More than 140 Hispanic catechists and families gathered for their annual retreat on Aug. 28 at La Sagrada Familia Parish on Cleveland’s West Side.
Bishop Edward Malesic was the principal celebrant of the opening Mass, with Father Alex Spenik, parochial vicar at St. Mary Parish in Painesville and Father Francisco Honorato, Sagrada Familia pastor, as concelebrants. Assisting with the liturgy were Deacon Francisco Miranda from St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Cleveland and Deacon Epifanio Torres from Sagrada Familia Parish. Although unable to be at the Mass, Father Chris Zerucha, pastor of St. Bernard and St. Mary Parishes in Akron joined the gathering later.
Bishop Malesic reminded the catechists and families that their faith is a gift that must be shared. “Our faith is the only way to heaven,” he added. “How will people know that God loves them if we don’t share our faith? Faith is like a muscle. It gets flabby if it’s not exercised and a flabby muscle will do you no good.”
The bishop told the group he is proud of them and encouraged parents to continue taking their children to Mass so they could experience it and learn about it. Otherwise, “It’s like giving a child a bike with no instructions on how to ride it,” the bishop said. Without instruction in their faith, children will not know Jesus and won’t have strong faith. He said receiving the sacraments of Communion, reconciliation and confirmation are not “graduations.” Instead, they give the recipients strength and put them before God. He said Mary is our advocate, noting she takes us to herself and to God.
There are seven Hispanic parishes in the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland: St. Michael the Archangel, La Sagrada Familia and Our Lady of Lourdes in Cleveland; Sacred Heart Chapel in Lorain; St. Mary Parish in Painesville; St. Mary Parish in Wooster; St Agnes Parish in Orville; and St. Bernard Parish in Akron.
The mission of Hispanic catechesis in the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland is to offer a formation in Spanish for catechists in communities with Hispanic ministry. According to Hortensia Rodriguez, catechetical formation leader for the Western area and Hispanic parishes, this religious education offers the clear and solid elements of the faith and helps them to transmit a catechesis directed to a sacramental, dignified and beautiful human life in their communities. She said this formation would help the catechists to promote knowledge of the faith, liturgical education, moral formation, prayer, education for community life and initiation for the mission.
Part of the formation is to offer an annual retreat, which is one requirement for basic certification. At this year’s retreat, Gerardo “Lalo” Salazar, national bilingual consultant of religion, directed the retreat. One of the goals of the retreat is to reaffirm the vocation and identify parents and catechists. Salazar offered reflections, dynamics and music throughout the daylong event.
Salazar, who is Mexican American, is a native of Mexico. He previously lived in Los Angeles, California, and currently lives in Houston, Texas. Salazar said his mother consecrated him to San Gerardo, whose name means “sword of God,” and to the Virgen del Carmen. Salazar is married and the father of 10 children.
He has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and communications, a master’s degree in theology and ministry and a doctorate in ministry with a specialty in Hispanic catechetical leadership. He is a national consultant for Sadlier, a longtime publisher of Catholic catechetical formation materials – both print and digital -- in the United States. The company has a complete line of materials in Spanish to serve the needs of Spanish-speaking Catholic families.
Prior to joining Sadlier, Salazar spent eight years as director of the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis for the formation of Hispanic catechists and catechetical leaders in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. He is a professor of theology at the University of St. Thomas in Houston.
He led three sessions at the retreat:
- “Called to be Catechists,” which focused on the baptismal vocation of the catechist, catechesis and ministry of the Word and the fundamental tasks of catechists.
- “The Joy of Being Catechists,” which looked at being a catechist in light of the evangelizing vision of Pope Francis, characteristics of a catechist, sacramental life and the post-pandemic family.
- “The Spirituality of the Hispanic Catechist,” which noted that everything begins with an encounter with Jesus and the importance of sacramental life.
Greg Coogan, secretary for catechetical formation for the diocese, thanked the catechists and families for their attendance at the retreat, their ministry and their devotion.
Click here for more information on catechetical formation.