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Catholic Churches in Benton County are part of the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana, which extends east to west from the Ohio to the Illinois borders, as far north as Newton and Jasper Counties in northwest Indiana, and as far south as Boone and Hamilton Counties just north of Indianapolis. It includes 61 parishes organized into 48 pastorates.

We spoke with a staff member from the diocese who told us the diocese used to have a Hispanic ministry with its own staff but that staff members had been separated into different offices. Although staff are dispersed, the Hispanic ministry still exists, and it offers many programs, such as liturgical formation, a Hispanic youth group, the Hispanic Leaders Association, the National Eucharistic Revival, and links to resources such as marriage preparation classes and information on becoming Catholic, scheduling quinceañeras, and the Church’s policy on protecting children. All of this information is available in Spanish on the Hispanic ministry—or Ministerio Hispano—webpage.

From June through October, the diocese conducts a migrant ministry, which reaches out to the migrant community to encourage them to come to Mass. It also offers sacraments to migrants, including Reconciliation (also known as “Confession”), as well as catechism classes and prayer groups. The ministry does not, however, provide any outreach in terms of food, clothing, or other resources.

Since there are no specific staff members in the diocese’s Hispanic ministry, much of the outreach to Spanish-speakers is being done by individual parishes as they see fit. The work is therefore done by individual parishes that have higher populations of Spanish-speakers. For instance, our contact from the diocese said that Lafayette area parishes were making more concerted efforts to reach out to the Spanish-speaking community. They are trying to implement more Spanish Masses and celebrate different holidays and feast days in Spanish. She also told us that there are efforts to bring Spanish-speaking communities together across parishes, as well as to help the English- and Spanish-speaking populations within parishes interact with one another.

The Catholic Church must navigate difficult terrain given the political climate surrounding immigration in the United States. Not only is it the largest global collection of Christians, but it is also the faith of many Spanish-speaking immigrants who come to the United States. As a result, Church leadership, from the pope to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to the bishop of the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana, have encouraged balance between national border security and protection of the Catholic Church’s own global community. Last fall, the pope said, “I think every country has the right to determine who enters, how, and when.” He also insisted, “We have to look for ways of treating people humanely, treating people with the dignity that they have. If people are in the United States illegally, there are ways to treat that. There are courts. There’s a system of justice.” These same sentiments are reflected in an “Official Statement on Immigration in the United States” written by the bishop of the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana and posted on the diocese’s website.

The Catholic Church offers the best example of the balancing act facing so many Christian congregations who wish to care for their new neighbors: How do they maintain what they value about their faith community, acknowledge the order and fairness that laws provide, and also open their doors and hearts to new neighbors who might be very different?

Certainly, there is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. Each congregation grappling with this question must find an approach that makes sense in their own context. That process requires curiosity, exploration, open minds, and time to figure out what will work.

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