Church Culture Expanding

Rev. Marcos León began his sermon as people were still emerging from the back of St. Gabriel’s Church, looking aimlessly among the multitude of faces to find an empty spot in the pews on Sunday, Nov. 30. An acoustic guitar accompanied hymns that echoed throughout the grand Gothic Revival-style church on Wyoming Street, and parishioners sang along to the holy music – in Spanish.

This much action in church would have been unusual at St. Gabriel’s five years ago. “The community was dying,” said León, a visiting priest from North Carolina whose brother, Rev. Victor León, is the assistant pastor and head of Hispanic ministry at St. Gabriel’s.

Parishioners show their commitment every Sunday. Rudy Pineda Viera said faith is in his blood. “My father always taught me it’s very, very important.” After coming to Hazleton two years ago from El Salvador, the twenty-something Pineda Viera knew exactly where to go to feel at home again. Even though Irish descendants built St. Gabriel’s in 1927, it’s the Spanish-language mass that gets the most attendance today.

Culture of the City, Brings Change to Church

It wasn’t until the influx of Hispanic and Latino immigration to Hazleton that the church’s gloomy fate was forever changed. And Victor’s presence at the parish sparked an even greater change – the number of Hispanic and Latin families at the parish grew from 900 to 1250 since he came to the church in July.

“It’s overwhelming,” said Kate Conahan, who’s been the church’s secretary for 33 years. “They have far more attendance [at Spanish masses].” The number of Spanish-speaking churchgoers increased so drastically, a second Spanish mass on Sunday evenings was required to accommodate the parishioners.

What’s happening in this Hazleton church is part of a pattern seen throughout the United States. “The growth of the Catholic church in a predominately Latino community is not surprising,” said Dr. Mary Hinton, assistant professor of religious studies.

According to a 2007 study by The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, 68 percent of Hispanics in the United States are Catholic, and more than half (55 percent) of Hispanic Catholics said Spanish was their primary language. But language alone is not enough to rebuild an entire church community. Before Victor came along, the Spanish-language mass was conducted by Rev. John C. Ruth, a non-Hispanic minister fluent in Spanish. It wasn’t until the priest from Peru arrived that attendance skyrocketed.

“They just took to him like a magnet,” said Conahan. “It’s nice to have someone you can communicate with.”

Parishioners and priests agree. “It is about creating identity,” said Ignatio Beato, president of Concerned Parents of the Hazleton Area, a non-profit organization dedicated to the education, safety and security of children within the community. He believes the Hispanic and Latino population needs a way to be united into one community, and the best way to achieve this is through the church.

The crowd is pretty unified anyway – about 80 to 85 percent of parish families are of Dominican descent, according to León. “When they come to church, it’s like, ‘Let’s go to the Dominican Republic, just for an hour,’” he said.

City Adjusts to People

“Since the scandal, people started coming back to church,” said León. He refers to Hazleton mayor Louis Barletta’s 2006 introduction of the Illegal Immigration Relief Act Ordinance, which would suspend permits and licenses of employers and landlords who hire or house illegal immigrants in Hazleton. A court struck down the ordinance in 2007. The city filed an appeal and is now awaiting a decision. Under the ordinance, anyone could file a complaint against a business or landlord.

The city’s 2006 Official English Ordinance requires city documents to be printed in English – a language Victor struggles to understand without a translator.

“[At church], you can feel comfortable,” said León. “You don’t feel like an outsider.”

It’s not just about accommodating the Spanish-speaking community. The church emphasizes understanding between cultures, and this welcoming environment attracts all parishioners.

The church’s clergy is primarily comprised of priests from the Oblates of St. Joseph, a religious order dedicated to mission work, which includes helping other churches that are short-staffed. St. Gabriel’s Church went from having one minister to three thanks to the order. “They bring totally different ideas to the church, and they present things in a different way,” said Conahan. “It’s just a change.”

And where there’s growth, there’s green. The Spanish mass donations have nearly tripled since Victor’s arrival in July – from about $350 a week to “well over $1,000,” said Conahan.

This is exceptional given the current state of churches in Luzerne County. The Diocese of Scranton has closed, and will be closing, dozens of churches, but St. Gabriel’s is not one of them. In fact, the church welcomed parishioners from Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church on Church Street, which officially closed Nov. 29.

Growth for Mutual Parties

Opportunities for community growth outside of mass have expanded, too. “[Victor] has a lot of programs going on now,” said Conahan.

Sometimes the turnout for these events is staggering. Organizers for one retreat expected about 100 people to attend, and nearly 250 showed up for the event. “[The organizers] didn’t know what to do. They wondered if there was enough food,” said León.

Attendance at both the English and Spanish masses are increasing, but not only because of the language. The non-Hispanic community comes to Spanish mass because “[they] like the music,” while Hispanic churchgoers may opt to attend the English mass because it’s “more solemn, more quiet,” said León.

“The diversity makes it a unique place,” he said. León should know – at both of the churches he oversees in North Carolina, he sees a cross-culture forming between the Hispanic and Latin communities and non-Hispanic attendants. He speaks at more services in English, but his unique presence is what draws attendance.

“More people come because of the accent,” he said.

Conahan also feels the diversity in the church is important, especially in a city where there has been a fair amount of tension. “It’s about two different cultures coming together,” she said. “People are coming around, finally.”