By Tom Tracy - Florida Catholic
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO
Piarist Father Rafael Capo, center, points to a map of the region where the SouthEast Pastoral Institute provides programs to develop Hispanic ministries and Hispanic Church leaders. With him are two of Florida's bishops, Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami and Bishop Gerald Barbarito of Palm Beach.
MIAMI � Last September, Father Rafael Cap�, an educator and religious priest from the Order of the Piarist Fathers (Escolapios), left the Archdiocese of San Juan, Puerto Rico and arrived in Miami to take the helm at arguably the most important Hispanic-Catholic institute in the U.S.: SEPI: Instituto Pastoral del Sureste, or Southeast Pastoral Institute.
Father Cap� also serves as regional director for Hispanic Ministry for the U.S. Bishops� Regions V and XIV. His appointment to SEPI follows the retirement of Piarist Father Mario Vizcaino, who for decades helped nurture ministry initiatives and educational programming in support of Hispanic church life in nine U.S. states.
Father Cap�, 43, spoke a while back with The Florida Catholic about the work of SEPI, his goals for the future and the state of Hispanic ministry in the Church in Florida and the U.S.
Let�s talk about your life, background and experience
I have mostly been involved in education, youth and vocation ministry in Puerto Rico and New York, but also in Mexico and Italy, and my studies are in education and theology. I received my bachelor�s and a master�s of education from Pontifical Catholic University in Puerto Rico; a bachelor�s in theology from Pontifical University in Mexico; a licentiate in theology from the Gregorian University in Rome; and a doctoral degree in ministry at Barry University. I have participated in many courses at other institutions like Yale University and the University of Notre Dame. I have been active in vocation ministry and was working most recently in Puerto Rico as a headmaster of a Catholic K-12 school and in several posts in the Archdiocese of San Juan.
How did you react to your new appointment?
Our (Piarist) Father General from Rome asked me to accept the nomination as director of SEPI, which has been entrusted to the Piarists for a longtime. Father Vizca�no, a Piarist, began this ministry more than 30 years ago. The news came to me at a moment in time where I was really engaged in the San Juan Archdiocese and in educational work there. It was a surprise. Though I hesitated at first, my general superior asked me to put it into prayer. It was by thinking of Blessed John Paul II�s call to not be afraid and to open wide the doors to Christ that I took the assignment, and I have been very happy and excited about this ministry. In September I had a transition process with Father Vizca�no and now look forward with excitement to this new adventure and ministry.
What kinds of things have you been focused on during these first months in your new position at SEPI?
I have been visiting the bishops in the USCCB regions V and XIV: 30 dioceses � The bishops have been very welcoming and enthusiastic about my appointment, as well as the diocesan Hispanic ministry directors. We have had some important events going on including a national meeting in San Antonio, Texas, with all the directors of organizations for Hispanic ministry gathered there. In Denver I went to a gathering of La Red, the network for Hispanic youth ministry, and some of SEPI�s important programs like the Regional Encuentro in St. Augustine, and our Hispanic youth ministry workshops.
What are you hearing from the bishops you spoke with?
The bishops want me to help the dioceses in implementing their plans for Hispanic ministry through assistance and support on the regional level. They need help in offering programs to develop more Hispanic leaders, ongoing formation for Hispanic deacons in the diocese, and in fostering inter-cultural relations. The bishops are very aware that the Catholic Church in the U.S. already has a great number of Hispanic Catholics and in the near future Hispanics will comprise a majority in the Catholic Church here. The Hispanic community has to be an important link in our society, and Hispanic youth ministry is perhaps the most important priority of our ministry. Young people are the vast majority of our Hispanic people in the country. They have to receive formation and leadership skills so that they can become leaders in our church in the future.
Tell us about SEPI today.
We have a very committed staff and many volunteers who work full and part time at our headquarters in Miami. Everyone is committed to the Church, to Hispanic ministry, and to evangelization through our programs in the region. We have Hispanic people from all backgrounds. They have made SEPI a reality, and perhaps the commitment of the Piarists, the laity, the staff, our volunteers, have made it possible for SEPI to be recognized by the bishops as the one of the strongest Hispanic pastoral institutes in the nation. It has become a beacon of lay leadership for the Catholic evangelization in the Church, an instrument of serious formation in theology, ministry, and leadership for Hispanic laity, and that is why the bishops support us so well.
