new world
the church in america

A Living Tilma
In one of the largest parishes on the West Coast, with an 80% Hispanic population, Fr. Dan Barnett proposed a novel pastoral approach that defies pre-packaging: “Encounter the humanity of Christ that vibrates in each person.” This call has borne much fruit, including the hugely successful Tri-Cities Encounter cultural festival, which clearly illuminated the origin of unity.

by Stephanie Hartwig and Nina Powers

“The key is to begin with who we are as human beings. I eat, you eat. You bring the tamales, I’ll bring the rice and we’ll share a meal and talk about life’s challenges. The human experience within the context of faith is so fundamental...” And thus began Fr. Dan Barnett’s mission at St. Patrick’s in Pasco, Washington, six years ago. With 5,000 people at Sunday Mass at this parish embracing 20,000 faithful, it is one of the largest on the West Coast–unique in that Hispanics represent 80% of the 8,900 families. The community includes not only Hispanics but people from all over the world, and the temptation to division is great.
Is Fr. Barnett bogged down by the needs of this colossal multi-lingual parish? On the contrary: he embraces them. For example, he and a small support group recently organized the most radical evangelical event undertaken by the parish: “Tri-Cities Encounter 2013: A Place for Us”–along the lines of the New York Encounter. This initiative was a direct fruit of his “Into the Deep!” pastoral plan. He explains, “The fundamental task of a pastor is to help develop the ‘I’ of each person, so that we can say ‘I’ in full communion with Christ and the Church. The experience of the 3,000 attending the Encounter is evidence of that.”
Fr. Barnett saw this weekend-long event as an “opportunity to discover what makes us truly human.” Indeed, the discovering was in act: among the sights were nuns in long white habits trying their hands at stage combat from the Shakespeare Theater Company, Mexican children dancing with the traditional Irish dance troupe, and nationally acclaimed conductors and directors sharing personal stories with a group of college students in the lobby. During the Sunday festival, an agent approached the folkloric dance troupe “Cielo de Mexico” to book them for a future event, surprised to discover the dancers were parish youth who volunteered on their own initiative, practicing two hours per day to be able to perform at the Encounter. Throughout the weekend, live tours of exhibits were held in the side conference rooms, such as “They Died for Freedom: The Cristeros of Mexico.” This exhibit, presented in collaboration with the New York Encounter, included the relics of six of the martyrs. It left many stunned and in tears as it related their own history.
There was a spectacular display on Our Lady of Guadalupe as Mother of a Civilization of Love, and the unifier of America, presented by the Knights of Columbus, who helped invite Msgr. Eduardo Chavez to the Encounter. The world’s foremost expert on the Guadalupe apparitions, and postulator for the cause of the canonization of St. Juan Diego, in his keynote speech he explained that Our Lady of Guadalupe is “a symbol of hope, love, and unity for everyone in the world, rising above ethnic and national partisanship.” A message well met in the Tri-Cities of Pasco, Kennewick, and Richland.

Myriad discussions. One of the stage managers watching from behind the curtain, after hearing this exuberant speech, exclaimed, “Amazing! This is not the Church I left!” Another professed agnostic string player stated, “I can’t believe the Catholic Church is sponsoring this.” These observances launched myriad discussions over the two days. After the Mid-Columbia Symphony, (having performed Wagner’s “Tristan and Isolde” and a Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto the night before) along with the Mid-Columbia Mastersingers, began to play the Mexican folk song “La Guadalupana,” the audience stood and joined in singing full volume. Shouts of “Viva Cristo Rey!” filled the theater. A Buddhist violinist, amazed at the scene, turned to his stand partner to ask how they could catalyze more such events like this in the Northwest. “Truly, I’ve never seen anything like this.”
The Encounter was a chance to acknowledge and explore the unity personified by Our Lady of Guadalupe and lived in St. Patrick Parish. Our Lady appeared to Juan Diego as a mestiza (“mixed race”) Aztec princess, saying, “I am honored to be your compassionate mother, yours and that of all the people that live together in this land.” At the time, there were no national borders; her message is for all from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego. Further, as Mother of the Church, she shows in herself that the Church is mestiza–a communion of persons. Looking at the diverse crowd, Chavez brought it home for all in attendance: “This is it! This is the Church–a living tilma–and it’s beautiful!”

