanish:
  • Weekly Masses: 207
  • Once-a-month Masses: 9
  • Average attendance per Mass: 298 (3%of all Hispanic Catholics)

Among Catholic children from 0 to 17 years old:

• 23% are Hispanics / Latinos born in the U.S.
• 4% are immigrant Hispanics / Latinos
• In K-8 Catholic schools, 8.9% are Hispanics / Latinos
• In Catholic high schools, 6.3% are Hispanics / Latinos

Hispanic / Latino ecclesial ministers serving in the Region:

• Immigrant priests: 98
• US.-born priests: 11
• Religious sisters and brothers:61
• Deacons: 82
• Lay ecclesial ministers: 73

The V Encuentro in Region I

• Sent 119 delegates to the National Encuentro, including 5 ENAVE / ERAVE and 6 bishops.
• 2 Regional Encuentros were celebrated with 698 delegates and 8 bishops.
• 10 Diocesan Encuentros were celebrated, with total attendance of 2,110.
• 117 parishes / organizations conducted the five sessions and 76 held a Parish
• 1,352 leaders from 108 parishes received training for the V Encuentro in 95

Main areas of new outreach in parishes through the V Encuentro:

• Hispanic / Latino young adults
• People living in housing projects
• Homeless people

[*]Of the eleven (arch)dioceses in the Region, two did not have an office or personnel for Hispanic ministry and one had an office of multiculutral ministry that served Hispanics/Latinos.

[2]May include personnel in other offices when their responsibility is for the Latino community, such as the Director of Hispanic Catechesis.

Expanding Horizons in a Region Endowed with Many Resources

The V Encuentro in the New England dioceses was a unique opportunity to connect leaders at various levels regionally in ways that we had not done for a while. It also served as a way to assess the vast difference of experiences in our Region.

We acknowledge that there are many resources among us, including Catholic universities, schools, and organizations that can be more intentionally at the service of the fast-growing Hispanic Catholic population, especially youth and young adult Hispanics / Latinos, and families as well. In some of our dioceses, it opened opportunities for new ministries and more personnel to serve the needs of Hispanic / Latino Catholics, and it improved communication and collaboration between the Hispanic ministry office and other diocesan offices.

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