Tell us about the new Hispanic immigration of the past decade and how that has perhaps differed from previous generations of immigrants.
The data from the last census showed the greatest numbers are people from Mexico, Puerto Rico and Cuba, but we have noticed that immigration from Central America has grown exponentially as well. Right now, more than half of the growth of the total population of the nation, 16 percent of the total U.S. population, now is Hispanic. That number has grown in all states especially New York, California, Texas, and Florida. In almost all areas of the nation the Hispanic population has grown, and those (government) numbers are even larger than our Church data. In Florida, the Hispanic population was 16 percent of the total population in 2000 while in 2010 it was almost 23 percent of the total. When people become aware of the numbers they realize an obligation to prepare more Hispanic leaders within the Church. We have to start right now to form lay leaders, clergy and seminarians from all cultural backgrounds.
Don�t vocations play a critical role in the future of Hispanic ministry in the U.S.?
I worked as vocation director in Puerto Rico and some East Coast states and now at SEPI I really look forward to sharing this important background, to make sure vocations discernment is a priority in our ministry with Hispanic youth. I have already met with the vocation director in Miami and several others in the Southeast Region. We have to realize vocation discernment is a key component of education at all levels and there is a need to create a vocations culture in the Church. This is something the pope and the bishops have stressed. In our Hispanic youth ministry and at all levels we need to foster a vocations culture �to create an atmosphere where the family and all Church institutions will be helping youth discover their calling and their place in the Church. We have to help young people discover their vocation, and the vocations culture has to be present at home, the parish, and all Church initiatives.
How are second generation Hispanics doing in the U.S., and in their integration to the Church?
People may say, �Well, the (Hispanic) youth who speak English should be involved in the regular youth ministry in the parish.� But to be born into a Hispanic family goes much deeper than language: It is a culture, a vision one has of the world. I just came back from a meeting of national Hispanic youth ministry and we met young people who speak English with their peers but they prefer to be involved in pastoral juvenil, Hispanic youth ministry, rather than the regular parish youth ministry. That is where they find their culture and spirituality, their home. This is a process of helping Hispanic youth � even those in a second generation � to value their roots, their culture and spirituality. We are showing the diverse cultural faces of the Church, its rich diversity, which is a God-given gift, and not just trying to integrate everyone in the same program.
What is new and interesting in Hispanic ministry around the region?
There is a particular challenge right now in immigration. It is a tough subject because it also deals with legal and political issues. Sometimes it even divides the Catholic community. We have to understand that welcoming the stranger is part of the values of our faith and we have to hear what our Church tells us about immigration in connection to Gospel values. We know we are facing a difficult legal situation in some states with severe penalties that are putting a burden on Church and society, and are discriminatory to the human being. In Alabama, for example, new laws are even scaring people from going to church because they fear they will be stopped by police. Schools are losing students and we will see consequences in the future. So we in the Church have to be solid in our faith and call for a balanced immigration reform.
At SEPI you have a program called School for Parents: What is that?
We help parents become fully involved in the education of their children. The program consists mostly of workshops and conferences. We also have a School of Ministries, which is a 150-hour study program in theology and pastoral ministry. We organize these schools in different dioceses and parishes all over the Southeast. Participants can earn a certificate which gives them leadership and theology skills so that they can become leaders in their parishes and small faith communities. We have had more than 1,600 graduates over the years and many of them are now in charge of Hispanic ministry at the local and national level. And we reach out to the Hispanic youth through eight pastoral programs which provide them with theological and pastoral formation as well as leadership skills.
You have some programs in collaboration with Barry University?
We also we have a formal master�s degree program in Hispanic pastoral ministry in partnership with Barry University at our SEPI campus in Miami. It is a pastoral program in the Spanish language. We also look forward to initiating a new doctoral program in Hispanic pastoral ministry that will help Hispanic ministry leaders acquire full credentials through a formal academic and professional education. We have many Hispanic ministry leaders with great experience and enthusiasm but many of them need to have additional tools and accreditation to take their preparation to the next level. This is also part of what SEPI is striving to do as an educational and service organization that guides and trains the community in responding to the needs of today�s world and Church.