Invitation to Rome. Father Barnett explains the origin of not only the Encounter, but all parish activity: “We began from the fact that we are already united, putting our faith in Christ who has brought us together.   Then we desired, in this Year of Faith, to tell the world that the object of our striving is neither an object nor a theory, but a Person. He’s alive here and now, and His name is Jesus.”
It should not have come as a surprise that, this past December, Fr. Barnett was invited to participate in the international conference on the document Ecclesia in America. Held 15 years after the Synod for the Church in America under John Paul II that gave rise to the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in America, the 2012 conference in Rome explored various aspects of ecclesial life in the Americas (where more than 50%–and growing–of the world’s Catholics live). Topics included education, charity (especially toward the poor), and, in particular, the role of the Virgin Mary in leading Christians in America to Christ.
What was it about St. Patrick’s that caught the attention of the Ecclesia conference organizers? Fr. Barnett ponders his initial outlook of six years ago: “When I arrived here, I had a vision of an integrated parish, attentive to the dignity of each person.” Unity is the critical link between the message of Ecclesia in America and the pastoral “plan” lived out at St. Patrick’s, which culminated recently in the Encounter. Unveiling an authentic unity in a parish of souls wherein a third are Spanish-only speakers, a third are bilingual, and a third are English-only speakers was a daunting task, but inspired by the Holy Spirit. “My first thought was, ‘How can we bring the parish together?’ In such a large parish, it is very easy to get lost in a crowd.” In addition, the English- and Spanish-speaking populations were segregated by different programs and structures. “As is so often the case, it was like two parishes existed under one roof.” At the same time, the younger generations often felt ignored and alienated. “They do not want to reject their heritage, but they also don’t want to live in the past. A new culture is needed.” The problem was evident; the solution, not so much. Enlightened by the teaching of Msgr. Lorenzo Albacete during a Communion and Liberation Priest Retreat, Fr. Barnett internalized the notion that a culture cannot be created. “It must be generated as a child is generated: between people who love one another. So we began with the presumption that we are already united by a common humanity and, even deeper, by our sacramental unity in Christ. That changes everything.”
Sacramental prep classes, with separate texts and standards for Spanish and English, turned into classes for parents, teaching on the deep significance of the sacraments and a fuller understanding of the faith. The parents were taught, but the children were tested, promoting communication and empowering parents to take their place as primary educators of their children. Segregated young adult groups gave way to the integrated Grupo Frassati which meets weekly to pray, learn, and serve as they discern their vocations. The once-a-week meeting of this remarkably unified and energetic group has perhaps been one of the biggest surprises. Monica, a blonde, fair-skinned 21-year-old in the group, talks about the novelty she encountered: “All that was really needed, I discovered, was my presence. I came contributing absolutely nothing and, even so, they accepted me whole heartedly. Some of us also have School of Community together and sometimes one of the group will translate for another. We always push toward understanding. It’s very rewarding.” Some of the Spanish-speaking college students expressed their fear of being judged as “poor rancheros, poorly socialized, less educated or less intelligent.” Monica states that what she found was quite the opposite: “I found them to be more hospitable and self-confident, more polite, and absolutely charming.” One parish employee–who was the Encounter event coordinator–talks more about this new generation of life in the parish, starting with herself: “After college, when I joined my local parish, I became disillusioned as I lost the experience of a vibrant community life within the Church. When I first visited this parish, I saw a priest with a love for the person of Christ, with a very overt focus on the Eucharist, and I was deeply compelled. I moved my family of seven children here because I saw the faith was alive and I wanted to be a part of it!”
What is new about this place? “We do School of Community together. Along with the daily tasks, working here has meant carefully reading Church documents, the writings of Pope Francis, Benedict XVI, Blessed John Paul II, and Giussani, among others. Always searching for truth. Discussing, praying, writing, discussing some more, and then acting...” What about her kids, ages 12 to 22? “They too have grown in response to this environment–this is visible, not only through their initiative in attending daily Mass, but in their move from a moralistic understanding of religion to a relationship with the Person of Christ–and this makes all the difference.”

To the Northernmost reaches. Fr. Barnett’s intuition that Christianity needs to “encounter the humanity of Christ, and show the whole potential, the beauty, and the truth of the person” has become a living reality. Fr. Barnett will soon be transferred to the northernmost reaches of the state. From a parish of 8,900 families, he will be serving several rural parishes numbering from 6 to 330 families, many living on Indian reservations near the Canadian border. He faces this transition with confidence: “The Church is a communion of persons. Christ calls us together, then He sends us out.”