Speaker: Accompaniment, worship, works of mercy can help struggling church

The three challenges facing both the U.S. Catholic Church and this country right now are segregation, polarization and resignation, Boston College professor Hosffman Ospino told attendees at the 58th Annual Southwest Liturgical Conference Study Week in Tucson.

The keynote address by one of the foremost experts on the growth of the Hispanic presence in the U.S. church and culture was unblinking in its criticism of the church and U.S. culture, though optimistic that with hard work, both could be turned around.

"There is racism in our church," Ospino said in his Jan. 18 speech. "Everybody knows where the black parishes are."

The racism is both linguistic and social, he added. In dioceses, parishes are designated as Hispanic, or Korean or Vietnamese, for example, and little effort is made to provide for the pastoral needs of those cultural communities outside those designated parishes.

Noting that Asian Catholics are the fastest growing population in the U.S. church, Ospino issued this warning: "If you are struggling with (learning) Spanish, try Vietnamese."

Polarization is also a problem in the church and the nation. "Traditional vs. progressive, liberal vs. conservative — these categories are un-Christian," he said.

The danger comes as well from focusing on single issues. "Abortion is dividing us. We still haven't grown out of that. We are a dysfunctional society and a dysfunctional church."

Finally, resignation as a response also has cast a pall upon the faithful. "Far too many Catholics are settling for the status quo," he said. "We are resigned to being an aging church."

While Anglo leaders, including bishops, have lamented the closing of schools and parishes and the decline of vocations, secular culture has been drawing away the only area where the church has been growing. During the span of two generations, "we have lost 60 million Latino and Latina Catholics."

"We are a community in decline. We are paralyzed," Ospino said.

The church has within it the power to overcome these challenges, however. "We need to live prophetic lives in prophetic worship," he said.

He listed five characteristics that he said point the church in the right direction.

First, "we are children of the same God regardless of our differences." Second, the church is at its core egalitarian. All are equal through baptism, he said. Third, through liturgy, we are forgiving. Reconciliation is always possible and completely necessary. Fourth, we are all fed by the Eucharist. It satisfies our hunger and no one is lifted higher than another at the Lord's table, Ospino said. Fifth, it is the liturgy that brings us together.

"It is time to start living as prophetic children of the Lord," he said.

Earlier in his address, Ospino noted that the liturgical conference, because of who it draws and the impact it has in the Southwest region and beyond, "continues to lead the way" nationally in ways to see liturgy driving the greater mission of the church.

Whether participants come from local parishes or represent large urban dioceses, "the most important expertise is being baptized in Jesus Christ," he said.

He cited the liturgical conference's theme: "Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life."/"Glorifiquen al Senor con su vida. Pueden ir en paz." He noted three essential parts of the theme: being sent out into the world, the missionary nature of liturgy and the opportunity to do it all for the glory of God.

"Worship continues in our everyday lives. Worship never ends," Ospino said. "As long as the Holy Spirit works in our everyday lives, worship never ends.

Known for his groundbreaking work on charting the rise of Hispanics in the U.S. Catholic Church and as a key theological adviser for the V Encuentro, Ospino launched into a series of data points to set the stage:

— Forty-five percent of all Catholics today currently self-identify as Hispanic.