Father Cap� also serves as regional director for Hispanic Ministry for the U.S. Bishops� Regions V and XIV. His appointment to SEPI follows the retirement of Piarist Father Mario Vizcaino, who for decades helped nurture ministry initiatives and educational programming in support of Hispanic church life in nine U.S. states.
Father Cap�, 43, spoke a while back with The Florida Catholic about the work of SEPI, his goals for the future and the state of Hispanic ministry in the Church in Florida and the U.S.
Let�s talk about your life, background and experience
I have mostly been involved in education, youth and vocation ministry in Puerto Rico and New York, but also in Mexico and Italy, and my studies are in education and theology. I received my bachelor�s and a master�s of education from Pontifical Catholic University in Puerto Rico; a bachelor�s in theology from Pontifical University in Mexico; a licentiate in theology from the Gregorian University in Rome; and a doctoral degree in ministry at Barry University. I have participated in many courses at other institutions like Yale University and the University of Notre Dame. I have been active in vocation ministry and was working most recently in Puerto Rico as a headmaster of a Catholic K-12 school and in several posts in the Archdiocese of San Juan.
Photographer: COURTESY PHOTO
Piarist Father Rafael Capo is the newly appointed director of the SouthEast Pastoral Institute (SEPI) in Miami.
Our (Piarist) Father General from Rome asked me to accept the nomination as director of SEPI, which has been entrusted to the Piarists for a longtime. Father Vizca�no, a Piarist, began this ministry more than 30 years ago. The news came to me at a moment in time where I was really engaged in the San Juan Archdiocese and in educational work there. It was a surprise. Though I hesitated at first, my general superior asked me to put it into prayer. It was by thinking of Blessed John Paul II�s call to not be afraid and to open wide the doors to Christ that I took the assignment, and I have been very happy and excited about this ministry. In September I had a transition process with Father Vizca�no and now look forward with excitement to this new adventure and ministry.
What kinds of things have you been focused on during these first months in your new position at SEPI?
I have been visiting the bishops in the USCCB regions V and XIV: 30 dioceses � The bishops have been very welcoming and enthusiastic about my appointment, as well as the diocesan Hispanic ministry directors. We have had some important events going on including a national meeting in San Antonio, Texas, with all the directors of organizations for Hispanic ministry gathered there. In Denver I went to a gathering of La Red, the network for Hispanic youth ministry, and some of SEPI�s important programs like the Regional Encuentro in St. Augustine, and our Hispanic youth ministry workshops.
What are you hearing from the bishops you spoke with?
The bishops want me to help the dioceses in implementing their plans for Hispanic ministry through assistance and support on the regional level. They need help in offering programs to develop more Hispanic leaders, ongoing formation for Hispanic deacons in the diocese, and in fostering inter-cultural relations. The bishops are very aware that the Catholic Church in the U.S. already has a great number of Hispanic Catholics and in the near future Hispanics will comprise a majority in the Catholic Church here. The Hispanic community has to be an important link in our society, and Hispanic youth ministry is perhaps the most important priority of our ministry. Young people are the vast majority of our Hispanic people in the country. They have to receive formation and leadership skills so that they can become leaders in our church in the future.
Tell us about SEPI today.
We have a very committed staff and many volunteers who work full and part time at our headquarters in Miami. Everyone is committed to the Church, to Hispanic ministry, and to evangelization through our programs in the region. We have Hispanic people from all backgrounds. They have made SEPI a reality, and perhaps the commitment of the Piarists, the laity, the staff, our volunteers, have made it possible for SEPI to be recognized by the bishops as the one of the strongest Hispanic pastoral institutes in the nation. It has become a beacon of lay leadership for the Catholic evangelization in the Church, an instrument of serious formation in theology, ministry, and leadership for Hispanic laity, and that is why the bishops support us so well.
