Declaration of the
Coalition of Episcopal Latinos
(CEL)





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A Declaration from the Coalition of Episcopal Latinos
to the House of Bishops

Coalición de Episcopales Latinos
(Coalition of Episcopal Latinos)

A Declaration from CEL to the House of Bishops

September 17, 2010
Scottsdale, Arizona

The Hispanic/Latino Ministry is starting to flourish in our church.  It has been a long and difficult journey.  Now we are looking forward to the day that our efforts will yield an abundant crop.  A quick recall of some important steps is necessary.

  • When the Rev. Daniel Caballero was the Missioner for Hispanic Ministry, a document entitled “The Atlanta Manifesto” (also known as A Call to Action) was presented to the church.  It was the result of a meeting that took place in Atlanta on Easter Monday, 2001, involving several Hispanic Bishops of the Church.  Four factors were identified as key in determining the peculiarity of Hispanic/Latino Ministry: language, culture, immigration, and poverty.

  • The urgency for this meeting was two-fold: the 2000 Census reported an Hispanic population of 35 million and a projection of 80 million people of Hispanic ancestry by the year 2050.  We were told that “United States demographics are evolving and we must change with them.”  At the General Convention held in Colorado in 1997, the church was urged to embrace this ministry.

  • Once again in the spirit of the document “Doubling by 2020” approved at the 73rd General Convention (GC 2000, Resolution A033),  the connection between church growth and serious commitment to Hispanic/Latino Ministry was highlighted. 

  • In 2002 an encounter called “Nuevo Amanecer I” (New Dawn I) was held in Los Angeles, Calif., with over 200 persons in attendance.  It was concluded that “the mission of the Church is incomplete without the gifts of the Latino communities and their cultural richness.”  Bishop Wilfrido Ramos-Orench stated that the Latino community “is a catalytic change agent for the church.”

  • At the 76th General Convention convened in Anaheim, Calif., in 2009, the Rev. Anthony Guillén presented a Strategic Vision for Reaching Latinos/Hispanics.  A resolution (D038), -which called for the House of Bishops to affirm this strategy-, committed us to its implementation and commended it as a model for planning mission strategy with Latino/Hispanic people.

  • Perhaps after decades of visioning, attempting, establishing commissions, strategizing, succeeding and failing, the time has come for the Episcopal Church to ask itself, once more, the hard questions about its involvement and commitment to ministry among Latino/Hispanic people.  Perhaps it might even be time to re-visit the possibility of a Gospel mandate for such a ministry.

  • Jesus declared as a main objective of his ministry “to bring good news to the poor … to proclaim release to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Lk 4, 18-19).  For “in as much as you did it unto the least of these who are members of my family, you did it unto me…”  (Mt.25:40).  And finally he commanded us to carry this mission to the ends of the earth (Mt 18:19-20).

  • Over the years several attempts have been made to create an organization that is, in the words of Bishop Leo Frade at the New Dawn I meeting, “efficient and independent, that represents all Hispanic/ Latino people of the church, (and) that allows us to double our efforts and reassess the evangelization mission and the struggle for the rights of our Latin American brothers and sisters.”

  • In the past, the efforts for creating such an organization did not come to fruition.  Perhaps the time wasn’t ripe.  But today we are proud to announce to you the creation of the Coalición de Episcopales Latinos (Coalition of Episcopal Latinos) or CEL.

  • At an Immigration Summit that took place in April 2009 at the Franciscan Renewal Center at Scottsdale, Arizona, the Rev. Carmen Guerrero experienced a wake-up call.  She realized at that meeting how badly Hispanics needed to be represented with a united voice on issues related to immigration, as well as other justice issues in the church.  This is what prompted the creation of CEL.

  • CEL is an organization that strives to provide a united voice for the interests of the Hispanic/Latino people and the Hispanic ministry in our church.  It is an organization that advocates with a united voice for the issues related to the Hispanic people.

  • As members of the Coalition of Episcopal Latinos, we are here in an attempt to do justice for people whose lives have often times been devoid of justice.  We are here to advocate mercy for a people often not shown mercy because of their background.  And we are here to walk humbly with our God as we share the Gospel with people who are hungry to know how much God loves them.  We hope that our church can be a catalyst for showing that justice, mercy and love in a concrete way.

  • We are committed to working hard for the good of this ministry, the good of our church, and especially for the expansion of the kingdom of God.  We invite you to support our efforts, give us your blessings, and join us in this commitment as we work together toward a brighter future in our church.

Board of Directors

Rvda. Canon Carmen B. Guerrero, Presidente
Rvdmo. Leo Frade, Obispo de la Diócesis del Sudeste de Florida

Rvdo. Canon Isaías A. Rodríguez, Vicepresidente
Rvda. Anna B. Lange-Soto, Secretaria
Sr. Manny Mesa, Tesorero
Rvdo. “Butch” Floyd Gamarra, Director regional
Rvdo. Silvestre Romero, Asesor de jóvenes
Rvdo. Enrique Cadena, vocal
Rvdo. George Sotelo, vocal

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