Pioneers of Latino Ministry

Traces the history of the Claretian Missionaries and their far-reaching influence on Latino Catholics

Pioneers of Latino Ministry tells the story of the Claretian Missionaries, a male Catholic congregation, dedicated to Latin American immigrants and their families on the margins of US society since 1902. The Claretians’ accompaniment of Latinos makes them distinct in American Catholic history. When the first Claretians arrived from Mexico, Spanish speakers were a small, often unrecognized part of Catholic America. Today Latinos constitute half of US Catholics.

The Claretians inaugurated parishes and schools in over fifteen states. Their outreach was felt in wider Catholic America as they published popular magazines, created missions in Central America, and fostered a now wide-spread devotion to St. Jude. They cultivated respect and dignity for Latino people in regions where wider society marginalized the newcomers. Because they encouraged education and leadership within their parishes, many Latinos emerged to lead and enhance US Catholic life as priests, female religious, and lay leaders. Today, the Claretians have circled back to their original mission in the US: committed to new generations of immigrants and their children.

Pioneers of Latino Ministry charts the history of the Claretians and their influence on Latino Catholics in the US, as well as on broader American Catholicism. Filled with compelling stories, the volume offers a vital portrait of unexplored Catholic American history.