Tell us about the new Hispanic immigration of the past decade and how that has perhaps differed from previous generations of immigrants.
The data from the last census showed the greatest numbers are people from Mexico, Puerto Rico and Cuba, but we have noticed that immigration from Central America has grown exponentially as well. Right now, more than half of the growth of the total population of the nation, 16 percent of the total U.S. population, now is Hispanic. That number has grown in all states especially New York, California, Texas, and Florida. In almost all areas of the nation the Hispanic population has grown, and those (government) numbers are even larger than our Church data. In Florida, the Hispanic population was 16 percent of the total population in 2000 while in 2010 it was almost 23 percent of the total. When people become aware of the numbers they realize an obligation to prepare more Hispanic leaders within the Church. We have to start right now to form lay leaders, clergy and seminarians from all cultural backgrounds.
Don�t vocations play a critical role in the future of Hispanic ministry in the U.S.?
I worked as vocation director in Puerto Rico and some East Coast states and now at SEPI I really look forward to sharing this important background, to make sure vocations discernment is a priority in our ministry with Hispanic youth. I have already met with the vocation director in Miami and several others in the Southeast Region. We have to realize vocation discernment is a key component of education at all levels and there is a need to create a vocations culture in the Church. This is something the pope and the bishops have stressed. In our Hispanic youth ministry and at all levels we need to foster a vocations culture �to create an atmosphere where the family and all Church institutions will be helping youth discover their calling and their place in the Church. We have to help young people discover their vocation, and the vocations culture has to be present at home, the parish, and all Church initiatives.
How are second generation Hispanics doing in the U.S., and in their integration to the Church?
People may say, �Well, the (Hispanic) youth who speak English should be involved in the regular youth ministry in the parish.� But to be born into a Hispanic family goes much deeper than language: It is a culture, a vision one has of the world. I just came back from a meeting of national Hispanic youth ministry and we met young people who speak English with their peers but they prefer to be involved in pastoral juvenil, Hispanic youth ministry, rather than the regular parish youth ministry. That is where they find their culture and spirituality, their home. This is a process of helping Hispanic youth � even those in a second generation � to value their roots, their culture and spirituality. We are showing the diverse cultural faces of the Church, its rich diversity, which is a God-given gift, and not just trying to integrate everyone in the same program.
What is new and interesting in Hispanic ministry around the region?
There is a particular challenge right now in immigration. It is a tough subject because it also deals with legal and political issues. Sometimes it even divides the Catholic community. We have to understand that welcoming the stranger is part of the values of our faith and we have to hear what our Church tells us about immigration in connection to Gospel values. We know we are facing a difficult legal situation in some states with severe penalties that are putting a burden on Church and society, and are discriminatory to the human being. In Alabama, for example, new laws are even scaring people from going to church because they fear they will be stopped by police. Schools are losing students and we will see consequences in the future. So we in the Church have to be solid in our faith and call for a balanced immigration reform.
At SEPI you have a program called School for Parents: What is that?
We help parents become fully involved in the education of their children. The program consists mostly of workshops and conferences. We also have a School of Ministries, which is a 150-hour study program in theology and pastoral ministry. We organize these schools in different dioceses and parishes all over the Southeast. Participants can earn a certificate which gives them leadership and theology skills so that they can become leaders in their parishes and small faith communities. We have had more than 1,600 graduates over the years and many of them are now in charge of Hispanic ministry at the local and national level. And we reach out to the Hispanic youth through eight pastoral programs which provide them with theological and pastoral formation as well as leadership skills.
You have some programs in collaboration with Barry University?
We also we have a formal master�s degree program in Hispanic pastoral ministry in partnership with Barry University at our SEPI campus in Miami. It is a pastoral program in the Spanish language. We also look forward to initiating a new doctoral program in Hispanic pastoral ministry that will help Hispanic ministry leaders acquire full credentials through a formal academic and professional education. We have many Hispanic ministry leaders with great experience and enthusiasm but many of them need to have additional tools and accreditation to take their preparation to the next level. This is also part of what SEPI is striving to do as an educational and service organization that guides and trains the community in responding to the needs of today�s world and Church.
