V Encuentro Proceedings and Conclusions

Proceedings and Conclusions of the V National Encuentro of Hispanic/Latino Ministry | 177 Appendix B youth ministry to address the whole family, helping Latino parents in their role of forming and accompanying their adolescent children while transmitting the faith. • Building on Hispanic/Latino culture and spirituality. As mentioned, 91% of the young Latinos in the survey speak Spanish at home, and they seek ministries at Church where their language, culture, devotions, and traditions are embraced and celebrated. For some this meant choosing different catechetical materials, finding bilingual resources, or creating their own. For others, the main concern was to have a greater welcome from the pastor and parish staff for gatherings and activities of their ecclesial movements, especially in the spirit of the Charismatic Renewal. Much more could be said about the particular challenges that young Hispanics/Latinos expe- rience in family life, education, discrimination, or with religiously disengaged parents and unresponsive pastoral leaders. Those concerns are well documented in other parts of these Proceedings and Conclusions , based on the general insights from the consultation process . In all of these themes, what stands out among the voices of the young Latinos is that they are not simply asking the Church to serve them and their needs—they want to be part of the response and the solution. Furthermore, the evaluation of the V Encuentro National Event documented that there are already exemplary parishes and dioceses throughout the country that are implementing the very approaches and programs that the young Latinos are requesting. The young delegates at the Encuentros also demonstrated that there are capable young Hispanic leaders in the Church with the educational background, experience, and missionary zeal to go to work, as the table below demonstrates. It is up to the Church to build on their readiness and engage them in this mission. Educational Attainment of Hispanic/Latino Young Adults in the United States Overall Hispanics Ages 18 - 35 in 2016 V Encuentro Online Survey, Ages 18 - 29 V Encuentro National Delegates, Ages 18 - 35 No High School Diploma 22% 26% 4% High School Graduate 32% 19% 12% Some College or A.A. 34% 38% 36% Bachelor’s Degree 10% 11% 30% Master’s Degree or Higher 3% 6% 17% Catholic Schooling N/A, probably around 5% had some 11% of surveyed teens attended Catholic H.S. 35% had some