August 12-14, 2011

A Catholic Summit on Faith, Citizenship and Public Policy:

Our Challenge and Our Responsibility

"I feel a tremendous sense of urgency."

Archbishop Jose H. Gomez

CALL's annual meeting was held in Denver, Colorado on August 12-14, 2011. We were fortunate to have Archbishop Jose Gomez, Archbishop Charles Chaput, Bishop Thomas Olmsted, Bishop Raul Chau, and Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani, the Cardinal Archbishop of Lima with us. We were also honored and blessed to have many other priest members of CALL from around the country in attendance.

First and foremost, we had the unique opportunity to gather in prayer and to celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass with such wonderful priests. It was truly a wonderful time of prayer and faith.

The conference challenged us to take our faith and translate it into action in every aspect of our lives - public and private. We had incredible presenters who enlightened, entertained, challenged and encouraged the assembly. Nowhere was this found to be more true this weekend than in the words of Archbishop Gomez when he addressed the gathering and said:

"It is one thing to acknowledge the fact that our country and our Church are becoming more and more Hispanic. That is simply the reality. What we do with that reality, however, is up to us."

We have been CALLed to action!

Presentations included:

- Our Role in the Universal Church: The Americas and Beyond by Cardinal Jose Luis Cipriani

- The Future of the Catholic Church in the U.S. - A Challenge to CALL by Archbishop Jose Gomez

- Our Changing Country: Population, Economic Impact and Projections by Dr. Mark Lopez

- Leadership and Love by Fr. Michael Barrett

- Preserving our Catholic Identity by Dr. Jonathan Reyes -Catholic Public Engagement: Choices, Decisions and Action, a panel discussion by Nora Urrea, Wendy Dominguez, Diana Vela and Nancy Hernandez

- Nation of Faith, Nation of Immigrants by Archbishop Charles Chaput

- Immigration Reform: Balancing Politics, Economics, Legal Issues and our Catholic Faith, a panel discussion by Dr. Brian Cadena, Carlos Iturregui and Bishop Thomas Olmsted

- The Global Economic Crisis: How Hispanics Might Consider and Respond by Frank J. Hanna, III, Chairman of Hanna Capital

- Faith, Public Policy and Politics, a panel discussion by Archbishop Jose Gomez, Archbishop Charles Chaput, and Bishop Thomas Olmsted

- CALL Moving Forward·- Our Response to Benedict XVI's Encyclical Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth) by Robert Aguirre -A CALL to Action by Chairman Ruben Escobedo

Saturday's Mass was for the intention of the repose of the soul of Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, and a long-time CALL supporter. Sunday's Mass was for the intention of long-time member and supporter Emilo Moure of the Knights of Columbus - a dear friend to CALL.·

Archbishop Pietro SambiEmilo Moure

The Board of Directors, in conjunction with CALL's Editorial Committee (Jose Gonzalez, Jose Ambrozic, and Archbishop Charles Chaput) unveiled a letter to Pope Benedict XVI from CALL. The letter included CALL's response in faith to the Holy Father's encyclical entitled Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth). In presenting the document to the assembly, Robert Aguirre, CALL's President and CEO, stated that it wasn't so much a letter or a document as much as it was a prayer, stating "This is our prayer." He noted that it was to be delivered in Rome by a CALL delegation in September.·

After the discussion on the "Caritas Prayer," Archbishop Gomez stated that CALL's next steps should be: To deepen our personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and then bring our faith to the issues of the day. To this Archbishop Charles Chaput noted that the Hispanic Catholic community can and will make a difference in public policy if they stand up and use their voice. Bishop Olmsted added his concluding comment - that we dedicate our efforts in the name of Our Lady of Guadalupe who should lead our every effort.

Chairman Escobedo ended the events of the weekend by reminding us of Cardinal Cipriani's message that we do not have to be large in numbers to make a difference. He challenged everyone to return home anxious to get to work for Our Lord, thus ending and incredible weekend of reflection and faith.

The Board of Directors of CALL wish to thank our corporate sponsors for their generous support. Thank you and may God bless you!

Mark your calendars!

2012 Conference dates are August 24-26, 2012. Location: TBA

CLICK HERE to review the various talks and presentations that are currently available.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us!